Nine Realms

Chapters

First Contact
The Village
Across the Sea
The Sacred Grove
Larger Than Life
To the Root
The Wise One
Infiltration
The King
Beneath the Mountain
A Prince's Offer
Barren Lands
Treasure
Realm of Fire
A Brief Calm
Blazing
The Mountain
Ruler of Fire
The Fall
Unexpected Help
The Bridge
Fate
Frozen Root
Through the Pass
World of Light
Provided For
The River
Rock Pool in the Forest
A Dangerous Welcome
Woman in the Water
Peace and Soup
To the Bridge
The Gatekeeper
Asgard
A Caged Beast
King of Kings
Home
Awakening
Enter the Forge
If you go down to the woods today...

First Contact

"What...what are those things?!"

Rainbow’s sense of confusion was shared by pretty much the entire group, as they gazed out on what now lay before them. From the edge of the forest where they all stood, there was a sloping hill, and at the bottom of it, there was a small valley, with a winding river running through it. But, at the edge of that river, there appeared to be a small village of some kind. Wooden huts with straw roofs, and a great fire roaring right in the centre of it, with the one notable piece of architecture being a single house, much longer than all the rest, near the edge of the place. However, it was the people that drew the most confusion, as they were unlike anything any of them had ever seen before, walking on two legs and clad in furs and leathers, often blonde in their hair, which some had taken to putting into various styles of braids. While most of the mares looked to this with uncertainty, Twilight and Spike gave each other knowing looks, then simultaneously glanced back down to the village.

"They're...they're humans!" Twilight exclaimed.

All of their friends looked to her, and it was Rarity who asked the question that all of them had burning on their minds right now.

"Humans? But, darling, aren't they the beings you said resided on the other side of the magic mirror?"

Frowning slightly, Twilight nodded.

"They are. But there's no doubt about it, those are definitely humans."

Pinkie, hearing this, put on a wide grin.

"Aha! That explains it! The map's magic went crazy and zapped us through the mirror, right?"

Twilight paused on that. The mirror was the only means she knew of to get to the human world, so Pinkie's argument did actually make some sense. And yet, several points gnawed at her mind, prompting her to shake her head.

"No...I don't think so. The mirror only ever took us to one specific place, the outside of Canterlot High. And this...definitely isn’t that place."

She turned, looking to her party-loving friend.

"And besides, these people here seem...well...less advanced than the human society I came across via the mirror. This...this is somewhere else entirely."

Pinkie's ears drooped slightly after having been told that her theory was incorrect, but then she soon perked up again when Fluttershy began to speak up.

"But...what about some other way? We know there are other means of getting to the human world, like when Starswirl banished the Sirens? He didn't need the mirror to do it."

Twilight nodded.

"Yes...that's true. So we might be dealing with something along those lines. Although..."

Slowly, she realised her hoof, staring at it for a moment.

"...every time someone from our world has been sent to the world of humans, they themselves have become human, with the exception of Spike."

At that, the young dragon folded his arms and gave a huff.

"I was a dog," he grumbled.

Twilight smiled to this, but then focused her attention yet again on the village below.

"Regardless of how we got here, these are the only people we've met so far. At the very least, they'll know where we are, and from that, we can get our bearings."

Applejack looked down to the village herself, then turning her eyes to her alicorn colleague.

"Are ya sure askin' em is the right call, Twi? We don't know if they're friendly."

Twilight sighed.

"I know...but what other option do we have?"

Her question hung in the minds of her friends for a time, and they all looked to one another. Sure enough, none of them actually did know of any other alternatives to their leader's suggestion, prompting another long sigh on Twilight's part. So, taking a moment to compose herself, Twilight started to walk forward.

"Okay, but remember, we have to be careful. This may well be the first time these humans have ever seen people like us. This is a first contact situation, so it has to be handed with care."

Rarity swept aside some of her mane, which had blown in front of her face due to the still-blowing cold winds, and nodded to her friend's words.

"There's no need to fret, darling. I assure you we are the very model of diplomacy!"

Rainbow chuckled.

"Yeah! And if they give us trouble, we know what to do!"

Rarity rolled her eyes to her friend's display of bravado, and opened her mouth to counter it. Unfortunately, before she could even get a single word out, she was kept from doing so when, all of a sudden, something fast and sharp shot right at them from the side, burying itself in the ground in front of them. All of the mares and Spike took a simultaneous step backwards, and looked on to see that it was, to their shock, an axe. Immediately, all heads turned, and they saw, to their horror, that a group of those humans were already upon them, having apparently been further along the tree line where they had been standing. How long they had been there, they did not know, but now they had been spotted, and were immediately being set upon. With round wooden shields and brandishing swords and axes, the local humans charged forward, shouting battle cries in a tongue the Equestrians didn't understand. However, they did understand the concept of being attacked, and so Rainbow immediately got to work.

"They asked for it!"

And she darted off before anypony could stop her.

"Rainbow! No!" Twilight called out.

But it was too late, as her pegasus friend immediately rushed forward, using her great speed to give a full-on frontal assault to their attackers. Before the humans realised what was going on, the one at the centre of their group now received a high-speed head-butt to his midriff, sending him flying backwards and right into a nearby tree, knocking him out. Naturally, the other humans, who had not been expecting these strange creatures to fight back, looked on with disbelief at what had just happened. As for Rainbow, she flapped her wings, rising high into the skies and looking down at the attackers.

"Alright, you guys! I don't know what you want, but if you think we're going to sit by and let you attack us, you've got another thing coming!"

And it was right at that point where the clouds in the skies above them began to give way, unleashing a single beam of sunlight. Coincidentally, that light was right behind Rainbow, and so bathed her in that glow to the humans below her. Awe came to their expressions, and they slowly looked down to the other ponies. They gained confusion, surprise, even a little fear, and then, without warning, several of them got down to their knees and, to the surprise of the Equestrians, actually started to pray. They still didn't understand what language they were saying, but they recognised deference when they saw it, and slowly, Rainbow got down to the ground, looking over to Twilight.

"Er...what's going on?"

Stepping forward, Twilight shook her head.

"I don't know, but..."

She glanced to her friend.

"...it's stopped the fighting, so let's focus on that."

Again, she moved forward, and after clearing her throat, she spoke up. She knew they couldn't understand her, and that she still couldn’t understand them, but even so, she hoped they would recognise an attempt at diplomacy when they saw it.

"My name is Twilight Sparkle...and we mean you no harm."

Several of the humans, the ones who hadn’t started praying, looked to one another and began to whisper. The mares watched, hoping for some peace in all of this, but nevertheless ready to flee if things went south. Then, when the whispering was done, the largest of them, brandishing a particularly sharp-looking axe, looked to them with steely resolve, then used his weapon to point down to the village at the bottom of the hill. Twilight looked down to it as well, and when understanding came to her, she nodded to the towering human, before glancing back to her friends.

"I think...we've been given a chance to talk."

The Village

As they'd expected, the reception in the village wasn't exactly the friendliest they'd ever had. Actually, that was an understatement, as the moment they set hoof in that place, they were met with moods as icy as the winds that kept blowing over them. Twilight and her friends, escorted by the warriors they'd encountered at the forest's edge, walked through that small community, encountering looks of fear, awe and confusion in equal measure. Children would look on with curiosity, only to be hurried into their homes by worried Mothers. Blacksmiths would cease whatever hammering they were in the middle of to look up at the bizarre creatures that now entered their village. And always, there was the aggressive ones, the warriors of the place. Each of them eyed Twilight and her colleagues with wariness, always with a weapon in hand. And speaking of which, Rainbow kept a particularly close eye on the ones who were leading them further into the village, walking to Twilight and whispering to her.

"So...still think this is a good idea?"

If she had been perfectly honest, she'd have said that it probably wasn't, but even so, it wouldn't do her any good to make her friends worry any more than they already were. So, after letting out a long sigh, she glanced back to Rainbow.

"If things go badly, I'll teleport us out of here, but for now, we just need to keep calm."

Naturally, keeping clam wasn't one of Rainbow's best traits, but even so, she followed her friend's advice for the time being. Eventually, they had been led to the great fire that still burned in the centre of the village, and by now they'd gathered a sizeable crowd of locals, all looking to them with uncertainty. It was a sentiment shared by the ponies and Spike, and they watched as the leader of their party broke away, heading for the largest building in the area, the wooden longhouse on the other side of the fire. After he'd entered it, there was silence for a time, but then, out he came again, followed shortly by an old man. His head was bald, but he bore a long and heavily-braided grey beard, walking with a slight limp. A village elder, perhaps? Whoever he was, he seemed to be someone of importance, and so Twilight, still knowing there was a language barrier, took a step forward to address him.

"Sir...my name is Twilight Sparkle...and my friends and I are strangers here. We do not come here to cause you trouble."

The old man's head tilted, showing the same confusion as the others. He didn't understand her, Twilight thought to herself, but she stayed quiet as the elder looked to the tall man beside him, and proceeded to whisper to him. The latter, shrugging his shoulders, turned again to the longhouse.

"Erik? Erik!"

Another pause, and then, another human male, blonde again but shorter than a lot of them, came out of the longhouse. Though Twilight would never consider herself an expert in recognising humans, there nevertheless seemed to be a resemblance between this new human and the elder. However, she kept this thought to herself as the new human stepped forward. There were a few moments where he appeared deep in thought, as though trying to remember the answers to a quiz, which was a look Twilight knew all too well. Then, after clearing his throat, he began to speak.

"M...my Father, Chief Hran...bids thee welcome."

Twilight's eyes widened, as indeed did those of her friends. They looked to one another, then back to the human, with Applejack breaking the silence.

"Ya...ya understand us?"

The human, Erik, nodded.

"No speak tongue well...learn from isles to west. Why you speak like Angles, Valkyrie-steeds?"

Twilight blinked.

"Um...Valkyries?"

Erik nodded.

"Yes...you are mounts of the maidens of battle...yes? Those who serve All-Father?"

Twilight hesitated here, then turned to speak in a low tone to her friends.

"I think they've mistaken us for somebody else. Perhaps...perhaps they think we're someone sent by their deity. This...All-Father he speaks of."

Rarity chuckled to that.

"Well, we are rather impressive, aren't we?"

By contrast, Applejack frowned to her fashion-loving friend.

"We shouldn't lie ta them like that. If they think we're somethin' we're not..."

Twilight nodded, agreeing with her friend's words.

"I know...but if they think we're that, and we tell them we're not...it might go even worse for us."

They looked to her grimly, knowing the danger they all faced. Even so, they looked to her with trust in their eyes, giving simultaneous nods. Twilight, accepting and appreciating the faith they'd put in her, took a deep breath, then turned to look upon Erik once more.

"There's...been a mistake. We're not holy beings. We were not sent by this All-Father of yours. But we are from another world. One not your own. And..."

She hesitated, but only for a moment.

"...we need your help."

Erik's brow furrowed, and he looked like he was working through a mental problem of some sort. Eventually, he sighed, nodding to them, before looking to his Father. In a quiet voice, he spoke to the elder, and was no doubt relaying Twilight's message. The Chief nodded back to this, all while the surrounding warriors glanced at the ponies with more anger than before. The ponies huddled closer to Twilight, ready to run if things went badly, but, to their relief, the elder raised his hand, bringing utter silence to the gathered group. He spoke aloud, his voice gaining the absolute attention of everyone there, and when it was done, he gestured to the ponies.

"Irminsul!"

The humans nodded together.

"Irminsul!" they echoed back.

Erik, taking a step closer to Twilight, smiled to her.

"You may not be of Asgardr, but you are of other world...and we will not bring wrath of that world by refusing help."

He gave a slight bow.

"We will help you leave Midgardr."

Though Twilight had no idea what this Midgardr place was, she returned the smile, bowing her heads in response.

"Thank you, Mr Erik. So..."

She glanced around, and then back to him.

"...where do we go?"

A stern look came to the human, and he turned, looking to the south.

"To my people's...site of sacred."

A giggle escaped the alicorn at that.

"In that case...I'll help you with your language along the way."

Erik’s smile returned, and as he looked to his elder, he gave another bow of his head, before turning once more to the young Princess.

“...To our ship then.”

Across the Sea

Now, Twilight and her friends had been at sea several times before in their lives, yet never in circumstances such as this. For one thing, the sea in question was hardly a calm and relaxing one, as there were violent waves on many occasions, causing their vessel to tilt and sway a great deal, much to the chagrin of its occupants. And secondly, there was the ship itself. It was long, narrow, and decorated with a dragon's head at the very front of it, which Spike couldn't help but appreciate. Even so, despite that artisan touch, this was a vessel clearly designed for speed, to arrive at its destination and then get away just as fast. Even a nautical novice like Twilight could see this, and she would admire its craftsmanship as she waited out her journey here. However, it appeared as though one of her friends was not so eager to sit this out, and there was no prizes for guessing who.

"Ugh! How long have we been out here?" Rainbow asked.

Sighing, Twilight looked up to her, seeing her resting at the very top of the mast.

"Three days, maybe four."

Rainbow looked down to her, grimacing slightly.

"And our plan is to follow these guys, get to this special place, and from there we'll just be able to go home?"

Twilight considered that.

"This Irminsul they talked about is a sacred place to their people. According to Erik, it has a connection to other worlds. Worlds they may never have been to personally, but that they wholeheartedly believe in. And more than that, it may be our best chance of leaving this one."

Flying down to the deck, Rainbow thought on that for a moment.

"Twilight...even they don't seem to know if this thing will do that!"

Applejack, who had been leaning on the edge of the longboat for a while, looked to her pegasus friend with a frown.

"Beggin' yer pardon, Rainbow...but do y'all have any better ideas?"

Rainbow frowned right back, but nevertheless stayed silent, much to Applejack's amusement.

"Eyup...thought so."

Unfortunately, Rarity was not enjoying this moment as much as her farmer colleague, and she looked more than a little ill right now, with a distinct green tint to her cheeks as she rested to one side.

"If you're all quite done, I would rather we not give this boat any more cause to sway than it already has done. I really am not all that cut-out for long-voyages."

Pinkie, who had been hopping about the deck and just generally being her usual bouncy self, looked over to the fashionista with confusion.

"But you love being at sea!"

Slowly, Rarity glanced to the party-lover.

"I love yachts, Pinkie! I love cruises and luxury and smooth sailing, and this? This hasn't been any of those things!"

The effort taken to say those words had the expected effect, and so Rarity immediately started to clasp a hoof over her mouth, rushing to the side and hanging her head over, so as to prevent anyone else from seeing what was happening. Thankfully, everyone had the grace not to look her way as she was doing this, even the oarsmen, who had been quite patient with these talkative ponies during this entire journey. But, among all of them, Fluttershy seemed just as eager as Pinkie to be out here, and was gazing down at the waters to see all the little fish that would occasionally hop out of it. Her wide smile was almost infections, as Spike too started to join in on this, much to Fluttershy's delight.

"Isn't it wonderful?" she asked.

The young drake chuckled.

"Yep, sure is."

Eventually, he turned, looking to his carer and taking a few steps over to her.

"So...a journey to find another magic tree? Seems to be a recurring thing with us."

Twilight giggled to that, appreciating the moment of levity her ward had provided for them.

"I don't know if it's magic exactly, but we'll know when we get there."

And it was at this point that Erik, their guide and translator, walked alongside her, letting out a deep sigh as he gazed out to the open sea before them.

"Irminsul is sacred, like many groves of our lands. Trees are connected to Yggdrasil, whose branches and roots connect all things."

Rainbow blinked to this.

"So...your people believe there's a giant tree floating about in space with entire worlds just hanging off its branches and stuff? That..."

She chuckled.

"...I don't know whether to say that's awesome or ridiculous, but I can get behind it. No stranger than anything else we've seen in our lives."

The group shared a laugh at that, even Rarity, who had thankfully managed to start recovering from her unexpected sea-sickness. Unfortunately for her, she was kept from a full recovery by a sudden jerkiness in the ship. It swayed heavily to the side, forcing everyone on-board to grab hold of the edge, lest they fall overboard. When it finally finished, the alabaster unicorn grunted in irritation about it.

"Argh! Can't we go five minutes without some horrible wave coming along and making our boat do that?"

But Erik, whose eyes now narrowed, shook his head.

"That...was no wave."

Naturally, words like that prompted great concern in all aboard, and as he stepped forward, he gestured to his oarsmen to stop rowing for the time being. Twilight walked with him, and together, they carefully peered over the edge. At first, there appeared to be nothing but murkiness down in those watery depths, and then, they saw something. Movement. Something was down there, but the waters were too dark to make it out. Then, after a while, Twilight's eyes widened.

"A...a scale?"

Rainbow raised an eyebrow.

"What, something scaly down there?"

Twilight looked to her, shaking her head.

"Not scales...a scale! A very big scale!"

Immediately, all of the ponies joined her, looking down into the water together. It was still hard to make it out clearly, but even so, there was no denying that Twilight has the right of it. A single scale, as long or possibly even longer than the boat itself, was moving beneath them. And then, it was followed by another, and then another, and on and on and on for some time. There was something alive down there, and it was big. It was, quite frankly, ridiculously big. Terrifyingly big. But whatever it was, there came a time when all that could be seen in the water was gloom. The creature, whatever it was, had passed, leaving them once again alone at sea. Silence fell, and Erik gestured to his men, giving them leave to continue rowing. As for Twilight, she gave her friends one final glance before asking the obvious question to Erik.

"What...what was that?"

A stern look came to the man, and he sighed, looking again to the waters.

"...Jormungandr. He...is always down there."

Confusion came to the mares and to Spike, and Erik, seeing this, eventually put on a smile, speaking again in a calming tone.

"Fear not...it has passed. We will continue journey, find you way to Irminsul. No need to dwell on..."

He paused, a slight tint of fear in his eyes.

"...on Midgardr-serpent."

He stayed silent after that, moving over to sit at the side of the ship and join in on the rowing. Twilight, looking to her friends, seemed to share the sense of concern they now all bore.

"Um...Twilight? What's...a Midgardr-serpent?" Fluttershy asked.

Thinking on that, Twilight's eyes drifted in the direction of the water again, and she took on a more reserved look.

"I think...it's probably for the best if we don’t know."

The Sacred Grove

Patient though they may have been, spending the better part of a week at sea, with limited provisions and having to deal with unpleasant weather began to tire the ponies out a great deal. But, their ordeal was not eternal, as a time came when they eventually came upon the shores of their destination, this southern land Erik had told them of. Sailing along that coast, the longboat was eventually driven into the mouth of a river, and from there they crept steadily along it, heading deeper and deeper into this unknown place. After a time, their human companions finally found a suitable place to make berth, and Twilight, along with her friends, disembarked, as indeed did Erik. The place they had chosen was heavily forested, though thankfully not as cold as the lands they had journeyed from. Even so, this place was thick with fog, making it hard to see what lay ahead. As they journeyed onwards, through ancient and foreboding trees, Fluttershy walked a bit faster, reaching Twilight and whispering to her.

"Um...what's our plan if this Irminsul doesn't send us home?"

Unsurprisingly, this was a question that had hung heavily in Twilight's mind ever since they first set off from the village. If this didn't work, they'd be back at square one, with no clue of where to go or what to do. She hated it, not having a plan like this, but even so, she was the leader, and as such it was her responsibility to make sure everypony stayed calm and collected during their ordeal here. So, taking a deep breath, Twilight turned to her animal-loving fiend, smiling and putting a hoof gently upon her shoulder.

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it."

Fluttershy was still unsure, but she nevertheless accepted her friend's words. However, before Twilight got the chance to say anything further, she was distracted by a tap on her leg by Spike, prompting her to look down to him as he spoke.

"I...I think we're here."

Looking up, Twilight saw that her childhood colleague was correct, they had indeed arrived. The heavy forest they'd been journeying through now began to give way to an open clearing, one that seemed almost naturally made, with no evidence of trees having been moved away by people. However, right at the centre of this clearing was something that, Twilight assumed, must be the reason they were here. At first glance, it appeared to be an old tree stump, but tall. At least the height of a small house. And to say that it was old was an understatement, as it looked like it had been here before any other tree in the area, and was covered in many of the symbols and runes that Twilight had come to learn about from their guide since her time in this world. Erik, walking past her, gestured to the thing, sounding more than a little deferent as he did so.

"...Irminsul."

So, this was it. The sacred site they'd been told about. And truth be told, there was indeed something about this place. It had the same air and feel as places where, even if you'd never heard of them before, felt like they were important. It was certainly important to their human colleagues, as many of them bowed their heads respectfully to it. The ponies looked to them, and then to Twilight, unsure of what the next step should be. Twilight herself, after taking a moment to compose her thoughts, sighed deeply before taking a few steps closer to Irminsul. All eyes were upon her now, and many thoughts raced through her head, never letting her be as she did this.

"Okay...let's see this."

Gradually, she eventually reached it, and slowly raised her hoof. Part of her was warning her not to do this, and that this was a place she and her friends should not be. But, here they were all the same, and the die had been cast. So, with especially great care, the young Princess placed her hoof upon the side of Irminsul. Closing her eyes, she began to feel something. It was strange, unfamiliar, and yet there was still something about this sensation that brought forth memories of other past occurrences in her life. Rarity, tilting her head to the side for a moment, stepped forward, addressing her.

"Is...is it magic?"

Taking her hoof away, Twilight let out another sigh, looking to her gathered friends.

"I don't know if its magic per se, but...there's definitely something here."

Poking his fingers against one another, Spike looked to the ancient remains of that tree, before glancing back up to his carer.

"So...what do we do?"

Considering that, Twilight's mind was able to come up with only one answer.

"When the Friendship Palace was first created, it took all of us sitting upon the thrones inside it to awaken the magic map. Maybe..."

She looked back to the tree.

"...maybe having all of us be around this tree will trigger something too?"

Her friends seemed less certain, but in spite of this, Twilight knew there was one thing she needed to do before they set off and did this. Smiling, she looked over to Erik, walking to him and giving a slight bow of her head.

"Thank you, Erik, for bringing us here."

The human bowed back, his expression stern but nevertheless accepting of her words.

"Rare is chance to aid those of other world. My honour to do so."

Twilight gave another appreciative nod, then looked back to her friends. Though still uncertain, they all looked to her with expressions that made it clear that they were willing to go along with her plan for now. So, taking another deep breath, the Princess of Friendship turned yet again to Irminsul, stretching out her hoof and placing it upon that same spot. Her friends followed, and all the mares, with Spike alongside them, found a spot for themselves and stretched out their own respective limbs. There was a moment of hesitation, which was to be expected in times like this, but eventually, all of them found their courage, and moved ever so slightly forward to touch the ancient tree. The instant this happened, there was an immediate reaction, as a bizarre feeling coursed through them. It was like magic, and yet, also not magic, and something they had a hard time putting into words.

Wha...what's goin' on?" Applejack asked.

None of them knew the answer, not even Twilight, and yet, as this carried on, it began to feel all the more familiar. It felt like that time with the map, before they'd even arrived in this world, and so, if nothing else, the knew they had their connection. Twilight, before becoming completely engulfed in this sensation, turned once more to Erik, who raised his axe to her one last time. The Princess nodded, and then, without warning or explanation, the feeling from Irminsul overwhelmed her.

And then, there was only blackness.

Larger Than Life

Now, given everything she and her friends had been through during their many adventures together, you'd have thought that Twilight would be well used to getting magically-induced headaches by this point. Alas, no. As the darkness that had engulfed her, the other mares and Spike finally began to subside, they found themselves yet again feeling groggy upon the floor, their heads practically splitting over the pain that was going through them right now. It was exactly how things had gone for them when they first arrived in Midgard, and now, at the very least, they were less shocked by it. Even so, it still took quite some time to get back to their hooves and recover from this bizarre ordeal, and when they did, it was Rainbow who elected to voice the shared sentiment they had over this.

"Okay...is that gonna happen to us every...single...time?!"

Sighing, Twilight looked to her pegasus friend and gave a solemn nod,.

"We may have to get used to it in our line of work, Rainbow."

The pegasus grunted, but then, her anger subsided, replaced instead by one of confusion and fear.

"Er...Twilight? This...this doesn't look like Equestria."

Immediately, the young Princess glanced around, and indeed, this did not appear to resemble anything from their world that she herself recognised. They appeared to be in a rocky canyon of some kind, and a dead-end one at that, with their immediate area being crudely circular in shape. In the centre, right between them all, was a large stone, upon which lay a number of runes and unfamiliar symbols. It was pretty much in the same spot between them that Irminsul had been mere moments ago, and that notion prompted Rarity to speak next.

"...Twilight? We have just gone through some form of magical transportation, have we not?"

Slowly, Twilight nodded.

"Yeah...we did."

The fashionista continued, albeit with a less-than-pleased tone.

"And that was a transportation that was supposed to lead us back to Equestria, yes? So, pray tell...exactly where are we instead?"

Her voice was tinted with understandable irritation, and even fear, for which Twilight could not blame her. In truth, the Princess had no simple answer for her colleague right now, even though she and everypony else was looking to her for advice. This was still a strange place, and right now the only real clue they had was the stone at the centre of it. So, after taking a deep breath, she stepped forward, looking to that enormous rock and gazing at the language that had been scrawled there. Erik had taught her a thing or two about it on their long journey to Irminsul, and while she did not consider herself an expert on their tongue, she did manage to recognise some of what was written there.

"Can you read it?" Spike asked.

Twilight didn't look to him, but she nevertheless nodded in response, before slowly bringing her face closer and squinting her eyes slightly.

"Jo...Jotun...Jotunheim?"

Applejack raised an eyebrow to that.

"Beggin’ yer pardon, Twi...but what?"

Suddenly, a look of worry came to their alicorn leader, and she took a step back from the stone.

"Jotunheim...Jotunheim..."

She repeated that word, over and over, causing more than a little worry in her friends. Eventually, however, it was Fluttershy who spoke next, stepping forward and placing her hoof upon Twilight's shoulder.

"Twilight? What's wrong?"

Slowly, Twilight looked to her.

"Jotunheim. I know that word. Erik mentioned it as one of the Nine Realms his people believed in."

Pinkie hopped next to her, adding her voice to matters.

"Wait...the nine places that are hanging off that weird space-tree thingy?"

Twilight nodded as a response to that, which caused Pinkie to carry on speaking.

"So...Irminsul didn't take us back to Equestria...but another of those nine worlds?"

Again, Twilight nodded, and after having heard that, Rainbow slapped a hoof to her forehead.

"Argh! Well that's just great! We're supposed to be getting closer to home, not away from it"

Twilight glanced to her, her expression somewhat calmer than it had been moments before.

"Rainbow...we may still have a chance. This stone had an apparent connection to Irminsul in Midgard, acting as a gateway. It's possible there may be other gateways out there, ones with connections to Equestria."

The pegasus grunted at that.

"So we have to do more walking about?!"

Twilight gave another nod, and Rainbow walked off with a huff. Twilight couldn't blame her. In truth, she too was feeling down after having this hope of reaching home taken from her. But, she knew that what she’d just said was no mere false belief on her part. Gateways between worlds did exist, as she and Spike were fully experienced in, and if they kept their heads, they may well find one. So, without even a word, the young Princess began to head off through the canyon, and after hesitating for just a moment, Spike and the other mares began to follow, even Rainbow, as reluctant as she still was. The place continued to be rocky and dry and barren as they walked through it for some time, and eventually, Spike looked to his carer with some curiosity.

"So...did Erik tell you anything about this Jotun-place?"

Twilight took a moment to consider that, then looked down to him.

"All I know is that each of these nine worlds is different in some way. He never went into the specifics."

Then, before Spike could say anything else, there was a sudden rumbling beneath them, causing them all to stop. Then, as they awaited further motion, they soon found that, thankfully, there was none.

"An earthquake?" Fluttershy asked.

"A brief one, thankfully," Rarity answered.

Twilight narrowed her eyes to that, then carried on walking, with her friends close behind her. Thankfully, after another few minutes, they turned a corner and, to their immense delight, they found an exit to their canyon. But when they looked out at the land beyond, they couldn't help but feel a little underwhelmed. At a glance, it appeared to be no different from the world they had just left. Fields, hills, forests, valleys with rivers running through it, even a mountain range in the far distance, with the sun rising above it. Rainbow, who seemed pretty disappointed by this, looked to Twilight with incredulity.

"I thought you said all the worlds were different? This just looks like Midgard all over again!"

Twilight opened her mouth to speak, only to be kept from doing so when, all of a sudden, there was another tremor, prompting the group to huddle together. Then another tremor came, and then another, and another and another, with alarming frequency.

"Wha...what's going on?" Spike asked.

Turning, Twilight spotted something to the side, and her eyes widened.

"I think...he might be going on!"

