Harmony Theory

by Sharaloth

Rating: teen
Tags: Original Character, Rainbow Dash, Adventure, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark
Length: 535237

Rainbow Dash awakens in a strange land and must discover why, and how to return home.

After the Changeling invasion, Celestia and Luna make the decision to have Twilight investigate the Elements of Harmony and solve the mystery of their power.

A thousand years later, Rainbow Dash awakens in a world she does not recognize. She has no idea how or why she came to be there. She does not know the language, the geography or any of the rules of this new time. She soon finds allies in Star Fall, a scholarly pegasus whose Talent is Magic, and Astrid, Star Fall's Griffin guardian. Together they set out to discover why Dash has been sent to the future, and how she might return to when she belongs.

War threatens the nations, a Nightmare stalks the shadows, and Rainbow Dash's arrival has turned her into a wild card in a deadly game that pits the law on both sides of a broken Equestria against a mysterious criminal figure, Max Cash. Yet the stakes are higher than anyone knows, for in her research Twilight Sparkle discovered a dark secret about the Elements, something that will shake the foundations of the world.

Cover image by SierraEx
Has a TvTropes page

Published 2012-09-02 17:54:01 UTC
Last updated 2018-12-24 19:08:25 UTC

Chapter 1: Wake Up Call

Harmony Theory

The Elements of Harmony are the most powerful magic known to ponydom. That much is proven fact, but why is it so? Everypony who has studied magic or takes even a passing interest in the events of the past three decades knows of the Elements: Kindness, Laughter, Generosity, Honesty, Loyalty, and Magic. Most ponies just accept the traits of the Elements and the power they create as a given, thinking no deeper. For those who seek an accurate understanding of the Magic of Harmony, however, this is merely the place to start asking questions. Why those specific traits? What makes it so those six create the Magic of Harmony? How? One must admit it is a strange group of traits to deliver such incredible results. Yet when you look closer, when you really get down into what those traits are, what they mean, then you can begin to understand exactly what it is that makes the Magic of Harmony so very potent. And so disastrous.

-From the preface to Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter 1: Wake Up Call

Rainbow Dash opened her eyes, but had to blink a few times to be sure of it since she couldn't see anything either way. She definitely wasn't at home. It was never this dark at home, not with the stars at night and the sun in the day. Maybe, if there was a major storm, but it was too quiet for that. Besides, she'd never be sleeping at home if there were a major storm on the schedule.

She flapped her wings and stretched. It felt like she'd taken one killer nap, all her muscles were stiff and lethargic. She didn't feel tired, though, or groggy like when she usually woke up. Instead she just felt kind of stiff, like she'd been sitting still too long. There didn’t seem to be anything wrong with her physically, she just couldn't see anything. For a moment she thought she'd gone blind, and a burning panic tried to claw its way up her throat, but she shoved it back down.

She was Rainbow Dash, the fastest flyer in all of Equestria, and Rainbow Dash did not panic.

So, since she wasn't panicking or anything, the thing to do was to figure out where she was and if there was a light or window or something else to let her see. She took a tentative step forward and felt something wet and soft under her hoof. She froze, and it was then that she noticed the smell. It smelled like dirt and dust and stale air, but it also had another smell, a slight coppery tang to the air. She knew that smell, she'd been injured enough times. Blood.

"Oh Celestia, please no," she whispered. The sound shockingly loud in the otherwise silent blackness. Her voice felt as raw and unused as the rest of her, and the dusty air made her cough violently even as she backpedaled from what she had stepped in. She backed right into an earthen wall, the impact jarring even more dust and dirt free and into her hacking lungs.

Once she had recovered, she crept back to where she had smelled the blood. She didn't want it to be what she thought it was, but she had to be sure. She felt wetness under her hooves and then butted up against a still form. She probed for a moment, gingerly running her hooves over the form, getting a mental picture of it while her heart sank and fear began crawling along her spine. It was a pony, a stallion from his size, and he was dead. Her hoof touched the gaping wound in his chest and she retched, bringing up stinging bile and nothing else.

Suddenly the darkness was too much, the stale air and silence oppressive. She couldn't be here, couldn't be in this place with a dead pony. She had to get out, and now. She ran back to the wall and began running around the outside of the room with one wing outstretched and touching the wall to find an opening, any opening, through which she could escape. There could be any number of dangers in the room that she could run blindly into, but that didn't matter. All that mattered was getting out.

Suddenly her wing was touching nothing but air. Dash didn't think, just lunged. She jostled through the narrow opening, bruising her side and pulling a few feathers from her wings as she stormed into the tunnel. It was still incredibly dark, but she had a path to follow, so she ran. Her headlong rush took her face-first into the wall more than once, but she didn’t care. She'd not only been the speed-queen of Junior Speedsters flight camp, but the crash-queen as well, and all the impacts did was tell her to change direction. The tunnel seemed to go on forever, twisting and turning at sharp angles. The uneven floor tripped her up and the walls stood barely far enough apart for her wings to compensate before she broke a leg. Still, she didn't slow down or let up. If there was a tunnel there had to be an exit.

She thudded into the wall again, and rounding the corner her eyes caught the first glimmer of light she had seen. It was coming from around yet another twist in the tunnel, showing her where to turn so that she hit the wall with her flank instead of her face. Then she saw it: light, air, freedom. The exit.

She burst out of the tunnel with a gasp, rolling to a halt in the dirt and sucking in great gulps of fresh air as she stared up at the open sky. The light was brilliant, stinging at her eyes, but she didn't mind. That minor pain was far better than the endless dark of the tunnel and the chamber at its end.

She spent a few minutes just breathing, calming herself down before she went about the important business of finding out why the hay she had been down there in the first place. Finally she pulled herself to her hooves, taking a long look at her surroundings. She was in some sort of depression dug into the ground, like someone had been making the foundations for a house. The dirt was packed with the prints of thousands of hoofsteps, and she could clearly make out that the pit had been full of tables and benches and other signs of ponies at work not too long ago.

She walked the pit from one end to the other, then hopped up to hover about a hundred feet up and get a better lay of the land. It felt obscenely good to get her wings moving, like she'd been grounded for a week and this was her first chance to fly. She resisted the urge to take off into the sky and get the wind in her mane, but only barely. With keen pegasus eyes she scanned her surroundings, and found that she was nowhere she recognized. There were mountains in the distance to the east and north, and a forest that stretched all around her for miles and miles. To the south she saw a river winding through the forest and she thought she could make out the vague shapes of buildings along the river's path, but far enough away to be near the horizon.

The clouds clung to the mountains, which usually meant that the local pegasi were being lazy, but this seemed different to her. The clouds were too high up, and far too thin. They barely looked substantial enough to walk on, let alone be used for shade or rain or all the other things the weather teams used them for. Looking around she saw what looked to be more substantial clouds in the distance to the west, but they were too high up as well, and too large. Either whoever was running the weather in this place was doing the poorest job she'd ever seen or there was something else going on, something she couldn't immediately see. The way the clouds looked sent a shiver down her spine. It almost looked like the way the weather got out over the Everfree Forest.

She shook the foreboding thought away and focused on the rest of her surroundings. She didn't get to travel much as chief weather-pony for Ponyville, but Cloudsdale was a roaming city and when she had lived there she'd gotten to see most of her nation's landscape, and this wasn't it. She was sure she had never seen this place before, not from the air or the ground, which meant she was outside of Equestria.

That thought made her frown. She didn't know a lot about the lands outside of Equestria other than the basics anypony learned in school and what she had heard from her friends. Definitely not enough to know any geography. She turned towards the south and the buildings in the far distance. She would have to go and see if anypony could help her figure out how she had gotten there, and what had happened to that stallion back in the chamber.

Her shoulders sagged at the thought of the dead pony. He hadn't died easy, or by accident, not with that gaping hole in his chest. With a quick shake of her head she threw off the morose thoughts, instead focusing herself on those buildings and the possibility of help.

It was then that she noticed the two dark shapes winging their way to her. With a cry of joy she recognized a pair of fellow pegasi as they flew from the south. She rushed towards them, leaving a trail of rainbow light in the air in her haste to meet the oncoming ponies and get some answers.

"Oh, gosh I am so glad to see you guys!" Rainbow Dash cheered as she zipped right up to the two pegasi. They were both stallions, one was a dark brown with a light caramel mane, the other a charcoal gray with a dark green mane. Both of them wore identical silver-trimmed blue outfits that covered their chests, forelegs and flanks, hiding their cutie marks. A silver crescent emblazoned the front of the outfit, the whole of which reminded her of the barding the royal guard wore, except this was obviously some sort of cloth or stiff fabric and not the metal of armor. Their eyes were covered by dark-tinted goggles that hid their expressions. They reared back in surprise as she approached. "Look, I don't know where I am," Rainbow Dash rambled, "I don't know how I got here, but I am this close to freaking out! Back there in that pit there's this really long tunnel and then there's a room and there's a dead pony there. I didn't do anything to him, I swear, but you gotta help me!"

The two pegasi shared a look made unreadable by their tinted goggles. Then one turned to Dash and said something slowly and clearly. Dash blinked in confusion, she had no idea what he had just said. The words sounded somewhat familiar, like she'd heard the individual sounds before, but the whole of it together just made no sense. "What?" she said. The pony repeated himself, and it made just as little sense the second time around.

"Oh, just great!" she shouted, throwing her hooves up to the sky. "I don't know where I am or how I got here, and you guys don't even speak Equestrian! I thought everypony spoke Equestrian!" One of the pegasi was saying something but she cut him off. "Listen, pal, I don't speak whatever crazy language you do, okay?" She began circling around them, the pegasus equivalent of pacing back and forth. "Okay, Dash, think! Think, think, think! What would Twilight Sparkle do? Teleport home. Okay, bad idea. What would Flutter - no, wait, worse idea. Don't I have any friends that would be helpful if they were me, or I were them... or something?" She spared a glance at the pegasi who were talking to each other while keeping an eye on her.

"Applejack!" The idea hit her suddenly and she stopped in midair, only losing a little altitude before she started flapping her wings again. "She'd be honest, and forthright and she'd talk real loud and real slow! That's it!" She turned to the black-clad pegasi. "I. Am. From. Equestria." The pegasi shared another look. "You know? E-ques-tri-a? Homeland of ponies? Home of Princess Celestia, who raises the sun?" This last got a reaction, the eyebrows of the ponies shooting up. "Yes! Celestia! You know her, right! I. Am. From. Celestia! Or, not her, specifically, but where she's from."

One of the pegasi fixed his covered gaze on her and said something, but Dash caught 'Celestia' as a recognizable word.

"Yeah! Celestia! Celestia! I'm from where she is, get it through your thick skull featherbrain! Take me to someone who speaks Equestrian! Thank you Princess for reminding me why its so awesome to have you in charge."

Then the pegasi pulled out batons that attached to their hooves and rushed at her.

She dodged the first swipe with a sudden lurch upwards that took her in a quick arc to the other side of the stallions. "What the hay, guys?" she shouted, staring at them incredulously. They didn't even pause to listen, the charcoal one powering at her while the other circled around to flank. Rainbow Dash ducked under a swing, sliding inside the other pegasus' reach and blocking him from swinging again. The weird goggles that he was wearing stopped her from seeing his expression, but the way he suddenly jerked back it was almost as if she’d bit him.

"What is going on?" she cried out as the brown stallion flew in and tackled her. Rainbow Dash wasn't exactly used to being attacked out of the blue like this, but she was a black belt and knew how to handle herself in a fight. Now, all the ponies who taught her would say never to fight someone bigger than you if you could help it, especially if they had a weapon and you didn't. That just wasn't the Rainbow Dash way of doing things, though. She'd bucked a dragon in the face! These two punks weren't going to intimidate her into running!

The tackle had disrupted both of their abilities to fly, so they were dropping like brittle stones to the ground that wasn't far enough below. She reared back and smashed her forehead against his nose. The goggles cracked as her bad aim caught them instead of directly on her intended target, and a stinging pain flashed through her head. That was okay, pain like that wouldn't even slow her down. Her opponent, though, reeled back, giving her enough room to regain flight control and swing out of the dive.

She rocketed into the sky, wiping blood away from her eyes with one hoof. Her tackler made his own rough save and started climbing after her while his partner moved to intercept. Rainbow Dash watched the pony trying to block her and rolled her eyes. He got in front, baton ready, but with a burst of speed that left a prismatic trail behind her she cut four hard ninety degree turns in quick succession and simply bypassed him and went back to her original heading. A look behind her showed him staring after her, mouth gaping in shock.

She laughed, unable to help herself. The wind was in her mane, her wings were only getting warmed up, and she was already impressing the locals. Now if they would stop trying to beat her up and speak some simple Equestrian her day might just start to turn positive.

The brown stallion caught up to the charcoal one, and they paused to say something to each other. The brown one took off his cracked goggles, which revealed bright blue eyes and clarified his expression. He was angry, furious. She wondered where all the anger she saw was coming from. She hadn't embarrassed these two enough for that kind of ire yet.

Rainbow Dash came to a halt, more than three hundred feet up from the two stallions. "You guys ready to talk yet?" she shouted down at them. "I mean, I don't mind kicking your flanks all over... uh, wherever we are, but I'm kinda having a crisis here, and I really don't wanna fight!"

The charcoal stallion started shouting something back, but it was all in their weird language that she didn't understand any of. She thought she caught the word 'Luna' though. Which might have been them confirming if she was from Equestria. Or could have been their word for salad, for all she knew.

"Look, guys," she replied, trying to communicate her situation in her eyes and body language. "I don't know what set you off, but I'm from Equestria, and I don't know why or how I'm here, and I just want to go home! Okay? Home, to Ponyville! Which is in Equestria! Which is ruled by Princess Celestia!"

The brown pegasus suddenly roared in anger and shot up at her. She was so surprised that she didn't even think to avoid him, but she did block the baton when he swung it at her, and let her training take over. Not knowing how the baton was attached to his hoof she wasn't sure she could just disarm him, but she couldn't let him keep swinging it around like that. Somepony might get hurt. So she grabbed the baton in her teeth and did a quick mid-air somersault. The stallion let out a high pitched scream as his forehoof was dislocated. She let go, the weight of the baton pulling on the hoof and making it hurt even more.

"Serves you right! What the hay is wrong with you?" The stallion cradled his injured hoof, staring daggers of rage at her while spitting a reply that she just did not understand. The sheer hatred in his tone communicated clearly enough, however, and it was almost like a physical blow. She had never heard a pony speak with that kind of anger before. She had been cursed at before, and badly, but never with anything approaching the utter vehemence she saw and heard in him. It was like she had lightning bolted his dog or something equally heinous.

She was so shocked by what she was seeing that she completely missed the other stallion swooping up at her. The baton slammed into her side with a sickening crack, knocking the air out of her and sending her tumbling down. She tried to right herself, but the blow had stunned her and they just didn't have the altitude for a long recovery. She crashed down, tumbling end over end and skidding in the grassy earth before coming to a rest on her back. She managed to suck in a deep breath, which she then let out in a pained wheeze as her bones protested the stress. "Oh yeah," she coughed, rolling to her hooves. "That cracked a few ribs."

She didn't have more time to recover as the two of them were dropping down towards her fast. She flared her wings and with one mighty downstroke she was shooting up to meet them. Her chest burned with pain as her flight muscles pulled at her cracked ribs, but it was a familiar pain, one that could block out without any effort. The charcoal stallion swung at her, but she was going too fast and had too much control. She ducked around the swing and bucked him in the side before ascending once more into the clear sky.

"Come on, guys," she said to herself. "Let's see if you wanna race."

The two pegasi turned and pursued her, their wings working feverishly as they tried to keep up with her constant acceleration. The landscape rushed by beneath them, but she was gaining altitude and with every passing second the ground became more and more distant. She looked back, watching as they slowly began to gain on her.

The charcoal one pulled something from his clothes, a weird tube with a box at the end, she couldn't tell what it was. Another baton, she guessed, but he gripped the box part in his mouth and pumped his wings harder closing the distance. She shook her head and focused on continuing her climb. She was already at safe altitudes, but she had no idea how delicate the local weather was and she didn't want to mess it up for a weatherpony if those bizarre, messy clouds were actually serving a purpose.

From this high up she could actually see all the way down the river towards the buildings in the south. There was a whole city that way, and it was huge! It looked like Manehattan, but spread out over five times the area. Skyscrapers clustered at what must have been the core of the city, surrounded by miles of streets and houses and buildings. She had never seen a city that big, never even heard of one. Wherever she was, it had to be one heck of a long way from Equestria.

Of course, with all the sightseeing she wasn't paying attention to her pursuers again. The brown one, with a growl of effort and a furious pumping of his wings, had caught up to her and took a kick at her wings. Dash saw him at the last moment, and with world-class reflexes she spun into an inverted barrel-rolling loop. The stallion couldn't keep up, dropping back. His partner tracked Dash's flight with his hidden eyes, carefully lining up the tube.

The shear forces at the speed they were going were intense, and she found herself relishing the cut of the wind through her feathers as she came out of her roll. Once again it struck her that it felt like the first time she'd been able to fly in weeks. More than that, it felt like the first time she had seriously raced, that day she had earned her cutie mark. The setup was almost the same, a couple of colts bashing her and thinking they could push anyone they wanted around. There was the thrill of it all over again, like racing was new and she didn't know for sure whether she could win. There was that same little voice in the back of her head urging her on, pushing her to go faster, fly harder, to burst the bonds of the possible and become a living legend. It was all that, turned up to maximum volume and pouring through her like molten sunlight in her veins.

"What's up with me?" she wondered aloud. This was too intense, and too soon after waking up in this strange land. She felt like she was losing herself to the joy of flight, to the urge to go faster. It was a terrible need that burned in her, a need to push past all the limits, to touch the spectrum and pass through it transformed. "Rainboom," she said, entranced by the word and the memories it conjured up.

She would have tried it. Would have climbed as high as she could then shot down fast enough and with enough magic to shatter light. She couldn't have stopped herself. The almost hypnotic reverie she was caught in shattered as something sharp and fast struck her flank, jerking her hips out to the side and sending her spinning in a dangerous tumbling mess into one of the thin clouds that clung to the high mountains. She bounced along the spongy surface of the cloud and skid to a stop, creating a shallow trench that slowly began to fill in with cloudstuff.

Rainbow Dash was almost more interested in the pathetic excuse for a cloud than whatever it was that had hit her, but a burning pain in her flank demanded immediate attention. She looked and found a metal dart sticking out of her side, just above her cutie mark. She reached over and tried to pull it out, but it was barbed, and a good inch deep in her. "What the hay?" she whispered, just before lunging to the side as another dart whizzed through the cloud where she had been standing.

She looked up to see the charcoal stallion circling above her, loading another dart into that tube device he had in his mouth. The brown one just hovered, eyes wide with shock, anger and disbelief. Her brow furrowed in anger. Randomly attack her with batons? Fine. Tackle, yell at and generally antagonize her? Okay, she could live with that. Not even try to listen to her or figure out what she was saying? It was pushing it, but she'd been treated worse. This? This was the last straw. They thought they could just dart her and get away with it? Well, they had another thing coming, and it was coming attached to her hoof! No more nice Rainbow Dash!

A burning sensation started tingling its way along her flank, a burning that was quickly followed by icy numbness. She shook her leg, finding that it was slow to respond and she could barely feel it when it did. The realization hit her, and all her anger drained away to be replaced by fear. The dart was poisoned.

"Oh horse apples," she said, and rearranged her priorities from 'kicking flank' to 'getting the buck outta here'. She leapt off of the cloud, heading over the mountains, accelerating as quickly as she could. The two stallions flew after her, puffing in their exertion as she put on yet another burst of intense speed. Rainbow wasn't racing this time, though, and she wasn't getting distracted by the scenery or by some weird feeling. This had just become about survival. She shifted herself into high gear, calling out her pegasus magic, and shot through the sound barrier.

Going supersonic always hurt, and it was always scary. It required letting the magic take over so much that a lot of pegasi who could do it still wouldn't. Once you had broken the barrier and let the magic do its work, though, everything got a lot smoother. She sped up to three times the speed of sound, a feat that all but the fastest pegasus would normally balk at. The mach cone spread out in front of her, barely visible with her keen eyes. It was a barrier composed of compressed air and magic, and she could feel the pressure on the other side of it waiting to shred her should that magic fail even for a moment. Rainbow Dash wasn't afraid of that pressure, she lived for the thrill of overcoming it. What she was afraid of was the way the numbness was spreading through her. It was at the base of her wings now, and her legs trailed limply behind her. What would happen when it reached her heart? Was it meant to kill her, or only slow her down? She couldn't out-fly poison.

After a couple minutes she risked a look back, but she couldn't see either stallion following her. They had looked like they were struggling just to keep up with her in the high subsonics, so she guessed they couldn't break the barrier on their own. That was a good thing. She was already past the mountain range and over a wide plain, with scattered forests she could see to the horizon, and one huge storm snarling and spitting in the distance. If those guys couldn't do supersonic she was way out of their range.

She let out a breath and began to decelerate. The burning was settling into her wings now, and she couldn't afford to lose feeling in them while flying. The turbulent shudder of dropping back to subsonic rattled her more than it should have. She wasn't compensating like she normally would. The magic receded as she slowed, and with its departure she was realizing how badly numb her wings had become. She couldn't even feel it when she flapped, and that loss of sensitivity was making her flight too erratic. Worst of all she was still going too fast.

Desperately she locked her wings outstretched. If she couldn't flap them properly, then she could at least glide until she was going slow enough to land. The ground was passing by too fast, and now that the poison had reached her heart it was spreading more quickly. Her tongue went numb first, strangely, and then her nose. It was a weird and terrifying sensation as her body just shut down around her. She focused all her will on maintaining course and not falling into the earth at several hundred miles an hour. She just had to slow down to the point where a crash wouldn't kill her. That's all. She'd crashed so much one more wasn't an issue, it just had to be slow enough. That's all she needed, just a little slower. It was a mantra she repeated over and over in her head. A little slower.

She was still thinking that when the tranquilizer knocked her unconscious and she fell from the sky.

***

Star Fall nibbled on the grass unenthusiastically. She didn't like foraging for food like this, but every time she was out in the field it turned out to be necessary at some point. For some reason she just couldn't plan her rations right. Her mentor, Twinkle Shine, would say it stemmed from a lack of self-discipline. Her guard, Astrid, would say it was because she used too much space to pack other things. Star Fall herself thought she just ate way too much on this side. She couldn't help it, she was always starving after crossing the Everstorm. Regardless of why, it meant she was eating grass now.

Most of the plants in the nightlands were different strains from the ones in the sunlands, regardless of how similar they looked, and having grown up on sunland plants she found the taste on this side to be unpleasant. It wasn't like it was bland, just wrong. She wondered how Astrid felt, if what she ate over here tasted wrong to her too. It was something to think about, at least. If so it might mean a tangible difference in the magic of the nightlands. That was an interesting thought, and she was sure Twinkle Shine would agree.

A sound like thunder cracked across the sky. It was loud enough that Star Fall actually felt the pressure change as it hit her. She looked up, surprised. There weren't any storm clouds here, and she was far enough from the Everstorm that she shouldn't be hearing the thunder from it. The tenor of the sound was wrong, too. It was something that poked at her recollection, a sound she had heard before, but not often and not in any context where it was instantly recognizable.

The idea struck her that it could be a weapon. She knew the Republicans had been experimenting with explosives, but there was no way they would be testing them so close to the Everstorm. She frowned, waiting to hear if the sound repeated, but all she got were a few faint echoes. She almost went back to her grazing when she spotted the shape falling out of the sky.

It hadn't registered at first because it was so far away, and so small, and she had just assumed it was a bird. Then it began to tumble irregularly through the air, losing altitude at a dangerous rate. Star Fall focused on that shape, and realized that it was a pony. A pegasus in an uncontrolled fall moving extremely rapidly.

Star Fall's wings flared out, her first instinct being to intercept and rescue the falling pony. She hesitated, though, the admonishing voice of her mentor reminding her that she was essentially a spy in enemy territory and any sort of daring rescue would be bringing too much attention to herself. She thought of Astrid, busy getting her own dinner and too far away to help if she got in over her head. The falling pony sped towards a messy reunion with the ground, but still Star Fall didn't move. She could see the pony more clearly now, a sky blue pegasus mare with a mane that had too many colors to call it any one shade.

Star Fall bit her lip, her wings shuddering in indecision. "Damn it!" she swore, finally giving in and leaping into the air. She focused, calling her magic to provide lift and thrust while her wings just caught the air currents and kept her stable. She shot towards the falling pegasus, furiously working out the proper heading to save the other pony without hurting herself. She quickly realized that her hesitation had cost her that chance. The best she could do was to ram the other pony in the side, hopefully bleeding off enough of her momentum in a direction change to prevent a fatal crash.

That would just leave them both broken, however, and while it might save the mare's life, it might also cost Star Fall hers. Even if such an impact didn't kill her it would definitely leave her and Astrid stranded in the nightlands until she was well enough to cross the Everstorm. If she ever was well enough. If they weren't captured during her convalescence.

She froze up as the worry bubbled up in her mind, her concentration faltering and her magic going with it. Star Fall nearly screamed at her own timidity, but refocused on the magic and kept going. She reached out willing every ounce of power into her speed as she approached the tumbling pegasus. But her calculations were off. The moment of worry had cost her the speed she needed to intercept, and now she was going to miss the falling mare. She stretched out a hoof, trying to do anything to slow the other pegasus down, but all she caught was the trailing edge of multicoloured hair.

Star Fall closed her eyes, letting herself slow down. She still heard the impact, though. The sound of a body striking unyielding earth at far too great a speed. She'd seen a crash like that before, while watching a race once as a filly. The thing they had pulled from the ground hadn't even looked like a pony anymore. They'd needed to use unicorns to clean up what had been left.

She shuddered, but banked around towards the crash site anyways. She had failed to save this mare, she might as well give her a proper burial. Even if her stomach heaved at the thought of what she might find. The falling mare had been going so fast and at a shallow enough angle that she had plowed a furrow through the dirt. That might have helped, but the dirt here was only a few inches deep before it hit rock. She could smell the blood already.

She landed a little ways out from the mound of dirt that was where the fallen mare would rest. She stared at that mound for what felt like forever, trying to will her hooves to carry her forward. Finally she took a step, then another, haltingly making her way to the edge of the crater. Tears stung her eyes, and she squeezed them shut. She didn't want to see the remains of the pegasus, she really didn't.

"Owwww," the sound that came from the crater made Star Fall's eyes shoot open. There, lying in a twisted, bloody heap, but not splattered or horribly deformed like she had imagined, was the blue pegasus mare. Two of her legs were obviously broken, as were both her wings, but other than a few gashes and scrapes the rest of her was intact. She was also staring right at Star Fall, bright eyes boring into her with incredible intensity. "Please tell me you speak Equestrian," the mare said, and Star Fall felt a shock go right through her.

That had been Old Equestrian. Not only that, but the pronunciation, the casual diction, all of it sounded like the voice of a native speaker. Which only the oldest Dragons could be. To find someone who spoke it so well, and under such circumstances, was shockingly bizarre. So bizarre that Star Fall couldn't stop herself from responding. "I do speak," she said. Her own command of the ancient language was clumsy, but her mentor had made her learn it as part of her studies.

"Cool," the mare said with a bloody grin. "I think I'm about to pass out, so if you could stick around till I wake up that... that would... be... awesome," As she was getting the last word out the mare's eyes rolled back and her head fell to the dirt. For a moment Star Fall was sure she was dead, but then her chest rose and fell with steady but wheezing breaths.

"Astrid!" Star Fall screamed out as she rushed into the crater. "Help me!" It was the quickest and easiest way to get her guard's attention this far away, and she was going to need the help to get this mare to somewhere safe. Somewhere she could heal, somewhere that Star Fall could find out why she knew a dead language so well.

She began to examine the other pony, finding her lightweight pegasus bones were miraculously intact after such a hard fall. Other than the wing and leg breaks, which were clean breaks and not splintered like they should be, her ribs seemed cracked, and she probably had a concussion. The gashes that oozed blood were all obviously from the crash, but there was one thing that couldn't be from the impact. Star Fall pulled the barbed dart from the hanging patch of flesh it had been stuck in. This was something used by the Republic police forces. Yet the nearest city was more than two hundred miles away, across the mountains.

"Dammit, Fall!" Astrid screeched as she dropped to the crater. Her golden eagle-eyes were hard, her beak stained with blood that she hadn't had time to clean off. She was the perfect picture of a predator interrupted in their meal. Astrid stalked up to Star Fall, then hesitated, her talons digging into the dirt as she saw what her charge was fussing over. "What the hell have you been doing?"

"Astrid, we've got to get her somewhere sheltered," Star Fall said, carefully checking the mare over for any other injuries. "You said there was a cabin near here, can we use that?"

"What? I don't know! Who is this chick, and what the hell is going on?"

"She fell, Astrid! She fell, and I need to know who she is!"

"Why?" Astrid asked, frowning. "We're already running late, the Professor is gonna be pissed enough as it is. I don't wanna know what she'll do if we just stop to care for every little thing that falls outta the sky."

"Astrid, please," Star Fall begged, looking away from the injured pony up at her guard.

Astrid held her gaze for a long moment before rolling her eyes and sighing. "Only for you, Fall."

"Thank you," Star Fall said, turning back to the downed pegasus. "See if we can use that cabin. I'm going to find something to set her legs and wings with before we move her. I'm not strong enough to carry another pony, so you're going to have to do it."

"Yeah, I figured." Astrid shook her head as she spread her wings. "I hope you know what you're doing."

Star Fall watched the Griffin go airborne, then returned her gaze to the impossible pegasus. "So do I."

Chapter 2: An Impossible Mare

Some of my fellow scholars have asked me whether this book will be a follow-up to my original work, The Magic Of Friendship, which was published nearly twenty-five years ago as of this writing. While this question might make sense to them and to most ponies, to me it causes no end of consternation and confusion. How do I tell them that this is most emphatically not a follow-up without explaining to them why, which would only serve to deepen their confusion and increase my own consternation. Most ponies think that the Magics of Friendship and Harmony are related, and why wouldn't they? It seems self evident that they would be connected to each other, possibly even the same thing. I am forced to remind these ponies of one of the important points of my first book. That while Friendship is Magic, Magic IS NOT Friendship. Magic at its base level is power, and while Friendship is a kind of power, there are many other kinds besides. What would cause me the most dismay, of course, is in trying to explain that what we call the Magic of Harmony may not be Magic as we know it at all. Worse yet, it may not have anything to do with Harmony, either.

-From the preface to Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter 2: An Impossible Mare

Lieutenant Hard Boiled, celebrated detective in the Orion City Police Special Investigations Unit, could not believe what he was hearing. It was just too fantastical. If he didn't know that the two officers telling him this wild tale were upstanding members of the force he would have laughed them out of the room. As it was, he couldn't believe what he was hearing, but he couldn't deny that the stallions telling it to him were trustworthy, and the dissonance between the two was making his horn ache.

Hard Boiled, or HB as he tended to be called by his friends, was a very blue unicorn. His coat was blue, and his mane and tail were a darker shade of blue. All that blue made his eyes stand out even more. They were a shining, clear copper that stood out from his blue face like searchlights. His mane was cut into a short stubble, which left his long, sharp horn very prominently displayed on his forehead. He had to cut his mane short like that, his horn was very sensitive when he was using his magic, and the hairs brushing against it had been too annoying to keep. On his flanks were a series of characters in black, the runic script of ancient magic that made up his Talent Glyph, displaying his aptitude at his job for all to see.

The two stallions sat in front of him, looking bruised and exhausted. Their heads were enveloped in a soft cyan glow as the doctor they had called in worked her magic on their ruptured ears. The brown one, Lightning Flash, had to keep holding his wing down with a hoof or it would start twitching uncontrollably and aggravate the torn flight muscles. The other one, Ashland Forrest, arguably was the worst off, a bandage wrapped around his head covering up an eye that had been badly injured when his flight goggles had shattered. By all rights they should have been in the hospital, but they had insisted on reporting immediately. Too bad what they were reporting was nonsense.

"Let me get this straight," he said, staring at the two officers with hard copper eyes. "You were sent out to take a look at that illegal excavation we had reports of, but instead you were intercepted by some pegasus mare who declared her allegiance to the Solar Kingdom, then proceeded to out-fly, out-maneuver, out-fight and generally embarrass the both of you. Despite the fact that you are both Flight Talents who have been given the benefit of the Republic's finest training in hoof-to-hoof and aerial combat." The two stallions shared a look, then nodded in unison. "Not only that, but you insist that this filly not only out-flew two of the force's best Flight Talents, but also displayed Hummingbird level maneuverability, Cloudwalking and Supersonic speed? And this last after having taken a hit from a sleeper shot?" Hard Boiled sucked in a deep breath before bellowing, "What the hell are you trying to pull here?!"

The two stallions cringed, Flash even letting out a whimper as the shout hit his still mostly-unhealed ears. The doctor gave Hard Boiled a venomous look. "Lieutenant!" she snapped, her voice quiet but filled with as much anger as a roar. "I am not allowing this little meeting to take place just so you can aggravate the already serious injuries of my patients. You will keep your voice down, is that clear?"

HB nodded, chastened. "Fine. But please, guys, what you're saying is impossible."

"I know, Lieutenant," Forrest said. "But it's true. I have no idea who this mare is, but she's something else. I swear, after I hit her with the sleeper she stopped on a cloud like it was solid ground, then she just dodged another shot like it was nothing and took off. There was no way we could keep up with that kind of acceleration. I swear she went from zero to twelve hundred in ten seconds flat. And you, well, you see what the boom did to us."

"She was strong," Flash said. "Way too strong. And way too tough. I've got to be nearly twice her size, but she just shrugged it off when I hit her. She hit the ground too, after Forrest cracked her, but it was like the hit and the fall meant nothing to her. And she kept going faster, like she was playing with us the entire time. Mouthing off about her damned sun tyrant the whole time," Flash's face screwed up in rage, his pinned wing thrashing about until the pain overrode his anger and forced him to focus on stilling the injured limb. Lightning Flash's hatred of the Solar Kingdom was well known on the force, and he wasn't alone in it.

"What specifically was she saying?" HB asked.

"I don't know, Lieutenant," Flash said, Forrest shaking his head as well. "I don't speak Solar. All I know is that she kept spouting the nag's name the whole time. Throwing it in our faces."

"I don't know if she was trying to insult us," Forrest said. "But she did keep saying 'Celestia' a lot. She wouldn't respond to us, so we had to assume she was a spy or something."

"You had to, huh?"

Forrest nodded. "Yeah. But, sir, she was, well, she was like nothing I've ever seen before. It's like she had every pegasus Talent there is, and a bunch of earth pony Talents besides. What if she's some kind of Solar super-soldier?"

"Yeah, what if, Forrest? Maybe she was the Gray Mare in disguise," HB snarked, earning him reproachful looks from both officers. He sighed. "I don't think the Solar Kingdom would send some super-soldier out to the edges of Republic territory just so she could reveal herself for no reason other than to kick the crap out of a couple local cops."

"It really happened!" Flash shouted, then winced at the pain his own voice caused him. "It did."

"I believe you," HB said, holding a hoof to his horn. Nothing they had said was a lie, he was sure of that much. "But I don't have to take your word for it. Doc? What's your opinion on what beat them up?"

The doctor raised an eyebrow at the Lieutenant. "Officer Flash's right forehoof was injured by something exerting a very sudden, very strong rotational force on it, detaching it from his leg bone and very nearly twisting it right off. He also exhibits bruising consistent with high-speed impacts with another pony. Officer Forrest is suffering from several fractures of his ribs on his left side, with a layered bruise that is very clearly a pair of rear-leg hooves. Both of them have injuries that are the result of being quite close to a powerful pressure wave, the effects of which include, but are not limited to, severe internal bruising, internal bleeding, destroyed eardrums and damaged ears in general. This is not to mention all the muscular damage or officer Forrest's eye. So my opinion, Lieutenant, is that these two Stallions need to be in the hospital being treated for their potentially life-threatening injuries, not playing twenty questions with a detective."

"Pressure wave," HB said. "Like a sonic boom?"

"Exactly like one," the doctor replied. "If these two weren't Flight Talents, they could have died. If not from the boom itself, then from the fall afterwards."

"It really happened, sir. I swear," Forrest said.

"Of course it really happened," HB felt his horn pulse with magic, and he rubbed a hoof across his forehead to sooth the ache starting there. There was a mystery afoot, and his Talent was telling him it was a big one. Big and important. "Give me her description again. Details this time."

"Pegasus mare," Forrest began. "Slightly smaller than average. Sorry, can't give you height or weight, she wasn't on the ground long enough to get a decent measure. Lots of lean muscle, like an athlete, a racer. Sky blue coat, dark pink or light purplish eyes. Her mane was short, a kind of punky cut, but it was, uh," he trailed off.

"All of 'em, sir," Flash took up.

"All of what?"

"All the colors," Flash clarified. "Her mane and tail. They were every color. In order, front to back for the mane and bottom to top for the tail."

"That's one hell of a dye job," HB said. That elicited a small smile from both stallions, but they were too busy eyeing each other nervously to actually laugh at the joke. "What is it? What don't you want to tell me."

"Well, it might have been an optical illusion," Forrest said, slowly choosing his words. "But when she did something really, uh, really quick, she, well, she left this kind of afterimage."

"Afterimage?"

"She trailed rainbows," Flash said. "Every time she moved. Like solid sheets of color hanging in the air for a second."

HB stared at them for a long beat. His horn wasn't detecting any lies, but still he felt himself compelled to respond. "Bullshit," he said. "You're saying she was etherealizing?"

"Maybe, we don't know," Forrest was quick to say. "This is just what we saw, okay?"

"Okay, Fine. She wasn't wearing anything, right? So what's her Glyph?"

"It's an Abstract, sir," Flash said.

"Of course it is," HB sighed. "It would have been too easy if she had a Talent that was actually comprehensible." Abstract Talent Glyphs were always a problem for law-enforcement. You could never really tell what an Abstract meant. A feather on a pegasus might mean they were a Flight Talent, or a Cloudwalker or an Acrobat, or a Dancer, or anything that might in any way be represented by a feather. Direct Glyphs, like Hard Boiled's own, told you exactly what that pony's Talent was, no guesswork required. "Describe it."

"Cloud with a three-colored lightning bolt coming out of it," Forrest said.

HB levitated a pen and did a quick sketch on a pad of paper he'd been taking notes with. "Like this?"

"No, the colors are side-by-side, like it's three bolts. Blue-yellow-red, and stylized a bit more," HB redid the sketch. "Yeah, more like that."

"Yeah, this could mean abso-friggin-lutely anything," HB said. "I'll get the description out, but if she was heading over the mountains she's on her way to the Everstorm. If she could shrug off the sleeper like you say, she could be clear to the Sunlands by now."

"She'll be back," Flash growled.

"How do you figure?"

"It's the start. The war. She was just their first scout. I bet they have battalions of ponies like her, engineered super-soldiers. I bet they'll start invading soon."

HB shook his head. "I hope you're wrong. But even if you aren't, that crap is way above my paygrade. I think I've gotten all I need. You're both dismissed, and on injury leave until a qualified physician says you're ready to come back to work. Doc, make sure these guys get better, okay?"

"What do you think I've been trying to do while you've been yapping?" the doctor snorted. Her magic wrapped around the two stallions, soothing their wounds enough to let them stand and walk.

They made their way to the door while HB looked over his notes. At the last minute Forrest turned to him. "Sir, there's something else."

He looked up. "What is it?"

"That illegal excavation you sent us to investigate? Well, we didn't get a good look at it, but it was there, empty. But before she came after us, that mare flew out of it. I can't tell you for sure that she was part of it, but it's too coincidental. Like maybe she was trying to keep us away so we wouldn't see whatever it was they were doing there."

"I see," HB said, thoughts spinning. "Alright, thanks. Now get the hell out of here and get resting."

"Yes sir," Flash and Forrest said in unison, before limping after the scowling doctor.

Hard Boiled looked down at his notes again, scratching a few thoughts down as he considered what he had heard. This mare was impossible. So many Talents in one pony? No. Absurd. But possessing those Talents weren't actually necessary to pull off everything she had done. No, she just need the support of unicorns willing and able to cast and maintain the appropriate spells to make her a juggernaut. It would take a rare combination of several unicorn Talents, or one unicorn with a Magic Talent and a lot of power, but it was doable.

HB pulled out another file, this one was thick and full of place markers with scribbled labels. He opened the file to a picture of the stallion it was created for. Maximilion Oswald Cash. HB didn't spend to long looking at the unicorn's picture, it always made his horn ache, instead flipping to one of Cash's known associates. The pegasus who grinned back out of the photo did not match the description given to him at all.

"Just my luck," HB muttered. "Nothing's ever easy."

With a concentrated effort of telekinesis he shut and locked the door to his office and closed the blinds. A moment later he had a crystal orb out on his desk and was gently feeding it the energy it needed to contact its mate. He hated this cloak-and-dagger stuff. He would prefer to just meet someplace and talk face-to-face, but these were orders from way up the chain of command. Right up to the Senate itself. So he was forced to keep secrets no matter how badly he felt about it.

"Lieutenant," the orb pulsed as it spoke. The sound was barely a whisper, and accompanied by a weird high-pitched whine. It sounded almost like whalesong, and it supposedly kept the conversation from being overheard magically. "Your report is late."

"Bad circumstances," HB explained. "The officers I sent out to investigate got injured."

"Injured? By what?"

"More like by who. A pegasus mare stopped them from getting to the site, apparently shouted Sunland propaganda or religion or something at them until they attacked her like idiots, then she beat the tar out of them."

"Cash's companion?"

"Nope, someone new. Complete unknown, unless you've been holding back on me."

"I assure you, the information we gave you about Cash is as complete as national security could allow." The voice actually sounded sincere. He couldn't be sure though. One of the reasons HB assumed they insisted on this kind of communication was that his truth-detection magic wouldn't work through it.

"Yeah, well it's not complete enough," he gave a description of the mare. "She in your files?"

"With a Glyph that distinct? If she was anyone of interest I would hope so. To my knowledge, though, no."

"You might want to do whatever it is you do to find out about her. According to my officers she was pretty crazy powerful," he gave the full run-down on what they had seen her do. "I think it might be unicorns working to bolster her. Cash could do it, if what the file says about his magical skills is right."

"It is as accurate as we are capable of getting. The kind of energy it would take to accomplish all of that, and at a distance, though," the voice trailed off, thoughtful.

"Yeah. That's an assload of power. I don't think any unicorn has that kind of strength," HB said. "So we've got to be looking for a cabal."

"Not necessarily," the voice said, caution evident in its tone. "We do know of one or two individuals who could accomplish this, but to our knowledge they are not in any way aligned with Cash."

"Then we're still looking for a cabal," HB said. "Look, the pit was empty, but my officers were too hurt to take a good look on their way back. I'm going out there myself with backup to see what there is to see. This mystery mare shot off towards the Everstorm at supersonic speeds. She probably has passage through by now, so I don't think you can catch her."

"Thank you, Lieutenant," the voice said, tone amused. "We shall take that under advisement. However, this mare is not your problem. If she is associated with Cash, we will find out soon enough. If possible we will capture her and return her to you to stand trial for assaulting your officers."

"Thanks, they'll appreciate that," HB said, fairly certain that he was never going to see tail or feather of the blue pegasus.

"Please continue your investigation however you see fit, and keep us updated with your findings."

"Will do," He replied, and knowing the conversation was at an end he let the magic drop. The orb went dark as he put it away, and the large Max Cash file went with it.

He took a moment to compose himself. The worst thing about the cloak and dagger crap was that it left him a nervous wreck. He hadn't wanted to get involved in stuff like this. He just wanted to be a cop. Just wanted to solve crimes and catch bad guys.

He loved solving mysteries, uncovering truth and exposing lies. It was his Talent, emblazoned on his flanks for all to see. Finding Truth. His magic revolved around it, his life revolved around it. He was good at it. Good enough that when the Republic Intelligence Agency had a mystery on their hooves they turned to him to help them solve it.

Now instead of finding truth he was covering it up, at least his involvement in it. He needed a free hoof to do his investigation, so it couldn't be known that he was investigating. All of his official work on the project had to be done under cover of something else, something innocuous and legitimate. He'd been stonewalled a few times, and the Agency had actually created reasons for him to look where he needed. Upending entire lives just to get him in a position where he could ask the questions he needed to ask.

So here he was, a middle aged unicorn with a decent career and no real ambitions beyond being where he already was, lying for the sake of national security. All to find out what the hell one stallion was up to. He was terrible at lying. It made his horn ache.

Hard Boiled finally got himself together and got up, opening the blinds and the door as he moved around his desk. He took a deep breath and strode into the bustling main room of the Special Investigations Unit. "Barry!" he shouted at the detective he was most sure he could get away with lying to. "Get two uniforms and come with me, we're heading out."

"Is this about the two injured officers?" Barry asked, grabbing his hat and trotting up to him.

"No, it's about bird watching. Of course it's about the injured officers! Two of our boys got attacked out there, and I want to know why! So are you going to stand there asking stupid questions, or are you going to go get us our backup?"

"Right away!" Barry said, leaping off. Hard Boiled shook his head at the sight. He didn't know what they were going to find, but there was a feeling in his horn, a feeling he had learned long ago not to ignore. This was going to get worse, and he was the one who was going to have to deal with it.

***

Star Fall stared at the pegasus who had fallen from the sky. She was lying on the only bed in the one-room cabin that Astrid had found them, her broken legs and wings tightly bound with strips of cloth to supports crudely made out of branches hewn from the local trees. Star Fall's knowledge of medicine was limited, but good enough to know that any normal pony wouldn't heal right under these conditions, and wouldn't heal quickly at all.

That just meant she had to speed up the process, and she had been working through the night to do just that.

"We've only got, like ten sheets of paper left," Astrid said, surveying what was left of their belongings after they had been ransacked to help the injured mare. "We can't really lose any more."

"I know," Star Fall said from around the pen she held in her mouth. She was using that pen, and some of the precious paper, to draw out a magical sigil in exacting detail. Any mistake would ruin it, and waste the paper. It wasn't normal paper, of course, but specially designed to allow magic to be charged into it. Wasting it would be a loss she couldn't afford. "Stop interrupting me."

"Fine, but you will have to contact the Professor. I hope you can get us through with only nine," Astrid said, sliding the remaining paper back into the waterproof case they stored it in.

Star Fall sighed and refocused on finishing the design. Those sheets of paper, and the sigils she would draw on them, were what would get them safely through the Everstorm. The only other option to cross back into the sunlands would be to hire a guide, and they hadn't brought along the money to do that. She supposed she could sneak into a Republic city and buy or steal more paper. Assuming that she could find a place with a stockpile of it, if such a place even existed on the nightside.

"Done," she said, putting the pen down and examining her work. Every line, every curve of the twisting design had to be correct or it wouldn't work, or worse, go wrong. She pulled out her geometry set, using the tools there to make absolutely sure it was right.

"Why are you so worried?" Astrid asked, looking over her charge's shoulder. "I've seen you whip up spells way faster than this, no rulers required."

"Those are spells I've practiced a thousand times," Star Fall said, carefully measuring the angle where the two prime energy lines intersected. "Muscle memory goes a long way. I know the forms for healing spells, but I haven't had to use them like I have the Everstorm spells or the communication spell. I'm dealing with a living, breathing pony here. If I screw up she could start healing wrong. Professor Shine has told me stories about badly done healing spells causing cancers or redundant organs or extra limbs."

"Yeesh! Hey, Fall, if I get hurt, just slap a bandage on me and leave it, kay?"

Star Fall snorted back a laugh. "Alright, looks like this one's good. Stand back," Astrid squeezed up against the wall, giving the young pegasus her space. Star Fall closed her eyes, holding one hoof just above the complete drawing.

Star Fall was a special pony. Unique. Her Special Talent, the thing that dictated where she could best use her innate magic, was Magic itself. As far as she knew, she was the only pegasus in recorded history whose talent was Magic. She was no unicorn, she couldn't use their telekinesis or cast complex spells with her mind and the wave of a horn, but she could do this. The lines on the page were lines in her thoughts, channels for the energy her Talent allowed her to manipulate at will. She sent magic through those lines in her thoughts, creating a burning sigil of power that was a spell just aching to be set loose. Then, with an effort of will that taxed her both mentally and physically, she projected that energy onto the design of the page.

"As above, so below," Star Fall whispered. It was part of a mantra that her mentor had taught her many years ago, when she was first learning to use her power. "As within, so without." The energy left her in a rush, making her sway on her hooves and forcing Astrid to steady her with a claw so she didn't topple over. She opened her eyes and saw that her page was glowing a bright, clean red. With care she lifted the page and placed it on the wall next to the bed. It fit right were she needed it to between the other spell-pages she had already laid out, creating an array of magic around the sleeping pony that would encourage her bones to knit and her flesh to heal many times faster and safer than it would have normally.

Astrid leaned over and nailed the last spell page into place, even as the others lit up with the energy of the array. "There, magic healing stuff done. Now what?"

Star Fall slumped to the floor. "Now I take a break."

Astrid shrugged, she knew how much spellcasting took out of the pegasus. "Fair enough," she sat down, golden eyes going from Star Fall to the rainbow pegasus and back again. "Okay. Now that we're done the emergency stuff, what's the big deal? You've been working all night to get those spells in place, what's so important about this girl?"

"She spoke to me," Star Fall answered, staring again at the mare.

"Wow, Fall. No wonder you've dropped your whole life to help her. Did she want to be your friend?" the Griffin sneered.

Star Fall frowned. "Screw off, Astrid. No, she spoke to me in Old Equestrian."

"Oh, great. Nerd language. That changes everything."

"Come on, don't you realize what this means?"

Griffins couldn't snort with derision very well, beaks weren't designed for it, but Astrid made a passable attempt as she rolled her eyes. "Fall, all I'm getting out of this is that she's a member of the same egghead club as you, and you somehow think that's more important than getting home safely."

"Think about it! She crashes at a couple hundred miles an hour, survives against all odds, and the first thing she says is in an ancient, dead language. Ponies with head injuries can talk gibberish, but not fully formed ancient languages. She even asked me if I spoke 'Equestrian'. Look at her, she can't be much older than me. Where did she learn that language so well? Why? What was she doing running from the Republic? This could be important, Astrid. Really important. She could be a Republican scholar trying to defect to the Kingdom!"

"Or she could just be some random mare who happens to know an old language," Astrid said, then sighed. "I'll admit it's weird. And maybe we should be checking into it. You're the brains of this outfit, I just do the heavy lifting. You say she's important, I'll go with it, but I want you to be sure that we gotta do this before we stick our necks out for someone we don't even know."

Star Fall thought about it for a long time. She owed Astrid at least that much. "I can't ignore her," she said finally. "We have to do this, at least until I can find out more about her."

Astrid nodded. "We'll play it cool, then," she rose. "I'm gonna get us some food. There's some flowers half a mile west of here that should do you and sleeping beauty when she wakes up, but I never got to finish my rabbit, so I'm going to take care of that first."

Star Fall smiled up at her. "Thanks, Astrid."

Astrid waved her off as she went out the door. "Yeah, yeah. You just get some sleep, okay? When I get back you gotta call the Professor."

"I know," Star Fall said closing her eyes as Astrid left.

She woke with a start some time later, she couldn't be sure how long. Astrid was still gone, and she ached from sleeping on the floor of the cabin. It took her a moment to get her bearings, but when she did she found that what had wakened her was the blue pegasus, who was thrashing about and letting out a low keening sound. It wasn't the sound of a pony in pain, but it was one of fear.

Star Fall got to her hooves slowly, stretching out her cramped muscles, and walked over to the bed. What she saw made her gasp. The mare's injuries were healing, but far, far too quickly. The bruises were already gone, and when she pulled a bandage away from one of the worse gashes her keen pegasus eyes could even see the tissues healing right in front of her.

Panic hit her, and Star Fall desperately examined her healing array, trying to figure out what had gone wrong. This kind of healing was too much, too fast. It could only mean that something had gone horribly wrong. Yet she couldn't spot the error in her designs. She had been so careful in creating them, and as far as she could tell they were working perfectly.

She called magic into her eyes, focusing on the flow of energy around and through the injured mare. What she saw made her gasp again, as the lines of power became clear and she saw something amazing. The magic was flowing through the blue pegasus with incredible ease, almost as freely as it did through a Magic Talent like Star Fall or her mentor. Nothing in her was resisting the flow like it would with a normal pony, her natural magic wasn't interfering. Instead her natural magic was taking the healing energy and using it, the two working together to create such unbelievable results.

Star Fall closed her eyes and let the magic drain from them. She couldn't look at the pegasus' magic for too long, it hurt to see. It had appeared to her like an explosion of every color imaginable, rippling through the mare's body in shockwaves of power. She had never encountered anything like it, and it was stronger than any other pegasus aura she had ever seen. Yet it was still pegasus magic, that much Star Fall was certain of. Her own aura looked more like unicorn magic, she'd been told, so this mare wasn't another pegasus Magic Talent. Instead what she was, was strong. Incredibly strong.

"Hey,” the voice shocked Star Fall out of her thoughts. She looked up to see the mare's eyes open, though they weren't focusing well. "You stuck around, cool."

Star Fall's mouth worked soundlessly for a moment before she found her voice. "I want you be well," she said, hoping she was getting her pronunciation right. The mare was still using Old Equestrian. She didn't know if the mare had suffered some sort of brain damage, but it was probably a good idea to reply in the same language.

"Me too," the mare said, attempting a smile that didn't make it all the way. "I hate being cooped up in bed. Broken wings suck. Do you have any Daring Do novels I could read?"

Star Fall frowned. She wasn't sure she had caught all of that. "I not knowing Daring Do."

"Figures," the mare grumbled. "Ponyfeathers, it's hard to think. You think, maybe you could tell me where I am?"

"You are in world of night," Star Fall said.

"Well, that's nice," the mare sighed. Her eyes rolled back, and Star Fall thought she had passed out again before she refocused on the young pegasus. "Hey, what's your name?"

"Fallen Star," she replied.

"Thanks for sticking around, Star. That was totally awesome of you."

"What you name?" She asked, even as the blue mare looked to be fading out again.

The mare let out a laugh that was barely more than a sharp exhale. "You've probably ... heard of me. My name's... Rainbow... Dash," with that her eyes shut and she was sleeping again.

Star Fall blinked at the unconscious mare. It was strange, she had been right. Star Fall did recognize the name Rainbow Dash, and was one of the few who would. Only the few ponies who had the time, resources and interest to research pre-Schism history would know it. Or had a mentor who was insistent that she learn such things, even when they had nothing to do with developing her Magic Talent. So, while she had heard the name Rainbow Dash, she also knew that the legendary pegasus had been dead for well over a thousand years.

***

Hard Boiled examined another dirt wall that showed signs of impact. Hoof marks, hair, the same sort that he had been seeing all along this tunnel. This one, however, had something else on it. Blood.

"Lieutenant! Over here!" Barry called from further down the tunnel. HB turned and trotted to the other detective, his flashlight held in his telekinetic grip. "It's a chamber, I think this is where the tunnel ends," Barry said, excited.

HB looked down, and spotted bloody hoofprints at the place Barry was standing. "Don't move," he said.

"What?"

"You're standing in evidence," HB said, shining his light at the ground at Barry's hooves.

"Oh, Luna," Barry swore. "I didn't even notice. I swear I didn't even see it."

"Whatever, Barry, just don't move. Okay?" HB sighed, looking over Barry's back into the chamber. There was just enough room to squeeze by without contaminating the evidence any further. He called for one of the uniforms to bring the camera and start documenting, then pushed his way into the earthen chamber beyond.

It was taller than a pony on his hind legs could reach, and it looked like it had once been a proper room, before it got buried at some point. In the centre of the room was a pedestal, like the kind they put statues on in the government buildings. It was partially buried, only a few inches of it visible above the dirt, but it looked completely intact. Right next to the pedestal was a body. An earth pony stallion, a big one. He lay in a pool of blood, some of which was still wet. His chest had been torn open. Without moving too much HB examined the rest of the room. It was mostly bare, a few remnants of ancient walls remaining, but there were bloody hoofprints leading from the pedestal to the wall, then around the room to the exit.

HB's horn glowed with a coppery light as he cast a spell to determine what had happened. The result was strange. He couldn't tell how the stallion had died. It was like there was a wall between his magic and the event that he couldn't get around. Powerful magic. Very powerful.

He could tell what happened afterwards though. His magic brought details sparkling to his attention as he focused on them. Movement around the pedestal. Bloody hoofprint on the dead stallion, matching the rest of the hoofprints leading away and to the exit. No sign of a murder weapon, and a pony would have to be incredibly strong to do this kind of damage with hooves alone. He thought of the impossible mare the two officers had encountered.

As if on cue his magic focused in on something right next to him, caught in the rough edges of the tunnel. Blue feathers. Blue pegasus feathers. He motioned an officer over to document and bag the feathers. He would report this to his RIA contact, but the murder was still Orion City jurisdiction and official business. He couldn't cover this up, but it did give him valid reasons to investigate.

He looked back at the room, trying to figure out what happened without the help of his magic. He just had too little information to go on. Once the crime scene ponies did their job he would have more to work with, but he already recognized the dead stallion. James Bay, better known as Big Jim. Trusted confederate and childhood friend of Max Cash.

So the best friend of Max Cash winds up dead in a tunnel Cash was clandestinely digging for no known reason, likely killed by a pegasus who displayed powers far beyond what pegasi are capable of. There was another player in this, someone who wasn't the RIA or Cash. With what his officers had been saying, this could be sunlanders getting involved, and that was never a good thing. His horn was telling him he wasn't exactly right, but that he was on the right track, and it was a track he intended to follow to the end. No matter where it led.

Chapter 3: Native Inflection

The origins of the Elements are one of the deepest mysteries associated with them. In my adventurous life I have encountered three separate beings that claimed to be their creator, two of which I believed at the time. Princess Celestia herself once told me that it was possible she crafted the Elements, though she could not say for sure. The circumstances of the time the Elements were discovered make it difficult if not impossible to have a definite answer, but with what I have uncovered of the nature of the Elements, and from my observations of the beings claiming responsibility, I have come to the conclusion that none of their claims could be true. None of them, not even the Princesses, are powerful enough to craft the Elements.

In fact, the only being I can think of that might have the potential to create the Elements is also the one who would never, ever claim to have done so.

-From Section One of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter 3: Native Inflection

"Why aren't you home yet?" the stern voice of Professor Twinkle Shine demanded, the magical image of her frowning face staring holes into Star Fall. They were outside the cabin, the day half over, and the spellsheet Star Fall had prepared glowed dully under the image of her mentor. Astrid stood behind her charge, head high, eyes on the sky, and trying desperately not to be noticed by the irate unicorn. Star Fall herself cringed, failing to keep the guilty look from her face.

"Uh, well, we stayed a bit longer than we thought because there was more activity at the site than we'd expected. Then, uh, then something came up."

"Something?" Twinkle Shine asked, quirking an eyebrow. It was an expression the golden unicorn was fond of using, and it always meant trouble for her student. "What 'something' is this?"

"Uh, just something that dropped on my back. It's not trouble, but it'll, um, it'll delay us a bit."

"A bit," her mentor repeated. She lowered her head, letting her white mane fall over her eyes so that the purple stripe that ran through it hung over her left eye while her right stared through the part created by her horn. This was another expression Star Fall recognized, Twinkle Shine clamping down on her anger. "Star Fall, you are my precious student, and I care for you deeply. But if you are going to lie, do not make it such a transparent one. I will not take it lightly."

"I'm not..."

"Enough! You are running far behind schedule, and putting yourself in greater danger because of it. I don't care what you've run into out there, if you're dancing around it like that, it isn't important enough to keep you. You will be crossing the Everstorm in the next two days or I am coming to get you."

Star Fall stood with her mouth hanging open for a long moment. Coming to get her? That was something she'd never heard from her mentor. She knew Twinkle Shine didn't like the journeys Star Fall made for their government through the Everstorm to spy on the Republic, but she had never before actually threatened to come get her. That she could, there was no doubt. Twinkle Shine was the strongest Magical Talent in the Solar Kingdom.

She thought of the pegasus calling herself Rainbow Dash. She had been in a deep sleep since waking that morning, and there hadn't been any more thrashing or crying out. While her injuries were healing impossibly quickly, she was still several days, maybe more than a week away from being up for a journey. Star Fall wasn't going to leave her behind, not without knowing more.

"No," she said, forcing herself to lock gazes with her mentor. Her wings spread out, unconsciously signalling how ready she was to fight for this.

"No?" Twinkle Shine said, the force of her displeasure almost palpable.

Star Fall couldn't resist shrinking back, but she managed to hold her eyes steady. "No. I'm not going back, and you're not going to come here. I'm going to take the time I need, and head back when I can."

"Why? What could possibly be so important?"

"Look, I'll tell you later, alright? You won't believe me now, I'm going to have to show you in person."

Twinkle Shine held her student's gaze for a long beat before flicking her eyes to Astrid. "Sergeant Steelwing," she said. Astrid winced. Rank and clan name meant this was an order. "What has my student discovered?"

"Sorry, Fall," Astrid said. "A pony, maam. A pegasus mare. She fell out of the sky yesterday evening, banged herself up pretty bad. Star Fall's taking care of her, thinks she's important somehow."

"Why?"

"I'm not sure? She speaks Old Equestrian, apparently?"

Twinkle Shine paused at this, frown turning from anger to puzzlement. "How well?"

"Fluently," Star Fall said. "Native inflection."

"That's not possible," Twinkle Shine scoffed. "There's only a hooffull of Dragons that still speak Old Equestrian fluently. Nopony has in over eight hundred years!"

"She does," Star Fall said. "She's also, well, uh, she's got some strange magic in her. I've never seen anything like it before. Once she's healed I'm going to take her with us through the Everstorm."

"Could she be a trap? Someone sent specifically to get close to you?"

"I don't think so," Star Fall said. "She could have died really easily the way I met her. And if they wanted to capture me they could have done it at any time now. I don't think they know about me yet, this is something else."

Twinkle Shine glared at her student for along time, before huffing and shaking her head. "Fine. You think this pony is so important? Then I expect to be amazed when you bring her to my lab. But we can't wait too long. Not now. You have to be through the Everstorm in a week."

"A week! But she'll still be...!"

"A week," Twinkle Shine said. "That's all the time I can give you. If you're not sunside by then I'll have to find you myself. Are we clear?"

Star Fall sighed, but she nodded. "Crystal."

"Astrid, don't let her do anything more stupid."

The Griffin gave a quick nod. "Yes, maam."

"Good," Twinkle Shine's features softened. "Star Fall, don't lose sight of your own importance and safety. The longer you're in the nightlands, the more the chance that you'll be discovered. Who knows what the Republicans would do to you."

"I know, professor," Star Fall said. "I promise, I'll make it. Somehow."

"Take care, Star Fall. Remember what I've taught you."

"I will," Star Fall said, and the image vanished as her mentor cut the link. Her wings slumped. "Well, that didn't go too bad," she said.

"Yeah, that was downright civil," Astrid agreed. "The professor usually freaks out a lot more when we're off schedule."

"I don't know. I think she's worried about something. More than just me being late, I mean."

"Whatever it is, you got what you wanted instead of her. First time for everything, I guess."

Star Fall smiled. "Yeah, I guess there is."

***

"What's for lunch, mom?" he asked, sitting down at the table.

"For Luna's sake, Strongheart, you're more than old enough to make your own sandwiches!" the rose-coloured earth pony mare declared, exasperated. "I thought soldiers were supposed to be stallionly and independent. What do they teach you in the army anyway?"

"That nothing does, or ever can, beat your own mother's cooking," he laughed.

"Oh you little charmer!" Strongheart's mother said, breaking out into a grin as she tousled her son's mane. "That's so sweet. But I'm still not making you a sandwich."

"Awww," he got up from the table and started rummaging through the kitchen. He caught sight of her looked at him with love-filled eyes and he smiled back. Strongheart resembled his father more than his mother, tall and strong with a dark gray coat that contrasted with a bright blue and white mane. The purple eyes he had gotten from his mother, though. It was after his father left that he had gained his Glyph, a heart-shaped shield, protecting her even as she had protected and raised him. Once he had come of age joining the army had been a natural decision, and Strongheart had distinguished himself as a brave and selfless pony. He had loved his mother dearly, and he had been her world. Which had eventually led to here and now, with the two of them sharing this house while he waited for his next orders.

Evidently those orders were on her mind as well when she asked: "When do you think they'll send you your next deployment?"

He thought about it for a bit, putting the sandwich together. "I don't know. I think it'll be a little while, unless something comes up."

"It's just that I was talking to May Belle down the street and she said that her husband, who works over at city hall, you know, he said that there's been a lot of talk about the Kingdom building up forces in the southern sea. He also said that the Senate was talking about putting out a full call just in case. Then you'd have to go out. They'd put you on the front lines. A big boy like you. They'd put you out there and then...then."

He stepped up to her drew her into a hug. "Don't worry, mom. That's not going to happen. No way are the Sun-heads going to attack."

"Strongheart! Don't call them that!" she admonished, even as she returned his embrace. "They're ponies, just like you or I. How would you feel if they started calling you names?"

"They do, mom. They call us 'Loonies'," he pointed out.

"Loonies?"

"Yeah, like Lunatics. Luna-tics?"

"Oh! I see," she giggled. "That's a little clever, isn't it?"

He shook his head and laughed with her. "Sure it is, mom," he pulled back, giving her his best reassuring smile. "Don't listen to what May Belle says her husband said, alright? It'll just make you worry."

"I can't help it. I just think of you out there, fighting. I imagine it every time I close my eyes. I imagine you lying there, dead, and I can't stand it. I can't lose you... not..."

He held a hoof up to cover her mouth. "Shh. Mom. I'm right here. Okay? You're not going to lose me. I promise."

She sighed. "Okay. I'm just being a silly old mare again, aren't I?"

"You're not old, mom, and you're not silly. You just get carried away sometimes."

"I suppose I do," she shook her head. "But you were hungry! Why don't you eat your sandwich and tell me your plans for today."

He smiled and brought his sandwich to the table, munching on it as they talked. "I'm probably going to go out and catch a movie later."

"Oh? Would you perhaps be going with someone? Maybe a certain pink filly with bows in her tail?" she asked with a sly look. "I know she's been eyeing you for a while."

"Mom! I'm not dating her, we just hang out sometimes. And not really even that for the past while, since I came back from deployment."

"And why not?" she demanded. "I do want some grand-foals at some point!"

He gaped at her. "Mom, can we please not have this discussion?"

She giggled at his consternation. "Oh, my. You'd think with a coat that dark, no one could see you blush, but there it is!"

They continued chatting as he finished up his sandwich. The conversation meandered from what movie he might see to a dinner party she was attending later in the week, which he was invited to, to just reminiscing about good times. It was peaceful, and he soaked in that peace with a warm smile.

That peace was shattered by a sharp knock on the door. He stood up. "I'll get that, if it's a salespony I don't want you buying another vacuum you don't need."

"But he said it had so many features!" she protested, picking up the used plate and taking it over to the sink.

"Uh-huh. So many features, none of them good at cleaning dirt off of floors," he said, walking through the small house to the door. With a tug he opened it, and saw that there was a pale off-white unicorn standing on the doorstep. His mane was a drab blond that hung limply around his head, but his eyes were an intense blue that seemed to smoulder in their sockets. Beyond him there was a black car parked, a pair of dark-uniformed pegasi wearing sunglasses flanking an open rear door.

"Calumn," the pale pony said. "It's time."

"Director Straff," he said. A plate shattered. A choked cry came from the kitchen. He looked back, his face etched with pain, before turning to the unicorn again. "I'll be a minute," he said.

"Time is of the essence, Calumn," the pony replied, voice cold.

"She needs me. I can't just go without saying goodbye," he said, pleading.

The pale unicorn stared at him for a long moment, then nodded. "Fine, you have two minutes."

