//-------------------------------------------------------// Equestria Girls: Power of the SOUL -by EmeraldBreeze777- //-------------------------------------------------------// //-------------------------------------------------------// Prologue //-------------------------------------------------------// Prologue Disclaimer: I do not own My Little Pony or Undertale. My Little Pony belongs to Hasbro, and Undertale belongs to Toby Fox. Time: 12:00 A.M. Date: 12/29/2019, AD (After Discord) Location: Princess Twilight Sparkle’s Castle, Ponyville, Equestria All was quiet in Twilight Sparkle’s crystalline castle, as was to be expected at midnight. The only sound was that of the guards’ hooves trotting on the crystal floor, along with occasional whispers and murmurs of greeting between the guards when they met in their rotations. Suddenly, however, a bright flash of emerald green light erupted from one of the hallways, the silence shattered by the sound of one exclamation. “Run!” The exclamation was followed by the sound of two sets of hooves galloping full speed through the castle. The two producing the noise were quickly revealed, as two female ponies (one Unicorn, one Pegasus) burst around the corner. The Unicorn, Emerald Breeze, had light green fur, yellow hair with light blue stripes, deep blue eyes, and an emerald green Delta surrounded by a whirlwind as her Cutie Mark. Resting on her muzzle was a pair of aqua-framed glasses, and she wore a cyan, crescent moon-shaped pendant with a purple strap around her neck. The Pegasus, known as Speda Hooves, had cyan fur, pitch-black hair, indigo eyes, and a brown book with a yellow pentagram as her Cutie Mark. On her left foreleg was a brown device with a green-tinted screen, surrounded by multiple knobs and buttons, while a pair of green headphones with a black heart in the middle of each earmuff was around her neck, and a sapphire earring with a gold pentagram engraved in it hung from her left ear. Emerald and Speda were currently on the run after being exiled from Ponyville by a town vote, in which only seventeen residents opposed the exile. As such, the SOUL-siblings were being pursued by the Ponyville guards that weren’t under Flash Sentry and Tempest Shadow’s (and by extension, Twilight’s) jurisdiction. This group consisted of ten Unicorns, five Pegasi, and one Earth Pony. As the two mares rounded the corner, Speda picked up enough speed to start gliding, as Emerald channeled her magic to her legs, allowing her to keep up with Speda. Soon, they took another turn, where Speda shut the door, sealing it with her magic, causing a blue pentagram inscribed in a circle to appear, holding the door in place. This was part of the reason the two were being exiled, with the others being that, first, the two just appeared in Ponyville one day, directly after the village had been destroyed by the Storm King, wearing clothes that seemed to be meant for wasteland survival, rather than just looks, claiming that they were from a post-apocalyptic future, and, second, Emerald Breeze was able to not only use Dark Magic, but even control it without much noticeable risk of losing control. In the present, however, Emerald and Speda were examining the room they were in. In the center of the room was a crystal mirror with a purple, horseshoe-shaped border, with red gems inserted in it, and a second, smaller crystal with a picture of a pony engraved in it on top. Connected to the mirror was a large device that allowed the portal function of the mirror to be used at any time, as long as the user had one of the journals that could send messages across the world gap. On a wooden table beside the Crystal Mirror was a brown book, along with two sets of saddlebags, one black leather, one brown leather. The black leather set had Speda’s Cutie Mark emblazoned on the flaps, while the brown leather set had Emerald’s. In the left bag of each was a book with a cover made of the same leather as the bag, with the owner’s Cutie Mark emblazoned on it. In the right bags were some supplies, including food, water, and money. Next to the bags was a brown book with Princess Celestia’s Cutie Mark on it. “Speda, we need to hurry.” Emerald stated, as the pursuing guards began attacking the doors. “I know, Emerald!” Speda retorted, swinging her saddlebags onto her back. Emerald began to weave a temporary spell into the mirror’s portal enchantment, as Speda placed the book in its place on the machine, activating the portal. Finished with the enchantment, the emerald green glow around Emerald’s horn faded, as she slipped into her saddlebags. As Speda stepped up to the portal, the guards broke through the door. “Halt!” The Earth Pony, apparently in command of the group, exclaimed, “If you