All eyes turned, and they looked on with shock at what now emerged from behind a rocky outcropping not too far away from them. It appeared to be another human, albeit one dressed in ragged furs and with a massive beard. However, as he walked alongside the rocky region where the ponies stood, they found, to their horror, that he was big. As in, very big. If Twilight had to guess, he seemed to be at least twice the height that the Golden Oak Library had been in its day. This person, whoever or whatever he was, was enormous, which caused an instinctive need on the part of the ponies to step back and try to avoid being noticed. But, thankfully, this huge person simply walked on by, never casting them even the tiniest of glances, though his steps further away from them continued to cause tremors for them. Eventually, when he was far enough away, the group all looked to one another with disbelief, with Twilight looking to Rainbow in particular.

"Well...I'd say that was different, wouldn't you?"

To the Root

"...That was a giant."

"Yes, Rainbow," Twilight replied with a sigh.

"...A friggin' giant!"

"Yes, Rainbow."

"...An honest-to-goodness, bigger-than-a-house, I-can-smash-you-with-one-hit giant!"

"Yes, Rainbow!"

Twilight halted, taking a moment to calm herself before turning to her cyan companion.

"It was a giant when we saw him yesterday, and he'll probably still be a giant today, so you going on an on about it won't change anything."

Rainbow blinked, and then pointed back in the direction they'd come from.

"But...he...was...a...GIANT!!!"

Twilight planted her hoof squarely in her forehead in a clear display of exasperation. She and the rest of their group had been dealing with Rainbow's reaction to their situation ever since it first dawned on them where they were and what they were most likely to encounter out here. And while all of them were just as disturbed about it as the young pegasus, they at least had learned not to go on and on about it. After wandering around with no clear direction, the group had, yet again, found themselves in the middle of a forest. Although, with this being a world of giants, it was no surprise that the trees here were somewhat larger than their counterparts in Midgard. They towered over any tree the ponies had ever seen in their lives, and the canopy above blocked out a lot of the sunlight they would have otherwise seen here. In fact, taking a moment to finally have a break from their constant walking, Twilight took a few calming breaths before looking to the rest of her friends.

"Okay...at this point I'm open to suggestions."

The other mares and Spike all looked to one another, and were clearly just as uncertain as she was. Spike, after nervously scratching the back of his head, took a step forward before speaking up.

"Well...um...we could always ask one of the giants?"

Immediately, all eyes were upon him, and Rarity spoke in a stunned manner.

"Spikey-wikey! I admire your bravery, my dear little fellow, but such a thing would surely be folly!"

Applejack nodded in agreement.

"She's right, Spike. Fer all we know, these ere giants eat folks like us!"

Fluttershy, as one would expect of her, spoke in a somewhat softer tone.

"Well, you never know...they might be friendly?"

Pinkie giggled to that, nodding enthusiastically.

"Yeah! Maybe they're all just a bunch of loveable softies who just look big and scary!"

Rainbow rolled her eyes.

"Yeah...I don't think I’m willing to test that theory, Pinks."

Twilight, after having heard all of this, hung her head slightly, looking back the way they'd just come from.

"In any case...it's a moot point. We haven even seen one of those giants since the first one. So we can't really ask them any questions even if we wanted to."

”Then perhaps I can be of help?”

Instantly, everypony jumped in place, looking around at where the booming voice had come from. They saw nothing, at least at first, but, as Twilight narrowed her eyes, she soon saw that something began to emerge from behind some of the trees to the side of them. It was another giant and, of course, it happened to be even larger than the one they'd already encountered, bearing a wild beard of bright red. He took only a single step to get closer to them, which shook the ground as giant steps were apparently so capable of doing. Then, slowly, he got to one knee, and began to observe the newcomers closely, genuine curiosity coming to him.

"Well, well, well...I don't recall creatures like you ever being in Jotunheim before."

Naturally, the ponies were completely at a loss on what to do here, and so looked to Twilight for guidance. The Princess, as ever, did her best to look composed and dignified, then stepped forward, addressing this giant as diplomatically as possible.

"Apologies, Sir...but my friends and I are strangers to your world."

The giant nodded.

"In that case...I am Ymir...son of Ymir."

Rainbow couldn't help but chuckle to that.

"You were named after your Dad?"

Twilight cast her a frown.

"Hey! I was named after my Mother, remember?"

Realisation came to Rainbow, as well as the knowledge that they'd possibly almost insulted a, as she put it, "friggin' giant", and so she shut her mouth tightly, taking another step backwards and letting Twilight continue her diplomacy.

"I am Twilight Sparkle. It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr Ymir."

Ymir nodded.

"So...I heard that you were in a spot of bother?"

Twilight started, but then came to realise something.

"Wait...you...you can understand us?!"

A chortle escaped the giant, and he nodded.

"The people of Midgard may struggle to understand one another...but in the realms beyond? Such is not a hindrance."

Twilight sighed, relieved that, at the very least, she and her companions wouldn't have to deal with any further language barriers. But, back to the matter at hand.

"Well, in that case...we seek gateways to other worlds. Specifically, we seek the way to get to our world."

"Equestria!" Spike called out.

The giant nodded, pondering this while taking a moment to stroke his enormous beard.

"I know not the name of Equestria. Nor do I know of any gates between worlds."

A frown came to him.

"At least...not ones that go to worlds I would actually want to go to."

Twilight tilted her head to that, confusion and curiosity coming to her for a brief time. But, whatever it was Ymir was thinking of on that specific topic was not to be explained, as he too released a sigh, shaking his head slightly.

"I fear I do not know what it is you wish to find. Jotunheim may be our home...but not all Jotuns will know it well enough to know of that which you want."

Twilight, as well as everypony else, started to hang their heads. If this local didn't know anything about portals to other worlds, then their journey home may well be hampered right here and now. But, to their surprise, Ymir began to speak again.

"But...there is one Jotun...who might know..."

Her face lighting up, Twilight took a step forward.

"Really? Who?"

Ymir gained a look that could only be described as awe.

"Go to Mimir...the wise one. He who sits at the pool of wisdom, beneath the great root of Yggdrasil."

Twilight smiled, happy that she now had at least something to go on. But, as this new knowledge set in for her group, Rainbow asked the obvious question.

"Er...we have to go to some big root? No offense, Ymir, but we didn't see any root when we arrived here, and we got a pretty good look at this place."

Amusement came to the Jotun's face, and then, without explanation, he lowered his hand, opening it up as it reached the ground. The ponies and Spike looked to it for a few moments, and then, as one, they understood. Slowly and hesitantly, they started to clamber onto it, with varying degrees of worry as they did so. As soon as they were all on, Ymir started to stand up, and the ponies held on as wind rushed past them with the action. Then, as soon as he was fully standing, Ymir raised his hand, holding them above the canopy of the forest. Again, they were given an impressive view of the land of Jotunheim, but, as Rainbow had said before, it wasn't anything they hadn't already seen.

"Great root...is to the North."

All eyes turned in that direction, to that great mountain range they had spotted on their first viewing of this place. Narrowing her eyes, Rainbow looked down to her latest acquaintance.

"Ymir? We can only see those mountains over there!"

A knowing smirk crept onto the Jotun's lips.

"Little one...those are no mountains."

The Wise One

Now, given the relative distance between the "mountain range" and where the ponies had been standing, one would naturally assume that it would take an incredibly long time to get from one to the other. Days possibly even a week. But, that was assuming that they didn't have a little help along the way. And get help they did, thought it would have been wrong to call it little. Ymir, who had apparently taken a liking to these tiny ponies, had elected to aid them after learning of their goals, and so, upon his broad shoulders they stood. The Jotun marched towards the great root of Yggdrasil, his strides vast, covering the distance to their destination far quicker than any smaller creature might have done. The ponies themselves, though grateful for the assistance, nevertheless had to hold on for dear life, as this great speed of their companion led to an enormous amount of wind rushing past them, threatening to blow them off with every passing second.

But, they persevered all the same, and within the span of one day, their host had managed to bring them where they needed to go. Despite their prior scepticism, they found that Ymir had been correct. These were no mountains, but a giant root, of a size that would have been unthinkable to them, and as Ymir gently lowered them back down to the ground, they looked up in awe at the sheer scale of the thing, much to the Jotun's slight amusement. However, they were here for a reason, and soon, after scouring around, Twilight spotted an opening underneath the spot of the root where they had arrived. It looked like a cave, dark and foreboding, and as the Princess glanced back up to Ymir, he gave a solemn nod, confirming that this was indeed the place where they needed to be. So, after letting out a sigh, Twilight smiled, giving an appreciative nod to the giant, as did all of her companions. Ymir himself gave a bow of his head, and then, without even a word, began to walk off, his steps, as ever, leaving tremors in their wake.

Now, they were alone again, and the Equestrians braced themselves for what they might encounter. Taking careful step after careful step, Twilight led the way, and within moments, they were inside the cave. Twilight lit up her horn, lighting the way for them, and they huddled together for safety, always bearing looks of worry as they went deeper and deeper into this worrisome place. But then, after a while, they saw an eerie blue light up ahead, prompting them to up their pace slightly. After a time, they came to the place Ymir had told them about. The pool of wisdom. About the size of the mirror pool of Equestria, it radiated an ethereal blue light, shining on every corner of the cavern it dwelt in. Twilight and the others approached, ever nervous, and could feel that this was a place of great importance. Twilight, who now started to look around, began to speak up, albeit somewhat quietly.

"Um...hello?"

"Greetings."

All heads turned, and there, sitting upon a rock at the edge of the cavern, was what appeared to be, to their surprise, another human. Clad in a simple blue robe, he rested his hands upon a cane fashioned from an oaken branch. His head was balding, but he bore a perfectly white beard, and he smiled warmly at the new arrivals to the cave.

"May I be of some assistance?"

Twilight, clearing her throat a little, took a single step forward.

"Yes...um...we're looking for a Jotun named Mimir. Have you seen him?"

A chuckle escaped the man, and he gave a slow nod.

"Yes...I suppose I have..."

He turned, looking to the pool.

"...every time I see my reflection."

It didn't take long for the group to put two and two together, and Applejack, now stepping forward herself, spoke with some incredulity.

"Wait...you are Mimir?"

The old man nodded again.

"At your service."

Pinkie, with her usual degree of tact, bounced forward and said what they were all thinking.

"Er...you don't look big enough to be a Jotun!"

Her friends all glared at her, but Mimir didn't seem bothered by the outburst in the slightest.

"I assure you, Miss Pinkie...we Jotuns come in all shapes and sizes...much like you Equestrians."

Her ears perking up, Twilight looked back to him.

"Wait...you know who we are?!"

Mimir again gestured to the pool.

"One does not dwell next to the pool of wisdom their whole lives without learning a thing or two, young Princess."

As one would expect, coming across someone who knew exactly what and who they were, without needing to be told, was a touch unnerving for the party. Even so, the Princess did not let such a thing take her aback too much, and so she drew a little closer.

"So...you know what it is we came here to ask about?"

Mimir looked to her, then, ever so slowly, got down from his rock. He stumbled slightly, using his cane frequently as he made his way over to the pool. Twilight and the others watched, seeing him stare down into the waters.

"I know you are far from home...and I know you lack direction. You seek a way back...yet have found none in your travels thus far."

Twilight's ears drooped.

"No...we haven't."

Mimir turned to face her.

"Worry not...for hope does exist for you. There are many gates between worlds, and the power of Yggdrasil goes not only to those nine...but to far beyond."

Twilight looked on, hope coming to her.

"You mean...there is a way back to Equestria?"

Mimir considered that.

"There may well be...but I know of journeys such as yours. Finding home can take a long and perilous one. And yours will take you to all of the nine before you reach the end of it."

Rainbow grunted.

"What?! We have to go through more worlds before we get home?!"

Mimir chuckled again.

"Frustrating, I know. But, I do not decide the flow of fate. Only the Norns have such power. I...merely impart what I know."

It was less-than-happy news, it had to be said, but even so, it was something. So, after considering their newly-established position, Twilight realised that there was one question above all that needed to be asked.

"You say you know of other portals...so which one do we take?"

Mimir carefully dipped the end of his cane into the waters of the pool, swirling it around slightly before looking to the ripples that action created.

"Far from here...there is a fortress for the Jotuns. A great keep known as Utgard. There dwells a fearsome leader of the Jotuns. Utgard-Loki. That stronghold contains within it an ancient stone, much like the one you found yourselves next to when you arrived in this realm. Touch it...and the next world will be open to you."

Rarity seemed dismayed by that.

"Oh my! We have to make our way to an entire castle of Jotuns?! How positively dreadful!"

Mimir raised an eyebrow to that, prompting Rarity to realise what it was she'd just said.

"Oh! Um...I mean...I'm sure you’re a fine Jotun, Mr Mimir, but..."

However, to her surprise, the elderly figure merely smiled.

"Think nothing of it. I realise my kin often have a reputation for brutality."

A grimace came to him.

"A reputation...that is not entirely undeserved."

Her expression softening, Twilight drew nearer to her latest ally in this quest.

"This leader of the Jotuns, Utgard-Loki...will he help us?"

Mimir tapped the end of his chin with the top of his cane, and slowly, a smile came to him.

"He will undoubtedly have eyes watching for intruders into his lands. And, to be perfectly blunt, he is not known to be gentle with such visitors. But, should you be found, and if they are merciful enough to bring you to him...tell him..."

Another laugh escaped him.

"...tell him...Mimir sent you...and that he's calling in his debt."

Twilight blinked to that, and Pinkie, who had been standing close by, leaned in closer and whispered to her.

"Yeeeeeeeeah, that’s not ominous in the slightest!"

Infiltration

Twilight and her friends had encountered many a dangerous-looking place in their day, from the terrifying depths of the temple of the Pony of Shadows, to being captive in the Hive of Queen Chrysalis. And yet, this fortress, Utgard, seemed to dwarf them all. And that was quite literally. The immense size of the place, as befitting of a giant's keep, was beyond anything they could have imagined. And it was crude-looking to boot, as though it had been carved from the very mountainside itself. The sun had set upon the place by this point, so darkness was setting in. Granted, this would help them to avoid being seen as they tried to infiltrate this fortification, but, on the downside, it had the effect of making that place even more intimidating, as a great many fires were now lit upon the ramparts, creating this very unwelcome image for itself. Twilight, who peered from behind a large rock some distance away from the keep, narrowed her eyes, then looked back to her friends.

"Okay...we have to be careful now. Inside that castle is a stone that will take us to the next world. We have to do everything in our power to avoid being seen, and do even more to avoid being captured."

Fluttershy looked to her with uncertainty.

"I'm not sure if it's a good idea to be trying to sneak in like this. It seems like we're making a bad impression for ourselves."

Twilight sighed.

"Under normal circumstances, I'd want to try being more open too, but you heard what Mimir said. This king of theirs is dangerous, and there's a real chance he won't let us anywhere near the stone if we just asked for it."

She glanced back over her shoulder, focusing intently on the fort.

"We get one shot at this...and it needs to be perfect."

The others nodded, grimly accepting what they needed to do. And so it was that, after taking another deep breath, the Princess of Friendship took her first step forward. And then another, and another, and another, until she finally upped her pace to a light jog. But, as always, she kept her gaze upon the high walls of Utgard. Every once in a while, she'd spot some sentry looking out into the gloom of the night, and she and her companions would dart behind some nearby stone to avoid being seen, only to resume their approach as soon as the guard was gone. This went on for some time, until eventually, they managed to reach the base of the fortress. No Jotun had spotted them, thankfully, but now there was the business of actually having to get inside the place, which Applejack was sure to ask about.

"So...ideas?"

Twilight sighed, looking around before finally spotting something. Further along the wall where they were all huddled, there was a tiny opening. A sewer drain of some sort, which had a small trickle of water coming out of it. Twilight gestured to her friends, and before long, they were all heading towards this new discovery. As soon as they reached it, they found that it was large enough for a pony to be able to climb in. Doubtless, the Jotuns felt that a sewer pipe this size would be no security risk. After all, when all they faced each day was other giants, what risk could it pose? So, after carefully lighting up her horn, Twilight yanked the sewer's cover off, setting it to one side and making sure they hadn't been heard. Once she was certain that they were fine, she pointed to it.

"Oh...must we?" Rarity asked.

A frown from Twilight was her only answer, leading to a resigned sigh on the part of the fashionista. But, to her credit, Rarity appeared to be willing to be the first one in there, and Twilight watched as her friends walked into the pipe, one by one, and she continued to stand watch before entering herself. Sure enough, it was pitch black inside this sewer, but, at the very least, it didn't appear to be "in use" right now, much to Rarity's great relief. Even so, Twilight soon took the lead, guiding them through bends and turns in the piping, until, finally, it started to curve upwards. It took careful steps on the part of the ponies, but they managed to make their way up, before finally coming across what appeared to be another cover. Twilight, placing her hoof on the underside, whispered down to the rest of her group.

"...Be ready."

She didn't look, but she knew from experience that they were nodding back to her. So, after taking another calming breath, she pushed upwards, with the sewer grate creating only the barest hint of a creak. Narrowing her eyes, Twilight gazed out on where they now found themselves. It appeared to be a hallway of some kind, vast and cavernous, as was expected of a dwelling for Jotuns. Torches were lined upon the walls, blazing bright and creating a great deal of light, and Twilight, thankfully, was able to see from this that there were no Jotuns around to spot them. So, after moving the grate to one side, she carefully clambered out, followed shortly by Spike, and then by the rest of her companions. Again, she stood watch, but it seemed as though the giants were all in other places right now, much to her gratitude. When her friends were all out, she used her magic to close the grate again, lest they leave any evidence of their arrival.

"Okay...now we have to find this stone," she muttered.

Walking closer to her, Rainbow began to speak up.

"So...where is the stone kept?"

Twilight sighed to this.

"According to Mimir...it'll be found in the heart of the castle. Right next to Utgard-Loki's seat of power."

Rainbow grimaced.

"His throne?"

Twilight could hear the disbelief in her voice, but nodded in response all the same. Even knowing where they were going and what they were doing, the young pegasus, despite her reputation for being perhaps the bravest of all of them, could not help but feel exasperated at the whole situation. Twilight couldn't blame her, but even so, there was no time to dwell on the unpleasantness of all of this. Instead, she got back to work, leading the group through the hallway and stopping at one particular corner. Slowly, she peered around it, just in time to see two Jotun guards walking past. Immediately, the ponies all pressed themselves against the wall, hoping beyond hope to not be seen. By the grace of the universe, the guards seemed preoccupied with something, and so passed them by without giving them so much as a glance. They waited for them to be out of sight, and then, let out a simultaneous sigh of relief.

"There are way too many close calls in a place like this," Spike remarked.

As had happened so many times, Twilight nodded in agreement to her young ward, then addressed the group herself.

"Okay...we don't have details to work with here, but I have a good idea of what we're going to do."

They moved closer to their leader, eagerly awaiting her plan.

"For all we know, this stone isn't actually important to their King. So there may be a time when he'll simply leave it alone. We find it, wait for all the Jotuns to stop paying attention to it, and then, we make our move."

They nodded together, silently consenting to the place they'd been given. Pinkie especially seemed happy about it.

"Good...we've snuck in...we wait...and then we go for the gold when nopony's looking!"

Her happiness at feeling like they actually had a chance to make it through this was evident, as was the clear smile of joy she bore as a result. But, because nothing was ever allowed to be simple for them, Pinkie, to the horror of all of them, did something she was rather infamous for. She exclaimed her approval as loudly as possible.

"IT'S THE PERFECT PLAN!!!"

The echo of the words "perfect plan" began to reverberate not only through the hallway, and not only through the rest of Utgard, but to all of the area surrounding the castle too. Fortunately, there came a time when the echo had eventually died down, so they wouldn't have to worry about it anymore. Unfortunately, however, by the time this had happened, Twilight and her friends now found that they were surrounded by about a dozen Jotuns, all looking down at them with anger and pointing the tips of their very sharp spears to them. The ponies, now with their backs to one another as a single group, all took a moment to turn their heads and glare disapprovingly at their party-loving friend. Pinkie, for her part, giggled nervously before drooping her ears somewhat.

"Yeah, I...I need to work on that."

The King

There was no denying it at this point. They were in trouble. But then, when your entire group was being escorted through the bowls of a giant's castle, being held together in the hand of only one of those giants, that was kind of obvious. Twilight and her friends struggled against the grip of their oversized warden, but his great strength made such a struggle virtually impossible. Instead, they resigned themselves to watching, as giant after giant passed them by in the hallway, joining the ones who were taking them and making an even larger group. Eventually, a time came when massive doors were opened, and on the other side was a room even more cavernous than the ones they had seen thus far. And at the very end of it was a Jotun almost a full head taller than his companions, sitting upon a large stone throne and bearing a crown of bones about his head. It took little guesswork to figure out who this towering figure was, and as the other giants approached him, Twilights and the others were unceremoniously thrown to the floor before him. After being given only the briefest of moments to recover from this, the young Princess glanced upwards, just in time to hear the booming voice of their opponent.

"Well...what do we have here?" the great giant whispered, though his voice still shook the walls with every word.

Twilight, getting herself to her hooves, took a moment to make sure that she and her friends were okay, before looking again to their unwelcoming host.

"You...you are the Jotun King? Utgard-Loki?"

The enormous being chuckled.

"I see my reputation precedes me. And you are...?"

Twilight gave a slight bow of her head, hoping some measure of diplomacy might be able to see them through this.

"I am Twilight Sparkle...from the land of Equestria."

There were murmurs among the other giants, and a look of thoughtfulness upon the face of Utgard-Loki.

"So...you hail from another realm?"

Twilight nodded in confirmation of that.

"We do. And..."

She hesitated, suddenly finding it difficult to say what she needed to. The King, however, seemed to understand immediately, and gave a grim nod before looking to his subordinates.

"So then...it appears these intruders wish to use the great stone."

There was more chattering among the gathered Jotuns, which didn't put Twilight or her friends at ease in the slightest. As for Utgard-Loki, he hoisted himself up from his throne, taking a single stride towards his prisoners, before getting down to one knee, bringing his face closer to getter a better look at them. He leaned in closer, looking Twilight right in the eye, before speaking up again.

"Tell me, outsider...you sneak into my home...you seek to use that which is rightfully mine...so what possible reason do I have not to simply smite you where you stand?"

This was it, and Twilight knew it. Their journey through this strange land, their chances of going home again, all of it rested on what she could come up with to say to their captor. Her mind raced, realising that her friends' lives were in her hooves, which was, as one would expect, not a situation that anyone would ever envy. But then, as the moments set in, words of wisdom came to the forefront of her mind. She didn't know if they would work, she didn't even understand them, but they were, at the end of the day, all she had. So, taking a deep breath, she said them.

"...Mimir sent us...to call in his debt."

Instantly, the giant-King's smile vanished, and disbelief took hold in him. Silence fell across the whole hall, with Jotuns looking to one another with confusion, and even a little fear. After a while of staring at the tiny pony before him, Utgard-Loki whispered.

"...Say that again."

Looking up to him, Twilight did exactly that.

"Mimir sent us. To...to call in his debt."

Again, there was a pause, and Utgard-Loki continued to look into her eyes. As he did this, however, another giant walked behind him, bearing a look of anger.

"She's lying!"

But the King slowly shook his head.

"No...she is not."

He lowered his head, shutting his eyes tightly, before letting out a long sigh.

"So...after all these years...the bill comes due."

Twilight and the others watched, seeing this enormous Jotun get back up, standing tall once more. Raising his hand, he rubbed the bridge of his nose, then finally glanced back down to Twilight and her companions.

"And this is what he would ask of me? To grant you passage?"

Twilight nodded in response, and Utgard-Loki, after giving a solemn nod, turned to face his throne.

"Utgard-Loki...pays his debts."

Without even a word, two other giants, who had been standing next to the aforementioned throne, gave a bow of their heads to their king, before simultaneously starting to lift the stone chair up. The ponies watched with confusion as they did this, only to bear wide eyes as they saw, just behind the throne, there was now revealed to them a small opening. And within that opening was a rock, not unlike the one they first saw at the start of their Jotunheim journey. It even bore the same runes. Seeing their way out right there, Twilight took a moment to calm herself, then looked up to the King that continued to tower above her.

"Th...thank you."

Utgard-Loki nodded, then gestured to the stone. Silently, Twilight nodded to her friends, and together, they made their way over, oblivious to the disappointed expressions on the faces of the surrounding Jotuns, who very clearly felt let down at not getting the chance to kill them today. But, as her friends drew nearer to their gateway out of this realm, Twilight paused, and then looked back to the giants' leader.

"Tell me...what was it Mimir did for you that made you so indebted to him?"

A grimace crossed the King's face.

"Long ago, I went to the wise one to ask a question...what is my end? He answered, and from that day...I owed him much."

Hearing that, Rainbow stopped, looking back and raising an eyebrow.

"Wait...your debt was because he told you how you're gonna die?!"

Utgard-Loki frowned to this.

"There are few things in the nine realms more precious than the knowledge of how one will meet their end. And believe me...even the Gods are aware of what awaits them at the end of their days."

He waved her off.

"You are of another world, small one...you could never understand."

He stopped, and then, after dwelling on his own words for a time, he glanced back down to Twilight.

“You have dealt with Mimir also...so I will impart a lesson of my own.”

His tone and face became ones of utter seriousness.

“There is always a price...for wisdom granted.”

Unnerving words, to be sure, but even so, Twilight did her best not to show how disturbed they made her feel. As for Rainbow, she looked like she wanted to ask further, but Twilight stopped her, giving a single shake of her head. So, Rainbow moved off, joining her other friends and standing around the rune-engraved stone that had been revealed to them. The giants all watched, seeing these outsiders place their hooves upon it. And Twilight was the last of them, giving Utgard-Loki one last bow of her head, showing respect for the King, before finally touching the stone herself. Then, in the blink of an eye, the ponies, along with their small dragon companion, had vanished, leaving the hall once more filled with Jotuns only. Utgard-Loki, sighing yet again, then bore a grim look to him, seeming to his fellow giants to be, of all things, resigned to what had occurred here today.

"If now is the time the debt is to be paid...then the fated day is not far off."

Slowly, he turned, looking to his followers.

"Ready your weapons, brothers, and look beyond our walls...for woe to all of us..."

His eyes narrowed.

"...when the hammer strikes."

Beneath the Mountain

As Fafnir began to lead them through the long hallways that were found just outside the weapon room, Twilight was fully expecting to find herself outdoors, maybe to come across a community of these diminutive human-looking beings. But, this was not to be the case, for as their guide continued to escort them around, it became very clear to them all that "going outdoors" was not going to be happening. In fact, it soon dawned on them that where they were was, in fact, a sprawling underground complex of some sort, for when they were led out of that hallway, they found themselves in an enormous and cavernous chamber, filled with walkways and what appeared to be other buildings all carved into the sides of the place. It was quite the spectacle, and everywhere the ponies looked, they saw ever more of these "dwarves" that lived in this realm. However, funnily enough, none of those figures ever seemed to pay them any attention as they passed them by, much to their confusion.

"They...um...they don't seem all that interested in us, Mr Fafnir."

Their guide grunted in irritation.

"For the last time, just call me Fafnir!"

He sighed.

"And no, there's too much work to be done for anyone to waste time and look on at a bunch of brightly-coloured ponies from another world."

On the one hand, it was nice that they weren't sticking out like eyesores out here, but on the other, it didn't help in the way of giving this place any less of the feel it already had. And that feel was stiff and unwelcoming. No dwarf here seemed to really look all that cheerful right now, instead focusing on whatever else they were doing, be it blacksmithing, mining or practising with one of the weapons that they had made. But, Twilight was in no position to simply express distaste in this, and instead, she simply followed Fafnir further in. Before long, however, they crossed one walkway in particular, and on the other side there seemed to be a collection of other dwarves. One looked like Fafnir, albeit with a lighter shade to his beard, and next to him was a far older-looking one, who was currently inspecting an axe that had been presented to him by one of the smiths. As they drew nearer, they heard this older dwarf speak.

"Yes...yes...very good, Skald. A fine creation yet again."

The smith bowed his head, accepting the axe back from this figure of authority before making his way back towards his personal forge. And it was here that Fafnir cleared his throat, gaining the attention of this elder dwarf. The latter, as he looked to Fafnir, frowned slightly, and then soon noticed Twilight and her friends. There was a pause, and then, the old dwarf narrowed his eyes to Fafnir.

"Son..."

"Father..." Fafnir mumbled back.

The old dwarf took a few steps forward, then gestured to the ponies.

"I give you one simple task, and instead of coming back with the inventory, you come back with...with...with whatever these are?!"

Fafnir frowned right back.

"I had nothing to do with them being here! They turned up in the storehouse. They came in using the Jotunheim stone."

The older dwarf considered this, then glanced back to Twilight.

"I am Hreidmar, King of the dwarves you see around you. Why are you here, stranger?"

Clearing her throat, the Princess stepped forward.