"Thank you," he said, closing the door and rushing back to the kitchen. Strongheart's mother was sitting amidst the shattered remnants of the plate she had been cleaning, faucet running a constant hiss in the background. She was crying, tears wetting her face and dripping down to the floor. "Mom," he began. "It's alright."

"No it isn't," she sobbed. "You're going to go. You're going to go and you're going to die."

"No, mom. I'm going to be fine. They're just sending me on a simple deployment, okay? I won't even be gone for too long. The Kingdom's not attacking, I won't see any action, I'll be real bored and tell you all about how much I missed you when I get back."

"You won't come back," she wailed, reaching out and clutching to him. "You won't come back. You're going to die!"

"No," he said, hugging her as tightly as he dared. "I'll be fine. I'll come back. I promise. I swear to you, on Luna and her night, that I won't die, and I'll come back."

She cried into his coat for a moment, then grew still. "Make me believe it," she whispered.

"What? Mom, no."

She pulled back, staring at him with bloodshot purple eyes. "Please," she begged. "I can't on my own. Please, make me believe."

"Don't ask me to do this," he said. "It'll hurt you, mom."

"Not as much as watching you walk out that door, and knowing you won't ever come back. Not as much as having to remember all the joy we had here, knowing it's gone forever. Please, Strongheart. Please, if you ever were my son, make me believe it."

He sighed, but nodded. She closed her eyes and he brought his forehead to hers, concentrating. A green light kindled in her eyes, infusing the whites with a pale tint as her body relaxed and her lips curled up in a smile. "Are you alright, mom?" he asked carefully as he pulled away.

She blinked at him a couple times, her gaze unfocused, then snapped back to herself. She took a look around and gasped. "Oh, my! I must have fallen. I hope I didn't cut myself."

"I don't think you did, mom," he said, helping her to her hooves. "I've got to go now, okay?"

"Oh? Oh! Yes, your new deployment. I certainly hope it'll be more exciting than you think it will be. My boy deserves some glory, not some boring old guard posting."

"I think I don't deserve such a great mom," he said with a sad smile. "I'll write when I get the chance, okay?"

"I'll be waiting," she said, then gave him a quick hug. "I love you."

"I love you too, mom," he said, then trotted out of the kitchen while she hummed happily to herself as she cleaned up the broken plate shards. He joined the pale unicorn outside without a word, and the two of them got into the back of the car, the guard pegasi getting into the front. Strongheart's mother waving to them from the window with a happy smile on her face and a vacant look in her eyes as they pulled away.

"How much did you lose?" the unicorn asked.

In a flash of green fire he shed the form of Strongheart and became Calumn once more. "Not too much," he replied, extending his diaphanous wings for the first time in months, the wings rubbing against his black carapace. "She didn't resist." He rolled his shoulders, his crooked horn scraping lightly against the roof of the car as he worked the kinks out of his natural joints. "I won't need a boost before going into the field." He settled back down, holding a hoof up to a vent and feeling the air flow through the holes. It felt good, cooling. "I'm ready for my mission, sir," he flashed his companion a fanged smile as he sat next to the pony, fully revealed as his true self, a Changeling.

The unicorn's horn glowed with a magnesium-white flare and lifted a file. "Max Cash," he said.

"Luna's black feathers!" Calumn swore, taking the file. "I thought we had him locked down!"

"We've got him on insider trading, and collusion with the Solar Kingdom," the pale pony said. "But the more we looked into that, the more it became apparent that we were only scratching the surface. We still don't know the full extent of his activities, and he's growing more bold all the time."

"I can't infiltrate," Calumn pointed out. "He's proven that he can spot a Changeling."

"We don't need you to try to get close to him," Straff said. "The situation has had an unexpected change. Read the file."

Calumn flipped through the file. Most of it he had seen before, basic intelligence on Max Cash and his close associates. Some of it was new, estimates of his holdings in the Sunlands, outlines of his criminal endeavours. He didn't need to read all of it in detail to know it was mostly just vague outlines and speculation. Cash ran a tight ship as far as his true goals and resources were concerned. There was an entirely new section, though, and he flipped to it as soon as he was sure that was where the meat of the file was. Indeed it was something interesting, if impossible. The date on the report meant that the incident it described had happened only a day ago. "Is this accurate?" he had to ask.

"Yes," Straff replied. "We've got independent confirmation on the sonic boom, and the officers' injuries were real enough. The lab is still analyzing the crime scene, and won't have any new information for at least a week. Even then it'll be our police contact who will be handling that angle of the investigation. What we need you to do is find that mare."

"This says she was heading to the Verge," Calumn said. "That means she's looking to cross the Everstorm. If she's two days ahead of me, and supersonic besides, I'm not going to be able to catch her before she does, no matter how hard I push."

"We know," Straff nodded. "Calumn, we need you to go full active. Infiltrate the Solar Kingdom territory and find this mare. We need to know how she's connected to Cash, and why."

Calumn closed his eyes, letting out a slow breath. Infiltrating the sunlands was one of the most dangerous things a Changeling could do. Pony spies could and did slip between the two kingdoms whenever an opportunity presented itself. If they were found out they were usually pursued by local forces and if caught they were questioned, tried, usually hung, sometimes just imprisoned. Not so for a Changeling. If word got out that a Changeling was in the sunlands, the Royals unleashed the Griffins. Unless he had been feeding deeply, Calumn was no match for those legendary berserkers. Changelings that got caught didn't get a trial, they got torn apart.

"I'll need a cover, and a good one," he said.

"You already have it," Straff said. "Strongheart's being redeployed into a major threat arena. That's made stronger ponies desert. You know his history, his friends, his personality. You can pass any authenticity test you might encounter."

Calumn winced. "That'll kill her," he said, thinking of the rose-colored pony he had just left behind.

"She's not your mother, Calumn. Her real son's been dead for two years."

Calumn nodded in acceptance. There was really nothing he could say to that. Straff didn't care that two years was enough for him to come to care for her, even if he'd only been pretending to be her son the whole time. "Cover it up," he said. "Make it seem like I took off with important information. Something connected to Cash. Give me something to get into whatever this mare is part of. When mom... when she asks you can stonewall her. It'll be easier on her, and easier to muddy the waters for anyone getting suspicious."

Straff snorted. "Fine. You already know everything we have on Cash, but you should take the reports on his excavations."

"Do we know what those are for?"

"Not yet, but I have a feeling that whatever it is, he's getting close. Otherwise James Bay wouldn't be lying dead thirty meters underground. That's where the mare was first seen, so its a good bet information on those projects will be your key in."

Calumn removed the proper sections of the file. "What am I authorized for?"

"Right now? Apprehension only. You have dispensation for as much mind magic as you need to obtain and control this mare, but only if necessary. If you need to you can thrall her, but only her, and only if nothing else is a viable option. If the situation escalates I'm personally authorizing you to use your best judgement. Follow the usual guidelines. The information is top priority, followed by your personal safety. Bringing the mare back can take a distant third."

"You think it'll escalate?"

"I don't know, but events have a habit of going out of our control when Max Cash is involved."

"Available resources?"

"None, sorry."

Calumn shot the pale unicorn a sharp look. It was extremely rare to hear the director apologize for anything. "None? Why?"

"I've already got the Senate breathing down my neck about the resources we've been devoting to Cash, I can't afford any more than what I've giving you already. You'll have to find your own way across the Everstorm. I've put the network on alert for you, but they've been told not to stick their necks out for you if they don't have to. Passive information only."

"Ouch, that's practically out in the cold," Calumn said. "Can I at least have some seed money?"

Straff levitated a pair of saddlebags over to him. "There's a hundred and fifty full moons in there, as well as a few minor tradeables. This is out of my personal pocket, so don't waste it."

Calumn focused his energies and resumed Strongheart's shape before putting the saddlebags on and slipping the file he had taken into them. "Thank you," he said. The car slowed to a stop, just outside of city limits. "Any other advice?"

"Keep sharp," Straff said. "We know next to nothing about this situation, about this mare and about whoever she's working for. Avoid Cash and his crew if you can, try to stay out of the spotlight if you can't. Be bold, we can't afford to wait around on this one. Don't get caught. Don't die."

Calumn nodded. "Will do," he said, and opened the door. The car was leaving soon after he had gotten out, and he looked to the path ahead of him. The forest and the mountains stood before him. Beyond that, the Everstorm and the Sunlands, and somewhere in there was his target. He took a moment to collect himself. He hoped that he could return to Strongheart's life when this was all over, and to the mare who loved him like a son, even when he wasn't hers. But that was for the future, and right now he had a hard journey ahead of him. So he set his jaw, focused his gaze on the horizon, and started walking.

***

Rainbow Dash opened her eyes. They were gummed up and it actually took an effort to pull the lids up. When she did get them open everything was a blur of color and light, she couldn't make out any details. A few blinks started sharpening up her surroundings, and she devoted a bit of thought to figuring out how the rest of her was doing. Her wings were in agony, of course, and two of her legs were reporting that they weren't going to be doing any walking soon. Surprisingly, the rest of her didn't feel so bad. Her head still hurt, but not as much as the last time she'd done a high-speed faceplant.

She pulled her head up and looked around. She was in a bed in a log cabin with weird glowing designs stuck to the walls and floor all around her. That was weird. She vaguely remembered seeing another pegasus in this same setting, but her memory was a little fuzzy. She turned her head and surveyed the rest of the cabin. It wasn't too large, but it had a hearth and a couple large windows that showed the colors of sunset through them.

As she was looking the door opened up and a pegasus came through. She was young, and she looked a little soft. Not a strong flyer or weatherpony, then. Any sort of weather-work tended to build up muscle. It wasn't quite apple-bucking but it required long hours of hard, tedious effort. Unless, of course, you were as good as Rainbow Dash, who could pull together a storm or clear the skies in no time at all. Even then, it took a whole lot of work to get that good.

Despite her softness, she was a pretty mare. Blue eyes, a white coat that was looking a little brown with the dirt and dust worked into it, and a yellow and red mane and tail that made it look like her hair was on fire. It reminded Dash of her idol, Spitfire, captain of the Wonderbolts, even if the colors were completely different. Her cutie mark caught Dash's attention next. It was a strangely angular seven pointed star inside a circle. Dash didn't think she'd ever seen a cutie mark like that one before. It was especially not something she'd expect to see on a pegasus.

"You awake again," the pegasus said, smiling at Dash. Her accent was atrocious and she sounded like she had learned the language from books or something else that couldn't talk back, but she was at least understandable.

"Yeah, thanks again," Dash said. Star, the mare's name was Star. "Hey, Star, can you tell me what all this is about?" she waved a hoof at the glowing paper all around her.

"Magic for healing," Star replied. She laid a hoof on Dash's head. "No fever. Good. You healing fast."

"Yeah, that's me. Fastest pony in Equestria," Dash said, grinning. "I don't do anything slow," the boast was already out before she realized that it could be taken in a very wrong way. "Uh, forget I said that last thing, okay?"

"Why? You say you very fast, yes?" Star asked, no indication in her expression that she'd caught the double entendre at all.

"Thank Celestia for small favors," Dash muttered. "Yeah, I am fast. Just not at everything. I can be slow when I want to! Just never at flying! Or, uh, healing, I guess."

Star laughed, shaking her head and smiling. "I sorry. I not understand." Dash couldn't help but snicker. "What? I funny?"

Dash just laughed harder, even as it hurt her broken wings. "Sorry. Just, 'I funny'? That's hilarious. I think you mean, 'I don't understand', or 'am I funny'."

"Oh," a look of intense concentration furrowed Star's brow. "I am forgetting to verb. Rules of language are hard. I do not always remember how to make sentence right."

"Don't worry about it. I'm just glad somepony speaks Equestrian. You have no idea how crazy it is to be stuck wherever I am, this 'world of night' or whatever, and have nopony speak Equestrian. I mean, I've never met anypony who didn't, how was I supposed to know?"

"You speak language very good. Where did you learn?"

"Uh, at home? In Equestria."

"Sorry, not clear. My fault," Star said, thinking. "Do you speak Solar?" The last word wasn't anything Dash recognized, but like many of the words the two stallions she had escaped from had spoken, it sounded vaguely familiar.

"No, I have no idea what that is."

"Do you speak Lunar," Star asked. Again that word was both unrecognizable and familiar.

"Nope. I don't know if you've gotten this yet, but I'm not from around these parts. Like, really not from around here." Star's eyes searched Dash's face, as if she was trying to catch her in a lie. "Look, I'm from Equestria. I don't know if you've heard of it, but it's the place where the pony who raises the sun lives. You should at least know about her. Celestia?"

"Yes, I know Celestia," Star said. "God of day."

"Well, she's not really a god, I guess," Dash said. "I mean, we don't really pray to her much or anything. She's more of a Princess. A really big, really powerful Princess who makes the sun come up."

A deeper frown creased Star's brow for a moment before smoothing out. "I know Celestia, she brings day. I am from world of day. We are in world of night. You get better, I take you to world of day."

"Can I get back to Equestria from there?"

"Equestria is here," Star said.

"What? Okay, I think we've got another verb problem or something, 'cause I did not understand what you meant there."

Star stamped a hoof in frustration. "Did not think lessons in language were important. Hard to remember all of them. Used to reading, not speaking."

"Hey, I think you're doing fine. I've got this friend, she's great with the mail, but no depth perception, she sometimes has trouble with Equestrian and she was born there. How many other people do you know that speak Equestrian?"

Star shrugged. "Two. Three possible."

"Why'd you learn? Are you, like a diplomat or something?"

Star shook her head. "Master made me learn. Education."

"Master?"

"Um. Teacher?"

"Okay, yeah, that makes sense. So, maybe you should get your teacher and they can get this whole talking thing off the ground, huh?"

Star looked pleased with this. "Yes. See my teacher. In world of day."

"Which you'll take me to when I'm better, right?"

"Yes!"

"Great," Dash sighed. Well, she supposed she was stuck here until her wings healed up anyways. "So, what were you doing out here anyway?"

"Reading."

"Reading?"

Star's face scrunched up again as she searched for the right word. "Research?"

"Oh! I get it. Teacher, research, you're a student! Is that where you got this fancy magic paper? Are you a medical student, or some kind of animal doctor?"

"No, magic student," Star said. She turned her flank and gestured towards her cutie mark. "Special Magic."

Dash didn't need a clarification on that one. "Wow, your Special Talent is Magic? That's pretty amazing, especially for a pegasus. I mean, the only other pony I've ever met whose Special Talent was Magic is my friend Twilight. She's an egghead, but once you get to know her she's pretty cool."

Star giggled. "Egghead," she repeated. "Funny word."

Dash grinned back at her. "Yeah, it is. Don't tell her I said this, but Twilight's more than just pretty cool. She's awesome. Like, almost as awesome as me. She's got more power in her horn than entire townfuls of other unicorns. She's a student, too, but her teacher is Princess Celestia herself! How crazy is that?"

Star's face went slack, and Dash wondered what she had said wrong. "Twilight Sparkle?" Star asked.

"What, you know her?" Dash said, taken aback with surprise.

Star shook her head again, looking at the ground and muttering to herself in a language Dash didn't know. "Rainbow Dash, where are you from?"

"I told you, I'm from Equestria," Dash said, a little weirded out by the strange behaviour she'd been encountering every time she said the Princess's name. Star had seemed different, but here she was doing weird stuff again.

Star stamped her hoof again, pacing back and forth for a minute as she continued talking to herself. Dash watched, unsure if she should interrupt or just let it play out. Suddenly she turned to Dash. "You believe, don't you?"

"Believe what?"

"You are from Equestria. You are Rainbow Dash."

"Well, duh. That's what I've been saying. Why wouldn't I believe I'm Rainbow Dash? I totally am Rainbow Dash."

Star ran a hoof through her mane, her wings fluttering open slightly before resetting themselves at her side, restlessly moving as if they wanted to snap open and take off. That was worse than hoof-stamping as far as pegasus frustration levels went. "Okay," Star said. "That is good. I will take you to my teacher, she will know better."

"Sounds good to me."

Star sat down heavily next to the bed, staring at Dash with an odd look that the blue pegasus couldn't quite place. It was concern, but also annoyance and curiosity. "You will heal quickly," she said. "You are special. How are you special?"

"I told you I'm fast. The fastest pony in Equestria. I'm the only pony in forever who can do the Sonic Rainboom! Do you know what that is?"

Star shook her head, and so Dash regaled her with the tale of how she got her cutie mark. She kept the words simple and she couldn't be as visual as she usually liked when telling stories, but she made do. Star seemed fascinated, asking questions and listening intently. Dash had to backtrack a few times to explain things like what Cloudsdale was and a lot of other things she thought would have been self-explanatory to any pegasus. She was in a foreign land, though, and she guessed from the clouds she had seen during her brief chase through the sky that the pegasi just let the weather run feral here. That would mean they didn't have cloud cities, since you couldn't keep them stable if you didn't keep tight control of the weather around them. It would also mean ground-based weather factories, which were really inefficient, or unicorns magicing up clouds and rainbows. Which was a horrifying thought.

Thinking of that, Dash supposed it was no wonder that a pegasus would have a Special Talent in Magic. It was in pegasus nature to command the clouds, and a Talent in Magic might be the only way to do that if the unicorns were in charge. Not that Dash had anything against unicorns, but they did tend to think their magic could solve any problem, and just didn't consider how ponies who didn't have horns could still get things done.

Dash was just finishing her tale when the door opened, and a Griffin wearing heavy saddlebags walked into the cabin. Dash was reminded of Gilda, she had the same white feathers about her head and golden eyes. This Griffin was larger than Gilda had been, though, and instead of a few dyed feathers forming a fringe over her eyes, this one seemed like the tips of every feather on the top and down the back of her head as well as along the trailing edge of her wings had been dyed a deep green. Dash knew that those were clan markings, but she had never seen one cover so much of a Griffin before. What it could mean, she had no idea.

The Griffin said something to Star, who turned quickly to Dash, apprehension in her eyes. "Do not worry," Star said. "She is safe."

"Well, yeah. If she weren't she wouldn't have just walked in here like that," Dash replied. "Hey, I've hung out with Griffins before. Does she speak Equestrian?"

"No."

"Well then tell her I said hi, and that I'll respect her kills if she respects mine," Star gave her an incredulous look. "Just tell her, okay?"

Star turned to the Griffin and said something, hopefully not mangling the phrase too much. The Griffin's eyes widened and shot to Dash, focusing her raptor gaze until it nearly glowed in the dull red light of the spellsheets. She said something back to Star, and the two had a short conversation before the pegasus turned back to Dash. "She says you will hunt together then."

Dash smiled. "Cool. What's her name?"

"Astrid."

"Astrid," Dash repeated. She locked gazes with the Griffin, then pointed her hoof at herself. "Rainbow Dash," she said. The Griffin nodded, then set her bags down, opening them up and pulling out a bunch of pale yellow flowers. Dash's stomach growled loudly at the sight of the food.

"Here," Star said, taking the flowers from Astrid and holding them for Dash. "You need to eat."

She didn't need any convincing. Dash eagerly chomped into the blossoms, barely chewing before swallowing them down. It was like she hadn't eaten in forever. These were obviously wildflowers, and usually that wasn't her thing, but right now they tasted like cloud cake with the best frosting Pinkie Pie could come up with. "Oh yeah," she said through a mouthful of petals. "That's the stuff."

Astrid said something to Star, and the two of them shared a laugh. Dash watched that, feeling the camaraderie between the two of them, and suddenly her injuries didn't hurt so much. It was good to see other ponies laughing, and Star and Astrid reminded her of the way she and Gilda had been once.

Watching Astrid she spotted something else, a silver light filtering through the window. Moonrise. It was kind of late, seeing as how the sun had set about when Dash had begun her cutie mark story, but who was she to question when Luna chose to raise the moon? She watched the white orb rise into the sky, perfectly framed in the window. But the more she saw of it, the slower she chewed, until the flowers were spilling from her open mouth onto the floor. Her eyes were wide, unbelieving. "No," she said, shivering in sudden fear. "No, it's not possible."

"What is it?" Star asked. "What is wrong?"

"The moon," Dash said, pointing. "It can't be!"

Star looked, frowning with new worry. "Yes, it is moon. Normal moon. Nothing special."

"Don't you guys see it?" she asked. "Look at it! I mean, sure, once, but not now! That's not normal anymore!"

Star looked again. "All my life moon has been like that. Normal. Rises and falls for Luna, God of night."

"But it can't be," Dash whispered, a strange creeping fear stealing into her. "We freed her." The moon hung in the sky like a beacon, nearly full. Its bright surface marred by a series of blemishes that created the shape of a unicorn mare's head.

The Mare in the Moon.

Chapter 4: Learning Curve

The first definite use of the Elements was to seal the chaos spirit known as Discord at the beginning of the Royal Sisters period. While there are anecdotal accounts of their use pre-Discord, most of these are contradictory, apocryphal and likely spurious. During the first era of the Royal Pony Sisters the Elements were utilized a confirmed fifteen times by the Sisters themselves and an additional eight times by proxies appointed by the Princesses. Each time the Elements were used against titanic foes, most of whom were locked into Tartarus once defeated. Their final use in this period was against Nightmare Moon, after which they remained lost and forgotten for the entire Solar Millennium.

...It was only with the return of Nightmare Moon that my friends and I rediscovered them, and were able to take up their power. What followed was another series of battles against enemies of great power who threatened our lives and our world itself, for which our only answer was to use the Elements against them.

While two examples do not make a proper data set to draw conclusions from, the timing of both of these periods of strife around the awakening of the Elements brings up an important question: Do the Elements awaken because there is danger they will be needed to fight? Or does the danger come because the Elements have awakened? If the former is correct, then the Elements are tools of good, saviors of a people in peril. If the later is true, then we are left in ignorance of the purpose and alignment of the Elements, and it is entirely possible we are using and venerating something far darker than we had imagined.

This second conclusion is almost certainly the correct one.

-From Section One of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter 4: Learning Curve

It took hours for Rainbow Dash to calm down. Astrid had to physically hold her down at one point while Star Fall tried her best with her grasp of Old Equestrian to soothe the panicked mare. It didn't help that Dash had started rambling fast and furious, sometimes shouting things about Luna, sometimes about Nightmare Moon. Star Fall recognized the second name as an evil spirit that had haunted pre-Schism Equestria. One of several mythical monsters that were said to have opposed Celestia in her reign. Eventually she exhausted herself, though it took far longer than it should have for a pony as injured as she was. Once Rainbow Dash had passed out again, Star Fall and Astrid were able to get their own sleep.

When morning came Star Fall woke to find Astrid already gone, out hunting for breakfast. There were a few bunches of flowers left over from her foraging the previous day, enough that Star Fall wouldn't have to leave her patient to graze. She also found Rainbow Dash awake.

"I'm sorry," Dash said as Star Fall came over to check on her. "I kind of freaked out last night, huh?"

"You did," Star Fall replied. She found all the talking was helping bring back her lessons in Old Equestrian. She was sure she was still missing parts of her sentences, since several words sounded different when Dash said them, but the words were flowing easier now. "I am wondering why. What was wrong with moon?"

"The Mare in the Moon," Dash sighed. "You said it's always been there, right?"

Star Fall nodded. "Luna, God of night."

Dash shook her head. "It doesn't make any sense! I never knew Luna even existed until she was free, even Twilight didn't have the full story there. Have I gone back in time? Did one of Twilight's wacky experiments send me back in time? You gotta tell me!"

"I do not know," Star Fall said. "I do not think going back in time is possible."

"It's possible. Twilight did it. It was kind of hilarious, actually. But not when it happens to me! Now it's just horrible!"

Star Fall thought for a moment, then laid a hoof gently on top of Dash's. "No way to know. Not until we meet teacher. She will know what is happened."

Dash took a few deep breaths. "Yeah. Yeah I can go with that. Your teacher, she's smart, right?"

"Smartest."

"Cool. I hope she can figure out what's going on, and how I can get home."

"What is last thing you remember? Before being here."

"Uh, I was going to bed. I'd just gotten word that Ponyville had been selected to provide water for Cloudsdale's weather factory. I was thinking about how if I could get every pegasus pony in the area to get their wingpower high enough we might be able to break the record! It was going to be so awesome, and Spitfire was going to be there! It was my chance to impress the Wonderbolts with my leadership skills. I was so amped I could barely get to sleep! I mean, there was so much to coordinate. Figuring out how to get everypony I could involved, making sure that they all got their wingpower up, it was gonna be crazy! Then there's all the logistics stuff like where Cloudsdale would have to be positioned, the height of the waterspout, the length of time it would take to drain the reservoir and whether we could do it all in one shot or if we needed to do it in stages... Uh, what's wrong?"

Star Fall shook her head to snap herself out of the reverie that had come over her. "Nothing is wrong. I was imagining it. You speak of weather-making so well, like you really did it."

"I did. You're looking at the chief weather-pony for Ponyville for four years running! I keep the system going and I still have time to practice my moves and hang out with my best buds!" Dash paused for a moment, weighing whether or not she should ask before just tossing caution to the wind and going for it. "Hey, Star. Who makes the weather here? Is it pegasus ponies, or are the unicorns horning in on it?"

Star laughed. "No. Unicorns can not make weather. No pony can. Weather makes itself."

"What? How can weather make itself? That doesn't make any sense!"

"Um, water in air, wind, sun, world turning," Star said, her tone taking on that lecturing vibe that Dash often heard from Twilight. "All part of making weather. Ponies change some things with buildings, cities. Not make clouds and rain and wind."

"So it... it just does it all itself?" Dash asked, wide eyed and horrified.

"Yes," Star said, smiling happily as her point was understood.

"What is this, the Everfree?"

"Yes!" Star nodded, smiling wider.

Dash went cold. "We're in the Everfree forest?" She choked out. That was impossible. She knew all the land around the Everfree forest, and this place absolutely wasn't it.

"Not forest. Edge. Um, side? Fringe? Ah! Verge. Everfree Verge. Forest further in, near Storm."

"But.. No. This place isn't Equestria! I know Equestria! This place looks nothing like it, and the clouds were doing their own thing way out on the other side of the mountains too! This is... this isn't possible!"

"Rainbow Dash. I tried to tell you. This is Equestria."

"No, you said this was the world of night! I remember that!"

Star Fall sighed. "World of night was wrong choice of words. Better may be land of night. Or, um, land that worships Luna. Other side of Storm is land of sun, land that worships Celestia. Both are Equestria."

"I don't... what?" Dash sputtered. "It's never been... I mean, how far back did I go?"

"You did not go back," Star Fall said. She tried to be as comforting as she could, but she had no idea how this mare was going to react. She honestly thought she was Rainbow Dash, after all. "Luna is moon, Celestia is sun. For many hundred years it is so. Land of sun on one side, land of night on other, Storm in middle."

"But... Ponyville, my friends..."

"No Ponyville," Star Fall hesitated, but steeled her resolve and plowed on. "Rainbow Dash. Hero of Equestria."

"I guess, yeah, but what does that...?"

"Rainbow Dash, hero, died," Star Fall said gently, holding Dash's gaze. "More than a thousand years past. You are not Rainbow Dash."

Dash stared at Star Fall, then shook her head. "Nope, I totally am," she said, then flopped back and threw a hoof up. "This just means I was sent forward in time instead of back! Ugh, not cool. Now I have to find a way to go backwards. Thanks a lot, whoever did this to me! I bet you're smirking right now, but when I find you I'm gonna buck that smile right off your snout!"

Star Fall watched with a little relief. She had been worried the mare would react violently to what she had been told. Denying it wasn't healthy, but it wouldn't aggravate her wounds. Still, she had to make sure. "You understand me, yes? I did not miss words?"

"Yeah, yeah, I get what you're saying," Dash said. "I'm way in the future, so I've been dead for, like, ever. You think I'm crazy 'cause I'm claiming to be a dead pony. This is like Daring Do and the Scarab of Chronus, except this future is way worse because nopony controls the weather and I have no idea what sent me here. Well, I'm not going to make all those mistakes she did. I'm not gonna panic just 'cause I'm not where I thought I was," Dash fixed her gaze back on Star Fall. "Star, I know you don't think I am who I say I am, but can we just, I don't know, pretend? Humor me for now or something? I really don't want to have to argue about whether I'm crazy or not."

Star Fall nodded. "Yes. I can do that."

"Awesome. Now, this time travel stuff is for brainiacs, and I'm no good at that, but if your teacher is anything like Twilight, then she'll at least know where to look. So I'm still totally wanting to meet her," she shifted restlessly in the bed. "What else do I need? Think, Dash. I remember reading the book and going 'oh, I'd never do that, that's crazy!' What was it that I'd do, 'cause now I gotta do it. Uh, Star, I know you think I'm crazy and all, but I'm going to need to know a lot more about the world so I don't, um, get into trouble or anything. I think I gotta start by learning the language. If there's only three ponies who can talk to me, I'm probably going to be in trouble. Could you, uh, teach me?"

"I can, yes. I will teach you Solar. Have you learned other language before?"

"No, but how hard can it be?"

Star Fall cringed. "I am 'egghead', yes? How is my speaking?"

Dash paused at that. "Oh, yeah. Okay. So, hard. I still wanna! So, can we start?"

Star Fall frowned. She hadn't ever been the teacher, only the student, so she really didn't know how to go about teaching a language to anyone. Eventually she figured she had to just go with it. She pointed a hoof at herself. "I am Star Fall," she said as clearly as she could, making sure each word was distinct and each sound fully formed. Then she pointed at Dash. "You are Rainbow Dash."

Dash listened, eyes glued to the white pegasus. She needed to learn, it was the best thing to do in this situation. Also, she was bedridden for the next few days, and without an adventure book to keep her mind occupied she was going to be chewing off her own limbs from boredom by the time afternoon hit. Learning was dull, and never one of her strong suits, but it was something she could focus her energies into while she got better.

Slowly Dash pointed her hoof at Star Fall. "You. Are. Star. Fall." She said. Star Fall smiled and nodded. Dash pointed to herself. "I. Am. Rainbow Dash."

"Hello Rainbow Dash," Star Fall said, miming a hoof shake for illustration.

"Hello. Star," Dash replied. And so the first lesson began.

***

Astrid returned when the sun was past its zenith. When she walked in Star Fall was in the middle of teaching Dash basic sentences for pointing things out or asking for something. The blue pegasus was catching on fast, remembering new words after only a few uses and picking up the sentence structure with ease.

"Hello Astrid," she said to the Griffin.

"I thought you didn't speak Solar?" Astrid said.

"I'm teaching her," Star Fall explained.

"Huh, well in that case. Hey Rainbow Dash. Mind if I just call you Dash?"

Star Fall translated that and the rainbow-maned pegasus nodded. "Yes. Dash. Good."

"Nice. Hey, Fall, we gotta talk. Can we do it in front of her?"

"She's just learning, Astrid. She can't follow complex sentences yet. Unless you want to give your report in baby-talk, I think we're secure."

"Right. I've been scouting around, and I spotted the caravan disappearing into the forest. They're making better time than we thought they would, but it'll still take them a couple days before a guide can get a group that large through the Everstorm."

"They're still headed for the sunlands, then," Star Fall mused.

"Yeah. Not bothering with security too much, either. I spotted only a couple pegasi out on watch. None of them were the asskicker, and I didn't see her or the boss anywhere with the caravan."

"Which means that they could have gone on ahead or taken an entirely different route. Damn, Agent Gamma isn't going to like that."

"She can stuff it up her..."

"Astrid, she's on our side."

The Griffin sighed. "Yeah, whatever. She treats you like her own personal bitch. She's worse than the Professor, at least Shine would stick her neck out for you."

"Isn't she also your superior officer?"

"I answer to the Royalty, Fall. Gamma can suck my tail hair."

Star Fall held up a hoof to forestall any more vitriol. "Did you see what they took?"

Astrid shook her head. "No. No extra baggage, no accommodation made for new material. If they took something, it was small. Still no clue what made them bug out in such a hurry. He's never abandoned a dig like that before."

"Well, we'll let the Service take over watching him sunside. If they figure it out, they'll give us a shout."

"Sure. In other news, it looks like no one's on the lookout for little miss meteor here. I'd expected at least a few pegasus flyovers, but nothing. Looks like the Republic police are staying out of the Verge."

Star Fall frowned at that. "They were obviously chasing her, they even darted her. Why give up? They might have expected her to die in the fall, but why not search for the body?"

"No clue. She given you any hints yet?"

Star Fall shook her head. She gave Astrid the short version of everything she had been talking about with Dash. "As far as she knows she's Rainbow Dash, ancient hero of the united Equestria. I think it's some kind of delusion or amnesia, or, hell, both. This isn't something I've ever studied in depth."

"Maybe she really is? You said there was something weird with her magic."

"Weird, yeah, but not pony-back-from-the-dead weird. I'll buy that she was sent forward in time before I'll accept a resurrection."

"So why don't you buy it? It's what she's peddling isn't it?"

"Because! It's too ridiculous. Sent forward in time? Why? How? Who could possibly gain from something like that?"

"What does she gain from lying about it?"

"Other people feeding into her delusion. Feeling like a hero, a persecuted hero at that."

"If she's crazy and that's all, why are you putting so much time and effort into her?"

"Because, arrgh!" Star Fall's wings shifted restlessly. Astrid picked up on that, of course. Body language wasn't all that different between pegasi and Griffins. "Okay, so, maybe I don't believe that she's Rainbow Dash, but that doesn't mean I don't think she's important! Why is it such a big deal to you anyways?"

Astrid shrugged. "It's not. She says she's Rainbow Dash, and until it gets proven otherwise that's good enough for me. You're the one who thinks it's so important that she be crazy instead."

"It's just, well, she talks about Twilight Sparkle as if she knew her. Like actually knew her!"

"Isn't that the patron saint of eggheads?"

"Well, yeah, she," Star Fall paused and gave Astrid a curious look. "Do you know, that's what she called me too?"

"What?"

"Dash. She called me 'egghead' too. Except she did it in Old Equestrian. I didn't make the connection until now. It's very disturbing being teased for being a scholar in a language only the most serious of scholars would know."

"Ha! My kind of mare," Astrid said, throwing an eagle's grin at the injured pony who was watching them with intense concentration. "She's kinda got me spooked too, ya know?"

"I thought you believed her?"

"Not about the whole 'from the past' thing. But that greeting she had you deliver for her. It's not something a normal pony should know."

"It sounded odd. Talking about killing and everything. What was it?"

"It's a greeting Griffins from different clans say when they meet each other for the first time, but know they'll have to travel together. It's basically 'I won't mess with you if you don't mess with me'. Nothing serious or secret, but we never use it with ponies. She even knew to exchange names afterwards. She's spent time with Griffins, and gotten to know them well enough to be treated as a member of the clan. I don't have to tell you that's not something that happens. Ever."

"Yeah, she's a veritable fountain of mysteries," Star Fall sighed. "I promised to humor her until we got to the Professor. So even if I don't believe, I'm not going to push it. Whatever, whoever she is, she's vital. I can feel it."

"Will she be able to cross the Everstorm by the deadline?"

Star Fall pawed at the floor, thinking. "I don't know. She's healing really fast, but those were serious injuries. Her bones will be solid by then, but I can't say whether she'll be strong enough to use them or not," she looked up at Astrid. "If she can't, I'm not leaving her. What are you going to do?"

Astrid looked at Dash, who was still watching them with a furrowed brow, her lips moving silently as she sounded out words. "I should make you go," she said. "The Professor's too important to risk her passing through the Everstorm to get you. My orders would be pretty clear there."

"Astrid."

"Fall, let me finish here, okay? I should do that. But I'm not going to. Instead, I'm going to make sure we get through on time. All of us, even if I have to carry her."

Star Fall smiled at her friend. "I knew you'd stick with me."

Astrid rolled her eyes. "Yeah, whatever, just don't go all mushy on me, okay? Keep teaching blast from the past here how to talk like a real person, I'll be taking a nap."

Star Fall returned to Dash. "Sorry," she said. "We were talking about you. Not bad. Just what to do to bring you through Storm."

"I could almost understand what you were saying. I kept catching words here and there," Dash said. "I think I'm getting the hang of this. I bet I'll be talking Solar as well as you by the end of the week."

Star Fall laughed. "You can not learn a language in a week. If you are betting, I will take that bet, but you have nothing to stake."

Dash's eyes lit up. "Sure I do. You guys have forgotten how to make weather, right? I mean, it's just happening on its own, and that's really freaky. I know how, and I can teach you."

Star Fall looked like she was about to scoff at the idea, but paused, considering. "Okay. I win, you teach me weather. You win, what then?"

"When I win, you start believing I am who I say I am."

"I do not think it works that way."

"What? You afraid you're gonna lose?"

This time Star Fall did scoff at that. "No. You will not learn that fast."

Dash grinned. "Then do we have a bet?" She spat on her hoof and held it out.

Star Fall looked shocked at the proffered hoof, but then narrowed her eyes and nodded, spitting on her own hoof and touching them together. "Yes. We have a bet."

"Awesome," Dash said. "Oh, and just to let you know. My Special Talent? It's being fast. Being fast and winning."

***

"This is impossible," Star Fall groused. "No one can absorb a new language this quickly!"

"And yet," Astrid said, looking towards Dash, who was hobbling around the field outside of the cabin. Her legs were still splinted, but she could put weight on them now, and had insisted on getting out of bed and out under the sky. Her wings had healed first, and she kept them close to her sides, the bones still too weak to attempt flight. Star Fall thought she would be able to walk without splints by the next day, but still not fly or run. She had been learning Solar for four days now, and Star Fall barely had to translate anything anymore.

"Rrr! She's just so casual about it! She's all 'oh, I'm Rainbow Dash, I'm just that awesome'! No one's that awesome! No one!"

"I am!" Dash cheerfully called over, a triumphant grin splitting her features.

"And does she have to be so arrogant about it?" Star Fall huffed. "She couldn't have been faking not knowing Solar, I'm sure of that. She must be some kind of linguistics savant or something!"

"Are you angry because she's learning fast, or because you're losing your bet?"

"I made that bet because it didn't matter whether she won or not! She can't teach me weather-making because you can't make weather! I can't believe she's Rainbow Dash because it's impossible!"

"And yet," Astrid said again, snickering. "You just said her learning Solar this quick is impossible. Maybe you're using that word wrong, huh?"

Star Fall stomped her hooves and seethed. "I am not using it wrong! She's just... This learning curve is insane! I use a word twice and she's already got it in her vocabulary, show her how to create a sentence and she's finding new ways to use it. She's even picking up slang for Celestia's sake! And worst of all, her using Solar is starting to sound a lot like her using Old Equestrian! Like she's doing some twisted direct translation in her brain that conveys exactly parallel meanings between the two completely dissimilar linguistic milieus."

"Yeah, I have no idea what you just said there, but didn't Solar come from Old Equestrian? Aren't they basically the same language a thousand years apart?"

"No! That's not how languages work! Lunar and Solar both came from Old Equestrian, but that doesn't make them 'basically the same language' does it?"

Astrid shrugged. "Point taken. But she's still beating you. You're gonna have to believe her."

Star Fall kicked at the dirt. Her wings snapping open in anger, then drooping as she accepted the inevitable. "Fine. She's Rainbow Dash."

"Did you hear that?" Astrid called.

The blue pegasus turned towards them. "No, what was it?"

"Fall just admitted you're Rainbow Dash!"

"Hah! I win! I am the winner, I am the winner, you gotta believe me, in your face!" Dash did a toddling dance on her good legs while sing-songing out her victory.

"Great, I'm never going to hear the end of this," Star Fall sighed.

"Nope, and that's what friends are for," Astrid said as Dash waddled up to them.

"Hey, Star, don't take it too hard," Dash said. "I'll still teach you weather-making. Oh, and maybe how to talk better in Equestrian. You sound like a foreign stereotype."

"I'll teach you, you miserable," Star Fall grumbled under her breath, but then pushed her annoyance away. "How are your legs?"

"Itchy," Dash said. "They still hurt a bit when I put my full weight on them, but I think I can walk fine."

"Then we'll take the splints off tonight. If you keep healing this fast, you should be walking okay by morning. If you can, then we'll have to get moving. We can't wait much longer if we want to cross the Everstorm before the deadline."

"Yeah, you've talked about that before, but I've been so busy learning your language I never asked. What is this 'Everstorm'? I mean, I get that we're next to the Everfree forest, but this sounds like it's got a story behind it."

"It does," Star Fall said. "It's more mythology than history, it happened during the Schism, and most history from around and before that time has been lost."

"What's the Schism? You've said that before too."

"It's what ended your world and made ours," Astrid said. "It's what happened when ponies lost their Gods."

"Yeah, that sounds important to know," Dash said. "Can we go inside and sit down? I'm kinda tired."

"Sure," Star Fall said. Once they had relocated inside they pulled out some food that Astrid had gathered and ate dinner while Star Fall told the story.

"We're not sure how it began. Whether it was something the Goddesses did, or something the people did, or a prophecy, or direct knowledge of what was coming. We don't know, and not even the Dragons who lived through it could tell us for sure. What we do know is that the Goddesses sensed a grave danger to the world, one that they couldn't fight directly. So to protect the world from this danger they sacrificed their earthly forms to bind its power, make it too weak to conquer the world. Their spirits infused their respective heavenly bodies. Luna became one with the moon, and Celestia merged with the sun. From their places in the sky they still bring day and night to the world.

"When they left there was already a political division between those that supported Celestia's nobility, and the ones that saw a road to power in Luna's theories on self-governance and 'free markets'. The Goddesses had shared power between them, and the legends say that Equestria was a peaceful nation, with both the Royals in power and elected local governments. With their influence gone, the two sides became more and more fanatical and devoted to their ideals. Demagogues stirred up the populace and the nobles responded by using the military to quell unrest. This just spurred more unrest, which led to more harsh crackdowns.

"Eventually it erupted into all-out war. The rebels had the support of the populace, while the loyalists had the military infrastructure and most of the unicorns. It was a bloodbath, and it spilled over Equestria's borders into the rest of the world. We dragged the other races into our conflict, and made them choose sides. The Griffins chose to side with the loyalists, the Changelings with the rebels. Dragons picked whoever offered them the most treasure. The other races, well, some of them just wanted to be left alone, but we didn't give them the chance. Others joined up eagerly, but none of the others have survived in any numbers. Especially not after... but I'm getting ahead of myself.

"The rebels had popular support, so they had numbers, but until they were able to train their troops they were mostly just a mob. The loyalists had a proper army, but Equestria had been at peace for so long they weren't prepared for any sort of major campaign. The rebels made a lot of early gains, controlling most of the eastern and southern portions of Equestria, and the territories beyond. By the time the Griffins had shown the loyalist army how to fight properly, the Changelings had done the same for the rebels, and it just turned the war into a slow, hard grind.

"New weapons were devised. Legends speak of incredible magical powers unleashed, and entire cities were wiped off the map. What was left of the Crystal Kingdom was shattered, the Bison grazelands were razed, Labyrinthia was reduced to rubble. The loyalists raised war-Phoenixes while the rebels magically bred Windigos, alternately burning or freezing entire settlements.

"This went on for decades. Every peace was only a time to rearm and resupply. Every treaty signed was destined to end up trampled underhoof the moment one side sensed an advantage. It was forty years into the war, both sides preparing their most devastating weapons yet, when the Destroyer first appeared."

"Whoa, the Destroyer?" Dash interrupted. "That's sounds awesome! What was it?"

"Not what, who," Star Fall explained. "She's been called many things. In the Solar Kingdom we usually refer to her as the Shadowed Alicorn. Over here they're more likely to call her the Gray Mare. In the records we still have in Old Equestrian, she was called Nightmare Umbra."

"Nightmare? Like, as in Nightmare Moon?" Dash asked, wide-eyed.

"It's the same word. I don't think it's the same creature," Star Fall said. "We don't know a lot about where she came from, or what she wants. What we do know is that she is what the Goddesses left to protect us from.

"Nightmare Umbra was just a strange figure seen above the skies of certain battlefields at first. She frightened the soldiers, but not much more. Then she started acting. She'd appear, and then whole companies of soldiers would just vanish. The stories say she was terrifying, that no weapon could touch her, and that she could smite down even the mightiest of Dragons with a look from her burning eyes. Each side accused the other of employing her, but she struck both equally. Her presence made the leadership on both sides decide that they needed to wipe their opposition out decisively in order to turn their attention to stopping her.

"The armies gathered, all the forces on both sides. All their most terrible weapons and magics all brought to bear. And they clashed here, in the Everfree regions. No one knows who would have won the fight, because before they could fire the first spell, the Destroyer appeared between the two armies. She told them that their war gave her strength, and that if they fought here she would have the power to conquer the world. The generals on both sides didn't believe her, and ordered the attack anyways, but targeting her first.

"They had no idea what they were dealing with. Their most powerful weapons glanced off of her and their bravest warriors died under her hooves. All the while she was gaining power from their violence, from the destruction. She spread her wings and gathered her power, ready to crush both armies and conquer the world. Her magic struck the land first, molding it into new shapes with earthquakes and volcanoes. Then it struck the skies, blasting the world with storms that could never again be calmed by pegasus hooves. Finally she struck at all living creatures, and everything that lived felt its heart still in its chest.

"It was then that what the Goddesses had done made itself manifest. Their spirits moved across the earth, sun high overhead, then moon crossing in front of the sun, until they were both in the same place in the sky. Sunlight and moonlight twined together, pouring their power down on the Shadowed Alicorn. She was caught, her own powers were stretched out across the whole world, and so they were vulnerable. The Goddesses struck down Nightmare Umbra and took from her the bulk of her magic.

"Yet, she was still an Alicorn, a fellow Goddess, and her power could not be so easily contained. So the Goddesses reached into the world and drew from it all the magic they could, wrapping it around the Nightmare's power until it was imprisoned completely. Umbra raged, but her power was bound. Her chained magic spread out between the two armies, crossing the whole of the remaining continent in a line that became a storm of intense power. A magical storm that never ends. We call it the Everstorm, and it separates the Solar Kingdom from the United Lunar Republics.

"Binding the Destroyer's power had a terrible side effect, though. It had taken too much magic from the world. Unicorns couldn't even start to cast spells out of their Talent, earth ponies lost their sense of the world, pegasi couldn't control the weather or walk the clouds. Some, like the Dragons, died outright without the magic to sustain them. Only a few of those races are left, individuals who somehow managed to survive the loss of magic. While other races weren't wiped out, they were completely devastated. Crops failed, animals went wild, weather patterns took nearly twenty years to settle down into something predictable. There was so much destruction and so many died in the aftermath that civilization on both sides had to be rebuilt practically from the ground up.

"We call this event, the binding of Nightmare Umbra and the breaking of Old Equestria, the Schism. It happened over eight hundred years ago."

"Wow," Dash said as Star Fall finished. "Did all that really happen?"

Star Fall shrugged. "I don't know. As I said, it was eight hundred years ago, and almost all of the records from that time are lost. Most of that was just pieced together from the oral traditions passed down before the Kingdom and the Republics got back on their hooves. A lot of it is probably myth, metaphor or some other way to explain the big events that were going on in understandable terms. Nightmare Umbra is real, though, not allegory for the war itself, and the Everstorm is as real as it gets."

"But, the loss of magic? I guess that would explain why no one's fixed the weather, but you can still fly, right? I mean, pegasi still have their wings, right?"

"I can, and we do. Pegasus ponies can still fly, but unless it's our Talent, we're not very good at it. Because of my Talent I can focus my magic to mimic other pegasus Talents. So I can fly fairly fast, or be agile, or graceful. I can even walk on clouds if I concentrate hard enough. Most of us have to make do with one."

Dash turned to Astrid. "Can you cloudwalk? Griffins used to be able to do that as good as us pegasi."

Astrid shook her head. "Nope. We're still strong flyers, and the best warriors in air or on ground, but clouds are just mist to us. We don't get Talents like you ponies do, so we don't even have individuals who can do it. We've all kind of forgotten it was even possible, except in the golden age stories they tell hatchlings."

Dash looked down, all that she had been told sinking in. "Wow. That's horrible, guys. I can't believe ponies would go to war like that. And I can't imagine what it would be like to lose all your magic. I don't really think about it, but I wouldn't be as fast as I am, or as awesome, without my pegasus magic."

"We've managed pretty well," Star Fall said. "It's not like we're lame or anything just because we can't walk on clouds anymore."

Dash laughed. "Yeah, I guess not. You're not lame, you're just missing out on something you never knew you should have. I wish I could do something about it," Dash brightened as an idea came to her. "Hey! Maybe I can! When we find a way to send me back, I can stop this all from happening! Maybe that's why I'm here, 'cause this Nightmare Umbra sent me here so that me and my friends couldn't use the Elements of Harmony on her!"

"Elements of what?" Star Fall asked with a quirked eyebrow.

"Elements of Harmony, they're these magical necklace thingies that shoot rainbows and defeat evil," Dash explained, giving Star Fall an incredulous look. "You know about me being a hero, but you don't know about the Elements?"

Star Fall shook her head. "The histories never mentioned any Elements of Harmony. They said you were a hero, one of a group of heroes that saved Equestria several times during a turbulent period. So these Elements are a weapon you used?"

"No," Dash said, drawing out the word as she thought over the two times she and her friends had been called upon to wield the Elements. "Not exactly. They're more like. Well, they're kind of... I guess I don't know what they are. They're not really weapons, but they stopped Nightmare Moon and Discord. Each of them needs a certain type of pony to use them, a pony who embodies one of six things. Laughter, Generosity, Kindness, Honesty, Magic, and Loyalty. That's what I am, Loyalty."

"That's...weird."

"Hey! I'm totally loyal!" Dash protested. "I never leave my friends hangin'!"

"No, not that part. The six traits seem weird. Magic I understand, but what does Laughter or Honesty or any of them have to do with harmony?"

"I... don't know that either. But it totally does, somehow. And when you use them together it makes a big rainbow, and fixes everything. And I bet that's what Nightmare Umbra sent me here to stop!"

"Hold your hooves there, Dash," Astrid said. "We can't know anything about that yet. Don't get ahead of yourself."

"Right," Dash said, forcing herself to calm down. But she was sure that she was on to something here. This really was like Daring Do and the Scarab of Chronus! She had to make it back to the past to set right what once went wrong! "Keep it cool. Wait until we see this teacher of yours, Star. She's a Magic Talent, right? She'll be able to help."

"I'm sure of it," Star Fall confirmed.

"Cool. Then could you help me get these splints off? 'Cause there's this itch that I have been dying for the past twenty minutes to get at."

Star Fall smiled and moved to help the other pegasus. Something caught at the back of her mind though. Elements of Harmony. She hadn't heard that term associated with the sparse legends of Rainbow Dash, but she was sure she had heard it somewhere before. For some reason it also brought to mind the name Twilight Sparkle, the incredible unicorn to whose story Rainbow Dash was essentially a footnote. Somehow, somewhere, she had seen the two together, and now that Dash had brought them up she couldn't stop mulling it over. There was something there. Something she wasn't quite seeing yet.

She shrugged the thoughts off as best she could. She needed her sleep now. Tomorrow, Dash would probably be good to start walking, and then they had to make their way into the forest. And the Everstorm.

Chapter 5: Everstorm

The Elements of Harmony are a magic made up of many parts. The most immediately apparent part is the physical one, the forms the Elements take. This form is highly variable, and most certainly personalized to the pony that wields it.

When my friends and I first found the Elements, they appeared as stone spheres more than a foot in diameter. Nightmare Moon shattered these forms. I was left in despair until I heard my friends coming to my aid. Their arrival provided the spark of understanding for me to see the Elements as more than simply enchanted objects. I began to realize the full extent of the Magic of Harmony, the many layers of magic and connection that composed the Elements. As I did so the Elements reconstituted themselves around my friends, responding to our friendship and my new-found understanding. They took new forms, the necklaces and crown that are well-known today. Each newly formed Element had a reference to the cutie mark of the pony who bore it in their central gems, something that I did not question at the time.

It was this malleability of form, and the ease with which they rebuilt themselves and customized their appearance, that made me decide that the first order of business in my studies of the Elements of Harmony was to investigate their physical properties. As we shall see in this section, what I discovered fundamentally altered my view of magic, the Elements, and, sadly, reality itself.

-From the second section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter 5: Everstorm

Calumn ducked his head against the wind and rain that lashed at him. The torrents of stinging raindrops made it impossible to see more than a meter or two ahead of him at any time, and even trying to look beyond his feet earned him a painful lashing of water in his eyes. It almost made him wish he was in his true form, his carapace wouldn't feel the bite of the weather like his sodden coat did. As it was, he was forced to endure.

He spotted a neon sign through the rain, proudly declaring that Stormrider's was open for business. He made for that, thankful that he didn't have to go too much farther to reach his destination. Crossing through the Verge on hoof was slow going, especially since he'd had to take routes around the mountains that would avoid the military patrols. It had taken the better part of five days just to get this far. Now he was inside the Everfree forest, with the Everstorm a scant few kilometers away, and if he wanted to go any further he needed to hire a guide. Every report he'd read about crossing into the sunlands said that the best place to do that was right here, at Stormrider's Bar.

The transition from intense storm outside to calm bar room inside was a shock to the system. The walls of Stormrider's were as solid as they could possibly be to survive the storms that often broke off from the Everstorm and ravaged the Everfree Verge. Because of that they dulled the sound of the rain and screaming wind to a hushed growl that could be felt over the music playing inside, but only barely.

The interior of the bar was lit by a few shaded bulbs that hung from the ceiling, and the flickering neon sign that hung in the only window. The walls were adorned with hundreds of wooden plaques that bore names etched into them. Some of the plaques appeared to be centuries old. Other than that there were signs for various brands of alcohol, a portrait of Stormrider, the bar's original owner, and a pinup calendar of the Republic's raciest mares decked out in socks and saddles.

Calumn's arrival was barely noted by the patrons, a motley assortment of ponies and other races gathered in little groups or on their own, each with their heads down over a drink. He didn't see any of the usual things he'd been expecting from his experience infiltrating tough places before. There was no gambling, no games at all that he could see. Conversations were kept hushed and close, and were so few that the music easily drowned them all out. No one seemed to be posturing, displaying wealth or weapons or scars. It was unnerving.

Calumn made his way over to the bar and took a seat. The bartender, a dark brown pegasus stallion with a dirty pink mane and a Talent Glyph that said his abilities were focused on cooking, gave Calumn a steady look. "Just a beer," Calumn said. "Whatever you've got on tap."

The pegasus moved with practiced ease to draw Calumn his drink. When he set it down in front of the disguised Changeling he held it close, not letting Calumn pick it up. "Two full moons," he said.

"Two?" Calumn choked out.

"Two," the bartender repeated, unfazed.

"Nobody charges two full moons for a beer," Calumn said. This was obviously a test of some kind, determining how much of a mark he was. Well, he could deal with that, he'd just show that he could play the game. "Look, I'll give you one. That's enough for this and two more after."

"Two for this one. Two for the next," the bartender said.

"Seriously? What's this stuff made out of? Ambrosia?"

"Barley," the bartender said.

This wasn't going Calumn's way. "That's fucking robbery!"

"Nope," said a new voice. Calumn turned to look at the earth pony stallion sitting a few places down from him. He'd had his head down on the bar, but Calumn saw that his eye was open and focused on the conversation with a delighted glint.

"You wanna say something?" Calumn asked, wondering if this was part of the test.

"Yup!" the stallion said, pulling his head up from the bar. There was a napkin stuck to the side of his face, but he didn't even seem to notice as he bounced from stool to stool to get closer, closing the distance between the two of them until he was sitting right next to Calumn. He was a green that was dark enough to be mistaken for black in the poor lighting of the bar, his mane and tail a brighter shade of green with a pair of yellow stripes running through them. His Glyph was an Abstract of a strange maze that curved in on itself, but seemed to only have one path. He grinned at Calumn, lemon yellow eyes glinting as he leaned in to give the Changeling a conspiratorial whisper. "It's not robbery," he said.

"Really," Calumn said, leaning back from the green pony. "That what is it?"

The green pony's eyes darted around the room quickly before he leaned further, practically lying on Calumn. "Extortion."

"Extortion?"

"Yup!" the green pony said as the bartender rolled his eyes.

"That's enough, Blaze," the bartender said.

"Okay," Blaze said, returning upright and dropping his head onto the bar.

Calumn slowly pulled himself up, looking at the strange pony. "Don't mind him," the bartender said. "He's more than a little drunk right now."

"Huh," Calumn said, then shook his head and looked at the bartender. "Two full moons. Are you extorting me?"

"Do you know how much it costs to import real beer this far into the Verge? Right next to the Everstorm? Two full moons a pint, minus a modest profit margin. Now, are you gonna pay for it, or do you want to look at my books first?"

Calumn snorted and fished two full moons from his sodden pack. The bartender scooped the coins away and slid the beer to Calumn. "I'm looking for passage through the Everstorm," he said.

"No shit," the bartender deadpanned. "Really?"

Well, if Calumn was going to be forced to play the naive newcomer, he might as well play it to the hilt. "Yeah," he said. "I know this is where the guides hang out on this side. Can you point me to a good one?"

"A good one, huh? You don't want the best?"

"At two full moons a beer I'm not sure I can afford the best," Calumn said.

The bartender snickered at that. "Fair enough. I could point you in the right direction, I guess, but I'm not entirely sure it's worth my time."

"More extortion?"

"Nothing's free in the Verge," the bartender said.

"No government, no cops, no armies, no laws. Some would consider that free."

"And you gotta pay for every single damn day of it," the bartender said. "Why do you want to go to the sunlands?"

"My business," Calumn warned.

"And who can get you there is mine," the bartender replied. "So make it worth my time, or enjoy your beer."

Calumn fished five more full moons out of his pack and carefully laid them in front of the pegasus. "Good enough?"

The bartender shrugged. "Eh? It'll do. You want to start over there, with the mutt in the hood. He'll get you through the Everstorm, safe and sound. If, that is, you can convince him to do it. He's kind of particular about his clients. Name's Silas."

Calumn nodded. "Thanks." He tapped the green pony on the shoulder, and was rewarded with a yellow eye shining up at him. "Hey," he said, sliding the beer over to him. "On me, okay buddy?"

Calumn didn't wait to see the reaction, instead sliding from the stool and trotting over to the guide the bartender had pointed out. He was a Diamond Dog, his paws wrapped around a steel mug made for a dog's claws. He was wearing the kind of hooded coat that was in fashion back in the Republics, and it was unadorned, which was odd for a Diamond Dog. He watched Calumn approach with bloodshot eyes, nose twitching as he took in Calumn's scent. This wouldn't be a problem for the Changeling, the disguise his kind created was a physical transformation, not an illusion. He'd spent so long in this form that his true scent would be undetectable even to a keen Dog nose.

Calumn sat down across the small table from Silas. "I'm looking for passage," he said.

The Dog snorted. "I know you are looking for passage, little pony," he rasped. His Lunar was good, but he had enough of a Solar accent to tell Calumn on what side of the Storm he was raised. "No one comes here unless they are looking for passage, or already know how to do it themselves. So I know you are looking for passage. I wonder, though, why you want to cross the Everstorm. It is a dangerous thing to do, there must be great motivation to try something like that."

"The pony at the bar said you could get me through safe and sound."

Silas barked out a laugh. "Safe? Yes. I can do safe. Sound? Sound of body, maybe. Sound of mind? I am less sure of that. The Storm is not all rain and lightning. It is magic. It is fury and power. To pass the Storm you must let the storm touch you, and sometimes it likes to cut at little ponies where no one will see the wound, and where it will never heal."

"I bet it cuts Dogs just as well as it cuts ponies," Calumn said.

Silas let out another laugh. "Yes. Silas has many scars! Scars that make Silas afraid of the Storm. Afraid and respectful, as you should be too. I can take you across it, but it will not be cheap, and you must be sure that crossing is what you want. No, not want, need to do. The Storm will scare you, little pony."

"I think I can handle it," Calumn said.

"You are big, yes. Big for a pony, but still much smaller than the Storm. It will try to kill you, little pony, and it is bigger than all the armies of the world. Maybe you have never known real fear before, but in the Storm fear will find you. Unless you have the will to push through, when that fear comes you will do as all ponies do and try to run from it. Then you will be out in the Storm, without Silas to guide you through, and you will die. I will not go after you. For no amount of money or promises will I follow a panicked pony into the fury of the Everstorm."

"Fine," Calumn said. He had faced fear before, and a greater and more unstoppable fear than this Dog had likely ever known. The Everstorm wasn't going to frighten him, not for all of its rage. "I'm not just buying one way, I want passage back through, for me and one other. How much."

Silas considered Calumn, his tongue licking once at his black nose as he thought. "Two hundred," he said finally.

"No," Calumn refused. "I'm buying passage, not an apartment. Seventy five."

"This is the Everstorm, pony," Silas grinned, showing off his sharp canine teeth. "Passage is life. Two ways? And for another as well? What is it? Are you going for a lover? Some girl-pony who has your heart or balls in her mouth and will bite if you don't come bring her to the glorious southern Republics?"

"Something like that," Calumn said evenly.

"Well, then, you pay for it. Yes. One seventy five."

Calumn stopped himself from wincing. This was going to cost him all of his seed money. "One hundred."

Silas 'tsked' at him. "No, pony. You bid too low. Even the most desperate guide doesn't agree to wait on a passenger for less than a hundred. For waiting and taking another back? One sixty."

"One forty."

"One fifty-five."

"One fifty. Half now, half when I'm returning."

Silas gave him a long look before grinning again. "Okay. Silas can agree to that."

Calumn was about to reach into his bag to pull out half the payment when the green pony from the bar flopped into another seat at the table. "Robbery," he said, giving the both of them a cheerful grin.

Silas growled. "Quiet, drunken pony. I was finishing a deal."

"Yeah, but it was gonna be robbery," Blaze said.

Calumn heaved a sigh. "I thought it was extortion?"

Blaze laughed. "Oh, yeah. Not this time. This time it's robbery."

Silas growled again, but his eyes were flickering between the two ponies, and he had begun to compulsively lick his nose. "Don't listen to the drunken pony. He is often putting his nose in things that do not concern him."

"That's true," Blaze mused. "But this guy bought me a drink! An extortion-priced drink! That's kindness you just gotta repay!"

Calumn frowned. "Why is it robbery this time?"

"It isn't," Silas rasped.

"'Cause he's going to rob you," Blaze said happily.

"Seriously?" Calumn asked.

"Shut up, pony," Silas whined, shrinking back on himself.

"Yeah, he was going to take you a little ways into the storm, then lead you into one of the traps, promise to let you out if you give him the rest of the payment first, then take the money and leave you to die. That's a kind of robbery."

"Shut up, shut up, shut up!"

"How do you know that?" Calumn asked, ignoring the Diamond Dog for now.

"Well, first of all, one fifty? For taking you through, waiting, then taking you back with another passenger? Yeah, nobody here would agree to that."

"Really."

"Yup. If we're not moving passengers we're not making money. None of us would give up the chance to make money like that, not unless the payoff was super-duper-ultra amazingly good. And guaranteed. Can't forget that if you're a spy you could always get caught, and then we'd be waiting for Luna knows how long and you'd never come back. That would really mess us up. So no waiting."

"Well, crap," Calumn said. "I was hoping to have my return trip all ready to go."

Blaze shrugged. "What can you do? It's the economy."

"Yes, fine! No waiting. We can still have a deal, yes?" Silas asked.

Calumn ignored him. "So why do you think he was going to kill me."

"Oh, he wasn't going to kill you, he was just going to leave you to die," Blaze explained. "It's not exactly the same thing, since you still have a chance at surviving that way."

"Okay. But how do you know that's what he was going to do?"

"Well, he's done it before. I mean, I've rescued ponies he's stranded like that three times now. It's kind of embarrassing, really. I mean, you'd think if you're planning a trip to an enemy nation you'd at least research the prices beforehand, right? But, nope! They just go on thinking a hundred full moons is all it takes to get smuggled across the most dangerous border in Equestria."

Calumn turned to Silas. "I'm sorry, but I don't think I'm going to agree to this deal."

Silas snarled at Blaze. "You have cost Silas, drunkard pony. I will not forget," with that he got up from the table and stormed out into the rain.

"Who's been rubbing him the wrong way?" Blaze asked, seeming genuinely surprised at the Dog's actions.

"Who indeed," Calumn said. "I take it that you're a guide?"

"Yeah! How'd you know?"

"If you're rescuing people trapped in the Everstorm you've got to be able to navigate it."

"Hmm, I never thought of it that way, I guess I do!" Blaze grinned.

Calumn blinked at the pony. "How much would you charge?"

"For the whole deal?" Blaze asked, looking perplexed. "'Cause there's this thing about waiting that we just don't do. I might have mentioned it."

"No, just for taking me to the other side. I can negotiate my way back across when I need it."

"Well, one pony one way. That's two hundred right there."

"Seriously?"

Blaze put a hoof to his chin and made humming noises as he thought about it for nearly half a minute before nodding solidly. "Yes. Seriously."

"Tell me, please. Are you cheap?" Calumn asked.

"Well, I can get falling down drunk from about five beers, I shop at thrift stores, I prefer pizza and a walk in the park to dinner and a movie, and ever since I was kicked out of the trailer park my self-respect has never recovered. So, um, yeah, I guess I'm pretty cheap," Blaze paused for a moment before adding: "Should I feel bad for that?"

"As a guide," Calumn said, putting a hoof to his head. "Are your rates cheap for a guide!"

"Oh!" Blaze said, his eyes lighting up. "Yeah! In that case I am totally not cheap. Nope. Expensive as hell. But I can guarantee you one thing."

"What's that?"

"That when I charge you two hundred for a crossing it's not robbery," he grinned again, eyes shining. "It's extortion."

Calumn couldn't help but laugh at that, and stuck out his hoof. "Strongheart," he said. "And I think we have a deal. Half now, half on the other side."

The green stallion took the offered hoof. "Trail Blazer, but you can call me Blaze, and that's fine with me. When did you want to head out?"

"As soon as we can."

"Then get something to eat. You're going to need the energy, and as soon as you're done, we'll get going."

"Shouldn't we wait for daylight? Or a break in the storm at least?"

Blaze laughed. "Oh, nope. We're heading into the Everstorm, Strongheart. A few kilometers to the border and then day, night, clear skies or gray, none of that will matter."

"Is it really that bad?" Calumn asked.

Blaze's smile turned wan and sad. "My friend, you have no idea."

***

Rainbow Dash had never seen anything like it. The wall of cloud was strung like a curtain through the forest, stretching from the ground up into the sky. It swirled and eddied like a thousand tornadoes fighting to occupy the same space from different angles. Flashes of light illuminated parts of the immense storm, bolts of green, red, blue, gold, magenta and white flaring against each other in staccato bursts of lightning with no thunder. Star and Astrid had talked to her about the Everstorm, and their story about how it was made was pretty clear on how powerful this thing was. Neither of them had managed to convey how alive the storm felt. It was like it was looking at her, waiting with a fang-toothed grin for her to step right into its jaws.

"This thing is wrong," Dash said. "The wind's gotta be fifty miles an hour for the cloudbank to move like that, but we're ten feet away and all we're getting is a light breeze. This is... this is Discord wrong," Dash shivered.

Star Fall gave Dash a puzzled frown, but went back to her spell-sheet. Astrid stepped up next to the blue pegasus. "This is nothing. Once we get inside, that's when you'll see the real shit. Remember the rules?"

"Yeah, stick close to Star," Dash replied. They'd been constantly drilling that into her since the trio had left the cabin and made their way to the Everfree forest. Dash's wings were strong enough to carry her now, though she wasn't up to attempting any aerobatics yet. Her injured legs were holding up well, and though she was still tiring a lot faster than she liked her stamina had improved enough that she could walk for a few hours without taking any breaks. It had still been slow going to reach the Everstorm, but now that they were here she realized that she had needed all the healing she could get to tackle this monster.

"Don't get more than five feet away from her, no matter what you see or hear," Astrid warned. "The Everstorm likes to trick you, to separate groups and make ponies walk off of cliffs or into a vortex. It can make you see things that aren't there, hear people you know calling for you. You can't trust any of your senses. Distance, size, everything you take for granted in navigating the world are skewed. Fall's magic holds most of that at bay, but you can still hear things, and sometimes see things."