come with us, then we’ll let you off easy.” “Bullshit.” Emerald muttered, before teleporting between Speda and the guards, “Run, Speda!” “But,” Speda hesitated, “What about you, sis?” “Don’t worry about me!” Emerald responded, “Just run!” “O-Ok.” Speda stammered, turning back towards the portal, before looking over her shoulder at Emerald, her left eye glowing dark blue, “You better make it out of this alive, though!” “I will, I promise.” Emerald vowed, meeting Speda’s gaze with her own, her right eye shining with an emerald green light. This caused Speda to charge through the portal, as Emerald summoned a barrier, horn surrounded by swirling, emerald green magic. As Speda reached the threshold of the portal, the guards attacked, with the Unicorns firing magic beams, the Pegasi charging full-force at the barrier, while the Earth Pony stayed back, commanding his troops. This was all for naught, however, as the Pegasi bounced of Emerald’s barrier, and the magic blasts were reflected back at random angles. Speda crossed the portal just in time, as the moment she was fully through the portal, a bolt of magic hit Celestia’s book out of its place, closing the portal. Upon noticing Speda was through the portal, Emerald released her hold on her magic, causing the barrier to fade away. “Looks like you don’t have an escape anymore,” The commander sneered, “You’re done for, little filly.” “Three things,” Emerald replied, emerald green magic swirling around her horn, quickly joined by black and purple splotches. “One,” Emerald stated, “Never count me out.” At this, the combined normal and dark magic speared out, piercing the chests of all the guards except the commander. “Two,” Emerald continued, “Never call me a little filly.” This caused different colored auras to begin flowing down the lines, joining the magic swirling around Emerald’s horn. “W-what are you doing to them?” The commander asked, fear creeping into his voice. “Don’t worry, I’m just draining them of their magic,” Emerald replied, her voice smooth and monotone, “After all, they were going to die anyways. No need for it to be a waste.” As the magic drained from the ponies, emerald began to spread from where the magic pierced them, slowly covering them. As this continued, Emerald’s eyes began to glow white from the sheer amount of magic she was wielding. Soon, the guards were completely drained, no less than emerald statues, and Emerald’s eyes were emitting a blinding white light, magic flooding through her body. “And three,” Emerald Breeze shouted, “I don’t break promises!” Then, in a flash of emerald light, Emerald Breeze was gone, leaving nothing behind but a trembling Earth Pony, and fifteen emerald statues. Time: 2:00 A.M. Date: 12/29/2019 AD Location: Mirror Room, Princess Twilight Sparkle’s Castle, Ponyville, Equestria The door to the Mirror Room was slowly pushed open, and Princess Twilight Sparkle, along with Rainbow Dash, Tempest Shadow, Spike, Starlight Glimmer, and two unknown figures entered. One of the unknown figures was an Earth Pony with purple fur, curly, purple-and-white hair, and purple eyes with white spirals instead of pupils. Her name was Screwball, Daughter of Discord, and she had a pale orange and pale-yellow striped propeller beanie with a lime green propeller on her head, and a screw next to a baseball as a Cutie Mark. The other unknown figure, who was beside her, was a “non-Reformed Changeling”. He had green eyes with pale green sclera, green wings, and a longer, and fuller, tail than normal. His name was Mothball, the only “non-Reformed Changeling” who could give out love, but still fed off of love. As the group got closer to the Mirror Portal, carefully avoiding the emerald statues clustered near the statue, they saw a book on the floor, scattered amongst the statues, each of which Tempest Shadow seemed to be closely examining. “Steel Victory wasn’t kidding when he said Emerald destroyed the rest of the guard,” Tempest stated, “Then again, it was their fault for pursuing her, especially after they were told what powers she possessed. I don’t understand why the town decided to exile them, especially when they had helped rebuild, only asking for a place to stay in return.” “I don’t know, sweetheart,” Twilight responded, levitating the book over to her, “The townsponies’ minds are a fickle thing. They have looked a gift horse in the mouth many times, refusing the help they obviously needed.” “What’s that you have, Twilight?” Spike asked, “Is that the journal?” “It is, Spike,” Twilight responded, opening the book, “I need to write a message to Sunset, and then we can leave.” “But who will close the portal after we switch worlds?” Rainbow Dash inquired, curious. “One of us will have to stay behind,” Twilight stated, as she began to write, “I’ll let you six decide who will stay behind.” “I’ll stay!” Spike volunteered, “I don’t really want to become a dog again, anyways.” “Okay then, I guess that’s decided.” Starlight stated, everypony else agreeing. “Alright then, I’m just about finished.” Twilight replied, writing a bit more in the book, before placing it back in its place in the machine, “Everypony ready?” “Yep!