"Sir...my name is Twilight Sparkle, and I am a Princess from a land called Equestria. My friends and I were brought to these nine realms of yours by powers we don't fully understand. And ever since, we've been trying to find a way back."

Hreidmar stroked his beard as he heard that, and he glanced back to his son.

"What have you told them?"

Fafnir shook his head.

"Nothing. I just found them, heard their story, then brought them here."

Hreidmar nodded to that, albeit with no smile upon his face as he did so.

"Hmmm...glad to see you can do something right."

Fafnir looked away, and the King looked back to Twilight.

"You have my sympathies, young Princess...but I'm afraid there's little I can do to aid you."

Twilight took on a more despondent look.

"But...but...surely you know of some gateway in this realm that can lead to others? Or maybe there's someone else in your kingdom who has such knowledge?"

The King shook his head.

"Getting involved in otherworldly matters has never brought anything but misfortune to my people, so you'll forgive me if I'm not willing to get us tangled in one such as this."

Here, Fafnir looked back to him.

"Father...what about...?"

But his Father shot him a dark and angry look.

"You will not speak of such things! Do I make myself clear?!"

The mood had turned incredibly icy all of a sudden, and Twilight looked from one dwarf to the next, seeing Fafnir eventually relent, avoiding his Father's gaze. The King, seeing him cowed like this, shook his head.

"Defiant...and then just cowardly to boot."

He turned, gesturing to the other dwarf who had been standing nearby. The dwarf who also bore a resemblance to Fafnir.

"Why can't you be more like your brother, Otr? Do you ever see him making such blunders?"

The other dwarf took on a look of smug pride to this, much to Fafnir's chagrin, but the latter simply kept his mouth shut. As for the King, he let out another long sigh, then looked back to Twilight and the others.

"I am sorry for your plight...but I cannot risk my kingdom's safety by allowing us to become entangled with those like yourself."

Twilight stepped forward, her voice a pleading one.

"But...what are we going to do?"

The King glanced away, considering that for a moment.

"My son, Fafnir, will escort you to chambers for the night. You can rest there...and be on your way."

He looked back to them, frowning.

"Beyond that...you will receive no aid from us."

And with that, the King said nothing else, turning and heading off, along with his other son. Fafnir remained, continuing to grumble under his breath as his family left him behind. Twilight looked to him, and Fluttershy, who had been silent like the rest of the group this whole time, moved closer to him.

"Are...are you alright?"

But Fafnir didn't look to her. Instead, he started walking away, trying to ignore the question, as well as the obvious anger he was feeling to his sire.

"Come on then. The sooner you lot rest up, the sooner you can leave...and then maybe I can get back to my work."

A Prince's Offer

Neither pony nor dragon was smiling right now, and it was hard to blame them for that. Having come all this way, having crossed literal worlds to be where they are in this moment, they now found themselves yet again between a rock and a hard place. Having been assigned functional but otherwise unremarkable living quarters within the subterranean dwarven kingdom, the ponies were all sitting upon the ground separately from one another, with the exception of Twilight, who was impatiently pacing up and down the place. The others, Spike especially, were all varying degrees of worried or frustrated. They were here, and by the grace of their host, the King of the dwarves, they would get no further help in their journey. Though nopony was saying anything to the effect, they all knew that this left them high and dry in this strange land, without even the barest inkling on where they were supposed to go or what they were supposed to do. After a while, it all became too much, and Twilight stopped in her pacing, letting out a long and exasperated sigh.

"So...here we are."

Spike, seeing her stop, took a few steps closer to her before speaking up.

"We...we could always try and look for another gateway?"

But Twilight shook her head.

"Without a guide, and without any knowledge of this realm, we could go in any direction and we'd be just as likely to go to a dead end."

Spike looked away, just in time for Fluttershy to get to her hooves and walk over to their leader.

"Maybe we could ask one of the other dwarves? I mean, I know their king wasn't all that eager to help us, but there might be those here who are willing to tell us something."

Rainbow let out a dry chuckle to that.

"A nice thought, Flutters, but it ain't gonna happen. Best guess, that king of theirs has this place locked down pretty tight. Nobody around here is gonna say anything."

It was a bad spot to be in, but even so, the ponies had little alternative but to simply dwell on their predicament. That is, until they were taken aback to hear the door of their chambers slowly creak open. Standing up together, they watched as they saw a dwarf enter, closing the door behind him. To their surprise, it was Fafnir, whose expression was one of nervousness and thoughtfulness in equal measure. Twilight, like the others, was surprised to see him, but not so surprised that she couldn't ask the obvious question.

"Fafnir? What are you doing here?"

The young dwarf entered the room in earnest, heading for Twilight specifically. Briefly, he looked over his shoulder, making sure no other dwarf was entering the chamber, before speaking to the Princess.

"You want a way out of this realm? I can help you...I think."

Immediately, all the others ponies stepped forward, gaining looks of surprise and interest. Twilight, for her part, raised an eyebrow.

"This way you speak of...did you know before?"

Fafnir nodded.

"I did...but with my Father...well...being the way he is..."

Twilight nodded, understanding.

"He probably won't be happy that you're telling us this."

The dwarf chuckled.

"He'll be even less pleased that I'll be coming along with you."

That took Twilight by surprise.

"You will?"

"I will. Without a guide through our lands, it'll be very unlikely that you'll get to where you need to go."

Twilight tilted her head slightly.

"And where do we need to go?"

Again, Fafnir looked behind himself, making sure that nobody was around to hear what he was about to tell the ponies.

"A long time ago...there was another dwarf who hoarded a vast amount of treasure. Gold, silver, rubies, you name it. And when he died, he made sure it was hidden so that nobody else could take it."

Applejack frowned slightly.

"And this ere treasure...that's where we get ta the next world?"

Fafnir nodded.

"There were always rumours about what was within that treasure hoard...but one story in particular said that there was a relic that could allow journeys between realms. If it does exist...it may help you."

Twilight thought on that, then gained a curious look.

"This treasure...why is it that none of your people have gone off to claim it?"

Fafnir rolled his eyes.

"The old fool who hoarded it was thorough. None of my people have ever been able to cross the great chasm that keeps people out. But..."

He looked over to Rainbow and Fluttershy.

"...with your help..."

He didn't finish, but the ponies got the message. They help him and he helps them. But, as tempting as this offer was, there was one thing that Spike couldn't help but remark upon.

"I know treasure is nice and all, but do you really need it that much? I mean, you're royalty, aren't you?"

Fafnir frowned to that.

"I don't seek it for the treasure itself, but what it will bring me. No dwarf has been able to claim it, so if I can do so..."

He snickered.

"...maybe my Father will think different of me in future."

Taking on a rather prideful look, he stretched out his hand.

"Well, Princess...do we have a deal?"

Twilight thought long and hard on this. Many conflicting worries and possibilities went through her mind as she dwelt on the offer. Hidden treasures were notorious for being dangerous after all, and yet, with it being their only real hint of a way out of Nidavellir, she also knew that they were not in a position to refuse such an offer. So, letting out a deep sigh, she stretched out her hoof, accepting Fafnir's hand and shaking it.

"Deal."

The other ponies, while just as wary of this whole ordeal as Twilight, seemed eager to get going all the same, and they watched as Fafnir, who himself was looking more than a little smug right now, walked past Twilight and headed for the far side of the room, much to the alicorn's confusion.

"Er...Fafnir? Aren't we supposed to be going in the other direction to get out of here?"

Chuckling, the young Prince got down to one knee, his fingers tracing along the wall until they came upon one brick in particular, wherein he started to smirk.

"Rule one when dealing with dwarves, Princess..."

He pushed the brick, and after a few moments of silence, the entire wall began to artificially push backwards before sliding to the left, revealing a dark tunnel on the other side. The ponies looked on with surprise, while Fafnir stood tall once more, dusting off his hands and looking to his new partners with triumph.

"...never underestimate us."

Barren Lands

As one would expect, travelling through a dark, cramped and quite frankly moist underground tunnel was far from what Twilight or her friends would want to be doing right now. Rarity especially seemed to be grumbling with every step she took in his place. But, at present, they knew they had to put up with it, if only because they knew it wouldn't last forever. And sure enough, there came a time when Fafnir, who had been lighting the way with a blazing torch, started to walk up some stairs at the end of that tunnel. The ponies followed, and watched as he started to touch something just above him. There was some grunting and groaning on his part, as he attempted to push something large and heavy out of the way. But, eventually, he managed it, and light now shone down into the tunnel, much to the relief of the ponies. Fafnir crawled out onto what was, presumably, the surface, and as soon as he'd done so, he reached back down into the hole.

"You coming?"

Twilight accepted his hand, and the dwarf Prince yanked her out, bringing her to the surface alongside him. Twilight gave him a quick nod as thanks for the assistance, then watched him do the same for each and every one of her companions. However, as he was doing this, Twilight soon noted their surroundings, and came to realise, perhaps for the first time, that they were indeed dealing with other worlds here. While the dwarf society beneath the mountain was lively and active, this surface of Nidavellir was very different. Harsh, barren, with a strong wind blowing across the place all the time. Twilight squinted, trying to see if she could see any signs of life, but to be perfectly frank, not even weeds appeared to be growing out here. It was, naturally, not exactly the most pleasant place to be, and as Twilight looked back to Fafnir, just in time to see him pull up the last of her friends, she couldn't help but remark on it.

"I think...I can understand why your people live underground."

A dry chuckle escaped her guide at that.

"Yeah...not the best, is it?"

Twilight shook her head.

"Believe it or not...I've actually seen something similar once."

As Fafnir began to lead the way across this place, with the ponies and Spike close behind him, he raised an eyebrow to the Princess' remark.

"Oh?"

Twilight nodded.

"A long time ago...I had the misfortune of seeing what my world would look like if certain events had gone differently. And this..."

She gestured to their surroundings.

"...this reminds me a great deal of the final sight of that."

Fafnir grimaced, but otherwise didn't comment on that. Her friends, on the other hand, seemed rather disturbed by her description, with Rainbow especially stepping forward to join her and speak up on it.

"Wait, this is what Starlight's last altered Equestria looked like?"

Twilight considered that.

"Well...there was a bit less sunlight...but yes, this was pretty much it."

A shiver passed through the group, as they no doubt dwelt on the prospect of having their home be this way. Meanwhile, Pinkie, who seemed otherwise undeterred by this turn of events, happily bounced over to walk alongside Fafnir.

"Hey, Mr Fafnir..."

The Prince grumbled at being referred to as "Mr" again, but said nothing as the party-loving pony continued.

"...if this place is so super-nasty like this, why do you and your people live here?"

While the others rolled their eyes to Pinkie once more being oblivious in having asked a "you do not ask this" sort of question, Fafnir simply sighed to it.

"I always used to get told that this place was different once. A long...long time ago. But...times change, and realms change with them. Whatever good and green place this might have been...it will never be that way again."

He frowned.

"I don't know what changed it...and I don't care what changed it. My people have been mountain-dwellers for generations, and we're doing just fine, thank you."

Pinkie realised that it might not be a good idea to continue speaking about it, and so remained silent for the time being. Instead, both she and the other members of the party continued to carry on with their journey, allowing Fafnir to lead them. Granted, there were moments where he seemed to struggle to remember where they were supposed to go, but such moments were thankfully few and far between. Through rocky ravines they walked, alongside the base of mountains, past what would have once been green and lush fields. On and on they walked, though for how long was hard to say, given that the sun was largely obscured by clouds high above them. However, before long, tiredness and fatigue was starting to set in, and all of them, Fafnir included, were starting to become weary of their constant travelling.

"I do apologise if I come across as ungrateful, Prince Fafnir...but you do know where you're going, do you not?"

A deep exhale escaped the Prince.

"It's a path we were taught long ago. Though I admit...I've never actually walked it myself."

It wasn't the best of news, but given what they knew of his family life, it was unsurprising. Still, there nevertheless came a time when the grumpy Prince stopped, having turned one particularly rocky corner, wherein he started to smile. He charged forward, with the ponies and Spike following him. And soon, they saw what he was smiling at. A door, engraved in the symbols and words of the dwarves, carved right into the side of the base of a nearby mountain. It was about the height of the average Ponyville home, and upon seeing it, the group's expressions all lit up. Their destination was in sight, at least for now, and together they charged towards it. Before long, they were upon it, and Fafnir placed his hand on it.

"Within this ancient place...a treasure of untold vastness awaits."

He turned to the others.

"My people may be strong, but even we can't open something like this by ourselves."

Twilight nodded, getting the message.

"Right. Guys?"

The others ponies and Spike too gave a nod, and without another world, all eight of them pressed themselves against the imposing stone door. They pushed and heaved and strained against it, with Twilight and Rarity even going so far as to try and use their magic to assist them in opening it. Many minutes passed, and it seemed as though they would not be able to do this, but then, to their great relief, there was a slight budge. They carried on, knowing that they were about to succeed, and within the span of another minute, the door swung open. Dust and cobwebs from the ages were knocked free of it, and on the other side was another tunnel, though one far larger and, somehow, darker than the one they'd already been through. Twilight stepped forward, lighting her horn and showing that it went on for some time. Fafnir, placing his hands upon his hips, gave a nod, before then turning to the Princess.

"...Shall we?"

Twilight narrowed her eyes at the darkness before her.

"If the way home for me and my friends is in there...then yes."

Treasure

An ancient place, and one that had not seen either life nor activity for hundreds of years. Possibly a great deal more than that. Thousands even. And yet Twilight and her party continued onwards, the only light coming from her illuminated horn. Fafnir was beside her, breathing heavily at this pint, realising that his goal was close by. Twilight too was feeling nervous, for this was her only lead to a means out of this world, and if there was no such relic at the end of this trail, then all this effort will have been for noting. Occasionally, she'd glance around, seeing the runes upon the walls, or looking down just in time to avoid some large crack in the floor. The others too would look around, though would always make sure to not get too distracted, lest they fall behind, which was not something anyone wanted in a place like this. Eventually, however, Fafnir raised a hand, signalling for them all to stop. And stop they did, seeing him take a single step forward, narrowing his eyes.

"...This is it."

Twilight looked ahead, and sure enough, the great barrier between them and their final goal was indeed there. A gaping chasm, right at the end of their path, which seemed to stretch on forever. Walking forward herself, Twilight risked a look down into the gloom below. Even with her light, there seemed to be no telling where the bottom was. And in that moment, she realised why no dwarf had come here in so long. Anyone risking such a place was in great peril. But, as she looked upwards instead, she could just about make out a ledge on the other side, prompting her to turn to Fafnir.

"Just out of curiosity...even if we do get you over there...how will you get back?"

Fafnir nodded.

"According to the tales...the old hoarder left a means for himself to get back across the chasm, but shut it down once he was with his treasure."

Twilight frowned.

"Wait...he's still over there?"

The dwarf Prince shook his head.

"After all this time? Doubtful."

Twilight sighed, then looked over her shoulder to Rainbow and Fluttershy. She nodded to them, and they nodded back, understanding what she wanted them to do. They stretched out their wings, floating over to Fafnir, who in turn stretched out his own arms. They each took hold of one, and with great effort they hoisted him up, and thus started to carry him over the great chasm. Twilight and the others stayed behind, watching them move further and further away. Eventually, a time came when they could see them no longer, and so the waiting began. Minute after minute passed, and they would sometimes hear words being spoken on the other side. Spike glanced to his carer with concern, and she responded by giving him a reassuring pat on the shoulder. But then, to the surprise of all of them, there was suddenly a loud rumble.

"What the...?!" Twilight exclaimed.

Immediately, and to the shock of all of them, some massive stone bridge suddenly shot towards them from the other side of the hole, prompting them all to step back out of concern for their safety. The bridge reached them, connecting to their side of the chasm, and as soon as that happened, the rumbling stopped. Twilight looked to her friends, then back to the bridge. Taking a step forward, she gave a gentle poke of the thing with her hoof. It seemed stable enough, so after taking a deep breath, she began her march onwards, with her friends close behind her. A few minutes passed, but eventually, they managed to reach the other side, where Fafnir, Fluttershy and Rainbow were all waiting for them with wide smiles.

"Not bad, eh?" the Prince stated.

Twilight gave him a slight smirk, but otherwise said nothing, for she had seen something just past him. It was another door, albeit one that was already open, and from within, she could see something glistening. Fafnir too had seen it, and together, he and the Equestrians walked into that door in earnest. There was darkness within, much like there had been everywhere else, but Fafnir was unconcerned, pointing to something on a nearby wall.

"A little fire if you would, Princess."

Twilight nodded, and using her magic once more, she shot a single burst onto the spot she had been directed to. It had, apparently, been a torch secured to the wall, which ignited as soon as her magic hit it. This set off a chain-reaction, where torch after torch after torch began to light, providing illumination for the entire chamber. And as soon as they had light, the entire group looked on with astonishment. The stories had not been exaggerating, for this truly was a treasure hoard unlike any they had ever seen before. Gold, rubies, silver goblets, every single treasure one could imagine was in here, piled up high, almost to the ceiling, which was no small feat given how high up that ceiling went on. How far back the treasure stretched, they could not say, for it just seemed to go on forever. As one would expect, however, one pony in particular was happy to see this place.

"Oh...oh my! Just think of what I could do with such trinkets!" Rarity declared.

The others looked to her with raised eyebrow, prompting her to clear her throat and take a step backwards from the treasure.

"Right, priorities, got it."

Twilight shook her head to that, then looked around again.

"So...where's our way out?"

Fafnir took a moment out of admiring his new treasure to look around himself, and eventually, his eyes settled on one artefact in particular.

"There."

Twilight and the others looked on to where he'd gestured to, and there, almost nestled in the corner, was a solid gold statue, whose base was encrusted in rubies. The statue itself appeared to be of a towering figure of some sort. A Jotun perhaps? Whatever the case, he was brandishing a great sword, bearing a grim expression. Twilight tilted her head, then looked to Fafnir, who simply nodded.

"Trust me, that's your ticket out of here."

Though she was still uncertain, Twilight nevertheless smiled in appreciation.

"Thank you, Fafnir...we're one step closer to home."

The Prince chuckled.

"Hey, you helped me, so I help you. It's only fair."

The others too smiled at him, but those smiles didn't last long, for just then, they all turned upon hearing a voice call out from the direction they'd just come from.

"FAFNIR!!!"

Whoever had called out was still too far away to be seen, but Fafnir himself narrowed his eyes, grumbling under his breath.

"Otr!"

Twilight looked to him.

"Your...your brother?"

Fafnir nodded.

"He must have followed us!"

He exhaled deeply.

"Doubtless he comes to have a say in my plans here. He never could leave things alone."

He continued to grumble for a bit, then looked back to the alicorn beside him.

"This is a family matter, Princess. You needn't concern yourself. Go, take your portal and get you and your friends out of here."

Rainbow, after hearing that, flew down to her lavender colleague.

"I ain't arguing with that."

Twilight nodded. They had their way out, and they had to take it, so without saying anything to one another, the seven of them made their way over to the ancient gold statue. As had happened with every portal they'd encountered thus far, they each found a spot upon it, and reach out to touch it. Twilight cast Fafnir one final look before touching the statue herself, and as soon as she did so, that same familiar magical feeling began to overwhelm her. Fafnir himself stayed behind, watching with amazement as those ponies and their little dragon disappeared right before his eyes. But soon, he was alone, save for his rapidly-approaching brother. And that thought caused him to frown deeply. Looking to the treasure he had discovered, he reached down to it, plucking a simple-looking golden ring from among the endless shiny prizes he'd claimed for himself.

"Do you come to chastise me, brother..."

His eyes narrowed.

"...or steal what's mine?"

His words had been for himself, but as he looked back in the direction his brother was coming from, his expression was one of anger, and he reached behind himself, taking hold of the hilt of what appeared to be a dagger.

"This treasure is mine, Otr...and you shall...not...have it!"

Realm of Fire

It had to be said, whatever realm they had arrived in this time, it had not been a pleasant landing. Indeed, it actually felt as though someone had simply thrown them to the ground, and a hard rocky surface was there to greet them. Disoriented, there was a multitude of groans of discomfort as the ponies tried to get themselves standing, and Twilight, squinting her eyes to try and see better in the gloom, lit up her horn. This was no canyon or storage closet, but a cave, dark and barren. At its centre was yet another rune-covered stone, albeit one with many cracks and dents in it. It was a long-neglected thing, one that probably hadn't been touched in ages, but regardless, their priority right now was to find out where they were and what the next step in their journey was. Looking around, Twilight caught sight of Spike, who was the last to get himself standing, and walked over to him, holding him close.

"Are you okay?" she asked, her voice dripping with concern.

Rubbing his head briefly, the young dragon nodded, looking to his lifelong companion with a smile.

"Yeah...for now anyway."

Twilight smiled back, then looked to the others, just in time to see Applejack take off her hat and try to fan some air to her face.

"Phew! Is it me, or does this place feel kinda hot?"

Twilight hadn't noticed at first, but now that her friend had pointed it out, things did indeed seem very warm in here. It was a close heat, stifling, and in some moments she even found it difficult to breathe. But it was not so unbearable yet that she couldn't walk about with any issue.

"It's like a sauna in here," Rarity exclaimed.

She then narrowed her eyes.

"And not the good kind either!"

Twilight again nodded in agreement, but her eyes were instead focused on their immediate surroundings. Sure enough, she eventually settled on what appeared to be a tunnel leading out of the chamber they were in. Her friends too had spotted it, and after waiting for their leader to take that first step, they all joined in, moving as a group to get out of this place.

"Vikings, giants, dwarves...what do you think this world has for us?" Rainbow asked.

A long sigh escaped the young alicorn at their head.

"I'd rather not speculate. Because at this point, chances are it'll be even worse than what we can imagine."

Pinkie giggled to that.

"Cheer up, Twilight! I mean, sure, we've come across some bad stuff, and yeah, we're still pretty frustrated at not being that close to getting home, but at least we can say it's been a nice vacation, right?"

Everypony stopped, looking to her with raised eyebrows, and Pinkie, for her part, glanced around them all before shrugging her shoulders.

"Just trying to lighten the mood."

Twilight shook her head, then continued onwards, with the others not far behind. After a while, however, they started to feel a great deal more heat than before, and all of them were beginning to sweat a great deal.

"This...ugh...this isn't feeling too good, Twilight," Spike declared.

"He's right. It's getting harder and harder to keep going," Fluttershy added.

Twilight, who was herself starting to have a hard time going on, nodded to what she'd been told.

"I...I know...but this is our only path right now. So we have to...have to..."

She stopped, for just ahead, she could see a light of some kind, and as she tried focusing her vision, she saw that it was as she'd hoped. An exit out of here.

"There! A way out!"

Though still feeling the discomfort of this stifling heat, the spirits of the group were nevertheless lifted at being told this. So much so that they upped their pace, even in spite of how tired they were all feeling. The aforementioned entrance drew nearer and nearer, but as they walked on, the heat too was on the rise. It was almost to the point of searing now, though the party did their best to ignore it and press on. After a time, they'd finally managed to get to the exit of the cave.

"Finally! We're out...of..."

Twilight didn't finish speaking, and her expression soon became one of utter horror. For the land before them was unlike anything they had ever seen. This was no barren waste like the surface of Nidavellir. No, this was far worse. It was an utterly hellish landscape, with rivers of lava and a horizon dotted with constantly-erupting volcanoes. The sky was covered with a black fume from all the smoke in the air, and all around there was a violent orange-red glow, not unlike that of a furnace. It was a scene straight out of a nightmare, and always, there was the heat. Now, they understood why the temperature had been what it was, though they were, understandably, unhappy with having found that out. Seeing all this raging fire and primordial waste, Rarity fell to her knees, and soon after began to sob uncontrollably.

"I knew it! That last journey killed us! We've...we've...we've gone to the bad place!"

Twilight frowned at the devastating realm before her, but she snapped herself out of it afterwards, walking over to Rarity and helping her back to her hooves.

"It's okay, Rarity. We didn't die. It's just...this is what this realm is like."

Pinkie too looked on with unhappiness.

"This...this isn't good...this isn't good at all!"

But, it was here that one or two of them began to start coughing, and in that moment, Twilight realised that the air here was practically toxic to them. So, taking immediate action, she concentrated hard on a spell, though it was undoubtedly hard to do so with all this stifling heat and smoke everywhere. A flash emanated from her horn, and all of them, Spike included, were now bathed in a pale purple aura. Confusion took hold of them, and they looked to Twilight for answers.

"It's a spell meant to keep out the fumes. With luck, it'll hold long enough for us to get somewhere safer."

She looked out onto this new realm, narrowing her eyes as she did so.

"That is...if there is somewhere safer out here."

"Wait! Down there!"

Rainbow was pointing down to something just further down the slope of the area they were standing on. Sure enough, there seemed to be some kind of pathway there, right in-between the rivers of lava. It hardly seemed secure, but at the same time, it was also their only option right now. So, taking a deep breath, Twilight took her first step towards it.

"Okay, guys...stick together. Don't stray from the path..."

Her expression softened, and let out a deep sigh.

"...and let's hope there's a way out of this place."

A Brief Calm

Traversing a land such as this would have been utterly unthinkable for any other group. Nopony in their right mind would want to be anywhere near a realm like the one Twilight and her friends now found themselves in. Fire and heat, smoke and ash, on and on and on it went, never relenting. If there was some calmer, more stable place in this world, the ponies had yet to find it. It was only Twilight's magical shield that kept them all from burning up in the fiery waste they walked through, though the Princess was starting to strain under the constant effort of keeping it up. The path they'd been walking on was a tiny sliver of stone amidst lava and brimstone, and the only real "safe" place they had right now. But, as time wore on, the other members of the group could see that Twilight was getting more and more tired from her magical exertions, and after glancing to one another nervously, they couldn't help but ask.

"Twi? Are ya feelin' okay?" Applejack asked.

Twilight shook her head.

"Honestly...no. I've never cast this spell as long as this before."

Fluttershy's expression became even more concerned than it was before.

"Can you keep it up?"

Twilight frowned.

"I have to, Fluttershy...I have to!"

They all knew she'd meant that, but they also knew that she couldn't keep doing this forever. So, without even saying a word, they started looking around, trying to see somewhere, anywhere where they might rest up. It was hard to do, given that the smoke and ash was obscuring everything around them, but eventually, Pinkie caught sight of something, and pointed to it vigorously.

"Over there!"

The group all looked to where she'd pointed, and sure enough, there appeared to be the entrance to yet another cave over there. Twilight, knowing her friends would encourage her to go over there and regain her strength, went over there before they had a chance to do so, with the others close behind. It was difficult, moving across that narrow path to the brief sanctuary they'd found, but they made it over all the same. As soon as they were far enough inside, Twilight deigned that there was enough distance between them and the deadly heat outside to finally let her efforts stop. The aura that had been covering them faded, and Twilight started to pant heavily.

"Are you alright?" Rarity asked.

Still breathing heavily, Twilight answered.

"I just...I just...need a moment."

The fashionista nodded, and the others, realising that they all had a moment to rest up, took the opportunity. Twilight, who was now sitting down on the ground, looked to each of her companions. Nopony said anything, but it was clear what they were all thinking. They were tired of this journey, and tired of being in danger. How many more worlds did they have to go through? What other threats did they have to endure before this nightmare was over and done with? It wasn't a thought that brought Twilight any pleasure to speculate on, but at the same time, it was a thought that simply wouldn't leave her. Taking some calming breaths, she resigned herself instead to trying to think on how uncomfortable the ground was.

"It's not the best place...but I guess we can cope."

The others nodded in agreement, and several of them took a moment or two to dust themselves off from all the ash that had gotten caught up in their fur. Twilight, sitting in silence, could feel her magical fatigue begin to fade, and so knew that, before long, they could leave this cave and continue on their journey. But, as she considered this, a new sound made itself known to her. It took only a moment for her to recognise it as sniffing, and she turned. It was Spike, who was also sitting on the blackened ground, holding his knees to his chest. Twilight, the one he'd known all his life, looked on with dismay as tears began to fall down his cheeks. And as soon as she saw that, she got up, slowly walking over to him.

"Spike?"

Another sniffle on the part of the drake, and he didn't even look up to her. Instead, he stared down at his knees, tears continuing to fall. The others too noticed this, and looked to him with worry, and as Twilight finally reached him, she spoke softly.

"Spike...whatever it is...you can tell me."

Her childhood companion shut his eyes tight, and when he finally spoke, it was with a wobbly-sounding voice.

"I...I miss Ponyville. I miss everyone."

Gradually, he eventually looked up to his carer.

"Twilight...I wanna go home."

It broke her heart to see him like this, and she soon walked beside him, sitting down gently next to him and stretching out her wing. She used it to wrap around him and hold him close.

"I know, Spike...I know."

The youngster had a few more moments of sobbing after that, and the other mares all looked to him with varying degrees of softness or sympathy. Twilight, after taking a while to properly get her thoughts together, looked to him with a small but loving smile.