Dash swallowed hard. "I gotcha. No running off." She stared at the menacing wall of storm. "How many times have you gone through?"

"This'll be ten," Astrid replied.

"And ponies do this all the time, right?"

"Yeah. Some ponies do. And a lot of them never make it out the other side," Astrid looked down at Rainbow Dash. "You're shaking a bit there, Dash. Don't tell me that you, the 'awesomest' pony in Equestria is afraid?"

It was obviously a ploy to provoke her ego into steeling her resolve, and let it never be said that Rainbow Dash's ego wasn't up for a challenge. Dash stilled her shivers and narrowed her eyes. "Me? Frightened? Ha! It's just a big storm, and there's no storm in the world in any time that can get the better of Rainbow Dash!"

"That's the spirit," Astrid smiled. "How are we doin' Fall?"

"Done," Star Fall said, stepping up to the two of them. She had several rolled up spellsheets sticking out of her saddlebags, in easy reach. She looked worriedly at the storm. "We're going to have to make good time. I calculated how long we have with the spells available, and unless we pick up our usual pace by twenty percent we won't have enough to completely exit the Everstorm."

"We can't do this at a run, Fall," Astrid said. "That'll get us killed real quick."

"I know," Star Fall said. "What it means is that I've had to re-plan the route. We're going to have to skim close to the center."

"How close?"

"I want to cut through the eye," Star Fall said.

Astrid stared hard at the white pegasus. Dash looked between them, from the worried and sheepish look of Star Fall to the fearful and nigh-furious glare of Astrid. "What's so bad about that?" she asked.

"The Everstorm has an eye, like a hurricane," Star Fall explained. "It's not large, and it doesn't move, but it's a calm spot."

"Calm my furry tail!" Astrid snapped. "That's where it's the worst. Those who go through the eye come out mad!"

"Mad?" Dash asked.

"Not always!" Star Fall said. "And not necessarily. It's the concentration of magic in the Everstorm's eye that causes the problems. It's denser than anywhere else on the planet, a thousand times what it was even pre-Schism. I've got a dampening spell ready, it should protect us for long enough to cross."

"A dampening spell? Fighting super-concentrated magic with more magic? How likely is that to work?" Astrid screeched.

"It will work!" Star Fall insisted. "The dampening spell is designed to negate magic. I know it won't do that in there, but I've calibrated it to be strong enough that while we'll still get a lot of magic leakage, it won't be enough to make us sick. Look, this is the only way! If we don't cut through the eye we will run out of protection before we reach the other side."

Astrid just shook her head. "This is nuts, Fall. We can't do this."

"We have to," Star Fall reiterated.

"Hey, guys," Dash said, catching both of their attentions. "If Star says this is the only way, I'm kinda going to believe her. I mean, who's the egghead here, her or us?"

Astrid sighed. "You're right. Fine. But this plan freaks me out."

"What?" Dash said, nudging the Griffin. "Is big, bad Astrid afraid of a little storm?"

"This Storm? Yes." Astrid said. "Damn right I'm afraid."

"We can't waste any more time," Star Fall said, drawing out one of the spellsheets and laying it on the ground. She put her hoof just above the paper and the designs on it suddenly flared to crimson life. The active spellsheet lifted into the air, hovering in front of Star Fall, magical sigils crawling across its surface in a disturbing spider-walk of ink and light.

"Whoa, freaky," Dash said, watching with wide eyes.

"Stay close," Star Fall warned, then walked to the storm. Dash and Astrid didn't need to be told twice.

***

Calumn couldn't believe how hard the wind hit him the moment he crossed the cloud barrier. He lurched to the side, hooves scrabbling for traction on the ground. Only the rope that connected him to Blaze kept him from being thrown. Blaze kept up a steady pace, forcing Calumn to follow in a blind, stumbling rush. Lightning flashed through the clouds, but all it illuminated were more clouds, making it impossible to even see as far as the end of the rope that tied him to Blaze.

The wind shrieked in his ears, the sound almost forming words at the edge of his perception. He saw shapes in the clouds, enormous faces, gaping maws. A huge dragon's claw swung towards him, and he tried to recoil, only to be pulled along by Blaze's implacable step.

Suddenly the wind and the clouds receded and he was able to see Blaze ahead of him. Blaze stopped and looked back, giving Calumn a lopsided smile. "There we go," he said.

"What? Are we through?" Calumn gasped. He had no idea how long they'd been walking, but his legs shook as if he'd run a marathon.

"Through? Nope. Not even close. We've just convinced the Storm we won't be scared off by a little shoving and screaming," Blaze said. "Now comes the hard part."

"That was the easy part?"

"Well, yeah. If it was just a little bad weather, the Everstorm wouldn't be much of a barrier between the sunlands and the nightlands, now would it? We'd all just wear ponchos and cross whenever we liked."

"What... what happens now?" Calumn asked.

Blaze shrugged. "No idea! That's the fun of it, it's a new adventure every time you cross!"

"How do you know how to cross it, then?"

"The Storm has habits," Blaze explained. "You never know what's going to be where, but if you know the signs you can tell when you're coming up on it. Every now and then the Storm does something new, and then it's a bit of trial-and-error until someone gets it right and survives long enough to share the news."

"If it all moves around, then there are no landmarks, right? How do you even navigate in this?"

"Oh, that's my Special Talent. I find paths. I may take a twisty-turny route, but I'm always on the right path to where I want to go. Most of us guides have something to help us, and a big secret of the business is to find the eye and then use it to orient yourself."

"The eye? That's a bad place to be, right? I heard that somewhere."

"Bad place to be, but it's the only stable landmark in the entire Storm. Guides never go in, but you can see it from a ways away. Why do you think this is the only place in the whole wide Everstorm where you can get passage through? The eye makes it possible. We'll be heading towards it now, then we'll swing around it and head out the other side of the Storm."

"Sounds good," Calumn said, getting his breath back. "Nice of the Everstorm to give us a breather like this."

"Oh, it's not," Blaze said, grinning. "I've just been distracting you so you don't look around too much. By the way, whatever you do? Don't turn around."

Calumn wisely accepted that advice and began to follow Blaze into the depths of the Storm. They walked in silence for a while, then the quality of their hoofsteps changed, dirt giving way to a more solid crunching sound. Calumn looked down, and at first he thought he was stepping on fallen branches. Then he noticed the particular shapes and colors of what he had mistaken for twigs and branches. Bones. He was walking on a field of bones.

"Is this real?" he asked.

Blaze looked at him. "How important is it for you to know?"

Calumn considered that before shaking his head. "Not really."

"Then this is the fakeiest fake that has ever been faked."

"Good to know," Calumn said.

It was a while later, he had no idea how long, but they were still walking on bones, that he spotted the shapes moving in the swirling mists. He dismissed them at first, remembering the warnings about not trusting what he saw. When the became more distinct he found he was having a real hard time sticking to that advice. They were skulls. Pony, Griffin, Dog, he even thought he spotted a Changeling skull, empty eye sockets staring back at him.

"Get down!" Blaze shouted, and Calumn wasted no time in dropping to the bone-strewn ground. He looked up as Blaze bucked a floating unicorn skull that had to have been right behind Calumn's head. The skull shattered into a flurry of ashes that scattered in the wind.

"Okay, so those things are real," Calumn said, climbing to his hooves.

"Sorta," Blaze said, giving a wary eye to the many skulls that were floating around them, half hidden by the Storm's mist. "They're not all real. Some of them are, and they'll bite you pretty bad if you don't watch out for them. They're not usually a big problem. What you've really got to watch out for is..."

"Help!" The cry was faint, but close.

Blaze shuddered. "Yeah, that."

"Help me!" the plea came again.

Calumn felt a chill settle into his heart. He knew that voice. "Mom?"

"Please! Please help me!"

What was Strongheart's mother doing here? Had she heard about his 'desertion' and then run off to try to find him on the other side of the Everstorm? It would be just like her, unable to live without her son, not thinking through the consequences. She had come after him, and now she was trapped in the Storm. Calumn twisted about, trying to identify the source of the cries. "Mom!" he shouted. "Mom I'm here! Where are you!"

"No, come on Strongheart, remember where you are!" Blaze said, putting a hoof on Calumn's shoulder.

"My mom's out there!" he said, breathing hard and shrugging the hoof away. "We've got to go get her!"

"Calumn! Calumn I'm here, I need help!" His mother cried out. He knew where she was now. He could almost make her out, faint in the mists. He bounded towards her, brought up short by the rope tying him to Blaze. He turned on the earth pony, snarling, but his anger died when he saw the expression on the green pony's face. He was afraid, and desperately saying something over and over.

"Illusion! It's in your head, Strongheart! It's only in your head!" Blaze said, his words reaching Calumn in a rush.

"Strongheart," Calumn said, forcing himself to calm. The cries had called him Calumn. While Strongheart's mother knew, in a distant and locked away part of her mind, that he was a Changeling, she would never call him by his true name. "I believed it," he said. "I knew it had to be an illusion, but I still believed it."

Blaze let out a heavy breath. "Yeah. The Storm gets into your head. Makes you think all sorts of things."

"You... you heard something too."

Blaze nodded. "We all have things we care about. People we'd do anything to save. Some of the things you see in the Storm, you won't just believe them, you'll want to believe them. You did real well being able to shake it off that quickly your first time. There's a trick to that, makes it easier to shrug off. Not something for a pony who just wants to make the trip twice, though."

"It's alright," Calumn said. "I'm familiar with illusions, and with wanting to believe. I won't let it get me again."

"Don't make too many promises," Blaze said. "Come on, the sooner we get out of the bonefields, the quicker we get to the crazy stuff."

They walked for another interminable length of time, kicking a few of the disembodied skulls that got to close, ignoring any cries. The illusory sounds weren't always cries for help. Calumn heard the roar of a dragon, the screams of an infant, the buzzing of a Changeling in major distress, a great groaning noise that made it feel as if the earth were coming apart, and most disturbingly the sound of hoofsteps following them. He was beginning to think frightening sounds were all that they'd encounter when Blaze stopped so suddenly Calumn ran into the back of him.

"Oh, this ain't good," Blaze quipped, staring up. Calumn followed his gaze and quailed. An enormous beast stood before them, like some gargantuan prehistoric bear rearing over a hundred meters into the air. It sported two impossibly large teeth that hung from its upper jaw, each the height of a two story building, and while the rest of its teeth were nowhere near the same size, they were all wickedly sharp. Its claws were longer than a bus, and attached to that immense body they were probably strong enough to rip a mountain to shreds. It looked almost translucent, its deep purple fur sparkled and glinted as if it were a window to a cosmos of stars. This was a creature out of folklore and fairytale. An Ursa Major.

Someone had crucified it.

"Luna's dark majesty," Calumn breathed. "Tell me this is another illusion."

"Sorry," Blaze said. "Wish I could. I really, really do."

Calumn stared up at the ancient magical bear as it hung from impaled paws, nailed into an immense stone X so that its hind legs dangled ten meters from the ground. Its empty, sightless eyes stared down at them, mouth open in a roar that had long ago died in its throat.

"I take it this is a bad sign?" Calumn asked when he could pull his attention away from the murdered behemoth.

"Maybe," Blaze said. "I hope not. I've only encountered this thing twice before, though, and both times. Well, okay, it wasn't good. But, hey! Maybe this time we'll get lucky and it won't oh crap there it goes."

Vines had sprouted from the earth where the legs of the cross stood, winding their way with supernatural speed up the stone edifice.

"What is that?" Calumn asked quietly as he watched the vines begin to twine around the dead beast's body. He even saw shoots of the vine diving into the wounds where the beast was nailed to the cross and he could swear he saw it continuing to grow under the Ursa's skin.

"It's a warning sign," Blaze said. "Telling us that we're not alone in the Storm, and that someone is being a naughty little scamp and using magic to brute-force their way through, instead of sucking it up and dealing with it like a nice little mortal."

"What?"

"Come on, a strong enough unicorn with a Barrier or Magic Talent can probably waltz through most of what the Everstorm throws at them. It sucks, and is totally unfair to us hornless ones, but there you have it. So the Storm responds by bringing out the big guns. Hey, it evens it out a bit, but, you know, everyone else who's crossing the Storm at the same time gets hit with the anti-magic stick too. Which sometimes involves enormous zombie bears."

"Oh great, and we're standing around talking about it while it's coming to life."

"Well, I find exposition is really great in these situations, I mean it prevents us from having to use precious oxygen explaining things while the big zombie bear is on our asses, which is a good thing. Also, there's the bladder-related purposes."

"Bladder related purposes?"

"Yeah, have you ever tried to pee yourself while running at a full gallop? Mess-y, let me tell you. I always find it's best to let go before going on a fear-fuelled mad dash, and exposition provides a great distraction."

"Wait, you?"

"Yup! Done now, lets go!" Blaze took off, and Calumn had no choice but to follow. Behind them came the sound of stone shattering and something impossibly large hitting the ground, creating a minor earthquake that nearly made them lose their footing.

Calumn looked behind them, and only held on to his water by the severest effort of will. "Damn it! Give me a chance next time too, will you!"

Blaze laughed as they ran into the deep mists. "Will do buddy, will do!"

***

"This is really, really bizarre," Rainbow Dash said, looking up at the ground. They were walking on what felt like glass, turned upside down and at an angle to the world and high up in the air. "And this if for real? Not some crazy illusion?"

"Nope," Astrid said. "This part's legit."

"Huh," Dash said, then shrugged. She'd seen worse. When Discord had twisted the hedge maze it'd taken on weirder shapes than this.

"We're nearly at the eye," Star Fall said. "We should transition back to standard alignment before then, but watch out, it'll come up suddenly."

A few steps farther and they were indeed on solid ground once more, and Dash could make out a thinning in the clouds ahead. "I think I see it," she said.

Astrid squinted. "If you do, your eyes are better than mine. All I see are more clouds."

As they got closer, it became more apparant to Dash that the clouds were really thinning ahead, revealing a night sky, and something else. "Is that a city?"

Star Fall looked at Dash. "You really can see that well, can't you? Yes, the eye of the Everstorm is over a city. They say it's been perfectly preserved by the magic at the eye, that nothing has changed in over eight hundred years."

"It looks ruined," Dash said, squinting to catch more details as the clouds began to give way.

"It was between the two armies that fought here," Star Fall said, finally able to see through the clouds herself. "The city got hit hard, and then even harder when Nightmare Umbra's power was sealed. It's supposed to have been frozen in time after that, untouched by the elements, unaltered by the hooves of any pony. Some legends say that the Shadowed Alicorn makes her lair in that city, forever in the midst of her power, unable to retake it."

Eventually they stood on the edge of the eye, the clouds drifting around them, the city laid out in front of them. It took up most of the eye, tall buildings, meandering streets. It looked like Fillydelphia or Manehattan to Dash. A young metropolis, but cut down before it could become truly great.

Star Fall pulled out another spellsheet, charging it and bringing it up in front of them. Dash went cold as the spell took hold. It made her feel weak and heavy, every bone and joint reminding her that she'd done a major faceplant a week ago. Fatigue crashed down on her and all she wanted to do was crawl onto a cloud and get some sleep. Star Fall herself swayed drunkenly before Astrid steadied her. "I'm okay," she said. "Dampening spell's just making me feel it is all."

"Well, let's get this done," Astrid sighed, and they stepped fully into the eye.

Immediately Dash felt better. She felt better than better. She felt great! She felt like she could do a dozen Sonic Rainbooms in a row! Hay, why stop at a dozen? She felt so good she could do a hundred! Put on an airshow for the whole planet! Go down in the history books! Make the Wonderbolts for sure! Why, if she went fast enough around the planet she could maybe start spinning it backwards and reverse time that way! Yeah! That totally made sense!

"Guys," she said. "I'm feelin' kinda weird right now."

Astrid was clutching at her head. "Is that thing working, Fall?" she groaned.

Star Fall was shaking. "Yes. Yes it's working. We're not going insane from magic overload. We're just feeling like crap. That's good."

"This was a great plan, Fall," Astrid groused. "If I upchuck I'm aiming for you."

"Let's just get moving," Star Fall said, and began trotting forward, both of her companions sticking to her sides.

Dash wasn't feeling bad, and as long as she didn't give in to the impulse to try circumnavigating the globe in ten seconds flat she was fine. So while the other two stumbled along she took in the sights of this ruined city.

Buildings were smashed everywhere, scorch marks from spell blasts or explosives evident on every piece of broken masonry or charred wood. She could still make out some of the signs for shops or streets. They weren't quite Equestrian, but they were close enough that it definitely wasn't Solar. They went down one of the main avenues of the city, directed by Star's magic. The buildings looked more intact towards the center of the city, and Dash could make out a large structure with a clock tower that had to be city hall. They cut down another street before they could get closer.

"We're getting close to the center," Star Fall said, sweat dripping from her coat. "We're not going straight through, but cutting it kinda close. Don't stop for anything, okay?"

Astrid didn't reply, too focused about putting one foot in front of the other, and Dash just nodded. They plodded on, Dash looking as much as she dared for another glimpse of that town hall. She wanted to know what the name of this place was. They crossed another major avenue, and she looked towards the center of town. Then she stumbled and nearly fell. It wasn't the city hall, but she knew where this was now.

There, in an open circle that the street split around, was a clearing, like a small park. In the park was a pedestal with a statue, obviously a memorial of some kind. Behind the statue was a tree. Not an ordinary tree, but a tree that had been carved into a building, still alive. A tree she knew very well. The Golden Oak Library.

This was Ponyville.

"Star," she said, bringing the other pony up short. "We have to take a closer look at that," she pointed at the house tree.

"Dash, we can't spare any time to sightsee."

"No, Star, you don't understand. This is Ponyville! This city, it's my home! And that's where my friend Twilight Sparkle lived! Right there!"

Star Fall looked at the library, her eyes going wide. There was blood in her irises. "That's her memorial, that's her statue," she breathed.

Dash took a longer look at the statue, and he found it was true. The statue was a perfect replica of Twilight in stone. She was looking up, a pile of books under one hoof, smiling in that absentminded way she did when she was lost in her thoughts. The Element of Magic rested on her head, gleaming in the starlight.

"Fall! I don't care how bad your nerd-crush on this dead unicorn is, we can't stop!" Astrid said, tears actually falling from her eyes at the pain she was in.

Star Fall had to visibly force herself to look away from the statue. "No we can't. Dash, I'm sorry, we have to go, please!"

Dash nodded, reluctantly. "I can come back," she said. "We can figure out a way to come back."

"Maybe, sure," Star Fall said, and started walking again.

They walked in silence the rest of the way out of the eye. Dash couldn't help but glance back every few steps. Hoping to catch another glimpse of that tree, and of home.

***

"I think we lost him," Calumn gasped out as he and Blaze stood panting.

"Don't be so sure," Blaze said, grinning. "Those giant zombie bears are sneaky bastards. There could be one behind every shrub or bush we pass!"

Calumn snickered, holding a stitch in his side. "When that chasm opened up in front of us I thought we were screwed."

Blaze grinned. "Yeah, you were all like 'it's impossible, we're going to die!'"

"Then you shout 'gravity's for suckers' and just run across!" Calumn shook with wheezing laughter. "How did you know it was an illusion anyway?"

Blaze shrugged. "Didn't. But when you've got a rampaging magic-fuelled undead Ursa on one side and the opportunity to imitate a lawn dart on the other, well, I'd go for lawn darts every time."

Calumn spent the next minute catching his breath before looking around. "So, how lost are we now?"

"Not very," Blaze said. "You didn't notice, but we skimmed the eye during our run there. I think it's why the Ursa's not on our asses anymore. It won't get too close to that place."

"So we're on our way out?"

Blaze nodded. "Yup. Not too much farther now."

"Well, the sooner the better, right? And please don't tell me it gets worse from here."

"After that chase? I don't want to know what worse would be like."

Calumn nodded in agreement. The quality of the storm had changed. They had left the field of bones far behind, and were now walking through the skeletal remains of trees. The forest had died long ago, when the Everstorm had cut off the sunlight, but the magic of the Storm had kept the trees from falling and rotting. Now they stretched out bare branches that glowed with strange lights and dripped with a silvery liquid that evaporated before it could touch the ground. Calumn didn't need to be told not to let any of that liquid touch him.

They plodded through the trees, exhausted from their escape, but wary of the constant dangers of the Everstorm. Blaze kept taking turns, sometimes seeming to double back on himself. Calumn followed closely, and not just because they were tied together. The Everstorm had already proven that it could get into his head, make him see things that weren't there and think things he didn't want to. He knew when to let the experts have full control, and Blaze was definitely the expert here.

He was still hearing things, which wasn't good. He kept hearing the hoofsteps behind them, following, and the intermittent cries for help just out of sight. During the escape from the Ursa he'd even seen things. Strongheart's mother, Director Straff, even some of his hive-mates that he hadn't thought about in years. It was getting to the point where he couldn't trust anything he wasn't actually touching.

Which was why he ignored the voices when he first heard them. There were three of them, distinct and not from someone he had ever heard before. They were having some kind of an argument. Calumn shook his head. "Well, at least they aren't crying for help," he muttered.

Blaze stopped and looked at him, frowning. "Wait, you're hearing that too?"

Calumn nodded. "Yes. I'm hearing three people arguing about something."

"People you know?"

"No. No one I recognize."

Blaze turned towards the sound. "We should go check it out."

Calumn frowned at him. "I thought you said we should ignore this stuff."

"Yeah, but I'm hearing what you are, and it's no one I know either. That's not what the Storm usually does. These are probably other travellers, like us. They might not know that there's a unicorn pushing their way through. They could be in danger!"

Calumn paused, then nodded. The Storm was bad enough on its own. He wouldn't want to let others walk into the claws of that Ursa if he could have prevented it. "Let's go warn them."

They walked closer, careful of traps or tricks, and the voices became more distinct. They were speaking Solar, which Calumn was fully fluent in, and he listened carefully as they approached.

"...Can't just ignore that! It was Ponyville!" One voice said. This voice was female, but rough with an almost adolescent edge to it. He'd heard tones like that before, and mentally began constructing an image of the voice's owner as a tomboyish mare.

"I'm not ignoring it, Dash, I just don't think there's any way to go back soon. It nearly killed us to go through, and the magic was corroding the dampening spell faster than I had anticipated. We'd need to do a lot of study before we could even think of going back in there," said a second voice, and Calumn mentally assigned the name 'Dash' to the first voice. This one was also female, and refined, educated, but not accented like the Kingdom's nobility would be. A commoner who managed to get into a good school, then.

"Look, I get that you're worried, but we can just get stronger stuff, right? Bigger dampening spells, or whatever?" Dash said.

"I don't know if there are any stronger dampening spells," the second voice said. The talk of dampening spells made Calumn think that this might be the unicorn Blaze was talking about, which meant that she'd need a talking to about endangering others. "Professor Shine might know, but she doesn't like me crossing the Everstorm anyway, there's no way she'd allow an expedition into the eye."

Calumn recognized that name. Professor Twinkle Shine was the strongest Magic Talent in the Solar Kingdom, and the RIA had devoted a lot of time and effort to discovering as much about her as possible. She was the personal advisor to the Royalty, a lecturer at the capitol's university, head of a dozen research efforts and on the cutting edge of magical knowledge and practice. The fact that this mare talked so casually about her indicated a close relationship.

"I just, argh!" Dash snarled. "It was so close, Star! Just a few hundred feet away! You say all the records are missing, but I bet they still exist in there. We can find out the truth about what happened! We can figure out why I'm here! Don't you want to know what really happened eight hundred years ago?"

"Of course I do!" the second voice, Star, replied. "Of course I want to know, but that place is dangerous! We could have died there. We would have if we'd spent any longer than we did. We can't go back until we know how to make it safe. That will take time, and I can't even guess how long."

"She's right, Dash," a third voice said, and Calumn's steps faltered. That voice, strong, clear, with the pitch and piercing tone that only one species had, belonged to a Griffin. This was more serious than he'd imagined. If they were travelling with a Griffin and personally acquainted with Twinkle Shine, they were connected directly to the Crown.

They crested a small hill, and he got his first look at the owners of those voices. A pair of Pegasi and a Griffin. The lack of a unicorn confused him for a moment, even though there was an obviously magical sheet of paper floating in front of them, but that confusion was shoved aside when he focused on the blue pegasus. Rainbow mane, cloud and lightning bolt Glyph. This was his target.

The mares stopped arguing when they saw the two stallions. "Who are these guys?" Dash asked. The Griffin stepped protectively in front of the white pegasus, wings flaring slightly.

Blaze grinned and started trotting down the hill, brought up short as Calumn refused to move with him. "Hey, people!" Blaze said in very good Solar. "We're just passing through the Storm, just like you, and, well, there's a bit of a problem."

"Yeah, what kind?" the Griffin asked, eyeing the green pony imperiously.

"Some unicorn's trying to magic their way through the Storm, it's gotten the place all angry and violent," Blaze said.

"We'll keep an eye out," the Griffin said.

"Hey, guys, what's the problem?" Dash asked, confused by the Griffin's standoffishness.

"The problem is I don't like strange ponies coming up to me in the middle of the Everstorm," the Griffin growled.

"Okay, well, I'm Trail Blazer, but you can call me Blaze, and this is Strongheart. See, now we're not strangers, we're acquaintances!" Blaze said.

Calumn considered his options. He could try to infiltrate this group, to go with them, but his orders were for Dash specifically. If he managed to get her now, then his mission would be done and he could return to Strongheart's mother before she learned of his 'desertion'. On the other hoof, it was risky. He had a lot of stored energy, but he'd need to control everyone here, which would be draining, and if he wasn't careful it risked sending the Griffin into a rage.

"I'm Rainbow Dash," Dash said.

"Dash, don't give him our names," the Griffin warned. "We don't know anything about these ponies."

His orders were to secure the information first, his safety second and Dash third. That would point to infiltration over acquisition, but the Director had also said to be bold, that they didn't have a lot of time, and that meant acting now. He couldn't afford to be indecisive, the suspicion from the Griffin was shrinking his opportunities to infiltrate, and Blaze was probably only making her more aggressive.

"Not a problem," Blaze said cheerfully. "You can be just familiar faces then. Like people I see at the mall when I shop for cardboard boxes to build forts out of. That's a kind of acquaintance, except you don't know their name, you just nod to them in total silence as you pass by. Unless you're having a good day, then you smile and they smile back. Or punch you in the mouth."

Calumn made his decision and leapt on the confusion Blaze's inane comment caused, his eyes flaring green as he directed his magic into the minds of all the ponies and the Griffin. It sank in, hooking into their psyches and calming emotions, opening them to whatever suggestion he wished to implant. Except for the white pegasus, Star, who shook her head and shattered his mental link with an exertion of will that made his eyes go wide.

"What are you?" Star asked in confusion, staring at Calumn. "Changeling!" she cried.

The Griffin snapped out of his control, eyes narrowing and wings flaring wide as she shrieked a battle cry to the storm-swirled skies. Calumn dropped his mind-magic, focusing on the Griffin. He had to take her out before she reached him or he was dead. A ghost-image of his crooked horn appeared as he charged as much power as he dared into it, ready to unleash a burst of power that would burn a hole through her body.

Blaze turned, leaping at him. "No! Don't!" he cried out, but too late.

A bolt of magenta lightning dropped from the sky, grounding into Calumn's charged horn. His Strongheart disguise fell away as the power backwashed into him, burning through his limbs, setting his lungs on fire and disintegrating the rope that bound him to Blaze. He couldn't scream, but he wanted to. He dropped to the ground, staring out at what was happening but unable to move in the slightest. He wasn't dead, but every last ounce of power had been stripped from him, torn out by the magic of the Everstorm. He wouldn't last more than a day like this.

More blasts of lightning in every color started to fall around them. The Griffin screeched in anger, but backed off, joining the two Pegasi as they hurried off into the Storm, chased by lightning and thunder. He watched them go, hoping that they would make it out of the Everstorm.

A mouth clamped down on one of his legs and began to drag him. He couldn't turn his head to see, but he knew that Blaze was pulling him out of the lightning blasts. It was a foolish thing to do. He should have just gone and saved himself. Now he was putting himself in danger for someone who had lied to him, used him. He tried to tell Blaze to leave him and go, but all he got out was a strangled cough.

"Hey! You're still kicking," Blaze said, his voice muffled by the leg he had in his mouth. "You Changelings must be pretty tough."

More magical lightning fell around them, blasting the glowing trees and throwing up dirt. Blaze threw himself over Calumn, shielding him from the debris. The Changeling found himself hacking up a choked, coughing laughter at the sheer absurdity of it. He was even feeling a trickle of emotion from the green pony. Not enough to save him, and not love, but friendship and caring all the same. He'd only met this pony hours before, and already he felt strongly enough to risk himself to save Calumn.

"Is that a laugh?" Blaze asked. "Whew! I thought I was just stating the obvious, but if I'm making jokes I don't even know I'm making, then everything's gotta be lookin' up!"

A booted foot slammed into Blaze, throwing him off Calumn. The Changeling managed to turn his head to see what had happened, and saw Blaze lying on his side, with Silas stalking towards him. The Diamond Dog looked a little worse for wear, blood matted the fur on one side of his face and his coat was ripped, showing hastily bandaged slashes across his arms and torso. He wore heavy boots studded with metal that sounded like hooves on the ground as he walked.

"Drunkard pony thought he could steal from Silas and get away with it," the Dog snarled. "Drunkard pony sees that he is wrong, yes?"

"I know we call it poaching, but it's technically not theft to take another guide's client," Blaze said, trying to get up.

Silas kicked him in the side, knocking Blaze back to the ground. "I don't care about your stupid word games!" he snapped, kicking the downed pony again. "You cost Silas, and you will pay for that."

"Coin or credit?" Blaze asked, and Silas kicked him again, then pulled out a long, wickedly sharp knife. "Well, okay, but I gotta warn you all I carry is Republican Express," Blaze wheezed, coughing up a mouthful of blood. Lightning still flashed through the air, but it had moved off, punctuating their banter with bursts of thunder.

"Drunkard pony thinks he is funny," Silas rasped. He looked over at Calumn's still form. "Maybe drunkard pony did Silas a favor. The Changeling would have made Silas take him through the Storm and not paid at all."

"Hey, yeah! I bet it makes up for the whole 'stole your client' thing," Blaze offered, giving the Dog a bloody grin.

Silas shook his head, smiling back in a way that was absolutely not friendly. "Insults are insults, pony. I have my pride to consider. But instead of making it slow, I am going to just slit your throat. It will be quick. Yes."

"That's really nice of you," Blaze said. "But have you considered, maybe, not slitting my throat? How about just robbing us and leaving us for dead? That always works out!"

"You were already making a bad name for me, drunkard pony. I can't lose more clients because of the stories you tell. Now lie still, pony," Silas kicked Blaze several more times, until his attempts to get away grew weak. "It will feel cold and then it won't feel at all," he knelt on Blaze's struggling form, bringing the knife up.

Calumn threw himself at the Diamond Dog. He was weak, too weak to fight, and every motion was agony, but he just couldn't let Blaze die. It was with a shock that he realized he was feeling friendship too. Somehow, in only a few hours, Blaze had become his friend, a friend he was willing to sacrifice himself to protect. It filled him with the strength to push away the pain and the weakness, to stand up and do something. It was like magic.

He hit Silas and the two rolled onto the ground, entangled. Calumn didn't have the strength to do much more, but he knew at least one way to protect Blaze. He took the power that Blaze's friendship had given him and charged it into his horn, then touched that horn to Silas's snout. The Dog's eyes went wide and Calumn gave him a fanged grin.

The bolt of blue lightning slammed into both of them, throwing Calumn through the air to crash on his side in the dirt. He couldn't hear, couldn't see, couldn't think for a long time. Then his senses started coming back to him, and he wondered at the fact that he was still alive. And he was moving. He blinked and saw Blaze's grinning, bloody face as the pony held the end of a rope in his teeth, the rest of it wrapped around Calumn.

Blaze set down the rope. "Well, look whose back among us!" he said. "That was super-duper cool what you did back there. I mean, wow! I was going to make a comment about 'hot dogs', but, honestly? I'm really not that hungry."

Calumn jerked as a wheezing laugh forced its way out of him. "Save...self," he managed to choke out.

"What?" Blaze said, turning his head and perking up an ear. "I can't hear that over the sound of how cool you are!"

"Save... yourself," Calumn said. "Leave me...here."

"Huh, that sounds like self-sacrifice talk to me," Blaze said. "I thought Changelings didn't do self-sacrifice. Or last-minute heroics. Or laugh at dumb jokes. Or, well, a lot of things that I'm seeing from you right now."

Calumn managed to shake his head. "Doesn't... matter. I'm... tapped out. Completely. No love. Won't make it."

Blaze frowned at that. "That's not good. We're right at the Everstorm border now. Just half an hour and then we'll be through. Can you make it that far?"

Calumn shook his head. "No... point. Won't live... few hours... at most."

"Aw, come on, I love you, man!" Blaze said, nuzzling Calumn.

"Not... same," Calumn said, though it had felt good. "Friendship... not same. Not yet. Gives me... time. But not enough."

Blaze stared at him, determination shining in his eyes. "But if you had love, you could make it?" Calumn nodded. "Can you still do that transformation thing?"

"Yes," Calumn said. "But I need ... model. Time to... copy... personality. Can't just do it to anyone."

"Don't worry about that," Blaze said, awkwardly picking Calumn up and setting him across his back. He tied the rope around himself, securing the Changeling tightly. "Just stay with me until we're clear of the Storm, alright? Can you do that?" Calumn could only nod, and Blaze started running.

Calumn lost all sense of time and place after that, falling into a half-conscious state where he was barely aware of them hitting the cloud-wall of the Everstorm. The battering winds, the shrieking sounds, the illusory beasts, all of it passed him by in a blur. He could hear his heartbeat, and Blaze's. His was growing weaker, slowing down. It wouldn't be long before it stopped altogether.

He hit the ground, and was barely aware of it. A hoof slapped at his face, drawing his focus outward once more. Blaze was shouting at him, holding up a picture, a photo. He focused on the green pony.

"Come on, Strongheart! You've got to keep it together! Now look at this picture! Use it as a model! Come on, buddy, I know you can do this!" Blaze was frantic, shaking Calumn and shoving the picture in his face. The Changeling just wanted to close his eyes and let death take him. He was so weak, so tired. But Blaze was insistent, so he looked at the picture. A pretty purple earth pony filly smiled at the camera, showing off her flank and the Talent Glyph that proclaimed her ability at making others laugh. With a grunt of effort and a burst of green fire he internalized the model and shifted form.

Blaze looked at him, then closed his eyes for a long moment, breathing heavily. Finally, he opened his yellow eyes again, and there were tears glistening in them. He smiled down at Calumn, not a manic grin, but a tender, warm smile. "Holly," he said, and love flowed into Calumn, making him gasp. "Hey, now. Take it easy," Blaze said, and lay down next to Calumn, curling up around his now smaller form. "You've got to rest, okay?"

"Blaze..." Calumn began, but Blaze silenced the Changeling with a hoof.

"Shhh. No talking, alright? Just rest. Get better. I'll be here. As long as it takes. I'll be here," he hugged Calumn close, nuzzling softly. Calumn relaxed into him, feeling the love begin its work within him. He didn't feel right with this, but it was saving his life, and he figured he could talk it out with Blaze later. For now he just closed his eyes, basking in the warm love, and slept.

Chapter 6: Lies and Camouflage

Taking the maxim of 'testing to destruction' to heart was, perhaps, not my best idea. Yet, after witnessing their shattering at the hooves of Nightmare Moon and subsequent reconstitution, I was filled with an absolute certainty that the physical Elements were themselves indestructible. The very idea was absurd ... and, perhaps foolishly, I set out to prove it wrong.

The results were decidedly mixed. I could smash the Element of Magic with a hammer and have it bend and break 1, yet I asked a blacksmith to see if it could be re-forged he found it utterly beyond him to alter it in any way. After a series of experiments I found that it wasn't the physical force that had an effect, but the will of the Element bearers that determined whether the Elements could be damaged or not. If a bearer wanted them damaged, they were, but if the bearer was not a direct cause of the damage they remained unbreakable by any force brought to bear.

Most interestingly, or perhaps disturbingly, the Elements have been 'broken' several times by powerful villainous forces. Each time they have regenerated, often in response to a re-affirmation of the friendship and principles of bearers who wield them, but the fact that they were broken at all suggests a relationship between the Elements and the enemies they are used against. Or perhaps that my conclusion was wrong, and it is not the bearers that decide when the Elements can be damaged, but the Elements themselves.

1 Please note that the regenerative capacity of the Elements is detailed later in this section, but was well established at the time I carried out this particular experiment.

-From the second section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle, including footnote

Chapter 6: Lies and Camouflage

Lieutenant Hard Boiled strained, sweat breaking out over his face as he stared at the weights set before him. They were set on a black table that looked stark against the pale beige walls of the clinic, and that alone was distracting enough to threaten his concentration, but he forced through it. The copper glow of his magic covered one of the weights, and it wobbled, rattling against the table. He pushed, pulling out all the energy he could, but felt his reserves drying up fast. Finally he gave up, letting the glow of magic fade from around his horn and taking a couple deep breaths. The air in the doctor's office was stifling in its sterility, it always felt like he had to struggle for breath. He figured it was from all the hospitals he had stayed in as a foal.

"You've been letting your exercises slide," Doctor Booth noted, his tone disapproving.

HB gave the other unicorn an apologetic look. "Sorry, Doc. I've been caught up in work is all."

Dr. Booth sighed. "You can't neglect your exercises, Mr. Boiled. Your horn may seem strong now, but we can't rule out the possibility of a relapse. A possibility which becomes more likely if you don't keep your telekinesis strong."

"I'm doing two and a half kilos," HB said. "That's pretty good. Most unicorn cops I work with can barely lift two."

"Most of the ponies you work with don't have your condition." The doctor wrote something onto his notepad. "You were capable of three point four kilograms seven years ago. You've lost nearly a full kilogram of telekinetic lift since then. Your neglect of your basic exercises and your overuse of your Talent-specific magic will cause you problems. You know that. Have the headaches been getting worse?"

HB wanted to lie, to say that he was fine. But it would go against everything he was, so he didn't. "Yeah," he admitted. "More frequent, too. Can't sleep with my horn touching the pillow. Working around that's been giving me back problems, and that's been making the headaches worse."

"How about when you're using magic? Are the headaches worse then?" HB nodded. "Is that why you've been putting this checkup off?"

"You're going to tell me to quit using my magic and focus on telekinesis," HB scoffed. "Of course I've been putting this off. I've got a job to do, and I need my magic to do it right."

"There are plenty of earth pony and pegasus detectives," the doctor pointed out.

"None of them are as good as me."

"Isn't that a little arrogant?"

"Look at the arrest records, Doc. I'm ahead by kilometers," HB said. "Look, I know I've been letting it slide, and it's hurting me. How long before it's critical?"

"I can't say," the doctor said.

"I know when you're lying, Doc," HB reminded him.

"Fine," the doctor relented. "Even at this rate of decay, there's no guarantee of a relapse. At most the chances are going to be forty percent. But if you kept up your telekinesis that forty percent would drop to nothing. With average daily use of your telekinetic powers, and assuming the amount of magic use you've reported is accurate, you've got a decade before it should get serious."

"A decade? Sounds like a good buffer."

The doctor shook his head and put down his notepad. "A decade before it gets serious, I said. By serious, I mean you'd have to be hospitalized. The headaches will become more frequent and more powerful. They'll be full-blown migraines in a couple years, if they aren't already. The sensitivity issue will become worse as well, eventually it will get to the point where any contact at all with your horn will be agony. That includes air. A light breeze is going to feel like sandpaper on your brain. Is that something you're looking forward to?"

HB winced. "No."

"Then you'd better start doing your exercises," the doctor said.

"Right. Any way I could do something that takes less time each day?"

Doctor Booth rolled his eyes. "You're not going to lower your use of magic, so no. But there are things you can do that will help. Use your telekinesis whenever possible. Open every door with it, pick up every book or glass or plate. When you write, write with telekinesis, not mouth-writing. Try to carry little things with you wherever you go. So long as you exercise your telekinesis throughout the day, you should find the exercises easier, and therefore quicker, to do."

"Sounds fine," HB said. "You got anything for the headaches?"

The doctor gave him a steady look, disapproval etched in the lines of his face. "You can't just take a pill and ignore this."

"I'm not looking to," HB said. "I'll start doing the exercises again. I promise, okay? I just need something to dull the headaches when they happen."

The doctor wasn't happy about it, but he relented. A promise from Lieutenant Hard Boiled was as good as gold, and he knew it. "The prescription I'm giving you is a strong one. Take them when you know you'll be using a lot of magic, it should reduce the pain to manageable levels. I'm also giving you another prescription for sleeping medication, take it and it should de-sensitize your horn enough for you to get a good night's sleep. Do not 'forget' to take it. A good night's rest is as essential as the exercises in keeping your health up."

HB sighed, but nodded, taking the two forms the doctor floated over to him. After that he left the clinic, heading for the pharmacy a little ways down the street. As he was walking he caught sight of Barry coming towards him, a full satchel thumping at his side. The earth pony Detective was working the tunnel-murder case with him, and HB had given him the unenviable task of digging up all the background on the area and the mysterious blue mare that he could find. The excited skip to his trot meant that he had found something.

"Lieutenant!" Barry said, coming up next to him. "I've got something."

"No, really?" HB grumbled, walking to the pharmacy.

"Yeah, really," Barry said without irony. "It was kinda deep in the records, but I think you're gonna want to see this."

"I'm sure I will," HB said. "I've got to grab some stuff here. Why don't you get us a seat at the coffee joint, we can talk about it over lunch."

"Sure thing!" Barry said, then cantered off to do just that.

HB shook his head at the other pony's enthusiasm, then went in and ordered his drugs. The pharmacist said it would take an hour to get it all ready, which suited HB just fine. An hour for lunch then he could start popping those anti-headache pills. He never understood why they couldn't just toss it all in a bottle right then and there, but his Talent was Finding Truth, not Bottling Pills, so he couldn't really complain.

When he got into the coffee shop Barry had already taken a little booth by a window, two steaming cups of overpriced caffeine sitting in front of him. It was a little cramped as HB slid himself in opposite his fellow detective, but the smell of the coffee overrode the discomfort of the seat.

"Damn, Barry, is this the good stuff?" HB asked, lifting the cup telekinetically and sipping. It wasn't done how he usually liked it. Which was black and burnt and hot enough to wake him up from a poor night's sleep, but even he could still tell it was expensive.

"Yes, sir," Barry said. "Got a taste for it while I was at walking the beat, never got used to the coffee at the office."

"How much of your paycheck do you go through a week for this stuff?"

"I got a discount card," Barry grinned.

"Tell me what you've found," HB said.

Barry reached into his satchel and pulled out a photo. "Take a look." It was a picture of another picture, a painting of a blue pegasus mare with a rainbow mane and a distinctive Glyph. It was a fanciful scene, with the pegasus zooming out of some sort of rainbow explosion with one of the mythical cloud cities in the background.

HB whistled as he pulled the picture towards him. "Nice job. So she's done some modeling. Not as curvy as they usually like, but she's definitely got the colors for it. Did you get the name of the artist? We should question him or her as soon as possible."

"I did, but, and you're not going to believe this, that's a Reinbrandt original," Barry said, clearly excited.

HB gave Barry a flat look. "I'm not big in the artist scene, Barry. I don't know that pony."

"You know his work," Barry insisted. "We've got a mural based on his 'Night Watch' back at HQ."

"That's been there for longer than I have," HB mused.

"The painting's been around for longer than you've been alive," Barry said. "So's this one. It's a four-hundred year old painting that's hanging in the Library of the Senate right now."

"Four hundred years?"

"Yeah, I got some history on it. Apparently it's based on old pre-Schism legends. I dug a little more and I found this," he pulled out a colorful book that had multicolored pegasus on its cover, which was titled 'The Loyalty of Rainbows'.

"This is a foal's book," HB pointed out.

"Yeah, but it's a retelling of the story that Reinbrandt used to make that painting. It's just a fairy tale to us, but there's a lot of serious scholarship on this one. I hit the college archives and found sketches and descriptions of this same mare. Colors, size, Glyph, all of it matched."

"And you think, what? That this story-book character has somehow come to life and murdered a pony?" HB asked, frowning at the items Barry had laid in front of him.

"No, not really," Barry said, leaning in and lowering his voice. "No one could do what she did, right? Had to be some sort of magic giving her a boost. Well, if they're going to do that they might as well also change her appearance, right? Make her impossible to identify."

HB nodded, similarly keeping his voice low. "That's a good point. Illusions don’t usually hold up under direct contact, though. She got hit enough that any illusion spell should have failed."

"What if it wasn't illusion?" Barry pointed out. "What if it was just an elaborate dye job? You can even cover up Glyphs if you're careful about it. I've seen crooks do that before."

"I have too," HB mused, his estimation of Barry's abilities going up a notch. "That just leaves us at square one, though."

"I don't think so," Barry said. "I had to dig to find out all of this. You wouldn't know this specific image from the story book, and unless you know what you're looking for the college archives are kind of a mess. I think that someone else was reading the same stories I was. I think they were doing something in that tunnel that got James Bay killed, then they panicked when those two officers showed up and since whoever she is was already blue, they just slapped on a mane-dye spell and a Glyph cover, then charged her up and sent her out."

"You're assuming she was already blue because of the feathers," HB said.

Barry nodded. "Forensics said they aren't dyed, I checked. Hoof prints in the blood match the bruises on Officer Forrest, too."

HB had already known that, and he nodded. "Did you pull a list of who's been looking at those archives? Maybe been in to see that Reinbrandt?"

"I did," Barry said. "No way to tell with the Reinbrandt, it's on public display, but the archives log everything. I pulled the names, and while I didn't find anybody researching our mystery mare, I did get one that struck a bell," he reached into the satchel again and pulled out a list of names and dates, and a building permit. "This is the names I got, everyone who's been researching pre-Schism legends in the past year. This other thing is a permit application to do construction on the grounds where we found the tunnel."

HB recognized the permit application, it had been one of the clues that had pointed him towards Cash's digging. "James Bay," he said, seeing where Barry had highlighted the names. "The victim."

"There's more," Barry said, nearly bouncing in his seat from excitement. "Take a look, this'll blow your socks off," he pulled out a map and laid it over the files and photos. It was a copy of something ancient, the kind of map you'd see in an adventure movie about searching for lost treasure or some hidden tomb. He recognized some of the geography as being the area around Orion City.

"What am I looking for?" he asked.

"Here," Barry said, poking a hoof at the map. There were a mess of squiggles and strange shapes that looked like clouds about the area. "This is a map from just after the Schism, maybe fifty years. James Bay had several copies made. This, right here, is where a cloud-city supposedly fell out of the sky."

"A cloud-city? More mythology?" HB asked, sipping from his overpriced coffee.

"Yeah, but listen, there's evidence that these things actually existed, pre-Schism. While I was looking into this I ran into some research that says some of the clouds they used for these cities weren't exactly normal. They were more solid, even for ponies like you or me. Solid enough to put stuff on them. When they fell they actually had an impact, and they stuck around for a long while afterwards."

"And this is where they were digging," HB said.

"That's right," Barry replied, though it hadn't been a question. "I talked with some of the pre-Schism historians over at the college and they said even the solid clouds would fall apart into water vapor eventually."

"But the stuff you put on them wouldn't," HB reasoned. "The pedestal at the end of the tunnel. They were after whatever was on it. You think it was from this cloud city."

"When I got this map from the college I asked them if anyone else had copies made. This isn't exactly a hot item, so I got a definite answer," Barry said, grinning as he laid out his findings.

"James Bay," HB said.

"Yes sir," Barry confirmed. "His dig permit was denied, but I guess he wanted whatever was in there too much, and went ahead anyways. You can't do something like that on your own so he had to have accomplices, and I'd bet whatever they found down there was important. Important enough to kill for."

"A pre-Schism relic," HB reasoned.

"Something that the classic pegasi honored," Barry added.

"Any idea on what that something is?" HB asked, then took a few more gulps of coffee, deciding that he didn't like the expensive stuff as much as he thought he would.

Barry shook his head, settling back in his seat. "No clue. I was hoping you'd have some ideas."

"Not yet," HB said. "But this gives us a good place to start. Now we have to start asking questions about anybody putting unknown pre-Schism antiquities up on the market. We've got to be discreet, though, and careful. If it was important enough to kill for once, they might do so again."

"I've got a few contacts that might be able to help," Barry said.

HB gave him a wry smile. "You wouldn't have made it to the SIU if you didn't. This is good work, Barry. I'm impressed. You got this done well, and faster than I could have."

"Thank you sir," Barry grinned. He shuffled all the papers back into his satchel. "Lieutenant, do you mind if I ask a personal question?"

HB shrugged. "You can ask, doesn't mean I'll answer."

Barry gave a placating nod of acceptance. "Okay, I'm just wondering about that clinic you were in. It's a horn-doctor, right? Is there something wrong?"

HB snorted. "Depends on who you ask," he said.

"It's okay, you don't have to talk about it," Barry said, looking a little disappointed nonetheless.

HB had known Barry for a couple years now, and while he had been competent enough, he had always been too eager for HB's tastes. Because of that he'd avoided working with the earth pony until now. But this wasn't a secret, and if they were going to work together on this case Barry deserved to know his partner a little better. "I have a condition," he said. Barry's ears perked up and he focused intently on the older detective. "It's something I was born with. About one in twenty unicorns are, but I had it worse than most. When I was born my horn was soft. Like wet clay soft. Magic made it worse. All unicorn foals get these magic surges, bursts of power. You can do a lot of crazy stuff as a foal that you just can't as an adult, once you find your Talent. It's all uncontrolled, and dangerous if your parents aren't careful. Well, for me those surges practically melted my horn."

"Luna's night," Barry swore. "How did you make it through that?"

"Good doctors, mostly," HB said, frowning as he remembered the long years of hard work it had taken to get healthy. "I had to wear this horn-brace. It was awful, like having a helmet on all the time. The condition made my horn very sensitive, too. Even moving my head too fast made it hurt, and the brace was always there, always irritating it even more." He shook his head and let out a sigh. "Fortunately the treatment for this condition is pretty easy. You just have to build up your telekinesis. The stronger your telekinesis, the better able it is to hold your horn together, without you even having to try. I learned early how to pick things up with my mind, and I practiced until I was able to do more than most of the adult unicorns around me. Still, it took years before I could get that brace off."

"And you were back there for a check-up?" Barry asked, leaning across the table in his eagerness to hear more.

"Yeah," HB said, shrugging. "The condition doesn't ever go away. My horn's as strong as any other unicorn's, but it'll start going soft again if I don't keep my telekinesis strong. There's more too it than that, of course. The magic that my Talent gives me still weakens my horn when I use it. I get these headaches, especially when I use magic, and my horn aches sometimes. If I overdo it, it gets sensitive again. It's just something I've lived with my whole life. I go to the doctor's to make sure I'm not getting closer to a relapse. That'd put me on medical leave for a year, maybe more."

"Wow. I hope you don't have to do that!"

HB chuckled. "Not likely to happen, if I'm careful enough about it." He drained his coffee. "How about you? Any tragic pasts or medical conditions I should know about?"

"Oh, yeah! There's lots about me you don't know!" Barry said, then tapped a hoof on his chin as he thought about it. "Umm. I, uh. Okay, so I don't think I've got any medical conditions or anything. And my past isn't really tragic."

HB shook his head. "Didn't think so. Alright, chat time is over. Take this stuff back to the office, get on your contacts. I want to know the market for a pre-schism pegasus artefact by tomorrow."

"What are you going to do?" Barry asked, getting up.

HB thought about the map Barry had shown him. His horn was aching at that, his magic pushing at him to look deeper. He needed to get his Max Cash files, he had a hunch about this one. "First, I'm going to get my pain pills. After that? I'm going to do a little archaeology."

***

Rainbow Dash crouched in the bushes, poking with the intense interest of the supremely bored at a slug that was making its slimy way across the ground. Star Fall was a little ways off, looking over a notebook and munching on some grass, as she had been since Astrid had taken off two hours earlier. Dash had wanted to keep going, or to at least stretch her wings, but both of her companions had been adamant that she stay grounded and hidden for now.

Their caution had something to do with the encounter in the Everstorm, the stallion who had turned into some kind of insect-pony thing. Star had called him a Changeling, a term Dash vaguely remembered from school. The Changeling had tried something, she knew that, but Astrid and Star Fall had been uncharacteristically silent on it or what it meant. Even when she'd asked, they'd told her that they would explain it later. That was frustrating already, and being kept on the ground when she knew her wings were well enough to let her fly was even worse. She couldn't even ask to read Star Fall's probably-boring books, since while she had learned to speak Solar pretty quickly she still hadn’t learned to read it.

When she spotted the wide shape of Astrid circling overhead she shot up, excited to finally have something to do. "You're back!" She called out as the Griffin settled in for a landing near where the two pegasi were hiding.

"Finally," Star Fall said, closing her notebook. "How long does it take to get some clothes and food?" The white pegasus had been ravenously hungry after crossing the Everstorm, devouring leaves and grass and flowers wherever they were edible like a pony-shaped vacuum cleaner. She'd slowed down in her eating, but she was still eyeing the bags the Griffin carried covetously.

"Have an apple, Fall," Astrid said in reply, tossing a large red fruit at the pegasus, who caught it and began messily devouring it. The Griffin turned her eyes to Dash. "You gonna snark at me too?"

Dash shook her head. "No, I just want to get going! I hate being stuck on the ground like this. I want to fly, Astrid. I need to fly."

Astrid rolled her eyes. "Hold your hooves, okay? We need to get you disguised first," she pulled out a couple bottles of mane and coat dye and passed them to Rainbow Dash. "The pond back there should be good to put this in. If you need help, ask."

"What?" Dash frowned at the bottles. "Why would I dye my mane?"

"And coat," Astrid said. "That Changeling was staring right at you the whole time. He was looking for you."

"Why would he be doing that?" Dash asked. "And what was going on there? You guys haven't told me anything!"

"That's 'cause we don't know what we should be telling you, how much you need to know," Astrid said, throwing another apple to Star Fall before she could interject. "It's serious stuff, Dash. Changelings are the Republic's special forces. Spies, secret police, shock troops, and assassins. If the Republic sent a Changeling after you, right into the Everstorm, then you are in real danger from them."

"I think I need to know if there's an assassin after me," Dash protested.

"That's why I'm telling you," Astrid said. "Fall and I, we can keep a low profile over here, but you? You're kinda unique, Dash. We need to make it as hard as possible for that Changeling to find you again."

"You think he survived?"

Astrid shrugged. "No money in betting that he didn't. Now go dye yourself while I stuff the black hole over here until she's nice again."

Dash looked down at the bottles, then up at Astrid. "Do I really have to?"

"Yes," Astrid said, uncompromising. "Just do it. Once you're done we can fly for a bit to dry you off."

Dash almost balked. It was a crime to cover up her wonderful mane, but the thought of finally getting to fly after being bed and ground-bound for a week cracked her resolve. She grabbed the bottles of dye and stomped off to the pool Astrid had mentioned. Thirty minutes and one horribly discolored pool later and she stalked back into the clearing they had set up in.

"Nobody laugh," she said, glaring at the both of them. Astrid was re-packing her bags while Star Fall poured a canteen of water over her head. Yellow bled from her mane, leaving it bright crimson and ruining the fiery effect.

Astrid took one look at Dash and frowned. "It wasn't supposed to be that color," she said, then snickered. "You mixed them in the water, didn't you? How the hell did you get it that shade?"

"I think it looks good," Star Fall said. "It has a nice balance, and it's nowhere near as striking as your natural colors."

Dash kicked at the dirt, cringing at how pink her legs were. "Yeah, well. I don't like it," she pulled a lock of mane out to stare at it. The hair had become a solid blueish purple that almost completely hid the natural bands of color. "It's just… wrong, you know?"

"You look pretty," Star Fall said. "Stop agonizing over it. You can wash it out after we've seen the Professor. It's only temporary."

"Yeah, I know that, but… well, my mane. It really put the 'rainbow' in Rainbow Dash. Now I'm just 'Dash'."

"Not really," Astrid said. "We'll be using a cover name. Until we get the okay, you're now Firefly."

"Firefly? Seriously? I don't even get to keep 'Dash'?" Astrid shook her head, and Dash growled her frustration up to the sky. "Why Firefly?"

"It's the fourth most common name for a pegasus mare," Astrid said. "Easy to forget."

"So not only do I not get to keep my own colors or my own name, but I have to share a name with, like, a hundred other ponies? Rrrgh! I hate not standing out!"

"That's the point, Dash," Star Fall said, walking over to the newly-pink pegasus and laying a comforting hoof on her shoulder. "You can't stand out. Not with a Changeling after you. He won't stand out. You won't even know it's him until he's got you. So you've got to make it as hard as possible for him to find you."

"He won't give up," Astrid warned. "Changelings aren’t like ponies or Griffins. They don't think or act like we do. Compassion, friendship, love. They don't feel these things, they feed on them, use them to power magic that gets inside your head. They hook themselves in, make you trust them, even fall in love with them, but they don't feel anything for anyone. They're psychopaths. Real, dangerous psychopaths, and they're working for the enemy. All they care about is their mission, and since this one wants you he will not give up until he has you."

"So I've gotta hide forever?" Dash asked, nearly shouting in her anger at the very idea.

Astrid shook her head. "No, just 'till we can get the Professor to get a look at you. Fall's certain she'll want to keep you around, and that means protection. Changeling's are tough, but Griffins? We're tougher, and trained to resist their mind-magic. After that you can flap your multi-colored tail at them all you want."

Dash sighed. "Fine. You said we could do some flying now, right? I really need to work out some anger."

"In a moment, put this on first," Astrid pointed to a pair of dresses lying on the grass.

"What? No way!"

"Your Glyph's still a problem, Dash," Astrid insisted. "We need to hide it or the dye job will mean nothing."

"You take my mane, my name, and now you want my cutie mark? Buck you, bird-brain!" Dash said, lapsing into Old Equestrian in her frustration.

"What'd she say to me?" Astrid asked Star Fall.

"She said she's unhappy, but will accept the wisdom of your decision," Star Fall said. "Dash. Please. Only for short while."

Rainbow Dash's face screwed up in anger, but then she deflated. "Fine. Wreck everything awesome about being me. So long as I get to fly," she walked over to the dresses. "Why are there two?"

"One's for me," Star Fall said. "Most ponies in the Kingdom don't go completely naked unless they're dirt poor or Royalty, and it'll cover up my own Glyph."

"And Astrid?"

"I'm a Griffin," Astrid said, holding up her talons. "Clothes only get in the way."

"Oookay," Dash said, shaking that image off and turning back to the dress. "Hey, we might have a problem here."

"What is it now?" Astrid asked, rolling her eyes.

"Well, I'm kinda dripping with pink and blue dye. These dresses are white. Won't that, uh, you know, tip the bad-guys off to the disguise?"

Astrid smacked herself in the head. "Stupid! Of course that will fuck up the disguise! Celestia burn it all! Goddess fucking damn it!"

"I don't know some of those words," Dash said. "But I'll take that as a 'yes'."

"We'll have to wait for you to dry off," Astrid steamed, stalking back and forth as she muttered more profanity under her breath.

"No. No way. I gotta fly, guys. I am not waiting another hour!" Dash said, flaring her wings.

"No choice, pinkette," Astrid said. "We can't have you spotted."

"I'm not waiting," Dash said.

"You're going to, whether you like it or not," Astrid snarled.

"Wanna bet?" Dash growled back, crouching in preparation for a leap into the air.

"Don't make me stop you," Astrid said, her own wings opening as her feathers bristled.

"Like you could," Dash sneered.

"Both of you stop it!" Star Fall shouted, catching their attention. "Dash can't wear the dress, and we can't let her be seen, but we do have to get moving. There's a solution here. We'll just go high-altitude. Above the cloud-layer. That will get us through the Shield Wall mountains. After that it's only a day's flight to the capitol."

"High altitude?" Astrid said, reluctant to agree to that plan. "Are you sure you can do that, Fall?"

Star Fall nodded. "I've recovered enough, I think. If I can't, we'll just land for the night. How about you, Dash? Do you think you're up to going that high?"

Dash looked into the sky, at the clouds that were gently wafting by in their hideously un-managed way. She waved a hoof derisively. "That high? Hah! Easy-peasy one-two-threesy. I could do it in my sleep."

"You might have to do it while unconscious," Astrid muttered, but nodded. "Then that's what we'll do."

They gathered up the remaining items, Astrid stuffing Dash's dress back in her bag while Star Fall donned hers. Both Astrid and Star Fall donned clear goggles, but when they offered a pair to Dash she declined. There was no debris far away from the ground, and thus no need for them. Within five minutes the three of them were in the air, climbing up to the scudding clouds.

Rainbow Dash felt the wind in her wings like liquid pleasure streaming across her body. That first flight she'd had when she had woken up in the future had been amazing, and this one was no different. Except this time she knew that she'd been grounded for a week, had experienced every painful, not-awesome minute of it. Sure she had made friends and learned a new language, but it would have been so much better to do those things and still fly. She couldn't resist the urge to show off a bit, zooming ahead and doing loops around her two companions, who were watching her aerial agility with awe.

She still wasn't happy with having to hide herself, and wearing a dress was going to suck massively. She was just glad Rarity wasn't here, those plain white dresses would never have survived the fashionista's attentions. They were girly enough already. None of that really mattered, though, not so long as she had the freedom of the skies. She whooped in joy and practiced a few of her easier stunts. Her wings were healed, but it would take some work to get them back to full strength after a week on the ground.

Eventually Dash dropped back to fly with Astrid and Star Fall, keeping an easy pace with them as they broke the cloud layer and headed north. Most of the geography was still alien to Dash, even though she knew that the eye of the Everstorm was Ponyville and could use that to orient herself by. Still, she recognized the mountain where Canterlot had stood, or rather what was left of it. It looked like most of the impressively tall peak had fallen off in the intervening years, leaving a wider but shorter mountain. She could see the half-buried remnants of Canterlot, though. Just a few broken spires were all that remained of the thousand-year capitol of Equestria.

"Hey Dash!" Star Fall called over, breaking her out of her reverie.

"Yeah, Star, what's up?" Dash replied, gliding up next to the white pegasus.

"I want to see you Cloudwalk," Star Fall said, pointing at the cloud they had just begun passing over.

Dash snorted. "Sure, I guess," she said, then dove for the cloud. She landed on its puffy surface and folded her wings, showing them that she really was standing on it.

Star Fall and Astrid exchanged some words that Dash didn't catch, but then Star Fall descended. A look of intense concentration crossed her face and she alighted next to Dash, her hooves finding purchase on the cloudstuff. Astrid circled above them, watching carefully. "This is incredible," Star Fall said.

"What's incredible?" Dash asked.

"You."

"Well, yeah, but what specifically?"

"Those tricks you were doing earlier. This right now. If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes I wouldn't believe it."

"Uh, Star. You're standing on the cloud just fine too," Dash said, pawing at the cloud to emphasize the point. "I know I'm cool and all, but when I come from this is stuff any pegasus can do."

"Not anymore," Star Fall said, smiling. "I have to concentrate to stay on the cloud, and I can only do that much because of my Talent, you do it without even thinking about it. Are you even cold?"

Dash frowned at that. "Uh, no? Pegasi don't get cold unless it's like twenty below."

"Nowadays they do. Light bones, fast pulse rates, low body-fat. We lose heat quick, especially when airborne."

"And we're up at high altitudes," Dash said, understanding coming to her. "That's why Astrid was worried. It's cold up here, and you're using your magic to keep up with us, aren't you? So you can't focus on keeping yourself warm."

Star Fall nodded. "This isn't so bad. I wouldn't be able to do it in winter at all."

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Dash asked. "I could cut a windstream, or I could pull together a cloud chariot and pull you along. You'd just have to focus on staying on the cloud then."

"A pegasus pulling around a cloud would kinda draw attention, Dash," Star Fall pointed out. "A windstream would be nice, though."

"You got it," Dash smirked. "Take it easy, though, alright? Fly at your pace, focus on staying warm. I know I've got a thing for speed, but I'm okay with slowing down." She paused for a moment, thinking about that statement before adding: "If, you know, it's for a friend."

Star Fall smiled. "Thanks, Dash. You're my friend too," and together they soared back into the sky.

***

Calumn woke up in a bed. It wasn't a terribly comfortable bed, but it was something he wasn't expecting. He pushed his way out from under the covers, feeling all his joints protesting. He was still in the form of an earth pony filly, and so had the bladder to match and seriously needed a restroom. Finding what he needed, he did his business before taking stock of his surroundings. This was a hotel room of some sort. Two beds, none too clean linens, a stained and burnt couch and a pair of chairs next to a scarred old table. Sunlight streamed in through the curtained window, and a clock on the wall said it was well past noon.

Calumn cast his mind back to the journey through the Everstorm. He'd nearly died, and Blaze had saved him. After he had passed out, the green pony must have brought him here. Calumn spotted his saddlebags at the foot of one of the beds, open and rummaged through. That meant Blaze knew Calumn never had the money he had promised. The way Blaze had talked about it in Stormrider's, getting paid was of supreme importance to guides, so he didn't know how Blaze would react to this discovery. The fact that he was alone in this hotel room could mean any number of things.

He closed his eyes and tried to gauge his condition. He felt hurt, but not badly. His reserves of power weren't even a quarter full, but he was well out of danger. The memory of Blaze forcing him to look at the picture, to take the form of someone he loved, brought Calumn up short. He owed Blaze more than just the money promised him. He owed him his life.

He was pondering that when the door opened and the pony in question walked in, grinning as he saw Calumn up. "Hey, buddy!" Blaze said. "Hungry?" he held up a greasy bag from a fast-food place Calumn vaguely recognized from his long-ago sunland infiltration training.

"I am," Calumn said, his voice coming out like you would expect a ten-year-old filly to sound.

"This stuff is really a treat," Blaze said, putting the bag on the scratched table and pulling out wrapped foods that smelled of cheese and hay. "It's adapted from Griffin cuisine, so it looks kinda gross and meaty, but it's actually this pressed plant stuff. They call it, get this, a 'veggie-burger'," Blaze set off into giggles at that, then he adopted a thoughtful expression. "Do Changelings eat veggie-burgers?"

"Changelings eat meat and plants," Calumn said, hopping up on one of the chairs. "I'm mostly vegetarian. I only need to eat meat once a month or so. Less if I have a steady source of emotion to draw on."

"Nifty," Blaze said, pushing over one of the paper-wrapped burgers. "Eat up!" He crunched into his own burger, greasy juices running down his chin. "Mmm! Can't beat sunland food for taste! Though, honestly, I'm gonna have to take over the bathroom in, like, two hours. Also, I think I can hear my arteries hardening. 'Blaze!' They scream. 'Why have you forsaken us?'. And to that I'm all like, 'well, do you taste this stuff? Seriously, it's awesome!' And they're all like 'okay you have a point'," Blaze said, his voice going high and distant when he was talking for his arteries.

Calumn laughed, and the sound was pure and melodious and certainly not him. He stopped cold as he felt a wash of love flow into him from Blaze. He stared at the pony before shaking his head. "No," he said. "This is wrong."

"But it tastes sooo good!" Blaze said, smiling around his burger.

Calumn shook his head. "Not that. This," he gestured at his body. "This is what's wrong. You know I'm not her."

"Well, yeah," Blaze said. "I mean, I watched you turn into her. That made it pretty clear."

"But you still," Calumn paused, searching for a way to explain it. "You love her. And you're sending that love for her to me."

"Well of course I love her, and why shouldn't you be able to share some of that?"

"Because I'm not her!" Calumn said, banging a hoof on the table.

"Does that have to matter?" Blaze asked.