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed, followed by sounds of confirmation from the rest. “Alright then,” Twilight replied, “Let’s go!” This caused the group, minus Spike, to run through the portal, heading to Canterlot High beyond. After they were gone, Spike flew up to the book, and took it out, closing the portal after the six. Author's Note -Author’s Note- I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter of my new story! Now, to get a couple things out of the way. This is a rewrite/rebranding of my old story, “Yu-Gi-Oh! Equestria Girls”, due to it taking forever to write Duels, as it was hard to consistently access Decks. This story is a My Little Pony: Equestria Girls story with major Undertale references (for now).This story takes place about half a year after MLP: The Movie. This means that the Spring Breakdown mini-series has occurred. For more details, check out my blog post here (https://www.fimfiction.net/blog/911370/important-notice). That's all for now! Emerald Breeze, signing off. -End Author’s Note- //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter One: The Cave //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter One: The Cave Time: 12:30 A.M. Date: 12/29/2019 AD Location: Geode Cave, Camp Everfree, Unifornia, U. S. E. (United States of Equestria) Music to listen to while reading (If you want): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4WN1Ic5wIbM Deep within the Geode Cave of Camp Everfree, all was dark and silent, with no starlight reaching that far. This was soon interrupted, however, by a bright flash of multi-colored light. Once the light had faded, a girl stood in its spot. Once the girl had adjusted to her surroundings, she pulled a lantern out of the black backpack on her back, and lit it with a lighter in her pocket, revealing her features. She was 5’5”, and had chin-length black hair that was somewhat shaggy, cyan skin, and dark blue eyes. She was wearing a black hoodie with a brown book emblazoned with a yellow pentagram sewn on the middle, as well as a black backpack with the same mark, a pair of somewhat-damaged blue jeans, and a pair of brown combat boots and black socks. Around her neck was a pair of black headphones with green muffs and a black heart in the middle of the muffs, and a single, blue, heart-shaped earing was clasped around her ear. After lighting her lantern, the girl began to examine her surroundings. She noticed several things about the cave she was in. First, there were multiple pieces of confetti and a few faded streamers scattered around. Second, there were a set of scrape marks near the back of the cave, like something had been moved there at one time. *Seems like there was quite a party here. Maybe even a Pinkie Party. “Yeah, yeah.” The girl replied, seemingly to nobody, “This is where the Rainbooms performed to ‘Save Camp Everfree.’” *I was just pointing out an observation, babe. No need to get snappy with me. “Whatever.” The girl once more replied to what seemed to be nothing, “Let’s just wait for Emerald to reach us, then go from there.” As if triggered by those words, a flash of light, this one emerald green, appeared, revealing a second girl when it faded. The second girl was 5’1”, and had light green skin, slightly wavy yellow hair with sky blue stripes that reached to her shoulders, and deep blue eyes. She was wearing a yellow T-Shirt with an emerald green Delta (Δ) surrounded by a cyan whirlwind sewn on the chest area, a black hooded jacket with two zippers, causing it to look like a cloak, a pair of grey sweatpants, black socks, and a pair of black tennis shoes with blue highlights. She had a pair of aquamarine, oval-rimmed glasses, as well as a cyan pendant with a purple strap around her neck, and a brown leather backpack with the same design as her shirt on it. As soon as the girl appeared, she fell to her knees, and would have hit her head on the rock floor if the first girl hadn’t dashed over to her, catching her as she fell. “Emerald!” the first girl shouted, “What were you thinking?” “Uh...” The new girl, Emerald Breeze, replied, “I was just trying to protect you, Speda.” “But the guards could’ve killed you!” The first girl, Speda Hooves, exclaimed, as worry showed clearly on her face, and her left eye glowed blue, “Hell, you nearly died trying to