"I know this is a bad situation...but we're in this together."

Spike looked up to her as she continued.

"We're not leaving you...and I'm not leaving you."

She held him closer, and while the heat of this place was still thick and stifling, she ignored it, for his sake if nothing else.

"We're going to find a way out of this, Spike. I promise you that. We'll find a way out of these realms, and we'll get back to our home."

Leaning forward, she gently brought her forehead against his.

"This long journey won't last forever, Spike...you have to believe that."

Wiping a tear away from his eye, the small dragon moved closer to her, embracing her in a warm hug. Twilight smiled to this, returning the embrace, all while the others watched. Tears also appeared in the eyes of all the mares who were watching, even Rainbow Dash, who did her best to hide this fact. Spike, after a time, had finally moved past this feeling of his, and smiled back to the alicorn at his side. Twilight smiled right back to him, but before she or anypony else could say anything, there was a sudden shaking of the ground around them. Immediately, everypony was on their hooves, looking around with concern.

"An earthquake?!" Fluttershy asked.

There was another shake, and then another, and another, and another, and finally, after realising how regular they were happening, Twilight's eyes widened. It was a look of recognition, and she turned, looking again to the entrance of the cave. Without warning, she charged forward, with her friends close behind her.

"It...it can't be!" she muttered to herself.

On and on they ran, completely ignoring the surrounding unbearable heat as they did so, and soon, they were once more at the cave's entrance. Within moments, they saw what had been causing the tremors, and as soon as they did, their jaws dropped, with Rainbow alone voicing their shared sentiment.

"What...the...heck?!"

Blazing

After everything they'd been through so far, the ponies and Spike might have been forgiven for thinking that they wouldn't encounter anything that would shock them more than what they'd already encountered. And yet, it seemed fate had a different idea in mind for them, for all seven now stood at the edge of the cave entrance, looking up at the source of the tremors they'd been feeling before. At first glance, it appeared to be a being the same general size as a Jotun, but with some drastic differences. This creature, whatever it was, did not appear to be made of flesh and bone as they were, but rather like solidified lava. With every movement, cracks revealing the red hot substance underneath would emerge, releasing fumes of smoke with every tiny step or turn of its head. It's eyes were a deep red, and for a while it was as if it didn't see them, which they were naturally grateful for right now. But, as the group watched this strange behemoth walk by, Rainbow looked from it to her friends, and then back and forth several times over, before settling on Twilight.

"That...um...that was a giant...made of fire."

Twilight nodded.

"Yes...yes it was."

Rainbow blinked slightly.

"...A fire giant."

"Yes, Rainbow."

Rainbow paused yet again.

"...A great, big..."

But this time, she was interrupted by the sound of Pinkie slapping her forehead and grunting in irritation.

"Ugh! We've already done this bit, Rainbow! You went through the same exact thing when we met the Jotuns, remember?"

She frowned at her pegasus friend.

"Get a new routine! Sheesh!"

Rainbow frowned right back.

"Oh, forgive me for being a little shocked at seeing a friggin' fire giant walk by!"

Here, Twilight had heard enough.

"Girls! We need to make a plan!"

Applejack nodded in agreement to that.

"Anythin' in mind, Twi?"

It was a difficult question, given that they knew nothing about this creature or this land. But, at the same time, that gargantuan fire-based giant was the only living soul they'd met in this blazing realm. So, for the time being at least, Twilight knew there was only one real option for them.

"I'm...I'm going to talk to him."

As one would expect, all eyes suddenly snapped in her direction.

"What?!" Rarity exclaimed.

"Are you crazy?!" Rainbow added.

"You could get hurt!" Spike finished.

Looking down to the young drake, Twilight again placed her hoof upon his shoulder, speaking to him in a tone as reassuring as she could.

"Spike...if we show them that we mean no harm, if we try to handle this diplomatically...I'm confident they'll at least hear us out."

Spiked was still uncertain, and if she was being honest, Twilight felt the same way. But, she had a responsibility as his carer and their leader to present herself as somepony who knew what she was doing, even if she didn't entirely feel that she did. So, taking a deep breath, she lit up her horn again. Within moments, she was once more covered in the purple aura of her magic, which would protect her against the worst of the heat outside. Stretching out her wings, she set forth, travelling through the smoke-filled air and towards the lumbering giant ahead of her. The others stayed behind, seeing her go closer and closer to the thing, but always with a sense that she could do this. Twilight herself was growing increasingly nervous about being here, but she also knew she had little choice. When she was close enough, however, she cleared her throat.

"Um...excuse me...Sir?"

Her words had an immediate effect, as the fire giant halted in its tracks. Twilight took a nervous gulp, and watched as the creature turned its head ponderously. Before long, those big red eyes were looking right at her, as was an open mouth that, like everything else in this realm, was billowing smoke, even at times when the creature didn't even seem to be breathing. But, whatever was happening, Twilight had its attention, and after again clearing her throat, she spoke as calmly as she could.

"Yes...well...thank you for stopping to speak to me."

There was no response to that, and Twilight, who was staring to sweat just a little, got down to business.

"Sir...my friends and I are in trouble. We come from another world, and we've been trying to get back to it. But no matter where we go or what we do, there seems to be no end in sight to our journey."

Again, there was no answer from the huge figure before her, which was actually starting to irritate the young mare.

"Anyway...I was wondering if you at least knew where we were right now? What is this realm called."

Here, at the very least, she got an answer.

"...Muspelheim."

Twilight smiled.

"Muspelheim. Right, good, thank you. And...I don't suppose you know any way to get to other worlds from here...do you?"

The giant's face was hard to read, given that it wasn't the kind of face Twilight was used to seeing. But even so, it answered all the same.

"...No."

A disappointing answer, to say the least. Even so, this was Twilight's only acquaintance in this realm and as such she was determined to get some useful information out of him.

"I...I don't suppose you know anybody who does know of such things?"

For a time, there was nothing but silence from the creature, and it continued to bellow out smoke from both its mouth and eyes. Twilight, of course, was having a hard time seeing through all of that, but stayed where she was. After all, retreating back might show weakness, which was not a wise thing to do when faced with a being of great strength like this. Then, after several minutes of waiting patiently, Twilight watched as the giant slowly turned, raising its hand and pointing in one direction in particular.

"There...great mountain...find Surtr."

Twilight tilted her head.

"S...Surtr?"

The giant, looking back to her, gave a single slow nod.

"King of Muspelheim...he will know. He will say."

A smile crept onto Twilight's face. She had a lead, and she was more than grateful for it, as she gave a bow of her head to her informant.

"Thank you, Sir. I won't forget this kindness."

The giant did not bow back. Instead, it turned away from her, starting its long and slow march to wherever it had been going before Twilight had stopped it.

"Go...find other realm...leave Muspelheim."

Not the most pleasant of parting words, but Twilight was simply thankful she hadn't been burned or squashed during that interaction. So, with new knowledge in hoof, she turned, still smiling to herself, as she charged forward back to the cave. The others were still there, eagerly awaiting her return, especially Spike. In fact, as soon as Twilight landed back down, the young dragon rushed forward, holding her leg tight in an affectionate hug, to which Twilight couldn't help but giggle at. As for the others, they looked to her with curiosity.

"So...what did he say?" Fluttershy asked.

Upon hearing that question, Twilight's smile faded, and she let out a long sigh.

"Girls...I'm afraid...we've got more walking to do."

The Mountain

A vague point from a fire giant in one direction without any specifics given wasn't exactly the best of directions, but it was directions all the same. Twilight, still doing her best to protect her friends with her magical aura, was leading the way, forging a path ahead and making sure that every step she took was safe and stable before letting her colleagues follow her. Whether through getting used to it, sheer determination, or perhaps just an unwillingness to surrender, her spell was holding far longer than it had been before, and she and her companions were making good time. Or, rather, as good a time as they were capable of making, given their current surroundings. Traversing fiery hillsides and near-misses into pits of lava were hardly walks in the park, but by sticking together, they managed to make their way, slowly but surely. But always, there was this fear in their minds. For they travelled to the one who called himself King of this realm. And in a realm like THIS, that did not exactly bode well.

"So...this Surtr fella...think he'll help?" Applejack asked.

Twilight's eyes narrowed, and she looked back to her.

"He's the sovereign of a realm filled with fire, smoke and lava, who rules over a race forged from those very elements."

Sighing, she paused for a brief moment.

"...Let's just say I hope he's friendly."

Applejack and the rest of them could hear the unease with which she'd said that, but they didn't question it. Instead, it was Pinkie who elected to speak to the lone farmer among them.

"Don't worry, Applejack! Everyone we've met so far has helped us! Why should this be different?"

Applejack considered that, then gave a slow nod.

"Ah guess. Ain't exactly the nicest thought, havin' ta go through a place like...well...this. But ah trust Twi."

Twilight smiled to that, and doubly so when she saw that her other friends seemed to share that sentiment. It was a pleasant reprieve in the midst of the rather uncomfortable surroundings they had. But, the silence did not last forever, as Fluttershy spoke soon afterwards.

"I hope we can find someplace to rest soon...it's been getting quite tiring."

Rarity, who was panting quite furiously now, nodded in agreement.

"Indeed, darling! I don't now about the rest of you, but this hill is becoming quite tiresome!"

Though Twilight at first agreed to that, those words lingered in her mind for some time. Then, as if on cue, a thought occurred to her, and her head snapped in the direction just ahead of them. The "hill" they were walking on was indeed growing steeper, and seemed to carry on doing so for quite a distance yet. So focused had she been on maintaining her spell that Twilight hadn't even noticed that they were just about to come across an outright mountain. It was high, and probably far more so than any mountain she had ever encountered in her life. And, as was probably expected in a realm like this, there was a constant stream of smoke at its peak. A volcano, to be sure, but this thought did not dim the notion that now came front and centre in the mind of the young alicorn.

"The...the great mountain?"

The others looked to her with confusion, prompting her to turn back to them and start explaining.

"The fire giant from before...he said their King could be found at the great mountain. I...I think this is it!"

Naturally, that caused smiles on the faces of her followers, but sadly, the smiles were short-lived. For Rainbow, stepping ahead of the rest of the group, looked around the mountain, from the top to its base. A frown came to her, and she looked to her leader.

"So...how do we get in?"

Twilight's smile too faded, and she glanced around herself. Sure enough, her friend had the right of it, and it looked as though there was no actual way to get in. No cave entrance, no door, not even some big crack in the ground. Spreading out her wings, she flew straight up, hoping to get a better look. But again, there was nothing to be found. Sighing, she lowered herself back, looking to her colleagues once more.

"We may have to go around."

Dismay came to Rarity at that.

"NOOOOOOO!!! Not more hiking!"

Applejack rolled her eyes.

"Cheer up, Rares! We've made it this far, we can make it through that!"

Her statement was finished by her slamming her hoof down onto the ground, but this proved to be an act they came to regret. For as soon as she did so, she caused a slight crack in the stone beneath them. This crack began to grow and spread, and all of them, to their sudden horror, realised that the ground they stood on was not the most stable. Twilight's eyes widened, and she yelled out with urgency.

"MOVE!!!"

But it was too late, for the ground finally gave way, creating a gaping chasm beneath them. Twilight, Rainbow and Fluttershy were able to stay aloft thanks to their wings, but the others? They began to plummet, leading to the three fliers charging down to try and catch them. They zipped down fast, seeing the bottom of the vast cavern beneath them getting closer and closer. Finally, they reached their friends, with Twilight taking hold of Rarity, Rainbow getting Applejack and Fluttershy taking Pinkie. But there was still one more of their number to consider, and that was poor Spike. Fortunately, thanks to a quickly-formed magic cushion by Twilight, the young dragon landed softly and safely, much to his relief. Putting their friends down, the flying ponies too made landfall, looking to each other with a silent sense of congratulations.

"Well...that was something!" Pinkie remarked.

The group laughed, and it was here that Twilight took a moment to glance around where they were. The cavern they'd found themselves in seemed to go on forever, with the hole they'd fallen through looking like it was already miles high above them. It was hot down here, but not so much so that it would kill them like the land above. Stalactites and stalagmites littered the place, and there was an eerie breeze passing through. Bottom line, it wasn't a good place to be, and after getting her bearing, Twilight looked back to her friends.

"We need to keep going."

They looked to her with surprise.

"We're...we're going on...in here?" Spike asked.

Twilight smirked.

"Well...we wanted a way into the mountain...and now we've got it."

"Yes...you do."

Twilight's smirk faded, and she snapped her head around, as did all the others. There was someone else in here with them, though they could not see who or where. Silence fell, but then, to their shock and awe, a bright fire blazed forth on the far side of the cave. It grew brighter and brighter, threatening to surround and engulf them all, causing them to huddle together for safety. But instead, the fire stopped, retreating back somewhat. Now that there was light, Twilight could see that there was indeed someone else in here with them. A fire giant, taller than the last, sitting on some crudely-carved stone throne. About his head was what, generously, could be called a crown, though it was really little more than a melted iron ring, twisted in its shape. He bore a fierce-looking beard of blazing fire, and at his side was a sword, almost as long as he was tall, resting at the edge of his throne. The being narrowed its eyes, leaning forward and examining the intruders, before speaking in a tone of terrifying authority.

"I am Surtr...and you...are not welcome here."

Ruler of Fire

Surtr. The King of Muspelheim. Lord of Fire. Ruler of the fire giants. A being who evoked dread the likes of which Twilight and her friends had not felt in these realms since their brief encounter with Jormungandr in the oceans of Midgard. Yet there he sat, narrowing his eyes at the group that had plummeted down into this chamber that served as his throne room. Yet he was alone here, with no guards, attendants, servants or any other of his people. Just the King, sitting on his stone throne, tapping the hilt of his blazing sword with clear irritation. Silence fell between them all, and the ponies and Spike looked on at the angry King, fearing for their very lives. Rainbow, as expected of her, tried to put on a brave face in this situation, but even she was very obviously starting to worry about what was going to happen to them. Twilight, despite having been told straight away that she and her companions were not wanted here, nevertheless took a deep breath, then strode forward, speaking as confidently as she could.

"Your Majesty...my name is Twilight Sparkle. I hail from a place called Equestria...and my friends and I have become lost in your world."

Surtr did not stir from his throne, prompting Twilight to continue.

"We were told by one of your people that you might know a way out of this realm and into another. Is that true?"

Here, Surtr gave a slow nod.

"I do."

Twilight smiled.

"That's...that's good to hear!"

Surtr looked away slightly.

"I will help...if only to see you gone from my realm."

To that, Rainbow frowned, stepping forward herself.

"What, you got some problem with us being here?"

Everyone looked to her, dismayed that she'd just spoken to him in that tone of voice. As for Surtr himself, he seemed more irritated than angry at the words, and gradually looked back to her.

"This realm is for my people...and my people alone. You want a way out? You shall have it. Then...I can be left in peace. To continue...with my waiting."

Words such as those caused curiosity in the minds of the party, and all of them looked to one another with confusion. Fluttershy, who while still just as scared of this guy as all the rest of them, walked forward slightly before speaking up.

"Um...what are you waiting for?"

Surtr, in response to that, glanced down to his sword, whose heat radiated off itself with every moment.

"...Ragnarok."

The group turned to Twilight, hoping for an explanation. But the young Princess merely shook her head.

"I don't know...Erik never taught me everything about their beliefs."

Surtr, without even looking at them, began to explain.

"There will come a time...when the days of the Gods come to an end. The final battle will begin."

He gripped the sword's hilt even tighter.

"On that day...I shall go forth from this place. I will go to the Bifrost, with my people behind me...and we will shatter the bridge with our very steps."

It wasn't the most pleasant of stories, but the group nevertheless found that they could not look away as they were hearing it.

"We will go to the home of the gods...and we will fight. Death and destruction will be left in our wake...and through my sword..."

His eyes narrowed further.

"...I will set alight the spark that consumes all of Yggdrasil."

The ponies looked on in horror, Twilight especially so.

"W...what?!"

Here, Surtr finally did look to her.

"The battle that I will lead...will consume all the nine realms in the fires of my people. We will end it all."

Slowly, he leaned back into his throne, the heat from his body slightly melting where he rested.

"Such is our fate...and mine especially. It is foretold...and it is unavoidable."

The group couldn't believe what they'd heard, and yet, the way he said it, it was obvious to all of them that he'd meant it. Applejack, shaking her head, was the next to speak.

"Ya...ya can't be serious?! Y'all are just gonna burn everythin'?!"

Surtr gave a grim nod.

"But...but...why?" Pinkie asked, just as dismayed as her friends.

"It is our destiny...my destiny. My duty in this world. The one thing for which I was brought forth. It is the purpose of Surtr. To set Yggdrasil alight...and in so doing...bring my own life to an end."

This utter resignation to his fate, this destiny to wipe out life on that kind of a scale, was unfathomable to Twilight's ears, but for now, she couldn't even get the words out. As for Rainbow, she most definitely did know what to say.

"Okay, what is it with people and fate in these worlds?! What, you just accept that this is gonna happen?! You're not gonna question it or try to not do it?!"

Surtr frowned deeper than before.

"One does not question the weave of the Norns. What they have written...so shall it come to be."

Rainbow's head snapped back in Twilight's direction.

"Twilight, we've gotta stop him!"

Twilight looked to her.

"I...I don't..."

Rainbow, irritated at her apparent indecision, grunted loudly.

"Ugh! Do I need to spell it out? He and his army are planning to wipe out everything! That just screams bad guy! How can we not fight that?!"

The young pegasus, glaring back at the fire King, spread out her wings and gave an almighty thrust of them. Twilight and the others watched in horror as she shot herself onwards, heading straight for Surtr, who didn't even bother trying to get out of his throne. So furious and so fast was Rainbow, that she was even starting to partly go into one of her famous Sonic Rainbooms, no doubt to give her strike more power behind it. And strike she did, giving an almighty kick right into Surtr's unprotected chest. But despite the great strength of the impact, there was no damage whatsoever, and Rainbow looked on, with complete disbelief, as the fire King glared down to her.

"You waste your time, outsider. Fate cannot be halted. Not in these nine realms."

Rainbow stepped back, now terrified at what the Lord of Muspelheim might do to her in retaliation. Twilight too was worried, and so, with a flash of her horn, she teleported over to Rainbow, taking hold of her and then casting a second teleportation spell, bringing her back to the rest of the group. Surtr, who was unconcerned with both the attack and their clear horror over what he'd said to them, merely sighed, a great cloud of smoke emerging from his mouth as he did so.

"If my words concern you...know that such a thing will not happen for many ages. The fires will come...but not today."

Afterwards, there was a pause, and then, the king's eyes slowly looked down to the ground the group was all standing on.

"Today...you simply...leave."

Without warning, he took hold of his sword, raising it up slightly, then bringing it back down. As soon as the point of the thing collided with the stone floor below, Twilight and the others were dismayed to find themselves surrounded by yet further cracks around them where they stood, not unlike how they got down here to begin with. This time, however, there was such an immediate and massive upheaval of rocks and earth around them that one of the great stones collided with the side of Twilight's head, knocking her out almost instantly. Though clearly fearful for her, the others could do nothing. For much like before, they had yet another great chasm beneath them to worry about, and within only a second, they now began to plummet down, going faster and more out-of-control than they had done before. The hole seemed to go on forever, without end, and as the others fell, Fluttershy and Rainbow struggled to fly down to reach them. It truly did seem like this would be the end of them, as they collapsed down into the gloom below. As for Surtr, he simply leaned back into his throne, giving another sigh.

"You have your destinies...and I have mine."

The Fall

Darkness and silence was all Twilight knew, at least for the time being. How long had it been since that stone hit the side of her head? She didn't know. Unconsciousness wasn't exactly the best of circumstances for asking questions of oneself after all. And yet, through this perpetual state of senselessness, something began to make itself known. It was a sound, like some kind of faint hissing, heard from far away. It was like the kind of sound a person could hear just as they were on the cusp of waking up, unsure of whether the sound was real or not. But, as moments passed, the sound became louder, and more than that, it started to feel, for some reason, colder. Discomfort was starting to envelop the young alicorn, and she shivered all through her body, all while that hissing was growing louder and louder, to an almost unbearable degree. The sound was real, the feeling of cold was real, and Twilight's senses, now making themselves known, caused her to snap her eyes open.

She did not like what she saw.

She was falling, plummeting through the sky at who knows how fast a speed. The air was rushing past her so fast that it was an almost deafening sound to her ears. And the cold? It was like nothing she'd ever felt before, with not even the pre-Crystal-Heart wastes of the Crystal Empire feeling as icy as these winds were right now. But then, as her memories started to return to her, her eyes widened with shock and horror. She remembered Surtr, his chamber, and how she and her friends had been unceremoniously cast out of there by the King of fire. The thought of her friends prompted her to snap her head in all directions, and sure enough, there they were. Rainbow and Spike, Fluttershy and Pinkie, Rarity and Applejack. All of them were, like her, falling uncontrollably through the sky, unable to stop themselves, and completely terrified of what awaited them below. Rainbow and Fluttershy were trying to take hold of their non-flying friends, but to no avail, as their grip would never hold for long.

The situation was terrible, and as Twilight continued to feel the pain of where that stone had hit her head, she squinted at her unwanted surroundings. But, as she did this, she started to see something. Through fog or mist or whatever it was, she could see a vast shape. It was foreign, and yet, at the same time, familiar to her senses. What that a tree trunk? Whatever it was, it was of little concern to the alicorn, as her priority right now was to simply ensure that her friends made it out of this. No small request, given what was happening to them right now. But, as her mind raced to think of a solution to all of this, her eyes caught sight of something else. Far, far below them. Ground. Or, rather, what appeared to be ground. In truth, it was more of some great snowy plain. But, beggars could not be choosers, and Twilight knew that was where they were heading. And, unfortunately, they were heading there fast.

She knew she had no time to spare, and so concentrated with all of the re-awakened faculties available to her. Her horn ignited, and in a bright flash, she teleported. For as they'd fallen, the young Princess had drifted further and further from the main group. But now, thanks to her teleportation, she was among them right now. Screams and cries of panic filled her ears as she now found herself between them all, but, for a brief moment, her arrival onto the scene caused looks of surprise and relief. They were happy to see her, but Twilight had no time to enjoy the moment with them. Instead, she shut her eyes tightly, concentrating as hard as she could on her next spell. Would she have the strength to carry it out? She very much hoped so. As for the others, they knew their leader had a plan, and so put their trust in her, though several of them continued to, understandably, scream on the way down.

Twilight stressed and strained under the effort of what she was doing, as it was generally not advised to do any massive spell-work after having just regained consciousness. But the ground was drawing closer and closer, and if she got this wrong, some of all of them would not be walking out of this. Her horn lit again, and after putting all of her might behind it, a spell spread outwards, engulfing her colleagues in a familiar magical bubble. It was the same spell she had used many years ago, when they'd first faced Discord together. She held them there, all together, and as the ground drew nearer, she used her power to enact a form of levitation, doing all she could to slow their descent. Worry took hold in the faces of the others, and they watched the ground become perilously close. But as they did this, they noticed, to their great relief, that their speed finally was slowing down.

Twilight did not rest on those laurels, however, and she continued to concentrate hard on her spell. Slower and slower they went, though still not going slow enough for their liking. But, as the ground became about the same distance as a taller-than-average house, Twilight's strength finally gave out, and her bubble collapsed. Screams resumed, and the ponies fell to the surface beneath them. However, by sheer good fortunate, it was an incredibly thick layer of snow down there, and as they collided with it, that layer was just thick enough so as to be able to act as a form of cushion to break their fall. Granted, hitting thick snow from that particular height wasn't exactly completely safe, as they still felt like they'd had more than a little bit of an impact, but still, compared to what they would have had, it was by far the more preferable option to them.

As before, Twilight found herself greatly tired from her exertions, and few could blame her. Still, as Rainbow and Fluttershy landed with a bit more grace than their colleagues, they went to each of them, helping them out of the snow and just trying to generally recover from what had just happened to them. Spike, as one would expect of him, rushed immediately to the side of Twilight, and she, in turn, smiled warmly to him as he helped her out of the snowy crater she'd made for herself. Pants of exhaustion were abound among the group, but they did not forget what was important right now. Seeing one another, safe and well, they rushed together, embracing one another in a tight and appreciated group hug. Amidst all the chaos and danger and near-death they'd just expected, this right here was a tiny island of warmth and comfort in a world of unpleasantness.

And speaking of warmth, they suddenly found that they needed as much of it as they could, as a sudden wind blew right through them, causing all of them to shiver to an intense degree. And it was here that they finally started to take note of their surroundings. Where Muspelheim was hot and blazing, this place was still and frigid. Ice and snow were all one could see for miles around. Fields, lakes, rivers, mountains, no matter what they saw here, it was all covered with some form of ice and snow. Even the skies above them fell under this, for while those of Muspelheim were blanketed in smoke from the volcanoes and unending fires, this world's sky was covered in pale cloud, obscuring any sunlight at all. It was a wasteland of cold, looking utterly unsuitable for life or survival. IF there was something living here, they could not see it from the vantage point they'd found for themselves.

For just a brief moment, as they shivered and huddled together for warmth, they actually pined for the great heat of the world they'd been cast out of. But the moment was short-lived, and instead, they tried to focus on what to do or where to go. There appeared to be no towns, cities or dwellings of any kind here, and like the world before, it seemed unlikely that any direction they went in would provide them with what they needed. Nopony knew what to do or what to say, not even Twilight, who continued to hold Spike close to her with her wing, sheltering him from the worst of the icy winds that continued to nip at them. But, as had happened so many times, the group looked to her for guidance, hoping she would have some answer or idea, no matter how small, that would get them out of this. They knew she didn't, and on some level felt hugely guilty for putting that kind of expectation on her, but in truth, it was all they had. Twilight, letting out a long and tired-sounding sigh, took on a determined look, then chose one direction in particular, and took that first step forward.

"...Let's go."

Unexpected Help

Now, Twilight had been through some pretty bad Winters in her day. Her first time trying out for Winter Wrap-Up in Ponyville? Oh yeah, that certainly stood out as a rather hectic time for her. Having to cope with Rainbow Dash's obsession with Tank not going into his hibernation? That was pretty crazy too. But this? This right here? Having to deal with cold and wind on this scale? No, she would have traded this at a moment's notice for any of those other wild and crazy winters if she had the chance. From her first step forward, the young alicorn, along with all of het friends, struggled to get going in this place. As had been established before, the snow was thick on the ground here, and it truly was an effort to just walk in a straight line, having to almost dig their way with every step. Granted, Twilight, Fluttershy and Rainbow were less hindered by such things, but for the sake of their friends, they endured it as well. Time passed, and it seemed as though they'd made no progress whatsoever, and it was starting to get on a certain fashionista's nerves.

"So...any inkling as to when we'll be able to come across anything of use out here, darling?"

Twilight couldn't blame her for her unhappy mood right now, as she was certainly feeling it herself right now. But, she did her best to keep those feelings under control for the time being.

"If we keep going on long enough...we'll come across something...or someone...who might be able to help us."

Rainbow groaned to that.

"I'd just be happy getting somewhere out of this wind!"

Applejack took a moment to chuckle to her colleague's words.

"Ah thought a little snow would be pretty easy fer the great Rainbow Dash."

The blue pegasus beside her glowered at that, and for a moment, Twilight feared that a fight would break out between them. Fortunately, this was soon averted, as Pinkie suddenly called out.

"Wait! Over there!"

All eyes turned to where she'd been pointing, and sure enough, they took on looks of surprise. It appeared to be an icy ridge of some kind, just a little further up from where they were. It was small, to be sure, but what was important was that it was, unquestionably, shelter. Not good shelter, but it would keep the worst of the wind off them at least. So, moving as one, the group made their way over, with Twilight keeping Spike on her back so he could at least keep up with them. The struggle to get over there was as bad as it had been this whole time, but with renewed vigour, they made it. A sigh of tiredness escaped them all, and they took a moment to rub their hooves together, though the little warmth they had from such an act was not really worth it. In this moment of silence, Twilight cast her eyes outwards, and saw, as usual, nothing useful towards the horizon.

"Twilight?"

The voice of Fluttershy prompted her to look over to her, seeing the concerned look she bore.

"Are...are you alright?"

The Princess wanted to reassure them, to let them know things were going to be okay, but in a desolate place like this, it was getting harder and harder to keep up such an image.

"I just...wish we had help."

She hated herself for revealing that moment of weakness, however brief, but, to the credit of the others, they did not look down to her for it. Instead, they smiled, walking over to her and, in a move which mirrored their first landing here, got together in a warm hug. However, this tender moment between them was somewhat interrupted when they began to hear a familiar sound. Footsteps? No, more familiar than that. It was, to their utter shock, hoofsteps. Their heads darted in all directions, trying to see who or what was causing it, and here, they saw a shadow being cast by something just above them on the ridge. With fear taking hold, the group stayed silent, with Twilight keeping her eyes fixed on that shadow. Then, to their slight concern, they heard a voice call to them.