"Yes," Calumn said. "Who is she to you?"

Blaze stilled, putting down the burger. He looked Calumn in the eyes, his face hard and serious for once. "Strongheart, being an Everstorm guide is a job that attracts a certain kind of person. Some of us have pasts that we don't like to talk about. Some of us have dead little sisters that we would do anything, anything to see again. Even once. Even if it was fake and we knew it."

Calumn's eyes fell. He had expected something like that, but had hoped it wasn't true. "I'm sorry," he said.

"Yeah, it sucks for them," Blaze said, perking up. "Not me though. My sister's alive and well and living in Orion city."

Calumn blinked at him. "What?"

"Holly? The pony whose little-filly body you're wearing?" Blaze said, pointing a hoof at Calumn to indicate his borrowed form. "She's my sister. She's a total laugh-riot, too. Does these comedy circuits through the Republics, brings the house down every time, let me tell you."

"And she's not dead?" Calumn asked.

"Nope," Blaze said, smiling.

"So you're not using me to spend some time with a long-lost family member?"

"What? No, why would you think that?" Blaze asked, taking another bite of his burger.

Calumn shook his head. "Okay, fine, then why are you directing your love at me?"

"Because I love my sister, doofus," Blaze said, giggling. "And since you look like her, the love gets spread around. Like jam. Or butter. Or cream cheese."

"How?" Calumn demanded. "You can't just ... pick who your love goes to when you know that person isn't the one you love! It just doesn't work that way!"

"Oh!" Blaze said, then mumbled something through his mouth full of burger before swallowing and starting again. "That's what you're talking about! Okay. Now I get it. Remember back in the Storm when we were hearing voices and I said there was a trick to ignoring them?" Calumn nodded. "Well, it's the same thing, only in reverse. The trick is learning not to care about anybody. To convince yourself that you don't love somebody that you really love. It's not that hard to reverse it and convince yourself that you love somebody you really don't. Not an easy thing to do, sure, but if you're going to be a guide, then it's a survival skill."

Calumn sat back, amazed. "You can really do that? Just decide to love someone."

"Well, it's not all that easy," Blaze said. "That's why I got you to look like Holly. I really do love her, and so long as you look like her I can switch it on and off. See? Love, no love, love, no love."

Calumn swayed as he was hit with a wave of love that suddenly cut off, then renewed, then cut off again. He nearly fell off the chair from the conflicting sensations. "Stop!" he cried out, holding himself steady on the table.

Blaze started giggling again. "Okay, you are just too cute."

"Alright. That is amazing," Calumn said. "But I still don't feel comfortable with it. I'm going back to Strongheart." He blazed green and expanded to the familiar dimensions of the pony he had worn for two years.

"Awww," Blaze pouted. "But I liked seeing my sister like she was ten again. She was a lot nicer to me back then."

"How old is she now?" Calumn asked, finally taking a bite of the burger and finding that he was starving. It really did taste amazing.

"Twenty two," Blaze said. "She doesn't like to hang out with me anymore. Didn't like that I became a guide. I still catch her show whenever I can, though. Hey, do people really do that?"

"What?"

"Use Changelings to spend time with dead family?"

Calumn nodded, swallowing another bite of burger before he responded. "It's the only way we're allowed to feed," he said. "Someone loses a family member, usually someone who was in the army, and a Changeling comes and pretends to be the dead person. The family gives the Changeling love, and they give them their son or daughter back, for a while. We don't do it with husbands or wives, though. Too many problems."

"Wow," Blaze said, thinking about it. "Do the families know?"

Calumn shrugged. "They do. We put them under a bit of magic. We don't make them forget, just push the knowledge down until it's time for us to go."

"You heard your mother," Blaze said. Calumn blinked at him, confused. "In the Everstorm. You heard your mother, you even called out to her. That's not your Changeling mom, is it?"

Calumn shook his head. "We don't really have mothers. Not anymore. We had queens, once. Up until the Schism, when the Gray Mare murdered the last one. Now we can create hives, hatch new Changelings like me, but it's hard, and it requires some of us to die for it. We don't really have parents, and hive-mates are the closest thing to family any of us have, until we're placed with some grieving couple. What I heard was the mother of the pony whose body I had taken. Strongheart. His mother is a wonderful mare. She's so kind, and loving and absolutely devoted to her son."

"How long have you been him?" Blaze asked, putting down what was left of his burger.

"Two years," Calumn said. "Long enough to grow attached. To start to forget she isn't mine."

"You love her back," Calumn nodded again. "Wow, buddy, that's awesome," Blaze grinned. "You hear all sorts of stories about Changelings, but wow! I never expected that!"

"It's not normal," Calumn admitted. "It's hard to form close relationships when your entire life is supposed to be lies and camouflage. Strongheart's mother, well, she got under my skin."

"I know how it is," Blaze said, nodding sagely even though Calumn knew the pony had no way of actually knowing. "Hey, do you want me to keep calling you Strongheart? If that's the pony you're disguised as that's cool, but what if you change shape again? Do I just use the name of whoever you're pretending to be?"

"In public," Calumn said. "But between us? My real name is Calumn."

"Calumn," Blaze repeated. "Nifty! My name's Trail Blazer, but you can call me Blaze. Nice to meet you, Calumn!"

"Nice to meet you, Blaze," Calumn said, then remembered the saddlebags. "Sorry about not having enough to pay you," he said, blushing a bit.

"No problem," Blaze said. "I've got an idea about that."

"Oh? I'm all ears."

"Really? I mean, I've seen you in black-bug-looking shape and you didn't look like you were all ears."

"I... I meant that as a figure of speech."

"How do you figure speech?" Blaze asked, blinking at the Changeling.

Calumn shook his head. He was almost certain that Blaze was just trying to be funny, but he played it so straight that Calumn couldn't help but take it seriously. "No, I meant that I'm listening to your idea."

"Oh! Right. Well, you owe me, right? And I don't just mean money, but in like a personal sense," Calumn reluctantly nodded. "Okay, so I want to come along."

Calumn took a moment to process that, then gave up. "You want to what?"

"Come along! On this spy-venture thing you have going on!"

"That's... really not a good idea," Calumn said. "This is a dangerous mission. You're not a Republic agent, but if you're caught with me there won't be any mercy for you. That and I'm a trained infiltrator, and you, well, you aren't."

"But I am a guide whose Talent is always being on the right path," Blaze said. "I figured out you're looking for one of those three we saw in the Storm, otherwise you wouldn't have revealed yourself, right?" Calumn was forced to nod again. "I can help you find them. Come on, buddy. I know the sunside, I spend half my time here by default! I've travelled the cities, I know the lingo, the places to be, the places not to be, the places that you shouldn't be but you're going to be anyways because they have the best burritos. I know how to keep you from sticking out like a horn at an earth pony convention. You need me."

Calumn shook his head. "Blaze, it's just too dangerous."

Blaze snickered. "Calumn, did you hear what you just said? I cross the Everstorm for a living. You really want to compare job-danger-levels?"

Calumn opened his mouth to reply, then shut it. "You have a good point," he admitted. "But facing the Everstorm isn't the same thing as sneaking and lying your way through the Solar Kingdom with a Changeling at your side."

"Come on, worst case scenario I can provide a distraction so you can escape!"

"You'd get tried for espionage, hung as a spy!" Calumn protested.

"Who'd get tried?" Blaze said, looking at him with wide-eyed mock innocence. "I'm a nutty Storm-guide who got mind-controlled by a Changeling, I had no idea that handsome devil was making me do stuff for him and feeding from me the entire time. The shock! The horror! Come on, they'd never be able to convict me of anything."

Calumn sighed. "You're not going to give up on this, are you?"

"Nope. And as a final nail in it, I can give you the love you're going to need. Free of guilt and free of having to insinuate yourself into someone else's life. Come on," Blaze grinned, spreading his forelegs wide. "What is not to like about this?"

Calumn hung his head in defeat. "Okay, Blaze. You can come with me."

"Yes!" Blaze said, punching the air with a hoof.

"On one condition." Blaze paused in his celebration, looking expectantly at Calumn. "You don't send me love like that again. Not unless it's absolutely necessary. It just... it feels wrong. Like I'm lying to you, using you. I don't want to use you, Blaze. I think you might be my first real friend. Ever."

Blaze's smile was softer this time. "You got it, buddy. I've had other friends, but you, me, here? Now? This one's going to be special. I can just tell."

Chapter 7: Translation Problems

While each of the Elements has powers of their own, it is only when joined together that they are able to call upon the Magic of Harmony. This is not a physical joining, but a spiritual one in which each Element resonates with the others. This resonance creates a constructive interference within every stratum of the universe, increasing geometrically and at a very rapid rate until reality begins to deform and rearrange itself to the will of the Elements. The Magic of Harmony itself will be discussed in a later section of this book.

Each individual Element has a particular and very important role to play in creating the Magic of Harmony. Any missing Element and the resonance will fall apart. They are like keys to a door, you need all of them to undo every lock. This is, perhaps, a subtle warning of their nature. What does anypony put behind a door with six locks? Either something very precious, or something that absolutely must never be allowed to escape.

-From the third section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Seven: Translation Problems

Rainbow Dash pushed the cloud into place. It had taken all of half a minute to compress the puffy cumulus clouds into something more usable, a feat which had awed Star Fall all on its own despite being something any pegasus used to be able to do without effort. Positioning was important for this part, though, so she took more care in lining up the three more proper-sized clouds she had created. Once she was sure she had the angle right she set up the second cloud below the first, and then set the third one waiting behind that.

"So, this is the field method," Dash said. "It's not really efficient or anything, you need a weather factory to do it properly, but sometimes accidents happen and you've got to make do with what you got."

"Question," Astrid said, raising a claw. "How are you keeping those clouds from drifting away?" She and Star Fall were sitting on a small but relatively flat shelf on the edge of a mountain. Star Fall had called the range the Shield Wall mountains, and explained that they were so named because they were seen as a barrier against a possible Republic invasion, should the Everstorm ever fall. Dash recognized parts of the mountain range as having existed in her time, but it was all so different that she wouldn't have noticed it if she weren't specifically looking. She wasn't a geology expert or anything, but she knew it took a lot longer than a thousand years for a mountain range to change that drastically. She was left wondering exactly how much power Nightmare Umbra had possessed.

"I told them to stay put," Dash said.

"How does that even work?"

Dash shrugged. "It just does. I push a cloud into place, and if I want it to stay, it does. Unless there's a really strong wind or another pegasus who tells it to do something else, it'll stay. Clouds don't think or anything, they do what you tell them to."

"Fascinating," Star Fall said, wide-eyed and practically salivating to see more.

"I guess. Anyway, this is the important part. You've got to get the angles right or it won't work," Dash stomped on the second cloud until it formed itself into a bowl, then hovered up to the first cloud. She closed her eyes and put her hooves on the surface of the cloud. Most ponies would be surprised at how much training went into weather-work. Sure any pegasus could move a cloud or stomp some rain out of it, but to be a real weather-pony you had to know how to do stuff like this. With a grunt of effort she wrenched the cloud open, creating a hole through it that glistened with gossamer strands of cloud-stuff. Sunlight shone into the hole, catching itself in all those criss-crossing strands that had been angled just right to cause a specific effect.

Dash jumped out of the way as the rainbow juice poured from the hole in the first cloud and splashed into the bowl of the second. Astrid blinked in surprise, and Star Fall shot to her hooves, crying out in delight.

"It's liquid!" Star Fall squealed in surprise, eyes incredibly wide as she stared at the filling cloud bowl. "How is it liquid? Why? Is it rain? How do you get the color striations like that?"

"It's a rainbow, Star," Dash said. "I don't know what 'stri-ations' are, but it looks right so I figure I got them because it's a rainbow."

"Rainbows aren't liquid," Star Fall said. "They're refracted light! They don't splash and you can't just pull them out of a cloud like that!"

"Uh, just did that, Star," Dash said, smirking as she leaned casually against the cloud-prism, her flapping wings the only thing that spoiled her relaxed 'could-do-this-in-my-sleep' look. "Anyways, this stuff is just rainbow juice. It's portable and stable and you can use it for all sorts of stuff. Cloudsdale had whole fountains that ran on rainbow juice," the cloud that had been turned into a rainbow-catching prism was shrinking at an alarming rate, throwing off Dash's balance enough to make her right herself. "Wow, I'm not that out of practice," Dash said, scratching at her head. "Must be the lower magic level or something, 'cause I should have gotten way more out of this cloud."

Star Fall fixated her gaze on the first cloud as it shrivelled into a small tunnel around the prism-hole, then popped into drifting mist with a soft 'poof'. "You took the water that made up the cloud and infused it with the spectrum. You captured light in water! But the water's glowing with it, it's radiating energy, it shouldn't stay this bright for this long."

"Again, I have no idea what you're talking about," Dash said. "I think you're asking me how long it lasts."

Star Fall looked like she was going to argue that, but then thought about it for a moment and nodded. "Yes. That'll do. How long does it last?"

"Out in the open like this? A day or so," Dash said. "You can bottle it, and if you distil it properly in a factory it can keep for months. If you keep it circulating it lasts longer, too, but not as long as if you process it right."

"Astrid!" Star Fall called to her guard. "Do you have something to bottle this with?"

"Just the water bottles, Fall," Astrid said, pulling an empty plastic bottle from one of her bags. "That good enough?"

"Lemme see," Dash said, and Astrid threw the bottle to her. "I don't know. This stuff's kinda thin," she dipped the bottle in the rainbow juice, which promptly ate its way through the plastic. "Nope. Not gonna work."

"Damn!" Star Fall hissed. "You have to do this again when we get to the Professor. She needs to see this."

Dash shrugged. "Fine with me. You wanna see the rest?" Star Fall nodded eagerly. "Cool. Now watch carefully, I can't really do this slow."

Dash set herself above the center of the small pool of rainbow juice. She took a deep breath, then began to spin. She whirled like a top, going faster and faster until the air around her became a vortex of confined wind pulling upward. The rainbow juice sluiced around the cloud as it was sucked into the vortex, covering Rainbow Dash with a whirling spectrum of light, almost making her look like her undyed self again. Once the rainbow juice had been drawn completely into her mini-tornado, Dash dipped down to grab a piece of the cloud then shot into the air, describing an arc that took her to the last cloud she had made.

Before she could hit that cloud she dodged to the side, turning her spin into a roll that brought her under the cloud and around again to where the rainbow juice was touching down. With practiced speed she flew the length of the arc she had made again, this time circling around it, pushing and teasing until the cloudstuff she had pulled with her and the rainbow juice fused into a smooth arc between the two clouds. Once she was done she flared her wings to the air and pulled to a hovering halt next to Star Fall, who watched with gaping mouth at what Dash had done. The rainbow glowed brightly, a wonder of nature, made with hooves and wings, the way it should be done. Not her best work, but good enough to pass inspection.

"And that's how you make a rainbow," Dash said, grinning.

"Celestia," Star Fall breathed, unable to look away. "It's beautiful."

"I gotta say," Astrid said, gaze similarly fixed on the rainbow. "That's impressive."

This just made Dash's grin widen. "I know, isn't it awesome!"

"And you used to do this all the time?" Astrid asked.

"Nah, this is the field method, remember?" Dash said, shrugging dismissively. "It's quick and dirty. Proper rainbow work takes more time, and you need the right equipment for it."

"There are no Talents for this," Star Fall breathed.

"Yeah there are," Dash said. "You guys just don't know about them 'cause no one's done it in, like, forever."

"Can I do this?" Star Fall asked, sounding to Dash like a filly at her first Wonderbolt's show.

Dash shrugged. "I guess. This is kinda complicated, though. I think you should start with cloud-kicking and rain for now."

"We need to get rid of this," Astrid said.

"What? No!" Star Fall cried, turning to face the Griffin. "Why would we destroy this? It's... it's incredible!"

"It's noticeable," Astrid said. "It's impossible. It's going to point out our trail like a neon sign. We have to get rid of it."

Dash shrugged. "Meh, cool enough."

"Wait!" Star Fall cried, leaping in front of the shining clouds. "This is probably the first pegasus-made rainbow in eight hundred years! We can't just destroy it!"

"Star, I can make another one," Dash pointed out. "Whenever I want to."

"I know!" Star Fall said, her face scrunching up as she pleaded with them. "It's just... It's the first one. It's something pegasus ponies have been dreaming of. My mother used to tell me stories, fairy tales of the ancient pegasi before the Schism, who ruled the skies and commanded storms. Who made rainbows. You made a rainbow, Dash. It's like every childhood fantasy I had coming true. I don't want to destroy that."

"I get that, Star," Dash said. When she had won the Best Young Flier's competition she'd gotten to spend a day with her heroes, the Wonderbolts. It had been incredible. She'd embarrassed herself a dozen times over in her enthusiasm, but they hadn't given her a hard time for it, and she got to fly with them, to perform tricks with them. Then, it had been over, and she had to go away. That had hurt, and she could only figure that Star Fall was feeling something like that now. A dream come true, but a dream that still had to end.

"Still has to happen," Astrid stood firm. "I'm sorry, Fall, but it's too much a risk."

Star Fall hung her head, but nodded. "I know."

Dash tried to find something that would help Star Fall, but she wasn't good with emotional stuff. The only thing she could do, the one thing she was really good at in these situations, was sticking to her friends and being there when they needed her. She thought about it, and came to a decision. "Star," she said, hoping it was the right thing to do. "You do it."

"What?"

"It might be the first rainbow in eight hundred years, but it's still just clouds and light. I did this kinda thing all the time, so it's not special to me. I'm from the past, right? So what I do doesn't really count. If you break it down? You'll be the first pony in eight hundred years to be able to work the weather. Think about that, Star. This is your chance."

"I... I don't know," Star Fall said, eyes wide with fear. Dash recognized that too, her experiences with the Best Young Flier's competition was turning out to be very handy today.

"You can do it, Star," Dash said. "I know you can."

"I think you can, too," Astrid said. "You've got magic, Fall. I think anything she can do, you can do too."

"Come on, Star," Dash said, giving the white pegasus her most confidant smile. "Make the history books."

Star Fall gulped, then flew out to the clouds that the rainbow sat on. "How do I do it?" she asked.

"Focus on your cloudwalking magic," Dash said, figuring it would be the closest she could get to the weather-working powers until she figured it out better. "Put it all in your hooves. Then, when you've got it all focused, turn around and buck that cloud hard! When you do, release all of the magic you've put in your hooves into the cloud. Don't give it a direction, let it blast out everywhere. Alright?"

"Okay," Star Fall said, her hovering erratic as she shook from anticipation. She closed her eyes, drawing in her focus, then with a high-pitched shriek that was probably supposed to be a war-cry or shout of effort, she kicked the cloud.

What Dash hadn't counted on was the fact that Star Fall was a Magic Talent, and so when she let a burst of magic out of her hooves, it was a bit more spectacular than when Dash did it herself. Light exploded across the side of the mountain. Thunder cracked through the sky and an avalanche began to slide two peaks over. Dash and Astrid cringed back, but when the light had faded they found Star Fall gingerly peeking over her shoulder to see the cloud she had kicked broken apart and fading away. The rainbow started to break up a moment later, rainbow juice falling in a mist from it that was taken by the mountain wind before it could fall to the ground.

"I... I did it!" Star Fall said, grinning from ear to ear.

"Nice work," Dash said. "Next time, though, you might want to use a bit less magic." Star Fall ducked, her cheeks going red, but when Dash and Astrid started laughing she joined in. She had done it, taken the first steps into re-learning the lost power of the pegasi. It was going to be a great day.

***

They landed for lunch in a town on the other side of the mountains. Astrid took off to the nearby forest while Star Fall and Rainbow Dash made their way in to buy something. The Griffin hadn't been happy with it, but allowed that so long as they were careful they shouldn't be at risk. Dash was excited to be in a town in the future. She had been grilling Star Fall as they landed outside of the town and walked their way in. Star Fall just wanted a burger. She wanted it so very badly.

"What do you use for money?" Dash asked.

"Bits," Star Fall replied, eyeing the buildings as they came up on them.

"Wow, that's the same money we used back when I'm from!"

"Same term, different system," Star Fall said. "Can we not talk about money? I'm not really good with the stuff."

"Wait, you've got some, right? How are we going to pay for lunch?"

"I've got money," Star Fall assured her. "A royal line of credit, too. Accounting just was never interesting to me."

"Me too," Dash sighed. "I had to learn so I could manage the weather team in Ponyville, but it's so boring! Twilight liked it, though. She's totally into numbers."

"Math's fine," Star Fall said. "I love math. It's accounting I can't stand."

"What do people do for jobs?" Dash asked. "I mean, I guess there's still farming and stuff, but a lot of pegasi worked the weather patrol at least part time."

"Depends on your Talent, I guess," Star Fall shrugged. "You do whatever you're best suited for."

"That's a lot like when I come from," Dash said. "Man, I expected the future to be way different. Do you have flying cities?"

Star Fall gave her companion an incredulous look. "I thought you said you grew up in a flying city? How would that be futuristic for you?"

"I grew up in a cloud city," Dash said. "I'm talking like with rockets or anti-gravity stuff."

Star Fall shook her head. "No. No flying cities. Cloud or otherwise."

"Jet packs?"

"Jet packs?" Star Fall repeated.

"Yeah, so earth ponies and unicorns can fly too?"

"No, still need wings to fly."

Dash huffed in disappointment. "So what is different about the future? It looks like nothing's changed in a thousand years!"

"I don't know," Star Fall said. "We kinda had an apocalypse eight hundred years ago. Makes it real hard to do a side-by-side comparison."

Dash thought about that for a moment before nodding in acceptance. "Okay, yeah, I get it. You had to rebuild from that."

"Yes we did," Star Fall said as they stepped out into the main street of the town. She spotted the burger place and her mouth nearly dripped with saliva at the thought of a big, juicy patty between two overstarched hunks of bread, lettuce, tomato, ketchup and mustard. Pickles optional, but at this point she didn't really care. Her post-Everstorm hunger had ebbed to manageable levels, but she still felt like there was an empty hole in her middle that needed to be filled.

"Star, when you said 'Royal line of credit', what did you mean?"

"What did it sound like?" Star Fall said, speeding up to a trot in her eagerness to eat.

"When you say 'Royal' what..." Dash trailed off.

It took Star Fall a dozen steps before she realized that Rainbow Dash was no longer following her. She tore her gaze away from the familiar sign of the restaurant and looked back. Dash had stopped in the street, her mouth hanging open, eyes wide and shocked. She wasn't staring at one thing, though, she was looking at the ponies around her. Her gaze snapping from one to another with a near-panicked intensity.

Star Fall rushed back to Dash's side. "What is it? What's wrong?"

Dash shook her head, drawing in a shuddering breath. "Their cutie marks," she said, once more falling into Old Equestrian.

"Talent Glyphs, Dash," Star Fall said. "The Solar words are Talent Glyphs. What's wrong with them?"

Dash pointed a hoof at one passing pony. "Growing Grapes," she switched to another. "Lightning Spells," then another. "Strength. That one's Flight. Growing Carrots, Forging Steel, Making Pottery, Trading Goods."

Star Fall looked at each pony Dash had pointed out. "Yes, what about them?"

"I can read their cutie marks," Dash said, her voice sounding haunted.

"Of course you can," Star Fall replied, trying to figure out what the issue was.

"No, Star, I can read them!" Dash said, trying to whisper and failing as her breathing came in short, hurried gasps. "Those aren't right! They're just a bunch of symbols, and I can read what they mean!"

Star Fall put comforting hoof on Dash's shoulder, her eyes softening as she began to understand. "They weren't like that in your time, were they?" Dash shook her head. "Okay, come on. You're drawing attention like this, let's go sit down and we'll talk about it, okay?"

It only took a little more coaxing to get Dash into the restaurant. Star Fall left her sitting at a window-side table, still staring at the flanks of passing ponies, while she got them both food. Fast food joints didn't get the name by accident, and so she was setting a tray down on the table only two minutes later.

"In your time, what were Talent Glyphs like?" she asked, unwrapping one of the three burgers she had ordered for herself and taking a big, juicy bite.

"Like mine, like yours," Dash said. "They were personal. They meant something, but only you really know what that something was. They were important, you know? They meant that you had found yourself, that you knew that you were special. The ... the cutie marks weren't just about your Special Talent. They were about you. The real you, the core of who you were, who you wanted to be, who you could be. It's an image of your soul."

"That's beautiful," Star Fall said, entranced by the emotion she was hearing in the other pegasus' voice.

Dash shook her head. "I'm no good at talking about them. I never had to think about it before, they were just always there, and everyone knew what they meant and how important they were."

"I think you're talking about them just fine," Star Fall assured her, then spent a moment finishing off her first burger. "The Glyphs are one of those things that have changed. There's a lot less magic around now than when the Goddesses ruled, and the consequences are more than just pegasi losing control of the weather."

"But that?" Dash poked a hoof at another passing pony. "What happened? Why do they look like that? Why can I just read it?"

"You can read it because the Direct Glyphs are universal," Star Fall said. "Their meaning is clear, no matter what language you speak. It's not actually reading them it's... well, the mechanics of the Talent Glyphs are a kind of deep magic, stronger than any unicorn's power. They might even be fundamental to the universe itself. They're certainly intrinsic to ponykind. As to what happened? I don't know. I'd guess the Schism is what caused this, just like it caused all the other differences between my Equestria and yours."

"So why do you have a normal one?" Dash asked, then pointed out the window. "See that one over there? He's got a normal cutie mark. Why are they normal when a lot of other ponies have these... these words?"

"There are two types of Glyphs," Star Fall explained. "The, uh, the word ones are called Direct Glyphs. They are immediately apparent, that is easily read, and they identify the pony's Special Talent. Glyphs like yours or mine are called Abstract Glyphs, because their meaning is obscured."

"Ob-what?"

"Hidden. They are a picture, not words. Their meaning is up for interpretation. About a third of the population has Abstract Glyphs. No one knows why that is, it just happens. Sometimes Abstracts aren't that hard to figure out. Like mine," Star Fall gestured to her flank, to the mark hidden by her dress. "My Talent Glyph doesn't just tell you what my Talent is, but it's pretty clear. My Glyph is a magic circle, one of the prime circles. Seven points, seven lines, seven places, seven paths."

"That's a lot of sevens," Dash commented absently.

Star Fall took on a distant look. "Seven is an important number in magic. In life, too. They say there are seven stories of the origins of the Goddesses."

"I heard something like that back in my time," Dash mumbled, distracted by watching the ponies in the street. "Twilight and Rarity talked about it once. I never figured that out, I mean, I've heard like two stories on how the Princesses came to rule, not seven."

"It's an obscure reference," Star Fall said, shaking her head. "I guess it was obscure even a thousand years ago."

"Yeah, some things don't change, I guess," Dash said, slumping in her seat. "I just can't believe cutie marks of all things would change."

"Talent Glyphs, Dash," Star Fall reminded her. "And I don't think they've changed, not really. I just think they've pared down a bit, gotten to the basics. They're still everything else you said about them. They are still personal. They still mean something. They still remind you that you are special, and a lot of ponies will say that they're still a part of your soul that you show the world. It's just some of them are more explicit about it than others."

Dash spent a few long moments staring at the ponies before shuddering. "I gotta get some air," she said, standing up.

"Dash, you haven't even touched your food," Star Fall admonished.

"I'm not hungry," Dash replied. "Look, I get what you're saying. I just... I can't stay here."

"We're heading to a big city, Dash," Star Fall reminded her. "You're going to be seeing a lot more ponies with Direct Glyphs."

"I know that, all right! I know," Dash's wings jerked nervously as her eyes darted about the restaurant. "I just gotta clear my head to process it. I gotta fly."

Star Fall knew she wasn't going to be able to keep the other mare there. Future shock was hitting her hard. "Find Astrid," Star Fall said. "Fly with her a bit. Don't go too far without her. We're in the Kingdom, but you're still not safe, even with the disguise."

"I got it," Dash said. "I'll play it safe."

"Then go, I'll come find you two when it's time to head on." Dash barely nodded in reply before she was galloping out the door. She took off immediately, leaving a blue-pink streak hanging in the air for a second, causing a few ponies to stare in wonder. "Etherealizing." Star Fall shook her head, unwrapping her second burger. "In public. That's not going to come back to bite us, no sir."

She considered Rainbow Dash as she ate. With everything she'd seen the mare accomplish, it was very hard to remember that she was supposed to doubt her assumed identity. It had become so easy to talk to her like Dash really was from a thousand years ago, and with her multitude of abilities as well as her complete ignorance of modern times and history, it was all adding up to her telling the truth. Yet she couldn't let go of the last few of her doubts.

Rainbow Dash had been a hero, and had died. All her knowledge of the life and times of Twilight Sparkle agreed on that. But she hadn't mysteriously vanished or been annihilated by some enemy or anything that would explain her showing up in the future like this. No, by every account Rainbow Dash had died peacefully. In bed. Of old age.

But if this mare wasn't Rainbow Dash as she claimed, then who was she?

***

The sun had fallen below the horizon, stars spreading through the sky as the last fingers of twilight receded into the west. They had been flying most of the day, with only a few breaks to eat or rest. Astrid had said that she wanted to make the capitol before nightfall, but even assisted by her magic Star Fall wasn't strong enough of a flyer to keep up that pace, and now they were soaring through the growing darkness.

Rainbow Dash could go for longer. She wanted to go for longer, to fly and fly until she was back in her own time, with her own friends and surrounded by ponies who didn't have weird cutie marks that could be read like a text book. She wasn't one to brood, but she couldn't help but dwell on everything that had happened to her since she woke up in that hole. They were coming up on the capital fast, though, and her calming flight would soon be over. Then she might finally get an answer to the question of why she was here, and more importantly, how she could get back.

Star Fall glided closer to her. "Dash, are you okay?"

Dash nodded, shaking off the heavy thoughts. "I'm fine." She wanted to leave it at that, but the look of concern in Star Fall's blue eyes made go on. "Look, I'm sorry about ditching you like that earlier. I just got kinda overwhelmed, you know? I guess I'm not as cool with this future thing as I thought I was."

"It's okay," Star Fall assured her. "You didn't wander off or do anything stupid. I think you're dealing with it fine. I also think you need to talk about it."

Dash let out a frustrated huff. "I don't even know what to talk about. I mean, I though I had a handle on this stuff, you know? You told me about the Schism and Nightmare Umbra and everything, and I'm going to stop that, so I'm cool with it. And everything else was just like back home, except every town has stuff you'd only see in Manehattan or Canterlot. I thought I could take anything the future could throw at me. But cutie marks? I just... I can't wrap my head around that, Star."

"Talent Glyphs," Star Fall corrected. "I would think that knowing all your friends and family, your very country is long gone would be a harder shock to the system."

"Star, I'm going to get back home," Dash said, utter conviction in her eyes. "Just because they're all gone now doesn't mean that they'll be gone then, and that's what's important. But cutie marks aren't supposed to change like that. They're part of ponykind, as much as wings on pegasi or horns on unicorns. Just knowing that they can change, it's messing with me, Star. Cutie marks shouldn't do that."

"Talent Glyphs," Star Fall said, at the edge of exasperated. "No one but me will understand you if you keep saying it like that."

Dash looked away from the white pegasus, training her eyes on the glow coming from behind the tall hills ahead of them. "It doesn't feel right to call them that," she said. "Talent Glyph might be the right words, but it's the wrong meaning. When I'm talking about cutie marks, I mean cutie marks, not Talent Glyphs. They're not just your Special Talent. They're more than that. Calling them Talent Glyphs, well, it just doesn't work for me, okay?"

Star Fall examined Dash in silence for a long moment. "That's the second," she said.

"The second what?" Dash asked, looking back at Star Fall.

"The second time you've run into translation problems," Star Fall explained. "Every other word, phrase, idea and object you've been able to translate perfectly. Your speech patterns, your little personal turns of phrase, all of that comes through. Except for some reason you can't translate cutie mark as Talent Glyph."

"I can do it, I just don't think it's right," Dash protested.

Star Fall shook her head. "I'm not saying it's impossible for you, I'm just saying that unlike how easily you've taken to every other aspect of Solar, there's these two concepts which you still automatically convey in Old Equestrian. It's interesting, and it makes me wonder why those two are the ones that aren't translating properly for you."

"I don't think I follow you," Dash said. "And you said this is the second. What was the first?"

"Dash, what's Discord?"

Rainbow Dash was about to answer when Astrid let out a warning cry. "Heads up!" she called out to them. "We've got company!"

Dash looked to where the Griffin was gesturing and her keen eyes made out a wing of four pegasi swooping towards them. At Star Fall's direction Dash slowed down to a near hover as the patrol intercepted them. They wore uniforms that were a bright gold edged with red, covering them right down to the flank, concealing their Glyphs. Their eyes were covered by goggles that were similar to the ones Astrid and Star Fall wore, protecting their eyes from the wind that they didn't have the magic to fend off naturally.

"Hail Griffin!" One of the pegasi called out as the other three circled around them. "State your name and purpose!"

"Sergeant Astrid of the Steelwing Clan," Astrid replied, turning her head so that the pony could see her clan markings. "My mission is to escort these two into the city, Royal assignment."

The lead pegasus's eyebrows shot up at that. "Royal assignment? Who are these two?"

"Lady Fallen Star and her hoofmaid Firefly," Astrid said. Dash winced at the false name, but managed to smooth her features before the pegasi noticed her reaction.

Even through the obscuring goggles the disbelieving look the pegasus was giving Astrid was obvious. "I don't see a horn on her head to go with those wings. You expect me to believe she's nobility?"

"Adopted nobility," Star Fall interjected. "I am legally the daughter of Professor Twinkle Shine."

The pegasus focused his gaze on her. "So, you're the one," he said.

"I am," Star Fall confirmed, raising her chin and looking as regal as she could while her tired wings flapped hard to keep her hovering in the air.

The pegasus shook his head. "You've either got the grace of Celestia on you or the luck of Luna in you. Either way, I know ponies who'd chew their back left hoof off for a shot at what you've got."

"Is there a point to this?" Astrid growled.

The pegasus held up a placating hoof. "No offence meant. A pegasus getting adopted into the nobility has raised a lot of spirits, I just wanted to make sure she knew that."

"Thank you, sir," Star Fall said as graciously as she could. "I will try to live up to that sentiment."

The pegasus gave her a midair bow. "We'll escort you in."

"That's not necessary," Star Fall said. "Astrid is more than capable of protecting me and my maid."

"I don't doubt that, but..."

"But nothing," Astrid snapped. "You've done your duty, seen us, identified us. Now shove off."

The pony looked like he was about to respond to Astrid's insult, but thought better of it as Astrid's raptor stare bore into him. "Fine. Be on your way." He waved to the circling pegasi, and the whole group rose away.

"What was that all about?" Dash asked.

"Guard Patrol," Astrid said. "Supposed to stop any air traffic coming into the capital, make sure it's not spies or crooks. Celestia knows they're crap on the first part, but they're good for the second."

"No, I mean that nobility thing," Dash clarified, looking at the white pegasus with new appraisal in her eyes. "I remember you saying you had a Royal account or something, Star. Are you really a noble?"

Star Fall sighed. "Not really."

"Yes you are, Fall," Astrid said.

"No I'm not!" Star Fall insisted. "The Professor adopted me, but it's just so I could get a proper education in magic. It isn't the same thing."

"So this Professor is a noble?" Dash reasoned.

"Every Magic Talent is," Star Fall sighed. "It's how the Crown rewards talented ponies for serving the Kingdom."

"Well, you're a Magic Talent, wouldn't that make you nobility anyway?" Dash asked, only slightly confused and working through it quickly.

Star Fall sighed. "It would, if I were a unicorn."

"What does not being a unicorn have to do with it?"

"Dash, in your time were there any nobles who weren't unicorns?" Star Fall asked.

Dash thought about it for a moment before shaking her head. "Not really, but that didn't mean anything. I mean, being nobility didn't really mean anything except to them. Something about old families from the pre-Equestria times. I never paid any attention to it, to be honest, that was more Rarity's gig."

"Well it means a lot now," Star Fall said. "And all the noble families are unicorns."

"Okay, so what about when they have a foal who isn't a unicorn? Do they just kick her out of the house?" Astrid and Star Fall stared at her for long enough for it to be uncomfortable. "What? What did I say?"

"Dash, you can't have foals from outside your species," Star Fall said.

"Uhh, okay? But we're all ponies, so what's the problem?"

"Pony is the genus, Dash. Unicorn, Pegasus and Earth Pony are all species. We're not closely related enough to interbreed, except in rare instances, and the foals that result are always sickly hybrids that are more often than not sterile themselves."

"Huh?" Dash was completely thrown by this statement.

"Unicorns can't have not-unicorn kids," Astrid said.

"Yeah they can," Dash insisted.

"No they can't, Dash. This is scientifically proven fact," Star Fall said.

"They totally can, and that's seen-it-myself fact," Dash declared.

Star Fall opened her mouth to retort, but shut it as a sudden thought occurred to her. "You've seen unicorns have non-unicorn children."

"Yeah. Well, not, like, been in the room when it happened, but there's lots of foals that've had parents that were from different tribes. Hell, I know a pair of earth pony parents who had twins where one was a unicorn and the other was a pegasus."

"This is incredible!" Star Fall said, eyes wide and staring off into space. "If this is true, then it means that magic has an effect on pony genetics and breeding just like it does on all the other sapient species! This overturns centuries of thought! It would certainly take the wind out of the sails of the Pony Superiority movements. Astrid, do you realize what this means?"

"That eugenics projects aren't just for Griffins anymore?" she asked, unsure.

"Yes! I mean, no! Well, okay, maybe. We'd certainly have to do studies on whether the techniques developed for Griffin, Diamond Dog and Dragon propagation would have any relevance for ponies. I can't see having the same urgency for pony-based engineering projects as there were for the others, but we could certainly avoid all of the mistakes made with them."

"Hey, Star," Dash said. "I have no idea what you're talking about. Again. It sounds really interesting, I guess, but can we get back to the part where you're a noble?"

"Okay," Star Fall said, shaking off her thoughts on the magical inheritance of ponykind to answer her friend's question. "When I got my Talent I had to be trained in it, but a pegasus can't enroll in the University for magical studies. My family didn't even have the money to send me there in the first place. Professor Shine was there when I discovered my Talent, though, and she offered to be my mentor and pay my tuition. Then she offered to officially adopt me so that I could take the magic classes. My parents weren't thrilled with it, but they knew I needed to be taught."

"Whoa, wait," Dash said, holding up a hoof as she processed this. "So your parents aren't dead or anything, and they gave you up for adoption to get you into a school? That is messed up."

"They didn't 'give me up'," Star Fall said. "They're still my parents, just not my legal family. Nobles sometimes adopt young or adult ponies who would bring honor or resources to their house. It's just that usually it's another unicorn they adopt. I'm the first non-unicorn to be adopted into a noble family in over fifty years."

"That's not all," Astrid said, snickering. "Tell her about your inheritance."

"Inheritance?" Dash asked.

Star Fall sighed. "Since the Professor doesn't have any other family and isn't interested in foaling, I'm also heir to her entire estate, including her title."

"And that's why no matter how much she whines about it, she really is a noble," Astrid said.

"Screw you, Astrid," Star Fall snipped.

"Always happy to clarify, Fall," Astrid said, chuckling.

"Wow. You gotta be pretty famous, huh?" Dash asked.

Star Fall shrugged sheepishly. "Maybe a little, but not for the right reasons."

"What do you mean?" Dash said, laughing. "You're a badass Magic Talent pegasus who can walk through the Everstorm and was adopted by freaking royalty!"

"Nobility, not royalty," Star Fall corrected. "And almost everyone doesn't know about the Magic Talent. Also, you shouldn't talk about my Talent where others can overhear, it's not safe."

"Not safe? What?"

"We're kind of spies," Star Fall said.

"Way to keep cover, Fall," Astrid snarked.

"It's not like she wasn't going to figure it out," Star Fall said.

"Also, I think you already told me that," Dash said, frowning as she thought about it.

"See? Not new news," Star Fall said to Astrid, who rolled her eyes.

"Whatever, Fall," Astrid sighed. "Dash, her Talent's a secret. She can get through the Storm without a guide and walk right into a Republic city and no one will look twice at her because she's a pegasus, not a unicorn, and they won't figure what she can do with her magic. If word got back to the Republics about what she can do, that would be over, and she'd be a target."

"Oh," Dash said, understanding coming quickly. "They'd send one of those guys, the Changelings, after her. Right?"

"Maybe," Astrid said. "Whatever they did, it wouldn't be good. Got it?"

Dash nodded. "Yeah. Keep a lid on it. Don't worry, I know how to keep secrets," she thought for a moment before speaking again. "So, if you keep your Talent quiet, how did you go to those magic classes?"

Star Fall laughed. "Oh, that? Professor Shine is the strongest Magic Talent in the Kingdom, maybe even the world. She lectures at the University, and she had me audit the classes so I could 'understand the family business'. Everybody just thinks she's making me take them so I can be a researcher or assistant to her. They probably think my Talent is in being a librarian or scribe."

"Heh, wait'll they see what you can really do," Dash said, eyes gleaming.

"If I ever get the chance to go public, they will," Star Fall assured her. "Does that answer your questions?"

"Not all of them, but it's good for now," Dash replied, stifling a yawn. "Are we going to your place?" she asked.

"No, I don't want to wake the Professor if she's in," Star Fall said, frowning. "Astrid, can we get a hotel room for the night?"

The Griffin shrugged. "Fine with me. We should be well beyond any normal pursuit, and a hotel is as good a place as any to throw off any tails."

"Alright, then. We'll get a room tonight and then go and see the Professor tomorrow," Star Fall said. The other two nodded their agreement, then started towards the hills, and the glow of the city that stained the clouds drifting above it with a warm golden light.

***

"I'm betraying you"

***

The insistent knocking on the door was what woke Rainbow Dash from her dreams. Her eyes popped open to see sunlight streaming through the curtained window of the hotel room they had checked into late in the night. She was unpleasantly sweaty and the covers of the cot she was in were twisted around her legs, forcing her to kick them vigorously to free herself. By the time she had oriented herself enough to look around the room the other two occupants were already in ready positions. Star Fall was leaning up against the wall beside the door while Astrid stood in front of it, carefully looking through the peephole. Her wings were flared and her talons flexed in readiness. Neither of them looked as groggy as Dash felt.

"Who is it?" Star Fall called at a nod from Astrid.

"Service escort," came the reply through the door.

Star Fall and Astrid exchanged a look that spoke volumes, none of which Dash was privy to. "We didn't order any service," Star Fall said. "I think you have the wrong room."

There was a scraping sound as whoever was outside the room shoved something under the door. Dash crept up to take a closer look, but a quick gesture from Astrid made her shy back. They were taking whatever this was deadly serious. Star Fall put her hoof over whatever had been pushed under the door, mumbling too quietly to hear. When she took her hoof away there was a glow coming from the object.

"It's good," Star Fall said, and Astrid yanked the door open.

Standing outside were two ponies wearing well-tailored dark suits, a stallion and a mare. Both were unicorns, and they each wore a strange device in one ear. They looked around the room with the kind of quick precision that Dash had only seen in a few of the Royal Guards. Their gaze lingered on her, assessing, but they moved on before Dash could even think to challenge them.

"Agent Case, Agent Green," the stallion introduced himself and the mare. "Agent Fall, your presence is required by Agent Gamma immediately."

"I just got back into the city," Star Fall said. "I was going to go see the Professor first."

"Professor Shine is in a meeting with the Crown," Agent Green said. "Agent Gamma said to assure you that you will be able to see her this afternoon."

Astrid rolled her eyes. "And I bet Gamma had nothing to do with setting that meeting up, huh?"

The two agents regarded the Griffin with the studied wariness of ponies who knew they would lose a fight if they got into one, but were determined not to show fear anyways. "Agent Gamma's dealings with the Crown are irrelevant to the current situation," Agent Case said. "We've been sent to escort you, there's a car waiting out front."

"Rrrg! I haven't even had breakfast yet!" Star Fall steamed. "Fine. Let's go."

Star Fall stormed past the agents, Astrid shrugging and following after. When Dash tried to go, though, the agents blocked her path.

"What the hell, guys?" Dash said, narrowing her eyes. "Hey, Star! You're not gonna leave me here are you?"

"You are not part of our orders," Agent Green said. "Identify yourself."

"She's Firefly," Star Fall said from the hall. "She's with me, and she gets to come along."

The two agents looked at each other before Case turned to her. "She's on your authority, then," he said.

"Damn right," Star Fall grumbled. "Come on, Firefly," she said.

Dash took the opportunity to rush past the agents and catch up with Star Fall. "What the hay is going on?" She asked in Old Equestrian.

"Remember I said I was spy?" Star Fall said, Dash nodded. "Gamma is my boss. She wants to talk about world of night. About what I saw there. I was hoping to do it after speaking to teacher, but Gamma is tricky mare."

"So we just go talk to this Gamma pony, then we go see your teacher, right?" Dash asked, annoyed at the delay but also curious about Star Fall's secret-agent stuff.

"Hope so," Star Fall said, sighing. "But you will not talk to Gamma. I don't want you under her attention. Too many questions, no answers. Until we talk with teacher, you are secret."

"Cool," Dash said.

"Not cool. Serious. You can not let her know about you," Star Fall said, glaring at Dash. "Do not say anything. You are Firefly, hoofmaid to me. You be quiet and do as you are told."

"Jeeze, Star, I get it," Dash said, taken aback. "Don't worry, I can do this secret agent stuff."

"Just be careful."

"Hey, this is me," Dash said, posing for a moment. "Awesomest pony in Equestria, past or present. No way I'm going to let you down!"

Star Fall smiled and shook her head. "Okay. I believe you," she said. Yet she was worried, and it came through clearly in her less-than-perfect grasp of Old Equestrian. Dash had to wonder who this Gamma pony was, and why she inspired this intense a reaction in Star Fall. Whoever she was, Dash resolved to do exactly what Star Fall had asked, and stay out of it. No matter what.

Chapter 8: The Maul

Loyalty is the Binding Agent. It brings the other Elements together and holds them together. Honesty is the Connective Agent. It ensures that all the Elements are open to the influence of the others. Generosity it the Distributive Agent. It ensures that the energies of the Elements flow properly between them. Laughter is the Energizing Agent. It provides the impetus and energy that allows the other Elements to function at their fullest. Kindness is the Regulatory Agent. It ensures that the energies are balanced and that no single Element is overstressed or too heavily burdened. Magic is the Directive Agent. It decides what the application of the Magic of Harmony will be.

-From the third section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter 8: The Maul

Dash was busy staring out the window of the car as it rolled along the streets of the capital. Their quick flight in the night before had shown her a vista of lights that she had been too tired to really admire. In the day she could properly see the scope of the city. Like the one she had spotted at a distance when she first woke up in the future, this city was enormous and dotted with clusters of incredibly tall buildings. When they crested a hill it spread out before her all the way to the horizon. It was like it went on forever. She couldn't even guess the number of ponies that would be living here.

"How are you doing?" Star Fall asked in Old Equestrian. She was seated between Dash and Astrid; it was a tight fit but she bore it stoically.

"I'm cool," Dash said, glancing at the other pegasus before once more staring at the window. "You guys do cities big in the future."

"Pressures of economy and space," Star Fall said. "I did think the vehicle would be very 'future' for you, but you barely reacted."

Dash shrugged. "It's a small train with no tracks," she said. "I get that, Star. It's sorta cool. Could be cooler."

Star Fall gave a quiet laugh. "Okay, it is not that good. Later I can show you more impressive things."

"Lookin' forward to it," Dash said, flashing Star Fall a quick smile.

She watched the ponies go past. Even Star Fall could easily fly far faster than this car was rolling, but this once she was content to sit back and watch. There were thousands of ponies in the streets they passed, and other beings too. She spotted Zebras and Diamond Dogs in groups, and a rare solitary Griffin here and there. She also saw guards wearing the same sort of livery that the pegasus patrol the night before had been.

The car headed into the heart of the city, where the buildings towered a hundred stories or more into the air. Dash felt like they were going into a canyon of metal and glass as they were surrounded by those pony-made mountains. The number of ponies on the streets were even greater here, crowds lining either side in living rivers.

There were a lot of earth ponies she saw, and plenty of pegasi too. By far the least represented were unicorns, though they were by no means absent from the throngs of ponies. Almost everyone wore clothes. Some were simple, a vest or a dress like the ones she and Star Fall wore. Others were the kind of elaborate fare that Rarity had loved to create. The most elaborate of these getups were without question worn exclusively by the unicorns. Dash remembered Star Fall saying that unicorn nobility was a lot more important now, and she guessed this showed it.

"How did you sleep?" Star Fall asked, still in Old Equestian.

"What? Fine, I guess," Dash replied. She wondered at Star Fall's continued use of the old language. She supposed it was to keep others from listening to them, but with mundane topics like how she had slept Dash was pretty sure it was unnecessary.

"You were having night fears."

"You mean nightmares," Dash corrected her. Star Fall frowned but Dash waved her off. "Yeah, I know. Same word, don't know why. Anyway, I don't remember any nightmares. I just went to sleep and then woke up and you guys were at the door."

Star Fall nodded. "Astrid is a very good listener, even when asleep," she said. "Normally I put up magic wards, but no paper means no wards."

"You guys took that really seriously. Do you really get ambushed in hotel rooms all that often? 'Cause if you do, then this spy thing is totally even more cool than I thought."

Star Fall laughed again. "No. No ambushes. Still, we have to be careful. There is a Changeling looking for you, and I could be in danger also. Caution is good."

Dash didn't really have anything to say to that, so she kept quiet and looked back out at the city. The car hadn't caught much of her interest, but there were things she was seeing out there that were definitely making an impression. They passed a storefront showing boxes filled with moving pictures. Dash recognized them as something similar to the movies she knew from her own time, and the smooth crispness of the image and lack of a projector made her think that they were probably illusion magic captured in the box. She made a mental note to find out more about them so she could tell Twilight when she finally got back home. The studious unicorn would love hearing about future magic and the two of them could always use more excuses to hang out.

Another thing that caught her attention was all the bright, neon signs. She'd seen similar in Canterlot, but the sheer volume of them was overwhelming. The further they drove into the city the more there were, until it seemed like the walls of the buildings were painted in lights up to the third floor. Dash wished she had learned to read Solar as she had been learning to speak it. Not being able to put a context to all those flashing signs made them all the more overwhelming.

As if the world outside were a projection on a curtain that someone had suddenly pulled aside the tall buildings vanished from beside them, giving way to a wide, open space. The sudden sunlight made Dash pull back and squint even through the shading tint of the window. When her vision cleared enough to see she let out a low whistle and leaned up against the glass.

Before them, in what had to be the heart of the city, was a palace. It gleamed in the morning sun, its walls a pristine white that glowed against the darker background of the tall city buildings. Pointed domes of red and gold capped towers that soared majestically upward while stained-glass windows decorated every wall. It had nothing as tall or as imposing as the skyscrapers of the city, but surrounded by a few square miles of terraced garden it was far more grand.

"The Court of the Sun," Star Fall said, switching back to Solar. "The seat of Solar government, and the home of the Royal family."

"Are we heading there?" Dash asked, watching a flight of Griffins take off from one of the palace's towers.

"No. We're heading to there." Star Fall pointed a hoof towards the front of the car and one of the skyscrapers that lined the edge of the palace's gardens. "When we're done there we'll head to the University, which is on the other side of the Court.”

“That place looks awesome,” Dash said.

“Really?” Star Fall asked in Old Equestrian. “Skyscrapers and cars do not amaze you, but six hundred year old castle does?”

“Well, yeah. It’s a castle, Star. Castles are always cool,” Dash said, tearing her eyes away from the Court as they turned to head towards the building Star Fall had indicated. “Hey, what’s up with the language switching anyway? I get that you don’t want to have Agents Grim and Angry up there listening in to everything, but it’s not like it matters that they know I think the castle’s cool.”

“I do not want them thinking you don’t know about cars or other things not from your time. They are likely talking to Gamma right now. All we say will be heard by her. Until my teacher sees you...”

“I gotta stay on the down-low, right,” Dash said. “I don’t mind, I just feel kinda bad about leaving Astrid out of it, you know?”

“Hey, Astrid,” Star Fall said in Solar. “Do you feel left out of the conversation?”

“Yes, Fall,” Astrid deadpanned, not bothering to look away from the window. “I am absolutely hurt by not being included in your circle of dweebs. It makes me wish that I had spent my youth studying every nerdy language until my eyes melted instead of learning how to be an unstoppable badass. That’s how much I feel left out.”

“See, she is fine with it,” Star Fall said, grinning at Dash.

Rainbow couldn’t help but laugh. She was a hundred percent behind Astrid there, and under other circumstances would be the one delivering the sarcasm. The fact that she wasn’t was just the kind of thing that was making this trip to the future feel like an adventure, flipping situations on her and showing her things about herself and the world that she’d never dreamed possible. If only cutie marks hadn’t been a part of that.

The car drove into the underground parking lot of the building that housed the Royal Secret Service. Star Fall spent a few moments explaining to Dash what it was. Essentially it was a section of the Royal Guard that did all the sneaky spy-stuff that Dash had heard about, as well as basic undercover work and keeping watch for citizens who might make trouble for the Crown. It sounded absolutely cool to her, and she wondered at what kind of pony this Gamma was. Star Fall made it sound like she was high up in the service, maybe even in charge.

“Remember...” Star Fall warned as the car stopped and the agents opened the doors.

“Yeah, I got it, Star. Keep quiet, do as I’m told,” Dash said, sighing.

They got out of the car and the agents immediately escorted them deeper into the building. The halls were cramped and drab, with cheap laminate flooring that was heavily scuffed and tracks of lights that cast a harsh white light that made everything seem pale and stark. Doors were a uniform grey marked with letters and numbers in Solar that were almost, but not quite recognizable to her. It didn’t take more than a few turns and a couple staircases for Dash to realize that if she was left on her own in this building she would be hopelessly lost. There were ponies scattered throughout, some going from place to place with saddlebags full of files or other paraphernalia, others were obviously guards of some sort, carrying batons at their sides and watching every other pony with wary eyes. What was more, many doors required the agents to do something involving ID-tags and little gray boxes to open them.

Dash couldn’t help but be impressed. Even Canterlot Castle, with guards at every other door, hadn’t seemed as protected as this place. She figured it made sense, her Equestria hadn’t been in a real war for a long, long time, and with the Princesses in residence any sort of assault on the castle would have been foolhardy to the point of a farce. This place, though? It was expecting trouble from every quarter, and was designed to make life difficult for anyone not following their particular rules.

Finally they arrived at a small office foyer with a few hard-looking benches and a tired-looking unicorn mare sitting behind a desk and sifting though files. “Agent Fall and her escort here to see Agent Gamma,” said Agent Green said.

The secretary gave the group a long glance, and Dash didn’t see any of the bored disinterest she would have expected. Instead there was a hard professionalism to her gaze that reminded Dash of the guards she’d seen in the halls. “One moment,” the secretary said, her horn lighting up as she channeled a spell. Her lips moved and she cocked her head slightly as if listening to someone, but no sound escaped her. After a few moments of hurried and silent conversation the secretary’s horn went dark and she focused again on them. “Agent Gamma will be right out.”

It was barely a second later before the door to the inner office snapped open and a dark green unicorn mare with a black mane stepped out. The first thing that struck Dash was that she had the most intensely blue eyes she had ever seen on a pony. They weren’t bright, in fact they were a deep, dark blue, but they stood out so much it was like they were glowing. The second thing she noticed was that unlike almost every other pony she’d seen in the city, this one was mostly naked. Her sole scrap of clothing was a short black scarf with a red monogram around her neck, which wasn’t thick enough to keep Dash’s keen eyes from seeing that it was covering something up. Her lack of clothing left her Glyph on full display, the meaning practically assaulting Dash’s eyes as she looked at it. This had to be Gamma, her Talent was Intelligence.

“Agents Green and Case, well done,” Gamma said, her voice was resonant and strong, but there was a hint of a rasp to it. “You are released back to your usual duties. “ The two agents wasted no time and giving a curt nod and leaving. Gamma turned her gaze to Dash, and she could barely keep herself from stepping back under the intensity of that blue gaze. “Explain her, please.”

“She’s my hoofmaid, Firefly,” Star Fall said.

Gamma raised an eyebrow. “Is she? I was unaware that you had decided to embrace your position.”

“It’s a recent thing,” Star Fall said.

“Why did you bring her?”

“As my hoofmaid it’s her duty to accompany me wherever I go,” Star Fall said, meeting Gamma’s gaze and holding it. Dash could see her wings trembling. Star Fall wasn’t strong or confident enough to go up against that blue stare for long, but she was putting up a good fight.

“Yes,” Gamma said. It wasn’t a concession, it was a statement. “Shall I have Therese run a background check on her, or should we skip to the part where you stop bullshitting me?”

“Therese can run all the background checks she wants,” Star Fall said, rolling her eyes at the secretary who appeared to be taking no notice of the conversation at all. “Firefly’s off the grid, she won’t find anything.”

Gamma’s eyes narrowed. “Off the grid? You brought a pony with no verifiable history into the center of the Kingdom’s intelligence community? Why?”

“I trust her,” Star Fall said. “Completely.”

Without warning Gamma’s horn flashed a harsh blue and shot a bolt of energy at Dash. She didn’t even have time to react as it smacked into her, staggering her back a few steps. She flared her wings and dropped into a crouch as she glared at the unicorn. “What the hell was that for?”

Gamma watched Dash for a moment before looking back at Star Fall. “Not a Changeling, then,” she mused. “Fine. You will explain this, Agent Fall, but we have other things to discuss first. How much does she know?”

“Nothing important,” Star Fall said. “She’s got nothing to do with my mission, which is one of the reasons why I trust her so much. Astrid and I have been careful, she’s not a breach.”

“Nothing to do with it,” Gamma repeated dryly, intense eyes betraying nothing while seeming to speak volumes. “I suppose I will have to take your word for that. Fine, but since she knows nothing I will keep it that way. Both of you into my office. You,” she stared hard at Dash. “Take a seat.” Without another word she turned and strode into her office.

Dash unfolded from her crouch, pulling her wings in. She found herself actually wanting to like this Gamma pony. She had a real ‘hardcore spy’ vibe and that quick spellcasting had been awesome. If only those things hadn’t been directed at her she might have found herself admiring the green unicorn. As it was she was going to withhold judgement.

Star Fall stepped up to Dash and put a hoof on her shoulder. “We’ll be out soon,” she whispered in Old Equestrian. “Remember.”

“For the last freakin’ time, Star!” Dash sighed. “I get it! Just go talk to miss hair-trigger and we can get out of here and back to the important stuff, okay?”

Star Fall looked like she wanted to say more, but closed her mouth instead and nodded. Astrid gave Dash a wink as the two of them followed Gamma. The door shut in a burst of blue magic and Dash was left in the quiet company of Therese and her paperwork. She took a seat on the bench.

Dash looked around, but there was nothing else in the room. No pictures, no magazines, no potted plants to poke at. Only two doors, a bench, a desk and a pony reading over papers. There wasn’t even a window she could gaze out of while imagining that she was flying or doing something other than waiting in the most boring room she had ever been in. There wasn’t even a clock to let her know how much time was passing.

Dash sat quietly until it became uncomfortable. Then she twiddled her hooves for a bit, but that only ate up a small amount of time before it got tedious. She stretched out her wings and gave them an examination. The hard pink color the dye had made them actually didn’t look that bad, she decided. Not as good as her natural blue, of course, but not bad all the same. She briefly considered doing a bit of preening, but there wasn’t a garbage can to put any feathers she pulled out, and leaving them all over the room would probably be no good.

“So, uh, Therese?” Dash said. The secretary ignored her. “You work for Gamma, huh?” No response. “Do you have any, like, stuff I could read. Or, uh, stuff with pictures would be better, yeah. Do you have stuff with pictures I could look at?” Nothing. Dash waited for something, anything to change, but the subtle sounds of shuffling papers were all that broke the excruciating stillness of the room.

Dash could feel the sweat beginning to break out on her body. She shifted uncomfortably, pulling at her dress in a vain attempt to get herself to cool down. It was like the empty walls of the room were closing in on her. The air was stifling, and she had a sudden and unpleasant flashback to that dark and silent place where she had woken up in this future world.

She leapt to her hooves. “Bathroom!" she barked out. Therese finally looked up from her
papers, eyeing the pegasus warily. “Uh, I need to go to the bathroom. Where is it? The, uh, the bathroom, that is. Which I need to go to. Now.”

Therese pointed at the door to the hall. “To your right, then take your first left, then another left. Six doors down on your right,” she said.

“Cool, thanks. You just keep on, uh, keep doing what you’re doing,” Dash said, then practically leapt out the door.

The cramped hallway wasn’t much of improvement over the office, but it at least had a sense of direction. A hallway was a place where you went somewhere, that room was a place where you sat and did nothing until you died of boredom. Dash turned right and started walking, watching for the hallway she was supposed to go down to get to the washroom. She didn’t need to relieve herself, but it was as good a place as any to go and splashing some water on her face would do her a world of good.

Several turns later and Dash was lost. Part of the problem was the needlessly labyrinthine layout of the building. A larger part was that she couldn’t read Solar, and thus had no way of telling which of the doors were the washroom, or if any of the infrequent signs on the walls were pointing to it. They apparently didn’t use simple pictures for common things like restrooms in the future, which made it really difficult on any stray visitors from the past.

She was just about to break down and ask one of the wandering guards for directions when a burly brown pegasus stallion in a black and red jumpsuit came around the corner and started stomping towards her. “You!" he growled at her.

“Uh, me?” Dash said, pointing a hoof at herself.

“Yeah you! Are you Firefly?" he snapped loudly enough for Dash to flinch back.

“Uh, yeah?”

“That sounded uncertain! Do you not know who you are?" he barked, stopping uncomfortably close to her.

“ No, uh, I totally know who I am,” Dash said, wondering what the hell was going on. “I’m Firefly. Yup, that’s me.”

“Then what the hell are you doing wandering around the halls like a foal off her mommie’s apron strings for the first time?” Dash actually felt spittle land on her as he shouted from only a couple inches away.

“I got lost,” she said, squaring herself. She didn’t know why he was yelling at her, but no one could spit on her and get away without a fight.

“You got lost,” he repeated in a high-pitched insulting voice. “You couldn’t follow the signs? Can’t you read?”

“Uh...”

“I don’t care!" he snarled before she could come up with a sufficient reason for why she wasn’t reading the signs that didn’t make her sound like an idiot. “I’ve got you now, so you’re not going to have any excuse when you fail!”

“Fail?” Dash frowned.

“Get a move on! You’re keeping a whole lot of important people waiting, and let me tell you they do not like being kept waiting!” He stepped behind her and gave her a shove.

“Hey! What’s the big deal?” Dash snapped back at him, refusing to move.

“The big deal is you are wasting my time!" he roared. “Now, are you gonna come and take your test like a mare, or am I going to have to get security to drag your ass down to the Maul!”

Dash wanted to buck him in the face, but Star Fall’s insistent words came back to her. Be quiet and do as you are told, she had said, and Dash had promised not to let her down. Causing a scene here would be letting Star Fall down, and Rainbow Dash never left a friend hanging. “Yeah, fine,” she said. “Point the way and I’ll take whatever test you want.”

“You just keep up that attitude, pigeon,” the Stallion said with a wicked grin. “Let’s see if you’re cooing the same tune once they’re done with you.”

Dash held herself back from replying with something snappy. She had a feeling that things were about to go crazy, and from the books she’d read protesting too loudly in a situation like this only made it worse. So she’d follow along and see what was up before she started shouting back. With a few shoves and more than a few insults tossed her way the stallion led her deeper into the building. She tried to keep track of the turns, doors and staircases they used, but once again the building defeated her.

Finally they came out in a huge room, easily large enough to fit most of ponyville into it with a ceiling so high that there were even small, thin clouds drifting in the upper reaches. Dash stopped in her tracks and goggled. There was no way a room this big had been attached to the building she’d seen above ground. Had they gone that far under the earth? Pegasi were usually good at telling when elevation changed by feeling the air pressure with their wings, but she had felt none of that.

The room was set up as an obstacle course. It actually looked a lot like the Royal Guard or Wonderbolt training camps she’d seen pictures of. There were ground-based obstacles and hoops raised on long poles for aerial stunts. Some parts of the course had hazards that would drop on or swing into a careless pony. Several of the hazards gleamed with wicked sharpness and she was sure that more than one of them had rusty stains that looked a lot like blood.

There were dozens of balconies ringing the walls at various heights, all of which had at least one pony on them, usually more. Dash also spotted several Griffins crouched back in the higher balconies. On the ground there were even more ponies, some obviously working the machinery of the course, others seemed to have no purpose at all, but stood patiently waiting. To the side, on a raised stage, stood a dozen ponies in the red-gold uniforms Dash was quickly coming to associate with the local version of the Royal Guard. Almost all of them were looking right at her.

“What the hay?” she breathed.

“What was that?” the Stallion barked at her.

“Uh, where are we?” Dash asked.

“The Maul, pigeon,” he sneered. “And your last chance to prove you’re worth it to the Service.”

“Okay, yeah, I think there’s been a mistake here,” Dash said, deciding that now was probably the point where speaking up wouldn’t make anything worse.

“Damn right there has been,” he snorted. “I don’t know who approved this, but if they thought you had even one tenth of what it takes to finish this course they made one hell of a mistake.”

Dash’s mouth hung open for a moment as she processed that statement. Her initial intention to explain the obvious mistaken identity was immediately overridden. “Whoa, wait a minute, you think I can’t do this?”

“I know you can’t, pigeon,” he said. “A little pink girl like you? No way.”

“I totally can!” Dash said, puffing out her chest. “I’m Rai... Firefly! I can do this course with my eyes closed, and in half the time of the next-best guy!”

“Sure you can,” he said, waving a hoof dismissively. “Whatever. I’ve done my job and got you here. You wanna still take the course? Fine, your humiliation.”

“I’ll show you humiliation!” Dash growled, spreading her wings to take off even as a part of her that wasn’t focused on a new challenge warned her that this was just the sort of ‘everything going crazy’ stuff she’d been worried about a few minutes ago. She brushed that part aside. It was just an obstacle course. A scary-looking one, but nothing she hadn’t done a zillion times before. She’d get through this in a minute, tops, and then explain to the big brown idiot that he’d gotten the wrong mare to begin with and hopefully be back in the office before Star Fall and Astrid were done.

Actually, putting it that way made this sound a whole lot better than slowly killing herself with boredom. Her flying for the past few days had been simple for-travel stuff, nothing really fancy save for a few routines she could do without either of her companions getting nervous about being spotted. This was a chance to really flex her wings and show off to some jerk who didn’t think she could do it at the same time.

A lazy grin spread across Dash’s face. This was going to be fun.

“You really want to try?” he snorted, pointing with a hoof. “Fine, start line’s over there, tell them you’re ready and we can all watch you fail.”

“Oh, you’ll be watching all right,” Dash said, flapping her way down to the start line that he had indicated. “That is, if your eyes can keep up!” The ponies around her just watched, expressions professionally neutral as she took a ready position.

“Has the course been explained to you?” one of the unicorns asked.

“Sure, whatever,” Dash said, eager to start. The hazards were dangerous-looking, but the actual layout of the course was fairly simple. She could follow the route of it easily and it didn’t look like there were any weird twists or double-backs required.

“You understand that any resulting injury will not be...”

“I said I got it, okay?” Dash waved him off. “Let’s just get going!”

“Very well. Your time will begin at the flash,” he said, lighting up his horn so that it pulsed in increasing intensity. “Good luck, you’re going to need it.”

Dash chuckled and focused, feeling the burning anticipation of a race build in her. The pulses from the unicorn grew steadily brighter, then flashed with a sudden intensity that would have blinded her if she had been looking directly at it. She hadn’t been, and she took off. She skimmed the ground as she rushed towards the first obstacle, which was a series of poles she had to zig-zag through. Basic stuff, the kind of thing she did as a warm up when training. She started going through them, almost laughing at how hilariously easy this was going to be.

