A Glimmer of Hope: Reborn

“And so, in order to bring me back from Limbo, you’ll need to collect three items related to each of the villains I defeated: Tirek, Chrysalis and Sombra. Combine those items with mine, Ivy’s and Matt’s gems and I’ll be able to come back to you, my love,” Twilight had practically memorized every single word that Nick had told her.

“Yeah, that sounds exactly like what we had to do with the Pillars,” Rainbow Dash bluntly spoke for everyone gathered.

“And why are we not involving the princesses, again?” Starlight added, gaining a nod from everyone else. “Look at what happened last time. This time, would you be willing to put whatever Nick brings with him back? What if we can’t?”

As much as she wanted to support Twilight in this endeavor, the not too distant memory of bringing the Pony of Shadows back was still in her mind. This wasn’t even a friendship problem it seemed, more like something Cadence should have had more involvement in regarding a broken heart. Twilight was letting her emotions get the best of her.

Everyone knew how much pain Twilight had been in, but also could see the reasoning coming from Starlight. Both had valid concerns regarding the directions each wanted to take regarding this information. No matter who they thought was right though, all the mares in the room could feel the tension grow heavier in the room.

“Twilight, this is your decision to make,” Starlight decided on what she needed to do, as a friend. Whatever Twilight and the rest got into, they were all able to make it out alright. This was just another one of those times. “Whatever you choose, know I’ll have your back.”

The rest all agreed in unison. For them, the thought of bringing back Nick was a rather exciting and risky move, but it would be another way for Twilight to heal. Whatever would happen, they would be there for her.

“Maybe… maybe we should speak with the princesses,” Twilight finally spoke, her brow furrowed at what it would entail. Celestia would at least think the idea over, afterall she seemed receptive to what Matt and Ivy had to say. Luna on the other hoof, would be deeply against it. After all she was the first to stop trying to find a way, saying that it was a lost cause and that she didn’t want to see Nick again. Even just last week, she didn’t even look at her or react to what the humans had to say about bringing back Nick.

Then Starlight had a very good point regarding the Pony of Shadows. If they brought Nick back, would Phobetor and the other villains return? Would they be able to banish them again without doing the same to Nick? He was just so real in her, whatever it was. Dream, vision, he was still so far away, still not here by her side.

“Alright,” she sighed. “We’ll discuss with the princesses and see what they recommend.”

Just as she was about to get up, she felt her a sharp pinch in her side. This was followed by her cutie mark gradually heating up. Looking down it was glowing and pulsating, just like when the Friendship Map was calling them. The rest of her friends, Starlight and even Tempest all had the same thing happening to them.

“Why would there be a friendship problem at a time like this?” Twilight asked. “And requiring all of us too??”

“Well let’s see where the map wants us to go,” Rainbow suggested, hovering over the table to get a better look.

It was a futile effort as the entire map was glowing white, blurring the landmarks that adorned it. It slowly began to build in intensity, so much so that it became blinding. However, just before it became white washed, a small beacon of light shot out where the Tree of Harmony was.

Seeing as there was nothing else they could do, everyone quickly rushed out of the room, the doors slamming shut behind them on their own accord. Panting and looking back, they could see that the entire room was still full of light, judging by the trails that filtered under the doors. Twilight tried to open them with her magic, but they didn’t budge.

“Everyone is here, right?” she quickly asked, turning back to her friends, breathing a sigh of relief that they were all ok, along with Ivy and Matt, who looked like they just saw a ghost. Not quite the expression she’d imagine after witnessing that, but maybe there were some things they hadn’t experienced. “What’s wrong you two?”

“We need to get to the Tree, now,” was all Matt could say before he rushed to the doors, Ivy following him.

Twilight cocked her head at the cryptic message. The two knew they couldn’t leave the castle, she had placed a retaining spell on the outer doors. Why now of a sudden was there a need to break the agreement they came up with. “What exactly do you mean Matt? This isn’t cause to let you two out,” she flew over to them, the others joining shortly after.

“No time to explain fully, but if that light is any indication, we need to check on the Tree. Come on Twilight, open the fucking doors!”

“I’ll need a better explanation Matt. We’ve trusted you guys so far, but that trust can only extend so much. Knowing how you were able to escape the Royal Guard, once we let you go there’s no telling if you guys will come back.”