cross into this world without an established portal!” “Key word, nearly.” Emerald retorted, her right eye glowing emerald green in response to Speda’s, “I didn’t die, though.” “You didn’t,” Speda replied, before summoning a glowing object from Emerald’s chest, which was green and yellow on the right side, and black on the left, with the left side being an inverted heart and the right being normal, “But your current HP is barely above 1! If there had been anymore guards, or if the gap between worlds had been just a bit larger, your SOUL would’ve shattered, and you wouldn’t be here!” “I...” Emerald began, before trailing off. “You what?” Speda inquired. “I know that I could’ve died,” Emerald stated, “But I would’ve gladly died, as long as you survived.” “I know that, sis,” Speda replied, “But that very thought scares me. If you died, I don’t know what I, let alone Sunset, would do without you.” “Hey...” Emerald murmured, “It’s going to be alright. I didn’t die.” “You’re right,” Speda replied, her eye returning to normal, “Just... try not to do that again, alright?” “I’ll try,” Emerald stated, her eye following suit, “But no promises.” At that moment, a green light began to emit from Emerald’s backpack, and something began to vibrate inside. Emerald reached into her bag, and pulled out her journal, which she opened. “Looks like Sunset has responded to my message,” Emerald began, before Speda interrupted her. “What does it say?” Speda questioned. “I was getting to that!” Emerald retorted, before clearing her throat and reading the message. “It says, ‘Hey Emerald, just got your message. For now, just set up camp where you are, and then we’ll figure stuff out in the morning. -Love, Sunset Shimmer’.” “I agree with her,” Speda stated, “Let’s set up camp. If I remember correctly, there are some supplies in our bags.” Emerald agreed, so they set up their tent and sleeping bags, before going to sleep, hoping for a restful night. Author's Note Sorry y'all for the hiatus, but I needed to get some stuff done, and then school started, which took a lot of time. Anyways, Merry Christmas to all you loyal readers, as well as any new ones! I shouldn't have to take another hiatus like I did, but if I do, I'll let y'all know. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed the new chapter! -Emerald Breeze, signing off. //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter Two: Nightmare and Awakening //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter Two: Nightmare and Awakening Time: 12:30 A.M. Date: 12/29/2019 AD Location: Geode Cave, Camp Everfree, Canterlot District, U. D. E. It was late in the Geode Cave, and its temporary residents, Speda Hooves and Emerald Breeze, had set up their camp and laid down to get what little sleep they could after the events of the nights. Fate, however, had different plans for Emerald, as she began tossing and turning in her sleep. A filly Emerald was sitting in a pile of dust, surrounded by the remains of a collapsed home, tears streaming down her face. “No.” She murmured, “No. No. Nononono, this can’t be happening.” “I... I can fix this.” She continued, “I can bring you back. You can’t die. I didn’t mean for this to happen. Please. I can’t lose you.” Emerald looked to her right, and saw an unconscious pony, who soon turned into another pile of dust. “Please, no. You can’t leave me here.” She muttered, tears running down her face anew, “, Mom, Dad, please! I need you!” Emerald soon heard hooves on the stone streets outside. “Is somebody there?” She asked, “Please, I need help!” Then, the scene around her shifted, as she aged, now a bit older, but still a filly, and she was standing in a schoolyard, with 3 piles of dust in front of her. “No! I didn’t mean to!” Emerald shouted, “I didn’t want to, but you were threatening her!” Emerald took a step back, before freezing, feeling dust sitting at her hooves. “...no. I didn’t kill her. I didn’t kill her!” Emerald cried, before she saw a pair of headphones sitting on the pile of dust, “Please, stop this! I don’t want this!” Time moved forward once again, and she aged, now a teen, before becoming human. She was sitting at the Portal Statue at Canterlot High. She scanned the area, and saw nothing. “Is someone here?” Emerald inquired, before heading into the school once she heard no response. Immediately, however, she regretted it, as in the doorway were two piles of dust, one with a Stetson on top, and the other with a diamond hairclip. “No. How did this happen?” Emerald muttered to herself, fighting back tears, her left eye slightly glowing emerald green, “AJ, Rarity, what happened?” She continued through the school, albeit at a slower pace, before she came across the next sign of disaster, another two piles