Then the ponies on the sidelines began shooting at her.

***

“Your mission was successful,” Gamma said the moment the door slammed shut. It hadn’t been a question.

“Mostly,” Star Fall said, taking a seat in front of Gamma’s desk. Gamma’s inner office was much like her outer one: blank. No pictures, no personal items, just what was needed for work. There was a tingle of magic that covered everything, though, and it led Star Fall to believe that the starkness of the office was for the benefit of visitors. Gamma wasn’t a Magic Talent, but she was still more skilled than most unicorns in a wide array of spells, including the illusions that would allow the office to appear considerably different when Gamma was alone. “We still don’t have any idea what he was digging for, but they definitely found something.”

“Why didn’t you get a look at what they unearthed?” Gamma asked, taking her seat behind her desk.

“There was no chance to. I got close, but then they started packing up and I had to leave. Astrid and I hopped the mountains into the Verge, but when they caravanned past there was nothing new on them. Whatever they took out of the ground has to be small enough to hide.”

“And important enough for Cash himself to oversee getting it,” Gamma mused. “Fine. What of the rest?”

“He’s definitely not working with the Republic’s open approval,” Star Fall answered. “He even went through the trouble of putting all his permits under James Bay’s name, but they were still rejected. I know he’s got a senator or two in his pocket, but they obviously don’t have the pull to let him act with impunity.”

“He’s beefed up security too,” Astrid spoke up. “The site had some real bruisers, Strength Talents and other heavy hitters. They were answering to the asskicker, too. If she had a hoof in recruiting them they’ll be top of the line, probably ex-military.”

“Did you engage them?”

Astrid snorted. “No way. I could handle three of them, maybe four, but there were a dozen of them around the site, and with their boss around I’d get my furry ass handed to me faster than you can light up your horn.”

“Then how did Agent Fall get close, as she said?” Gamma asked.

“I went in alone,” Star Fall said. Both she and Astrid cringed at the way Gamma quirked an eyebrow at that statement. “It was the only way.”

“You risked exposing yourself, and our entire investigation,” Gamma said, her voice as level and calm as possible, and all the more scary for it. “That is a grave risk to take. I do hope it was worth it.”

“Yeah, it kinda was,” Star Fall said. “I got into Cash’s personal tent. I found a lot in there that we are going to need to know.”

Gamma leaned forward, resting her forehooves on her desk and fixing Star Fall with an intense stare. “Tell me.”

“I need a pen, some paper, and a map of the Kingdom.” Gamma’s horn burst into a blue glow and compartments were opened in her desk and in the walls as the unicorn gathered the requested materials. “Okay, first thing, I’m going to write a list of names I found. These might be the names of ponies who may be working for Cash, and might also be working for our government.”

“That’s a lot of ‘may’s and ‘might’s in there, Fall,” Astrid said.

“No, that’s good,” Gamma interjected. “He’s laid traps like this before. Proceed.”

Star Fall wrote out the names, taking her time to be absolutely sure she was remembering them right. She wasn’t eidetic like Gamma, or Professor Shine, but she’d learned to compensate in order to use her magic and it meant that when she memorized something it would stick. She hadn’t had much time to commit all she had seen in Cash’s tent to perfect recall, though, so she had to take her time reconstructing it from the bits she had managed to capture. In the end she’d filled three sheets with names and various other notes that she’d gotten. Then she turned to the map.

“This is probably the most important thing I found,” she said, scribbling a few marks on the map. “I think whatever he found there was only the beginning. I think he’s come to the Kingdom because the next thing on his list is in one of these four places.” She poked a hoof at the marks she had made while she identified each one. “This one’s the Stalliongrad excavation. This is where we think the Crystal Kingdom had its capital, and we already know he’s got crews digging there. This one’s in the middle of nowhere, but I think he’s been doing secret digging there just like he was outside of Orion City. The last one I already know.” She pointed to the tilted square she had used to mark a place in the mountains to the west of the capital. “This is a Dragon’s lair. The Professor sent me to study with him about five years ago. It’s full of old stuff, pre-Schism relics and statues that he carved himself.”

“I know the one,” Gamma said. “I have one of his pieces at home. Exquisite work. He’s pre-Schism himself, too. Very powerful.”

“He taught me a lot of history, and how to speak Old Equestrian,” Star Fall said. Astrid gave her a look, but she ignored it, focusing on the map instead. “After I talk to the Professor, I’m going to arrange a trip to go out and see him. He might have some idea of what Cash is looking for if Cash thinks he has it. He might also be in danger, and he needs to know that.”

“That won’t be necessary,” Gamma said.

“Look, he’s a friend, and if I have to disobey orders...”

“Agent Fall, if I didn’t want you to help the Dragon you wouldn’t be able to,” Gamma said. There was no heat or anger in her voice, only cold certainty. “I do want you to help the Dragon, though, so we should not have a problem. However, instead of allowing you to go to him to warn of a possible danger, I think it will be far more expedient to have him, and his hoard, brought to us where we can protect both more effectively. Wouldn’t you agree?” Star Fall shut her mouth and nodded. “Good. Now, What else of Cash have you learned?”

“Just that he wasn’t with his crew when they crossed the Everstorm,” Star Fall answered. “Neither were his usual companions, which is odd. Usually he leaves Bay to oversee them at least.”

“I see,” Gamma said, leaning back into her chair and folding her hooves in front of her. “Then you don’t know that Bay is dead.”

“What?” Star Fall and Astrid asked in unison.

“James Bay was found dead in an empty room at the bottom of a long hole,” Gamma said. “The same hole you were watching him help dig.”

“He was alive when they started packing up,” Star Fall said, frowning as she thought over the implications of this revelation. “I saw him and Cash go into the excavation together before I left.”

“Apparantly he never came back out,” Gamma said. “The Orion police were tipped off about Cash’s illegal excavation. After an ... incident involving a pair of pegasus officers sent to investigate, one of their best detectives went out and made the discovery himself.”

“How did he die?” Astrid wondered aloud.

“I don’t know,” Gamma admitted, frowning as if it pained her. “My source wasn’t able to get the autopsy report to me. It was violent, however, and apparently quite gruesome.”

“Could they have found something that did that to him?” Star Fall asked. “A creature?”

“Perhaps, but that’s needless speculation,” Gamma pointed out. “The fact that Bay is dead, even the manner of his death, do not shed any light on what was in the chamber they found. It does, however, throw all our carefully constructed behaviour models into chaos. Did Cash kill Bay, his most loyal lieutenant and oldest friend? If so, why? Did what they find kill him, and if so why didn’t it kill any others? Was there a fourth party involved, not affiliated with us nor Cash nor the Republic’s intelligence forces? If so, who, and why have they waited until now to act?” Gamma shook her head. “I know it’s giving them headaches on the other side of the Storm, and I’ve got some of our best minds working scenarios right now so that we’ve at least done some preparation.”

“If we catch him at one of these sites, we’ll be able to ask him directly what went on,” Star Fall said.

“Yes," Gamma said, giving Star Fall a short nod. "Which is why I’m very glad you did find this information. While the risk you took was unacceptable, I am forced to concede that it was, perhaps, warranted." Her gaze turned sly. "I believe a reward is in order. Would you like your father to receive a promotion?”

“I...” Star Fall hesitated and swallowed hard. When she had first been adopted by Twinkle Shine she’d tried to use her new influence to improve her family’s lot in life. Her parents, however, had refused her every effort. They stubbornly insisted on making their way on their own with the hardheaded pride that only the chronically impoverished could afford. They weren’t serfs to be kept like pets by a noble, they had told her, they were free ponies who made their own way, even if that way left them with no savings and ever increasing bills as they aged. They were happy to see her succeed, of course, but saw all but the lightest assistance as impinging on their hard-fought-for independence. What Gamma was offering was a chance to help them out, and since it would be Gamma’s influence that did it there would never be any indication that such a promotion was anything but absolutely legitimate and won through skill and effort.

This was the one thing she really hated about working for Gamma.

“No,” she said. “If there’s any reward it should be some vacation time for Astrid. She’s been with me non-stop for over a year now.”

“Hey, Fall, come on,” Astrid protested. “I don’t need any vacation. It’s not like watching you draw spooky pictures is hard.”

“When’s the last time you spent time with your Clan?” Star Fall asked. “When’s the last time you tried to nest?”

Astrid shook her head in disgust. “Low blow, Fall.”

“While I would like to grant that request,” Gamma said before Star Fall could reply. “I’m not the one you would have to ask. Astrid was assigned to you by the King, Agent Fall, and while my opinion has some sway with him, he would be much more likely to grant such a request if it came from you personally.”

Star Fall cringed. “Right. Then how about you just tell me why you arranged for Professor Shine to be ‘unavailable’ this morning?”

“I didn’t,” Gamma said. She took in the disbelieving looks she was getting with a calm indifference before continuing. “I am not prevaricating. I sincerely did not have a hoof in the Professor’s being called to council with the Crown today. In fact, if I had not decided learning what you found out was more important, I would be there as well.”

Star Fall deflated a bit at that. “Oh. What happened?”

“A juvenile Dragon has gone missing. They think he went into his hoarding phase and slipped the watch to start collecting.”

Star Fall sucked in a hissing breath and winced at that. “Ouch, that’s one set of minders who are getting fired.”

“Indeed, they will be lucky if they are not charged with negligence and thrown in jail,” Gamma said. “This matter of course took priority over the Professor’s classes. I merely took advantage of it to speak with you sooner. Well that I did, otherwise I don’t think I would have had the opportunity to meet the young miss Firefly. Am I right?”

Star Fall winced again. “Yes,” she admitted, at this point there was no use in lying to someone who could pick out tells from far better actors than Star Fall would ever be. “I wasn’t even going to tell you about her.”

Gamma nodded. Not in the least surprised. “Good. Now that I know about her anyway. Let’s all have a nice chat and get to know each other.” She stood up from her desk and strode over to the door.

“What the hell, Fall?” Astrid hissed as quietly as she could while Gamma passed. “If I wanted to start another fucking nest I’d fucking tell you!”

“I know! I’m sorry,” Star Fall whispered back. “It’s just, I gave up a chance to help my family, the first thing that came to mind was giving you a chance to start one. All that talk about genetics last night got me thinking about it, and I just ... well, I’m sorry.”

“Think next time, Fall,” Astrid sighed. “You’re usually so damn good at it, why can’t you do it around Gamma?”

“She’s smarter than me!” Star Fall protested. “It makes me nervous.”

“Ahem!” Gamma said, catching their attention. “If you two are done, I’d like to ask your new companion some questions.” She opened the door, only to find the outer office empty save for her secretary. “Therese, where is the pink one?”

“Using the facilities,” Therese replied, looking up from her papers only for a moment. “She’s been a while though. I think she got lost.”

“Well, no alarm has gone up,” Gamma mused. “I suppose she hasn’t gone too far.” She stepped across the foyer and opened the outer door, only to be assaulted with noise as ponies rushed by in the hallway. The sound of rapidly trotting hooves echoed through the hall, accompanied by the babble of many ponies talking excitedly all at once. “Excuse me!” Gamma called out, one of them stopped. “What’s causing the excitement?”

“There’s a pony taking the Maul!” he said, bouncing on his hooves. “They say she’s winning!”

“Oh? Now that’s interesting,” Gamma looked back at Star Fall and Astrid as the stallion she had stopped took the opportunity to keep going. “I definitely want to see this,” she said with a small smile. “Don’t you?”

“Winning the Maul? Isn’t that impossible?” Astrid asked incredulously.

“Oh no,” Star Fall breathed, immediately knowing exactly what was going on.

Astrid’s eyes widened as her own train of thought quickly caught up with Star Fall’s. She shared a worried look with her pegasus friend. “Oh,” she said. “Yeah. That’ll be a problem.”

“Come along now,” Gamma said, turning back to the hallway. “I’ve got a theory I’m testing, and I’d like to hear your opinions on it.”

They joined the crowd making its way down to the massive subterranean chamber that was used for special training and tests, such as the Maul. When they got there the observation area was already packed full, and what they saw made Star Fall’s jaw drop.

***

Rainbow Dash dodged to the side, the enchanted bullets sending up little puffs of dirt as they impacted the ground behind her. She didn’t even have time to get out a protesting yell before she had to duck under another barrage of projectiles. The ponies lining this part of the course had hefted strange tube-devices to their sides, the shape of them reminding her of the dart-thrower that had been used against her just before she had met Star Fall. These weren’t shooting darts, though, and she had the feeling that getting hit with one would result in more than embarrassing unconsciousness.

An armored earth pony leapt out at her, forcing her to vault into the air to get over him. Immediately a pair of nets were thrown at her, trying to tangle in her wings. She dove, hitting the pony who had tried to tackle her and using him as a springboard to launch herself forward again. The air buzzed as more projectiles barely missed her.

Dash sucked in a heavy breath and picked up her pace, barely staying ahead of a blast of fire launched from a unicorn. This was insane! What kind of madmare would design an obstacle course where ponies were trying to kill you? She had to dart back and forth so quickly that the world took on a shuddering, seizure-like quality in her vision. She was forced to abandon normal flight procedure and move completely by gut instinct.

Which was fine, really. She did her best flying by gut instinct.

Her magic poured through her, enhancing her senses to deal with the incredible speed and precision with which she moved, lending strength to her muscles and decreasing her reaction time to almost nothing. This was the power of a pegasus, just as strength and resilience were an earth pony's, and the manipulation of matter and energy by thought alone was a unicorn's. The world slowed down, coming to a moment of calm as she made the choice between quitting the course and protecting herself, or continuing on and risking her life.

As time sped back up Dash's grin was as fierce as a hurricane. There was no way she was backing down.

She hit the ground running, ducking under a blast of small pellets that peppered the air above her. Her wings flared out, catching the air and pulling her to a sudden stop just in time to avoid a huge guillotine that cut across her path. The moment it was out of her way she was past it, dodging a trio of javelins thrown at her as she rushed towards the launching point that would take her into the first air-based leg of the course.

A sheet of fire erupted in front of the first ring she was supposed to fly through, covering it completely. She nearly flinched away, but something about the way the air felt on her wings made her decide to fly right through it. She plunged into the flames and felt their searing heat, but emerged from the other side unscathed, the phantom pain disappearing instantly. Just as she was congratulating herself on recognizing the illusory flame, a very real fireball burst in front of her, forcing her to swerve around it.

The fireball had only been cover for the approach of a trio of pegasi. Dash was forced onto the defensive as they assailed her. Their fighting style was something she'd never seen before, which made sense considering where and when she was. Still, while they were very good she was a dozen times faster than them, and the disparity in power showed. Even three on one she was untouchable, dodging blows and making insanely difficult maneuvers as she kept the pegasi between her and the charged unicorn horns below.

Eventually, once they realized that they couldn't hit her, the pegasi withdrew in unison, letting the unicorns have a clear shot. Dash abandoned the course for a minute, zipping all the way up to the high ceiling of the room. She eyed the thin indoor clouds with trepidation, but decided that they would do in a pinch. With speed that left a pink-blue trail behind as she moved, Dash zig-zagged across the ceiling, avoiding spells while also surreptitiously herding the small clouds into one area. She drew in the moisture from the air, adding it to the clouds until they gained volume and solidity. Once she decided there were enough gathered she looped around them, once, twice, three times until they congealed into a single, thicker mass.

Dash looped around to the top of her makeshift cloud and shoved. It hurtled down towards the group of unicorns that had been targeting her. Dash laughed as a few of them ducked or ran as if the cloud could actually hurt them. There was very little substance to the cloud, and while she could have maybe kicked one lighting bolt out of it, it would have been weak and no threat to anything bigger than a mouse. As it was, it did what it was supposed to do, which was break apart and spread out well before it reached the ground.

With an obscuring mist in the way Dash launched herself at the next part of the course, diving through a hoop and curling around to come at the next obstacle. Startlingly loud cracks rang out as the ponies with the tube-things continued firing, half aiming at Dash and half firing blindly. Dash ignored them unless they got too close to hitting her, intent on beating this next portion of the course and getting back in the air.

A field of razor-wire strung over a patch of loose dirt was her next challenge. She'd seen stuff like that before, she was supposed to crouch down and crawl through it. Flying over would be cheating, and might disqualify her. Dash used her wings for a lot, but unlike what a certain orange farmer might think she never used them for outright cheating. Still, if she tried to crawl she'd be set upon in moments by the burly Earth Ponies who were even now rushing to intercept her. So she resolved not to crawl.

Dash tucked into a somersault that took her to the razor-wire field just ahead of one of the charging ponies, then tucked her wings close, threw her hooves out to stretch herself into as straight of a line as she could, and rolled sideways into the dirt. The wire was still close enough to the ground that it caught at her mane, but none of it touched her as she rolled as fast as she could through the dirt. A hoof caught one of the poles holding the wire up, but she gritted her teeth through the pain and kept going. She burst from the other side of the field in a shower of dirt as she spread her wings and launched herself into the air, barely avoiding another blast of pellets that scarred the ground where she had been.

A wide net meant to be climbed was next up, with another launching point for the next aerial section at its top. She dropped back to the ground and snapped her wings closed, leaping onto the rope ladder and climbing for all she was worth. Climbing rope ladders, it turned out, was hard. What made it even harder was that the unicorns who had a clear view just would not stop chucking things at her. She was forced to twist and contort herself in a dozen very uncomfortable ways in order to dodge the projectiles thrown at her, some of which cut into the ropes and made it even harder to climb.

Finally reaching the top, she took to the air. She didn't know how much time had passed, but she was fairly certain it was more than a few minutes since she started. The fight with the pegasi and putting the obscuring cloud together had taken a while. She was breathing heavily and while she was sure she could go for a lot longer, the exertion was reminder her that her wings had been broken only a little over a week ago. As much as she hated to admit it, she wasn't back in top shape, and this was putting more of a strain on her than she liked.

She flew straight towards the next hoop, this one sticking straight out of the wall near the ceiling, barely paying attention as she mentally gauged how much more her body could handle. This lack of focus nearly killed her as a large shape dropped out of the sky, sharp raptor's talons flashing. Dash barely pulled back in time, but still received a trio of scrapes down her belly from a strike that could very easily have disemboweled her.

She wheeled to track the Griffin that had attacked her as it circled around, falcon eyes latching onto her as it was joined by three others. "Four against one?" Dash whined. "Aw, man, this is totally not cool." If they were anywhere near decent flyers the four of them could overwhelm her easily. From the way they were moving in the air, they were better than decent. While they couldn't match her speed, in a confined space like this room she was at a huge disadvantage.

A sudden thought brought a smile to her face. The cloud-mist was dissipating, but there was enough of it left that some of the ground forces still didn't have a good view, that included some of the pyrokinetic unicorns.

Dash flew straight into the formation of Griffins. They reacted like the war-trained soldiers they were, twisting to bring their talons to the fore and slowing while maintaining formation instead of scattering like pegasi would. Dash pushed out more speed, banking sharply in a pair of ninety-degree turns before tapping the lead Griffin sharply on the beak and diving towards the ground. The Griffin, surprised and angered, followed, his comrades dropping with him in pursuit.

Dash deliberately slowed her descent, letting the Griffins get within a feather of catching her. She aimed for a still-substantial patch of cloud just above a group of unicorns and turned so that her hooves were leading. With a feeling like she had just landed in hip-deep mud she hit the cloud. She tucked in one leg and rolled along its surface, getting out of the way as the unicorns below fired their combat magics up, and the Griffins hit the cloud and found it much less substantial than their quarry had.

The explosion of the fireball spells was still close enough to singe Dash's hair and send her tumbling off the edge of the cloud, but she caught herself with her wings and soared up. She knew she had to keep moving, but she couldn't stop herself from looking back at the damage she had just done. To her relief, all of the Griffins were alive. Three of them sprawled on the ground, nursing broken bones and burns, but none of them looked seriously injured and there were already unicorns carrying what looked like medical supplies rushing over to them. The last of the Griffins seemed to have escaped injury altogether, and was even now fixing on her position and flapping hard to catch up to her.

Dash grinned and threw that Griffin a quick salute before turning and rushing towards her goal. More pegasi were leaping from the balconies to harass her, and with the cloud cover almost completely gone the unicorns on the ground were firing off more and more spells that forced her to dodge in increasingly quick and complex ways. She relished it, tasting the adrenaline and demanding more. She could hear that voice in the back of her head, the one that pushed her on to greatness. It was giving her the pep-talk of a lifetime now, and she was eating up everything it had to say.

Rainbow Dash looked at all the forces that were arrayed against her, and smiled. "I'm Rainbow Dash," she whispered into the wind of her own wings, narrowing her eyes in a challenge to the world. "I'm the fastest pegasus in Equestria, past, present or future. You think you got what it takes to stop me? Bring it on!"

***

“Fascinating,” Gamma said, watching as Dash twisted through the air, avoiding projectiles and dodging attackers with a grace and speed that left trails of blue and pink hanging in the air. “Only one more test, I think.” She waved a hoof to one of the several ponies responsible for controlling the Maul, who trotted over. “Use the guided missiles, Sunlance class.”

“Ma’am?” the pony said. “Those are...”

“What I ordered you to use,” Gamma interrupted, fixing him with her gaze. “Is there a problem?” He gulped and shook his head before galloping off to relay her instructions.

“Sunlance?” Astrid said. “Those’re hunter-killers. Even with a training warhead they’ll kill a pony if they explode close enough.”

“Gamma!” Star Fall said, hopping in front of the spy. “What are you doing?”

“I told you, I’m testing a theory,” Gamma said, then looked back to the action as the ponies pursuing Dash dropped away and a trio of brilliant magic-infused missiles launched from the ground straight towards Dash.

“You’ll kill her!” Star Fall screamed.

“Will I?” Gamma asked, not taking her eyes off the pink-blue blur that was frantically trying to evade the missiles that were quickly closing in on her. “I don’t think I will. I think I won’t even come close. Keep your mouth open, Agent Fall, it will help.”

“Help with wha...” Star Fall didn’t get to finish as Dash broke the sound barrier. The shockwave pounded through the room, tossing flying pegasi aside and shattering lights and windows. More than a few ears bled from ruptured eardrums and the missiles were completely thrown off, exploding in small puffs of fire as their safety measures kicked in. Star Fall fell to the ground, clutching at the sides of her head. Most non-Earth Ponies did the same. Astrid stiffened and snarled at the pain, but refused to give in to it. Gamma didn’t even flinch as blood began to drip out of her left ear, a smile spreading across her face.

With the entire test crew in disarray Dash blasted through the remaining course in a few seconds, her etherealized trail showing rainbow colors through the pink and blue. With a final flourish and a looping victory circuit around the massive room she dropped into a hard landing right in front of the brown pegasus who had dragged her down there. “Who’s humiliated now, huh?” she crowed. “Oh yeah! I’m the best! Who’s up for a hoof-bump!” She raised her hoof, grinning widely, but was met only with disbelieving stares. “Uh, anyone? Anyone at all? Come on, don’t leave me hangin’ here!”

“I’ll take that offer,” Gamma said.

Dash turned to her as the crowd opened up, and her grin fell away. “Oh crap,” she said, noticing the very angry Star Fall glaring at her from Gamma’s side. “Uh. This totally wasn’t my fault.”

“Of course not,” Gamma said, then turned to the crowd. “Thank you all for attending!” she called out, her horn glowing as she enhanced her voice to carry across the whole room. “The demonstration today has been a wonderful success, and I hope to be employing the spells used to empower our test agent here in the field as soon as possible. Those of you who can hear, please relate this to everyone else, you are not to speak of what you saw today. You all know the secrecy drill. Please return to your desks or stations and try to contain your excitement. If anyone who wasn’t here asks, just tell them the Lunatics won’t know what hit them!”

A ragged cheer went up from the ponies who’s ears weren’t filled with a loud ringing. A chaos of shuffling ponies ensued as everyone tried to vacate the Maul chamber in one big rush. Gamma, Astrid and Star Fall made their way over to where Dash was standing and looking solidly at the ground.

“Why did you do this?” Star Fall asked in Old Equestrian.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t think it’d be a big deal,” Dash said.

Star Fall frowned, then shook her head. “I need healing,” she said.

Gamma waved over one of the many medical unicorns who were circulating through the crowd, he quickly applied a healing spell to Star Fall, alleviating the pain in her ears and allowing her some of her hearing back. Astrid refused a similar spell, saying that she was okay. Gamma allowed herself to take a minor healing spell before sending the unicorn off to tend to more ponies.

“Now, time for that talk,” she said, her horn lighting up in a weak privacy spell that would keep them from being casually overheard.

“Look, I can explain about this whole test thing,” Dash said quickly.

“No need,” Gamma said. “I think Agent Fall already knows what happened.”

“You set this up,” Star Fall accused, glaring at Gamma. “How? Why?”

“Wait, set this up?” Dash asked.

Gamma ignored her, opting to answer Star Fall. “How is easy, I made a few calls. You know how much pull I have, putting this together in half an hour was difficult, but not beyond my means. As to why? I told you twice now, I was testing a theory.”

“What theory?” Star Fall asked, pushing her anger to the side.

“I will answer that by asking a question,” she turned to Dash. “Did you kill James Bay?”

Dash blinked, taken aback. “Who? What? I’ve never killed anyone!”

Gamma nodded. “I didn’t think so. For all her faults as an operative, Agent Fall is a very good judge of character, and she trusted you implicitly. Yet you were there close to when he died.”

“Close to...” Dash trailed off, another flashback to the darkness, the feel of a pony’s blood beneath her hooves. She swallowed hard. “The guy in the tunnel. That’s who you’re talking about, isn’t it?”

“Tunnel?” Star Fall said. “You were in the tunnel? You were there when Bay died?”

Dash shook her head. “Look, I don’t know this Bay guy, alright? But, Star, when I... when I woke up here I was in a dark room, like pitch black, and there was this dead pony there. I ran, got into some trouble right afterwards, then you found me. It kinda slipped my mind. Sorry, I should have told you earlier.”

Star Fall opened her mouth, but no sound came out as she tried to think about what all this meant. She turned to Gamma. “How did you know that?”

“Remember when I said there was an ‘incident’ when the Orion police sent officers to investigate the site?” Gamma asked, then gestured to Dash. “She is that incident. She attacked the officers, beat them handily, and then retreated over the mountains into the Verge. So you were wrong when you said she had nothing to do with your mission. In fact, she has everything to do with it.”

“Whoa, those guys were cops?” Dash said. “I mean, well, I guess I kinda figured, but I didn’t attack them, they attacked me! Just started swinging with their batons after I tried to talk to them. I mean, I didn’t speak the language or anything, but...”

“Dash,” Star Fall said, then winced hard as Gamma’s eyebrow went up. “Firefly, don’t talk. You can explain later, I just want to hear what Gamma’s figured out before we start telling her everything else.”

“A wise desire,” Gamma said. “And one I’m quite willing to fulfill. The police report I gained on the incident had several very fanciful powers attributed to the mare who so easily trounced two of Orion City’s finest. Incredible resilience, perfect aerial maneuverability, etherealization, cloudwalking, and, my favourite, supersonic speed. The report concluded that a cabal of unicorns was empowering this mare, and why not? A single pony capable of all those feats together was impossible. I put the report aside and focused on Bay’s death and the chaos it made of our plans until I got word that you were back in the Kingdom, nearly a week overdue. Then the pieces started coming together. First Astrid goes into town and buys supplies, as well as a pair of dresses. Strange, but not knowing the reason for your delay it could mean anything. Then I get a report of you and an unknown mare coming into town, with said mare departing suddenly and leaving a very visible etherealization. That’s when I started to take notice. When I found you were in the capital, I sent for you this morning because I wanted to know for certain whether my suspicions were true.”

She grinned at Dash, who stepped back from the intensity of the look. “And you did not disappoint! When Agent Case reported that you were confrontational, I decided to risk that you could be goaded into a challenge, so I set up the best challenge I could for someone with the skill set I was hoping you had. I put this and two other backup plans together just so I could confirm that you were, indeed, the mare that the OCPD encountered. Right now? The resemblance is startling. The dye job is good, very unlike the description I have of you. But if I tore off that dress, what kind of Glyph would I find? I think it would be a cloud with a tri-colored lightning bolt shooting out of it. Shall I check my hypothesis?”

“No,” Star Fall groaned. “You’ve made your point.”

“Have I?” Gamma asked, turning to Star Fall. “I don’t really think I have. You see, I’m not quite done being clever. You chose to hide something from me, Agent Fall, an act that could potentially have a disastrous effect on our national security. I am going to hammer home the point that you do not do that.” She spun back to Dash. “You were in that tunnel, but you didn’t know who Bay was and denied killing him. I believe you, you don’t seem to have the wherewithal to lie well. Agent Fall didn’t know you were in the tunnel, and she also lacks the capacity for true deception. So, from these premises and the information contained in all your statements to each other I can surmise a few things:

“First, you are ignorant of the world, somehow. Unfamiliar with both the Republics and the Kingdom. Perhaps amnesia, perhaps whatever test tube you crawled out of hadn’t gotten around to implanting memories yet. You could be a foreigner from across the sea, but very little of the evidence supports that assertion. In the end what matters is that you are essentially an outsider. You didn’t speak Lunar, but you speak perfect Solar, and, from what I know of it, at least passing Old Equestrian. That implies that you were from this side of the Storm and were highly educated, which is extremely unlikely because if you were then I would know about you, and I don’t. You convinced Agent Fall to help you. More importantly you convinced Sergeant Steelwing to let you accompany them, which implies a great deal of sincerity on your part and a very believable story. Yet Agent Fall wanted to hide you from me, which means that your story, while believable, was fantastical. Hence why she wanted to bring you to Professor Shine. I have the resources to aid any endeavor or inquiry, except one that deals with the depths of esoteric magic. Twinkle Shine, however, is the master of that domain. If anyone would know how to deal with an arcane problem it would be her, while my own lack of understanding could lead to unnecessary consequences. Therefore you either have or are an arcane problem.”

“I, um, yeah, I guess?” Dash said.

Gamma punched a hoof out that stopped just shy of Dash’s mouth. “Don’t interrupt. Let’s put this together. You have incredible physical abilities not seen in over eight hundred years. You are an outsider to both the Kingdom and the Republics. You have or are an arcane problem. You are therefore either a magically engineered being, a legitimate pony who has been caught in some kind of magical event, or an engineered being who believes they are a legitimate pony caught in some kind of magical event. I will leave determining which of those is true up to Professor Shine. My sole concern is the safety of this nation, and for that I have only two questions, the answers to which will determine whether or not you ever get to see the Professor, or indeed the outside world ever again.”

Dash gulped. Gamma hadn’t even blinked throughout her entire tirade. The way she was putting the facts together reminded her of Twilight Sparkle, but her forceful tone was more like an angry Princess Celestia. The combination was extremely off-putting: smart but scary. “Okay, what are the questions?”

“First, what do you know about Max Cash?”

“Nothing?” Dash answered tentatively. Gamma gave no sign as to whether this was the right answer or not, but it was the only one she could give. She’d never heard the name before.

“I see. Regardless of your knowledge of Cash, you are involved in his scheme. As you said you ‘woke up’ in the chamber with Bay’s corpse, I can surmise that your current set of contiguous memories begin there.” Dash opened her mouth to ask a question, but shut it at a warning glare from Gamma. “You met Agent Fall soon after your escape from the Orion police. Sergeant Steelwing would have forced her to abandon or avoid you under normal circumstances, so she must have found you in a compromised position and either took pity on you, unlikely, or you quickly instilled in her a desire to keep you close. Your mysterious arcane problem would suffice for that. So now you, a pony deeply, if ignorantly, involved in the machinations of Max Cash, are travelling with the Agent responsible for a great deal of spying on Cash. An Agent who is also the pony most capable of entering and leaving the Republics without being noticed. I do not believe in coincidence, and even if I did this would strain credulity. Do you understand why keeping this from me was a grave mistake, Agent Fall? No, don’t answer, you’re smart enough to have figured it out a while ago.”

Gamma sighed, closing her eyes for a moment. “This will only cause more problems. Since you forced my hoof in breaking your deception I am inclined to be harsh with you.” Her eyes snapped open in a glare that made Star Fall shrink back. “I have a wide array of discipline options at my disposal.”

“Hey! Don’t be so hard on Star! She didn’t know,” Dash protested.

Gamma’s stare flashed to her. “Who should I be hard on, then? Are you volunteering?”

“If it’ll get you to leave her alone, yeah!” Dash met Gamma’s eyes and held them, refusing to flinch.

“Firefly, no!” Star Fall pleaded, trying to get Dash to look at her. “It’s okay. She’s right, I deserve this.”

“The hell you do,” Astrid said, snapping her talons to get the attention of all three ponies. “Gamma, stop screwing around and get to your second question.”

Gamma regarded Astrid for a long moment, then shrugged. “Very well. Miss Firefly, my second question is simple: what is your name. Your real name, not the one Star Fall gave you.”

Dash looked at Star Fall, who heaved a sigh and nodded. “I’m Rainbow Dash,” she said, staring Gamma in the eye and daring her to challenge it.

“Rainbow Dash,” Gamma repeated, and a slow smile spread on her face. “Well, well, isn’t that fascinating?” She turned back to Star Fall. “Agent Fall, I hope you’ve learned your lesson?”

“Yes,” Star Fall said, dejected.

“Astrid?”

“I didn’t have to learn crap,” the Griffin snorted. “You’re not the boss of me.”

“Fair enough,” Gamma said, then turned away from them. “I think it would be best if we continue this conversation in my office.” Without waiting for them to reply she began trotting towards the now-clear exit. She stopped suddenly, looking back over her shoulder at them. “Oh, and miss Dash? Welcome to the future.”

Chapter 10: Prayer

To be a bearer of an Element a pony must meet certain requirements. Though a bearer need not be a pony at all, these requirements are universal across all potential bearers. The first and most obvious is that they must display the quality for which the Element is named. This must be an overt display in some form, merely possessing the quality is insufficient as almost every pony possesses all the traits of the Elements in some measure. This display must come within a certain period of time before they become a bearer, though the exact time period varies and cannot be explicitly pinned down. Suffice it to say that a display of honesty a year ago is not sufficiently proximate to take up the Element of Honesty now. There is no need to actually 'exemplify' the quality, merely display it. In fact, such a hypothetical exemplar may actually find themselves unable to wield the Element they supposedly embody.

Second. the pony must be in a spiritual accord with the other five potential bearers. This accord is similar to, but not precisely the same as, the bonds of friendship. Indeed there is no requirement that the bearers actually like each other at all. The accord must simply be enough to both create and sustain the resonance that initiates the Magic of Harmony. Detecting such an accord pre-Harmony Event is difficult, but not impossible. After an Event it is glaringly obvious. This accord is, however, a delicate thing before its first Harmony Event, and can be upset by any number of factors, making actively seeking such an accord a dangerous and counter-productive task.

Third, the pony must be willing to accept the Element. Becoming a bearer cannot be forced on anypony, which is fortunate. The willingness does not need to be an informed consent, however. A pony can take up an Element without fully understanding what they're doing, but there still must be a measure of intent behind the act. Wielding an Element is a choice, not an accident.

Finally, a pony must be accepted by the Element itself. What this means is a mystery to me still. I do not know if the Elements have a will of their own, or merely some kind of automatic method for detecting a proper bearer. Or perhaps it is something else altogether that I am simply incapable of seeing. Whatever it is, a pony cannot be forced to wield an Element, and an Element cannot be wielded by force.

There is one other requirement, but it pertains solely to the Element of Magic. The bearer of the Element of Magic must undergo a phenomenon that has been referred to as 'the Spark'. This Spark is experienced differently by various bearers: I experienced it as a moment of epiphany, Trixie described it as a sudden feeling of utter stillness, Celestia told me it felt to her like the first time the world had ever made sense. Whatever the internal sensation, the Spark gets its name from its external manifestation: a visible momentary flash of light from within the bearer's eyes. A bearer can experience multiple instances of the Spark, and each one invariably precedes a Harmony Event. In this way it can be likened to an early-warning, like the sound of distant thunder you hear before a storm from the Everfree Forest, or the way the animals all hide before an earthquake.

-From the fifth section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter 10: Prayer

The three of them were able to fly directly from the university to the penthouse, which gave Dash another chance to stretch her wings and also get a good aerial look at the city. The sheer size of the place still astounded her, but as much as the tall buildings and endless fields of houses impressed her, it was the castle to which her eyes were always drawn. It looked so out of place, and yet so perfectly right. It was like a piece of the world she knew dropped into the future. She was almost disappointed when Star Fall and Astrid descended to the small balcony of the Shine estate.

"Dash, hold still," Star Fall said as she stepped up to the heavy double doors that led inside. "It'll take a moment before the wards will accept you."

"Wards. Like magic wards?" Dash asked.

Star Fall nodded and set her hoof firmly down. There was a flash of light and a design Dash hadn't even known was there suddenly glowed from the balcony floor. She felt a tingle of magic wash through her. It was similar to being grabbed by telekinesis, but not the same. Astrid shivered, her feathers ruffling before she used a claw to forcibly smooth them back into place.

"There," Star Fall said. "You're registered. You should be able to come and go, so long as I'm nearby. If you stay long enough I'll have to renew it every week, though."

"What happens if you're not registered?" Dash asked.

"Well, the wards are designed to immobilize an intruder and alert the authorities," Star Fall said, putting a hoof to her chin as she contemplated it. "They also can get pretty vicious when someone is able to resist that part. Against you? I don't know, you don't react to magic the same as the rest of us, and you're too strong for most of the effects to work on you. You'd get a nasty shock and a squad of Griffins on your tail at the very least."

"Heh, just checking," Dash said. "Griffins are serious business, right? Do they usually show up for break-ins?"

"If the place being broken into is Professor Shine's? Yeah," Astrid said. "She's chief advisor to the Crown, Dash. She gets special treatment."

"Oh. Wow, okay," Dash said as Star Fall opened the doors. "Hey, Star, can I talk to you about what just went on? With Gamma and the Professor and everything?"

"Sure, Dash, just let me show you around first, okay?" Star Fall replied. "I don't get a chance to show off much."

"Sure," Dash agreed, and followed the other pegasus inside.

Twinkle Shine's luxurious penthouse apartments were actually a little disappointing for Rainbow Dash. Her own home in Ponyville was typical of pegasus design, with open spaces, tall columns and the asymmetric grandeur that could only be achieved with cloud-based structures. Unicorns liked to build things that reminded them of their horns, tall and pointy. Even though the Shine estate was set at the top two floors of one of the immense skyscrapers of the Solar capital, the design aesthetic was more earth pony practicality than anything else. No grand halls, no lavish foyers, just a series of simple and functional rooms that each served a clear purpose. Not that it didn't look expensive. Everything in the penthouse was clearly top of the line, but it was a functional top of the line.

"So you can watch movies on this thing?" Dash was asking, watching the television screen in the guest room that was going to be hers while Star Fall explained how it worked. She could see the individual images as they flashed by, and while the illusion of motion was there it was probably going to give her a headache if she watched it for too long.

"Sure, but there's more than just movies available," Star Fall said, clearly excited to show off the gadget. Astrid had gone to cook a meal in the large and immaculately clean kitchen when Star Fall had finally brought Dash around to the bedrooms, and so it was just the two of them. "There's a dozen channels with their own programming. It's a luxury, but it's kind of a pastime in the Kingdom to watch TV. They don't have it in the Republics, you need special crystals to make the image, and the main source of them is in the north so they don't have the stockpile there that we do here."

"Neat," Dash said, poking at the button Star Fall had used to turn the device on and finding that it could also be used to turn it off. "This is the kind of cool future stuff I was talking about, Star."

"Yet you don't seem all that impressed," Star Fall observed. "You didn't have this in your time, did you?"

"Not this," Dash said, stepping over to her bed and jumping on it to test the springiness. "We had movies, but you needed projectors and screens and reels of film. Stuff like this was all unicorn magic and enchanted items that did one or two things. The whole 'dozen channels' thing is cool. Also I saw a bunch of these TV's in a store while we were on the way to Gamma's this morning. I don't know how expensive they are, but if you're selling them in a store window they gotta be affordable, right? Regular ponies having this kind of stuff is what's really cool."

"They're kind of affordable," Star Fall said, sitting on the edge of the bed. "A model like this one isn't, but the ones you'd see in a store window? Yes, they would be within the reach of the pony on the street." She let out a sigh. "I'm glad at least something is getting your attention. I was beginning to fear that we hadn't made any progress at all in over a thousand years."

"Apocalypse, remember?" Dash said, grinning.

"Still, apocalypse or not I was starting to share your disappointment in the future."

"Star? Am I really that unbelievable?" Dash asked, flopping down on the bed next to the white pegasus.

Star Fall paused at the change in topics, thinking it over. "You're talking about Gamma and the Professor?" Dash nodded. "I don't know. I can tell you that I still have my doubts, but most of it makes too much sense if you are who you say you are. I don't think Gamma cares who you are, so long as you do what she wants. The Professor? Well, I think she'll be a lot harder to convince than I was. Once she does, though, she'll be behind you all the way."

"All that stuff she said, all those questions she asked. Is that stuff supposed to happen in my future? If I was there, why don't I remember it?"

Star Fall shook her head. "I don't know. Maybe you were pulled into the future from a point before any of that happened, maybe all that stuff did happen to you, but time travelling has messed up your memories. Maybe something else. I hope the Professor can find out, but speculating won't get us anywhere."

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Dash sighed and gave the white pegasus a grin as she rolled off the bed. "Your place is awesome, Star."

Star Fall smiled back. "Thanks."

It wasn't long before Twinkle Shine arrived and the testing began. One of the rooms was used for magical experimentation, and that's where they went. It had a bare stone floor on which the Professor drew a magic circle that she made Dash stand in while Star Fall sat in a comfy-looking chair and watched with rapt attention. Mostly the testing involved Dash having to hold still while the Professor ran a beam of magic over her. At least one point involved her hovering in place for twenty straight minutes. All of this while the Professor mumbled to herself and made notes. There was a break when Astrid brought out food, which was surprisingly good, but then it was back to standing in place and being so bored she could barely keep from falling asleep on her hooves.

Finally Twinkle Shine's horn went dark. "Well, that was interesting," she said.

"What? Do you believe me now?" Dash asked, stretching out her limbs and looking eagerly to the golden unicorn.

"No," the Professor said, "but you do have incredibly high amounts of magic in your body. Even for a classic pegasus you're abnormal."

"Well, I am the fastest pegasus in Equestria, that's gotta mean something," Dash said.

"I have no doubt that you're the fastest thing in the air now, but Rainbow Dash was supposedly a phenom in her own time, capable of feats that make breaking the sound barrier seem like crawling."

"Sonic Rainboom, yeah, that's me. I did that," Dash said.

Twinkle Shine snorted. "In any case, you do fit most of the criteria for a strong pre-Schism pegasus. Your Glyph is real, and it matches the descriptions of Rainbow Dash's, and under that dye you are the correct natural coloration. However there are some things that don't add up with your story. For instance there is no evidence of temporal disturbance."

"Which means?"

"Which means that you didn't travel through time," Star Fall said from her seat. "Not more so than usual, anyway."

"No, I totally did," Dash protested, a sudden fear welling up in her faster than she could force it down. "I was going to sleep in Ponyville one minute, then I wake up in the future the next! That's totally time-travel!"

"Calm down, it could mean anything," Twinkle Shine admonished. "It's something that doesn't add up with what I was expecting from your story, so it needs to be looked into. I don't have the equipment here to do a proper analysis. I can book lab time at the university tomorrow and we can do a proper examination."

"Uh, about that," Star Fall said, shooting to her hooves. "There's this thing, you see. We, uh, we aren't going to be around tomorrow."

"What?" Twinkle Shine asked, voice flat and hard as she lowered her head to stare at her student through the part in her mane.

"Gamma wants us out in the field again. We're leaving in the morning," Star Fall said, smiling nervously.

Professor Shine closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "You just got back from a mission to the Republics. It's too soon to send you out again. Doesn't that mare have any sense?"

"It's important, Professor," Star Fall pleaded. "It won't take too long. A week at most."

Twinkle Shine's face twisted in anger, but she quickly composed herself. "Dash, Astrid, could you leave me with my student, please?"

"Yes, ma'am," Astrid said, and started for the door.

Dash flashed a worried look at Star Fall, but the other pegasus just shook her head. "It's okay, Dash, I need to talk to her anyway."

Dash didn't have anything to say to that, so she followed Astrid out. The door slammed shut behind them and was surrounded with the golden glow of the Professor's magic, sealing the room against intrusion and eavesdropping.

"Wow," Dash said to Astrid. "Are they about to have a fight?"

"Probably," Astrid said, shrugging. "It happens. Let's hit the balcony, I want to watch the sun go down."

They wandered out to the balcony and sat at the edge of it, looking out over the vista of the city. The sun was falling behind the buildings, and as their shadows stretched across the city lights were coming on creating constellations on the ground to match the ones that would soon dot the sky. The castle was clearly visible from where they were, and Dash's keen eyes could make out dozens of forms flying in and out of its high towers, a changing of the guard.

"Astrid," Dash said. "You believe me, right?"

The Griffin snorted. "Dash, the first thing you said to me, through Fall, was a Griffin greeting. After that I'm not going to question who you say you are until I have reason to. Fall, the Professor, Gamma, they're good ponies, but they overthink everything all the time. They can't believe something until they've confirmed it ten different ways because they're all too clever for their own good. They think about how they could fake something, or lie to work an angle, and then they start thinking about how they would fake it so that someone like them would believe it. It goes 'round in circles in their heads until they're not sure of anything anymore. Someone like you comes around, with a story that's too crazy not to be true, and they'll tie themselves in knots trying to work out how it has to be fake before they ever admit that it's true."

"Star believes me."

"Well, Fall has a good influence in her life," Astrid said, beak opening in a raptor's grin. "A big, Griffin-shaped good influence."

Dash laughed at that. "How long have you been with her?"

"I was assigned to Fall when she was adopted ten years or so ago, we’ve been together off and on since then," Astrid said. "I'm older than her, but not by much so they figured we'd have plenty in common."

"Is that normal? Getting a Griffin protector like that?"

Astrid shook her head. "No. Griffins are beholden to the Crown. We work for the King and the Royal family, not the nobles. The Professor's important, and if she weren't the most powerful unicorn in the world she might get an escort, but an adopted pegasus daughter? No, it's not normal."

"Huh. I knew some Griffins in my time," Dash said. "My best friend at one point was a Griffin named Gilda. I thought she was pretty awesome at the time, but we kinda drifted apart later."

"She the one who taught you the greeting?"

Dash nodded. "And a lot of other stuff too. I stayed with her family one summer. I got to see their aerie and watch them hunt and everything. I learned all about the clan markings and what they meant. I actually thought they were like cutie marks at first, but that got knocked out of me pretty quick."

"Dash, you do realize I have no idea what those words you just used mean," Astrid said.

"Oh, right. Uh, Talent Glyphs. I thought they were like Talent Glyphs."

Astrid snorted. "If only. The world would be a lot better for Griffins if we just had some equivalent to Glyphs."

"Why?" Dash asked. "I mean, you guys seem to have a pretty sweet deal, working for the King and all. From what I've seen, you're all still, like scary-awesome warriors and everything. What's so bad about it?"

"Dash, we don't have it good at all," Astrid said, turning pensive and staring down towards the castle. "We don't work for the King because we want to, we do it because we have to, because we owe our lives to the Royals. Actually owe them, like a debt."

Dash frowned, the very idea of it repulsing her. "Why? How can that even work?"

"It's hard for a Griffin to be hatched," Astrid said. "Only one out of every ten eggs quicken, and even then the hatchling is sickly and more often than not dies before they learn to use their wings. You want better odds than that? It takes a lot of careful breeding and magic. Magic only the Royals can do. My species isn't extinct because a long time ago we swore to serve the Crown. All of us, forever. It's not a job, Dash, it's our entire culture."

"Whoa," Dash said, absorbing that. "Okay, yeah, that sucks. Why is it so hard to have children?"

"Same reason all the donkeys died out, and the buffalo, and why the Dragons have to be babied until they're a hundred years old. Magic, Dash. Too little fucking magic to go around. And yet ponies still have their Glyphs, proving they're just better than the rest of us all the time."

"How do Glyphs prove that?"

"Dash, it's a truth that all of us non-ponies have to come to terms with that no matter how tough, how strong, how fast, how skilled or how smart we are we will never, never be as good as a pony with a Talent. We can't compete. The only ones who can are Dragons, and they've got so many problems that it's just not worth it."

They sat in silence for a while, Dash thinking over what she had learned and Astrid tracking the sun as it fell below the horizon. The Griffin closed her eyes as the last rays of light vanished and muttered something. "What was that?" Dash asked.

"A prayer. 'Celestia, bearer of light, warm my dreams and bring me safely to your dawn'." Astrid said. "You knew Her, right? When She was a living, breathing person?"

"Yeah, a little," Dash said. "Twilight was really the one who knew her best."

"But you met Her, you talked to Her."

"Yeah."

"What was She like?"

"You really want to know?" Dash asked.

"Yeah. You knew a Goddess in the flesh. We may not look it, but we Griffins are pretty religious," Astrid replied. "The Royals are descended from the Goddesses, after all, and since we owe our lives to them, well..."

"They are? Cool," Dash said, then tapped her chin as she thought about it. "Okay, the first thing you need to know is that Princess Celestia is big. Like, more than twice my height big..."

***

The door slammed shut, locked with the glow of Twinkle Shine's magic. She turned to Star Fall, who stood with her wings fluttering slightly and her eyes downcast. "When were you going to tell me?"

"I was planning to do it right away, but with you meeting Dash it just slipped my mind," Star Fall said. "Professor, I swear, this is important."

"It always is," Twinkle Shine growled. "Always something that has to be done, and that no one else can do except you. That's the reason she sends you through the Everstorm, that's the reason she has you investigating Cash." Star Fall's eyes widened in surprise at that. "What? You thought I didn't know? I'm the closest advisor to the King, if I want to know where my student is and what she's doing, I will know it."

"He's dangerous," Star Fall began, but Twinkle Shine silenced her with a glare.

"Of course he's dangerous," the Professor scoffed. "Gamma wouldn't be so damned interested in him if he wasn't. I don't fault her for that, but I do find it reprehensible that she sends you into danger to investigate a pony for digging holes."

"He's searching for something," Star Fall said. "Something that might be the key to knowing why Dash is here."

Twinkle Shine paused, lowering her head to hide her eyes from her student. "How is he connected to Rainbow Dash?"

Star Fall told the whole story as she had heard it earlier that day. Twinkle Shine listened without comment, but her body was becoming more rigid and her horn sparked with flashes of emotion-charged magic as she learned of the connections between Dash's awakening and Cash's mysterious dig. The voice was back, whispering rage into her mind while she tried to force it down and work through the implications logically. When Star Fall finished her story the golden unicorn let out a breath and shook her head. "And now Gamma is sending both you and Rainbow Dash back to Cash to find out more. No. I can't allow this."

"Professor, this is my job," Star Fall said, trying not to stamp her hoof and shout. "I'm not a little filly anymore, I can handle danger."

"You're not... Star Fall, you don't know what I've done to protect you, what I'm still doing!" Twinkle Shine snapped out, shaking her head in frustration. She turned to the wall and took a few steadying breaths before looking back to her student. There was a look in her eye that the pegasus didn't recognize. "Please, let's sit down. It's time I told you something."

Star Fall obliged her mentor, taking a seat while Twinkle Shine did the same. "Star Fall, when I adopted you, what did I say my reasons were?"

Star Fall frowned at this question, but answered without hesitation. "You said that I needed a proper education for a Magic Talent, and that the only way to get that was to be able to take the unicorn classes that I would be barred from if I wasn't a noble. You didn't want my Talent to be wasted, and you didn't think another unicorn noble would be able to give me all the support I needed, so you were doing it yourself."

Twinkle Shine nodded. "That is all true, but it's not the whole truth. It's like the lecture I gave in class today, there were actions going on at levels you couldn't perceive for reasons you couldn't understand that were shaping your reality. You're old enough now to learn about them. One of the main reasons I adopted you myself wasn't because you needed an education, but to pre-empt the King from doing it."

Star Fall sat wide-eyed and rigid as those words hit her. "What? The King?"

Twinkle Shine nodded. "When he heard about you, a pegasus with a Magic Talent, he started the process of adopting you into the Royal family immediately. I was only barely able to get my claim in first, and then only with the help of Gamma. It's why I've allowed you to work for her for so long, I owed her for going against the will of the Crown for me."

Star Fall shook her head, barely able to comprehend what she was hearing. "But why? Why would the King want to adopt me?"

"Think about it, Star Fall," Twinkle Shine said, sighing. "The Royals are unicorns with pegasus magic. You're a pegasus with unicorn magic. Is it so strange, once you consider it from that angle?"

If Star Fall hadn't already been white she would have paled at that. "But my family... I'm not..."

"Not related to them, no," the Professor said. "You don't have a drop of the Divine blood in your veins, but that hardly matters. In fact, that's the point. The Royal line has never been strong."

"They want me to..."

"Yes," Twinkle Shine said, and Star Fall slumped in her chair, mouth moving, but no sound coming out. "I can't stop that from happening. The King has yet to decide which of his sons, cousins or nephews that he prefers, but once he does you will be betrothed, then married into the Royal family. If you had been adopted by him it would have happened already."

"But, he's always been so kind to me." Star Fall shook her head. "Of course he has. Astrid. Oh Celestia, I should have seen it."

"I worked hard to keep it from you," the Professor said, leaning over and laying a gentle hoof on her student's shoulder. "Please don't hate me for that."

"But why let me work for Gamma? Why let me go into danger so much if I'm that important?" Star Fall asked, pulling herself up and looking her mentor in the eyes. To Twinkle Shine's surprise there was no anger or animosity there. The news had stunned her, but she had caught herself and was even now thinking it through, just like the Professor had taught her. It brought a moment of pride to the golden unicorn to have her student take this revelation and keep going.

"Gamma convinced him it was necessary, and I didn't say anything to contradict her," Twinkle Shine answered. "I created the Everstorm spells for you so that when the time came you had a way to escape if you wanted it. I don't know how Gamma got wind of them, but that mare is never one to turn down an advantage, and she definitely saw an advantage in what I had given you. No unicorn can use those spells, and since you're the only non-unicorn spellcaster, well, she had enough leverage to be very persuasive."

"Magic levels," Star Fall said, shaking her head. "It's all about magic levels, isn't it?" Twinkle Shine quirked an eyebrow at her. "Dash said that in her time the pony species could interbreed safely. I didn't think it was possible now, but it is, isn't it? If both parents have enough magic, they can still produce viable offspring. I don't have as much magic in me as Dash does, but with my Talent I can focus it in ways she can't. If I focused that magic into bearing a foal... could I? Could I have a Royal child?"

Twinkle Shine nodded. "Yes. You could. But that's not what the King wants. He's convinced himself that you would not only be the mother of a Royal foal, but of a true Alicorn."

"That's not possible," Star Fall said, immediately and without a hint of doubt.

"Agreed," the Professor said. "He won't be dissuaded, though. He's sure that you are the way to a true Goddess re-entering the world. I've tried to convince him otherwise, multiple times. So has every other advisor he's spoken of this to, including Gamma. Even the Queen doesn't believe it's possible, but he does, and that's all he can see. That's what I've been protecting you from. The King's impossible dream, and his disappointment when you inevitably fail to live up to it."

"I... Thank you, professor. I never even imagined." Star Fall shook her head. "Why? Why is he so focused on something that is clearly never going to happen?"

"That is a secret I cannot share," Twinkle Shine said. "The King has fears, and they are grounded in reality, but he's allowed those fears to lead him into flights of fancy to find his hope. Star Fall, I've stalled him, made him consider who his most worthy option to marry you to is. I've been encouraging those stallions to jockey for position and outdo each other to muddy the waters further, but there will be a winner, and all signs point to that winner being made clear soon. There’s war on the horizon, Star Fall, and the King will want his dream secured before it comes." Twinkle Shine ran a hoof over Star Fall's mane the motion as much to comfort herself as her student. "You have your life, your duties, your work, but all of it is going to come crashing down. I didn't want to tell you so soon, to have you worry about it, but the arrival of this Rainbow Dash has thrown everything into uncertainty. Gamma will not keep her existence secret from the King, and he is going to latch onto the appearance of a possible hero from the past like a drowning pony to driftwood. You are going to have to decide, and very soon, what you want your future to be."

Star Fall leaned over and hugged her mentor. Twinkle Shine wrapped her forehooves around her student and fervently returned the embrace. "What am I going to do?" the pegasus asked, her voice as small as a frightened child’s.

"I don't know, but whatever you do I will support you. In any way I can," Twinkle Shine promised. "You may not be my true daughter, but I still love you like one. Just as your parents love you. No one, not even the King, is going to force you to do something like that against your will. Not if I have anything to say about it, and I do."

They held each other for a time. Finally, when they parted there were tears in their eyes, but smiles on their faces. "I'm sorry, professor," Star Fall said. "I still have to go on this mission tomorrow."

"I wish you wouldn't," Twinkle Shine said, rubbing the tears away from her face.

"I know, but I think this is important enough that I want to do it myself. It will also give me time to think about what you've told me. Time to decide what I'm going to do. Afterwards, I'm going to go see Spike."

Twinkle Shine's eyes lit up. "Oh, that would be wonderful. He's always so alone out there in his lair, and you can talk about this with him. There's a lot of wisdom under his goofy purple hide."

"Actually, Gamma wants to bring him here," Star Fall said. "Max Cash marked out his lair on a map, and we think he might go after something Spike has."

"That's terrible," Twinkle Shine said, frowning. "I don't think he'll be willing to leave, though."

"Well, as you said, Gamma is persuasive."

"And Dragons are stubborn. I wouldn't expect to have him convinced to leave his cave for at least a month."

Star Fall chuckled. "I guess you’re right. I also want him to take a look at Dash. If there's anyone who can really, truly tell if it's the real her, it will be him."

Twinkle Shine nodded slowly. "Yes, I might agree with that. He may not remember her at all, though. He was a baby for most of her life, and a juvenile still when she died. Even a Dragon's memories of their youth get lost after a thousand years."

"I know that, but he's the only living being around who might remember her. I think it'll be worth it."

"I understand," Twinkle Shine sighed. "Be careful, and don't stick your neck out where you don't need to."

"I won't," Star Fall said, standing. Twinkle Shine's magic left the door, allowing it to be opened again. Star Fall was about to trot over to it when she turned back to the Professor. "I just remembered. An Alicorn, like Nightmare Umbra?"

"Well, hopefully not like the Shadowed Alicorn, but a Goddess, yes, that is his delusion."

"Dash was saying something this morning, and it had gone completely out of my head until you mentioned Alicorns. Do you know what the Elements of Harmony are?"

Twinkle Shine's blood went cold. She knew her face had frozen in its expression, but she was helpless to do anything as her entire being shuddered with one word spoken with the voice of a god: IMPOSSIBLE.

"Professor?" Star Fall asked, stepping closer.

It was enough to return a measure of control to the golden unicorn. She shook her head. "Sorry, I think I've exhausted myself a bit today. What were you saying?"

"Dash said that Nightmare Moon, the evil spirit of the night, was actually an Alicorn Goddess, like Nightmare Umbra is," Star Fall said. Twinkle Shine felt the words like a blow, and had to still her shuddering. "She said they defeated her by using these items called the Elements of Harmony. I've never heard of them before. Do they mean anything to you?"

NO. IT IS IMPOSSIBLE.

"I can't say that they do," the Professor struggled out. "Perhaps they were some sort of artefact from their time. Like the legendary Crystal Heart or the Tartarus Keys."

"I was thinking that, but for some reason they're not mentioned in any of the texts I remember reading. Still, I feel like I've seen the term before, connected with Twilight Sparkle. Can I borrow your copy of The Magic Of Friendship? It's a first edition, so if anything is going to mention the heroes using them, that's going to be it."

"Sure," Twinkle Shine said. "You can read it tonight, but don't take it with you, I don't want it getting more damaged than it already is."

"Okay, thanks," Star Fall frowned and peered closer at her mentor. "Are you sure you're alright? You look like you're in pain."

"I am, a bit," the Professor admitted. "My head's killing me. I must have been using more magic than I thought when I was scanning Rainbow Dash."

"It didn't seem like you were overcasting," Star Fall said, helping the golden unicorn to her hooves.

"Thank you. Well, I might be catching a bug then. I should see a doctor about it, but I expect I'll just be told to keep quiet and not get so emotional about things."

"Huh?"

"Avoid stress," the Professor said, hoping that the inner voice was listening. "If you could help me to my room, you can grab the book and I can get some rest."

Star Fall did help her into her room, and after she had left Twinkle Shine locked the door magically and sat herself in front of her dressing mirror. "Enough shouting," she hissed at her reflection as its eyes began to glow. "I don't want to have a popped blood vessel in front of my student."

"I Destroyed All Traces Of The Elements," her reflection raged, her anger tainted with the frantic edge of panic. "Those Who Know Of Their Existence Were Bound To Secrecy. This Is Impossible!"

"Obviously not!" Twinkle Shine snapped back. "Whoever made this Rainbow Dash facsimile knows about them, and about Nightmare Moon!"

"It Is Aimed At Me Then," the reflection snarled. "They Will Find They Chose The Wrong Opponent."

Twinkle Shine felt the wrench in her being that signified the beginning of the change that would make her reflection a reality. She clamped down on it, halting the transformation in its tracks. "No! Star Fall! I will not endanger her!"

"The Elements Must Not Be Returned To The Minds Of Ponies!" the reflection raged.

"And they won't be!" Twinkle Shine said, forcing herself to calm. "They won't be. I will keep that from happening. Nothing has changed."

"The False Rainbow Dash Must Be Eliminated Immediately."

"Nothing has changed! Think! Don't reveal everything now. Yes, Dash has to go, but not right this instant. Not in the middle of my home. There will be an opportunity soon. Very soon. "

"Yes,” the reflection said, the pressure of transformation easing away. “I Am Still Gathering My Power. To Appear Before The World Now At The Center Of The Kingdom Would Be Folly."

"Exactly. Exactly. To act without thought will only lead to disaster. This situation is too uncontrolled for anything less. I know what to do."

"The Student Will Be In Danger."

"Not so much. Not from this. I will protect her. Listen to me, I have a plan."

"And If This Plan Does Not Work?"

"Then I have a backup plan. And if that doesn't work I've got one more beyond it."

Her reflection stared at her with eyes that had white draconic pupils surrounded by burning golden irises against black sclera. The eyes of a Nightmare. "So Long As I Fulfill My Purpose, I Will Heed These Plans."

Twinkle Shine smiled at the mirror, which reflected only patient rage and endless power, and began to talk.

***

Calumn leaned seductively against Conrad as they walked down the street towards the Drake hotel. He grinned, making sure to rub against her a bit more than was necessary. She’d drunk quite a bit, but even in another’s body she could hold her liquor better than most hardened alcoholics. Conrad had actually kept his drinking light, focusing more on telling tall tales and buying her ever greater amounts of alcohol.

She had been plying him for information since she started, but he was frustratingly slippery. Every time she thought she had him pinned down, he would wriggle in a new direction and throw her off completely. So she had been forced to keep playing the game, all the way to his bedroom if necessary. She was not prepared to go all the way for information that might not even be useful, though, so that would be where she cut it off.

No one had found the real Janice in the washroom, and the sleep spell wasn’t going to expire for a while yet, but when he had finally suggested that they head back to his place she had been more than happy to oblige. She hadn’t been able to spare more than a few glances for Blaze as they were leaving, but the earth pony seemed to be doing his job with a certain level of professionalism that she hadn’t expected. He hadn't started chatting up the thugs he was meant to watch, at least, and that had been a real worry.

"Here we are, babe," Conrad said as they came up to the Drake. "Nice, huh? I practically own the place."

"Really?" She giggled, stumbling artfully so she could catch a glimpse behind them. "That's so cool!" The two thugs were keeping pace, but also keeping their distance. They regarded Conrad and her with the bored dispassion of violent ponies killing time between hoof-fights. Neither of them were going to be an issue if she handled this right. Blaze trailed further back, slinking along walls and darting from shadow to shadow, eyes darting exaggeratedly back and forth. It was a bizarre sight, one that should by all rights have drawn more attention than it did.

"Come on, babe, don't you want to see my private suite?" Conrad asked, waggling his eyebrows. She nodded vigorously and let him help her into the hotel.

The Drake was one of the best hotels in the town, and it showed. It boasted a large, well-lit foyer full of red carpeting and leather couches. The counter that a smiling attendant sat behind was so polished it might as well have been a mirror. Signs pointed the way to the pool, sauna and workout room, while another advertised their attached restaurant. Calumn noted them as potential escape routes, hiding places and ambush points in case this all went sour.

Conrad ignored everything in the lobby, leading her directly to the bank of elevators and hitting the call button. There was an elevator there already and Calumn stumbled in. She leaned up against the wall as seductively as only a fully-trained Changeling could be and watched as the two thugs rushed to get into the elevator before the door closed. They didn't make it.

The ride up was spent ferociously making out with Conrad. She was careful not to be too forceful, but there were many ways of subtle prodding that could get a stallion to make the first move. The physical intimacy opened an emotional connection between them, and while it was too shallow a bond to allow her to feed from him, it did let her get a read of his feelings. She used this to gauge how worried he was about his shadows. As it turned out he was incredibly nervous, but it wasn't the nervousness of a stallion spending time with a beautiful mare, or of a pony in danger who had lost his protection. Instead it was more like the fear of a colt who had done wrong and was certain he'd be caught at any moment.

Calumn didn’t know what to make of that, but she filed it away in case she found a way to use it later. They came to 502, Calumn noting that 503 had a good view of Conrad’s door. Depending on how alert they were, she figured it would take a few seconds for anyone in that room to respond to any call of alarm. Not enough time to get out of Conrad’s room and down the hallway, but enough time to set up a means of escape.

“Come on in,” Conrad said, opening the door to his room and letting her inside.

“What a great place,” she said, taking the room in. It was fairly nice, with a windowed wall showing the town. It had no balcony, though, which limited options of egress. The room boasted a large sitting room with a separate bedroom. It even had a small kitchen, though from the looks of things Conrad hadn’t been using it. The air smelled of the usual mixture of disinfectant, dust and mold that hotels inevitably gained, but there was also the faint hint of perfume, evidence of the previous mares he had brought up.

Conrad’s dark red magic glowed around his horn as he hastily swept about the room, hiding trash under the couch and flicking some of the lights off. He flipped on a stereo as she made her way to the couch and lay down, soft jazz floating through the hidden speakers. He pulled out a bottle of wine, and Calumn had to stop herself from rolling her eyes. He had already given her enough drinks to drown a Griffin, what did he hope to accomplish with more? Still, Calumn accepted the glass she was given, and decided that now would be a good time to get to the important questions.

“Hey, Conrad, you know you remind me of someone,” she began.

“Well, I’ve got one of those faces, I’m unforgettable,” he said with a grin. “You’ve probably seen pictures of me in the paper.”

“No, not that,” she said with a drunken wave of her hoof. “I mean all the stuff you’ve done... done in your life. It’s crazy! All the things you did. I hearda, heard of someone else like that once. What was his name? Mar... Murr... Max! Max Cash!”

Calumn watched carefully as Conrad went through a series of emotions. Recognition. Surprise. Confusion. Suspicion. Fear. “Never heard of him,” Conrad lied.

Calumn shrugged. “Meh, s’okay. I thought a stallion like you mighta crossed his path. ‘Cause you’re both big shots and all.” More fear from Conrad, though none of it showed on his face. “I heard he’s interested in this area.” Less fear. “No, wait, not here. Somewhere north. Out... out in the... country.” Bingo.

“Sorry,” Conrad laughed. “I’ve got no clue who this guy is. He can’t be that big, though, if I haven’t heard of him.”