"It's alright...I mean you no harm."

Though hesitant, the group moved together, heading out of their temporary shelter and out into the snow once more. Turning, they looked up to the figure who had spoken to them, and here, their eyes widened with shock. At first glance, it appeared to be a figure not unlike Princess Celestia in appearance, with pristine white fur. But this was no alicorn, as she bore no horn or wings to identify herself as such. Instead, her mane was the same bright white as her fur, and her eyes were a piercing blue, looking down to them with softness in her expression.

"I am sorry to have startled you...but I heard voices, and I came to see who it was."

Though undoubtedly surprised to find one of their kind out here, Twilight was not willing to question this kind of good fortune, and broke out into a smile.

"I...I'm sorry, but...we weren't expecting you."

A chuckle escaped the mare high above them.

"Think nothing of it. With all the dangerous people in these nine realms, caution was probably a wise choice. Though I admit, I had not expected to see outsiders here in Niflheim today."

So, they knew this realm's name now, but it was a very small comfort right now. Still, Twilight sighed, relieved to have actually found somepony out here.

"My name is Twilight, a Princess of a land called Equestria. These are my friends...and we're trying to get home."

The mare gave a brief bow of her head.

"My name is of no importance...but it is nevertheless an honour to have such distinguished guests in this realm."

Rarity, as one would expect, clearly approved of the mare's manners, giving a slight nod to her, but Twilight, keeping her mind on their goals here, stepped forward and looked to her with curiosity.

"I'm terribly sorry for asking this...but I don't suppose you know of a way out of this realm...do you?"

A warm smile crossed the mare's face, and she gave a small nod.

"As a matter of act...I do."

The group broke out into smiles, looking to one another excitedly. As for the mare, she turned, looking out in one direction in particular, before promptly raising her hoof and pointing to it.

"If you travel south, for about one day, you'll come across a lake, and at the edge of that lake...there is a bridge."

Slowly, she looked back down to them.

"If what you seek is to leave this realm, that bridge will offer you that chance. The journey across it is simple, and I assure you, you will not have to worry about this realm once you've crossed it."

Sighs of relief passed through the group, as would have been expected, and Twilight, keeping her eyes on the mare, gave an appreciative smile.

"Th...thank you. I don't know what we would have done if we hadn't met you."

The mare chuckled, giving another bow of her head.

"Fear not...I only want to help."

Her face, just for a moment, became more serous.

"Remember...a day's journey to the south."

Twilight nodded, taking a moment to look back to her colleagues, all of whom were smiling at her. But, when she looked back to where the mare had been standing, she found, to her surprise, that she was gone. Stretching out her wings, the Princess gave an almighty flap, launching herself in the air. She rose up, to the point of the ridge, expecting to see the mare or where she'd gone to. But no, there was nothing there at all beyond all the snow and ice that covered everything else in this realm. Though taken aback by this sudden disappearance, Twilight knew she could not lose sight of what was important. They'd been given a way out of this place, and she was not about to let that opportunity slip her by. So, after landing back down to the ground, she turned to her colleagues, her smile one of utter confidence.

"Come on, guys...we're getting out of here."

The Bridge

True, their journey through the nine realms had been trying, dangerous and unwanted, and yet, with what had just happened, the group now had at least a tiny sliver of hope in their hearts. Granted, coming across another talking equine like themselves in this place had been the absolute last thing they'd expected to see, but it was something they appreciated to no end. What's more, they now had a lead to get themselves out of this frigid wasteland of a realm, and that knowledge alone made their trek through the snow feel just that little bit easier. Twilight, confidently striding forward, led her friends over frozen fields, hills and rivers, though the latter environments had to obviously be traversed with greater care, lest they fall under. Still, a "day's journey" they had been told, and a day's journey they would walk, never straying from the southward direction they'd been given. However, as they continued through this chilling place, Spike started to look just a touch concerned about something, and while he did his best to keep his concerns to himself for a while, there came a point when even he could no longer keep silent.

"Um...Twilight?"

The Princess, still walking forward, looked down to him by her side.

"Yes, Spike?"

Though hesitant, the young dragon nevertheless managed to get his words out.

"Don't you think it's a little odd that we come across somepony like that out here? Somepony who just knows exactly what we need and then just...you know...vanishes?"

Twilight nodded.

"I know what you mean. It was strange, I'll certainly concede that. But, it was still helpful, and out here..."

She gestured to their surroundings.

"...I don't think we're in a position to be picky when it comes to what help we get, or from who."

Though Spike was still unsure about all of that, he soon nodded, conceding at least that point. Twilight, smiling down to him, gave him a quick pat on the head.

"Don't worry, Spike...we'll stick together and deal with whatever comes our way."

Spike smiled back to that, appreciating the words of his carer, but, before he had the chance to say anything further, he was interrupted by the sudden and loud calling out of Rainbow Dash.

"Twilight! Look!"

The group turned in unison, looking to where the cyan pegasus had pointed. And sure enough, their destination was in sight. A vast lake which, naturally, was just as frozen as everything else around here. And there, sitting right at the edge of the thing, was the start of a bridge, just as they'd been promised. Smiling, Twilight charged forward, followed shortly by all of her compatriots. Within a short time, they'd made it, and so could get a better look at the bridge in question. It appeared to be incredibly old, having been made from some kind of wood, both in the floor panels and the pillars that rose up from it. But, in stark contrast to this, the roof of the thing was made, shockingly, of gold. What little light the skies of this realm had caused that roof to glisten, and Rarity, naturally, was utterly transfixed upon it, much to Applejack's amusement.

"Rares...yer drooling."

The fashionista wiped her mouth, looking a touch embarrassed, though the others at least had the courtesy not to laugh at this. Twilight, on the other hand, was focused on the bridge before them. Stepping to one side, she looked out to try and see where it was stretching out to, but here, she came upon a slight problem. For while the bridge seemed to go on for a very long time, she could not see its end. For after a while, the bridge became obscured by a thick and foreboding fog, which the young alicorn could not peer through. Moreover, the skies above seemed to darken in that direction, not from clouds, like everywhere else, but from something else. It was hardly a pleasant image, but for the time being, Twilight focused instead on just the bridge.

"Well...here it is."

She looked out to the rest of the group, and much like her, they seemed to show some kind of hesitation at the gloomy far-away destination this bridge would take them. Still, after everything they'd been through, Twilight could feel that this would indeed take them out of Niflheim, and so, after steeling herself, she gave a solemn nod.

"Ready?"

The others nodded in unison.

"Ready," they echoed back to her.

Twilight took a few breaths, then stretched out her hoof, ready to take that first step onto the bridge.

"Halt!"

Immediately, Twilight stopped at the sound of the unfamiliar voice, and she and all the others turned. There, standing behind them just a short distance away, was what appeared to be an old woman, clad in a heavy grey cloak and robes, her face obscured by a large hood. Slowly, she raised her head, revealing her wizened face, with long grey hair poking out of the aforementioned robe. She walked forward, her every step betraying the slowness of her age, and Twilight, though wary, walked closer.

"Who are you?"

The woman stopped, her eyes narrowing at the Princess.

"My sisters and I are known by many names...but you may refer to me as...a Norn."

Twilight's brow furrowed as memories of past encounters returned to the forefront of her mind.

"Norn...Norn...wait..."

Her eyes widened.

"I've heard people mention you before. You're the ones responsible for people's destinies?"

The woman nodded.

"Correct. It is we who weave the fates of the realms and those who dwell within."

Though fascinated to meet such a person, Twilight soon remembered what she had been about to do, and after casting another quick glance to the bridge, looked back to the mysterious figure nearby.

"Why did you stop us?"

The Norn frowned at the bridge.

"You have all been deceived, young one. You were told that this bridge will lead you out of this realm."

She gestured to the thing,

"And while that in itself was no lie...know now that the place you will go to is Helheim...the abode of the dead."

As one would expect, words like that prompted more than a little fear in the other members of the group.

"The...the underworld?!" Fluttershy asked, clearly worried.

The Norn nodded.

"Indeed. It is a place where those who did not die valiantly in battle must go, to live under the reign of Hel, Mistress of that dark place."

Twilight grimaced at that thought, again looking to the bridge and the darkness that awaited them on the other side.

"...If we had gone there...what would have happened?"

The Norn hung her head slightly.

"...You would not have returned. For nobody, not even the gods themselves, can free a soul from that realm once they have entered it."

Applejack frowned deeply to this, turning to her friends.

"We were tricked! That no-good mare wanted us ta go ta that blasted place?! Why?!"

A chuckle escaped the Norn, causing all of them to look to her as she began to explain.

"For simple amusement, I would imagine. And that was no mare, like yourself...but a shapeshifter. A trickster, who has been known to do many such ill-acts in his life."

Twilight tilted her head.

"Wait...his life? But...he was a mare!"

A knowing smile came to the old woman.

"It would not be the first time he took on such a form for himself."

She glanced away, her frown returning soon afterwards.

"And knowing Loki...it will not be the last."

Twilight didn't know who this "Loki" person was, and quite frankly, after how they'd almost been deceived into going to a place that would very definitely end their journey in the worst way possible, she didn't want to know anything more about him. Instead, she turned once more to the bridge, now knowing it was little more than a dead end to her, and she let out a resigned sigh. Eventually, however, she looked back to their visitor.

"Thank you...for warning us."

The Norn gave a bow of her head, before turning and starting to slowly walk off. The group, seeing her go, all gave each other silent looks, before all agreeing that it was best for them to avoid this place, Twilight again calling out to their new ally.

"Wait! Where are you going?"

While still walking, the old woman answered.

"I have a duty to perform...and today I must fulfil it."

Here, she stopped, looking back to the brightly coloured group that was just behind her.

"You may join me...if you wish."

The ponies and spike paused, giving each other nervous looks, which ended when Twilight gave one final look to the bridge, before eventually settling on their unexpected saviour.

"...Given what she is, if there's anybody who can help us out here...it's her."

Fate

While it was true that the snow and ice of Niflheim had kept the group from travelling as fast as they would have wanted, things were now going even slower for them than that. Having been saved from entering a realm that they would never have been able to leave, the Equestrians now followed, of all things, a Norn, who walked about as quickly as one her age was expected to go. Which is to say, not very. As one would expect, it was a certain pegasus who took the greatest issue with this, with her now greatly-reduced pace always tinted with twitches and grumbles and signs that she just wanted to head off as fast as possible. But Twilight, always keeping an eye on her, silently made sure that she did not do this, if only out of respect for their latest travelling companion. However, after a good long while of journeying together, and without ever even saying a word, the old woman at their head soon stopped, letting out a sigh and turning to the rest of the group.

"I hope you do not mind...but I would like a moment to rest."

Though Rainbow was, naturally, unhappy about this development, Twilight gave a consenting nod to her.

"Of course. We should probably find someplace safe from this wind though."

A knowing smile came to the Norn at that.

"Oh...that won't be necessary."

Twilight raised an eyebrow, unsure of what she'd meant by that. But then, as she considered this, she noticed something. The loud sound of the cold wind rushing past her ears now seemed to have dimmed, even halted outright. And as soon as she realised this, she and all the others looked on with amazement to discover that the wind had indeed stopped. How or why, they did not know, though they suspected that their mysterious companion had something to do with it. And speaking of whom, the Norn now took it upon herself to find a particularly flat patch of snow, carefully getting down to her knees before sitting down upon it. The ponies and Spike, though still unsure of what had just happened, mirrored her actions, sitting down. In another moment of confusion, they found that the snow beneath them didn't actually feel that cold. Between that and the wind, it was as if the very laws of nature itself had simply been put "on pause" to give them a moment of rest. The Norn, seeing their confusion, chuckled slightly.

"One doesn't live to be my age without learning a thing or two."

Twilight couldn't help but smile. And she was grateful for what had been done, as she had been getting tired of their walk recently. But, as silence passed over the group, there was just a general air of uncertainty about everything. They didn't know where they were going, what they were doing or even the most important question of all. How do they get out of this realm? But then, as Twilight dwelt on these things, a new thought occurred to her, and she glanced over to the old woman.

"Pardon me, Ma'am...but...you're a Norn, correct?"

The woman nodded.

"As I have already declared, yes."

Twilight nodded back.

"And that means that you and those like you are responsible for arranging the fates and destinies of those of the nine realms, yes?"

Again, the ancient being confirmed that statement.

"Such has always been our duty...and such will always be our duty."

Twilight, considering this carefully, frowned slightly before giving the Norn her full focus.

"Do you know...if we make it back to our home?"

The others, now realising what Twilight had been getting at this whole time, immediately looked over to the human-looking figure beside them. But, rather than appearing like she had something important to reveal to them, she simply sighed, shaking her head.

"I am truly sorry...but no."

Twilight's ears drooped slightly, but she said nothing as the Norn continued to explain.

"Our role is the fates of the nine realms and those within...but you..."

Her eyes narrowed.

"...you are not of these realms. Your fate, whatever it may be...is shrouded to us."

Those eyes then closed entirely.

"Whenever I try to see the paths you will walk, or what end you will reach...I see nothing."

Slowly, her eyes opened again.

"In truth, it is because of that uncertainty that I chose to seek you out at all. Never before have I encountered those whose fates are unknown to us. It was...shall we say...a novelty, to meet you."

Twilight, hearing all of that, gave a slow nod.

"Well...I suppose I can't be too upset at your motivations. After all, if you hadn't come to us, we'd still be on the cusp of walking straight into..."

She hesitated, before letting out a nervous cough.

"...well...you know."

The Norn nodded, and here, she turned to face Rainbow Dash.

"You have something you wish to ask me, impatient one?"

Though a little irritated at having been called that, Rainbow was still somewhat taken aback at having been addressed at all, leading to a somewhat amused look on the part of the Norn.

"I may not be able to see your future, but that does not mean I cannot see a question waiting to be asked."

Rainbow hesitated, and as she glanced over to her friends, she saw them all looking to her with a sense of concern, like they were worried she'd say the wrong thing, or possibly even outright offend their newest companion in this journey. In truth, Rainbow shared that concern herself, but even so, she sighed, looking back to the elderly figure nearby.

"It's just...you guys here in the nine realms are always so obsessed with fate and destiny and stuff. I just...don't get it! Heck, at one point we saw a guy who was grateful for having been told how he was gonna die! I mean...what the heck?!"

But, rather than be offended at such a remark, as many feared she would be, the Norn merely chuckled.

"I do not blame you, Miss Dash. It can be a strange thing for an outsider to understand. But fate, and accepting one's role within it, is important. If we do not adhere to the course the world must take, terrible things will surely come of it."

Here, she paused, her expression becoming one that was far more serious than before. Slowly, she turned her attention from Rainbow to Twilight.

"You...Princess. In you I see one who has seen first hand the dangers of straying from the proper path."

Twilight was taken aback by this, but remained silent as the Norn carried on.

"You have seen it, have you not? The chaos and destruction wrought when events that should have happened...do not?"

The others all looked to their alicorn friend, and just in time to see her hang her head and sigh, giving a small nod.

"Yes...I have. Some years back, I saw many visions of what my world would be like if the past didn't go as it was supposed to. And each world..."

She grimaced, a shudder passing through her.

"...each world was worse than the last. And it all lead to a world with no life at all."

Sadness took hold in her face.

"Sometimes...I still have nightmares about those worlds...and how close they came to being real for me."

The Norn listened well, slowly nodding to that.

"Thing must pass...as they must pass. To stray from this...invites naught but ruin."

Twilight looked up to her, unsure of how to feel about all of this, as indeed did her friends. Nopony looked like they had any idea of what to say or how to say it. All this talk of fate and destiny and chaos was a bit heavy for them, which was saying something, given that they were all stranded in another world with no idea of when they would get home. But, as time passed, the Norn released a deep exhale, struggling to get back to her feet. The others watched, seeing her stand tall once more. The ancient one looked around herself, nodding slightly as she regarded her surroundings, and as she did this, the ponies were shocked to discover that, much to their chagrin, the winds and the feeling of cold that had been held off for so long now returned, causing them all to shiver yet again. Standing up together, they huddled together instinctively, and the Norn, seemingly unconcerned with the return of the cold, looked to them with that same serious look.

"Come...it is not far now."

Seeing her start to walk off, Twilight frowned.

"What's not far off?"

Pausing briefly, the Norn looked back to her.

"Something...that only one like myself can do."

Frozen Root

Having been told that they were heading for some task that only a Norn could do, naturally the group continued with their journey with more than the usual amount of curiosity, as they silently walked alongside their elderly companion. The Norn herself, who continued to refuse to speak her own name, assuming she even had one of course, maintained a steady pace through the snow and ice, continuing to be completely unbothered by the cold that would have given so many other travellers cause for concern out here. Twilight would occasionally glance to her, but few such times would ever evoke anything other than a brief glance back from the Norn herself. The young Princess had many questions, as one would in her situation, but she had a feeling that, even if she did ask them, she wouldn't get an answer. So, she and her friends settled in for the long haul, at least, until the Norn finally spoke.

"...There."

Looking up, the group saw a familiar, and yet, unfamiliar sight. It appeared to be much like what they'd encountered back in Jotunheim, a giant root of Yggdrasil itself, covering the near-horizon like a mountain range. But, unlike the one they'd found in that home of giants, this one was utterly covered by snow, with trickles of ice coming down the sides from whatever brief thaw there might have been here. Though confused as to why they had come here, Twilight nevertheless maintained her silence, looking down to the Norn as she continued onwards. Squinting her eyes, Twilight could see, just at the base of that aforementioned root, there was a small gap, large enough for all of them to get through, like the entrance to a cave. It brought to her mind the memories of their visit to Mimir's dwelling, and she thus suspected that something special must also be here as well.

Onwards they walked, with the silence broken only by the constantly-blowing icy winds of Niflheim, but this bad weather did not deter them as it had in the past. No, they were used to it now, and endured the biting feeling of those winds as they forged ahead, if only because they knew some form of shelter awaited them now. Given the size of the root, it naturally took an hour or two before they finally reached it, and once there, the Norn was the first to enter the gap, ducking down slightly in order to do so. Twilight and the others, being much smaller than her, had no such issue, and followed shortly afterwards. It was dark in here, and so Twilight lit up her horn to help them see along the way. It appeared to be a tunnel of some kind, and so the group carefully made their way through it. This particular stretch of their trip took about several minutes to finish, and once they were finally through, they were once more blessed with the rare treat of hearing the Norn speak to them.

"...Hvergelmir."

Before them was a vast cavernous chamber, not unlike the one Mimir had dwelt in. But here, there were some notable differences. For at the centre, there was no lone pool of water, standing perfectly still. Instead, there was a spring, with water flowing out constantly. The spring in question was slightly elevated from the ground they all stood on, and though water continued to rise up from whatever source it had, it never actually poured over the edge, though whether this be through magic or some trickery of the eyes, Twilight could not say. But, as they looked to this new discovery, Applejack raised a eyebrow.

"Um...Fergle...meer?"

The Norn chuckled, slowly making her way over to the spring. From her robe, she produced a simple wooden bowl, and the ponies watched as she approached the side of the spring, giving a respectful bow of her head before speaking once more.

"This spring...is one of three found in the nine realms. We Norns take its waters...and feed the roots of the great tree."

Fluttershy stepped forward, sounding amazed.

"You water Yggdrasil?"

The Norn nodded.

"Indeed, child. For we Norns are not only keepers of the fates of the worlds...we also ensure those worlds' survival. We go throughout the realms, we find these springs...and we bring its waters to the roots."

Rarity, sweeping aside some of her hair, gave an approving nod to that, taking a few steps forward to look to the edge of the spring herself.

"Well, I may not be in for all this kind of thing myself, but it truly is admirable how you and your sisters are willing to go to such lengths for your duties."

Briefly, she gazed down into the waters nearby, and as she did this, she noted that there were certain signs of movement within. Curiosity took hold of her, and she moved just one step closer, narrowing her eyes so as to get a better look. And as soon as she did this, she saw something that, quite frankly, she would have preferred not to see. Snakes. Many snakes. Hundreds of snakes, all swimming about in that water. Naturally, she took an immediate step backwards, giving a high-pitched yelp of shock over this, much to the amusement or irritation of her companions. The Norn, for her part, merely gave a knowing smile, finally plunging her bowl into the waters before speaking up again.

"Your futures may be obscured to my eyes...but even I could have seen that coming."

It was a moment of levity that all of them needed, and as they looked to one another with all-too-brief smiles, Twilight eventually broke the silence, walking towards their elderly travelling companion.

"I truly am sorry to interrupt your responsibilities...but none of this helps my friends or I to get home."

The Norn, still keeping her eyes fixed firmly upon the water, gave a slow nod.

"Oh...but it does."

Twilight titled her head, showing confusion. And the Norn, in response to this, glanced to the side. Twilight mirrored her actions, and as she did this, she could see, through the gloom of the chamber, that there was another opening, on the other side from where they'd come from. It was small, and would be a tight fit, but even so, she could already tell that they were capable of making their way through. She only glanced back to the Norn when she heard the latter speak up again.

"That route...takes you beyond this realm...and to another."

She turned, looking to the Princess with a small but genuine smile.

"I believe you will find the next realm more to your liking than this one was."

Though taken aback by this sudden discovery, Twilight was not so shocked as to forget her manners. And so, after clearing her throat, she took a bow to her guide.

"Thank you, Ma'am. You've...you've done so much for us out here. I don't know how to repay you."

The Norn, having now finished filling her bowl with water, took it from the spring, before looking back to Twilight and giving a similar bow of her own head.

"Get your people home...and continue your duties. That is all a Norn will ever ask of anybody."

And, as it turned out, those would be the last words the Norn would say to her, for without even looking at the ponies, the old woman started to move off, carefully holding the bowl that was now filled with that precious water. The others watched her go, moving back through the small passageway that had brought them here. Eventually, she was out of sight altogether, and the other Equestrians, Spike included, gave yet another glance to their leader. Twilight, who now focused her attention on the route that the Norn had pointed out to them, gave a long sigh, before starting to make her way over to it.

"Come on, guys...another realm awaits us."

Through the Pass

Now, it was well known that ponies did not exactly do well in tight spaces, and this right here was one very tight space. As soon as they'd entered the route that had been pointed out for them, the band of Equestrians realised that this was not going to be an easy or quick trip. And, as one would expect, this proved particularly troublesome for one member of their party. Rainbow, as ever, grumbled and groaned about how long this was taking, or how much better things would be if she was just able to fly to where they needed to go. And the others, ever patient with her by this point, simply listened as they continued onwards. But, travelling like this was no easy task, as they had to really squeeze through the tiny tunnel they'd found themselves in. Whatever person or being had made this journey before, they were either very small, or this opening had shrunk since the last time it was used.

But, in spite of this difficulty, they were getting through it. Granted, it was cramped, uncomfortable and occasionally even painful, what with the rare stone or jagged bit of rock that would jut out from the side and scraped at their fur, but even in the face of this, they continued. After all, they reasoned, they'd been through worlds of both extreme heat and extreme cold, and after all of that, it was unlikely that any place or realm they went to after this would prove any more difficult, not unless it was some truly nightmarish domain. But, they tried to put that thought out of their minds as best they could, focusing instead on just trying to walk through this place properly. The ground, as they'd found to their chagrin, would often be uneven, containing cracks and small pits that they had to hop across, though this latter activity proved rather troublesome, given the aforementioned tightness of the place.

However, despite all the long waiting they had to do to get through it, almost a day from the feel of it, they did nevertheless manage to see a literal light at the end of this tunnel. It was far off, but it was there al the same, and Twilight, upon seeing it, perked up immediately. She glanced over to her colleagues, especially to Spike, and gave them a reassuring nod. This had the desired effect, as the collection of Equestrians made their journey with an upped pace. Within minutes, Twilight, who had been at the head of their party this whole time, managed to squeeze past the last opening of the tunnel, though she strained to do so. Still, she was out, and since, being an alicorn, she was the largest of her friends, it took competitively little time for all the others to follow her example. One by one, they exited the pass, frequently letting out sighs of relief as they did so. Twilight's smile widened with each of her friends that escaped that place, and when they were all finally out, she addressed them.

"So...how is everypony?"

Sighing and exhaling over their efforts, the group took a moment to look somewhat amused by the question. After all, they were still in a whole other realm from their home, with little to no prospect of ever getting back, all while having entered a realm that, given their luck so far, might even be worse than the last ones they'd gone through. Twilight, allowing that thought to truly sink in for her, managed a dry chuckle, nodding slowly.

"Right...got it."

So, rather than carry on, they simply sat where they were, allowing themselves a moment of rest. Rarity, having been given this reprieve, took the opportunity to brush down her mane and fur, since both of those things had become rather unkempt through her efforts to squeeze through that blasted tunnel. Rainbow smirked to this, and herself used this brief time of calm to get herself resting peacefully against the edge of the small cave they'd entered here. True, resting against bare stone walls wasn't exactly the most comfortable position to take a brief nap, but it was all she had. Spike, who, as usual, kept himself close to Twilight, sat down beside her and looked to her with uncertain eyes. Twilight, looking back down to him, wrapped her wing around him, holding him close. Through all the difficulties they'd had in their lives, they always had each other, and that was not about to change, even if they were within strange and bizarre worlds such as this one.

By contrast, Pinkie seemed to have the least issue in being here, and was instead happily humming to herself as the time passed them by. Naturally, this earned her some looks of incredulity by her colleagues, including Fluttershy, who had taken to simply resting upon the ground next to Applejack. And speaking of whom, the young farmer took off her hat, giving her face a wave with some cool air to help herself after their tiring journey through the passageway. Now, as one would of course assume, having to cool yourself off after having endured a realm of nothing but ice and snow was hardly the most sensible-looking thing to do, and Applejack herself, perhaps realising this, let out a hearty chuckle, before promptly putting her hat back on top of her head. The others shared in the laugh, but when it was over, Twilight let out a long sigh, looking around the rest of the cave.

"So...shall we?"

The others, though clearly somewhat reluctant after all this, nevertheless nodded to her, getting themselves back to their hooves and having a brief moment to stretch before gathering together as a group once more. Twilight, nodding to them all, made her way forward first, heading through the, thankfully, much larger tunnel on the other side of where they'd come from. The others followed, their faces showing clear determination to go against whatever it was this new realm had to offer. And it appeared that they would not have to wait for long, for just ahead, they could see that same light from before. It was the entrance of the cave, and Twilight, narrowing her eyes, walked slightly faster than her friends, getting to that entrance a lot sooner than the rest of them. Whatever kind of world this was going to be, she wanted to be the first to see it.

"Okay...what kind of world do...we...have?"

Her words slowed down, betraying the disbelief she now bore, and the others, hearing her speaking like that, walked close beside her, glancing out onto the world like she was. And just like her, they could not imagine that they would end up in a place like where they now found themselves. Twilight, after blinking slowly to the sight that she had been blessed with, took on a more bewildered look to her.

"Well...I wasn't expecting that."

World of Light

Having all been generously provided with surprise sunglasses by their party-loving friend, the group all looked on at what had to be the inhabitants of this new realm. At first glance, they appeared to be human, but there were important differences between them. Firstly, there was the obvious issue of the light, which had thus far given them a great deal of trouble. For every one of the individuals over there seemed to positively radiate. It was as though they were fairer than the sun itself to gaze upon, and in fact, the ponies worried that they might even go blind if they were to look at them close-up without the aforementioned sunglasses. Secondly, even through this difficulty in seeing them, Twilight and the others could tell that the ends of their ears were pointed slightly, which, when coupled with their largely slender figures, gave the impression that this was a less resilient or hardy lot than what they'd encountered on Midgard.

"Huh...kinda bright, aren't they?" Applejack remarked.

Twilight nodded to this, and began to walk forward, her friends close behind her. As they drew nearer to the group far away, they could see that all of them were clad in bright white clothing, almost akin to dresses, which clung loosely to their bodies, giving a very airy image as they moved. And speaking of movement, whoever these people were, they went about as though they were dancing the whole time, moving through the woods as though nothing physical around them gave them any difficulty or hindrance. What's more, there was the matter of the music. For as they closed the gap between them the ponies could start to hear what appeared to be flute music of some sort, and as they narrowed their eyes, they could see that this instrument was indeed what was being played, though only by a few of their number. Walking alongside her leader, Rarity whispered.

"Well, they certainly don't seem all that stressed by anything."

A chuckle escaped Twilight at that, for she could not fault her friend's words. In truth, it was rather nice that they had finally happened upon some group who had little to no concerns, as every people they'd encountered so far had all been embroiled in some unpleasant undertaking, be it trying to eke out a living, or simply awaiting some future violence, as Surtr had done. But, regardless of what they were doing, or why, they were the only people out here, and as such, Twilight elected to up her pace, trying to catch up to them before they moved away. The others followed suit, and before long, they were walking right alongside these people. But, even upon their approach, the dancing group didn't pay them any attention, even those who actually bothered to open their eyes and see them. Twilight, raising an eyebrow, cleared her throat.