of dust, this time with one having two rainbow bracelets, and the other having a butterfly hairclip. “What’s going on?” Emerald muttered again, her eyes tearing up, “Who did this? Who killed you two?” However, she trekked onwards, hoping to figure out what happened. However, the next thing she saw sickened her. It was two more piles of dust, with a pair of cracked glasses on one, and a blue bow on the other, as well as confetti mixed inside. “How could this happen?” Emerald whispered, a few tears slipping down her face, as her glowing eye intensified a bit more, “I thought there were fail safes, in case there was a major threat.” Emerald then began to run blindly through the halls, disturbing many more piles of dust littered throughout them, as her body slowly became coated in it. Finally, she reached her destination, where Sunset Shimmer and Princess Twilight stood, fear covering their faces. “Stay back, you monster!” Sunset shouted, fire beginning to form in the air, “I won’t let you continue on your rampage!” ‘Sunset? What’s going on?’ Emerald tried to ask, but the words twisted themselves before she asked, instead saying “And what are you going to do about it? Give me a sunburn?” ‘No, I didn’t mean that!’ Emerald desperately wanted to say, but she was no longer in control of her body, and was forced to watch as her hand summoned her Chaos Saber, before slashing at first Sunset, then the princess, killing both, as they turned to dust, leaving only a leather jacket and a crown. Retaking control of her body, Emerald fell to her knees, tears streaming down her face, and her left eye glowing with an intense light. “No! No! I don’t want this!” Emerald exclaimed, her voice cracking. “But you did, didn’t you?” A voice replied behind her, causing Emerald to whirl around, seeing what looked like herself, but at the same time different. This version of herself had red skin, purple, chin-length hair with dark orange stripes, and a glowing red left eye, and wore a black leather jacket with an inverted crimson Delta surrounded by an orange Whirlwind, a pair of torn blue jeans, black combat boots, a black eyepatch with a red strap on her right eye, and a purple buff with a dark orange stripe on the top. “W-Who are you?” Emerald cried out, crawling backwards until she reached the remains of Sunset and the Princess. “I’m you.” The duplicate stated, “I’m the darkness in your SOUL, the darkness you try so hard to hide. I’m Ruby Hurricane.” “Why are you here?” Emerald shouted, “Why must you torment me?” “You have tried for so long to surpress me, so I have decided to take my revenge.” Ruby replied, “Until you learn to accept me as part of you, I will haunt your waking hours, and torment you in your sleep. I will make sure you learn to accept me.” “No.” Emerald whispered, “Please, I don’t want this.” At this, Emerald’s left eye shined with a blinding light, and she heard a voice speaking to her. “Emerald, please wake up!” The voice exclaimed, worry clear in its tone, “It’s just a nightmare!” “Speda?” Emerald asked, confused. “Yes, I’m right here Emerald!” Speda’s voice replied, “You just need to-” “-Wake up!” Speda finished, and Emerald woke with a start, tears streaming down her face, and her left eye still shining with that same emerald light. Beside her was Speda, her right eye glowing deep blue in response. “Speda?” Emerald asked, “Is that really you?” “Yes, sis,” Speda replied, “Whatever happened was just a nightmare, I promise.” At this, Emerald immediately embraced Speda, which Speda returned, and clung on, thinking that if she let go, Speda would turn to dust. “I thought I lost you,” Emerald cried, as she buried her face in her SOUL-sibling's shoulder, “I thought I lost everyone. I watched Sunset and Princess Twilight die before my very eyes!” “Hey, it’s alright.” Speda murmured, hugging Emerald tightly, “It was all a dream, none of it happened, everyone’s still okay.” “I...” Emerald started, before choking back a sob, “I don’t want to lose you, I don’t want to be alone again.” “Don’t worry, you won’t be.” Speda replied in a calming tone, “Not if I have anything to say about it. And I’m pretty sure our friends on both sides of the portal will agree with me.” “R-Really?” Emerald asked, before her the glow in her eye faded, shortly followed by the one in Speda’s, “Thanks. I don’t know what I did to deserve friends like you and the rest.” “Sometimes,” Speda replied, “Even if one doesn’t think they deserve it, good things happen to them. The only thing you can do is use that to better yourself and even realize that you do deserve it.” “You’re right.” Emerald responded. “Anyways, why don’t we go back to sleep?” Speda suggested, “I think we both need it.” “...you can,” Emerald replied, “But