“Didn’t you... Didn’t you tell the bartender you were into mining? You said mining, right? Well, you should probably look this guy up, I hear he’s into diggin’ holes. Might have some competition.” Nothing. New line of questioning. “Or, okay, I guess I don’t know, but he’s got his hooves in everything, right? So you gotta have met him.” Another hit. “But if you haven’t, I guess that’s a good thing. ‘Cause you don’t get to be a big shot like him without doing something criminal.” Huge hit, enough that it even showed in the widening of his eyes and the sudden hitch in his breathing. Conrad was in bed with Cash somehow, and definitely involved in his criminal businesses.

“As much as I love talking about ponies I’ve never met,” Conrad said, sliding closer. “Why don’t we focus on you and me?”

"Yeah, why don't we talk about you," Calumn said, laying one hoof suggestively on his flank and giving him a sultry smirk. She was just about to start leading him to answering more questions when she caught movement out of the corner of her eye. A dark shape was coming towards the window, and fast.

She dove out of the way as the large window smashed inward, shards of glass raining down throughout the room. Conrad yelped in surprise and was bowled over as Blaze came hurtling into the room. He was wearing a harness that trailed ropes out the window and up the side of the building. He came to a rest sitting on top of Conrad's prone form, yellow eyes searching until he found Calumn, who had crouched beside the couch to protect herself from the flying glass.

"Buddy, we gotta leave," Blaze said.

"What the hell, Blaze?" Calumn gasped out, staring at her friend. "Why did you do that? What are you wearing?"

"No time for questions!" Blaze cried, hopping off Conrad. "Grab on! If we're lucky and the antenna I tied the ropes to holds, we can be on the ground and out of here in a minute. If we're not lucky then we can do it even faster, and man am I hoping lady luck still hates me for hitting on her sister."

"What?"

Blaze poked her with a hoof. "Nope! No questions! Wingman to Calumn, red alert! We are in trouble! Now grab on and we might get out of here before she shows up."

Calumn grabbed hold of Blaze. "Before who shows up?"

As if in answer the door to the room crashed open, the frame splintering as the lock was almost kicked completely off. The pair of bruisers stood outside, one of them with his back to the door and his legs coming down from the kick. Between them stood a tall, lithe pegasus mare who stepped past the shattered doorframe and into the room. Her coat was the light pink of cake frosting, her mane a swirl of purple, blue and red. Dark rose eyes surveyed the scene and she clucked her tongue in disapproval, even though her mouth was twisted into a cruel smile. A trio of crimson teardrops adorned her flank, an Abstract Glyph whose meaning was still very clear. Calumn knew exactly who she was, and exactly how badly screwed they were. This was Charisma, Max Cash's chief enforcer and closest companion now that James Bay was dead.

"Conrad, Conrad, Conrad," she said, sauntering into the room. Her voice was rich and vibrant, like a professional singer's might be, but that same vibrancy also conveyed her utter contempt for the unicorn with absolute clarity. "Do you remember what I said about taking spies to bed with you?"

"I knew she was a spy all along," Conrad said, pulling himself up from the ground. Little shards of glass were embedded in him, drawing blood from a dozen different wounds, but he ignored whatever pain he was feeling and focused entirely on the new mare. "I was just going to lull her into thinking she had me, then I was going to turn her over to you. I swear."

"Of course you were," she said. Calumn felt Blaze tense up in preparation to leap out the window, but Charisma shot a murderous glare at him, freezing him in place. "One more step to that window and I will break two of your legs before I let you pass out." Her glare vanished to be replaced by another vicious smile. "Besides, it's rude to leave before you can catch up with an old friend. You don't want to be rude, do you, Trail Blazer?"

Blaze swallowed and let out a nervous chuckle. "Of course not, Charisma. I was just, um, well, I was going to jump out the window to escape you. Just like old times, huh?"

"Just like old times," she repeated, grin widening and eyes going bright. With a jerk of her head the goons were on them. Calumn didn't struggle, and in moments the two of them were being bound securely. "I don't know what you're doing hanging out with the Secret Service, Blaze," Charisma said, stepping over to the green pony. "But if it brought you back to me I'm glad for it."

"What should we do with 'em?" one of the thugs asked.

Charisma contemplated this for a moment, then shrugged. "Take them with us. Max will want to talk to the girl, and I want some time with my dear, sweet, funny little Blaze. Just. Like. Old. Times." She punctuated each of these words with a slap to Blaze's face that got stronger with every hit until he was bleeding under one eye from where the edge of her hoof had caught him.

Calumn wanted to lash out at her, to do something to get them away, but he didn't have the energy for magic and Charisma could easily take both him and Blaze in a fight. He had hope, though. She thought he was Janice, and that would buy him time to think of a way to escape. So he kept quiet when they pulled a hood over his head, and when they picked him up and unceremoniously carried him down to a waiting car, dumping him and Blaze in the trunk.

Once they were moving he poked the earth pony. "Blaze."

"I'm here," Blaze responded, "and I am so sorry. If I'd known she was watching this guy I would never have let you go after him. If I had only spotted her sooner!"

"Don't worry about that. We'll talk about it later," Calumn said. "I'm going to think of a way out of this, okay? We'll make it, but I'm weak right now. I'm going to need to feed on your friendship directly, it's going to feel weird."

"Will that get you back up to full power?"

"Not even close, but it will give me a little more to work with."

"Well, it's a little cramped in here with the two of us being adult-sized," Blaze pointed out. "Why don't you go all kid-sister so you can eat well and we can ride in comfort?"

Calumn paused at that. It was a good idea, but it still left a bad taste in his mouth. "No," he decided. "It's wrong."

"Calumn, you said 'not unless absolutely necessary'. Now, I'm not known for my keen judgement of social situations, but I figure being tied up by a psycho ex and locked in the trunk of a car which is probably heading towards her evil boss counts as 'absolutely necessary'."

Calumn thought about that, and couldn't find any fault in the logic. "It still feels wrong."

"Yeah, buddy, I hear ya," Blaze sighed. "But, seriously? A powered-up Changeling is way better for us right now than a near-starving Changeling. Also? You are so completely cute when you're my little sister and you get all wobbly on love."

"Blaze. You can't even see me."

"Mind's eye, buddy. Who needs eyes when you have the power of imagination!"

Calumn laughed. "Alright, but just this once," and with a flash of green he once more became Holly, the love Blaze felt for his sister flowing in and filling the Changeling with new strength. The ropes that had bound him weren't holding anymore but he didn't pull free in case he had to revert to Janice suddenly.

Once Blaze found himself with extra room he stretched out and heaved a sigh. "Wow, you know I've never been thrown in a trunk with my little sister before? Big guys, usually, and there was that clown once, but no little sisters. I like it. It's different."

Calumn snorted back another laugh. "Just rest, okay? Conserve your strength. We don't know how long this ride is going to be, but at the end of it is Max Cash. I don't know how you know him, but if you do then you know it's going to take all we've got to get out of this alive."

"I know, buddy," Blaze whispered, his voice sad and serious. "Believe me. I know."

***

"I’m betraying you"

***

Dash woke with a start. She was gasping for breath and sweating like she had done the Running of the Leaves twice over with a saddlebag full of lead. She didn’t understand why, she couldn’t remember any bad dreams, but whatever had woken her she was pretty sure she wasn’t getting back to sleep any time soon. With an annoyed grunt she pulled herself from the tangled covers and slipped out of her room.

Astrid had gone to bed not long after Dash had finished describing Celestia to her. The Griffin had seemed uncharacteristically contemplative, and Dash wasn’t the kind of pony who would pry into another person’s thoughts. Star Fall had been busy reading through some old book and the Professor had apparently gone to bed with a headache. That left going to bed herself as the only real option. She’d tried to watch TV for a bit, but the flickering images had quickly strained her eyes, and she had shut it off and just lay quietly until sleep took her. For someone used to taking naps several times a day, simply falling asleep had been strangely difficult. Now she was up again, but despite the lack of sleep she felt like she was fully rested and ready for the day ahead.

Dash made her way to the dining room, and found Star Fall still awake, still studying the book. “Hey,” Dash called to her, making her look up with tired eyes. “What time is it?”

Star Fall checked the clock. “Four AM.”

“Have you been to bed at all?” Star Fall silently shook her head. “Star, we’re leaving in, like, five hours. You need to get some sleep.”

“I know, I just need to get as much of this book in my mind first,” Star Fall said, but sighed. “It would be easier if I wasn’t so tired I’ve been re-reading the same page for fifteen minutes.”

Dash snickered at that and stepped up to the other pegasus. “What’s so important about this book anyway?”

“It’s The Magic Of Friendship,” Star Fall said, turning the book so that Dash could see it.

“Hey! I can read this!” Dash said, surprised at the familiar Old Equestrian text.

“It’s a first edition. Over a thousand years old.”

“’By Twilight Sparkle’,” Dash read aloud, and a warm smile spread on her face. “Wow, something she wrote survived this long? This is what the Professor was talking about yesterday, right?”

“Yeah. The Magic Of Friendship is Twilight Sparkle’s most famous work. It’s practically the foundation of modern advanced magical theory.”

“And it’s about perceptions and stuff?”

“It has sections on perceptions and their influence on our reality. It also has important passages on practically every major magical field. If there’s a subject in magic, The Magic Of Friendship is the book that started all modern thought on it.”

“Whoa.”

Star Fall yawned again. “It’s also hard to get through. It’s written in a style that was common at the time, but really hard for us to work with now. Long, rambling personal anecdotes about her life and friends interspersed with some of the most advanced and intense magical theory ever put to paper. It’s actually one of the main sources of information we have on you and your friends, too.”

“So there’s stuff about me in there?”

Star Fall nodded. “And about Applejack and Fluttershy and Rarity and Pinkie Pie. Life in Ponyville must have been pretty exciting, all the things that happened to you six.”

Dash shrugged. “Sure, it could be. Mostly it was just life, you know? We had our jobs, our dreams, our hobbies. We just lived like normal and sometimes stuff would happen and we’d save the world.”

Star Fall shook her head with a laugh. “’Stuff would happen’. You were heroes, Dash, fighting against the greatest evils of your time, and you just say ‘stuff would happen’?”

“That’s how it went, Star. I am a hero, but not because I saved the world. I’m a hero because of all the stuff I did in Ponyville for the people who lived there. Because I followed my dream and dedicated myself to being the very best. So long as I don’t let it go to my head, I even act like a hero. The others? They do almost as much as I do and they don’t think of themselves as any different from any other pony. They way you guys talk about us, all you know are the times we had to fight something. That wasn’t us. That wasn’t our life. Saving the world isn’t what’s important, being the pony who would save the world is.”

“That’s... pretty deep, I guess,” Star Fall said, yawning loudly. “I thought you’d be a little less modest about it all.”

Dash laughed. “Star, I’m not being modest about anything. I’m awesome. I helped save the world a few times, but that’s not what makes me awesome. I could have had nothing to do with that stuff and I’d still be the fastest pegasus in Equestria, and the one and only Rainbow Dash. Once you’re that good, the world-saving stuff is just kind of expected.” Star Fall lapsed into giggles that were interrupted by another yawn. Dash grinned at her, but pulled the book away. “You gotta get sleep. I don’t know what you were looking for in here, but it can’t be worth exhausting yourself when you’re about to go out on a dangerous mission.”

“I’m looking for the Elements of Harmony,” Star Fall mumbled, head drooping.

“Find anything?”

She shook her head. “No. Not a mention. I’m sure I’ve seen those words before, though, and that it had something to do with Twilight Sparkle. I just can’t remember where.”

“You’re not going to find it drooling all over your really old book,” Dash pointed out. “Come on, let’s get you to bed.”

Star Fall wasn’t in any state to argue, and so Dash helped her to her room and under her covers. The white pegasus was asleep and muttering magical formulae in moments, and it was adorable enough that Dash allowed herself a moment bask in the cuteness of it before backing out of the room.

She returned to the dining room and looked at the book on the table. She flipped it closed, and found an ancient, faded picture on the cover below the title. The figures in the picture were unrecognizable as anything other than vaguely equine shapes, but Dash was able to pick them out anyways. She had seen the picture before, she had a copy of it in her bedroom in Ponyville. It was a photo taken during the celebration after Nightmare Moon’s defeat, six new friends gathered together and flush with their victory and the discovery of kindred souls. It was the first of what would be many pictures to come, and while to Dash it had been just another memento, to Twilight it had obviously held a deeper meaning.

Tempted as she was to read the book that lay behind that picture, Dash had a fairly solid feeling that anything Star Fall called ‘intense magical theory’ would be way beyond her. She set the book aside and stepped away from the table, making her way instead towards the balcony she had shared with Astrid earlier. Outside the air was crisp, but not cold, and the breeze gusting through the feathers of her wings was a pleasant tug without being intrusive. She breathed deeply and sat on the edge of the balcony. Her eyes stung, seeing that picture had left her feeling more homesick than she could ever remember being.

Dash watched the sky alone, her gaze fixed on the waning moon as it made its slow way across the night. The lights of the city obscured the stars, but not enough to keep her sharp eyes from picking them out. They were the same stars and moon she remembered from her childhood, Mare in the Moon and all.

“What happened to you?” she asked, directing the question at the moon, but meaning it more for herself.

She wasn’t as smart as Twilight. That was a fact so solid she could build an earth pony house on it. She wasn’t as widely-read as Rarity, and she didn’t have the down-to-earth common-sense of Applejack. Fluttershy, for all her timidity, had a motherly wisdom that Dash didn’t think she could understand if she tried. Pinkie was Pinkie and who knew what went on in her head. For all that she didn’t have the mental gifts of her friends, she wasn’t devoid of intelligence, common sense or wisdom herself. She knew that her situation wasn’t normal, and she was beginning to come to some unhappy conclusions about it.

Despite how she had been treating it so far, this wasn’t like Daring Do and the Scarab of Chronus. For one, there was no clear reason for Dash to be sent forward in time. For another, the way the Professor had questioned her made it obvious that there were things she was supposed to do after she had come to the future, and in the book the whole future was different because Daring Do wasn’t there to prevent it in the past. Dash was starting to think that when she made it back home she might not be able to change this future at all. She was worried that she might not even want to.

Sure Nightmare Umbra was bad, and the Princesses going away was bad, and Equestria being divided into two warring nations was extra bad. But if she changed the past so none of that happened, what would happen to the friends she had made? Would Star Fall or Astrid even have been born? She didn’t understand enough about time travel and fate and all that stuff to figure it out on her own. She wished she could just fly to Ponyville’s library and ask Twilight. She would know.

Instead she stared at the moon and the Princess it contained. "Why'd you have to leave?" she asked the night. "You could have stopped all of this if you'd stuck around. Sure, Nightmare Umbra had to be stopped, but you had to have other bearers for the Elements by then. You had to have some other way, something better than sticking yourselves in the sky and hoping for the best. If you'd stayed, then at least I'd have somepony who remembered me."

Dash felt tears burning at her eyes but she scrubbed them away before they could start to fall. "Hey, it's no problem," she continued. "I'm making friends, and I've got cranky future Twilight Sparkle working on getting me home. This will just be one crazy story I tell the girls, right? Right?" The night gave no reply. "Come on, Princess, give me something here. I don't know how it works for you guys, but I was listening to the Professor, you've got ways of seeing things that 'do not resemble our limited understanding', right? Well, use some of that and give me a bucking clue!"

She was on her hooves now, snarling at the distant shadowed image of a mare's head. "Come on! You owe me! You got them all thinking you're a god now, why don't you do something godly? Send me a vision! Give me a sign! Anything! Anything! Please... please just let me know that I'm going to make it home. You have to let me know because... because I'm starting to think I might not."

She hung her head. "You probably can't hear me. Maybe you can, I don't know. You guys were never gods to us, Princess. Not really. It's kinda funny that you only got to be gods after you had left, but I can see how it happened. Anyway, I don't know if you can hear me, and I don't know if this counts as praying if I don't believe you're a god, but I'll give it a go anyway. If it doesn't, you know, sound right, I'm sorry. I've never done this before."

She sat down, stretching her wings to the breeze and her head to the sky. "Luna, Princess of the Night, please listen. I don't know why I'm here. I don't know what I'm supposed to do. I'm just kind of stumbling along and I don't know if it's getting me anywhere. I'm in the dark here, and I guess that's your thing. So please, Luna, help me. Help me figure this out and get back home. Help me see my friends again. I just... I just want to see them again. So, uh, yeah. That's my prayer to you. I'm not playing favourites or anything, I'm going to ask your sister the same thing next time I see her. But you seriously do owe me, so any help at all would totally be appreciated. Uh, thanks for listening, your Goddessness."

With that Dash lay down and folded her wings, watching the lights of the ever-wakeful city below as she waited for the coming of dawn.

***

HB leaned over the map, carefully lining up a ruler to connect the marks he had been making. His eyes blurred as he made one more line between two distant places and he sat back, sighing as he let his Telekinesis lapse. The basement of the college library was a dark place this early in the morning, the aisles were dim, shadowy paths between looming black stacks, with islands of light that picked out study tables few and hidden. HB sat at one of those tables, deliberately picked so that it would be in the least accessible part of the labyrinthine library. He didn’t want to be disturbed while he pored over the dozens of books and papers he had gathered from his long days of mind-numbing research.

He probably wouldn’t have been as far along in that research as he was if it wasn’t for the fact that he could barely sleep. The pain pills the doctor had prescribed him allowed him to fall asleep, but only for a couple hours. After that his horn began to ache and he couldn’t stay unconscious. He couldn’t take any more of the pills for fear of an overdose, so he spent his insomniac time on the line of research into Max Cash that Barry had twigged him to.

His horn ached now, a pulsing, stabbing pain that felt like someone taking a hammer and chisel to his skull. He reached up and gingerly touched his horn with a hoof. He cringed at the sharp increase in pain as his sensitive horn protested, but pushed through it and gently probed at the sharp appendage. He felt for that little bit of give, that spongy springiness that he still had nightmares about, but to his relief the horn was as solid as it should be. It just hurt like a bastard.

One of the problems that were keeping the pain up was that he was running his magic almost non-stop. He couldn’t afford to get side-tracked too much with books and reports that exaggerated or outright lied, so he was using his magic to pick up on the tells that would show where he was reading accurate information and where the author was just making stuff up. The latter happened surprisingly often. HB had combed the library, and the stack of materials next to his map was the result of all that effort, and it was about to pay off.

He had tracked all of Cash’s known dig sites since he had started archaeological expeditions fifteen years ago. The first few were in all the usual places: battle sites from the Schism, the Badlands, the Las Pegasus ruins. It wasn’t until five years ago that he’d started branching out into weird sites that made no sense. Strange excavations in the Aplusian region, expeditions into the southern jungles, and the dig site outside of Orion city were just a few of his endeavors. Cash had definitely been looking for something, but no one knew anything about what it could possibly be. Until now.

With Barry’s discovery of the fallen cloud city right where Cash had been digging, HB had caught the edge of a hidden truth. He had dove into the records, gone as obscure and old as he could, and he’d come up with paydirt. More than half of Cash’s strange expeditions were to supposed crash sites of cloud cities. The pattern wasn’t obvious because cloud cities left no ruins, thus nothing to dig for. If, however, they left behind items that weren’t so vaporous, that would be worth something. Maybe even worth all the effort he had made to find it.

HB's eyes unfocused as he slumped in his seat, exhausted but so close to finishing he begrudged every moment of rest his body demanded. It was because his eyes weren't focused that he was able to spot the thin wire as it slipped over his head.

He threw a hoof up and managed to catch the wire just as it pulled tight. It cut into the sides of his neck and part of his hoof, but he had stopped it from choking him. There was a snarl of frustration by his ear and he threw his head back, slamming into whoever was trying to kill him. His assailant swore and jerked the wire, trying to pull it free of HB's hoof. "Max Cash wants you to know you shouldn't go poking your horn into things that don't concern you," his assailant hissed, the voice feminine under the strain and anger.

The detective fell to the side, dropping off the chair and trying to drag his attacker with him. It didn't work, the assailant allowing him to sink to the floor while holding the wire taut. It did loosen some of the pressure as the new angle didn't favor the attacker as much, and HB took advantage of that, getting his hooves under him and kicking back.

He caught a piece of the other pony, whose breath was knocked from her by the force of the blow. HB heaved, curling forward and kicking out his rear legs to throw the attacker over his shoulder. The other pony, lighter than HB, went flying into the table, letting go of the wire. HB tore the garrotte from around his neck, heedless of the way it cut deeper gashes in his neck as he did so, and took a good look at his would-be murderer.

It was a pegasus mare with a light brown coat and a short-cut blonde mane. She wore glasses and a pair of fringed saddlebags that hid her Glyph. She looked like a student in her first year at the college, and her eyes burned with rage as she flipped upright and launched herself at him with the graceful speed that only a pegasus could have.

He moved to block the strike, but she was faster than he was, hitting him in the chest and knocking him back. He stumbled, managing to stay on his hooves, but it gave her the space to reach into her saddlebag and come out with a knife in her teeth. She lunged at him again, slashing and kicking.

He dodged to the side, but got a kick to the leg and a shallow slash across his side. He struck out at her, and she was too close to completely evade. She stumbled back, not really hurt, and quickly recovered. He tried to capitalize on that moment of advantage, but it was gone too soon. She slashed another cut in his flank and bucked him into a shelf as he tried to charge her.

He rolled to get out of the way of the falling books, but his exhausted body betrayed him. He cried out as several heavy volumes crashed down onto him, one hitting his horn and making his vision blur and double with pain. She leapt on him, bringing her knife down at his eye. He twisted and slammed a hoof under her chin, holding her knife off a few bare centimeters from his face. She slammed a hoof into his side, but the books covering him dulled the blow.

HB's horn lit with copper light, and he grabbed the knife with his telekinesis. Her eyes went wide and she clamped down on it. HB's telekinesis was stronger than most unicorns', but still not strong enough to just rip the knife out of her grip. Instead he twisted it, wiggling the blade so that it began to slide from her mouth in little hitching jerks. She tried to pull back, but he kicked her leg out. She caught herself with her wings, but lost her grip on the knife. It flew away from her, embedding itself in a book.

She hissed at the loss of the weapon, and HB used that moment to grab a book from the highest shelf with his magic and drop it on her. The heavy volume struck her in the leg at an awkward angle, snapping bone. She screamed out in pain and lashed out at him, catching his horn with her hoof.

HB's world went white with agony and he lost track of time. When he could see again, he was alone. The scream of the emergency exit alarm was sounding and there would be campus security all over the place in moments. He scrambled to his hooves, nearly heaving at the vertigo the movement caused. He was still in agony, but he pushed through it, stumbling over to his table and grabbing his map. He took a moment to look it over again, noting especially the circled place where several lines intersected. His neck and sides hurt, his stomach was roiling and his horn was a blazing spike of pain right into his brain, but he felt a triumphant grin spread across his face as he looked at that mark.

"Got you now, you bastard."

Chapter 11: Fighting A Shadow

The Bearers of the Elements have only one recourse to dealing with these problems: assigning a Proxy. If the connection between the Element and the Bearer is like an electrical circuit, then the Proxy is like a fuse. The Proxy regulates the flow of energy, buffering the Bearer from the long-term effects of their Element. If the connection overloads, then the fuse blows without harm to either end of the circuit. This analogy is sadly more literal than I am comfortable with.

Proxies are, for most intents and purposes, true Bearers of the Elements. They must conform to the standard requirements and gain access to the Active and Passive abilities associated with their Element. The distinction between a Proxy and a true Bearer is fine enough that when my friends and I ‘passed on’ the Elements to our ‘successors’ what we were doing was assigning Proxies without realizing it. It was only during the Celestia Nova incident that we discovered the Proxy effect and what it meant, tragically too late to stop the consequences.

The primary difference between a true Bearer and a Proxy is found when creating the Magic of Harmony. A Harmony Event initiated with a group composed entirely of Proxies may actually seem more powerful than one initiated by true Bearers, but this is an illusion based in the fact that during a Proxy Event we can come close to grasping what it is we're seeing. In truth there is no comparison. A Proxy Event is spectacular and effective, but it comes no closer to being a true Harmony Event than an ant comes to being the sun. It is for this reason that I believe that if the Elements must be used, then it is necessary to use Proxies to bear the Elements of Harmony whenever possible.

-From the fifth section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Eleven: Fighting a Shadow

"Do you have everything you'll need?" Twinkle Shine asked her student.

"Yeah, Astrid packed so I don't have any books to weigh me down," Star Fall said, not without a hint of disappointment. Star Fall had slept in, and thus had no say in the preparations, which was just how Astrid liked doing it. They were all standing on the balcony, looking out at the city and preparing to leave. Rainbow Dash and Astrid were already wearing their saddlebags and ready to go. Dash was already in the air, circling the building with restless energy. All that was left was for the white pegasus to say goodbye to her mentor. "We'll be fine, Professor. I mean it."

"I know, but..." the golden unicorn sighed. "You've got a lot on your mind."

"And I'll have time to think about it," Star Fall assured her. "You taught me how to prioritize my focus, I'm not going to let my worries get the better of me when it counts."

Twinkle Shine nodded, smiling sadly. "I'll still be worried, though," she said. "Here, I want you to wear this." She lifted a small golden necklace up to her student. "It's got some protective enchantments laid into it. Not much, but maybe enough to keep you from getting hurt accidentally if things go bad."

"They won't go bad, Professor," Star Fall assured her, but took the necklace anyway. "Thank you. It's pretty."

"And I hope that's all it has to be," Twinkle Shine said. "Please reconsider."

"Professor..."

"Please. I've got a meeting with the King today, but after that I can go talk to Gamma, have her send someone else..."

"No," Star Fall said, putting a hoof on her mentor's shoulder. "My job. My life. My choice."

"I know," Twinkle Shine sighed, then pulled Star Fall into a hug. "Be safe."

Star Fall hugged her back, squeezing tightly. "You too."

"Oh, what trouble could I get into?" Twinkle Shine asked with a laugh. "I've got meetings with Royalty and magical experiments to do today. I won't be in any danger like you will."

"You worry, I worry," Star Fall said. "It doesn't have to be rational when it comes to family."

"Oh!" Twinkle Shine blinked back the tears that filled her eyes.

"Hey, Fall, not to break up the special moment or anything, but we're already running late," Astrid said.

Star Fall pulled out of the embrace. "I'm coming!" she shouted over to her companions. "Professor, I've got to go."

"I know," Twinkle Shine said, pulling back and composing her features. "Send me a message when you're heading to Spike's."

"I will," Star Fall promised, then stepped over to Astrid. As one the two of them took flight to join Dash in the air, circling the penthouse once before heading into the west.

Twinkle Shine stood and watched until they were completely out of sight. “Stay safe, my little Fallen Star,” she breathed. “And beware of Nightmares.”

***

Two hours later, Twinkle Shine sighed as she looked at the larger-than-life painting of herself and the Royal family that hung in the Hall of Memory. It was only the latest in a series of such paintings that dated all the way back to the founding of the Kingdom. Each depicted the Royals and their chief advisors, guiding and protecting the remnants of Celestia’s Kingdom from the depredations of the Lunar Heresy. The Royals, of course, looked powerful and magnificent and happy in each, while the chief advisor always looked straight out of the portrait with a somber expression that had become ingrained tradition. She had wanted to smile for her turn on the canvas, but the King had overruled her. Every time she passed it now she thought of it as a missed opportunity.

“My dear Professor!”

Twinkle Shine turned and swept into a bow as the King strode into the hall, flanked by his Griffin guards. He walked with his wings and horn held high, his height allowing him to tower over common ponies. His white coat was freshly washed and brushed, and shone in the lights of the hall, as did his simply-styled blue and purple mane. He was naked to display the mark of his birthright, his Glyph a scepter topped by the symbol of Celestia. “Your Majesty,” Twinkle Shine said.

“Professor, please walk with me,” the King said. She rose and stepped up next to him as they made their sedate way down the hall. “I have heard that your daughter has returned from the Storm.”

“Just yesterday,” she confirmed. “I hope Gamma has told you of what she has found.”

“She did brief me,” the King confirmed, smiling down at her with an eager gleam in his blue eyes. “Is it true? Does a hero walk among us?”

She shrugged. “I cannot say for sure. She certainly has the power of an ancient pegasus, and the attitude and appearance do match up.”

“Come now,” he urged. “You can be more certain than that.”

“No, your Majesty, I cannot,” she said. “I haven’t had much time to examine her, and what I was able to do is inconclusive. I would say that she believes her claims, but you and I both know that the easiest way to sell a lie is to make the one telling it believe it is truth.”

He nodded, eyes turning to the portraits on the walls. “Gamma spent very little time on our visitor from the past. She was more concerned with Cash and his machinations. I find her focus on this criminal frustrating when the navies of our enemies gather in the seas and the heroes of the past may walk among us. Do you think she is obsessing?”

“I think Gamma obsesses over everything she does,” Twinkle Shine replied, but sighed and continued. “However, I would also say that she never does anything she does not believe is important and necessary. If she is so focused on Cash, then he might be worth the effort. My student is similarly convinced investigating him is essential. As to those navies, I must ask you again, your Majesty, to withdraw our forces from the Stile Islands. Our presence there is only aggravating the Republicans.”

“I wish them aggravated,” the King said, coming to a halt. “And we are not talking of our military now. I wish to speak more of Gamma and Rainbow Dash, and, of course, your daughter.”

“Of course,” Twinkle Shine said, moving to stand in front of him. “What more do you wish to discuss?”

“Gamma has assured me that Rainbow Dash has agreed to serve the Kingdom. Furthermore, that she has developed a friendship with your daughter. I am well pleased with this, but I need your counsel on how to proceed. Should I publicly recognize her, or should I wait? Rainbow Dash’s arrival can only bring joy to my people, and lift their spirits in the shadow of a possible attack on our shores.”

“I would hold off on that, your Majesty,” Twinkle Shine cautioned. “At least until I am more certain of her identity myself. False hope can be far more devastating than none.”

The King nodded. “Wise. When will you know?”

“It will be a few weeks at the least. Even if I do all the verification I can, I will not be able to be one hundred percent sure.”

“But you will be sure enough," the King mused, putting a hoof thoughtfully to his chin. "Very well, in two weeks I will take what you can give me and make an announcement. It should be a doubly joyful event.”

Twinkle Shine was careful to let none of what she was feeling show on her face. “You’ve decided then?”

“Yes," he confirmed with a happy grin. "As I was hoping, my son Regal Stature has shown himself to be the best choice.”

“He’s five years her junior,” Twinkle Shine pointed out.

“As if such a small thing as age has ever stopped the nobles,” the King laughed. “They’re both Magic Talents and Regal has proven himself worthy over and over.”

“He has? I thought Regal was fairly quiet. I hadn’t heard tell of his exploits like I have some of the other candidates. He hasn’t sought out military service or made himself beloved of the people or participated in the workings of the government.”

“And so he proves himself,” the Kings said. “While the others have been currying favor and jockeying for position, Regal has been learning magic and the art of ruling. He is intent on making himself a stallion of intelligence, refinement, power and wisdom. What better traits for the father of a Goddess?”

Twinkle Shine took a deep breath and slowly let it out, controlling her anger. “Your Majesty, I must once more caution you against such fantasies. While a Royal heir she could foal, a Goddess is not possible.”

He smiled kindly at her. “I have heard your arguments many times over the years, Professor. I know them almost as well as I know my own. But I remain firm. Remember that my line has in us a deeper power than simple magic, and it is from that place that I draw my certainty. There is a certain... spark to your daughter. A feeling of connection beyond herself.”

“It is the power of Friendship, your Majesty,” Twinkle Shine said. “Nothing more.”

He shook his head. “It is more. I know it. You will too, once she fulfills her destiny.”

She sighed. “As you say, your Majesty. Still, Regal Stature may not be the best choice. He has many good qualities, true, but this matter needs careful thought. The wrong choice would not only lead to disappointment for you, but misery for my student.”

“I have made my decision, Professor,” the King said, gentle but firm. “It will all be well. I have been told that both Rainbow Dash and your daughter are on an assignment, but they should return soon. When they do I will meet with them both. I want to see this hero for myself, and I wish to inform your daughter of the happy news. You are, of course, free to tell her first, but I would very much like to be the one. She is to be my daughter as well, and I desire a closer relationship with her than I currently enjoy.”

“Of course, your Majesty,” she said, long years of practice allowing her to say it without grinding her teeth. “I’ll see it done.”

“Very good. Now, to the matter of our missing Dragon...”

***

Riding in the trunk of a car is not comfortable. Riding in the trunk of a car that is going off-road is painful. Doing it for all of a night and most of a day is torturous. One of the downsides to being in the body of a ten-year-old filly was that Calumn felt that torture more acutely than he would have otherwise. Every large bump sent him smacking into the lid of the trunk, every rocking turn meant he slid all over the empty space.

Blaze, on the other hoof, seemed to be able to sleep through anything. He barely snorted in irritation every time his head was smacked. His reaction to Calumn bouncing into him was usually just to chuckle and mumble something including the words 'cute' and 'tiny'.

Eventually the car seemed to find a relatively smooth path and Calumn managed to get a little rest. It didn't last long, but physical sleep wasn't as important as the energy of love, which he was getting plenty of.

"Hey, buddy, you up?" Blaze asked.

"Yes. Nice to see you awake too," Calumn said. "I hope you got enough rest."

"Meh, I've had worse," Blaze said. "Pretty thirsty, though."

"Nothing I can do about it. They want us alive, but they don't care to check on us, which makes me think we aren't that far from our destination."

"I'm kinda hoping we get a little more downtime, you know?" Blaze said. "'Cause when we stop we're going to be in the middle of nowhere with Charisma and her boss. That's not a good place to be, buddy. Trust me on that one."

"I'll get us out of this," Calumn promised. "Now, I have to know, how do you know Cash?"

"Okay, well, Max kinda likes to cross the Storm. Like, a lot. Sometimes a couple times a month. A few years ago I was his guide, and he kinda really liked me. Offered me the whole full-time gig, good pay, lots of benefits, dental, you know, the whole deal."

"And you turned him down?"

"Um, no. I was all sorts of younger and stupider and it seemed like a great gig. Also, hey, there was this hot pegasus chick who kept eyeing my flank. I though, 'wow, Blaze', which is what I call myself in my head, 'cause sometimes I like to think of myself as two different people having a conversation. Which is fine, but sometimes they get in arguments and I have to step in to break it up. But then none of us knows who anybody is and there's punching and kicking and some really hurtful insults thrown. Then the police get called and I get tossed in the tank to think about what I've done, and I always call myself to come post bail, but you won't believe how high that gets after your two hundred and seventieth arrest. It'll work out, because there's a tax break after three hundred, assuming I don't show up as a hanging judge at my arraignment..."

"Blaze!" Calumn snapped. "Focus!"

"Oh, sorry. Anyways, I said 'Blaze, this is awesome. You could be set for life! And sex! You could be set for sex!' So I took the offer, and I hooked up with Charisma, and I found out real quick that it was a huge mistake."

"Because Charisma's a sadist," Calumn reasoned.

"Oh, not really," Blaze mumbled. "She likes hurting people, not seeing pain. It's a fine distinction, I guess, but it's definitely not sexual for her. What really got to me wasn't the beatings, it was the drama. Max and Charisma were always together, uh, not in a very-special-somepony sort of way, just always travelling together. So they were always together, but sometimes they had Big Jim with them, uh, he’s called that because he’s this really big guy, not for any ironic reasons, and he had his eyes on Charisma, and she wasn't shy about being affectionate. With me. While he was there. So he beat me up too. I think it was his way of trying to get closer to her, you know? Share interests?"

"Sounds like a wonderful relationship."

"Yeah," Blaze said warmly. "Those two were made for each other. Except for the whole thing about them being completely wrong for each other. Anyway, it was sweet and I was totally on board with it, if only to make the hurting stop, but things didn't really work out with happy endings. Ya see, he was all sweet on her, but she just didn't connect with him, if you know what I mean. You know? Right? Nudge? What I mean is she didn't like him."

"I would never have guessed."

"Yeah, but could he take a hint? Well, yes, but not from her. I tried to tell him, you know, between kicks to the face. I really did, but it just seemed to make him madder. It was then I figured I couldn't stay. There I was, caught in the middle of this Luna-ordained perfect relationship, and it was killing me. I mean that. That wasn't a joke or anything. That was a statement of literal truth. The psychologically-scarring kind."

"I get it, Blaze," Calumn said, forestalling future clarification. "So that's it? They hired you on, you didn't like the treatment you got, so you left?"

"Yeah. Sure. I'd explain it more, but that's the basics. Also, Max scares the piss out of me."

"How?" Calumn asked, eager to learn more about the unicorn.

"Well, he's a pretty energetic guy, and he laughed at all my jokes, and he hung out with Charisma and me a couple times, and I had nightmares about him ripping my heart out. Every now and then I'd just catch him looking at me, and there was nothing equine in his eyes. It wasn't even animal. Buddy, I cannot describe it to you, it was just wrong. Charisma likes making people bleed and Big Jim can't take a joke, but both of them are still ponies. I'm not sure what Max is, inside his head, but he's not a pony."

"I'm not a pony," Calumn pointed out.

"Not the same thing, buddy. Not the same thing at all." Blaze was silent for a long moment, which just hammered home the gravity of what he'd been saying. Finally he spoke up again. "So how do you know Max?"

"I've been investigating him for years," Calumn said. He figured with all Blaze knew already this extra bit of information wouldn't be an issue. "He's got a criminal empire on both sides of the Storm, big money, big problems for people like me. We've been trying to shut him down practically since he started up, but it's like fighting a shadow. Every time we hit him one place he's already sprung up in another, and we've never been able to pin him down personally. That's why I'm here. That rainbow-maned pegasus, Dash, she's connected to him somehow. We don't know why, so I was sent to find out."

"Wow. Small world," Blaze said. "Though, he does cross the Storm a lot, so there's good odds any Storm-guide you got would have dealt with him before."

"Hadn't thought of that," Calumn admitted. "He's had his own personal guide on the payroll for years. There's a pretty high turnover rate in your business, it just never occurred to me that you might have met him."

"No big. But if I had known, I would have gotten us out of that hotel room, like, way faster."

The car slowed to a stop not much later. They could hear voices outside, as well as the sounds of machinery and magic at work. Calumn shifted back to Janice in preparation, resetting the ropes just as the trunk was opened. Strong hooves grabbed them and pulled them out of the car to fall onto hard-packed earth.

"What do we do with them now?" a stallion's rough voice asked.

"Clear out a storage room," came Charisma's reply. "Make sure the door can be secured and toss them both in. I want guards on them at all times. Get them some food and water, but they do not leave the room for any reason. Any reason. They need to shit, someone will get them a bucket. Am I clear?"

There was a moment of silence before the stallion replied, his voice shaking. "Perfectly, ma'am."

"Good. Come on, Conrad, we'll get you settled in while we wait for Max."

Conrad's reply was lost in the sounds of machinery as Calumn was picked up and carried into a building. He went limp, waiting patiently. They would have their opportunity soon, but if he was careful he could learn a lot before he made his escape.

He just hoped he could be careful enough.

***

Twinkle Shine stood on her penthouse balcony, setting the wards to a new configuration, one that would muffle and distort the energies she was going to be unleashing within. She had already informed the building supervisor that she was doing some magical experimentation and that they might experience some strange sounds and lights, but that it was all safe and contained. She had also informed the University that she wouldn’t be back for several days, cancelling her classes and office hours.

Finally ready, she looked to the setting sun, staring wide-eyed into the light. “Am I doing the right thing?” she asked. The answer was the same as always.

Twinkle Shine sighed and walked back into the penthouse, shutting the doors securely behind her. Her magic wended through the penthouse, securing breakables, sealing doors and shuttering windows. Lights were turned off, and by the time she reached the secured practical magic room the entire estate was safe for a hurricane. She removed the furniture from the room, clearing it out completely before bringing in one thing: a mirror. She hung the mirror on the wall, securing it with a long-lasting enchantment that would prevent it from breaking.

Finally ready, she closed the door. The strong protective enchantments locked into place, ready to contain all energies unleashed to this one room. They wouldn't be enough to completely conceal it, but they would serve to muffle what was to come. Completing a final check to make sure all the spells were working properly, she took a deep breath and looked to the mirror. It was nearly pitch black in the room, but she could see her reflection by the light that radiated from her eyes. The reflection stared back at her, patient but eager.

“I Am Still Weak,” the reflection stated. “This Will Be Difficult.”

“I know, but there's more than enough power to deal with one pegasus.” Twinkle Shine sighed. “Just stick to the plan and it will all work out.”

“It Would Be Best If I Were At Full Strength.”

“With knowledge of the Elements somewhere out there?” Twinkle Shine snorted. “I won’t so easily throw away a thousand years of effort.”

The reflection stared at her with quiet anger for a long moment before speaking in a whisper that resonated through the room, rattling the door in the frame. “Begin.”

Twinkle Shine fell to her knees as her guts twisted and her organs began to fail. She let out a gurgling mewl that turned into a choking cough, blood flying from her mouth to paint the floor in splotches of dark red. Her horn glowed brightly, golden light illuminating the room well enough for the Professor to see the bits of herself she was spitting out. She tried to pull herself to her hooves but her legs shattered as she moved, dropping her to the floor. An agonized scream ripped its way from her throat, the sound overlaid with another voice, one that rumbled through the building and shook dust from the walls all the way to the ground floor.

Her broken legs stretched out, straining tendons and muscles as new bone grew between the breaks of the old. Stretched beyond their limit, her muscles began snapping like rubber bands, wrenching new screams from her even as her throat was choked off with her own blood. She scrambled for breath, vomiting out the blood and bile that was filling her lungs, frantic to get air. Her legs went blessedly numb as her spine broke apart, vertebrae growing and shifting as her body elongated. She desperately gasped for what air she could, trying to stave off what came next even as the rational part of her knew it was inevitable and necessary. Then her ribcage collapsed and put an end to her panting.

She shook, eyes rolling as her horn elongated and her entire skull deformed, teeth falling from her open mouth. Black flames began to lick up her horn, eating away at the golden light. Her pupils faded to a blind white, and with a final, gurgling exhalation she faded out of consciousness.

She heaved a deep breath, forcing air into lungs that were still too small. The pain seared through her, but she welcomed it with a fanged grin. She flexed her legs, finding that the muscles were beginning to re-establish their hold. With an agonized growl she got to her hooves, her newly re-fused spine protesting the movement with a series of pops and cracks. She ignored it, spitting out the last of the bloody refuse that tainted her mouth, and flexed her entire body. Her sides split open, spilling black blood that shimmered like oil and wriggled like worms as it sizzled and spat on the floor. Wings tore themselves from the binding flesh, spreading their dark feathers wide in the black room. With a flare of dark power her coat was set crawling with tendrils of shadow, changing the golden color into a harsh gray.

She shook her head, the white hair falling away as her true mane flowed into the world, shadows and ashes billowing in an ethereal wind. Her ribs snapped back into place as her heart surged to life. It beat strong and hot like a furnace of power pounding in her chest with an insistent rhythm, the drum-beat of war. Muscles filled out and wounds closed, and she reared back with a cry of triumph. Her Glyph, her mark, appeared on her flank with the burning hiss of a hot iron sinking into flesh, a white heart of thorns, pierced by a black sword.

Nightmare Umbra, the Destroyer, had returned.

She settled back to her hooves and looked into the mirror. Her reflection looked back at her with the pained eyes of a mortal pony. “That hurt a lot more than I remember,” Twinkle Shine said.

“Pain Is Irrelevant, Action And Result Are What Matters.”

“Sure,” the Professor sighed. “Test the link.”

The Nightmare’s horn flared with black fire, her magic finding the talisman given to Star Fall and locking on to it. “She Is To The South And West. I Will Not Reach Her Before Daybreak.”

“They’re making good time. Remember the plan.”

The Nightmare snorted derisively. “Worry Is Not Required. I Will Keep To The Plan.”

“Then I’m ready,” Twinkle Shine said, and closed her eyes. When the Nightmare opened them again her reflection was her own. She grinned in the darkness, her eyes illuminating everything with their harsh glow. With a stamp of her hoof the room was bathed in fire, burning away the remnants of her transformation. She threw the door open with an effort of will and stalked through the darkened penthouse to the balcony.

The sun had sunk away as she had changed, and the stars were just now creeping into sight. Twilight, her time. She took a deep breath and let it out as a cloud of ashen smoke that hovered before her, heedless of the wind. “Gather The Clouds,” the Nightmare commanded it. “Call Them In Strength. Call Them To Storm.” The smoke-wisp spun in acknowledgement and sped off into the dusk.

Nightmare Umbra swept her dispassionate gaze across the city, and nodded in satisfaction. Then with a flare of black fire from her horn she dissolved into ash and flew off towards the south... and Rainbow Dash.

***

The day’s travel had taken them far from the capitol. Dash had wanted to go faster, farther, but Star Fall just didn’t have the stamina for it. When they made camp for the night it was in a forest clearing a mile or so before the woods gave way to vast, rolling plains. Dash thought that the plains were probably what had become of the Equestrian prairies from her time, but she couldn’t be sure. Too much had changed.

Star Fall had been uncharacteristically silent throughout the trip, and any attempt Dash made at conversation had been met with little enthusiasm. Even her offers to show off more weather-working were rebuffed. This worried her, Star Fall usually had tons of enthusiasm to learn about weather magic. There was more than just lack of sleep making her withdrawn today.

She had asked Astrid about it, but the Griffin didn’t know either. She said she’d ask Star Fall when they had made camp, but asked Dash to not be there, guessing that the white pegasus might feel more comfortable talking about it with her oldest friend if there wasn’t an audience. So it was that Dash had made her excuses and stepped out into the forest for a bit.

She’d stayed away for as long as she could, but eventually curiosity and boredom had gotten the better of her and she headed back. Dash came back to the campsite and caught the sound of Star Fall and Astrid talking. She didn’t want to interrupt if they were still talking about whatever had been bugging the pegasus, so she crept up to listen.

“Did you know?” Star Fall asked. She sounded tired and hoarse, like she had been crying or was about to.

“I swear I had no idea,” Astrid replied. Her voice was high, and would have been a shriek had it been louder. Dash knew that tone from a Griffon, frustration and anger. “I knew that getting me as your guard was weird, but I thought it was just the Professor being worried about you. She’s got enough pull with the Crown to make it happen. I never imagined it was anything else, Fall. Believe me.”

Star Fall sighed. “I didn’t think you knew. Now, though? I don’t know what I’m going to do.”

“You’ll figure it out,” Astrid assured her. “You’ve got the smarts to think your way through anything.”

“That’s the problem, Astrid. It’s not about thinking through it, it’s about making a choice. Do I go along with it, or do I try to run from it?”

“I don’t know, Fall. I’m sorry, but that’s gotta be on you.”

“I know, it’s just frustrating,” Star Fall audibly stamped her hoof. “What will you do?”

Astrid laughed. “Fall, it’s not my decision.”

“I’m asking what you’ll do if I decide to run.”

There was a long moment of silence before Astrid spoke. “Oh, that.”

“Yeah.”

“I’ve got my oaths to the Crown, Fall. My clan. What will happen to them?”

“I don’t know.”

Astrid let out a frustrated growl. “You’re a tough friend to have, Fall.”

“What’s going on?” Dash asked, deciding enough was enough and she had to know. She stepped out of the trees, stern and frowning in what she hoped was a determined look.

Star Fall immediately looked at the ground, refusing to meet Dash’s eyes, but Astrid wasn’t having any of that. “If she’s your friend she deserves to know,” the Griffin said.

Star Fall nodded. “Okay. Dash, there’s something I learned last night. It’s made things complicated.” She told Dash about what the Professor had revealed to her.

Dash sat down as she listened, confused and angry, but not interrupting until it was all over. “Okay, so how is that even possible? The King can’t tell you who to marry, can he?”

“He can, and does,” Star Fall sighed. “It’s not a power he invokes often, but if it’s in the interest of the Kingdom he’s allowed to do pretty much anything.”

“Star, that’s stupid. No one can force you to marry someone you don’t want to.”

“Sure they can,” Astrid piped up. “How do you think it works for Griffins? The best and brightest get paired up and told to make some eggs.” Dash stared at her, horrified. “What is that look for? It’s how we keep the species strong. Weak genes equals weak Griffins equals extinction. I told you about this, remember?”

“You said careful breeding. Not ‘forced to marry someone against your will’!”

“Well, we don’t actually get married, but it’s the same thing, Dash. The King just wants Fall to participate in his own little god-making experiment.”

“One that won’t work,” Star Fall put in. “But one I might have to go through with anyway.”

Dash stared at her, uncomprehending. “Why?”

“Because what happens to my family if I don’t? What happens to me and Astrid? What happens to... to my entire life? I’d have to run, Dash, and the only place that would take me, the only place where I wouldn’t be hunted down in days, is the Republics. I’d have to defect. I would have to, if I wanted to survive. That’s not much of a choice, Dash.”

“That’s not fair!” Dash shouted, flaring her wings and kicking at the ground. “He shouldn’t be allowed to force you into a choice like this! Princess Celestia would...”

“Celestia isn’t here!” Star Fall snapped. Dash stopped and stared at her, wide eyed, and Astrid winced and murmured a short prayer under her breath. “She isn’t. She left us in the lurch and let the world go to hell, and she isn’t coming back. So whatever she ‘would’ have done means nothing. We are the ones who are here, we are the ones who have to make the decisions.”

“Fall, that’s enough,” Astrid said, laying a claw on her shoulder.

Star Fall’s eyes fell. “We have to make the decisions,” she repeated, but the fire was leaving her voice. “I have to make a choice, and either way I lose my freedom. I’m sure the Goddess hates seeing me forced into a situation like this, I’m sure she would do something about it if she could. She can’t, and you can’t, and Astrid can’t, and the Professor can’t. Nobody can. Each of us, we’re on our own. There are no gods left in the world.”

Dash’s mouth hung open. She couldn’t think of something to say, even as every instinct she had screamed at her to do something. Star Fall let out a sob and darted off into the forest. Dash made to go after her, but Astrid blocked her way. “Let her go,” the Griffin said. “She needs to think about it. She’ll be fine, but we need to let her work it out.”

“She wasn’t sleeping last night,” Dash said, staring off into the forest. “She said she was reading a book, but this must have been eating at her.”

“Probably was,” Astrid said, pulling Dash gently back to the camp. “It’s a tough place to be, but she’s stronger than she looks. She’ll make it through.”

“I... okay,” Dash let herself be led back to the fire. As she walked she looked up through the canopy of leaves and found the moon. “See what I mean Princess? This stick-yourself-in-the-sky plan sucks,” she kept her voice low so that Astrid didn’t hear, but she made sure any watching Goddess wouldn’t mistake who her words were directed at. Soon she was sitting by the fire, contemplating dinner and the Griffon across from her. “You didn’t get to answer her question.”

“Which one?” Astrid asked.

“What would you do if she ran?”

Golden eyes stared at her, unreadable. “That’s not a question I’m going to answer.”

“Why not?” Dash demanded. “She’s you’re friend, Astrid.”

“You ever have conflicting loyalties, Dash?” Astrid’s golden eyes bored into Dash’s, unflinching. “It’s either my friend or my home. Fall or my family. Have you ever had to make a choice like that?”

“Yeah, as a matter of fact I have,” Dash said, hovering up and around the fire so she could look the Griffin in the eye. “I know exactly how hard that is.”

“Oh yeah? Then what did you do?”

“I picked my home over my friends” Dash said.

Astrid blinked at that, surprised. “How’d that work out?”

“The world nearly ended.”

“Ouch.”

Dash shook her head and backed off. “It wouldn’t have made a difference if I’d gone the other way. That situation was kinda unique, you know? But I did have to make that choice, and I did learn something from it.”

“What’s that?”

“I learned that some things are more important than others, and if you stay loyal to one thing it might end up betraying another, but sometimes you gotta do it anyway, because your highest loyalty has got to be to yourself.”

“That’s pretty selfish, Dash,” Astrid pointed out.

“No, not like that,” Dash said, growling in frustration as she searched for the words she needed. “I mean you’ve got to be loyal to who you want to be, to the person in your head who’s the best, most awesome you there is. So you gotta look at that and ask who you want to be? The Griffin who’d abandon her friend when she’s in a bad position like this? Or the Griffin who’ll stick by her when she’s got all this injustice coming down on her head.”

Astrid snorted. “I can tell what side you come down on.”

Dash laughed. “Yeah, well, I don’t have the same sort of attachment to this kingdom that you do. I’m all for being behind Star, no matter what she chooses.”

Astrid nodded. “Honestly? So am I, but it isn’t just a simple ‘friend or country’ decision, there’s a lot more behind it. I just don’t want to sugarcoat it. Not for Fall, and not for myself. So, would I go with her? Not going to answer that one until I need to. That’s the last I’m gonna say on it.”

They ate and waited in silence until Star Fall returned. Her face was wet with tears, but she gave them a smile. “Sorry,” she said. “I was getting a little worked up.”

“Not an issue, Fall,” Astrid said. “You deserve a tantrum or two.”

Star Fall shrugged. “I guess, but you two don’t deserve to have me tantrum at you. I’ve got some time to think about this, and I will. I figure I’ll go along with it, but I’ll still think it over to make sure that’s the best choice. It can’t be my priority though, this stuff with Cash, and you, Dash, it’s too important. More important than whether or not I have to marry.”

“Star... Don’t think like that,” Dash said, hovering up to Star Fall. “Your life is kinda important to me, okay? I don’t know about this Cash guy, but I’ve got the Professor working on my stuff, right? That means it’s not on you, and you can take whatever time you need to think about what you want. And when you’ve figured it out, well, you’re my friend, and I never leave a friend hanging. I’m behind you. One hundred and twenty percent,” Dash grinned at her. “Whatever you want.”

Astrid nodded. “Ditto. Except for the impossible percentage bit.”

Star Fall smiled and joined her friends by the fire. “I love you guys,” she said.

“Don’t get sappy on us, fall,” Astrid said, making a gagging gesture.

Dash just laughed, and the night passed without any further drama.

***

“I’m betraying you”

***

Dash snapped awake swinging her hooves wildly and gasping for breath.

“Whoa!” Astrid cried, stepping back. “You okay there?”

“Uh, what? Huh?” Dash looked around herself. The blankets she had been sleeping in had been tossed about and she was sweating a little. “What happened?”

“You were freaking out in your sleep is what happened,” Astrid said. “Again. You doing alright?”

Dash took stock of herself as her heartbeat slowed and the adrenaline soaked out of her veins. “Yeah, I’m fine. Weird.”

“Bad dreams again?” Star Fall asked as she put out the fire.

“No,” Dash said. “No bad dreams. At least none I can remember. What time is it?”

“Time to get going,” Astrid said. “There’s a bit of breakfast ready, but eat quick, we want to get out ahead of that,” she pointed a claw at the sky, and Dash stared.

The morning was gray and overcast. Worse than that, it felt wrong to her, both to her weather-pony training and her natural pegasus magic. There was something ominous about these clouds. She could feel it in the way they were coming in from the east, the horizon dark with them. She could see it in their speed, as they came on with the swiftness of a flying pegasus. Worst of all was the light breeze that was flowing towards the storm, as if the clouds were gathering all the air to themselves.

“Star,” Dash called out. “Is this normal weather?”

Star Fall looked up at the gathering storm. “It’s just a storm, Dash. Maybe coming down from the arctic. I don’t know enough about meteorology to be sure.”

“And I’m used to making the weather,” Dash said, shaking her head. “I don’t think we should fly very high today. I think this storm is going to break right on top of us, and unless you know how to handle it, flying in a lightning storm is pretty dangerous.”

“We know, Dash,” Astrid said. “I was hoping to make better time, but we’ll be ground-bound until the storm passes.”

“We don’t have to go that far,” Dash protested.

“You can fly through a storm like that, we can’t,” Star Fall pointed out. “Not just a lightning storm, but any decently powerful wind can knock us right from the air.”

“Right, keep forgetting that stuff,” Dash sighed. “Okay, fine. I can live with walking for a day.”

There was a rumble of thunder and Star Fall’s head came up, frowning at the storm. “Now that you mention it though,” she said. “There is something bugging me about it. It feels... wrong.”

“Yeah,” Dash agreed, staring into the clouds. She didn’t even notice that she and Star Fall were looking at the very same point.

Astrid did. “Is this some kind of magic thing?”

“I think it’s a pegasus thing,” Dash said. “We should get moving.”

“I think you’re right,” Star Fall said, getting to her hooves. Astrid quickly concealed evidence of their stay and they hefted their saddlebags up. More thunder rumbled from the clouds, but there was a particular tenor to it that set even the Griffin on edge.

They set out, keeping up a good pace that took them out of the woods and onto the rolling, rocky plains. The storm swept up behind them, growing heavier and darker with shocking swiftness, casting the land under it into utter blackness. They walked faster. Lightning flashed in the sky, thunder that sounded like rumbling, vicious laughter following in its wake. At some point Dash realized that they had broken into a gallop, Astrid loping along next to them, golden eyes wide.

“Star, this is definitely not a normal storm!" Dash called out. "What's going on?"

"I don't know!" Star Fall called back. The wind started gusting to the point where they had to keep their wings tightly to their sides or be thrown about, and the rush of it drowned out all but the loudest shout. "We need to find shelter!"

Dash looked about, wide fields of rocks and grass dotted with a few sparse copses of trees for miles around. "I don't think that's an option!" Astrid shouted, noticing the same thing.

Star Fall's lips pulled back in a grimace as she desperately thought of a way to protect them from the unnatural storm. "The Everstorm spells!" she cried. "I can modify them to protect us! I just need a minute!"

Dash looked back at the clouds. They boiled in the sky, moving in thickening waves that the rainbow pegasus had never seen before, not even above the Everfree Forest. Only the Everstorm had come close to it, and they were a thousand miles from that twisted place. A moment of fear shot through her, but was quashed by a burning determination. Unnatural or not they were still just clouds, and no cloud got the better of Rainbow Dash!

"Astrid, keep the wind off of Star!" Dash yelled, skidding to a halt.

"What are you going to do?" Astrid asked as she and Star Fall came to a stop themselves. The Griffin pulled Star Fall close to her and gripped the rocky earth with her talons before flaring out her wings, buffering the pegasus against the force of the wind. Star Fall wasted no time in pulling out one of her spell-sheets and setting to work scrawling out her spell.

"I'm going to kick some sense into those clouds!" Dash replied, then opened her own wings and took off into the sky.

The wind caught at her like a giant pillow smacking her whole body at once. She flapped her wings furiously, magic rising to her need and stilling the air around her. She shot up, quickly reaching the level of the clouds as they came on. From this height she could see the full extent of the storm, and it made her eyes widen. Clouds from one horizon to the other, all of them pulling towards the central massive cloudbank that towered like a mountain and flashed with arcs of lightning.

She hovered there, trying to think of how to break up a storm that large, that powerful. It would take her entire weather team back in Ponyville to do it, if they even could. There was no way a lone pony was going to make any difference, and if there was a supernatural cause behind it, she would be fighting against that as well.

Dash shrugged at the thought. When had something being impossible ever stopped her from trying it?

She shot at the storm, taking a deep breath as she went. When she was close enough she pulled to a halt and with a great heave she blew at the clouds. Her breath came out laced with pegasus magic, expanding into a wind that rivalled the one the storm was creating. It crashed into the oncoming clouds and they were pushed back. Dash took another huge breath and did it again, then again, turning her head so that her magic-fuelled breath could catch as much of the storm as it could. Clouds billowed and roiled, flattening as if they had come up against a wall, and for a moment the storm was halted in its advance.

Dash panted with exertion, feeling a little lightheaded from the heavy breaths. "Hey you!" she called to the storm. "That was just a taste of what you've got coming if you don't break it up and start acting normal right now! Don't make me come in there! I mean it!"

The clouds paused in their billowing, as if they were a movie and someone had stopped the reel. There was an enormous groaning noise, like the scream of a tortured mountain. "Well, that's weird," Dash said to herself. Then the storm shot lightning at her.

The bolt came without warning, and there was no way for Dash to avoid it. It lanced horizontally from the cloudbank, a booming mass of electricity that narrowly missed the pegasus. It was still close enough for it to singe her mane and feathers, and the blast of expanding air knocked her for a loop that took her a few precious seconds to recover from.

When she righted herself she stared with wide eyes at the storm, which was moving again and coming right at her. "Alright mister, you just messed with the wrong pony!" she snarled, and attacked.

She dove at the storm, flying in a corkscrew pattern that allowed her to avoid the lightning bolts that the storm hurled her way. She hit the clouds with all four hooves, grunting with effort as she gave it the most powerful cloud-busting kick she could. A section of cloud the size of Sugarcube Corner buckled and exploded into tendrils of thin mist that were quickly caught up by the wind. Dash banked away from the storm, then changed direction suddenly and rammed it again, bursting another piece of it.

Lightning burst from the clouds, two and three bolts at a time, each clearly aimed for her. As fast as she was, outrunning lightning still wasn't really an option. So she flew erratic patterns, zig-zagging across the face of the storm as she kicked it to pieces.

It didn't take her long to realize she was getting nowhere. Every cloud she broke was just sucked back into the main body of the storm, every lightning bolt she dodged was just followed by two more. She was managing to hold back the storm, but that was all, and it was already taking a toll on her energy reserves.

Finally she backed off, dropping away from the clouds and down to the ground. She spotted her friends and made for them. Astrid was still standing strong against the wind, sheltering the white pegasus who watched Dash with eyes full of awe and worry, her hoof poised above a completed spell-sheet.

Dash poured on the speed, having to fight against the wind that was flowing towards the storm. Blasts of lightning struck the earth in her wake, burning the grasses and sending dirt and stones flying. "Star! Do it now!" she screamed as she approached her friends.

Whether Star Fall heard the cry over the wind or not, she began to charge her spell. The paper flared with light, the spidery script beginning to crawl across the page like a living thing. With a thrust of her wings Dash was there, just as a dome of bright red light sprang up around them. Lightning splashed against the dome, redirected into the ground without striking them.

Rainbow Dash braked hard, shedding all of her momentum in a couple sweeps of her wings so that she didn't overshoot the bubble of safety. "Wicked awesome spell, Star," Dash congratulated her as she set down.

"What the hell is going on with this storm, Fall?" Astrid asked. The barrier kept out most of the wind and thunder as well as the lightning, so they didn't have to shout to be heard, but her voice was edging into a screech anyways, revealing her fear.

"I don't know!" Star Fall said, shaking her head as she stared out of the translucent dome towards the roiling clouds.

"It's like the Everstorm," Dash said. "I could feel it when I was up there, there's serious magic pushing this thing."

"But that's impossible," Star Fall breathed, eyes wide. "No one has that kind of power. No one except..."

Astrid and Dash stared at Star Fall, but she had gone still. "Fall," Astrid said, breaking the silence. "You can't just trail off like that. Who? Who could do this?"

"Astrid," Star Fall said, quivering with fear as she pointed with her hoof. "Look."

The storm was twisting, clouds flowing over each other into a funnel that stretched out from the storm towards them. Lightning crawled over the surface of the tornado like a thousand electrical spiders and an ominous red glow came from within.

"Can the spell hold against that?" Astrid asked. Star Fall just gave her a shocked, incredulous look as an answer. "Great. Dash?"

"Ready!" Dash said, crouching.

"Wait for it," Astrid said, grabbing on to the limp Star Fall and clutching her close. "Wait for it." The funnel was right above them, jabbing down like a massive, impossible spike pounded into the earth. "Now!" Astrid shrieked, and dove out of the barrier.

Dash did the same, leaping out in a different direction as the unnatural tornado touched the spell and tore it apart. The wind caught at her and threw her to the ground, but she bounced well out of the destructive reach of the twister. She rolled to her hooves immediately, turning to see which way the attack would go.

The funnel cloud didn't chase her or Astrid, instead spinning and sparking in place. Dash watched, and saw a shape take form in the center of the tornado: a large, winged equine shadow only illuminated by the flashes of lightning that danced across the clouds. The shape reared up, then brought its hooves down. They struck the earth with a sound like a hundred thunderclaps compressed into one, and the tornado exploded outwards in a burst of wind and lightning that hit Dash like a brick wall. She tumbled from the force of it, but managed to keep her head and skid to a stop on the rocky earth as the wind passed by and the world was thrown into an eerily silent stillness. When she looked back at where the storm had touched earth her jaw dropped open.

There stood a dark Alicorn. She was as tall and regal as Celestia had ever been, her wings extended and her head held high, horn pointing straight up. Her mane was a floating swirl of darkness and ashes that was transparent, but the world viewed through it was a barren place of shadows and death. Her coat blended with the storm clouds, gray and dark such that her true dimensions were only revealed in the flashes of lightning. Dash noted the heart-and-sword cutie mark almost as an afterthought, as all her attention was drawn to the pony's eyes. They glowed with incredible power, icy white within fiery gold within midnight black. They were eyes that held a thousand years of malice and rage, and they were staring right at her.

"Nightmare Umbra," Star Fall said, the whisper loud enough to hear in the almost reverent quiet that had descended with the appearance of the Destroyer. She lay on the ground, more than ten yards from Dash, but thankfully not on the other side of the Alicorn.

The Nightmare's burning gaze swung slowly to the prone white pegasus and the Griffin that stood protectively over her. She regarded them with an expressionless disregard that was more chilling than all the rage she had been directing at Dash. "I Am She," Nightmare Umbra confirmed, her voice rumbling through the air, more something felt and understood on an instinctual level than heard. Dash shuddered, even the Royal Canterlot Voice wasn't as bad as Umbra's speech. "I Have No Interest In You," she continued. "My Target Is This One," her head tilted slightly towards Rainbow Dash. "Leave, And Live."

The implications for not leaving were clear. "Star, get out of here!" Dash shouted, flaring her wings and thinking as fast as she could about how to get out of this.

"Dash, this is Nightmare Umbra! She's going to kill you!" Star Fall called back.

"She's going to try," Dash replied with a smirk. "I’ve fought a Nightmare before, remember? She doesn't look so tough. I can take her," she lied. The Nightmare's gaze travelled back to Rainbow Dash with all the inevitability of an advancing glacier. Dash met her eyes, forcing herself not to shake. “Astrid.”

“You don’t have to tell me,” the Griffin replied, scooping up Star Fall again.

“See you guys later!” Dash said, and leapt. Her takeoff came not a moment too soon as a bolt of crimson energy lashed out from the Nightmare’s horn, the spot where she had stood only a moment before blooming into fire. Dash’s wings caught the expanding air from the explosion and she used it to throw herself even higher. She flew up for a bit before stopping and turning back to her opponent. “Hey! Tall, dark and unimpressive! You want me? Gotta catch me first!”

“No,” the Nightmare replied, her voice reaching Dash as easily as if she had been standing right next to her. “I Do Not.”

Dash dodged a bolt of lightning that blasted down from the clouds. “Gonna have to do better than that!”

The Nightmare snarled, face twisting in anger as she spread her wings and took off towards the pegasus. Dash turned and flew, banking and looping as she gauged how good her pursuer was at flying. To her delight, Nightmare Umbra proved to be a mediocre flyer. She had strength and could pick up a good speed when flying straight, but she lacked maneuverability and acceleration. Dash could fly circles around her.

The chase took them up into the storm, Dash diving into the rushing clouds while dodging lightning and blasts of magic. She couldn’t risk looking back to see if Star Fall and Astrid were making good their escape, it took all of her concentration just to stay one step ahead of the enraged Nightmare. She came out the top of the storm with a shout, the Nightmare hot on her hooves. Lightning shot up at her, but she had gotten the measure of the storm now, and knew when and where it was going to be blasting. Exhilaration thundered in her veins, and the burning strain of her wings was a joyful song that formed the soundtrack to the fight.

Nightmare Umbra snarled, the sound making waves in the sea of clouds below them. She followed Dash’s dodging motions, firing dark magic at her, but all she hit was empty air. When she suddenly stopped shooting, Dash turned to find the Nightmare’s horn creating a pillar of black flame as she cast her spell.