"Um...hello?"

Again, there was no response, merely more dancing and music. It was as if these people had not a care in the word, which contrasted quite a bit with the somewhat haggard-looking Equestrians who were trying so hard to get their attention. Twilight, growing increasingly frustrated with this lack of notice, scoured the group as they moved, and her eyes eventually rested on what appeared to be a female. Like the rest, she was in the middle of her dance-like movements, and though she was always uncertain about interfering with something like this, Twilight felt she had no choice but to press the issue. She stepped forward, right between the female and where she was about to go to, speaking aloud with a firmer tone than before.

"Excuse me?"

Here, her words had the desired effect, as the individual stopped at last. Her eyes opened, and she glanced down at the small equine who had halted her. But, rather than be offended or upset at having been stopped, she simply smiled. Getting down to one knee, she looked Twilight over, before speaking in a quiet, calm and even pleasant-sounding voice.

"Greetings, stranger. What brings you here to Alfheim?"

Smiling at this welcome response, Twilight glanced over her shoulder to the others.

"Well, at least we know what to call this place."

The others nodded back, and soon afterwards, the young Princess looked back to her latest acquaintance.

"I'm sorry for interrupting whatever it was you were doing, but my name is Twilight. My friends and I are far from home and trying to get back."

The female nodded, though her expression did not suggest that she was in any way moved or concerned with the predicament that had been described to her.

"That is most unfortunate. I cannot image such a hardship befalling me or my kin."

Twilight gave a slight bow of her head.

"Thank you for your kind words."

That had largely been a courtesy, because in truth, Twilight could hear in the woman's tone that she did not sound all that worried about them, which, naturally, irked the Princess somewhat. Still, diplomacy was the order of the day, and she would never consider commenting on such a thing. Instead, after taking a few calming breaths, Twilight spoke up again.

"I don't know how much travel you or your people do...but I was wondering if you knew of any means to escape this realm and find another?"

The woman blinked, briefly glancing over to her colleagues, all of whom had simply continued on their way, never stopping to see what she was doing or why she was speaking to these talking multi-coloured ponies. It was as if it was beyond mundane to even consider doing such a thing. So unconcerned were they with what was happening around them that they'd even left her behind somewhat, although, much like everything else, this too seemed of little concern to the woman, who merely shrugged her shoulders before finally answering Twilight's question.

"I am truly sorry, Twilight...but I know of no such way out of this realm, nor have I ever had any real interesting in finding one."

With that, she stood up, giving a quick bow of her head before turning away from Twilight.

"My apologies...but I wish to re-join my people now."

And so, without even saying goodbye, she left, leaving a somewhat bewildered alicorn behind her. Twilight blinked a couple of times to this, and was followed shortly afterwards by her friends.

"Well...that was helpful," Rainbow declared, sounding as appropriately sarcastic as ever.

Twilight genuinely wanted to concur with her on that one, but, she soon let out a sigh.

"Rainbow...if we were in Equestria right now, and someone came up to us and asked us something along the lines of "how do I get to another world", would it be easy for us to answer them?"

Rainbow considered that, for about a second.

"Well...you do have that magic mirror."

Twilight grunted.

"Okay, bad example."

Fluttershy, keeping her eyes where their less-than-helpful new friend had walked off to, eventually turned to their leader once more.

"So...what do we do now?"

Sighing, Twilight gave the only answer she could.

"There has to be someone among them who knows what we need. So for now...we follow...and we keep asking."

Provided For

The natives of Alfheim were unbothered by having Twilight and her party follow them around through the woods, and just kept on dancing with no regard for what was going on around them. By contrast, Twilight, who was justifiably irritated that they were being ignored like this, maintained a steady pace behind them, always keeping them in view. Her friends were close behind her, and seemed to be increasingly wary of this group they were following. Was this all an act? Were they perhaps just pretending to be aloof and unsympathetic? These questions and more poured through the ponies' minds as they journeyed, but, a time came when they seemed to finally reach the edge of the forest, much to Twilight's delight. The human-like people left it first, and soon after, the Equestrians followed suit.

"Huh...this is pretty too...I guess."

Spike's words of uncertainty were echoed by Twilight, who likewise gazed out at the meadow they now found themselves in. It was, much like everything else in this realm, lush and bountiful, a place that looked like no conflict of any sort would ever happen. And ever, there were the people. Many were gathered here, and all of them were relaxing or enjoying themselves in some way. Some were dancing together in a circle. Some were lounging upon the grass, eating the fruits that could be found on the many trees they'd passed by in order to get here. Some were sitting by a nearby gentle stream, soaking their feet in its waters. Overall, it was the very image of calm and relaxation, and Twilight, after having gone through so many worlds of strife and difficulty, didn't know how to feel about it.

"Okay...I know these people seem a little...off to us...but we have to maintain diplomacy if we're to gain their help."

The others nodded, even though they were still just as uncertain about these locals as she was. So, letting out a deep sigh, Twilight stepped out of the woodland in earnest, heading into the meadow proper. The whole group passed by the many people who dwelt here, but, as had happened so many times before, nobody paid them any mind. Granted, in was nice not to be viewed with hostility in this place, but at the same time it was as if these people seemed to think that they didn't even matter at all. Like they weren't even worth looking at. Whatever the reason, Twilight couldn't afford to dwell on it, and instead, she found one nearby individual, a male this time, and walked up to him, clearing her throat and gaining his attention.

"Greetings, traveller. Do you wish to partake of our fruit?"

He held up one of the delicious looking fruits in question, offering it to her, but Pinkie, trying to hold back a giggle, leaned over and whispered in Twilight's ear.

"Was that a euphemism or something?"

Twilight frowned to her, then resumed her earlier smile as she once more regarded the man.

"Thank you for the offer, Sir, but I'm afraid I must decline. You see, my friends and I are in a bit of trouble. We're tuck in this world and we're trying to find a way out of it."

After taking a hearty bite of the fruit, the man swallowed, before glancing back to the young Princess.

"Leave? Pray tell, why would anybody wish to leave Alfheim? This is a realm of peace and beauty. All our needs are met, and no hardships come to us here."

Twilight nodded, casting a brief glance around to her surroundings.

"Yes...it certainly seems that way."

Slowly, she looked back to the man.

"But this is not our home...and we're very much eager to get back to that home."

The man blinked, sighing and reclining back onto the grass. A contented smile crossed his face, and for a while, he said nothing, much to Twilight's chagrin. After a while, she cleared her throat a second time, and this prompted the man to crack an eye open.

"Sorry to disturb you again, but...do you happen to know of any way out of this realm?" Twilight asked.

The man considered that, then shook his head.

"I fear not, friend. We Ljosalfar, the light elves, are above such concerns. Our realm is paradise, and it is meant for us to enjoy. The affairs of other worlds are not ours to consider...or to care for."

Here, Twilight frowned.

"You...you can't just ignore the other realms. What...what about Surtr in Muspelheim?"

A brief grimace crossed the man's face.

"An unpleasant beast, to be sure...but even so...his goals and his destiny are of no worry to us. Alfheim is our world...and Alfheim...is all that we care about."

Naturally, such words did not sit well with either Twilight or her colleagues, and it very much looked like they wanted to step forward and chastise him for his uncaring attitude on the matter. But then, before they had the chance to do so, another voice called out.

"You seek a way to another world?"

Immediately, their heads snapped on the voice's direction, and the group watched as a younger female approached them. She had a look of curiosity about her, one that her kin did not apparently share, and as she drew nearer, she titled her head slightly.

"I know it's not my business to bother you...but I believe there is a way to leave this realm."

Having finally been given news of a good nature, Twilight smiled, stepping forward and speaking to this newcomer in a calmer tone than she had with the man.

"Thank you so much! Any help you can offer would be appreciated."

There was no smile on the female's face, but she nevertheless nodded.

"Well...so you understand, it is not I who has ever been to another world. My people do not care for such things."

"Yeah, we noticed," Applejack remarked with a frown.

Twilight gave her a silent look to calm down, which Applejack thankfully did, before looking back to their new informant.

"So...how do you know of a way out if your people don't ever leave?"

Turning, the female gestured off in one direction, towards some hills in the distance.

"Every once in a while...a woman comes. She claims that he comes from another of the nine realms, and that she likes to come here...to visit."

She turned back to the Equestrians.

"All I know of her is that she's always found by the river. Perhaps that is a way you can leave Alfheim?"

It wasn't the clearest of instructions, but it was still the most help they'd been given since arriving here, and as such, Twilight was sure to give an appreciative bow.

"Thank you for helping us. If this river you speak of is a way...we'll see what we can do from there."

The young light elf nodded back, before promptly turning and heading off to join a nearby circle of dancers. Twilight, now alone with her thoughts, glanced over in the direction that had been provided for them. It wasn't much, but, like she'd said, it was something. Sighing, Twilight looked over her shoulder, to her friends.

"If there is a way out that way...we need to get moving."

Hearing that, the group simultaneously nodded to her.

"I think we're all keen to leave, Twilight," Rarity commented.

Fluttershy, nodding in agreement to that, looked around, seeing all of the relaxed, content and disinterested light elves close by.

"Who would have ever guessed...that a paradise would make so few Saints?"

The River

With a determination to leave this realm as soon as possible, Twilight and company made good time heading in the directions that had been provided for them. Across the meadow they went, passing many a light elf, who, as per usual, did not really notice them all that much. But, given how little the ponies liked this lot at this point, it did not bother them in the slightest that they weren't going to stop and have a chat with them. So, on they went, eventually coming to the edge of another woodland. The birds were singing in the branches, and for a time, they were reminded of why they'd initially liked this place so much. In spite of the aloof nature of those who lived here, this was a genuinely beautiful realm, with much to offer. It almost made them regret their decision to leave it was quickly as they were. But, the key word there, of course, was almost.

Passing through the new woodland, Twilight and her colleagues all had looks that suggested that they were deep in thought over something, though whatever it was they were dwelling on, nopony said. Instead, silence was what they had amongst each other, passing tree after tree after tree, never once looking back to were they'd come from. Thankfully, this section of woodland did not last long, and even more thankfully, once they were on the other side, it was mere moments before they found what it was they were looking for. For on the other side of the woodland, there was a hill that sloped downwards, and on the other side, the was a winding river, its crystal clear waters glistening with the bright sunlight from above. Smiling, Twilight moved forward, the others soon following, and within only a few moments, they were upon the riverbank.

"So...how does this work?" Pinkie asked.

It was a fair question. There did not appear to be any feeling of magic to this river, nor did Twilight see any sign of this woman the light elf had spoken of. Instead, it just appeared to be a simple river, no different from a million others they'd seen in their time. Rainbow, stepping forward, spread out her wings and launched herself forward, crossing the river within moments. She landed upon the other side, and waited there for a second or two, before letting out a disappointed sigh. Soon afterwards, she flew back, and was greeted with the confused expressions of her friends, which led to her shrugging her shoulders.

"I thought maybe all I had to do was cross it, but...nope."

Twilight smiled to that attempt by her friend, but soon, her eyes drifted again to the gentle waters beside her.

"Perhaps we simply need to...follow it?"

Her tone had become slow and quiet towards the end, and the others, just briefly, didn't know why. However, Twilight was soon sure to explain herself, and so pointed to something just to the side. There, moored peacefully to the bank via a nearby tree-stump, was a small wooden boat, not unlike the long-ships the humans of Midgard had sailed in, albeit much smaller in size. It was bright white, and appeared to have been freshly-built, though the group swore to themselves that they hadn't noticed it before. Spike, taking a step closer to the thing, soon glanced back to Twilight with a raised eyebrow.

"On reflection, I know we should probably be very suspicious of that boat..."

Then, he let out a long sigh.

"...but...I think we all know this is what we're looking for to get out of here."

The others, resigned to the young dragon's assessment of the situation, gave a quick nod to one another, before all starting to make their way over to the boat. A minute or two passed, but eventually, they managed to get inside it, with Twilight using her magic to take off the rope that was holding the boat to the aforementioned stump. As soon as she did this, they were off, with the boat gently starting to travel down the river. Rainbow, as usual with her, did not like this slow pace, but the others, at the very least, tried their best to enjoy the trip, Rarity especially, who was grateful that this boat ride wouldn't be as frantic or chaotic as the last one she'd been on. And as always, they had clear skies, good weather and pleasant birdsong to greet them as they made their way.

"So...guess this is goodbye to Alfheim?" Applejack asked.

Twilight glanced behind her, to the path they'd walked to get here, and nodded.

"Yes...seems so."

After that, she said nothing, instead enjoying the quiet of their little boat ride. On and on the water flowed, taking the small boat along, though where it was leading them, none could say. They passed through bends and winds along their way, seeing hills, forests and meadows, and after a while, they started to notice that the speed of the boat was increasing, though it only did so gradually. Thus, it wasn't until it was going at least twice as fast as when it started that the Equestrian truly noticed.

"Twilight?" Spike asked, nervously.

Twilight held him close, but she did not give an order to leave the boat, even though her instincts told her that nothing good was coming. Faster and faster they went, with Rarity especially becoming dismayed that her gentle boat ride had yet again become a more hardy outing for her. The ponies did their best to hold onto the edge of the boat, for the waters had become almost akin to rapids, threatening to crash them against the rocky shores of the river. Gone was the gentle and easy-going landscape of Alfheim proper, and instead, they found themselves in a somewhat harsher area of the realm, with the boat rocking from side to side as they continue to go to its destination. Twilight narrowed her eyes, always trying to keep a cool head, even though it was clear that nopony else was enjoying this in the slightest. And yet, through it all, there was this familiar sensation. The same sensation she always got when they passed from one world to the next.

"Everypony...hold on!"

And hold on they did, and just in time to see, to their horror, that this rapidly-flowing river was now leading them straight to the edge of what appeared to be a waterfall. Grimaces were abound, but they'd put their faith in their leader, and did not try to flee from this. Instead they held on for dear life, with Twilight keeping Spike close to her via her magic, all while never letting her eyes stray from that waterfall's edge. Eventually, however, they went over, with everypony giving an understandable scream as they did so. Twilight watched as their boat fell faster and faster, heading straight for the bottom. She could see no rocks or jagged danger down there, but as always, there was that feeling. So she stayed, and her friends stayed, and down they went, until, finally, they hit the bottom. And so it came to pass that both the boat and its occupants were submerged under the waters at the bottom of the waterfall.

And to the Equestrians, darkness came.

Rock Pool in the Forest

If there was one thing Twilight was getting absolutely sick of when she and her friends travelled from one realm to the next, it was having to wake up with a splitting headache. Sadly, that appeared to be what she had to now contend with, as her eyes snapped open after having been unconscious for who knows how long. But, to her horror, it appeared as though having pain in her head was the least of her worries, for right now, she and her friends were suspended aimlessly in what appeared to be some underwater environment. With an ache in her chest from being unable to breathe, she glanced around, seeing that all of her friends appeared to be in the same predicament, all struggling for air, with many looking fearful that this might be their end. And given that they'd been under similar circumstances in the past, like their first journey to Seaquestria, this was one close call Twilight was not willing to go through a second time.

So, with quick reflexes, the Princess looked around, and soon, to her relief, she could see some kind of light far above. With her horn igniting, she used what little strength she had to engulf her friends in her magical aura. Though they were all still afraid of what was going to happen, they watched as their leader used her power to not only levitate herself upwards, but also them as well. Up and up they went, getting ever closer to that light up there. But ever, there was that pain of being without air, and within a minute, Twilight's chest felt like it was going to burst from the feeling. However, to the eternal gratitude of all of them, their heads broke the surface of the water, and they all took massive gulps of air, panting furiously after what they'd just been through. With her magic now releasing, Twilight too felt exhaustion wash over her, and, much like her friends, she gently paddled over to the side of where they'd found themselves.

And speaking of which, it was in this hectic moment that Twilight truly took stock of what kind of place they were in. It appeared to be some kind of pool, with a cold and rocky edge, and behind them, a waterfall, not unlike the one they'd fallen off to get here. Though, if she remembered right, this place looked nothing like the environment that previous waterfall had around it. So, that had to mean that they were indeed in another realm. Sheer cliffs surrounded the tiny and stone "beach" that engulfed the pool, and it was to that beach that the group now dragged themselves, feeling a great chill in the air as they did so. Not as cold as Niflheim, granted, but still, cold enough to cause them all to shiver a great deal. Instinctively, they huddled together for warmth, and Spike especially clung to Twilight, still terrified over what they'd just been through.

"So...here we are," the alicorn commented.

Her friends all shared a laugh to that, but it was dry and devoid of humour. Still, they were out of immediate danger in this place, and given their travels so far, that was about as good as they knew things were going to get for them. So, again, Twilight turned her attention to what was around them. There didn't appear to be any path out of this place, which meant that they had to climb or fly out, and so she craned her neck upwards, seeing the top rim that was there above them. And as she did so, she noted, for the first time, the sky. It looked like a night sky, but all the way across it, there was an array of colours. It was like an aurora, with bright purples and blues colouring the vast darkness beyond. A beautiful sight, no doubt about it, but it made this place, just for a moment, seemed just that touch more otherworldly . Shaking herself out of that feeling, Twilight again turned to her friends.

"Guys...we need to get moving."

There was no argument there, and after all nodding to her, the group all separated from one another, in this moment of silence, they took the opportunity to shake themselves off from whatever water still clung to their fur, or to Spike's scales. Once dry, they got to work, with Rainbow and Fluttershy spreading out their wings and starting to flap. Once they'd raised themselves from the ground, they took hold of the forelegs of the first pony, Rarity, and lifted her up. Higher and higher she went, until finally, she was up and out of this little hole they'd all found themselves in. Next came Applejack, and she too was soon lifted out. Pinkie went last, and here, seeing the excitable earth pony raised up, Twilight spread out her own wings, waiting for Spike to climb on top of her back, after which, she gave a warm smile to him.

"You ready?"

Though the youth was still quite nervous about being here to being with, he nevertheless gave a nod, granting his consent. Smiling back, Twilight gave a massive flap of her outstretched wings, and lifted the both of them up into the air. Up they went, until finally, they too reached the upper edge. Landing back down, Twilight took a moment to let her young ward hop off her back again, and took this time to take stock of all of her other friends. All were accounted for, and from the looks on their faces, it was as if they were transfixed by something. Though at first confused by this, Twilight soon noted what kind of realm they'd apparently entered. It was a forest, ancient by all accounts. With trees that looked hundreds, if not thousands of years old. An eerie mist spread all through the place, and yet, it did not appear in any way dark or foreboding.

"Where...where are we?" Spike asked.

Twilight shook her head, unable to answer, and so continued to stare out at this new place. It had an air of wildness about it, of a realm that had been untouched or untamed despite many ages passing. In the distance, she could see a deer and its child wandering by, turning to look at them briefly before simply going on their way. Whatever kind of place this was, it was apparently a place where the local animals had no reason to fear strangers such as them. And when Twilight continued to look out, she could see something like a shimmer to the mist she'd noticed earlier. It looked like magic, and for a moment, it even felt like magic, but unlike any such power she'd encountered before in her life. Sure enough, this place was strange to her, even in the face of all the bizarre and extreme worlds they already seen. And yet, despite this, she did not feel as though there was danger here, though she could not really say why.

"So...where do we go?" Applejack muttered.

Twilight knew her friend was right. They couldn't just stay here and stare, they had to get moving. So, after taking a few deep breaths, Twilight raised her hoof and pointed.

"...That way."

A Dangerous Welcome

Have you ever had a moment when you felt that you were being watched? A time when everything around you would have been perfectly fine, except for that one nagging sensation in the back of your mind? A sensation that told you something was wrong, but you couldn't figure out why? Well, that was the feeling that Twilight was now experiencing. True, this new realm was beautiful, and even peaceful, but there was something about it. Something that made her feel as though every rustle of the tree branches or every far-off critter was looking at her. But, then again, they were the outsiders here, so it was little surprise that their presence here would cause a stir. Still, it was clear that she was not the only pony who was feeling this way, as each of her friends also appeared to be experiencing this wariness of their surroundings. Well, that is to say, most of them were experiencing this attitude, for there was one mare in particular who seemed to treat this new world with nothing short of wonder.

"Oh, isn't it beautiful, Twilight? A place where all these animals can be free?"

Fluttershy's enthusiasm for this place was almost infectious, and Twilight couldn't help but smile to it.

"It is nice, Fluttershy. But, we have to be careful. Every realm we've been to has had something about it that has undercut whatever beauty it might have had. We need to be cautious."

Fluttershy nodded, acknowledging that point, but nevertheless remaining just as impressed with this place as ever as they passed through it. It would have been accurate to say that a silence had passed over them, but that was only with regards to the ponies and Spike. For everywhere they went, there was some sound, be it of the creaking of the ancient trees, or perhaps through the call of some distant animal. Regardless, this place had a feel of being alive in away that no other realm had before, and it was strange to experience. But, this time of speechlessness did not last forever, as Rainbow, ever eager to get going, walked beside her leader and looked to her with some incredulity.

"So...I'm guessing you have a plan, Twi?"

Sighing, the young alicorn gave a small nod.

"I do...sort of."

Rainbow raised an eyebrow, prompting Twilight to elaborate.

"The path we followed from Alfheim to this realm was because of the story that there was some woman who travelled from this place. If she has experience in going from one realm to another, she might have advice on how to get to other realms."

Applejack, who likewise walked closer to Twilight, spoke up with an interested tone.

"But...there's only one left, right? We've been seven so far, includin' this one, and that Helheim place we sure as heck ain't goin' to, so..."

Twilight nodded.

"I know...after this realm...there's only one left."

Rarity, sweeping aside some of her hair, gave a loud "huff" to that.

"Well, I don't know about the rest of you, but I, for one, will not be sad to see the end of this journey. Because if it hasn't been one problem, it's been another."

A sigh escaped her, and her expression softened.

"I just...miss home at this point."

The others, who shared her sentiment at that, looked to her with smiles, and Fluttershy walked over to her to give her a friendly pat on the shoulder. But, as this silence passed, it was Pinkie who elected to be the one to try and perk everypony up.

"Awww, I'm sure this trip hasn't been that bad! I mean, sure, we've nearly gotten ourselves killed a whole bunch of times, but it's still been super exciting! We got to go to new places, saw a whole bunch of interesting people, seen lots of weird and wonderful things!"

The others looked to her with raised eyebrows, but this did not deter her from continuing.

"Hey, you can't say we haven't seen some neat stuff! Like lands full of volcanoes, or a winter wonderland, or...or..."

"Or two giant grey cats who look like they want to eat us?" Spike added.

Pinkie tapped the end of her chin.

"Huh...I don't remember that one."

Spike frowned to that, then pointed straight ahead to show what he'd been talking about. The others instantly turned, and there, they saw that their young friend had the right of it. For just a short distance away, emerging from behind a pair of trees, there was indeed the arrival of a pair of very large felines. At first glance, they appeared to look like domestic cats, though their size was more akin to lions or tigers, with light grey fur. They had a wildness to them that was most reflected in their piercing gaze, which focused on the ponies intently. Slowly, they began to approach, though whether it was out of curiosity towards the newcomers or through some predatory instinct, Twilight could not tell. All she knew was that any other critters around, like rabbits, instantly dispersed upon seeing them, which was the first signs of fear any of the local animals had shown since their arrival.

"Everypony! Get together!"

And get together they did, closing the gap between themselves so as to deny the cats any openings to divide them. Slowly, the enormous felines began to circle the group, one walking clockwise, and the other counter-clockwise. This went on for some minutes, with the ponies constantly worried that, at any moment, they'd be attacked by the intimidating beasts. Twilight, keeping her voice low, spoke to Fluttershy.

"Can you speak to them?"

Though somewhat hesitant, Fluttershy knew that she had to at least try, and so, after clearing her throat a little, she began to speak up as calmly as possible.

"Um...we're terribly sorry for trespassing in your realm."

The cats stopped right in front of her, staring at her, and allowing her to continue.

"But...we're trying to get home. We're...we're looking for a woman. A woman who knows how to travel between worlds. Since...since you two live here, do...do you know where we can find this woman?"

A moment or two passed, and slowly, the cats turned, looking to one another. The made no noise, which did little to alleviate the ponies' fears, and instead seemed to be conversing in some completely silent manner. Eventually, after casting a glance back to Fluttershy, the cats turned, and began to walk off in the direction they'd come from. The ponies, relieved that their predicament seemed to be ending, watched them go, and then, they saw them stop. The cats turned, looking again to Fluttershy, and appeared to be waiting for something. Tilting her head, Fluttershy then looked to the rest of the group.

"I...I think they want us to follow them."

Though understandably uncertain about following such an instruction, the ponies soon turned their gaze to Twilight, hoping she'd have some thoughts on the mater. The young alicorn, looking from the cats, to Fluttershy and back again, soon let out a sigh, and smiled to her animal-loving companion.

"If anypony knows animals...it's you, Fluttershy."

The yellow pegasus smiled to that, but stayed quiet as Twilight addressed the rest of the group.

"We're following them."

Spike, upon hearing that, groaned with nervousness.

"Oh...yay."

Woman in the Water

Now, being escorted through a dangerous-looking forest by a pair of massive and fearsome beasts was hardly anyone's idea of a pleasant time. But, Twilight had put her faith in Fluttershy's assessment of these creatures, so for now at least, they followed. Where they were being led to, nopony knew. All they did know was that, wherever or whatever they were being taken to, it must be important. They just had this feeling of that, this instinct that something worthwhile was at the end of this encounter. But, nopony said anything about it, instead maintaining an air of wariness, always casting the occasional glance to their feral acquaintances. On and on they travelled, with seemingly no end in sight to this forest, and while it retained a sense of mystery and primal wonder, only Fluttershy seemed to truly appreciate it, as evidenced by her tone as she walked alongside Twilight and began to speak to her.

"I know this place seems strange to us...but I think we're not in any danger here."

Sighing, Twilight smiled to her.

"Well, if nothing else, I'm glad one of us is happy with all of this."

Fluttershy smiled back, but said nothing, for just then, both she and the rest of the group stopped. It appeared as though they had come to their destination, a vast lake right in the centre of the forest, whose waters glistened brightly with the colours of the auroras above. The two cats, walking further ahead of the group, turned to face them, sitting quietly upon the edge of that lake. At first, the ponies didn't know what to make of this, but then, without warning, the surface of that water broke. Up from it emerged what appeared to be a human woman of some sort, with long reddish-brown hair. Whether going for a swim or to simply bathe, none could say. But, what was clear about this stranger was that she was completely unclothed, and while most of the group saw no issue with this, Twilight and Spike, by contrast, knew exactly what it meant, and so set to work. Twilight, igniting her horn, engulfed her friends in her aura, turning them around so as to not be able to look.

"Hey! What the...?!" Rainbow began.

But Twilight looked to her with sternness.

"Humans don't like it when you look at them without any clothes on!"

Her friends all looked to her with confusion, and after letting out a sigh, Twilight nodded.

"Yes, yes, I don't get it either. But trust me, I know humans more than the rest of you, and believe me when I say that this is just something we have to contend with."

The others, while still confused about that, nevertheless deferred to their leader's judgement. Instead, they stayed where they were, even though they continued to hear the sound of splashing water behind them. Eventually, however, a clam and soothing voice spoke out to them.

"Oh? I see I have guests. What have you brought me, my dears?"

The group heard the sounds of the two cats growling in response, and Twilight, clearing her throat, soon called out to her.

"Apologies for interrupting you, Miss...but my name is..."

"Twilight Sparkle. Yes, I know."

Twilight blinked with surprise, as did everypony else, and as they looked to her, she muttered the only thing she could.

"But...how...?"

A chuckle was heard.

"Word reached my ears long ago of seven strangers who had been traversing the nine realms. Though I confess...I had not expected to see quite such a colourful group as you."

Laughing nervously, Twilight nodded.

"Yes...I imagine we must look rather strange to you."

"Oh, not at all. One thing you must learn, young Pirncess...is that strange things are practically normal here in these realms."

After all they had witnessed, the ponies couldn't really argue with that. But, there was a certain matter Twilight wanted to discuss, only to be struck with a sudden thought.

"I'm...I'm sorry for saying this, but...I wanted to talk to you about something and...well...I'd prefer to be able to look at you while I was doing it."

At first, there was no response to that, prompting Twilight to fear that she might have offended this person. But, after a time, they heard the distinct sound of her leaving the water. More sounds of movement could be heard, and before long, the voice called out to them again.

"Very well...you may look now."

As instructed, they turned, and saw that she had not only left the water, but had now clad herself in a simple white robe. Placing her hands upon her hips, the woman regarded them all.