“Twilight, we saw that same kind of light when we were taken from our worlds,” Ivy stated flatly, her voice full of dread. “Please, we need to see if the Tree is alright.”

Still not the explanation that she wanted, Twilight had to concede. First of all, they didn’t know what would even happen if they stayed in the castle, if the strange light was any danger to them. Secondly, they had trusted the two so far with everything they told them. There wasn’t really anywhere for them to go, and she still had her magic bracelets on them, meaning that they could at the very least be tracked.

“Fine, but we’re going straight to the Tree,” she spoke sternly.

“Yes, that’s all we need to do.”

With her friends forming a ring around the two, Starlight taking the rear and her and Tempest the front, she sighed, opening the doors.

The group rushed out and expecting to see the whole town in chaos, found the exact opposite. Ponyville appeared empty, deafening silence. They looked up and saw the a relative reason for it. A flock of birds in mid flight seemed to just levitate in the air. There was no magic aura around them however, they were just there.

“What in Equestria?” Fluttershy looked up at them in concern, trying to fly up to them before Twilight reeled her back in with magic.

“I think we should stay to the ground. Whatever happened, I don’t think we want to try flying or end up like them,” Twilight cautioned the group. Nodding in understanding, they cautiously walked towards the town. They were met with yet another shock. All the townsponies were frozen as well, although they didn’t seem to be harmed.

“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Starlight commented, looking at all the ponies around them as they made their way to the Everfree. She waved a hoof in front of one of their faces with no reaction. “Is this what happened to you guys?” she directed the question to Matt and Ivy. The whole group looked to them as they walked, not wanting to stay there for that long.

“I-I don’t know. Everything happened so fast,” Matt could hardly believe this either. Was this the fate of his Equestria after he left? Was it still like this? Shaking his head, he realized they still needed to make it to the Tree of Harmony. “Let’s just keep moving.”

They walked on in eerie silence, speaking to each other in whispers, unsure whatever happened could affect them at any moment. Twilight had a few working theories already. Somehow the light in the castle had protected them from this “spell”. Who cast it, why and how was an entirely different mystery.

“Could Nick already be back?” Ivy asked Matt as they reached the halfway mark of their journey.

“Your guess is as good as mine. Maybe that light symbolized him arriving here, or... someone leaving? We won’t know till we get to the Tree. If it’s still intact, we can breathe easier.”

“What do you mean still intact?” Twilight turned to him, with a questioning look on her face. Everyone else was staring at him too, waiting for the answer to her question.

Matt grimaced as he realized he let a huge cat out of the bag. He looked to Ivy who shrugged, silently telling him that he brought this upon himself.

“Matt, you better come clean now…” Twilight growled, her horn lighting up, already feeling like she had been deceived by them.

“Alright, alright,” he put up his hands defensively. “When I failed to complete what I was tasked with… the darkness… it destroyed the Tree of Harmony. I didn’t get to see what happened because right as it did, well I was teleported here. All of this looks nothing like what the world was going through before that event, so there’s a good chance this is something completely different.”

The mares all felt a chill go through their spines upon hearing of the destruction of one of the vital landmarks of Equestria. If the Crystal Heart being destroyed was bad enough to plunge the Crystal Empire back into nothing, the impact of no longer having the Tree of Harmony was unfathomable.

With this in mind all of them picked up the pace, finally reaching the clearing where Nick’s statue once stood. Despite Ivy’s optimistic comment, neither the statue or the wolf were there. However, they all breathed a sigh of relief as not only was the Tree of Harmony still intact, but glowing brightly. What was new though, was that each of the gems carried by Nick, Ivy and Matt had made their way out of the castle and were floating in front of the Tree.

The group stared at them, not sure what to make of it. Before they could even react, the gems levitated high above them and with a flash of light, Nick's gem was scattered to the winds, while Ivy's and Matt's gems both plunged into the ground. The blast created by them sent a shockwave, sending them all to the ground to take cover. And just as soon as the gems were dispersed, time seemed to flow again. Birds flew overhead and their songs could be heard.

They all looked at each other as if for reassurance to what just transpired.

“Welp,” Matt sighed, rubbing his temples. “I guess that answers the question of whether we’re bringing back Nick.”