Dash’s breath came in frosty bursts and she gasped as the temperature dropped so far and so fast that she could feel it even through the natural pegasus resistance to cold. She felt her wings stiffen as her feathers iced over, and snorted in frustration. “Clever, damn it,” she said to herself. Knowing that the Nightmare’s superior strength would let her fly more easily than Dash could with ice-coated wings, she did the only sensible thing and dropped back towards the ground.

Passing back through the storm was easier than going up, it had given up trying to hit her with lightning and was now just being a big, dark obstruction. Dash came through the bottom and dove towards the ground, pulling out of the dive only a yard above the rocky plains and skimming along as the Nightmare chased her. Bolts of explosive magic sent up blooms of light and heat as the Destroyer attacked, leading her target enough that Dash had to dodge each shot with wide, swerving turns that left blue and pink trails in her wake.

Nightmare Umbra thudded into the ground, setting herself quickly and firing off a volley of magic at Dash. The pegasus twisted through the air, juking and spinning as the magical missiles followed her every move. Dash grit her teeth and poured on the speed, breaking through the sound barrier and banking in a wide circle around where the Nightmare stood. She came to a stop when she realized the missiles had stopped tracking her. She looked back towards the shadowy Alicorn and grinned.

“You can’t keep up, can you?” Dash laughed. “Your aim sucks and you just can’t keep up with me. Of course, you should have expected that. I am the fastest pony in Equestria after all!”

“Yes,” the Nightmare replied. Dash was surprised that she had even heard her from this distance. “You Are.”

“So whatcha gonna do, slowpoke?”

“Adjust My Tactics,” Umbra replied, her horn erupting in black flame and her eyes narrowing. The Nightmare shuddered, and Dash frowned, trying to figure out what she was up to. I took her a moment to realize that it wasn't Umbra that was shaking, it was the ground. She widened her view and saw that a chunk of the plains a mile wide and centered on the Nightmare was being torn out of the ground whole.

"No way," Dash breathed. The Nightmare's fanged grin was all the warning she got before the floating island of rock and earth was flung at her, aiming to squash her like a bug under a particularly large flyswatter.

Dash turned and fled. She accelerated as quickly as she could, but a look back made her feel like she was falling instead. She burst through the sound barrier again, wincing at the pain of it. She risked another look back, sure that she was leaving the Nightmare in her dust, only to see that Umbra had pushed the entire mile-wide chunk of land into supersonic, and was still gaining on her. "Oh come on!" Dash shouted, barely able to hear her own voice as she pulled out even more acceleration. Something that large at this speed? Forget hitting it directly, just touching its mach cone would be fatal.

The adrenaline, the exertion, the danger, the speed, all of it was coming together in a sweet spot of magic and determination that Dash had spent years trying to attain in practice. The rest of the world fell away and everything was reduced down to the open air in front of her and the magic-propelled death behind. The voice in the back of her head was urging her on, glory and victory just one last push away. Touch the spectrum, it said, show her the true meaning of speed.

Dash pushed a hoof out ahead of her, streamlining her body as the magical barrier protecting her from her own speed narrowed to an acute angle. She flew harder, overtaking her own magic, and sparks of static lightning began to flash across her body. She could see the colors of the spectrum dance across her hoof, an explosion of light and sound building around her, waiting for her to make just one more push.

"No."

Nightmare Umbra's voice destroyed Dash's concentration. It had felt like her brain had been hit with the claw end of a hammer. She scrambled to reorient herself, but it was too late. The barrier of her magic snapped into solidity in front of her, an elastic stretched to its limit, but not beyond. Dash had a split second to contemplate the terrible consequences of being hurled back into the oncoming island of death. Then she twisted around, set herself, and aimed.

The barrier did what it always did when she failed to reach Rainboom speeds and flung her in the opposite direction from what she had been travelling in, firing her like a slingshot pellet. Unlike usual, however, she had managed to aim this slingshot, and so had some control over where she was going. She blasted to the side, tumbling in a curled ball of pink feathers and blue mane. She went wide of the island, missing the brunt of the shockwave. What she did catch was enough to make her bones rattle and her guts feel like Big Mac had mistaken her for a particularly obstinate apple tree.

She forced herself to straighten out, extending her wings and catching the air to slow her headlong rush towards the ground. She was subsonic again, and levelling out was impossible due to all the turbulence created by the enormous chunk of rock that had just passed through the area at mach four. She managed to control her descent, though, and touched down with a minimum of rolling and bouncing. When she came to a stop she turned to look at the swiftly retreating island. Not even the Nightmare was going to be able to stop something with that kind of momentum and turn it around quickly.

It was then that Nightmare Umbra stopped the island by the simple expedient of no longer holding it together. The entire chunk of rock disintegrated under the forces it was suddenly once again subject to. The shockwave collapsed with a deep crash that shook a landscape already torn up by the immense pressure wave that had hit it. Dash weathered the rumble with barely a wince, focused more on the center of the debris cloud. The Destroyer broke through the falling mass of rocks like an angry god, tendrils of shadow and fire dragging boulders the size of houses with her. She was a long way away, but Dash knew it would take mere moments to catch up.

The pegasus took off, dodging as the Nightmare used boulders as supersonic missiles, throwing them at her. They impacted the land like bombs, reducing an already torn countryside into a cratered warzone in moments. A cloud of dirt and smoke rose up into the stormy sky, adding itself to the swirling storm that was still above their heads.

Dash panted hard, she could keep this up for a while yet, but all the dodging was taking its toll. She didn’t know how much power the Nightmare had, but from everything she’d seen so far, and the way the attacks kept coming, she was sure Umbra would win any contest of stamina. All she had going for her was her speed, and Umbra had shown clearly that she could overcome that advantage if she tried. Running away wasn’t going to work, so she had no choice but to change her own tactics. It was time to attack.

She curved around and shot at the Nightmare. Umbra saw her coming, filling the sky in front of her with a minefield of floating rocks and explosive magic. Dash flew straight into the danger zone and began to rush across the explosive array, setting off every spell she could. The air filled with light and fire, obscuring the pegasus from the view of the Nightmare.

Dash took full advantage of this, rushing under the explosions and then up. Nightmare Umbra sensed her coming somehow and skewed to the side, but Dash was too fast and too agile to be dodged completely. Dash smashed her hoof into Umbra’s wing, tearing it as she passed. Umbra began to fall, spiralling to the ground.

Dash stopped her ascent, wary of tricks and counterattacks. A sharp pain in her leg made her look at it, and she screamed in horror. Black tendrils squirmed over her hoof, the blood of the Nightmare attacking the one that had spilled it. They jabbed into the sensitive skin above her hoof and Dash’s veins bulged as the animate blood invaded them. She shook her hoof, scraping at it with the other, tearing her skin in order to pull the tendrils free. The Nightmare’s blood hadn’t managed to get deep into her system, so it fell away in wriggling globs. Finally all that was left was a dark stain on her hoof, and her own blood dripping from her foreleg.

“That was so not cool,” she said, unable to completely still her shaking.

“You Cannot Defeat Me,” the Nightmare said. Dash looked down to find Umbra standing on the ground, staring up at her. “You Cannot Escape Me. Surrender, And Your Death Shall Be Swift And Merciful.”

“Yeah? I think if I can hurt you I can beat you,” Dash said, holding up her bloody hoof. “How’s the wing?”

“Repairing Itself," the Nightmare replied, lifting its wing to show Dash the gash she had caused. It was closing fast, tissues being knitted back together by worms of oily black blood. "You Are Incapable Of Bestowing Lasting Injury Upon Me.”

“Maybe I don’t have to,” Dash grinned. “Maybe I just have to knock you out. I figure a couple minutes of sleepy time and you get left in my dust.”

The Nightmare’s eyes narrowed. “You Cannot.”

“Why don’t we find out!” Dash shouted, and blazed an ethereal trail as she dove at the Nightmare. Umbra’s eyes opened wide in surprise, anger, and something that made Dash’s spirit surge: apprehension. If the Nightmare was worried, then this just might work.

Umbra dodged back, but Dash didn’t correct to hit her, instead banking hard and swirling around the dark Alicorn. Her etherealized trail began to show its true rainbow colors as Dash spun faster and faster around Umbra, who fired wildly into the tornado of light that surrounded her. Dash grit her teeth and with a wrenching twist of her wings and a burst of magic she reversed direction and travelled into her own ethereal trail. It was a move that only a few Pegasi could pull off, and none of them could do it with the flair of Rainbow Dash. It was more than just a sudden reversal, though, the interaction of the fading magical wake with the new one had a unique effect. An effect that Dash had discovered by accident, and had then worked it into one of her ace-in-the-hole signature moves: the Buccaneer Blaze.

Light burst all around Nightmare Umbra, the dark Alicorn crying out and flinching away from it. Dash was on her in an instant, hooves flying in a flurry of punches and kicks, striking with all the speed she was capable of in as many places as she could reach. She was careful not to use the edge of her hooves, she didn't want any more of that horrible blood on her, but she pounded away at sensitive joints until bone and muscle gave with sickeningly loud sounds.

Dash had never hurt another pony this badly before and the bile rose in her throat with every crack and dull thud that accompanied her blows. She didn't let up, though, and she wouldn't until the Nightmare went down. She could be disgusted with herself later, after she had survived. Umbra collapsed to the ground with a cry, but was still more than awake enough to cause problems. Dash shot up fifty feet and then rocketed down, aiming to smash into the Nightmare's head and hopefully do enough damage to put her down for the count.

Umbra's cruel, fanged smirk told her she had made a mistake, but the warning came too late to do anything about it.

Dash froze in midair, all her momentum halted completely. A black aura surrounded her, encasing her in Umbra's telekinetic grip. She struggled against the hold, feeling it give slightly, but not enough to escape yet.

Umbra rose to her hooves, broken bones snapping back into place and bruises melting away as Dash watched. The Nightmare regarded Rainbow Dash with a triumphant gleam in her luminous eyes. "Your Mobility Is A Nuisance," she said, then threw Dash into the ground.

Dash hit hard, Umbra was capable of accelerating her an incredible amount over a very short distance, but it still wasn't as hard as she was used to crashing, and the Nightmare had to let go of her in the instant before she hit the ground for the impact to have any effect. She bounced off the torn earth, twisting to escape, but the Nightmare caught her before she could more than half-turn. Then she slammed Dash into the ground again. And again. And again.

"Your Resilience Is Similarly Annoying," Umbra said as she hefted the dazed pegasus up. With a flare of her horn the earth burst around her. A dozen pillars of stone, each yards wide, erupted from the ground to rise a hundred feet high all around her. Dash stared at the newest display of the Nightmare's power, wondering what they would be used for. She didn't have to wait long.

Nightmare Umbra whipped the bound pegasus around in a circle, sending her smashing headfirst through each of the pillars she had created. Then she did it again, sending her into the falling sections of stone as they came crashing down. Then she did it again to the remnants of the pillars that were still in midair before finally throwing Dash hard into the ground where she lay on her back, eyelids fluttering as she shook from the trauma.

Dash couldn't focus as she was freed from the Nightmare's telekinesis. She knew that she should be trying to escape, but the thought was distant and consciousness fleeting. Her mind was brought back into focus as Umbra touched her horn to Dash's head and sent a jolt of agonizing magic through her. She looked up at the Alicorn, wings already scrambling. Umbra simply placed a forehoof on Dash's chest and it was like the weight of a mountain had come down on her, forcing the air out of her lungs and squashing her attempts to run.

As she stopped struggling the Nightmare eased up on the pressure, allowing Dash to draw a harsh breath. "Your Arrogance, However, Is Welcome," Umbra said, eyes flashing.

"What... is your... deal?" Dash asked between pained gasps.

The Nightmare simply regarded her, the rage and triumph draining from her features, replaced by a pensive frown that seemed wrong on her cruelly beautiful features. "Who Made You?"

Dash blinked at that. "What?"

"You Are Not Rainbow Dash."

"Are too."

Umbra snarled, the pressure of her hoof increasing until Dash's ribs creaked before easing again. "You Are Not Rainbow Dash. You Are Not A Modified Pony Of The Modern Age. Therefore You Are A Construct. Who Made You?"

"I was born, not made," Dash snapped, staring the Nightmare defiantly in the eyes. "I am Rainbow Dash. I just woke up in the future, I don't know why, but I figure stopping you has got something to do with it. And I can see why that's important, 'cause lady? You are nuts."

The Nightmare tilted her head slowly to the side, as if she was listening to something only she could hear. "I Watched Rainbow Dash Die," she said. "I Watched Her Burn In Death. Some Of Her Ashes Are A Part Of Me, As Are The Remains Of All Her Friends. You Are Not Her."

"That's... disturbing on a lot of levels," Dash said, then narrowed her eyes at the Alicorn. "I know who I am. I don't care what you saw."

"You Lie," Umbra hissed, leaning down until her nose was nearly touching Dash's. "Who Made You? Who Thinks To Challenge Me With This Pathetic Copy? Answer Me!"

"Or what? You're going to kill me anyway," Dash pointed out. "Buck you, nag. I hope when they bring you down they put your statue right next to Discord."

Nightmare Umbra jerked back as if she had been struck, eyes wide and filled for a moment with an emotion that went beyond simple fear. Something in what Dash had just said terrified her to the core of her being. Dash tried to use the moment of distraction to escape, but the Nightmare regained herself too quickly, slamming her hoof back into Dash's chest hard enough to crack ribs and make her heart stutter. "No! I Do Not Care What May Be Learned! For That She Will Die Now!"

Dash was too busy trying to breathe to spend time wondering who the Nightmare was talking to, and so missed the way Umbra's lips seemed to move in a whispered reply. The pressure on Dash's chest increased, and she scrabbled at the Alicorn's hoof with her own, trying to shift it but finding it utterly immovable. Her mouth worked, but she could make no sound as her vision began to fade into gray, the eyes of the Nightmare somehow the only color she could see in her dying world.

There was a flash of crimson light and suddenly the pressure was gone from Dash's chest. She sucked in a breath eagerly, greedily sucking at the air so that her cracked ribs roared with agony. She embraced that pain, revelling in it and the way it meant she was alive for another minute. She rolled off of her back, panting for breath as she tried to discover what had happened.

Nightmare Umbra was pulling herself to her hooves several yards away as another bolt of crimson energy slammed into her, throwing her back to the ground. Dash tracked the bolt back to its source, and found Star Fall standing atop one of the larger boulders left behind from the pillars Dash had smashed through. A trio of spell-sheets hovered in front of the white pegasus, the red glow of Star Fall's magic surrounding them.

"Star," Dash said, trying to rise and finding that she just didn't have the strength.

"Stay down, Dash!" Star Fall cried. There was fear in her voice, but also determination stronger than steel. "I'll handle her now!"

"Fool!" Umbra raged, rising in a burst of black fire. Star Fall fired another burst of magic at her, but the Nightmare deflected it with a casual flick of her horn. "Your Power Is No Match For Mine! Why Have You Returned?"

"Yeah, it was dumb of me," Star Fall said, then gave Dash a reassuring smile. "But Rainbow Dash is my friend, and you do not leave a friend hanging!"

"Fallen Star, I Warn You..." Umbra didn't get the rest of her threat out as a Griffin suddenly appeared on her back, a spent spell-sheet stuck to her feathers, and began mauling the Nightmare.

"Oh yeah, and Astrid agrees," Star Fall said, then hopped down and rushed over to Dash's side. "How badly are you hurt?"

"Pretty bad," Dash admitted, coughing. "Not as bad as when we first met, though. Give me a minute to get my breath back and I can fly."

"How about fight?" Star Fall asked. "I don't think we can outrun her."

Dash considered it for a moment. "She's tough, but she can be hurt. All of us working together? Yeah, we can do it, so long as we're careful."

"Then we'll be careful," Star Fall said, then snapped her gaze back to where Astrid and Umbra were tangled in a mass of raking talons and kicking hooves. "Clear!" she shouted, and her brow furrowed in concentration. The spell-sheets flashed a brilliant red as her magic flared, a triple blast of crimson lightning lancing out and smashing into the Shadowed Alicorn just as Astrid leapt away from the fray. The bolts grounded through the unprepared Nightmare, sending her sprawling even as her horn lit with dark power to counter the effects of Star Fall's attack.

Astrid rushed over to them, taking her place in front of the two ponies as Dash pulled herself upright. "Get the blood off of you," Dash said. "It's not normal."

Astrid quickly complied, spitting out wriggling worms of the oily blood and scraping it off her claws before it could start attacking in earnest. "Fuck, this bitch is hardcore," Astrid swore. "She wrenched one of my wings out of the socket. You'll have to kick it back in." Star Fall grabbed the limp limb, holding it in place before slamming a hoof down on the joint, resetting it. Astrid didn't even wince at the pain. "Thanks," she said, quickly folding the injured wing down. "The invisibility trick worked."

"For once," Star Fall snorted. "How badly did you hurt her?"

"She didn't," Dash said. "Nightmare Umbra heals too fast, you either make it count or don't count it at all."

"Shit," Astrid swore again, shaking her head. "This day just keeps getting better. What's the plan then?"

"Star, those blasts of yours seem to actually hurt her, when they hit," Dash said. "Astrid and me can distract her, you line up the shot. Then take it, we'll keep her down so you can get a few more in before she gets back up. We keep her on the ropes long enough, she might throw in the towel. Sound good?"

"Sounds like the only plan I can think of too," Star Fall said.

"Hey, all I've got are looks and muscle," Astrid quipped. "You brainiacs say this is the plan? I'm game."

"Awesome," Dash said, smiling at her friends. "Let's do this!"

"NO."

Nightmare Umbra's voice crashed over them like a steamroller, twisting in their guts. Dash fell to her knees and Star Fall followed her. Astrid managed to stay up, but the effort cost her and her injured wing started twitching violently against her side.

The Shadowed Alicorn rose from the ground, not standing or flying but simply floating up from where she had fallen. Her eyes blazed ever brighter as her shadow-and-ashes hair swirled in a tempest of darkness around her. "This Is An Unacceptable Outcome." Her ears flicked as if she was listening to someone shouting in them. "My Purpose Must Be Fulfilled."

Dash forced herself to her hooves, the effort a purely mental one. There wasn't any physical force holding her down, it was just that the Nightmare's will was so strong her body was responding to it rather than her own brain, and she had to remind her limbs who the pony in charge was. "Star, Astrid," she said. "Fight it. We can take her. Together."

Slowly Star Fall rose. "Together," she repeated, and her spell-sheets flared.

"Together," Astrid joined in, raising her head.

"Now!" Star Fall shouted, blasting Umbra. The beams of crimson light lanced at the Nightmare, who knocked them aside contemptuously. The magical attack had been a feint, though, allowing Dash and Astrid to get close to her while her vision had been obscured.

Astrid flashed past the Nightmare, talons tearing her throat out as she passed. As the Griffin fell to the side, scraping the blood from her talons, Dash rushed in from the other side and bucked Umbra's forelegs out from under her. The Nightmare fell, crashing into the ground and making choked, gurgling noises as her throat regenerated. Star Fall took the opportunity to lay into her with another burst of red magic that knocked her onto her back.

Astrid attacked again, ripping and tearing at sensitive muscles before leaping away again and making room for Dash, who pounded on joints and broke bones. Star Fall followed this up with more devastating magic. The Nightmare's horn flared, prompting Astrid and Dash to rush in together to disrupt whatever spell she was casting. They pounded on her head, talons tearing out the Nightmare's eyes while hooves stomped hard enough to crack her long black horn.

The Nightmare was clever, though, and she had used the threat of her magic as a distraction while her body healed. She slammed a hoof into Astrid's gut, sending the Griffin flying. Dash tried to back off and let Star Fall hit Umbra again, but the Nightmare twisted and slapped a wing down on top of her, crushing the pegasus to the ground. Star Fall took a shot anyway, but Umbra's cracked horn roared to life, sending a wave of black fire at her.

Umbra spun to her hooves, grabbing Dash in another telekinetic hold and lifting her to eye level. "Enough Of These Games," she snarled.

Dash struggled, surprised to find that she could move at all. The grip the Nightmare had on her paled to the near-absolute binding she had used earlier. She looked more closely at the Alicorn, and found that many of the wounds they had inflicted on her weren't healing very fast at all. Magic leaked from the cracks in her horn, sending ripples of shadow and heat into the air. This only intensified as Umbra cast a new spell, a tiny black sphere appearing at the tip of her horn. Dash could feel the sucking, clawing power of that spell, and knew that if it touched her she was dead. Still, she grinned. "Is that the best you can do? Hah! And I thought you were supposed to be scary."

"You Know Nothing," Nightmare Umbra said, her voice filled with so much hatred that Dash flinched back despite herself. The Alicorn lowered her horn until the death spell was only inches from Dash's face.

Then Astrid's claw wrapped around the horn, just above a large crack. "I know you shouldn't take your eyes off a Griffin in combat," she chided, then kicked the Nightmare in the face. She held on to the horn, and with a snap it broke in half. The Griffin wasted no time in reversing her grip on the sharp magical bone and stabbing it right into the Nightmare's chest, death spell and all.

Umbra reared up in surprise, agony twisting her features before the rage came flooding back and she turned on the Griffin. Whatever she was going to do or say, she never got the chance as three blasts of crimson light struck her, and went straight through. The Nightmare looked back at her body, finding three holes, as big around as grapefruits, punched neatly through her.

"And I know a few good combat spells," Star Fall said, walking towards them. "Dash, how are you doing?"

"Peachy," Dash replied. She could move easily now, the telekinetic grip fading away. "How are you two?"

"Burned, tired, but good," Star Fall replied.

"I got hurt worse than this in training," Astrid said. "I'll be fine."

"You Are All Doomed," Nightmare Umbra said.

"Are you still talking?" Astrid snarled. "Fall just turned you into a screen door! What will it take to convince you to stay down?"

Umbra ignored her, turning her attention back to Dash. As she spoke her body began to disintegrate, falling apart into ashes that were swept away by a sudden, cold wind that blew past. "Your Victory Is Fleeting. I Will Return, And I Shall Have My True Power Then. Tell Your Masters, Whoever They Are, That I Am Coming. I Will Hunt Them. I Will Find Them. I Will Kill Them. And I Will Kill You Too."

"And I will stop you," Dash promised, staring the Nightmare in the eyes as she fell apart. "Now and in my own time. I will stop you."

The Nightmare didn't reply, only stared at Dash with unadulterated hate and rage until what was left of her burst apart into a cloud of ashes that rushed away into the storm. There was a moment of quiet stillness as the Nightmare left, then the clouds opened up and it began to rain.

Dash looked up into the skies, feeling the malevolent will behind the storm vanish, letting move and act according to its nature once again. She could have broken it up now, but she just didn't have the energy. Instead she looked up, trying to estimate the position of the sun. "Hey, Princess Celestia," she said. "About the whole sticking-yourself-in-the-sky thing? If that was the only way to deal with her, then I change my mind. I am behind that plan one hundred and ten percent. I'd really appreciate it, though, if you could do the 'sealing her power' thing again. You know, before she kills me. Uh, thanks."

With that said Dash flopped onto her back and began the long, involved process of freaking out.

Chapter 12: Invisible Connections

If all my warnings throughout the previous sections of this book have somehow passed you by, then I will take this opportunity to be blunt. The purpose of this book is not to explain the various attributes of the Elements of Harmony and the underpinnings of how they work in order to educate, entertain or instruct. The purpose of this book is to make the case that the Elements should not and must not be used except in the most dire of circumstances. Those circumstances being the certain annihilation of all life in the universe.

Let me be additionally clear: Every use we have put the Elements to save one have failed to meet this criteria.

The reason for such a strict condition of usage? Because anything less would not justify the damage using the Elements causes. We can solve all problems with the Elements. We can solve any problem with the Elements. Yet we must not use the Elements, because the mechanism of that solution is abhorrent, unthinkable, and utterly, utterly devastating.

If, after all that has already been revealed in this book, you need more convincing, then read on. Read on and learn the truth of the Magic of Harmony.

-From the opening paragraphs of the sixth section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Twelve: Invisible Connections

Star Fall was freaking out. The rain poured down in huge, cold drops that set her shivering, but she was barely capable of noticing. They had just fought Nightmare Umbra. The Nightmare Umbra. A being that had taken two Goddesses becoming one with the cosmos to defeat originally, and she had blasted at it with her inefficient spell-sheet based combat magic.

“I’m going to be sick,” she said, not intending it for anyone in particular. A moment later she made her pronouncement true, falling to her knees and retching up what breakfast she’d had. She kept gagging and dry heaving for a while, only stopping when Astrid’s warm wing fell over her in a comforting hug.

“We beat her, Fall,” the Griffon assured her. “You did good.”

“I don’t... Astrid,” the pegasus said, clutching at her friend. “Did you see what she did? Do you know how much power she was using? This storm? That... that...” She waved a hoof vaguely at the place where the massive chunk of the plains had been used as a supersonic weapon. “How did we win? How could we even... I don’t ... I can’t.”

“Sshh. It’s good, alright? We managed it, we’re still here and she’s not,” the Griffin kept her voice low and soothing, letting Star Fall cry into her feathers as she shook. “If you need to lose it, now’s good. You kept it together in combat, Fall. I’m proud of you.”

“I... I did, didn’t I,” Star Fall said, smiling up at Astrid.

“Yup, bravest little pegasus I know,” Astrid assured her. There was a choked sound from where Dash lay staring up at the storm. “You don’t count, superpony!” Astrid called over, then turned back to Star Fall. “We gotta get back to the capital, Fall, but if you need scream a bit you can do it now, I won’t judge.”

“She was so strong, Astrid,” Star Fall said, shivering again. “So strong, and she said that wasn’t her full power! She could do ... all of this, and she wasn’t at her best!”

“I’d probably take that as sour grapes,” Astrid assured her. “She was getting her butt kicked, and she was kinda arrogant about the whole thing. That kind of person doesn’t like it when they’re beat. It's like a bully getting stood up to at training camp. They start to boast that they’ll be back, but this time they’ll bring their big clanmates and you'll be sorry! Me, I know that if you aren’t going to be serious about a fight the first time, then you shouldn’t be fighting at all. Even if she does come back with more power, we’ll beat her again.”

“No,” Star Fall said, pulling away from Astrid. “No we won't. You’re thinking about her as if she’s another pony or Griffin. She’s an immortal. A Goddess. She didn’t take us seriously because why would she? What reason could she possibly have to see us as anything more than insects to be crushed or ignored?"

"We will win, Fall," Astrid said, golden eyes hard. "We've seen her now, what she can do. She caught us by complete surprise, and we still sent her packing. If she shows up again we'll be ready, and I promise you it'll go just like it did this time."

Star Fall hung her head and sighed. "She’s not dead, right?”

Astrid shrugged. “I doubt it.”

“So we pulled out the stops, tore her apart, put holes in her, everything we could think of, and all we did was make her step back for a bit. She surprised us, we surprised her back. We didn’t beat her, Astrid.”

“Fall, we sent her packing. That’s beat in my books.”

“No, it’s...” Star Fall shook her head, trying to think of a way to explain it to her friend. “She’s not a pony!”

“Yeah, got that message loud and clear,” Astrid said.

“No!" Star Fall stamped her hoof in frustration. "You're still thinking of her as if she were a pony. She’s not a pony, she’s an army.”

"An army?"

Star Fall nodded. “All the Magic Talents and Telekinetic Talents in the Kingdom working together couldn't have accomplished this as quickly as she did," she waved again towards the wide field of devastation all around them. "If this was only a part of her power I can't even imagine what she's capable of at full strength. She alone, right now, is as strong or stronger than a full regiment of our military. So she's not a pony, she's an army. She’s a foreign nation that has declared war on us. If you think of it that way, what was this?”

“A skirmish,” Astrid said, frowning as she thought about it. “A probing strike.”

“And we fought it off. What comes next?”

“Full-scale assault. Invasion. War.” Astrid’s grim tone said volumes on how she felt about that idea.

“This is... Astrid, this is big,” Star Fall said, shivering from far more than the cold rain. “Nightmare Umbra hasn’t been seen in twenty years, and last time she destroyed a battalion in the Republics before vanishing. This time she chose to attack Dash. Just Dash. And we surprised her and fought her back. This isn't like last time, or every other time she's appeared. This isn't random, wholesale slaughter or destruction, this was targeted."

"Why?"

"I don't know," Star Fall said, staring like a terrified foal up at Astrid. "But I think I have an idea."

"What is it?" Astrid asked, coming close and extending her good wing to keep the rain off of her friend. "I'd take your guess over anyone else's certainty any day of the week, so if you think you've got this figured out..."

"I don't," Star Fall said. "But I think I'm beginning to. She has this much power already, but she said she would return with her full strength. She wasn’t lying, I'm sure of it. But we already know that. We know that she isn't at her full power because her full power is sealed away in the Everstorm. A creature like her wouldn't bluff, there would be no point to it. She told us the truth, she’s going to regain her full power, and soon.”

Astrid's eyes went wide as the implications hit her. “We’ve got to get back to the Capital,” she said, breath coming faster. “If you're right, if she is going to return at full strength, we have to get the army ready. Fortify the cities, arm the population.”

“No,” Star Fall said. “We have to keep going.”

“What? Fall, you just said she was a fucking enemy nation that declared war! Screw Cash! Getting an army is clearly the priority here.”

“No! Astrid, don’t you see?" Star Fall pleaded. "That’s what she wants. Why did she stop us now? How does she know about Dash?" Star Fall's gaze turned inward as her mind raced across the possibilities. "Rainbow Dash is connected to Cash through these digs. We head towards one and the Shadowed Alicorn just happens to show up specifically to kill Dash? That's not a coincidence. She was trying to keep Dash away from that dig, trying to stop us from hindering Cash. This one's going to be something important. He’s going to be at this dig, and there’s going to be something happening there. Something that might be giving Umbra back her power. Something we have to stop.”

“That’s pretty thin reasoning, Fall,” Astrid said.

“Maybe," Star Fall allowed, wings drooping. "But think about it. Why else? What's the simplest solution here? What makes the most sense? That the Nightmare just randomly was in the area and decided to kill us, or that this is all connected, like it always has been. Dash, the digs, us, Cash, Umbra. All of these are part of a puzzle that’s coming together right in front of us. If we don’t go now, we could be missing something that will make it all clear. Worse, we could miss our chance to stop Umbra from regaining her full power. We have to keep going.”

“I agree with Star,” Dash said, flipping to her hooves with barely a wince of pain. “I don’t know about everything else she was saying, but you don’t turn tail and run just because the road gets a little rough.”

“A Goddess tried to kill you, Dash,” Astrid deadpanned. “That might be more than a little rough.”

Dash shrugged. “Nothing I haven't faced before.”

“And you don’t have magical rainbow-shooting necklaces or Twilight fucking Sparkle to back you up this time,” Astrid snapped. “If we hadn’t shown up you’d be paste. This has gone way beyond Gamma’s cloak-and-dagger shit. This is bring-on-the-army time. I say we turn around and don’t stop ‘till we’re in front of the King and surrounded by Steelwings.”

“Astrid,” Star Fall said, laying a gentle hoof on her friend. “We can’t take the chance. The stakes just got too high.”

Astrid let out an angry shriek to the sky, but her shoulders slumped. “Only for you, Fall," she sighed. "Dash! Are you up for running?"

Star Fall breathed a small sigh of relief. If Astrid had insisted on going back to the capital, she wouldn't have been able to force the issue.

"Uh, I'm pretty beat up," Dash said, looking back at her dirty and bruised body.

"Can you keep up with me and Fall?"

Dash snorted. "Yeah, sure. You two aren't exactly winning any races."

Astrid rolled her eyes. "Good enough. We do this quick and dirty then. We get eyes on the site, see if Cash is there, message Gamma, then book it back home. We're way behind schedule, so we'll be there by nightfall at the earliest. I want to be heading back to the Capital by sunset, and I'm not going to budge on that one. Are we clear?"

"Yes ma'am," Dash said, laughing for a moment before trailing off into pained coughing.

"I'll need to get a close look," Star Fall said. "If what he's doing is empowering Umbra we have to know."

Astrid narrowed her eyes. "I can't walk in there with you, Fall."

"I managed it last time, outside of Orion City," Star Fall pointed out.

"That was then, this is now, and we've got an angry Goddess gunning for us."

"I'll take Dash with me," Star Fall said. "She's fast enough and strong enough to get me out of there, even injured like she is. You've seen what she can do, you can trust her with me."

"I can't trust anyone with you, Fall," Astrid whispered, barely loud enough to be heard over the rain. "Fine. Get as close as you need to, but get out fast. I don't want to have to come in there and save your butts."

"You won't have to," Star Fall assured her, grinning. "Come on, let's grab the supplies and get going. We've got a long run ahead of us."

"Got that right," Astrid snorted, and the three of them set out into the rain.

***

The room Calumn and Blaze had been tossed into was clearly meant for storing boxes instead of prisoners. Calumn could see about eight different ways to escape it before considering what could be accomplished by using mind-magic on the guards. He didn't try anything, though. There was no way to tell if there were additional defences beyond the walls of the room, so he would have to gather more information before he could guarantee that he and Blaze could make it out safely.

Their guards followed Charisma's instructions to the letter. Calumn and Blaze were given food and water, and allowed to relieve themselves, but were kept tied up and under watch the whole time.

Calumn spent much of the time huddling against Blaze, as if seeking protection in his larger form. The guards had snickered at this, and Calumn had caught a few lewd remarks, but nothing overt. Which was worrying. If these had been mere thugs, the kind of hired goon that you could pick up off the street of any major city, he would have expected them to be a lot more leering and grabby. With their demeanor and their calm attention he was sure they were trained soldiers. Anyone with serious discipline training was difficult to establish a mental hold on, though it was easier to maintain once that hold was in place.

The fact that they were guarded by professionals also meant that Cash was investing serious resources into wherever they were, and Calumn had to be extra-careful not to alert them to his true nature. That was the first reason for huddling against Blaze, it made him seem small, weak and insignificant. They were more likely to overlook him so long as he was playing the frightened mare.

Another reason for his keeping close to his friend, it allowed them to talk quietly without the guards being overly interested in what they were saying. So far their conversation had been limited to Calumn reassuring Blaze that they would get out of there, and Blaze reassuring Calumn that he believed that and wasn't worried. Calumn drew strength from his friend's trust, and while he was no longer receiving a steady flow of love, trust and friendship were enough to let him slowly gain strength as the hours passed.

The room had no windows save for the door, so it was hard to tell the time, but Calumn's internal clock said that they had been in the room through another night. No one had come to question them, the guards changed shifts every four hours, and the food was served by the same ponies watching them. If it weren't for the constant noise of work that came clearly through the thin metal walls the place might have seemed deserted.

Sometime around early morning something strange occurred. Calumn didn't know what it was, but his magical senses caught the edges of something massive and rage-filled. He couldn't help but look at the wall in the direction he felt the huge power coming from, wondering what it could possibly be. Minutes later the entire room had shook as a crack like close thunder rattled the walls, and the feeling of power and immense, furious anger faded away. Blaze and the guards hadn't reacted except to the room-shaking noise, so it was clearly a magical phenomenon, but Calumn had never felt anything like it. In truth he hoped that he'd never feel anything like it again, especially not any closer than he was now. Whatever it was, it made his blood chill.

The rain had started shortly after that, pitter-pattering against the metal walls and roof of the room in little bursts at first, but growing into a full-on deluge in short order. The shouts from outside indicated that the rain was wreaking havoc with whatever work was being done here, and there were calls for barriers and sandbags to keep the flooding down.

Around noon the door opened to a trio of those professional guards. One of them pointed at Calumn. "Get up, you're going to answer some questions," he said.

"Hey, why not me?" Blaze asked. "I'm really good at Q and A stuff. I can answer all sorts of questions! I've been told that I'm the very model of a modern information sponge. I..." One of the guards kicked him in the head.

"Blaze," Calumn said, whispering to him. "It's okay. I'll be okay."

"You sure?" he asked, rubbing at his bruised head.

"I am. Trust me."

"Okay, see you soon," Blaze said, letting him get up.

The guards escorted Calumn through the narrow metal hallways and out into the rain. Calumn kept his head down, but made sure to look at everything he could.

As he had expected they were in another of Max Cash's dig sites. this one was larger than the one near Orion City had been. The entire side of a large hill had been shorn away, and a townful of pre-fab metal buildings and large tents were arrayed in front of the artificial cliff face. A half-dozen boxy watchtowers rose above the other buildings, dark-clothed ponies looking out from their open sides. Bright spotlights illuminated the excavated hill through the murk of the storm, and Calumn could see what they had uncovered. It was a building, ancient and long-buried, only the face of it jutting from the surrounding dirt and rock. A large square door stood open and dark, leading deeper underground.

Teams of ponies pulled carts of rocks and soil out from that door, clearing out the debris from the excavations going on further in. The rain turned the torn-up ground to slick mud, and even more work crews were building sand-bag barricades or stringing up tarps in an effort to keep the excavation from being flooded.

Calumn caught sight of Conrad talking to a few of the workers, a bright grin on his face as they listened to whatever he was saying with dark expressions. Calumn still had a connection to Conrad, though it was faded and wouldn't last the day, and through it he could feel the fear in the unicorn. It was still that strange fear of a colt caught with his hoof in the cookie jar, though none of it showed in his expression or posture.

All too quickly Calumn was back inside, getting shoved into another room. This room wasn't empty, though. This room had two chairs in it, one more sinister than the other. The first was the standard sort of metal chair you'd find bundled with these pre-fab buildings. Simple, utilitarian, uncomfortable as hell. The other was bolted to the floor.

Calumn put up the expected amount of resistance as the guards forced him into the chair, binding his legs and even tying a rope around his neck that kept him uncomfortably upright and prevented him from leaning forward. He tested the restraints, finding them well done and perfectly inescapable for anyone without a horn or able to change size at will. Calumn contemplated escaping right then and there, but he didn't know if he could get to Blaze before they hurt him, so he decided to bide his time.

The guards left, and Calumn was shut in the room with only a single bare bulb for light, tied down and barely able to wiggle in the chair. He knew the interrogator's playbook inside and out, and he knew that isolation and anticipation could break most people far better than any actual torture could. Changelings were actually very vulnerable to isolation, but only when they didn't have a source of emotion to draw on, and only if left for prolonged periods of time. It was actually the only real way to question a Changeling.

Changelings were otherwise the worst sorts of creatures to subject to interrogation. All interrogations required the interrogator to form a relationship with the subject. Theoretically that relationship was always one-sided in the favour of the interrogator. However, to a Changeling such a relationship also created a channel for them to feed from the interrogator and know their emotions. Changelings could then use this channel to influence their interrogator, gaining more and more power over them until the whole dynamic reversed itself.

There had been tales of Changelings caught and subjected to intense questioning, only to have their supposed torturers assist in their escape, often defending them to the death. It was for this reason, among others, that the Kingdom didn't capture Changelings or allow them trials. They were too dangerous when given time, dangerous enough that the brutal response of unleashing the Griffins was entirely called for. Even Calumn had to admit it was the only smart thing to do.

So he sat and waited and hoped that whoever was sent in to torture him knew proper interrogation techniques. Amateurs never understood the importance of establishing a relationship in getting a pony to talk.

Finally, after what was probably two hours of waiting, the door opened again. Calumn's hopes sank when he saw who walked in.

"Hello, little spy," Charisma said with a bloodthirsty grin. "Let's talk."

"Please, I don't know why I'm here," Calumn pleaded, wide-eyed and tearful. "Please, I haven't done anything to you."

The blow came too fast for Calumn to see. It caught him just under the ribs, Charisma's hoof jabbing in and cruelly twisting. Calumn rocked in the chair, muscles spasmed as he tried to curl up on himself but was prevented. For a long moment he couldn't breathe, mouth working but lungs refusing to inflate. Finally the paralysis that had gripped his chest faded and he was able to suck in a breath. "Wha... why did you do that?"

"You were whining," Charisma said, stepping up to stare into Calumn's eyes from only inches away. "You whine again, you don't get to breathe." Calumn focused on playing the frightened mare. Charisma was not the kind of interrogator he could influence. As far as extracting information went she was as amateur as they came. She was, however, extremely good at causing pain. "You understand?"

"Yes," Calumn said, vigorously nodding in the little bobs the rope around his neck allowed. "Yes."

"Good." Charisma's smile could have been mistaken for beautiful if it weren't for the deadly gleam in her eyes. "Why were you questioning Conrad Sherman?"

"Questioning?" Calumn said, cringing. "No! I was just trying to get laid! I didn't know he was involved with you, whoever you are! I swear!"

Charisma set one hoof on Calumn's left shoulder joint. She pawed at it twice before settling into place. "Don't lie to me," she said, then pressed her hoof down. Calumn's eyes bulged and he thrashed, trying to pull away as an intense pain shot across his torso. It felt like an extreme muscle cramp centered on his shoulder, one that was getting worse as Charisma pushed harder. It grew to such strength that he was almost afraid that she was going to wrench his arm out of its socket, but she pulled back and he sagged. "Why were you questioning Conrad Sherman?"

"I wasn't! I swear I wasn't!" Calumn said, letting tears well up in his eyes and gasping for breath. Charisma laid her hoof back on his shoulder. "No! I swear I'm not lying!" The pain came again, just as intense and lasting longer than before. "Please! Please stop! I didn't do it! I didn't!" Calumn wailed. Charisma's hoof caught him in the torso again, robbing him of breath while the first hoof continued to cause intense pain in his shoulder.

"I thought we agreed you weren't going to whine anymore," Charisma said, leaning in close and lapping at the tears that fell from Calumn's eyes. "Though, by all means keep up the lying."

Finally she pulled away again, letting Calumn slump as much as the restraints allowed. "Okay, okay. I was questioning him. I was," Calumn said, shuddering and twitching. "I wanted to know... I wanted to know what his business was... so I could... so I could blackmail him?"

Charisma rolled her eyes. "Uh-huh. Right knee this time." She placed her hoof on the knee of Calumn's right rear leg and twisted. Again the pain was intense and there was nothing he could do to mitigate it. This was Charisma's art. Not her Talent, but certainly connected to it. Calumn screamed and mentally settled in for the long haul. She wasn't going to break him, not with mere pain, but he had the feeling this was just the warmup. Eventually she would get bored and leave, and then Calumn would have his chance. He just hoped he would be in the shape to take advantage of it when it came.

***

The ashes of the Nightmare flew across the Kingdom, carried on an artificial jet stream that skirted the bounds of what wind was capable of. They passed over towns and villages, unseen save for a vague shadow in the clouded sky that left a chill of dread in its wake. When the ashes reached the Capital they dropped from the wind, spiralling down like an apocalyptic snow towards the tall buildings of the city.

Finally, the ashes came to the balcony of Twinkle Shine’s penthouse. The ashes swirled about themselves, a small tornado of shadows and embers, wrenching the doors open with a flare of dark magic, then rushed into the estate. Black fire and golden light flashed from within the spinning mass of the ash cloud, and it began to take a definite form. By the time the cloud had reached the ritual magic room it had taken on the shape of a unicorn mare.

Once inside, the pony-shaped ashes gained more definition, becoming solid and heavy. In a flurry of motion the ashes peeled away from the body of Twinkle Shine, becoming a screaming cloud of darkness that poured itself into her open mouth. Within moments the darkness was gone and the Professor collapsed, coughing and retching on the floor.

“Get Up,” the Nightmare growled at her.

“Give me some time to recover at least,” Twinkle Shine wheezed out.

“There Is No Time For Weakness.”

“There’s always time,” the Professor replied, lying still as her coughing eased.

“The Plan Failed.”

“The plan might have worked better if it had been followed,” Twinkle Shine pointed out.

“Her Knowledge Cannot Be Allowed To Spread.”

“Agreed." Twinkle Shine lay still for a long moment before drawing breath to speak again. "She knows about Luna, she knows about the Elements, she knows about Discord.” Twinkle Shine shivered. “She nearly performed a Sonic Rainboom. That isn't something a mere construct can do. Evidence for her story is mounting fast.”

“It Is Impossible.”

“No, just very, very unlikely,” Twinkle Shine wearily pushed herself up and looked into the mirror. The Nightmare’s hard gaze met hers, showing none of the fatigue she was experiencing. “I need more information, which is what the plan was supposed to supply.”

“Time Grows Short.”

“I can afford to wait.”

“I Cannot.”

The Professor hung her head. “Just a little while. A few weeks, that’s all I’ll need. Star Fall is taking her to Spike, I can show up there, test the resonance. That should tell me everything I need to know.”

The Nightmare’s eyes narrowed. “Very Well. But Should The War Begin...”

“I will keep to the arrangement,” Twinkle Shine promised. That was enough for the Nightmare, and the glow faded from the Professor’s eyes. She lit her horn in order to see, the golden light thin and guttering in her exhaustion. She staggered from the room, stumbling through the penthouse to her waiting bed, and collapsed into a black sleep.

She was awoken by a pounding on the front door of her penthouse. She startled up, legs scrambling and horn lighting with defensive magic. It took her a long moment to realize that the pounding wasn’t the Nightmare’s heart beating its violent rhythm in her ears. Once she had calmed, she sighed and trotted on heavy hooves to the door.

She quickly worked the lock, but before she was able to open the door herself it was pushed open and an unwelcome friend shoved her way into the penthouse. “Where the hell have you been?” Gamma demanded, kicking the door shut behind her.

Twinkle Shine winced at the sound, a headache beginning to throb behind her eyes. “Here. Sleeping,” she said, her tone full of undisguised annoyance. “Which I would like to keep doing. Why...”

“We have no time for pleasantries. Grab whatever you need, you are leaving,” Gamma said, eyes darting around the penthouse hallway. Her demeanour was nervous and tense. She seemed scattered and distracted, which was something Gamma never was.

“What’s going on?” Twinkle Shine asked, alarm creeping into her tone.

“This morning there was a major magical event,” Gamma said. Twinkle Shine did her best to feign surprise, but she knew her exhaustion dulled the reaction. She should have expected that Gamma would be on her the moment she returned. “It buried the needle on every thaumograph from here to the coast. Every Magic Talent felt it, some have had to be hospitalized. I felt it, Twinkle. Where. Were. You?”

“I was in my ritual room,” Twinkle Shine said, frowning. “It’s warded heavily. If I wasn’t doing high-magic experimentation, I probably would have noticed it through the wards. As it is, I didn't feel a thing.”

“That would explain why the locator spells I’ve been having search for you have come up empty until an hour ago,” Gamma mused. Twinkle Shine nearly groaned. An hour of rest was nowhere near enough. “Fine. The King is calling for counsel. I need you with him.”

“Of course,” Twinkle Shine said, nodding. "Isn't a Griffin escort normal for an emergency summons? Why are you here yourself?"

“Because I've redirected the escort," Gamma replied. "They'll arrive in minutes. I need you to know what's happened now, before you panic in front of the Crown,” Gamma said.

Twinkle Shine frowned. "Why? What's happened?"

“The Shadowed Alicorn has returned.”

Twinkle Shine froze, eying Gamma carefully. “Are you sure?”

Gamma’s hoof came up to touch her scarf, and the scar beneath it. “Absolutely." She brushed past Twinkle Shine, rushing into the penthouse and up to the Professor's room. Twinkle Shine had no choice but to plod after her. When she got there she saw the room alight with the blue glow of Gamma's magic, grabbing various items and throwing them into a saddlebag. "It gets worse," Gamma said, not even looking at the Professor as she worked. "This is why I need you to hear this now. The epicenter of the magical event is about where I expected Star Fall to be today.”

“What?” Twinkle Shine put as much feeling into the exclamation as possible. Long years of practice allowed her to fool even Gamma’s acute observational skills, but it helped that the spymaster was distracted.

"Twinkle, she's alive," Gamma said, turning to the Professor and laying a hoof on her shoulder. “Locator spells are having a hard time locking on to her at this distance, but we have confirmed that she is alive, and still moving towards her goal,” Gamma stepped back, but kept eye contact. “Whatever Nightmare Umbra was doing, she was in the middle of it. She was there, Twinkle, and she's still keeping to her mission. That means that she thinks the mission is more important than getting news of the Shadowed Alicorn's return back to us. Your student is no fool, Twinkle, and if she thinks it's that important she must have a damned good reason."

This genuinely shocked Twinkle Shine. She'd expected Astrid at least to force them to return. What was Star Fall thinking? "What? You have to get in contact with her! Order her home!"

"I can't," Gamma said. "Too much magical interference, too much distance. That's why I’m taking three squads and a military transport and heading out there myself. I need you to stay with the King. He has to be protected in case something happens, and he needs to be kept in check. At least until I can find out what’s happened.”

“Why?”

“You know his obsession with Alicorns better than anyone," Gamma sighed, shaking her head as she hefted the full saddlebags onto Twinkle Shine's back. "News of Nightmare Umbra will only make it worse. We are poised on the edge of war already, this will only increase tensions. Worse, he might think he can use her,” Gamma took a deep breath, shuddering. “The Nightmare can’t be used.”

“Gamma, calm down. This isn’t like you.”

“You’ve never seen her, Twinkle!” Gamma snapped, rounding on the Professor. “You’ve never felt her power wrap around you and start to squeeze the life out of your body. You’ve never seen what she does to armies. I have. She’s back, and the King will be all too eager to do something stupid because of it. We, you and I, we are the ones who have to stop that from happening.”

“The Shadowed Alicorn isn’t all-powerful,” Twinkle Shine said, hoping that her inner voice was listening as well. “And the King isn't a fool. He will respect Umbra as the danger she is. You know that. Why are you so worried?"

Gamma hung her head. “I’m frightened,” she admitted. “There are invisible connections between these events. Things I'm not seeing. I’m sure of it. Rainbow Dash, Umbra, this damn inevitable war. All of them are connected, I’m just not sure how!”

“You’ll figure it out,” Twinkle Shine assured her. “You always do.”

“But will I do it in time to stop it?” Gamma asked. She grimaced, face tightening in anger. “Max Cash. It always comes back to Cash. He is the glue that holds this whole thing together. He was there twenty years ago, and I never found out why. Now Umbra has returned, and he’s involved again.”

“It’s just a coincidence,” Twinkle Shine sighed. “You have no evidence of connection, and you of all people know what jumping to conclusions will lead you to.”

“It isn’t coincidence,” Gamma insisted, head coming up. “There’s too many layers to this problem to be just coincidence.”

“Maybe so, but you’re not going to peel them back by panicking in my hallway.” Twinkle Shine sighed, leaning over and touching her horn to the other unicorn’s. “You know the Shadowed Alicorn better than anyone, and you know conspiracy when one is hiding from you. Would she be working with Cash?”

It took a long time for Gamma to answer. “No,” she said finally. “None of her behaviour, historically, has been consistent with her acting in any way but utterly alone. She has too much power and too much arrogance to work through proxies.”

“Okay. So if she’s not working with Cash, what other possibilities are there?”

“Rainbow Dash," Gamma said immediately. "She is another common element, and an explicitly unusual being. The Shadowed Alicorn could have been targeting her. Or been her.”

“I highly doubt Umbra was going around disguised as anyone, let alone someone as ridiculous as Rainbow Dash,” Twinkle Shine pointed out. “Why would Dash be a target?”

“A pegasus from the past? Any number of reasons. She could be a threat to Umbra, she’s claimed to have defeated Alicorns before.”

“A claim that, like everything about her, should be taken with a grain of salt,” Twinkle Shine advised.

“There is a third commonality,” Gamma said.

“What?”

“Star Fall.”

Twinkle Shine shook her head. “My student is special and precious, but hardly in the same league of notability as Rainbow Dash or Nightmare Umbra.”

“She is, to a certain subset of the population. A subset that happens to have both wings and a horn," Gamma said. "The King wants her to bear a Goddess. What if Umbra is attacking her to prevent that?”

"How would Umbra know about the King's delusion?"

"How would the Goddesses know about anything? I've heard the lectures, Twinkle, she could have found out any number of ways. My point is that if Umbra is trying to prevent it, it might not be so delusional."

"It is," Twinkle Shine said, tone brooking no argument.

Gamma snorted. "Fine. Too many possibilities, not enough evidence for any of them yet. Speculation is useless without more information." There was a loud screech from outside as the expected Griffin escort arrived on the balcony. Gamma stared hard at Twinkle Shine, her professional mask once more slipping into place. "I don't know what's going on anymore. Until I do, I can't properly advise the King. You will have to be the one to keep him constrained."

"I'll do what I can," Twinkle Shine promised.

"Good," Gamma said. "For my part I will protect Agent Fall to the best of my abilities. Your priority needs to be the King. It will do no one any good for you to be fretting over your student."

The Griffins knocked on the door. The wards were programmed to let them pass if they needed to break in, and since this was a summons from the King they would do so if they thought it would hurry her up. "Keep her safe, Gamma."

"Keep us all safe, Professor," Gamma said, then turned and cantered out of the penthouse.

Twinkle Shine watched her go, letting the Griffins get more insistent in their knocking. "What have I begun?" she asked, her voice absorbed by the darkness all around her. Then, gathering her weary body, she walked to the balcony and her summons from the King.

***

"What are they doing there?" Dash asked.

"Digging," Astrid replied. "Always digging."

They were lying just behind the crest of a hill about a mile out from Cash's dig site. Astrid and Star Fall were using binoculars to scan over the excavation. Dash had used them for a bit, but her unaided sight was good enough to catch most of the details without them.

The cold, drenching rain made Dash's wings heavy and her sore muscles ache, but it had to have been worse for Star Fall. The white pegasus was holding up surprisingly well, though. The run here had been a miserable one, but Star Fall hadn't even uttered one complaint, focusing on the path ahead with a determination that made Dash smile.

"Yeah, but what are they digging for?" Dash asked.

"We don't know," Star Fall said. "I'm hoping we can use this opportunity to find out."

"Security's good, but this rain's hurting them worse than us," Astrid said, pointing a talon down towards the sentry posts they could see. "They've got no visibility out here, especially with all the lights pointed at the ... whatever that's supposed to be."

"Looks kinda like a barn," Dash said.

"Or a municipal building of some kind," Star Fall mused. "A library or a town hall. A permanent structure that could take the strain of being buried like this one obviously was."

"Whatever it is they're more interested in keeping it lit than giving them a good view of their perimeter," Astrid said. "That's good for us. What's bad for us is the teams of guards they've got wandering around. These are the real deal. I'm seeing Glyphs for Strength and Toughness on the earth ponies, and a few for Speed among the pegasi. They've got body armor and visible weapons, and they're moving like they know how to use them."

"Nothin' we can't handle, right?" Dash asked, grinning.

"One on one? Yeah, we can take them. In groups? No," Astrid said. "We're not in the best shape already, and any fighting we do will bring the whole compound down on our heads. Worse, the asskicker might be around."

"Asskicker?" Dash asked.

"Charisma, Cash's chief enforcer," Star Fall clarified. "Ex Kingdom Special Forces. Her Talent is usually described as Combat. Fighting her is not an option."

"We just beat up an Alicorn this morning, Star." Dash pointed out.

"Different thing entirely," Astrid explained. "Umbra had power and was the toughest bitch I've ever fought, but she didn't really know how to fight. She just stood there and took all the hits, being too damn invulnerable to care. We brought her down because she barely defended herself at all. Charisma's different. She doesn't have fancy magic or super regeneration. She's all physical combat, and very, very good at it. Any one of us could outrun her. Dash, you and I can outmuscle her. None of us can outfight her. The only way to deal with her is to avoid fighting her, use our advantages to go around or trap her."

"Oh," Dash said, frowning. "I could take her."

"Don't try, Dash," Star Fall warned. "We don't need to take the chance."

"Hey, it's cool. I won't be looking for her or anything. I just think she can't be that tough," Dash said, raising her hooves defensively. "Anyway, how are we going to get down there if we've got to avoid attention and there are all those guards?"

They returned to looking over the compound. "See those?" Star Fall pointed a hoof at the sandbags set up around. "They're keeping the water out of the dig. Something like that takes manpower to set up, and is disastrous if it fails. I can put together a spell that will knock that sandbag wall over. If that happens they'll have to scramble everyone they can to fix it. That'll thin out the perimeter for us."

"Fall, that's a lot of weight to shift," Astrid said. "Can you do that?"

"Not directly," Star Fall said. "But I can work on the soil under it, undermine the wall and it'll collapse. It'll take a couple hours, though."

"How many?"

Star Fall cringed. "Five. Maybe."

"Not good enough, Fall. We gotta be gone by sunrise."

Dash took a long look at the compound while her companions discussed options. She could see what Astrid meant about avoiding the patrols, and she thought that Star Fall's plan sounded good. She also thought she had a much better way of doing it than waiting five hours for a wall to collapse. "Guys," she said, quieting the other two. "I've got this."

"Dash, you can't just smash into it. They aren't supposed to know we're here," Astrid warned.

"What? I wasn't going to smash into it!" Dash protested. "Why would you even think that?" Astrid just shrugged in reply. "Look, guys, we're in a giant storm."

They looked at her blankly. "Yeah, and?" Astrid asked.

"And I can control the weather," Dash said.

"Oh yeah!" Star Fall laughed. "I forgot about that."

"Woulda been nice if you'd remembered this on the way over," Astrid said. "Saved us from running hours in the rain."

"I can't stop the storm, it's too big," Dash explained. "But I can direct it. Or, parts of it. I got this."

"Work your magic, superpony," Astrid told her.

Dash leapt into the sky, flapping hard and rising up to the clouds. She didn't go too fast, wary of the bright ethereal trail that would give her away if she did. Her sides and neck burned as she flew, overstressed muscles complaining after a long day of running that had started off with a thorough beating. She worked through it, barely acknowledging the pain was there.

She hit the cloud layer and moved over the compound, hovering and feeling out the storm. There was a lot of power up here, the remnants of Umbra's magic still clinging to the sky. The storm was no longer unnatural, though, just a result of the forces that set it in motion. As such it responded to Dash's prodding eagerly, lightning gathering about her in invisible, crackling static. She pulled one section of cloud away from the main body of the storm, compressing it down to a usable size and forcing all the lightning she had gathered into it. The dark stormcloud was then pushed into position, and Dash took careful aim.

She could just smite the sandbags directly, but she figured that wouldn't cause quite the ruckus she wanted. Instead she aimed for the legs of one of the watchtowers. It was metal and well grounded, so under normal circumstances it wouldn't suffer from a lightning strike. A concentrated blast of lightning from a pegasus-guided cloud no longer counted as 'normal circumstances'.

Dash bucked the cloud and it spat forth a bolt of blue lightning. The bolt hit the tower just about where Dash had wanted it to, destroying one leg and wrecking some of the structure of the others. The tower wobbled, then fell. It crashed into the sandbag line around the dig, as well as the tarp strung up above. The tarp came down, the sandbag wall was toppled and water began pouring into the excavation.

Instantly the whole compound erupted in motion like a kicked anthill. Ponies rushed back and forth as they tried to mitigate the damage that had been done. Dash watched with satisfaction as many of the patrolling guards also rushed to the scene to start helping. Mission accomplished.

She flew back down to Astrid and Star Fall, dropping next to them. "How's that?"

"Magnificent," Star Fall said, glowing awe in her voice. "We've got our window."

"Alright," Astrid said. "Good work, Dash. That's pretty damn impressive, even for you. I'll be out here, waiting. Remember, you two: stay inconspicuous."

"We will, Astrid," Star Fall said, then rose to her hooves. "Come on."

"See you soon, don't get bored without me," Dash said, laughing as she rose and followed Star Fall down into the compound.

***

Calumn sagged in the chair. The rope around his neck had been removed, but that was all the mobility he had. Charisma's torture had been some of the worst he'd ever experienced, mostly for the fact that she seemed to care less about what answers he gave than that she was hurting him to get them. He'd played his part, screaming and crying and making up any answer that he thought might get her to stop.

Fortunately she hadn't done any long-term damage. Every technique she had used inflicted pain, but little else. It was better than being cut open or having bones broken. He could at least move once the muscle cramps and lingering agony subsided. So when she had finally stopped he just sat and recovered, waiting to see what they would do next and watching for his chance to escape. There had been some sort of crash and commotion outside not too long ago, and he'd nearly taken that opportunity, but he'd still hurt too much to make a good run for it, and so had held off.

There was a knock on the door, which was odd since no one would have any reason to do so. After a few moments the door opened a hoof-width.

“Can I come in?” The voice brought Calumn’s head up. He’d heard recordings of that voice, and it always seemed a very ordinary one for inspiring such strong reactions in ponies. Hearing it in person he began to understand. It sounded off. Very slightly, below the conscious level, not wrong, just strange. As a Changeling, Calumn was a being who focused on those little details, absorbing them in case he ever had to imitate a pony. This was something he didn’t think he could mimic.

Max Cash slid into the room, looking around as if he was expecting someone else to be in there as well. “Hey, there,” he said, closing the door behind him and stepping over to the empty chair. He flipped it around and sat on it such that his forelegs rested on the backrest and grinned at Calumn. “Sorry about the noise outside. Just a few technical difficulties. Oh, and sorry about Charisma. She’s got some ideas about talking to people that involves a lot more punching than the rest of us are comfortable with. I’d talk to her about it, but it’s so hard to find good help these days and I don’t want to screw with a good working relationship. How you doing?”

“I’m ... good,” Calumn said, his voice as weak and thready as he could get.

“Really? ‘Cause I would have said you looked pretty bad,” Cash said, leaning towards him. “You want a cookie?”

“What?”

“I always feel better when I’m eating cookies," Cash told him with the air of someone divulging a personal secret. "Chocolate chips are my favourite, but my personal chef has started feeding me these raisin ones. They’re good, don’t get me wrong, but sometimes a stallion wants chocolate, dammit! So I sneak them whenever I get the chance, and I’ve got a few on me. Want one?”

Calumn knew all about forming bonds, and this was a classic technique for an interrogator to get his subject to identify with them and thus feel more open about sharing information. The police in the Republics called it ‘good cop, bad cop’. Charisma had been the bad cop, beating the hell out of him and demanding answers angrily. Cash would play the good cop, offering to take care of him, with the threat of Charisma’s return as incentive to take the offer. It was a good system, but it was a well known technique. Even though Calumn wasn't going to risk trying to control Max Cash himself, when you knew what was going on you could use known techniques against the interrogator.

Calumn nodded, and Cash’s magic pulled out a small brown cookie. He floated it over to Calumn, who was about to bite into it before he noticed the horrible smell coming off of it. Like formaldehyde and vinegar. “Is this poisoned?”

Cash chuckled. “Yeah,” he said, then tossed the cookie into the wall, where it shattered. “So, no cookies then. I was just offering to be nice, you know. Blaze has rolled on you, by the way. Took ten seconds, tops, before he was spilling his guts. Not literally, mind, because Charisma still holds a torch for him. She’s probably immolating him with it as we speak.”

Calumn didn’t know how to respond. Cash had virtually destroyed any chance to create a subject-interrogator bond with the poison cookie. Now he had switched tactics entirely, going for an attempt to isolate the subject from allies and indicating that they were already given up. It implied that the only way to make things better for the subject was to capitulate as well. This was, again, a well-known and highly effective tactic, but it was best applied with some finesse, which was not what was happening here. “I don’t think he has,” Calumn said.

“Yeah, you’re right,” Cash agreed, smiling amiably. “She’s still probably burning him, or cutting him, or something that hurts, but he didn’t roll over on you. Or maybe he did, I really don’t know. I’ll go have a chat with Blaze later, but right now I want to talk to you.”

“Why?” This was getting weird. Cash had casually discarded his second interrogator’s gambit and moved into entirely unfamiliar territory. If it was meant to get information from Calumn it wasn’t going to work, but if it was supposed to unnerve him then it was completely effective.

“Well, you know, sometimes a guy just has to talk. You like guys who talk, right? I mean, you’re with Blaze, after all. All huddling close and whispering sweet nothings into each other's ear. That guy can’t keep to a single topic for more than two sentences.” Calumn blinked, but Cash cut him off before he could respond. “Or not. No. You’re not ‘with’ Blaze at all, are you? Too bad, I have a lot in common with him, and I was hoping you’d warm up to me.”

“I’m not going to tell you anything,” Calumn said, playing defiant and hoping this would lead somewhere.

“Sure you won’t,” Cash said, nodding and smiling. “Tell you what, you don’t tell me anything, and I tell you a story. You like stories, don’t you? Of course you do, everyone likes stories. So sit tight, relax and listen."

Cash shifted his posture, laying his head on his folded hooves and adopting an expression of fond nostalgia. “My family lived in this little place in the country with the creatively brilliant name of Horseshoe Valley. The closest full Republic was Leo City, so we were legally in their jurisdiction, and realistically on our own. We didn’t get a lot of government interference, and not a lot of help either. Lots of farming in Horseshoe Valley, a bit of mining too, but mostly it was crops and livestock. There weren’t any theatres in town, so us colts and fillies had to make our own fun. Two thousand ponies, the whole of my world when I was young.

“My family was one of maybe three unicorn families in the Valley, and I was the only unicorn around my age in the whole place. Kids can be cruel to those who are different, and I counted. Honestly, I think it was good for me. If I hadn’t been so cut off from other ponies I might never have developed my magic and found my Talent. At the time, though, I was miserable.

“I had a couple good friends, though. One of them was Big Jim. Two years older than me and the size of a full-grown stallion by the time he was ten. When the bigger kids wanted someone to kick around he was the biggest kid in the yard, and he made sure they didn’t kick me. Me and Jim, we’ve been through thick and thin together. BGFF, Best Guy Friends Forever. Lots of hoof-bumps, no hugging." Cash laughed, grinning widely before continuing his story.

“Another friend was Swiftwind. He didn’t start out as a friend, but he was another loner, like me. He read so much, always hitting the books. He got kicked around a bit, and he blamed me for it. It was like it was my fault that the mean kids chose to pick on him, when they’d be just as happy to pick on me if they could. Swifty, well, he got this prank-war going with me. The usual kids stuff, but it was epic as far as I was concerned. Glue on the seat, buckets of water or erasers above doors, 'kick-me' signs, the whole deal. I gave as good as I got, and we spent so much time scheming against each other, trying to come up with the perfect prank. I’m pretty sure I won that game. Good memories, all around." He smiled wistfully while looking up into the air before continuing.

“One day, Swifty fell in the local river. This wasn’t a little creek, but a really fast-flowing and dangerous place. All us kids knew where the safe places to swim were, but Swiftwind had fallen into one of the dangerous parts. When they pulled him out of the water he looked so cold, so still. He got rushed to a hospital in Leo City, and for two weeks we didn’t hear anything about him. We thought he might have died. Big Jim and I tried to keep it together, but I could tell the big guy cried about it once or twice.

“Then, all of a sudden, Swiftwind was back. They said he had hypothermia and it had taken this long to recover, and everyone was happy. Even the big kids stopped kicking him around, and from then on Swifty was the darling of the town. Even though I was celebrating his return with everyone else, something about him seemed wrong to me. I tried to prank him, but he just took it. Didn’t try to prank back or anything. He said he just wanted to be friends. I nearly lost it. It didn’t seem like the same guy. But after I yelled about it one time I got talked to about traumatic experiences and how they can change someone.

“After that I got to know him better, without all the pranks and rivalry. Turns out that Swifty was a pretty cool guy. He really came out of his shell, started talking more, playing with other kids. He befriended everyone, big kids, small kids, nerdy kids, popular kids, and me. We were awesome together for a couple years there. Total gold. The experience every propaganda movie about togetherness and colthood camaraderie likes to portray. Even through all of that, though, I still felt like something was wrong. Like Swifty wasn’t who he seemed to be."

Cash focused his gaze on Calumn. “Well, one day I was proven right. We went down to the river to go swimming. I swear, it was like a total replay of two years before. Swifty fell in the dangerous part of the river, and he was thrashing and screaming. As I watched he just... stopped being Swifty. One moment he was the friend I’d known for years, the next he was this big, black thing. All fangs and sharp angles and legs like rotted cloth, full of holes. Crazy, huh?”

There was a long moment of silence as Cash stopped speaking. The quiet stretched out as Calumn began to realize that was the end of the story. “What was the point of that?” he finally asked.