"Now then...I take it you sought me when you came here to Vanaheim?"

Twilight, silently noting this realm's name, nodded, taking a step closer.

"Yes...we were told by the light elves of Alfheim that you travelled there from time to time?"

The woman nodded back.

"Indeed. One can only enjoy so much by remaining in one realm after all."

Twilight took another step closer, her eyes widening with hope.

"Then...you know how to get to other worlds?"

A smile crept onto the woman's face.

"I do. In fact, I had planned to journey to one very soon. And if I've heard correctly...it is the one realm you yourself have not visited."

Briefly, she frowned.

"Well...besides the one that nobody would want to go to."

Hearing that, Twilight nodded.

"Yes. Would...would it be alright if we accompanied you?"

Her latest acquaintance shrugged her shoulders, turning to face one of her cats and giving it a pat on the head.

"The more the merrier, wouldn't you say?"

The cat growled pleasantly, but the woman, now looking to Twilight again, took on a somewhat sterner expression and tone of voice.

"I still have some preparations to go through...but you're welcome to stay with me until l am ready to depart."

Twilight, remembering her manners, gave a respectful bow of her head.

"I appreciate this help, Miss. Thank you."

The woman bowed her own head in response, and with that, she started to head off, with both the cats and the Equestrians close behind her. Spike, poking his claws against each other nervously, soon called out, asking the question that had been on his mind for some time now.

"So...what do we call you?"

Twilight looked to him, briefly feeling surprise that she herself had not asked that question. But, like him, she too was overcome with curiosity, and looked to their guide as she turned back to them.

"I am known by many names by many peoples. There are so many to choose from."

Slowly, a knowing smile crept onto her lips.

"But you may call me...Gullveig."

Peace and Soup

Twilight had thought up many images of where Gullveig might choose as her home in this realm. But, when it came time for her and her friends to actually see her home, she was taken aback to find that it was actually little more than a simple wooden hut. Not a bad home, exactly, but far simpler than she'd been expecting. If Rarity had been completely open about it, she'd have most likely called it quaint. But, she couldn't deny that there was a peacefulness to this place, and as she and her companions rested up outside the hut in question, they could hear the sounds of Gullveig within, no doubt arranging things for her upcoming departure. There were birds tweeting happily in the nearby trees, and the ponies, grateful for a chance to rest after their trip so far, sat in silence, with Spike staying close to Twilight like he always did. After a while, however, Pinkie elected to speak up first.

"So...anypony wanna pet one of them?"

Doubtless, she was referring to one of the two great cats, both of whom stood guard outside of Gullveig's home. While neither had done anything to suggest that they were violent, the ponies were nevertheless not willing to test their luck with them. So, after hearing Pinkie's suggestion, they simply looked to her with incredulity, leading to some shrugged shoulders on her part. But, before anypony had the chance to speak further, they were interrupted by the loud sound of a wooden door creaking open. They turned, and sure enough, their guide in this realm now exited her home, carrying with her a moderately-sized bowl of what appeared to be soup. Carefully, she brought it to the centre of the group, laying it upon the ground before reaching over to several smaller bowls nearby. Taking hold of one, she gently filled it up from the main bowl, and once she'd done so, she handed it over to Twilight.

"I didn't know what you liked...so I hope this satisfies."

Smiling, Twilight took the offered food, giving a gentle blow on it to get rid of some excess steam, before taking her first sip. She savoured the taste for a while, then nodded, looking to her host once more.

"It's very nice."

Gullveig smiled to this, filling up several more bowls and offering them to each of her guests. Soon, everyone present had something to fill their stomachs, which Rainbow especially seemed to appreciate, given how vigorously she wolfed it down. Many of the other ponies shook their heads to this behaviour, but Gullveig herself simply smiled before taking a sip of her own meal. Twilight, after taking a few further gulps of her own, looked to her with some curiosity.

"I'm not ungrateful for what you're doing...but what can you tell us about the last realm? The one we're heading to?"

Instantly, all other ponies looked to Gullveig also, clearly interested to hear what she had to say. The woman herself, after having finally finished her meal, took a few moments of silence, carefully considering how best to answer.

"The final realm...is known as Asgard. It is the abode of a people known as the Aesir. Mighty, brave and strong, they are renowned for their great ability. Their King, who, like me, bears many names, is said to be among the most powerful in all the nine realms."

Slowly, she turned facing the young Princess.

"If there are any who can get you home...it is he."

Twilight nodded, dwelling on that information. But, as she did this, Applejack took on a curious look herself.

"If ya don't mind me sayin' so...we ain't seen anybody except y'all out here."

She glanced around the immediate area.

"Ah mean...there are other folk out here...right?"

Gullveig gave a hearty chuckle to that.

"Oh, there are others, to be sure. But this realm is vast, and it is unlikely you'll see them. I, for one, have not seen my own brother for quite some time."

A knowing smirk came to her.

"Doubtless he is enjoying some time with his beloved boar."

Fluttershy, as one would have expected of her, looked up with interest, scooting over closer to their host.

"A boar? Is he friendly?"

Gullveig nodded.

"Indeed. My people, the Vanir...you will find that we show far more respect and connection to nature than those of other realms."

For a time, she paused, looking around at the forest surrounding them.

"These trees...the animals who dwell within...they are far older than any you will find in the realms beyond. Ancient and free...that is Vanaheim."

Given how she'd felt as she and her friends had traversed this place, there was no doubt in Twilight's mind that Gullveig's description of her homeland was an accurate one. But, as she considered that, a nagging thought came to her, and she raised an eyebrow.

"You seem very eager to go to other realms for one who feels so connected to this place."

Gullveig nodded, acknowledging that point.

"You are not wrong, Princess. But the truth is..."

Again, she paused, staring down into her now-empty bowl.

"...my people have never truly spoken to the Aesir before. Nor have any of their kind ever travelled to our domains. I decided that perhaps the time has come for us to speak to one another."

Hearing that, Twilight smiled.

"A first dialogue between two peoples? How exciting!"

Another chuckle escaped the nearby woman.

"Indeed it will be. I intend to offer them my services. My ways and those of my people may be the old ways...but those powers still have much to offer the realms. I am certain that, despite their pride and their suspicion of outsiders...the Aesir will accept me among them."

The group had listened carefully to all of that, turning to one another to try and see their reactions. But, among them all, it was Spike who took on a look of uncertainty.

"If...if they don't like outsiders...do you think they'll refuse to let us in?"

Gullveig thought on that, and, realising that she was speaking to a child, she spoke in a calm and collected manner.

"Have no fear, young one. You and your friends have been through much in your travels, and I am confident that good fortune has smiled upon you during this time. You will find your way into Asgard, with or without my help...and you will find your way home."

It was a pleasant thought, nopony could deny that, and they all smiled to her, appreciating that she was trying to lift their spirits. But, the moment eventually passed, and as Gullveig let out a long sigh, she got to her feet, observing her gathering of guests before turning to face her two cats. She gave a nod, and after letting out a low growl, the aforementioned beasts drew nearer to her, prompting her to look to the ponies yet again.

"Well...let us not waste any more time...for the Bifrost awaits us."

To the Bridge

It was nice, having hope in her heart again. After experiencing realm after realm where she was putting up with naught but hopelessness, here, at long last, there was a sense that this was it. This would be the final stretch of their journey. All they had to go was get to Asgard, and from there, convince their King to send them back to Equestria. Of course, the only other alternative was to think that there would be no way home, even after having gone to a place like Asgard. And that was a notion that Twilight was simply refusing to even consider. So, on she went, walking alongside the confidently-striding Gullveig, with her two enormous cats just ahead of her. Twilight's friends were behind her, and Spike, as usual, was at her side. Like her, they too walked with a sense of renewed purpose, clearly sharing her feeling that this might be the end of this unwanted journey. But, as had happened so many times now, nopony said a word, instead just trying their best to keep calm under the circumstances. That is, they were silent, until a certain party-loving mare chose to speak out in her usual bubbly tone.

"So...what is this Bifrost thingy?"

Gullveig took on a somewhat thoughtful look as she dwelt on that question.

"It is the great bridge that leads to Asgard. From that causeway, the people of that high realm can journey to any place they desire."

Slowing down slightly, she looked over her shoulder to the rest.

"To get to Asgard without the Bifrost, you'd probably have to do something drastic, like scale the wall that separates it from Jotunheim."

Here, the ponies halted dead in their tracks, and Rainbow, understandably, looked to Gullveig with irritation.

"Wait...you mean that there was a way to get to Asgard all the way back in Jotunheim?!"

Gullveig nodded.

"Correct."

Rainbow, realising that, snapped her head in Twilight's direction.

"So we could have gone straight there when we were only at the second world on our trip?!"

Twilight looked unsure of that, and looked to Gullveig for clarification, who simply gave a slow shake of her head.

"I fear not. While it might have been a more direct path to your final realm, crossing over walls meant to defend them would not have sent the best first impression. In truth, if you'd have attempted such a move...they would have slain you on sight."

The grimace that passed through the group made it clear that they did not doubt her words. So, while still somewhat annoyed at having learned what they'd learned, they continued onwards, still bearing that sense of slight relief that the end of their journey was in sight. Gullveig, for her part, focused on making sure they were all on the right path, looking to certain trees that bore distinct rune markings, like way-posts, helping her to know where to go. Eventually, after passing by one tree in particular, she smiled, and spoke calmly to her guests.

"Take heart...we are here."

Eager to see what she was talking about, the Equestrians rushed forward, and upon seeing what had been described to them, they halted, their mouths agape with shock. For it looked as though the very world they stood on just stopped. Images of flat worlds from ancient parchment came to mind for them. The kind of pictures that would have led to a thousand humorous comments about people just walking off the edge. Well, that appeared to be what now lay before them. For the ground simply stopped at one point, and led to nothing but a sheer drop into nothingness below. And beyond? There was naught but the night sky, as though taking one step out there would lead into space itself. Naturally, this image did not inspire confidence in the young ponies.

"So...um...that is...quite a sight," Rarity exclaimed.

Gullveig put on a knowing smile.

"Fret not...most have the same reaction upon seeing the edge of one realm or another. But still..."

She looked ahead.

"...there is where we must now walk."

In truth, the ponies had already noticed what she was talking about, but had been so transfixed at the concept of the world just ending like this that they hadn't paid any attention to it. But, there it was all the same. The Bifrost that they'd heard so much about. They had heard it called a "rainbow bridge", and it was an apt description of it. For it truly did look like someone had plucked a rainbow straight from the sky and turned it into a road of some sort, sticking one end into the aforementioned edge of the realm and stretching it out into who knew where. Though all were still amazed and stunned at this sight, they were not so shocked as to be unable to move, and so slowly approached the closest edge of the Bifrost.

"So...how does this work?" Applejack asked.

Gullveig, turning to her two cats, gave a nod, and after they'd let out a growl, they turned back, heading straight for the path they'd all been walking on. Twilight looked to her guide with confusion, and the latter explained.

"I think I might present a better image for myself if I don't bring two vicious animals with me."

And understandable position, Twilight had to admit, but it still didn't resolve the lingering issue of how best to proceed. Gullveig, realising that the ponies needed convincing, did the honours, and took that very first step onto the Bifrost. The others looked on with horror, fully expecting her to pass through that bright rainbow and plummet down into the nothingness below. But, this was not the case, as Gullveig confidently strode out as though it were a physical road. She had actually taken about ten steps forward before finally stopping, wherein she turned and silently gestured for the Equestrians to follow. Twilight, blinking slowly, looked to her companions, and they, in turn, looked to her. Sighing, she knew she would be the first to go among them, and so walked towards the rainbow.

"Well...here goes nothing."

Understandably, she was more than a little hesitant, but she still believed that she could do this. So, upon reaching the edge, she paused, looking down to that bright array of colours beneath. She took a few calming breaths, and then, she took that first step. By all logic, her hoof should have gone right through, but instead, it was stable and solid, like an actual road. Hesitantly, she took another step, and then another, before finally walking out onto the bridge in earnest. The others watched, and one by one, they followed. Eventually, and after a great deal of worry and concern from all of them, they were all there together, breathing a collective sigh of relief. Smiling to them, Twilight tuned once more to Gullveig, who smiled back before gesturing to the path ahead.

"...Shall we?"

The Gatekeeper

While it was true that Twilight and her party had encountered many strange things and visited many strange places during their unexpected journey through the nine realms, somehow, this right here managed to top all of them. Walking on a rainbow bridge through space. If you'd have told anypony back home that you were doing this, they'd have thought you insane. In fact, Twilight secretly wondered if she was sane at this point. But, despite the bizarre nature of where she was, she maintained that air of calm she was known for, walking beside Gullveig, who, as ever, walked on without ever batting an eye to what was going on around her. The other ponies, as expected, were just as awe-struck with this whole situation, though several were constantly looking like they were worried of falling over the edge of this place, which was perfectly understandable when you thought about it. Spike especially seemed concerned for his safety, staying very close to Twilight as he journeyed.

"Um...couldn't this bridge get some railings on the side?"

Twilight smiled to him, letting out a brief giggle.

"I know, I know, it's a health and safety nightmare. Whoever thought of this thing clearly didn't take user wellbeing into consideration."

Gullveig, hearing that, couldn't help but smile.

"You're certainly a strange one, Twilight."

Rainbow chuckled.

"That's putting it lightly!"

The group shared a laugh to that, even Twilight, though she had been somewhat irritated by it. But, in spite of how good they felt from the laugh, there was nevertheless the lingering issue of where they were and where they were going to. And speaking of which, Gullveig raised a hand, stopping the group. They looked to her with worry, which only increased when they heard her speak up in a more serious tone.

"...We're here."

Looking ahead, the ponies' eyes widened to see, there ahead of them, was a great gate of what appeared to be gold, shining out in the space-like environment that surrounded both them and the Bifrost. But, it was not this gate alone that caught their interest, but rather the person standing before it. For there, looking more than a little intimidating, was what appeared to be a human. With a great grey beard, he bore clothing not unlike that of the humans of Midgard, though his had colours of green and brown. Upon his head was a helm from which protruded two rams' horns, and within his hands was a great sword, which he held onto while keeping that weapon's point firmly into where he stood upon the Bifrost. But, as Twilight had learned long ago, just because someone looks human doesn't mean they are, and so, she turned once more to Gullveig.

"Is he...you know...an Aesir?"

Slowly the woman beside her nodded, before turning to her and speaking calmly.

"Stay behind me...I will speak to him."

Twilight nodded back, gesturing to her friends to do as instructed. They listened, though remained wary of the man just ahead of them. Taking a deep breath, Gullveig sighed, taking a few hesitant steps forward. The others followed, and soon, they were within range of the man at the gate, whose eyes narrowed at them.

"Halt!"

And halt they did, awaiting his next words.

"Know this, stranger...you stand before Heimdall, gatekeeper of Asgard. None may pass without my leave."

He raised his sword, gripping it tightly.

"Speak your name and your purpose."

Gullveig stepped ahead of the rest of the group, stretching out both hands and speaking up in a firm yet calm tone.

"I am Gullveig, of the realm of Vanaheim. I came to Asgard to seek an audience with your people, and to offer my services as a sorceress."

Heimdall raised an eyebrow to that, before promptly turning his gaze upon Twilight and the others. The young Princess, understandably, didn't quite know what to do, so simply smiled widely and gave a little wave. Heimdall, unimpressed, looked again to Gullveig.

"And them?"

The woman turned, gesturing to her travelling companions.

"Beings from a realm unknown to us...called Equestria. They seek the aid of the All-Father, hoping he may return them to whence they came."

A silence passed, and Heimdall regarded each of them carefully. What was going through his mind as he looked over this unexpected collection of travellers, none could say. In fact, during one moment, Twilight feared that he truly would use that sword against them. But, this fear proved baseless, as that aforementioned weapon was soon brought back down into the ground, with Heimdall assuming a less aggressive stance than before. After a time, he gave a solemn nod, standing to one side and gesturing to the gate.

"Very well...you may enter...for now."

Smiling, Gullveig gave a respectful bow of her head.

"Thank you...we will not forget this kindness."

The ponies too bowed, and soon, the whole group made their way over, getting closer and closer to the gate. Heimdall kept a close watch on all of them, and as soon as they were close enough, he uttered one final thing to them.

"Know this, people of Equestria...if you should trespass...my Master will not be as welcoming as I."

Twilight understood, giving a nod to show this, and Heimdall, after nodding back, assumed his vigil once more, looking out into the empty space and the unused Bifrost. Twilight glanced ahead, and there, she saw the golden gate begin to slowly creak open, ready to welcome her and her friends into this highest of realms. Realising just how important this was, she sighed.

"Well...here we go."

Spike, leaning in closer to her, began to whisper.

"So...do you think they'll have a better sense of health and safety in Asgard?"

Twilight cast her ward a look, and he nervously chuckled in response.

"Right, got it, no making fun of Aesir."

Smiling, Twilight gave him another pat on the head, then once more looked onwards, just in time to see the gateway open in earnest. And, as soon as it had done so, her eyes widened, betraying the sense of wonder and awe she was feeling right now. The others, matching her look, seemed just as flabbergasted, while Gullveig, by contrast, simply seemed amused by it all.

"Well...it's certainly impressive, I'll give them that much."

Asgard

Along their travels through Vanaheim to the Bifrost, Twilight had been told many tales by Gullveig about what Asgard would be like. And yet, standing here, looking upon the place herself, she realised that those stories utterly paled in comparison to the real thing. This was a place of grandeur and scale she had not seen in any of the nine realms thus far, with even the great Jotun-fortress of Utgard-Loki seeming minuscule next to it. Spires and palaces of immaculate architecture were abound here, as though all who dwelt here were kings or Queens. Each building glistened in the light of the sun, and there was something that just felt divine about it all. As such, it took little imagination why this place was referred to by so many as the highest of the realms, whether it was at the top of Yggdrasil or not. The ponies gawked at it for many a minute, much to the amusement of their guide, Gullveig, whole folded their arms and arched an eyebrow at them.

"You know...I'm not impatient or anything, but..."

Twilight, hearing her words, shook herself out of that state, chuckling nervously before looking to her other friends. Together, they made their way forward, and it was here that they started to notice the local people, the Aesir. Like those of Vanaheim, they appeared human, and yet, much like with Gullveig, there was this feeling as one looked to them that there was something more going on with them. On top of this, all of them were clad in some form of armour, be it simple chainmail dress or full-plate, and weapons of all stripes, from swords, to axes and shields, were found hanging from the belts of all they encountered. This was a race of warriors, and it was something reflected in their expressions as they looked to the group of newcomers. In truth, it was far from a warm reception, as they were looked to with suspicion and even a little hostility. The Equestrians were nervous, but Gullveig, as ever, kept her cool, which was something Twilight was more than curious about.

"They're not exactly happy to see us, Gullveig. How are you going to convince them to accept you? Or to give us help?"

The woman beside her, smiling down to her, gave a brief wink, before confidently striding past the rest of the group. The rest of the ponies watched, as did the Aesir, who perhaps suspected that she was up to no good. And while Gullveig did have a plan in mind, it was no attack. Instead, she stood in the middle of the square they'd entered, stretching out both hands, and before anyone could process it, both hands were lit in flame. All stepped back at this display of magic, even Twilight and her friends, and they watched as the sorceress carried on with her show of power. Her fire raged all around her, never getting close enough to any of her audience to harm them, yet being made into all manner of shapes and colours. The crowds marvelled at this, staring with wide eyes at a magic they had perhaps never witnessed before.

"Well, she certainly knows how to put on a show," Pinkie remarked.

Twilight nodded to this, but remained silent as Gullveig carried on with her demonstration. There came a time, however, when the young Princess could see another group of Aesir approach, this time led by another woman, who was dressed not as a warrior, but in a far more regal manner, with a silver circlet about her head, and brown hair heavily braided that cascaded down her back. Twilight assumed that this must be someone of great importance, and it appeared as though Gullveig had the same notion. For soon, the sorceress ceased with her display of fire, and after taking a few steps closer to the new woman, she dropped down to one knee, hands outstretched before her.

"I am Gullveig, of Vanaheim. I came to pledge my services to the benefit of Asgard and its people."

The new woman looked to her with scepticism, before gradually turning her gaze to the Equestrians. Twilight too approached, followed shortly by her friends, and soon, they were all together, standing next to Gullveig and looking up to this woman. A long silence fell over all who had gathered, and many in the surrounding crowds had looked from one side to the other, perhaps curious as to what would happen next. After a time though, the woman gave a slight bow of her head.

"I am Frigg...wife to the All-Father...Queen of Asgard."

Hearing that, Twilight immediately dropped to one knee, bowing her head slightly to show respect for the one before her. The others matched her, and after a time, Frigg spoke up again.

"Heimdall sent word ahead of who would be arriving here, though I had, at first, doubted exactly what would be arriving."

Her eyes had glanced over to Twilight and her companions as she'd said that.

"You have my sympathies, young Princess. For you to have travelled so far through so many dangers...it is remarkable that you could have made it this far."

A smile crept onto Twilight's lips.

"With respect, your Majesty...my friends and I have a long history of being in danger."

Frigg matched her smile.

"Oh, I've no doubt."

She turned, looking over her shoulder slightly, to the path she'd walked down to get here.

"I know you seek my husband's aid, but for the time being, he is resting. He will not receive audiences for now."

Then, she looked back to them.

"But take heart...for he will awaken in a mere two days' time, and when he does...you may make your request."

Twilight's smile widened, and she gave a further bow of her head.

"Thank you, your Majesty...we won't forget this."

Frigg nodded to her, then turned to face Gullveig. Here, there was a slight pause, as though one woman was sizing up the other, though as to why, Twilight could not say. Eventually, however, The Queen of the Aesir spoke, albeit in a more formal way than she had with Twilight.

"Asgard could always use those of talent, and it appears that you have abilities in abundance, Gullveig of Vanaheim."

Gullveig looked up to her, giving a slight nod.

"I pledge my power to the service of your people...and I swear to you...the All-Father will have great need of my magic."

Frigg raised an eyebrow once more.

"Indeed? We will let him decide that."

Here, she turned, taking a few steps back down that path, allowing Gullveig and the Equestrians to stand tall once more. Once they had done so though, Frigg stopped, turning back to face them, bearing a small but genuine smile.

"Asgard welcomes you, strangers. Enjoy your time here, however long it lasts."

Again, the group bowed to her, staying silent as she started making her way away from them. Her entourage followed, and after a minute or two, she was gone from the square entirely. Raising their heads again, Twilight and her companions looked to one another, at once amazed and relieved all at the same time, as evidenced by the many sighs they let out. Gullveig, placing her hands upon her hips, took a moment to glance around at the place she intended to dwell in for the foreseeable future, while Twilight, thinking hard on what had happened, looked to her friends with a smile.

"Well...that went better than expected."

A Caged Beast

There was no question about it, Asgard was an impressive place to look at. From the grand palaces, to the elaborate walkways that led from one place to another, it really did seem like there was no element of this realm that didn't exist to impress. But, while most of the Equestrians were gawking at the marvels of this place, there was one among them who was not so enamoured, and that was Fluttershy. Given that it would be some time before they had their audience with the King of this realm, the ponies had all gone their separate ways for the time being, to look around and enjoy what this realm had to offer. But Fluttershy, being Fluttershy, was still longing for the forests of Vanaheim. This realm here? It just didn't "wow" her in the way that it did her colleagues, and this was not helped by the fact that, given what she'd seen here, there were few, if any animals living here, save for the occasional raven that flew high overhead.

A long sigh escaped her, letting it known to all how dissatisfied she was. But then, after a few minutes of walking through the less populous parts of the city, her ears perked up. It was a sound, and one she knew well. A whining that could only come from some kind of animal in distress. Now, being the kind of person that she was, Fluttershy could not and would not allow a sound like this to go un-investigated, and so, after looking around for a bit, she finally picked up on the direction the sound had come from, and so rushed forward to try and find whatever poor creature needed her help. On and on she ran, passing many an Aesir on the way, though these latter people had largely learned to ignore the ponies during their time here. There came a time, however, when Fluttershy turned one corner in particular, and while she was sure that she was getting close to the source of the sound, what she saw there ahead of her did not inspire confidence.

"...Oh dear."

There, in a dark and secluded edge of the city, there appeared to be what looked like a miniature fortress, looking not at all as appealing as the rest of the buildings in Asgard. But, from what Fluttershy could hear, that was where the sound was coming from, so she knew she had to get inside. The only problem was that the front gate of this place was heavily guarded, with at least half a dozen Aesir standing there, all equipped with large and dangerous weapons. Realising that she'd have to be smart about this, Fluttershy kept to the shadows, trying to go around the building and find some other way in. On and on she looked, never letting her eyes stray from this place, until finally, with a smile creeping onto her lips, she nodded.

"There we go!"

Sure enough, there appeared to be a small hole right at the base of the building, on its far side. It would have been too small for any of the Aesir to get in, but for her, it would simply be a tight squeeze. So, with this opening now known to her, Fluttershy took her chance, creeping quietly towards it. Thankfully, she was always known as the silent one among her friends, so she attracted no notice. Once it came down to the business of getting through the hole, however, things proved somewhat more difficult. Oh, she could get through, but not without tremendous effort, and she had to be sure not to let out any grunts of effort, lest the guard hear her. But, with great determination, she made it through. However, upon having done so, a look of horror came to her, for at last, she had finally seen the one who had called.

"Goodness!"

It was a wolf, but one far larger than any she had ever laid eyes upon. In truth, its scale was more akin to an Alpha Timberwolf than any wolf she'd ever encountered in her life. Laying upon the ground, it was heavily bound with iron chains, which secured every limb, wrapping tightly around its grey and ragged fur. All of this culminated in a large metal muzzle that held its mouth shut. Naturally, such a sight was far from pleasant, and Fluttershy, ever willing to feel sympathy for the plight of captive animals, looked to this creature with tears in her eyes. She walked forward, again trying to be as quiet as possible, but even so, the ears of the beats perked up, and its bright green eyes snapped open. As soon as it saw her, it growled menacingly, but this did not deter Fluttershy, who simply smiled to it.

"Don't worry...I'm here to help you."

The creature's growling ceased, at least for now, and it looked to her inquisitively, allowing her to take a few steps closer.

"Tell me...what's your name?"

The wolf, though appearing hesitant, soon let out another growl. But this was no sound of aggression, like before, but rather a lower, softer sound. After a few moments, Fluttershy smiled.

"Fenrir? That's a pretty name."

Then, her smile faded, and she looked to all the uncomfortable-looking chains it was kept in.

"Why are you here? Like this?"

Again, the beast growled, and Fluttershy soon frowned in response.

"The Aesir put you here? How terrible!"

Slowly, she glanced around.

"Well, don't you worry, Mr Fenrir! Fluttershy's here to help!"

Eventually, and after some careful thought on her part, she found what she was looking for. It was the bolts that connected Fenrir's chains to he floor and walls. Flying over, she began to yank on them, but, as one would expect, they were tight, and not so easily moved. Continually, she refused to let go, and Fenrir watched with increasing interest as, little by little, the tiny pony began to actually cause the bolts to budge. It took a long, long time, but at the end of it, the chains were finally loose, and Fluttershy moved to each one in turn, setting them out and ensuring they were no longer secured. Feeling this, Fenrir gave an almighty shrug, casting his bindings off. Fluttershy, seeing him unfettered, smiled warmly.

"Now, doesn't that feel better?"

The wolf looked to her, wagging its tail slightly, only for Fluttershy to then be struck with the realisation that his muzzle was still on. So, flying over to him, she reached out and undid the ties that kept it firmly upon its mouth. Within moments, it fell to the floor, and Fenrir stretched out his mouth for the first time in who knew how long. Fluttershy, naturally, was giddy at having freed this creature, but not so much so that she did not know what needed to be done next.

"Now then...follow me."

Curious, Fenrir followed her, seeing her reach the tiny gap that she'd come in through. Once there, the mare tilted her head.

"Okay...now we just need to figured out how to get you through here."

But, it appeared as though Fenrir was one step ahead of her in this regard, for soon, he gently nudged her to one side with his paw, before promptly starting to dig and scape at the opening, widening it so as to allow him through. However, through that entire process, Fluttershy had to visually signal to him to keep quiet, just in case the nearby guards heard them. Fenrir, apparently, understood her signs, and so set to work in a more stealthy manner. Much like with his chains, it took a great deal of effort and much time to do, but eventually, the work was done, and the great beast began to squeeze himself out to freedom. Fluttershy followed, and once outside, she smiled widely to her now-unbound friend.

"Go, Fenrir...you're free!"

The creature turned, and after a moment of hesitation on his part, he leaned closer, opening his mouth and giving her a friendly lick on the side of her face. Fluttershy giggled to this, then watched with pride as Fenrir turned around and started to scamper off. Where he was going, she did not know, but, what she did know was that, in her heart, she was happy with what had happened here.

