Bodyguards of the Princesses

Flying as fast as their wings could carry them, Celestia and Luna arrived at Twilight's castle flying through the window of the Castle's throne room.

"How the hell they can do that?" cried Sam.

"Either way, we can't do what they do," said Jim. "Not unless you want to cause damages to a castle."

However, Spider-Man was quick to fly through the window of a room in Twilight's castle that had been left open.

"Kid's got a point," said Jim, flying down through the window with Sam and Scott following behind. Unfortunately, Scott, being the dope he was, accidentally broke the window upon going through.

"Tic tac, what's wrong with you?" cried Sam, helping him up. "You are going to have to pay for that, you know."

"Whatever, let's find the princesses before we get fired," replied Scott and the four Avengers went looking for the royal sisters. Of course, they all had a rough time trying to get around the castle since none of them had been here before. "Uh, does anyone know how to get around here?"

"Do I look like someone who knows how to get around a castle?" remarked Sam. "Is there like a map or something?"

"This doesn't look like a museum," advised Peter. "But, there must be a map in here somewhere."

And Peter began slinging his webbing at various large items in Twilight's castle, trying to see if there was a map hidden. At that moment, the commotion caught the attention of a light pink colored unicorn with a purple mane and tail.

"Excuse me," she cried, stopping Peter from pulling back a portrait of Twilight at her coronation. "What is going on here?"

"Oh, uh, excuse me," stammered Peter, pulling his webbing back. "Sorry, we're just trying to find our way around here and…"

"Are you the Princesses' new bodyguards?" the unicorn asked, raising an eyebrow slightly.

"Um, yeah," said Sam. "And you are…?"

"Starlight Glimmer, Twilight's former pupil and guidance counselor at her school of friendship," said the unicorn. "And if you're supposed to be bodyguarding the princesses, then why are you here?"

"We just told you, lady," retorted Scott. "That we're trying to find them. All of a sudden, their butts started glowing and they just came here."

"They're in the throne room," sighed Starlight. "Follow me and don't touch anything else."

…

At that moment, Celestia and Luna were in Twilight's throne room looking at the map that had summoned them for a friendship mission.

"I can't believe the map summoned both of you," said Twilight. "It must be a really big one if it involves you two."

"We can't believe it either," remarked Celestia. "And it's in Canterlot."

"Do you think it might have something to do with us getting new bodyguards?" wondered Luna, looking up at her sister.

"It's likely," said Dr. Strange. "Then again, I can predict the future, so…"

"Excuse me, Doctor," interjected Rarity. "No spoilers."

"I can…"

"NO SPOILERS!" shouted Rarity, who then proceeded to give the doctor a friendly smile.

…

Following the awkward silence, the doors of Twilight's throne room opened and Starlight came in with the four Avengers behind her.

"This is the throne room," wondered Jim. "Where's the throne?"

"Looks like something out of Star Wars," remarked Peter, but Sam and Scott weren't impressed.

"You know that you could have waited for us," said Sam. "We're your bodyguards, Princess Luna and that means we are responsible…"

But Sam was quickly silenced with a hoof to his face from Luna.

"That will be all, Sam Wilson," she said firmly, much to his shock and surprise. With Sam silenced, they all resumed what was being discussed.

"Now then," said Twilight. "I don't know if related to us getting new bodyguards, but since it is in Canterlot, it may be more than likely that it is. Tell me, do you think that something might be wrong between all of you?"

She focused her attention on the four Avengers and right away began to try and get some answers out of them. While Jim, Scott and Sam couldn't find any words to say, Peter was quick to speak up.

"It may be wrong of me to butt in like this," he said. "But, I couldn't help but notice that Mr. Stark was a little off."

"A little off?" wondered Celestia, walking over to Peter. "In what way, Peter?"

"He…how shall I put this? He hasn't been the same since we all fought one another."

"You all fought one another?" wondered Luna. "In what way?"

"It's a long story," sighed Jim, briefly turning away. "But, we had been asked to sort of play by the rules after many people died during a mission we had fighting the AI known as Ultron. Not all of us were willing to play by them."

He then turned to Sam and Scott, who glared upon hearing this. The last thing either one of them wanted was to be reminded of that dark period in the Avengers' history.

"Many of us were willing to move on, especially after dealing with Thanos," continued Jim, turning his attention back to the Princesses. "But some of us weren't willing to move on."

"Not willing to move on?" wondered Applejack.

"But, why?" added Rainbow Dash. "Why would somepony hold a grudge like that?"

"It's clear that Tony still hasn't forgiven Steve for what happened with the accords," added Jim. "That's my hunch."

"Steve's willing to move on," sighed Sam. "We all are. I mean, what's done is done."

It was now apparent to what Celestia and Luna's mission was going to be.

"So, I guess that this is why the map summoned you," said Twilight. "To solve this problem between two of your new bodyguards."

Everyone looked at the map and realized just exactly what was going to be at stake.

…

Meanwhile, in Tartarus, Tirek and Grogar continued to admire one another as Tirek began to get the sense that he was about earn the freedom he so longed for.

"You must have come to free me?" he asked.

"You might say that, Lord Tirek," answered Grogar. "And I know that for 1,000 years, you have longed to get the magic of Equestria all for yourself, yes?"

"I have, my emperor and I would have succeeded had it not been for the betrayal of my brother, Scorpan. If you let me out, I am sure you can help me get what I desire."

Grogar chuckled at the dedication that Tirek was showing and realized that he would prove to be a valuable ally in the growing battle ahead.

"Your spineless attitude shows me to believe that you will be a faithful servant to me, Tirek."

Just then, the two villains were interrupted by a small voice from a small cage next to Tirek's.

"What about me? Aren't I going to be included?"

Grogar then turned his attention towards the small cage where a small female Pegasus pony with a red rook for a cutie mark was inside.

"And who might you by?"

"Cozy Glow, who longs to be the Empress of Friendship."

For a moment, Grogar was dumbstruck by what he was seeing. In his mind, how could this little filly be an asset to his plans.

"She has been a protégé of mine," explained Tirek. "Trust me, she can prove herself to be quite the asset to you. Cozy Glow has tried to overthrow the princess of friendship and take over her school. I can assure you, if you let her and me help you, Emperor Grogar, she'll prove herself quite useful."

The young Pegasus filly smiled eagerly upon hearing this from her caged mentor and although he wasn't totally convinced, Grogar was more than willing to give her a chance.

Suddenly, they heard the sounds of hoofbeats and realized that time was of the essence.

"Somepony's coming!" whispered Cozy Glow and Grogar stepped back, activating a magic aura from his horns and swinging his bell from side to side, activated a spell that caused him, Tirek and Cozy Glow to disappear in a quiet manner.

…

Three of Equestria's most dangerous had come together and there was more to join the ranks…