I’m going to stay up a bit later, probably write or something to calm down for a bit.” “Alright, if you’re sure.” Speda stated, a trace of worry in her voice, “Good night, sis.” “Good night, Speda,” Emerald replied, “Sleep well.” After that, Speda got comfortable, and soon fell asleep, indicated by the steady rise and fall of her chest, leaving Emerald as the only one awake. Once she was sure Speda was fully asleep, Emerald grabbed her bag, and went to the entrance of the cave, bringing the lantern with her, and sat down. She then reached into her bag, and pulled out a glass bottle of creamy brown liquid. She popped open the lid, and took a drink, sighing as comfort filled her system. “I’m glad that my coffee is still the same, no matter which world I’m in.” Emerald murmured, before taking another drink, before hearing the voice of Ruby Hurricane in her head. *So, are you not going to go back to sleep? “Not right now.” Emerald replied out loud. *That kinda defeats the purpose of the ‘tormenting you in your sleep’ part of my threat, doesn’t it? “Eh,” Emerald responded, “You should’ve done your research. I haven’t had a full night without nightmares since I lost my parents and... her. Your nightmares aren’t anything that new. The only new part was the high school part.” *Welp, guess it’s just you and I, then. *At least until Speda wakes up again. “Yep.” Emerald stated. *Can I try something, then? “Sure.” Emerald answered, before she felt a pull on her pool of magic, as well as what felt like her SOUL splitting in two, which, oddly, didn’t hurt. When the feeling stopped, she sensed someone to her right, and turned, seeing Ruby Hurricane sitting on the stone beside her. “That was easier than I thought it would be.” Ruby stated, before turning to Emerald, “Why aren’t you that surprised?” “Because I was expecting it.” Was Emerald’s response, before she reached into her bag, and pulled out another bottle of coffee. “Here, you should try it.” Emerald suggested, before tossing the bottle to Ruby, who caught it. “You’re... awfully accepting of my existence,” Ruby spoke after a moment of silence, “Especially considering how much you seem to want to ignore the Hate in your SOUL.” “I...” Emerald faltered, before continuing, “I don’t want to hide the Hate in my SOUL, I just don’t want it taking over. I've read reports of what happened when my ancestor allowed that to happen to him. Hell, I watched it happen using a memory crystal I found.” “Well, since I’m basically a face for your Hate, how about we make a deal?” Ruby asked, “As long as you don’t ignore me or try to hide my existence, I’ll work with you and try not to take control.” “That’s all?” Emerald inquired, surprised, “I was expecting more.” “Well, I also kinda want to appear like this occasionally, but that’s it.” Ruby replied. “If that’s it,” Emerald responded, “Then deal, just tell me when you want to be out.” “Alright.” Ruby concluded. After that, there was mostly silence, broken only by the sound of Ruby opening her bottle of coffee and taking a drink. “Damn, this is good stuff.” Ruby commented, looking at her coffee bottle in wonder, “Where did you get this?” “I made it myself.” Emerald replied with a small smile, “Learned how before the fallout, and was able to perfect it during my time in the Stable and, later, in this Universe’s Ponyville.” “Well, you’re good at it.” Ruby stated, before the two fell into a companionable silence, and stayed that way until the first rays of sunlight peaked out of the trees of the forest. “Welp,” Ruby began, destroying her now-empty bottle in a flash of magic, “I’ll remerge with you now, so that your sister doesn’t freak out.” “Alright.” Emerald replied, doing the same, before feeling her SOUL remerge, “You all settled in there?” *For now. “Okay,” Emerald stated, before grabbing her bag and standing up, heading back into the cave, “Better wake up Speda. The sooner we can get to Canterlot City, the better. *Alright Author's Note Hello everyone! Here’s Chapter 2 of Equestria Girls: Power of the SOUL! Looks like Emerald has a bit of trauma from her past, but that will be explained in later chapters. We also have Ruby Hurricane appearing for the first time. Don’t worry, she’ll be important later. Also, since I'm pretty sure I'll get comments on this, Emerald's mood and attitude towards Ruby changes so drastically due to the fact that her panic over her friends and family being dead has dissipated, and she has some coffee in her system (which calms her down). Anyways, I hope you enjoyed Chapter 2! Any questions or CONSTRUCTIVE criticism, leave it in the comments, and I’ll respond to the best of my abilities (hopefully) without spoiling later events in the story. Anyways, Emerald Breeze, signing off!