"Well, Asgard might not be my cup of tea...but at least I can say I've done some good while I was here."

King of Kings

While the ponies of Equestria could safely say that their time in Asgard had been interesting, none could deny that they were all just as eager to get back to their home as they were when they got here. So, after enough time had passed, the moment came when word was sent, and the ponies were all required to gather at the great palace at the centre of the realm. Having dispersed not long after their arrival, it took a while for all of them to be brought into one place, but once they were, they were happy to see one another, all looking hopeful that, at long last, this would be the end of their journey through the nine realms. Aesir guards had been sent to escort them to where they were required, and although silent, the ponies continued to show great anticipation for what was to come. The only thing that disturbed the peace of the moment, however, was the constant cawing of the ravens that were found in all places of this realm.

But, they put that small irritation aside, for soon they beheld the splendour of the grand palace of the King. And if they thought the rest of Asgard looked impressive, then this enormous construction put all of that to shame. Towering high into the sky, it glistened brightly in the everlasting sunlight above them, and appeared as though it were forged of nothing but gold and platinum. A monumental sight, nopony could deny that, and yet, as they looked down from it, they watched as the highly-ornate gates at the base of the palace were opened for them, creaking so loudly that all in the city could hear it. Clearly, entry into this place was not given lightly, so the ponies made sure that they were as presentable as possible for this audience, Rarity doubly so. On they walked, and soon, they were within, entering just as those great gates were closed behind them.

Now, at last, they were within the hall of the king himself, which was decorated in many huge statues of warriors, Kings and Queens. High above was the ceiling, looking like it stretched all the way to the top of the palace, and on the walls leading up to it were elaborately-made stained glass windows, each depicting what appeared to be some moment of significance in their history. For a moment, it reminded Twilight of the interior of the royal palace, back at Canterlot, which naturally only served to deepen her longing to get herself and her friends back home. But, she turned, seeing that there, sitting upon a golden throne, was what had to be the king himself. An old man, by all appearances, with a great grey beard, he held aloft a mighty spear, and one eye was covered in a dark patch. Like all here, he was clad in mail and plate, a warrior, with a cloak of bright red upon his back. And when he spoke, his voice was deep and foreboding.

"So...the peoples of Equestria. I have been looking forward to this meeting for some time."

Twilight, along with all the others, gave a deep bow to him.

"My apologies for entering your realm, your Majesty...but given what we've been told...we believe that only you may be able to help us."

The king nodded.

"Indeed. And in truth, I have been seeking such a way for you for some time now."

Lifting her head up, Twilight looked understandably surprised by that.

"You...you have?"

A smirk crept onto the man's lips.

"I have. Ever since you entered Midgard...I have been watching."

The ponies, as one would expect, weren't quite sure what to make of a statement like that. Indeed, none of them had any recollection of ever encountering this man before, so the question of how he could have watched them was foremost on their minds. The King, seeing these thoughts as clear as day upon their faces, smiled, before giving a quick whistle. Immediately, one of the many ravens they'd seen in this city flew down from on high, resting atop the golden throne.

"My servants are many, and what they see...I see also."

An amazing claim, but one that Twilight was not willing to question right now. Instead, she stepped forward, pausing to look at the court of this place. Many Aesir were gathered here for this meeting, and among them, Twilight could recognise not only Frigg, but Gullveig as well. Clearly, their Vanaheim companion had managed to ingratiate herself fairly quickly, which Twilight smiled to. Gullveig smiled back, but otherwise said nothing. Instead, she and everyone else there watched as Twilight took another step forward, listening to the King speaking further.

"From Midgard, you strode forward. The lands of the Jotuns, the underground kingdom of the dwarves, the fires of Muspelheim, the ice of Niflheim, the great light of Alfheim, the ancient forests of Vanaheim...and now...you come to me."

A chuckle escaped him.

"An impressive journey. I have known of no other who has visited so many in such a short time."

Twilight smiled back.

"In truth...we are eager to return home. I mean no disrespect to you or your nine realms, but..."

But the king halted her with a raised hand, speaking calmly.

"You need not speak further. Home is where the heart is, as they so often say, and I have no doubt that you should return to where you belong."

The other ponies drew closer, standing just behind Twilight, the latter of whom looking more than a little taken aback by all of this.

"In truth, I feel somewhat indebted to you. After all..."

A brief look of shame came to him.

"...one of my own nearly sent you into the dark halls of Helheim for his own amusement, and for that...I apologise."

Twilight, at first, didn't know what he was talking about. But, as memories of a white mare upon an icy field returned to her, understanding dawned. Her expression became more serious, but not so much so that she was upset enough to ask for this meddlesome Aesir that had caused them so much grief that day. Instead, she remained quiet as the King looked to them again.

"Let it never be said that Odin does not aid those who need it."

Slowly, he raised himself up from his throne, looking to each of them in turn.

"Twilight Sparkle...Applejack...Fluttershy...Rainbow Dash...Pinkie pie...Rarity...and Spike."

He lifted his great spear upwards, and within moments, it began to glow, becoming brighter and brighter as the seconds passed.

"I, Odin, son of Borr, King of Asgard, All-Father of the nine realms, do hereby grant thee passage to the realm you came from. Go now, and journey there in peace."

With an almighty motion, he brought his spear back down, bringing its tip into contact with the ground. As soon as this happened, there was a great shaking all around them, and before long, Twilight and her friends looked on in shock to discover that the same glow that had engulfed the spear now surrounded them as well. It intensified, and soon, she began to feel that familiar sensation, the one that preceded every single transportation from one realm to another. She knew it, that this was their last journey, and her friends would soon make it back home. The others too knew this, wide smiles upon their faces, unable to show just how joyous this was for them. And in the final moments, the young Princess turned to the elderly King, smiling warmly.

"...Thank you."

A bright flash, and then, it was over. The ponies were gone from the hall, the only trace of them being the slight wisps of steam from where they had been transported from. Odin, letting out a long sigh, got back into his throne, looking more than satisfied at having rendered such aid. But, before he could take even a single moment's rest, he was interrupted by the immediate opening of the hall's great doors. All eyes turned to see another Aesir come running in, panting furiously, much to Odin's surprise.

"What is it?"

The messenger halted, taking a few moments to get his breath back, much to the irritation of those around him. But, when he was able to finally speak, his words were frantic and panicked.

"Sire! It's...it's Fenrir!"

Slowly, Odin frowned.

"Yes...what of it?"

The man continued.

"The great beast! The wolf that has been foretold will one day slay you, my liege!"

Odin rolled his eye.

"Yes, yes, we all know what it's going to do, but why are you bringing it up now?"

Here, after realising what he was about to say, the messenger hesitated.

"Um...weeeeeeeeeell..."

Home

Darkness and silence were all Twilight knew for a long, long time, but eventually, consciousness began to return to her. Ever so slowly, she started to open her eyes, and there, lying beneath her, was a very familiar floor. Immediately her eyes snapped fully open, and she looked on with disbelief at the welcome and long-unseen sight of the map chamber of her home, the Friendship Palace. She was here, feeling the ground beneath her hooves. This was no illusion, and she could feel it. Darting her head around, she could see her friends too starting to wake up upon the floor, and she went to each of them in turn, helping them up and looking them over. One by one, her companions all gained realisation about where they were, and soon, they looked to Twilight. The young Princess, thinking of absolutely nothing to say, simply did the one thing she could do, and smiled.

This opened the floodgates, and the ponies and Spike all rushed together, holding each other in the biggest and tightest group hug they'd ever had. They were here, they were home, and they had made it together. It was a moment of joy, of happiness that they honestly thought they'd never see again. But, it was done. The nine realms were behind them, and home was around them. Tears began to understandably form in their eyes, and already there was a great deal of sobbing from them. Nopony said anything, because nothing needed to be said. All they wanted was this. This moment, in this time, with these friends. The journey had been long, it had been dangerous, and there had been many times when they feared that it might not ever end for them. But now, it had ended, and nothing could compare to that feeling.

"We...we did it!" Twilight declared.

"We're home!" Spike added.

"About...friggin'...time!" Rainbow announced.

"I am going to have the hottest, longest bath of my life after this!" Rarity boasted.

"Oh, I can't wait to see my precious Angel again!" Fluttershy spoke through her tears.

"Apple Bloom an' mah family mus' be missin' me somethin' fierce!" Applejack commented.

"And I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm super-stoked about having something good to eat after all this!" Pinkie finished.

The group laughed together, but then, they were all taken aback by the distinct sound of somepony clearing their throat. All turning together, they looked on with surprise to find that it was none other than their other friend, Starlight Glimmer. Beside her was Trixie, who was looking to them with an arched eyebrow, but that didn't matter, as Twilight was just happy to see both of them.

"Starlight!"

She rushed forward, grinning widely to the both of them.

"Oh, you two and everypony else must have been so worried about us!"

Here, Starlight and Trixie looked to one another, with the latter giving a quick shrug. Starlight, slowly, looked back to her teacher, her voice more than a little hesitant.

"Um...Twilight? You guys were only gone for, like...a few seconds."

Twilight blinked slowly, as indeed did all of her friends. Disbelief crossed their faces, and as they stepped forward, Rainbow, in her usual way, spoke what was on their joint minds.

"Are you serious?! We were gone for weeks!"

Trixie, stepping forward herself, shook her head.

"Afraid not. I'm not sure what you saw, but as far as me and Starlight were concerned, the spell hit you, there was a flash of light, and then wham, you were all just lying on the ground there."

Rainbow opened her mouth to speak, only to be stopped from doing so when Twilight raised a hoof, lookign to Trixie with confusion.

"Wait...what spell?"

All eyes were upon the magician now, and here, Trixie started to look a little nervous, scratching the back of her head while trying to avoid their gaze.

"Well...you know how I like to practise my teleportation spells when you're not around?"

Twilight nodded slowly, prompting Trixie to continue.

"Well...I was in the middle of that when you guys all came in. You said hi to me, which broke my concentration, so..."

Pausing, she pointed over to the nearby magic mirror. The one capable of taking Twilight to the human world.

"My teleportation spell hit that thing instead. But it didn't teleport the mirror itself, it just reflected off it, and then..."

She turned again, pointing to the nearby cutie map.

"...the reflected magic struck this. There was a reaction, you guys rushed forward, and then, well, there was a light and...you know the rest."

A silence fell over the entire group, and all of them stared at Trixie with a combination of disbelief and incredulity. Then, as time went on, their expressions slowly morphed into ones of irritation and even outright anger, causing the blue mare to gulp slightly.

"Um...ta-da?"

Twilight, taking a calming breath, looked over to Starlight.

"Starlight...if you would...please take your friend away before I do something I might regret later."

The pink unicorn didn't need to be told twice, and so, without even saying a word, she took Trixie by the hoof and lit up her horn, teleporting the two of them out of there instantaneously. Now alone with all of her friends, Twilight took the next few minutes to simply try and calm herself down, which, thankfully, she was able to do. Slowly, she turned, looking to all of them, and after thinking things over, she put on a smile for them, saying the one thing that, in her heart, she knew truly mattered at a time like this.

"My friends...we're home."

They all returned to their earlier smiles after that, nodding in agreement, which ended only when Fluttershy took on a more thoughtful look.

"I...I hope we didn't cause too much trouble for the nine realms during our time there."

Pinkie, looking to her, let out a brief snort.

"Pfft! Don't worry about it! I mean, it's not like us being there was the end of the world or something!"

Awakening

"Twilight?"

The words were muffled in her ears, but she recognised her own name when she heard it. However, it was as if it was being spoken to her from far away. Even so, there was a clear sense of worry behind it.

"Twilight?!"

There it was again, louder this time, and more clear. The voice was familiar, though she still couldn't quite get her thoughts together.

"TWILIGHT!!!"

The young Princess' eyes snapped open, and she looked up to see the near-crying face of Spike looking down to her. Instinctively, she tried to get up onto her hooves to embrace and comfort him, but as soon as she did so, she was struck with the Mother of all headaches.

"Argh!"

Placing her hoof to the side of her head, she got down to her knees, wincing at the pain that now passed through her. She'd had headaches before, but never like this. And always, there was Spike nearby, looking to her with concern.

"T...Twilight?"

Slowly, the pain began to subside, and the Princess of Friendship began to open her eyes. Like a Mother to her child, she put on a smile for the young drake's benefit, reaching forward and giving him a pat on the head. Gradually, she reached a point where the pain had disappeared almost entirely, and after taking a deep breath, she released a long sigh, getting back up once more.

"It's okay, Spike. I'm fine. Now why...?"

Before she could finish her own words, she was struck with a sudden and horrifying realisation. They were not in the Palace of Friendship right now. Nor did they appear to be in Ponyville at all. Instead, they were standing together at the base of a large and very old-looking tree, one of many that surrounded them. A forest of some kind. There was a gentle breeze about the place, but it was icy cold, and sent shivers through the pair, prompting Spike to move closer to his carer. Twilight wrapped a wing around him, holding him close and trying to keep him warm, all while keeping an eye out. And that was when she saw them.

"Girls?"

Sure enough, her friends were there, all leaning against trees of their own, and given the groggy way they were looking right now, it was obvious that each of them had just gone through the same thing she had. With Spike still close to her, Twilight moved forward, and in so doing caught the attention of her colleagues. Together, they began to converge in the small clearing between the trees. Silence fell over them for a time, with nothing but fear and confusion upon their faces. Nopony knew where they were or what had happened, and before long it was Rainbow who began to ask those very questions.

"Okay...what the heck?! My head feels like I've just gone through twenty barrels of AJ's hardest cider!"

Applejack, rubbing her head slightly from her still-lingering headache, grunted a little.

"Ah...ah can't remember what..."

Then, her eyes widened.

"Wait...we were all in the map room, right?"

Twilight nodded, realisation coming to her.

"Yes...yes! Something was going on with the map. Some sort of malfunction I think. There was a bright light, and then...I woke up here, with all of you."

Pinkie frowned.

"And it was right in the middle of our tea party too! How rude!"

Rarity looked to her with a raised eyebrow.

"Pinkamena Diane Pie! I do believe we have more pressing issues to deal with than whether or not a tea party was spoiled!"

A grimace came to the young fashionista as she surveyed her rather unpleasant surroundings.

"Although, if we're being honest...I'd much rather be there than here right now."

Fluttershy, nodding in agreement to that, looked upwards to the vast canopy above, and how almost all sunlight was being blocked from them. Although, from the looks of it, she rightly assumed that, even if they did get some sunlight down here, it wouldn't be any warmer. She looked to the ground, to the evidence of frost and light snowfall under their hooves, and took one of her usual looks of concern.

"But...where is here?"

Looking around, Rainbow shrugged her shoulders.

"Dunno, Flutters. This isn't the Everfree, and it isn't AJ's orchard. This...ugh! I have no idea!"

Twilight nodded, looking down to Spike, who was still holding onto her with fear in his eyes, before looking to her friends with a softer expression.

"Something happened to the magic of the map, and we were all brought here as a result. I think...I think we may need to consider the possibility that this might be another case of time-travel."

Naturally, such a suggestion earned her the immediate concern of all of her friends, prompting her to raise a hoof towards them.

"Or it could be something else entirely. Remember, there's still much about that map and its powers that we don't know about. It could well be that this is just another part of our own time and world we've never been to before."

Considering that, Applejack took a step forward.

"So...what do we do?"

Sighing, Twilight dwelt on the one and only plan anypony could possibly have under such circumstances.

"We need to get out of this forest first, and afterwards...well...we'll try and figure things out from there."

There was a round of nods at that, and after having a quick glance around, Twilight chose one direction in particular, and the group moved as one, heading that way while still looking very much worried about all of this. However, as they did so, there was a sound from overhead. A bird of some kind that was sitting on one of the tree-branches, calling out to them. Rainbow looked to it and frowned.

"Ugh! Lousy crows!"

But Fluttershy shook her head.

"It's not a crow...it's a raven."

As Rainbow was not really in the mood to be corrected right now, she rolled her eyes to this, but nevertheless accepted her friend's words. As for Twilight, she looked up to that aforementioned raven, and for just a brief moment, she felt that the dark bird was staring right at her. But, she watched as it stretched out its wings and flew off, its calls echoing through the forest as it did so. Another shiver passed through the mare, only this time, she had a sense that it wasn't the cold that was causing it. Still, whatever fears she had, she kept them to herself, and walked alongside Spike as they and their friends carried on with their unexpected journey. On and on they walked, for what seemed like an hour, passing nothing but ancient-looking forest. But then, towards the end, they saw it, a light and some sort of clearing up ahead.

"Yes! We're nearly out!" Rainbow proclaimed.

She charged forward, and while most were still unsure of this, they followed her all the same. Sure enough, the forest was giving way at the end, opening up to a wider space, at which point Rainbow stopped and descended to the ground, looking on ahead. But, as she did this, her prior look of confidence vanished from her, and she looked back to her other friends. Twilight, seeing this look on her, gained a rather concerned expression herself.

"Rainbow? What's wrong?"

The cyan pegasus had a hard time thinking of the right words, and so instead she turned, pointing to something just ahead of them. Curious, Twilight walked to her, as indeed did everypony else. And when they reached her, looking out to the same thing she was seeing, they all took on looks of shock. Twilight especially couldn't believe what she was seeing, her face one of both disbelief and, of all things, recognition. And after taking another step forward, she turned to her friends, her words almost brought to a whisper.

"Girls...this isn't our world."

Enter the Forge

Now, waking up in a strange place was nothing new to Twilight and her friends at this point. In fact, if they were being perfectly honest, they were actually starting to acclimatize to it a little bit, having far less of a headache this time around than they did when they first arrived in Midgard or Jotunheim. But, what made this experience worse was that it was also accompanied by some sort of regular banging sound from nearby. Metal on metal, and it echoed through their skulls, leading to more than a few disgruntled moans as they got themselves up from the floor.

"Okay...where are we this time?" Spike asked.

Twilight, taking a moment to rub her temples, stopped to have a look around. It was a small and enclosed space, like some sort of closet, with the rune-engraved stone they’d used for transportation just unceremoniously dumped in the middle of it. It was also fairly close together, leading to a sense of being rather cramped for all concerned. Wherever they were, they were already inside some building somewhere, and as such, Twilight made her way over to what appeared to be a door, gently pushing it open.

"There's...a little bit more light out here."

The others nodded, and followed her out as she began to push the door open in earnest. As they left that closet, or whatever it was, they found themselves in a far larger room. It was some kind of storehouse, with the walls lined with row upon row of weaponry. Shields, swords, axes, you named it. There was no kind of melee weapon one could imagine that wasn't here in some form. Naturally, it drew Rainbow's attention immediately, and she flew over to look at some of them.

"Neat. What, we around some soldiers or something?"

Rarity, who now also walked closer to the displayed weapons, looked them over with her ever-critical eye before letting out a brief "hmmm".

"Well, wherever we are, these are some fine creations. I mean, I may not be much of a weapon person myself, but I know something well-built when I see it."

Curious, Twilight went over to see what her alabaster friend was talking about. Sure enough, there did indeed appear to be a great deal of fine craftsmanship on display with these weapons. Gold lining in the hilt, perfectly-sharpened blades, a good deal of decorative runes to them. They seemed to be of a far higher class than the weapons they'd seen by others during their travels through the other realms. Whoever, or whatever had made these things, they knew their stuff. But, the young Princess could not dwell on that right now, as she was instead focused upon that ever-present banging sound from nearby. Glancing around, she looked to yet another door, taking a few steps towards it before narrowing her eyes.

"I think...there's somebody out there."

Walking beside her, Applejack took on a more serious expression.

"So...what do we do?"

Twilight considered that, only to be kept from doing so when, all of a sudden, the knob of that door began to turn. In an instant, the alicorn panicked, and gestured to her friends to retreat back into the closet they’d just come from. Thankfully, her friends didn't need to be told twice, and so rushed back in, with Twilight closing the door behind her just enough so that she could see what was going on out there in the weapon room. She watched the other door slowly creak open, and then, from the other side, a new being, one she'd never seen before, started to enter. It was generally human in shape, but far shorter. In fact, it was probably short enough to actually look Twilight and her friends right in the eye. But this newcomer, a male, was stocky in his build, and was clad in garb not dissimilar to that of the humans of Midgard. His beard was a dark brown, and braided heavily, which was something Pinkie couldn't help but comment on.

"Okay, seriously, what is it with people and beards in these realms?!"

Of course, the others gave her a quick "shhh" to that, before settling their gaze once more on the diminutive figure on the other side of the door. They couldn't hear everything, but they could heard that he sounded rather unhappy right now, as he grumbled all the way to one of the walls where the weapons were stored.

"Do this, Fafnir! Do that, Fafnir! I swear, one of these days..."

But, as they watched this, the ponies failed to note Fluttershy backing her way to the wall at the rear of the closet. And then, as soon as she'd done so, she let out a brief "eep" sound. Instantly, she covered her mouth from having reached it, but the damage had already been done. This stranger, Fafnir, turned, his eyes narrowing at the closet.

"Whoever's in there...come on out!"

Twilight knew there was little point in hiding now, and so, after taking a deep breath, she opened the door, revealing herself and her friends. There was a tense moment between them all, as Fafnir regarded them all carefully. Twilight, for her part, could only think to give a little wave right now, which only served to elicit another grumble from the short man before them.

"Ugh! Great! And now, on top of everything else, we've got intruders from Jotunheim!"

He turned, ready to rush out of the door and, presumably, call for reinforcements. But Twilight, reaching out her hoof, called to him.

"Wait!"

Fafnir stopped, looking to them with incredulity, but he said nothing as Twilight continued.

"Sir...I assure you, we're not your enemies. Yes, we've just come from Jotunheim, but we passed through there on our journey. We're from a land called Equestria, and..."

She paused, taking a moment to look to her friends, before looking back to Fafnir.

"...and we're trying to get back."

Fafnir, for his part, seemed wary of that story, but as he continued to look on at Twilight's soft expression, he began to lower his defences somewhat. After a while, he let out a sigh, raising a hand and rubbing the bridge of his nose.

"I'm gonna get an earful for this. Fine!"

He gestured to the other nearby door.

"Come with me The King will want to see you."

Twilight, hopeful that an avenue of diplomacy had been opened to them, smiled to this, giving a quick bow of her head.

"Thank you, Mr Fafnir."

Fafnir himself rolled his eyes, then started to walk back to the aforementioned door. But, as he opened it, he stopped, looking back to the ponies.

"Oh, and for what it's worth...welcome to Nidavellir."

If you go down to the woods today...

Over the course of their quest thus far, Twilight and her friends had encountered many dangerous things and places. They had crossed a sea that contained a world-sized serpent. They had endured blazing fires and volcanoes. They had weathered icy plans with nothing but snow to walk upon. They had even born witness to lifeless barrens with ceaseless winds. After all of that, they had more or less given up hope of the nine realms producing anywhere pleasant for them to go to. However, it turned out that this was not to be the case, for as the group stepped out of that cave, they were greeted with the sight of a lush and bountiful forest, with the brightest shades of green to its leaves that they had ever seen in their lives. And it was a good day for it too, as a quick glance upwards revealed the clear and beautiful blue above, with a pleasant sun beaming down to them.

"Huh...okay...not what I was expecting," Rainbow commented.

"Indeed, Rainbow. This is...not to put too fine a point on it...pleasant," Rarity added.

"Yay! Someplace nice!" Pinkie declared.

"It's a nice change of pace, let's be fair," Fluttershy muttered.

"Ah reckon this is the prettiest little corner of the realms so far," Applejack concluded.

Through all of this, Twilight was slowly nodding, absorbing and agreeing with what her friends had to say on the matter. And it was hard to argue with them. The dry and lush grass below them, the healthy trees around them, each of whom seemed laden with easily-pickable fruit it had to be said, this was, for lack of a better term, a paradise when compared to every where they'd been to before now. But, she had been through too much to simply take a place like this at face value, and so, after narrowing her eyes, she took that first steady step out of the cave. That step was followed by another, and then another, and another, until finally, when she was convinced that no savage beast was about to jump out and attack them, she turned to her friends, giving a consenting nod. The others, smiling to this, followed her out, and as soon as they were all together again, they headed off.

"So...this is...unexpected," Spike remarked.

A chuckle escaped his carer at that.

"You're not wrong, Spike. It's...nice...to come across someplace where the environment isn't looking too bad."

Looking up, Twilight again glanced at the beautiful skies, so pleasant and inviting, much like everything else here. Even the winds that occasional breezed through here were nice, never too hot or too cold. In fact, if one were to ask Twilight of what a "good place to be" would have been like, this right here would have been what she'd describe or imagine in her head. But, while her friends all marvelled at the fact that they'd finally been given a safe-looking realm to walk through, Twilight herself started to make plans. After all, it was all well and good that this place looked nice, but they were once again at the start of a new realm, and that meant, as ever, that they had little in the way of directions or help out here. If there were any locals, which was likely, given how good a place this seemed to be, then they needed to find them and start a dialogue.

"Say...Twilight?"

The young alicorn turned, seeing the bouncing form of Pinkie coming up behind her.

"Yes, Pinkie?"

The party-lover stood silent beside her for a time, pondering on things before finally answering the question she'd been so eager to ask.

"What kinda people you think we'll meet out here? More humans? Giants? Dwarves again, maybe?"

To that, Twilight simply shrugged her shoulders, letting out a long sigh.

"It's hard to say, Pinkie. What I do know, however, is that this realm must have someone living in it. After all, with all of the harsh places we've been to that have some form of life, there's no reason whatsoever that a place as bountiful as this would be uninhabited."

Hearing that, Rainbow let out a hearty chuckle.

"I'll say!"

Without warning, the pegasus flapped her wings, sending her up to the branches of one of the closest trees, all while the others watched. Twilight, with eyes widening with dismay, observed as her colleague unceremoniously yanked off one of the aforementioned fruits of the tree's branch, before promptly opening her mouth wide and taking a good hearty bite of it.

"RAINBOW!!!"

But Rainbow, having already swallowed that bite, looked down to Twilight after she'd yelled up to her.

"What?"

Twilight slapped her forehead with frustration.

"We can't just go around eating strange fruit we find off trees like that! What if it's poisonous to us?!"

Rainbow blinked, looking down to the fruit she was still holding. Afterwards, she waited for a time, occasionally glancing down to her stomach before again settling on the fruit. After a while, she simply shrugged her shoulders.

"Meh, seems okay to me."

Twilight shook her head to this, prompting Rainbow to roll her eyes before gently gliding back down to the ground.

"Seriously, Twilight, you should learn to loosen up a bit. We've been given one heck of a break with a place like this."

Stepping forward, Twilight pointed to her friend in an accusing manner.

"Putting aside the fact that this food might not be good for us, have you considered that these trees might belong to somebody?!"

Rainbow blinked, understanding slowly coming to her. After a while, a slight look of guilt crept onto her face.

"Oh...right...like Applejack's orchard?"

At the mention of her name, the earth pony farmer walked next to Twilight, giving a sharp nod to her pegasus friend.

"Eyup! Ah don't know if these ere trees do belong ta some folk, but if they do, they won't take too kindly to y'all jus' comin' along an' eatin' em!"

Sighing, Rainbow gave a slow nod to her friend's words.

"Right...yeah...sorry."

Hearing the genuine apology in her voice, Twilight sighed, resuming her earlier smile from before. Applejack, likewise, walked forward and gave Rainbow a quick pat on the shoulder. Rainbow smiled to this, and with the matter resolved, the group elected to finally continue on their journey, with Twilight once more leading the way. On and on they walked, with their trip here seeming to go on forever. This forest was truly vast if they could just go on this long without ever coming to its end. But, given how peasant a place it was, it wasn't as though they were all that upset at having to be here. However there eventually did come a time when one of them noticed something, and that person was Spike.

"Um...Twilight? What's that?"

Immediately, all ponies stopped, and Twilight, as requested, turned to where her young ward was pointing. There, far off through the trees, there was something bright and glistening. An entire line, off in the distance, which seemed to glow so bright that not even the sun was able to match it. Twilight, squinting, shook her head.

"I...I don't now."

Then, before she could say anything else, she was taken aback by somepony suddenly putting a pair of sunglasses over her eyes.

"There you go, Twilight!"

Twilight, taking the sunglasses off, looked over to Pinkie with incredulity.

"You...you just had these on you?"

With a wide smile, Pinkie nodded, reaching up and, to their amazement, yanking out another pair of sunglasses from inside her mane.

"I always keep these close by, you know..."

Sighing, Twilight smiled.

"I know, I know...for sunglasses emergencies?"

Pinkie nodded proudly, but Twilight, realising that she had been in the middle of something, put the sunglasses back on, looking to what Spike had pointed out to her. And through the darkness of her newly-acquired shades, her eyes widened.

"Guys...I think we've just found our locals."