“Basically, I spent two years being best friends with a bug. After all that, don’t you think I'd know one when I see one?” Cash asked with a grin. Then his horn pulsed with magenta light and a beam of magic blasted out, scouring over Calumn. The Changeling twisted and screeched as the magic burned into him, stripping his disguise away and leaving him in his true form. “There, isn’t that more comfortable?”

“Damn,” Calumn breathed, his entire body stinging from the spell.

“Oh, hey, there you are,” Cash said. “Let’s do introductions. Hi. I’m Maximillion Cash, but you can call me Max. What’s your name?”

“I’m not telling you anything,” Calumn said, readying his power. He’d have one chance to escape, and that was it. Cash wouldn’t be vulnerable to his power, any Magic Talent unicorn could fight a Changeling’s mind magic. He’d have to hit the guard, presuming Max didn’t just try to kill Calumn himself. He had enough energy from absorbing Blaze’s love all night and friendship most of the day that he could control two, maybe three ponies before it exhausted him, so he would have to make the first shot count.

“You’re not? Why, I’m shocked!” Cash said. “That’s really rude, a guest not giving his name to his host.”

“I don’t care about being rude to you. You’re going to kill me anyway.”

“I am?” Cash looked down at himself, feigning surprise. “You think I’m going to?” He started laughing, a wild, braying laugh that grated on Calumn’s nerves and cut off as quickly as it began. “Sure, maybe,” he said. “It’s definitely in the cards, but the fun of the game is that you never know what hand you’re going to draw.”

He hopped off the chair and began to stalk around Calumn. “Now, what’s a Changeling doing in the sunlands? Poking around my friends? Sure, but they can do that just as easily without the threat of Griffins back home. And impersonating a Secret Service agent? Tsk tsk, that’s going to get you in hot water.” Calumn said nothing, refusing to even turn his head to watch Cash circle him. “You know this was basically a suicide mission, right? Of course you do, your kind is trained to think of these things. Watch all the angles, see all the important decisions. You know the score: you get caught, you get dead. Well, you got caught, now you’re just waiting for part two of that equation.”

Cash stopped in front of Calumn, spearing him with his gaze. “What if I told you it doesn’t have to be like that? Would that interest you? What if I told you that I don’t have to kill you? That I could just let you go? I can, you know. I'm not a bloodthirsty Griffin, or some oath-bound government agent. I'm a private businesspony, I get to do what I want, and right now I’m in the mood to offer you a chance. All you have to do is break one little protocol. Give me one little secret.”

“I’m not going to tell you anything,” Calumn repeated.

“Not even your name?” Cash asked, leaning in close. There was something to his eyes that held Calumn fast. He couldn't have looked away if his life depended on it. “Give no answers, that’s what they told you, but they also told you to go to your death. You don’t do one, you don’t have to do the other. It’s that simple. Come on, what’s the price of your life? Surely it’s worth one. Little. Betrayal.”

Calumn stiffened. He couldn’t see a lie in Cash’s eyes. He couldn’t help but think it over. Straff had sent him to the sunlands knowing the danger, and had sent him with so little support he was practically asking to get killed. And for what? For a pegasus mare who may or may not have anything to do with a mere criminal. Why should he risk his life for something so trivial? Was Straff really so callous with Changeling lives? Did he simply not care? Did anyone? If they didn’t care about him, why should he care about them? What was stopping him from just telling Cash everything and walking away? His oaths? His hive? His loyalty?

No. He had no loyalty to them.

“Calumn,” he breathed. “My name is Calumn.”

"Hello, Calumn," Cash said, grinning and stepping back. "Nice to meet you."

Calumn reeled as Cash's gaze stopped holding him. He couldn’t believe what he had just done. He’d given up his name. A small betrayal, but one that should never have happened. It was like for that moment all his loyalties, all his ties had disappeared. Worse yet, he hadn’t felt any magic at work. Cash hadn’t cast a spell on him, hadn’t used drugs or torture or any of the ways to break someone. He had just spoken, and Calumn had folded. He had done it casually, almost like it was a game.

“Was that so hard?” Cash asked. Suddenly there was a sound from outside, cutting through the din of the rain on the roof more easily than all the machine noises had been able to. It was a keening scream, high, feminine and agonized. It wailed on for longer than seemed possible before trailing off into silence. A moment later an alarm sounded. “Huh,” Cash said, frowning. “That’s odd.”

There was a knock on the door, which opened to admit a guard. “Sir, we have intruders.”

“Really? I thought it was just cat-torturing time,” Cash quipped. “Please tell me Charisma’s on this one.”

“She’s apprehending the intruders personally,” the guard said.

“Spiffy. Well!” He turned back to Calumn. “We’ll have to cut this conversation short. But, hey! You passed the test! I don’t have to kill you. Ta-ta for now!”

“Wait!” Calumn called out before Cash could make it to the door. Cash froze mid-step, eyes turning to look at the Changeling. “How?”

“How what?”

“How did you know he was a Changeling?”

“Swifty?” Cash laughed, relaxing. “Well, my first clue was that he was still alive. You don’t go through all that trouble to drown someone without making sure they’re dead. Having him just pop up right-as-rain two weeks later was a pretty good indicator. Fortunately,” Cash giggled, grin wide and monstrous. “The second time was the charm.”

Calumn stared after him as he left and the door was secured again. He couldn’t still his shivering, couldn’t believe what had happened. He slumped in the chair, wide-eyed with shock and disbelief. Blaze had been right, there was nothing equine about Max Cash.

***

Dash tried to look everywhere at once as she and Star Fall crept through the compound. There were ponies rushing all over it, but things were beginning to quiet down for the most part. The damage Dash had done to the sandbag wall had been fairly easy to fix, and once they got a new tarp strung up their dig would be safe once again. All Dash and Star Fall had to do was figure out a way into the site and they could get a look at what all the work was for.

"So, how are we getting in there?" Dash whispered to Star Fall.

"There," Star Fall pointed at the place where workers were dropping off cartfuls of soil. "We'll steal some work clothes and sneak in with a crew."

"Won't they see that we're new?"

"In the rain, in the dark, when there's a hundred ponies running around?" Star Fall said, shaking her head. "Not as long as we keep our heads down."

They slunk around the side of one of the buildings, keeping to the shadows and out of sight of the patrols that were still making the rounds. "You really think this Cash guy is giving Nightmare Umbra back her powers?"

Star Fall shrugged. "I can't be sure, but it makes sense. I'd lay odds that he has something to do with it, even if he's not doing it intentionally."

Star Fall took a quick look around the corner before darting to the next building. Dash followed her and they pressed themselves up against the corrugated metal wall, listening carefully for the sounds of anyone coming up to them. Only a few more buildings and they'd be able to grab hardhats and work-suits without being seen.

"But something he did brought me here, right?" Dash asked.

"That's a working hypothesis, yes," Star Fall replied, carefully timing their next move.

"So is my being here what's giving Umbra back her powers?" Dash asked, worried. "'Cause if it is, why was she needing to kill me? Maybe I'm the key to stopping her now."

"Maybe," Star Fall said. "Maybe not. I wish I could tell you, Dash. I really do, but I'm as much in the dark as you are. More. You're the one with previous experience fighting Nightmares. Was there anything like this before? With Nightmare Moon?"

"Uh, no, not really," Dash said. They rushed across to the next building, Dash tripping a couple times along the way. "Nightmare Moon wasn't like Umbra at all. I mean, they're both crazy, but Nightmare Moon wasn't that serious about killing us. Most of what she did was aimed at getting us to give up and go home. Or betray my friends. The worst she did out of everything was drop us off a cliff, and with two pegasi, well, that wasn't really an effective strategy."

"Sounds like you got off really lucky, if she really was an Alicorn Goddess," Star Fall said, only half-listening to Dash as she watched another patrol.

"Well, I don't know about the Goddess thing," Dash said, leaning up against the wall. Her breath came in short, fast gulps. "But Princess Luna's definitely a real Alicorn."

Star Fall snorted. "Of course she is. She creates ... the ... night," Star Fall turned to Dash, eyes wide. "Luna? Nightmare Moon was Luna?"

"Huh? Oh, uh, yeah. I thought I had mentioned that," Dash replied.

"But... why? How?"

Dash shrugged, pressing a shaking hoof to her head as her vision blurred. "I'm not really sure, that's more Twilight's thing than mine. Something about jealousy and ponies sleeping at night or something. Anyway there was this big fight, and then she got stuck in the moon for a thousand years, then came back and we made her all better. So it's all good," Dash grinned at Star Fall with chattering teeth.

The white pegasus pulled her mind away from the implications of what Dash had told her as she took in the condition of her friend. "Dash, are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Dash said, dropping to sit on the muddy ground. Her eyes rolled in opposite directions. "I'm having trouble seeing you, though. It must be... must be raining harder than I thought."

"Dash! Stay with me!" Star Fall said, grabbing Dash's face. "Come on, focus!"

"I'm good, Star," Dash insisted, even as her wings drooped and her body shook. "What's the big deal?"

"Head injuries," Star Fall said, the words sounding like a curse. "Umbra slammed you through a ton of rock. Of course you'd get a concussion!"

"I don't have a concussion," Dash assured her. "I know what a concussion feels like, and I'm not feeling it now."

"What are you feeling?" Star Fall asked, frantic. "Come on, tell me what's wrong!"

"I'm feeling... scared," Dash said, surprised at her own answer. "Really scared. Star, something's wrong."

"Celestia's day," Star Fall breathed. "Dash, your eyes are glowing."

"Oh, well that can't be good," Dash said. Her body stilled its shaking and her eyes focused on Star Fall. "Hey, Star, looks like whatever it was is ov..."

***

"I'm betraying you"

***

The scream filled her ears, louder and more pervasive than any siren. She listened to the scream, picking apart the many layers of emotion that wound their way through it. There was fear, yes, so much fear. There was also pain, the pain of losing something dear. Underneath both of those was anger, the hot kind of rage that burned fast and furious and left nothing in its wake but white ashes. There was more to the scream, sounds that couldn't be placed with their emotions because those emotions were just never usually expressed this way. She admired it, in a way, expressing so much with such a simple sound.

Rainbow Dash knew the scream was hers, but she had no idea why.

Finally the scream faded from her throat and she fell over on her side. The mud covered her and her right wing was trapped uncomfortably under her body, but for the moment she didn't think she could move more than her eyes. She looked at Star Fall, her fellow pegasus staring at her, blood dripping from her nose.

"Move," Dash tried to say, but her mouth barely twitched. "Get away."

Star Fall blinked, her entire body twitching violently once as if she had been awakened from a deep sleep. She scrambled over to Dash. "Are you okay?" she asked.

"Run," Dash managed to whisper out. "Star, run!"

Star Fall heard her, rearing back and spreading her wings to take off. It was too late.

A pink blur slammed Star Fall into the side of the building, denting the metal wall. The scholarly pegasus let out a sharp scream and fell to the ground, curling into a pained ball. Dash looked up at her assailant, seeing a light pink pegasus mare with a cruel smile on her face. "Well, well, well," Charisma said, leering down at her two captives. "Isn't this interesting," she turned to the other guards who had rushed up. "You, bind them. You, help him. And you, find Cash, he's going to want to see this one," she kicked at Star Fall.

"Why her?" the guard asked.

"Come on, don't you know nobility when you see it?" Charisma laughed. "I just caught the Lady Fallen Star."

"What do we do with them?" asked the guard binding the still-unmoving Rainbow Dash.

"Throw that one in with Blaze," Charisma said. "Give him someone to play with."

"And the, uh, noble?"

Charisma grinned wickedly at Star Fall. "I'm taking her straight to Cash's room. Give the poor dear a cell appropriate to her station." Her laughter followed Dash as she was hauled away, control over her muscles only returning enough to twitch feebly.

"I'll save you," she promised as she was carried into one of the buildings, the words only a whisper but the intent a promise. "Just hang in there, Star. I'll save you." She kept mouthing that promise right up until they came to the makeshift prison, and she was thrown into darkness.

Chapter 13: Questions of Choice

The third state of the Elements is something I have called Inversion. This is not, ultimately, an accurate name, but it does capture the basic idea of the phenomenon. Inversion is functionally identical to the Active state, but during Inversion the (for lack of a better term) polarity of the Element is reversed. Loyalty becomes Betrayal, Honesty becomes Deceit, Generosity becomes Greed, Laughter becomes Anger and Kindness becomes Cruelty.

I first encountered Inversion during the first time we battled with Discord. He exploited this property of the Elements, using it to corrupt my friends and drive us apart. I assumed at the time that it was simply his own power and hypnotic abilities that caused this effect, but early experimentation with the Elements proved that it was them, and not him, that provoked the radical shifts in personality we all experienced. He merely tapped into a potential that already existed.

...The Inversion of my own Element, Magic, confused me for a time. I know I experienced the phenomenon, but other than melancholic depression there was no vast shift in personality to accompany my Inversion. What is the opposite of magic? Mundanity, perhaps, but that was inconsistent with what I had experienced during my Inversion. It was only when studying the Element of Laughter that I came to a revelation about the nature of the Inversion process, and a further understanding of the Elements themselves.

When we think of the inverse of a trait we usually envision its opposite, but ascribing that logic to the Elements is part of our fundamental misunderstanding of their nature. The opposite of laughter, or joy, would be sadness or despair. Despair, however, is not an energizing trait, and thus cannot serve Laughter’s purpose in creating the Magic of Harmony. Anger, on the other hoof, is an energizing trait, and can serve Laughter’s purpose. Realizing this allowed me to see that the Inversions of all of the Elements kept the same purpose in creating the Magic of Harmony that their Active traits did.

The Inversions of the Elements are not their opposites, but their equals. Mundanity may serve as a conceptual opposite for magic, but the Element of Magic is a directive agent and mundanity is by definition neutral and directionless. After careful study and deliberation I have come to the conclusion that only one trait contains all the qualities necessary to be the directive agent in the Magic of Harmony. Thus the Inversion of Laughter is Anger, and the Inversion of Magic, is Magic.

The implications of this are staggering.

-From the Sixth section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Thirteen: Questions Of Choice

Astrid stared through the binoculars at the rain-shrouded camp. Dash’s plan was working perfectly, with the perimeter guards pulled in to help with the repairs on the sandbag wall and clearing out the debris of the guard tower. Astrid’s training wasn’t in demolitions, but she knew a good piece of destruction when she saw one, and that lightning strike had been beautiful. For a near-pacifist pony out of her time, the rainbow-maned pegasus was really taking a shine to the violence of the present.

Like the fight with Umbra. Astrid had assumed Dash would balk at her brutal methods, but instead she had barely batted an eye. Afterwards, when Star Fall was losing her breakfast, Dash had seemed to take the whole thing in stride. Astrid guessed that it had a lot to do with fighting Goddesses before, but it was still something she was surprised to see.

She’d lost sight of the two pegasi as they had gone into Cash’s camp, the rain and the darkness obscuring them completely even when she knew about where they should be. She kept looking anyway, wary of the inevitable chaos that even the most well-laid plan fell to. She didn’t have to wait long.

The scream that rose from the camp was like nothing Astrid had ever heard before. It was Dash’s voice, of that she was sure, but it wasn’t a scream of pain or of anger. Or rather, not just of those things. It grabbed hold of some deep part of her that she hadn’t even known was there and squeezed until she couldn’t breathe anymore. She fell to the ground, clutching at her chest as if to cradle her seizing heart. Tears came to her eyes unbidden, falling with the rain down her face. Her mouth opened and she almost echoed Dash’s scream with a shriek of her own before remembering herself and closing her beak with a sharp click. The scream made her feel pain and rage and loss, too much to ever process, too much to ever forget. It felt like betrayal, squeezed down into a sound and poured into her in all its undiluted agony.

Even after the scream faded she found she couldn’t move. She lay on the ground and sobbed as thoughts came unbidden to her. Memories of her attempts to nest, of the failure of her own body to produce even one viable egg. Of the time she learned it was her closeness with Star Fall that was causing it, the knowledge that her friendship and her duty to her clan could not coexist. She remembered praying to Celestia, day after day as the sun rose and fell, and never receiving an answer.

“Get up,” she said between sobs, her voice broken and wavering. “Come on. Get up.” She grit her beak and took in a deep breath. “What are you? A mewling little kitten of a hatchling, or a Steelwing Griffin?” Her voice gained strength, her tears slowing as she drew her will together. “Come on, soldier, on your paws! Fall’s in trouble and it’s your job to get her out! Are you just going to lie here and feel sorry for yourself? Are you?” She slammed a closed claw into the dirt and dragged her head up, the rest of her body following. Soon she was standing tall, head held high and looking out over the camp. “Didn’t think so,” she growled.

She didn’t know how much time had passed as she was lying there feeling sorry for herself, but she figured it was at least five minutes, maybe ten. That was far too much time. Astrid didn’t know why Dash had been screaming like that, but it would have alerted the entire base and with the way the ponies down there were still moving about, it was doubtful it had affected them the way it had her. That meant that Star Fall and Dash were captured. It wasn’t likely they were just killed, Cash would want to question them, get as much information as possible before he disposed of them. That gave Astrid time, but not much.

She couldn’t just go storming into the base and fight her way through all of those guards. They looked like ex-military types. Strength and Toughness Talents for earth ponies, Speed and Flight for pegasi, and maybe some unicorns with the more dangerous magical Talents. All trained in tactics and combat, working together in teams. She would have to do this subtle, which meant more time watching, less time acting. That could take too long to do much good for Star Fall and Dash. So she had to be quick as well.

The answer: ghost tactics. Sow chaos and disarray among the guards, reduce their ability to coordinate and communicate. Slip through the resulting holes in security and try to locate and rescue her charge before they got their acts together.

She scanned the buildings, looking for certain telltale signs, and found one that had several short antennae on its roof. That would be the main communications array, keeping all the guards connected to coordinate their activities. It didn’t look like something the Kingdom would use, too many wires and not enough crystals, but Astrid was sure she could disable it anyway. She couldn’t tell where Dash or Star Fall would have been taken, but she figured that it would be easier to distinguish where a prisoner might be held once she was close enough to see details.

She stretched her wings, feeling the burning pain in the one Umbra had injured that morning. She wouldn’t be able to fly far or high with them, especially not in this downpour, but they would be good enough for what she was thinking about doing. She pulled a tight-fitting harness from her bag and strapped it on, quickly attaching the weapons and other objects she thought would come in handy so that they were secured and wouldn’t interfere with her movements or make any sounds. She pulled on thin gloves and boots that would muffle her steps, and finally a hooded cloak that would hide the white feathers of her head and neck as well as break up her silhouette and make it harder for others to spot her in the dark.

With one last look at the camp to fix a mental map of where the buildings and guards were, she stowed the rest of the gear under a blanket and leapt into the sky. “Hold tight, Fall,” she whispered as she soared into the cold, stinging rain. “Help is on the way.”

***

“Oof!” grunted the pony Dash had been thrown into. It was too dark in the room to see, all she caught of him was a vague shadow of a bound stallion. “Oh, right in the kidney! Good aim.”

The voice was familiar, but Dash couldn’t place it. She didn’t even try to think through where she’d heard that voice before, more concerned with regaining her mobility as she flopped off of him onto the floor. She still couldn’t do much more than that, and her body was frustrating her with how obstinate it insisted on being.

“Buddy, is that you?” the stallion called out into the dark.

“Sorry,” Dash said, weakly trying to lift her head. “I’m not your buddy.”

“Hey, get to know me a bit before you decide that,” he said. Dash could almost hear the goofy grin in his tone. “Let me start, I’m Trail Blazer, but you can call me Blaze.”

Dash flashed back to the Everstorm, to the pony who had been with the Changeling. “I know you,” she said.

“Oh, so you did get to know me before you decided,” Blaze said, his voice sad. “Darn.”

“What?” Dash managed to roll to her stomach, getting her hooves under her. “No, in the Everstorm.”

“I’ve taken you through the storm? Uh, sorry, but my memory’s usually better for clients. You do sound familiar, if it's any consolation.”

“You were with that pony that turned into a bug,” Dash said.

“And you were with the Griffin that didn’t turn into anything, but it would have been really cool if she did!” Blaze crowed with a laugh. “I knew I recognized your voice! Wow. This world just keeps getting smaller. Pretty soon I’ll be able to walk from Stratia to Leo City in an afternoon. But, okay, there might be a little overcrowding problem. Unless everyone starts shrinking.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Dash said. “Why are you here?”

“Got caught. You?”

“I... got caught too?”

“Neat! Let’s form a club. I’ll let you be president if I get to pick our motto.”

Dash paused, wrapping her head around that thought and then throwing it out before it broke her. “Are you for real?”

“Last time I checked,” he assured her. “You know, I’m starting to think you’re not here to interrogate me.”

Dash blinked. “Why would you think that in the first place?”

“’Cause Cash is tricky like that,” Blaze replied. “So, what’s your name?”

“Ra... Firefly,” Dash answered, she couldn't remember if she'd told him her real name back in the Everstorm or not, but since he was asking it seemed right to play it safe now. “My name’s Firefly.”

“Pleased to meet you, Firefly,” Blaze said, and there was a shuffling sound as he shimmied himself closer and poked her hoof with his. “Sorry you have to be a prisoner with me, but if I make a daring escape I promise to take you with me.”

Dash snickered. “Not going to be an issue,” she said, flexing her wings against the binding ropes. Strength was returning to them with agonizing slowness, but it was returning. “Soon as I’m back on my hooves I’m busting out of here. I’ve got a friend to rescue.”

“Me too! Or, really, he’s supposed to rescue me, but I figure he won’t be too mad if I’m the rescuer instead of the rescue-ee.”

“Is this your Changeling friend?” Dash asked.

“Yeah! Wow, you’re good. Can you guess my favourite color too?”

“Green,” Dash said without thinking about it, more focused on lifting her body from the ground.

“Nope! It’s no wait you’re right, it is green.” Blaze poked Dash in the side. “Are you a mind-reader?”

“Are you ever quiet?”

“I think sometimes I sleep,” Blaze sagely noted. “Want me to help you escape?”

“I’d love it,” Dash said, grunting as she pushed herself up, only to collapse back on her belly. It wasn’t that she was exhausted or her muscles overstrained, everything was just responding weakly. The strength was there, just inaccessible. “But it won’t do any good unless I can get up and out of these ropes!”

“Oh, I can help with that,” Blaze said. He reached over and bit at the ropes binding Dash’s wings down. “You know,” he said, showing excellent skill in talking with his mouth full. “I should be more surprised to see you here, but life’s been getting really weirdly coincidental lately.”

“You too, huh,” Dash sighed. “Star thinks so too. She thinks it’s all connected somehow.”

“This Star sounds smart.”

Dash chuckled. “Yeah.”

Blaze wrenched his head to the side as he pulled on the ropes. Dash squished her wings down as much as she could to give him slack to work with. A moment later she felt the ropes loosen and her wings come free. “There, that’s one,” Blaze said. “Want me to get your legs too?”

“Give me a bit,” Dash said. She gave her wings a couple experimental flaps and found them still too weak to lift her. “A minute, maybe two, and we’re out of here.”

“Yay! Then we go for pizza!”

Dash paused again. “No. Then we rescue our friends.”

“Well, duh,” Blaze said. “Pizza’s no good when your friends are locked up. Unless it’s the kind where there’s files and lockpicks baked into the crust.”

Rainbow Dash threw her head back and laughed. “You are so random!” A wave of nostalgia and homesickness rolled through her, cutting off her mirth.

“Okay, that started as a happy-laugh and turned into a sad-laugh,” Blaze said. “Wanna talk about it?”

“Not really,” Dash said. “I have a friend back home, and you remind me of her, that’s all.”

“Where’s home for you?”

“A long way away,” Dash said, unable to keep her voice from turning morose.

“I’m from Orion City,” Blaze offered. “It’s a long way away too.”

“Bet mine’s farther.”

“That’s okay,” Blaze said. “That just means we can stop at my home on our way to yours, and you can meet my sister! You’d like her. She’s funny.”

“Why would you even be going to my home?”

“Because we’re friends,” Blaze said. “Friends hang out.”

“Friends already, huh?”

“Well, you know what they say: friends help you move, real friends break you out of prison. I figure this counts.”

Dash shook her head with a chuckle. “You really do remind me of her.”

“Then I should totally be friends with whoever-it-is too! Then, when all us friends are together, we party.”

A light snapped on, nearly blinding Dash for a moment as the door opened and a trio of earth pony guards stepped into the room. One of them was larger than the other two, which was no mean feat, and from the way they stood he was clearly the leader. He eyed the two of them with hard green eyes that were narrowed into angry slits.

Blaze rolled away from Dash and she got her first good look at him. He looked like a wreck. There were fresh burns and bruises all over his body, some still oozing. One eye swollen shut and weeping blood. His yellow-striped mane was matted with dried blood and dirt, Dash was surprised she hadn’t noticed the smell of it before. He smiled at her, though, and there was no pain in it.

The guards took in the two of them, and saw the ropes missing from around Dash’s wings, Blaze's teeth marks all over them. “Looks like he’s still got some fight in him,” the lead guard growled out. “Hold her,” he told the one on the left, indicating Dash. Then he advanced on Blaze.

The guard jumped on Dash. Twice her size and three times her weight he slammed her into the floor with his bulk. She struggled, her wings flapping and legs straining at the ropes that held her, but she was still too weak. The guard punched her in the side and practically sat on her as he held her down. “If you struggle any more,” he whispered, his breath hot in her ear, “we have orders to break your wings first.” Dash froze up, sure that in her current condition she could do nothing to prevent that. “Good girl. Just take it easy and it doesn’t have to be hard on you.”

“What about him?” she snarled back, watching the two guards slowly stalk over to Blaze’s prone form. “He’s not struggling, why hurt him?”

“The boss said make him hurt,” the guard replied. “I don’t know why, and I don’t care. You question her orders, you get her attention. You get her attention, you end up like him.”

“Hey, guys, don't be hasty, there are alternatives,” Blaze was saying to his assailants. “Have you ever tried beating me up with insults? I’m sure my self-esteem needs some bruising.”

"Shut up," the lead guard said, slamming his hoof into Blaze's stomach while the other gathered up the rope that had recently bound Dash's wings and began expertly tying one end into a heavy knot.

"How... about... philosophy?" Blaze wheezed out. "Kick a guy's face and he'll be bruised for days, but shatter his concept of truth and you've hurt him for life."

"Bruising's quicker," the guard said, taking the rope from his companion and giving it a couple test swings.

"Yeah, I was hoping you wouldn't notice that," Blaze said, then clenched up as the guard swung at him.

Dash flinched back as the knotted rope hit Blaze with a meaty smack. He didn't cry out, but couldn't stop a hiss of pained breath from escaping him. She felt her blood surge, pounding hot in her ears. She couldn't just lie here and do nothing, not when someone was getting brutalized a few steps away.

The weight of the guard was like a hundred thousand pounds on her back. The ache of her joints a reminder of how much she'd already been through this day. Ropes bound her legs, and fear threatened to bind her mind just as tightly. Without her strength back any attempt to help would be futile, and would only lead to her getting hurt as well.

Rainbow Dash smirked. As if any of that was going to stop her.

She whipped her head up and back, cracking her skull against the guard's jaw. He let out a pained yelp, but held on tighter instead of loosening his grip. Dash snarled in frustration and snapped her head back again. He pulled his face out of the way to avoid it, but misjudged how flexible Dash could be as she ended up slamming into his outstretched neck instead. This time he couldn't make more than a choking noise and his weight fell away as he reared up, pawing at his throat.

Dash bucked up with all her strength, which was pitifully low and only managed to make the guard stumble off of her. The other two guards had taken notice of her by now, leaving Blaze curled in a ball of pain on the floor, ignored for the moment. Dash quickly bit at the ropes holding her forelegs, tearing at them with her teeth. A pony's teeth were not meant for ripping and tearing, however, and all she managed to do was tighten them before the lead guard slammed into her.

He hit her in the chest, right below her collarbone. He was strong, so strong that he lifted her right up and bashed her against the corrugated metal wall hard enough to dent it. He held her there, one forehoof on her chest applying enough pressure to keep her suspended, rear hooves inches off the ground. He waved his free forehoof in her face. "Bad choice, little bird," he sneered. He looked with disdain on the guard Dash had injured. "Pick yourself up. Are you such a fucking disgrace that you can't hold down one little mare?" The downed guard stared daggers at him, before swallowing painfully and standing up. The lead guard dismissed him with a snort before turning back to Dash. "Now, what were you told? You don't struggle, we don't have to hurt you. Why did you go and ruin that perfectly good arrangement?"

"Got bored watching you prance," Dash said, smirking at him.

"You think you're tough, huh?" he asked with narrowed eyes.

"I know I'm tough," Dash replied. "I think you're a little bully of a colt who never grew up."

She saw the punch he threw coming from a mile away, but held like she was there was nothing she could do to avoid it. His hoof smashed into her cheek, tearing it both outside her mouth and in. "You are an idiot, girl," he growled, pushing harder. Dash was getting a little tired of being held down with one hoof today. She could accept it from Umbra, the Nightmare was stronger than mountains, but this guy? She stared him in the eye and carefully spat a wad of blood and saliva on his face. He sneered at her, slowly wiping the offending material away. "It's not going to stop what's coming to him," he said, shaking his head. "And now you're just going to get it too. What could possibly have made you be so stupid."

Dash looked past the guards to Blaze, who looked up at her with shining yellow eyes and a grin that was no less bright for how much blood stained his teeth. She thought of another pony, the one he reminded her of so much, and imagined her in his position. Fire burned in her stomach and rage kindled in her blood. "What can I say? He's a friend."

The ropes around her legs burst as she flexed, snapping with twin bullwhip cracks. She grabbed the hoof holding her between her own and pushed. The lead guard's eyes went wide as he found himself sliding inch by inch away from her. "And I!" she snarled, punching him in the face. He staggered back from the blow, dazed, and Dash leapt off the wall. She crashed into him and bore him to the floor. "Don't!" The uninjured guard rushed at her, swinging the knotted rope. She put a hoof in the path of that rope, letting it wrap around her foreleg and using it to drag the pony in for a vicious head butt that broke his nose and sent him sprawling, out cold. "Leave!" The guard who had tried to hold her scrambled in, turning to buck her in the side. She was so much faster than him there was practically no effort in her response. She bucked him in the ribs even as he was lifting his legs to kick her. Bone splintered and he fell, clutching at his sides and gasping for breath. "Friends!" She turned back to the lead guard, who was recovering from her opening punch. He struck out at her, landing a glancing blow on her side that probably bruised bone. She accepted the hit and grabbed him with her forehooves, lifting him completely into the air. "Hanging!" She leapt up and into a back flip, using her wings to propel her and her hapless earth pony passenger into a rapid spin that whirled in the air a half dozen times before she launched him headfirst into the floor with all the momentum he had built up. He slammed into the ground with the deep ringing of metal, his body propped up on his shoulders for a long moment before slumping down.

Dash hovered in the air above the guard, watching until she was sure he was breathing before she let herself relax. A sharp whistle caught her attention and she looked over at Blaze, who was wiggling strangely. "Yeah!" he said, making another twitching wiggle. "You go girl! Who rocks? Firefly rocks! I'd be clapping now, but unlike some ponies I could mention I can't seem to make ropes explode with the power of my mind."

Dash laughed, the feel of her wings and the strength in her limbs was exhilarating. Her weakness was gone, now she just had to rescue Star Fall and get out of there. First thing was first, though. She flew over to Blaze and quickly untied him. "Are you okay?"

He shrugged. "I've been worse. You?"

She grinned. "I'm awesome. You know your way around this place?"

"Nope," he said, flapping his legs as they were freed to get the blood flowing back in them. "But stick with me and we'll find our friends."

"How?"

"My Talent," he said. "I'm always on the right path, no matter how twisty or turny it gets, and I always get where I want to go."

"And you'll help me find Star?"

"I promise," he said. "I help you rescue your friend, you help me rescue mine. Then pizza."

Dash laughed. "Deal." She took his hoof and shook it. "Now come on, I don't think I can fight this whole base, so the quicker we're gone, the better."

"Truer words have never been spoken," Blaze said, slowly getting to his hooves. "Well, okay, maybe they have, but they'll do for a standard measure of truth for now. I propose we call this system the BlazeFly scale, and we merchandise the hell out of it."

Dash shook her head. "Blaze, you are so random."

***

Everything was happening with a confusing suddenness that Star Fall found she just could not keep up with. Her head was still ringing from the scream that had ripped its way from Dash's throat. There were spots in her vision from the blinding light that had come from Dash's eyes. She had felt something shift, something fundamental that she just could not yet grasp. But as much as she might want to ponder on the subject, her capture demanded as much of her attention as her dizzy thoughts could spare.

She tried to struggle, but the ropes holding her were securely tied and there wasn’t much she could do about that under Charisma’s watchful eye. She still did her best, squirming as she was hauled through the camp across the back of one of the guards. They took her into one of the larger pre-fab structures, guards on the doors snapping to attention as Charisma approached and not even sparing a questioning glance for her prisoner. Two narrow hallways later and she found herself in a small, spartan room. She was unceremoniously dumped on a small bed, barely big enough for an average stallion. The only other furniture in the room was a desk and a chair. The desk held stacks of papers and books, most of them with titles she recognized as being rare pre-Schism volumes. Two separate copies of The Magic of Friendship caught her eye, one clearly an early edition, though not quite as old as Twinkle Shine's prized volume.

“Now, isn’t this cozy?” Charisma said, jerking her head to make the guard leave the room. When he was gone she grinned down at the captive pegasus, folding into a drill-perfect bow. “Does my lady need anything?" she asked in a sickeningly obsequious tone. "Tea, perhaps? I’m sure I could find some dainties for my lady as well, should she find herself peckish at this time of night.”

“Don’t mock me,” Star Fall snapped, glaring at the pink pegasus.

“What ever does my lady mean?” Charisma asked, feigning shock. “I wouldn’t think to mock one of my betters.”

“So is that why you betrayed your Kingdom?” Star Fall asked, deciding to pay viciousness with viciousness. “You’re all sore you weren’t born with a horn on your head and pissed off they were letting me into the club and not you?”

Charisma shrugged, dropping the false servility like a soiled cloak. “Gotta say, it didn’t help.” She launched at Star Fall with no warning, grin wide and gleeful as her hoof snapped out, aiming for Star Fall’s eyes. She was stopped a bare inch from Star Fall’s face by a magenta glow of magic that surrounded her hoof. Charisma backed off immediately, turning to the pony who was standing in the door. “Spoilsport.”

“Blinded ponies are uncooperative ponies,” Max Cash admonished her, stepping into the room. He regarded Star Fall with a cool interest as he shut the door behind him. “Hey,” he said, sitting on the chair by the desk. “You would not believe the day I’ve been having." His tone was cordial, friendly in fact. He seemed as relaxed as if this were a conversation between old acquaintances. For some reason, this unnerved her. "I mean, first this storm, then that huge magical burst, then the rain, and lunch was late, and then my secret dig is crawling with spies. Now I’ve got to entertain? You should have written ahead.”

“Wanted to surprise you,” Star Fall said, trying to watch both Cash and Charisma at once.

“Well color me surprised,” Cash said, chuckling. “Ah, well, since we’ve never met, allow me to introduce myself. I am Maximillion Oswald Cash, businesspony and Republican citizen. You already know Charisma." His voice dropped to a conspiratorial whisper and he leaned in Star Fall's direction. "You'll have to excuse her, she's from your side of the Storm and I've been told etiquette is a bit different over here.” He winked at her before pulling back to a normal sitting posture, gesturing to her. When Star Fall didn’t reply he leaned back toward her and whispered: “This is the part where you say your name.”

“She’s the Lady Fallen Star,” Charisma said for her. “Adopted daughter of Twinkle Shine, chief adviser to the King.”

Cash let out a low whistle at this news. “Wow, that’s something,” he said. “A celebrity in my bed! I hope you don’t mind me bragging about that completely without context.” Star Fall just stared at him, ignoring the offer to engage him in conversation once more. He shrugged. “It’s a guy thing, like comparing horn sizes, if you know what I mean.” He gave her another wink. “Anyways, what brings you to my humble secret lair?”

“She’s spying on us,” Charisma said this the same way one would speak of a foal doing something cute, but foolish.

Cash blinked in surprise. “Really? Spying? You sure she’s not just an amateur archaeologist?”

“Pretty sure,” Charisma replied.

“Huh. Well how about that.” Cash shook his head. “Okay, Lady Star, I’m going to be direct, because right now I’ve got two spies too many in my camp, and I need to get a move on. Trust me, I’d love to draw this out, but I can’t. So, why are you here, what do you know, and who’s coming to save you.” Star Fall settled back into the bed and smirked at him. He quirked an eyebrow. “Charisma, is she being obstinate?”

“Oh yes,” Charisma said, drawing out the word with loving relish.

“You really don’t want to be obstinate,” Cash warned her. “You should probably talk to me now, or else...”

“Or else what?” Star Fall demanded. “You’re going to let your dog at me?” Charisma bristled. “You said it yourself, you’re in a hurry. She can beat me up, but I’m not going to talk before you’re out of time. You want to know why I’m here? Because I felt like it. You want to know what I know? Take a wild guess. You want to know who’s coming to rescue me? Everyone. Every damn one.”

Star Fall held his eyes, defiant and hoping he wouldn’t call her bluff. She knew she could take a little pain, but she also knew that Charisma had all the best interrogation training the Kingdom could provide. If she wanted to make Star Fall answer, it wouldn’t take that long for her to break.

Cash slumped, relaxing in his chair. “Oh, that is a relief. You have no idea.”

Star Fall blinked, surprised at his response. Charisma seemed similarly lost. “Max, let me question her, I can get it all before morning.”

“Why?” Max asked, frowning at his enforcer. “She’s already said everything.”

“What?” Star Fall shook her head in confusion.

“Well, come on. You went through it point-by-point, just like I asked. You’re here because you feel you have to be instead of just following orders, you know practically nothing of use, and everybody’s coming to save you. If you feel like elaborating, go right ahead, but it seems pretty clear to me.” He smiled happily at her. “Thanks. Want a cookie?”

“I didn’t ... no.” Star Fall shook her head. “You’re trying to confuse me.”

“Not even!" He laughed, a wild sound that made her flinch back. "I don’t need to confuse you when all that pretty little defiance is doing it just fine,” Cash was suddenly on his hooves, looming over her. She shrank back from him, but he followed, coming uncomfortably close without actually touching her. His dark eyes held her like a vice, she couldn’t look away. “You are so far out of your league it’s disappointing,” he said, his voice low and rough, almost a growl. “And you have no idea what you’ve walked into, not a single clue who you’re up against." His eyes held her there, trapped like an animal in a snare. Then, just as suddenly as it appeared all his menace was gone. He hopped back and sat down again, grinning widely. "I, however, know everything I need to about you. You sure you don’t want that cookie?”

Star Fall shook her head, unable to stop shaking as the unnatural grip of his gaze let her go.

Cash pulled back and shrugged. “Suit yourself,” he said, and levitated a cookie out of the slim saddlebag he wore, taking a bite and chewing slowly as he regarded her. “Charisma, the guard told me there were two ponies you found. Where’s the other one?”

“I threw her in with Blaze.”

“Nice. Make sure they’re entertained. Find me Conrad while you’re at it.”

“Max...”

“It’s a polite way of asking you to leave the room, Charisma,” Cash said. “Me and the lady need some alone time.” Charisma’s eyes went from Cash to Star Fall, gaze hard. “Don’t worry, I’ll be safe,” Cash assured her. Charisma snorted derisively before leaving the room. The moment the door clicked closed Cash turned back to Star Fall, his horn lighting up as he magically untied the ropes that bound her. “She’s such a mother hen sometimes,” he said. “You know the feeling, right?”

As soon as the ropes were gone Star Fall scrambled as far away from Cash as she could manage, squeezing herself up against the wall. “What are you doing?” she asked, looking around for some way to gain an advantage on the unicorn. As a pegasus her reactions were naturally faster than his, but he was a powerful Magic Talent, and all he needed was a thought to immobilize her.

“Engaging in dialogue,” he replied. His tone had softened again, becoming almost fatherly. “I know, I know, I said I'm in a rush, but I still wanted to talk a bit. You know, unicorn to unicorn."

"I'm not a unicorn," Star Fall said, frowning at him.

"Aren't you?" he asked, quirking an eyebrow at her. "Don't tell me you think being a unicorn is all in the horn. There are a million ponies out there with horns, but most of them aren't unicorns. Not really. Rip your wings off, are you any less a pegasus? Give my horn to Charisma, is she suddenly an Alicorn? No. Neither of these things are true, so why measure who we are by what we possess? After all, it's what's inside that counts."

"You're quoting Twilight Sparkle," Star Fall said. "But that wasn't what she was talking about. She was talking about appearances, and not judging someone by what they look like. Not ignoring your literal species!"

He shrugged. "So I paraphrased a bit. The point still stands. You're more of a unicorn than most unicorns."

"Why do you even think that?"

"Because I'm more of a unicorn than most unicorns too," he said. "And I know a Magic Talent when I sense one."

"I..." Star Fall had no idea what to say to that. She wasn't actively using her magic, she should have been effectively invisible to him.

"You'd like to deny it. I can see that," he said. "It's probably some big secret for you, something you hide from the world for whatever list of reasons you've come up with to keep your head down. I don't mind that. I understand it. I didn't hide my Talent when I was your age, but I've since learned that there's a lot to be gained by a bit of anonymity."

She shook her head. She had no idea what game he was playing, but she didn't like it. "What's your point?"

"My point?" He smiled. "Is that we have something in common. Isn't that wonderful?" She swallowed hard, something about that had felt ominous. He saw her apprehension and sighed. "Okay, so we'll have to get a few things out of the way first if this is going to be a productive conversation. First off, yes I have you in my power. Evil cackle, moustache twirl, the whole deal. But I'm not going to harm you. I'm not going to let Charisma or another one of my minions hurt you either. Not so long as we're actually having this conversation, at least."

Star Fall tried not to show how much that implied threat got to her. She wasn't sure she succeeded to any degree.

"Second, you're thinking about escaping. Don't. It's a waste of your time, and might be a waste of mine. You're getting rescued, remember? Everyone's coming to get you out of my nefarious clutches, right? Just sit pretty and you'll be breathing the free air in no time." He sounded like he believed that, which was enough to make her wonder what he knew that she didn't. "So, since I'm not going to hurt you and you're not going to escape me, why don't we make the best of it and play nice? Come on, let's be friends."

He extended a hoof to her, welcoming smile crinkling the corners of his eyes. She didn't trust it for a second. she knew there was a trap in there somewhere. There was no reason he’d be talking to her at all unless he thought he could get information out of her. There was, however, the possibility that she could get information from him at the same time, and if she was careful she could limit what he learned from her. Decision made, she relaxed to a sitting position on the bed and met his hoof with her own. “Alright, let's talk,” she said.

"Excellent!" he crowed, grinning like a colt who'd gotten a new toy. "I'm hoping to learn more about you, Lady Star."

"And I was hoping to find out more about you," she said.

"Why not do both?" he said. "A question for a question. You don't have to answer if you don't want to, but that means I get to ask another question before you do. Vice versa applies, of course. You start."

Star Fall took a steadying breath. "Why?"

“Kind of a broad question, isn’t it?” Cash said. “Why what?”

“Why are you digging these holes?”

Cash’s eyebrows rose appreciatively. “Ah, a good question. Why am I digging these holes? Well, the simple answer is that I’m looking for something.”

“What’s the complex answer?”

“Complex,” Cash said. “In the extreme. Stick with the simple answer for now, we can discuss the complexities later. If we get the chance to, of course. Have you seen the new episodes of Palace Mares?”

Star Fall blinked at the reference to the popular television series. “No. I don’t watch it.”

“Huh, too bad. I was hoping you could give me some spoilers.”

“Who killed James Bay?”

“Who indeed,” Cash said. “How’s the Professor? Doing well, I hope.”

“You didn’t answer my question. That means I get to go again.”

“Getting the answer to that one isn’t as important as asking the question is,” Cash replied, flashing a toothy smile at her. "But rules are rules. Hit me with your best shot."

Star Fall narrowed her eyes at him. “What do you want?”

“That’s the question,” he said, eyes staring off into the distance. “What does any of us really want? That's your answer, by the way, but let me turn that one back around on you. What do you want?”

“I want you to answer my questions instead of dancing around them.”

“Sure, but that’s a little want. I mean what do you really, really want?”

“To get out of here.”

“Again, little want. You’re going to get out soon enough, hurrying that up will only satisfy a small itch. What you really want to scratch is something else.”

She shook her head, exasperated with his verbal circling around whatever he wanted to say. “Fine, if you know so much about me, what do I want?”

Cash’s gaze locked on hers. “Choice.”

“What?”

“You want choice, Lady Star. You want to be able to choose the path your life will take, the future you will meet. You want some measure of control over your destiny and you want it desperately enough that you are thinking of betraying everything you hold dear to get it.”

Star Fall felt like iron bands had been wrapped around her chest, keeping her from breathing. “How...?”

“How do I know all this? Magic, of course,” Cash chuckled. “In all seriousness, I could put it down to my amazing powers of observation, but really all I needed to know was two things. One, your identity as Twinkle Shine’s daughter. Second your presence here despite having had a close encounter with the Gray Mare herself this morning. The rest just falls naturally.”

"How did you know?"

"You keep asking that. In this case, the answer is ashes," he said, leaning over and touching a hoof to her mane. "Your hair is singed, and your coat smeared with ashes. The rain took care of most of them, but I can still see some in the places where your wings have kept them dry. I can still smell them, too. You've been touched by Ashfire. It has some very specific properties, things that I know to look for. It clings to a person, it feeds from their own innate magic, growing and consuming flesh and spirit alike. Water does not quench it. Sand does not smother it. It will burn even if starved for oxygen. All it needs is the magic of the one it is killing to fuel it. Only being a Magic Talent, having an exceptionally strong will or the timely intervention of someone who knows how to deal with it can save you from Ashfire, and even then it leaves traces. Traces that are clear on you."

Star Fall's mouth had gone dry, and her throat made a clicking noise as she tried to swallow. "I didn't know that," she admitted. The black fire Umbra had thrown at her had clung to her, yes, but she'd ignored it and focused her magic into attacking the Nightmare. If Cash was telling the truth, that had saved her life.

"Not many do," he said. "Only one being can use Ashfire, and the last time she was seen was twenty years ago. Or was it this morning?" He chuckled as he leaned back again. "I figure the latter is the safe bet today."

“I don’t understand," she said, shaking her head, trying to keep to a coherent line of thought. “What does any of that have to do with choice?”

“You want me to spell it out for you?”

“Yes.”

He shrugged. “Okay. You’re an adopted noble. That means a lot of pressure is on you to perform, to have earned that adoption. Your entire life is under one big magnifying glass held by all the right ponies at the upper levels of society. You’ve got to earn their respect a hundred times as hard as a born unicorn. Worse yet, you’re adopted by the greatest magical prodigy of her generation. A direct line to the King. That’s extra right there. How free are you to be who you want to be? To do what you want to do?

“I’m free...” Star Fall said, but it was a weak protest and she didn’t have the heart to carry it through.

“Sure you are. Free to do exactly what you’re told you have to do. I understand what that’s like. I was born in the country, a low-middle class unicorn in a no-class town. As a colt there was literally nothing expected of me, I could have been anything. Then I discovered my Talent, and worse yet, so did everyone else. Suddenly I was under all this pressure to make something of myself, to live up to the thing that made me special. We don’t treat Magic Talents in the Republics like you do here, but there is a saying in the nightlands: To whom much is given, much is asked. I was asked a lot. It’s stifling, trying to live up to everyone’s expectations, trying to please unpleasable taskmasters and reach for a victory whose goalposts are always receding. How much worse it must be for you, well, I don’t want to imagine.”

Star Fall couldn’t help how her feelings resonated with his words. It made sense. He would understand that part. Yet that was only a small part of her life, and one she’d come to terms with a long time ago. “You had a hard life? Boo hoo, poor you.”

Cash snickered at that. “Struck a nerve there, huh? So what changed?”

“What?”

“I told you, I know what it’s like to be under the pressures you are. I also know that you would be a very different pony if that was all that it took to make you desperate to assert yourself. Yet here we are, so what changed?”

“Nothing.”

“Lies,” Cash grinned. “Useful things, those. Keep practicing, though, yours need some work. It doesn’t matter anyway. Whatever changed, it changed big, and because of it you decided that coming here and peeking under my hat is more important than going home and reporting on your experience with the Nightmare Umbra this morning. That’s some serious dereliction of duty there.”

“What do you know of Umbra?”

“Lots. Why, did she send you?” Star Fall frowned at that, but he continued before she could think of a response. “No, of course not. She’d come herself if she wanted to stop me. Not a damn thing I could do if that were the case, so she must have been interested in you.” Star Fall kept her features perfectly neutral, but Cash quirked an eyebrow. “Not you, huh? Something you carry? Nope. Guess again. Your companion? Yeah, there it is. So the Destroyer came for your companion and she survived. Cool, that’s a story I’d like to hear.”

Star Fall stared at him, wondering how much he could really see. She knew Gamma could read reactions like he seemed to be doing, and Cash was supposed to be frighteningly insightful. Yet his own actions weren’t consistent with those of someone who could read his audience as perfectly as he seemed to.

“So here you are," he continued. "Carrying vital information, but choosing to pursue a lesser goal instead. Why?” Cash speared her with his gaze again. “Choice. Your defiance, your anger, your very presence here, all screaming to anyone who cares to listen that you just want a choice. That’s the answer to your question. That’s what you want. Fortunately for you, what I want may just line up with what you want. Then everyone goes home happy.”

“What do you mean?” she asked, unable once more to look away from him. She tried to blink, but her eyelids didn't respond.

“You want a choice, I’m in the mood to give you one. Not a great choice, mind you, but a way to have some control over your destiny.”

“What choice?” There was something unsettlingly alluring in the way he was presenting his offer, but she couldn't pin it down. Every time she thought she had put her hoof on it, it slipped away from her again.

“Well, on the one hoof you can sit here, stewing in your defiance and get rescued like a good little damsel in distress,” he said, shrugging to show what he thought of that option.

“And on the other?”

“On the other you can come with me,” he said.

“Join you? That’s your choice?” She almost laughed at that. It was like something out of a foal's storybook. Yet she couldn't help but consider it.

“Not join, come with,” he said. “You don’t have to sign on and you don’t have to switch allegiances. I’m not offering you a job, Lady Star. Just a choice. Come with me and I’ll show you exactly what I’m doing. I’ll tell you everything, and then you can make your own decision on what to do about it. Stay with me, go back to your Kingdom, head to the nightlands and make a new life, whatever you decide. The whole world will be open and ripe for you to take whatever you want from it. Or not take. Choice, Lady Star. All the choice you could ever want. All you have to do is forget those old loyalties for a moment and take your fate into your own hooves. All you need to do is say 'yes'.”

The more she thought about his offer the more attractive it seemed to her. She told herself it was too good to be true, far too good. Reminded herself again and again that there had to be an angle somewhere that she wasn’t seeing. That there must be some hidden reason why he would even begin to offer this to her. It didn’t make sense. Why would he being serious? Was he just playing her somehow? If only she could figure it out. But his eyes held her and his voice entranced her and she could not help but consider it.

It would be a choice. It would be her own decision, and it could very well be what she needed to escape from the madness of the King. He was right. She hated to admit it, but he was right. The King wanted her to marry, and her mentor was powerless to stop it. Worse than that, she wasn’t even going to try. Twinkle Shine was the most powerful unicorn in the Kingdom, surely she could do something? Yet she wasn't. She was abandoning her.

She did want a choice, wanted some control over her future, and this was the perfect out. What was keeping her from saying yes? Twinkle Shine? Gamma? Her family? Her loyalty to her kingdom?

No. She had no loyalty to them.

She opened her mouth to answer him, but the movement jarred the chain around her neck. Not much, just enough that it tinkled softly against the small golden amulet that dangled from it. The sound gave her pause. Twinkle Shine had given her that necklace to protect her. She had created the Everstorm spells to give her a way out of the Kingdom that couldn't be traced. She had been holding off the King for a decade. How could she have ever thought that her mentor had abandoned her?

Star Fall closed her mouth firmly. She could accept Cash’s offer, she might even be willing to betray her country under the right circumstances. But what would happen to Astrid? What would happen to Rainbow Dash? She might betray her country, but after what they had been through these past few weeks she would never betray them. She knew then that she did have loyalty. Loyalty to her friends. Loyalty to her mentor. Loyalty to her duties, and yes, loyalty to her Kingdom.

“No,” she said, strength filling her as she closed her eyes, breaking the hold Cash seemed to have on her. “I say no.”

Cash frowned as if taken aback, giving a questioning glance to his saddlebag. “Huh. Guess I need more practice. Well, okay. Now I have no idea what to talk about. You sure you don’t want that cookie? I’ve got extras.”

“No, thank you,” Star Fall said, and the two lapsed into uncomfortable silence.

Almost a minute later the door burst open and Charisma stormed in. “Oh thank Luna, that was awkward,” Cash breathed, turning to his enforcer. “Not perfect timing, but close enough that I might hug you.”

“We have a problem,” Charisma said.

“I’ll say, she doesn’t like cookies,” Cash said, pointing a hoof at Star Fall. “What is today’s youth coming to?”

Charisma rolled her eyes at Cash. “No, Blaze and the lady’s companion have escaped.”

“Wow, that was quick.”

“I’ve got the men searching for them, but someone’s knocked out the communications hub, we’re down to word-of-mouth and light flares for co-ordination.”

“Did you find Conrad?”

“He’s just outside,” Charisma said, nodding. Her eyes tracked to Star Fall. “I could use her as bait, set a trap.”

“Nice idea, not today,” Cash said. “Get the word out to evacuate.”

“It’s just two ponies,” Charisma said, but Cash held up a hoof to forestall her.

“Two for now. I’m expecting a lot more soon enough.”

“Why?”

“You were here for that bit, Charisma, try to remember. She said ‘everyone’ so I’m expecting ‘everyone’.”

“She was lying, Max,” Charisma said in an annoyed deadpan.

Cash threw Star Fall a grin that made her squish up against the wall again. “No she wasn’t,” he said. “Come on, I need you to run interference for a bit. This’ll take some set up and I don’t want anyone interrupting me before it’s done."

With that the two left, shutting the door behind them and leaving Star Fall to slump down on the bed.

***

Scarlet Top peered out into the wet darkness with tired eyes, listening to the white noise of rain pounding on the roof of guard tower four. His shift should have been over two hours ago, and he was feeling the strain of it, but Charisma said all hooves had to be on deck so here he was. She allowed no slackers in her crew, and since she enforced that rule with her usual brutal efficiency he was in no hurry to catch her eye.

Still, it had been an exceptionally long day, even by the demanding standards that came with working for Charisma. All because of the damned storm that had come out of nowhere in defiance of all weather predictions.

He sighed and leaned against the window of the watchtower. For all the hassle and boredom of this job, it still beat the Republics Army, that was for sure.

“Hey, Scarlet, you see the two the boss caught?” Quarry Haul, one of two fellow guards on duty in tower four, asked.

“A pair of pegasi, pretty as you please,” Scarlet confirmed. “Didn’t get a close look at them, but I heard the boss say one of them was a noble.”

“I thought only the horn-heads were allowed to be nobles up in the sunlands,” he said.

Scarlet shrugged. “I guess not. Or maybe just her, I don’t know. We could ask one of the sun-heads next time we see them.”

“Nah, they might take offense to that,” Quarry said, waving the idea off. “You know how the sunlanders get about their nobles. Don’t want to start something if it’s not important.”

“I hear that,” Scarlet agreed, looking back into the night.

“You both should be keeping your brains on the job,” said Mark Early, their nominal commander. “Assuming, that is, you’ve got any.”

“I’m watching, Early, don’t get your feathers ruffled,” Quarry groused. Early flared his wings at the fellow guard, but didn’t say anything.

Scarlet rolled his eyes and turned back to his window. Something seemed off to him. He squinted into the darkness, trying to figure out what it was that was nagging at the edge of his awareness. Finally he realized it wasn’t something he was seeing, it was something he wasn’t. “Hey, Early! Where’s tower three?”

Mark walked over to the window Scarlet was looking out of. “It’s right... uh. Okay, they’ve got their lights out. Just what we need, power outages. Give ‘em a call.”

Scarlet turned away, stepping over to the radio. He tuned it to the general channel and hit the call button. “Tower three, this is tower four. We noticed your lights are out. Do you need assistance? Respond.” He lifted his hoof off the call button and waited, listening to the hiss of static. After there was no response for a minute he hit the button again. “Tower three, this is tower four. What is your situation? Respond.” Nothing. He turned back to the window. “Early, they’re not saying anything you think...” He trailed off as he found the window empty of anything but darkness and rain. “Early!” he shouted.

“Top, what are you screaming about?” Quarry asked, turning away from his own window.

“Where’s Early?” Scarlet asked, looking around for any sign of the tower’s commander.

“Maybe he jumped out the window,” Quarry reasoned. “Went to check out tower three when you got no response.”

“Without telling us?” Scarlet shook his head. “No, something’s wrong.”

“On a day like today? What more could possibly be going wrong?” Quarry asked. There was a thump from outside. Quarry turned and stuck his head out the window. “What the hell was...” He never got to finish his thought.

A bird-like claw with sharp, gleaming talons reached down from the roof through the window. It grabbed Quarry by the face, talons sinking into flesh until they punctured bone. He barely got out a yelp before he was hauled out the window and up to the roof. There was a sickening sound, like celery breaking, and the rain that fell across the window turned red.

Scarlet felt his knees go weak. That had been a Griffin’s claw. He flashed back to the stories they told of Griffins in the Republics Army. Tales of berserker warriors, stories of vicious, implacable and carnivorous monsters who liked nothing more than the taste of pony meat.

There was one on the roof.

He turned back to the radio, slamming his hoof onto the call button. “Tower four to all points we have a code yellow! Repeat, a code yellow! Kingdom forces are attacking, I need assistance! Can anybody hear me?” Only the hiss of static was his reply. He stared at the radio, mouth hanging agape at its betrayal, and only then noticed that the antenna was missing, snapped off at its base.

A leonine growl sounded form behind him, making him go cold. He spun, reaching for his knife, but slashing talons put an end to his attempt to fight. Tower four went dark.

***

Calumn slumped in the chair he was bound to. He barely felt the ropes against his carapace, even though they were especially tight due to being tied for a smaller unicorn body. He was too caught up in his own self loathing.

He’d broken. Not only that, he’d broken without effort, without struggle, and within minutes. Charisma’s torture had been nothing, he could weather weeks of such treatment. A short conversation with Max Cash and he was almost willing to throw everything his life had been for out the window. Was his loyalty truly so shallow? Was he really that pathetic?

Changelings were supported by the Republics. Without their help his species would have died off a long time ago. They provided a safe place to build their hives, schools to train their young, and homes and families to give them the love they needed to survive. Most of all, they gave the Changelings purpose.

After the Schism they had been lost without their Queen, miserable and nihilistic. They took and they took from everyone they came across, and were all the more empty for it. But the Republics had remembered their allies and offered them the direction and oversight they lacked. The Changelings had taken that offer and made it their own, reorganizing their entire society so that they no longer served a Queen, but a Senate.

That purpose, that loyalty, was the core of every Changeling. Without it they were worthless, abominations and monsters that served no function other than to consume. Without it he was just another insect.

He almost missed the sounds of a scuffle outside, absorbed as he was in his own thoughts, but the sound of a body slamming into the metal wall brought him out of his reverie.

“Let’s try this one!” The muffled sound of Blaze’s voice cut into him like a knife, making him sob. If his loyalty to his country was so poor as to be shaken by a few well-placed words, how much more pathetic must be his friendship with the Storm-guide? He’d known the pony for a hoofful of days, how did that stack up next to a lifetime of training and devotion?

“You said that for every door in here!” another voice responded. This one also hit Calumn like a blow, but not in the same way that Blaze’s did. He remembered that voice. It had been etched into his mind and never far from his thoughts ever since that disastrous passage through the Everstorm.

“Rainbow Dash,” Calumn said, lifting his head. She was here. Somehow, by some impossible stroke of luck she was within his reach again.

“I’m extra special sure about this one!” Blaze said. He sounded the same as always, overflowing with chipper joviality. Calumn was glad that whatever might have happened to him at Charisma’s hooves, if anything, hadn’t dampened his spirit.

The door burst open and Blaze stepped in. He looked terrible, covered in welts and bruises, but his smile shone as much as ever. “Buddy!” he shouted, rushing over and giving Calumn a squeezing hug. “You’re okay!”

“Not entirely,” Calumn said, not willing to lie to his friend. “But I’ll be okay. How did you get out?”

“Firefly,” Blaze said, gesturing to the door where Dash stood. “She’s awesome. Like, a dozen guards kicked around like they were foals awesome.”

Calumn met the eyes of the pegasus, and saw the recognition in them. She remembered him just as well as he remembered her. There was also revulsion there, the recoiling horror that most ponies reacted with when they first saw the true form of a Changeling. She recovered from it quickly, her eyes flicking to Blaze as he set about removing the ropes before returning to him. She was wary of him, and worried about Blaze, but there was no fear in her.

“Are these your real colors?” Calumn asked her, gesturing with his crooked horn to indicate her coat and mane.

“Dye job,” Dash said. “This the real you?”

“As close as it ever gets,” Calumn confirmed. “What about the name?”

“Firefly works for now,” she said.

Calumn’s eyes narrowed. That was obviously an assumed name. From the way both she and her companions had reacted in the Everstorm he could likely be safe in thinking her name really was Rainbow Dash. “I’ll go with Strongheart then,” Calumn said, getting off the chair as the last of the bindings fell away. A burst of green fire surrounded him as he once more took the comfortable form of the dark gray stallion. His legs were weak from his captivity, but they held up well enough with the thicker muscles and bones to support them.

“Alright, that’s your friend, which way to Star?” Dash asked Blaze.

“Um, that way,” he pointed in an apparently random direction.

Calumn stared at the pegasus, caught in indecision. Her presence here confirmed that she had at least something to do with Cash. Helping Blaze could mean anything, but likely meant that she wasn’t working for the monstrous unicorn. He needed to know more. He needed to question her to get at the answers he’d come so far to find.

‘Why bother?’ a spiteful little voice in the back of his head whispered. ‘You’re already a traitor, why should you care about your mission?’

Was this all that was left of him, then? A miserable failure of a Changeling who couldn’t even complete his mission when it was right in front of him? He’d given up his name, that was all. Yes, it called into question everything he thought he was, everything he had been raised to be. Yet it wasn’t the end of him. He was still Calumn, still a Changeling of the Republics. While his loyalty may have cracked it was still there, and he could repair it. He could atone for his betrayal.

All he needed was to fulfill his mission.

“Yeah, we’ve already been that way,” Dash said. “Pick another one.”

“Okay, um that way?” Blaze said, pointing to exactly where he had before.

Dash sighed. “Fine. You good to walk Strongheart?”

As she turned to him he grabbed her with his forehooves, pulling her head in and pressing his forehead to hers. She was so shocked by the move that she didn’t even try to resist. He pressed his magic into her, overwhelming her mental defenses, such as they were, and tying her mind to his with ropes of green fire.

He staggered back as the spell completed. Something was wrong. The connection he forged was pouring her energy into him in a torrent. Not just her emotions, but the magic innate to her being. She was there, a presence in his mind, battering at him like an explosion that never ended. He’d never felt a power like it before. It ate at his control, demanded his focus every second he maintained the magic, and filled him with a sense of alien purpose and certainty that threatened to drown his will in bursts of multicolored light.

He’d made a terrible mistake, but it was too late to stop now. He forced the sensations down, breaking his attention in two. The bulk of it went to minding the spell on Dash, and the rest left to let him interact with the world. After a moment he steadied, finding the knife-edge balance that would allow him to function.

He looked around, seeing the world through the lens of Rainbow Dash’s power. Blaze stared at him, wide-eyed and concerned. Light shattered in his eyes as if they were prisms, sending ribbons of rainbow into the depths of his pupils. Calumn retched as he looked away, the sucking gravity of the world drawing only stinging bile from his mouth. He struggled back into control, taking slow and steady breaths.

“Buddy, are you alright?” Blaze asked, frowning in worry at his friend.

“No,” he admitted, shaking off the feeling that the world was trying to crush him and pull him apart at the same time. “But I’ll manage. Come on, we’ve got to get out of here.” He staggered to the door, Dash turning to follow him automatically. He couldn’t hold her for long, not if it was going to be like this. He hoped he would be able to hold her long enough. He hoped it would all be worth it.

***

Rainbow Dash was in love. That was the only way she could describe it. It had felt weird when Strongheart had pushed his head against hers, but now she couldn’t help but fondly remember the contact. She wanted to feel it again.

The entire world was dull and washed out, blurred at the edges and indistinct when she didn’t focus on it. Everything except him. He was crystal clear and painted in the most vibrant of colors. Even his gray coat glistened and shimmered with every motion. She could spend hours looking at it.

He left the room and she followed, knowing somehow that he wanted her to keep up. She had no problem keeping up. It wasn’t like that big earth pony body was going to be outpacing her. She remembered that his true form had wings, and wondered how good a flyer he was. Maybe if she asked him he would practice with her. That would be awesome, the two of them soaring through the air. She wouldn’t mind if he had to be in that insect-like shape to do it, either. She could live with it, so long as she could live with him.

Blaze was talking to him, rushing past her in the narrow metal corridor to walk next to him. She felt a stab of jealousy, but knew that they were friends, and didn’t want to get between him and friendship. Blaze’s voice was distant and hollow, almost like he was talking through a long tube. When Strongheart answered, though, his voice was loud and clear and delightful. She focused on that conversation, if only to hear his voice as he spoke.

“What did you do to her?” Blaze was asking. She frowned at the thought. Strongheart hadn’t actually done anything to her, had he? It was kind of strange that she was suddenly in love with him, but there were plenty of stories of love at first sight that sounded weirder, so she shrugged and let it go.

“She’s my mission, Blaze,” Strongheart replied. Dash smiled at that. She was his mission, that was so nice. “I have to find out what she knows, what she was doing at that dig outside of Orion City, and what she’s doing at this one now. I have to find out what her connection to Max Cash is.” Dash nodded along with him. She wanted to know the answer some of those as well, and she was sure that working together they could figure it out.

“But this?” Blaze shook his head. “Buddy, I know I’m not the best judge of these things, but this isn’t right. She was helping us, her own free will and everything.” Of course she was. She’d do anything for Strongheart.

“I know it’s not right!” Strongheart snapped. Dash flared her wings, ready to beat up whatever was causing him distress. “I know. But I can’t stop. I have to. I have to prove I’m not ...” he trailed off, head low. “Blaze,” he said, leaning against his friend. “I’m sorry, but I have to do this.”

Blaze frowned, but nodded. “Alright. If you’ve got to then you’ve got to, but we’ve also got to rescue Firefly’s friend Star.”

“No,” Strongheart shook his head. “I can’t afford that. We have to get away from Max Cash and this place as soon as we can.”

Dash frowned. That wasn’t right. “No,” she said, the words thick in her mouth like she was chewing on toffee. “We gotta rescue Star.”

Strongheart staggered, one hoof going to his head as his face twisted in pain. “We have to leave,” he reiterated.

Dash felt her head trying to nod, but she forced it to still. Of course she wanted to agree with him, Blaze had been hurt, and it looked like Strongheart was in a lot of pain too. They really did need to get out of there, and fast. Yet she couldn’t just abandon Star. “I... don’t... leave... friends...” she said, forcing each word out through uncooperative lips.

“She really doesn’t,” Blaze said. “Buddy, I promised, okay? She’s stuck here, with Charisma and Max, and we’re all that’s going to rescue her. I wouldn’t leave you with that, we can’t leave her either.”

Strongheart took several deep breaths before nodding. “You’re right,” he said. Dash nearly stomped her hooves in joy. “I can’t leave anyone with him, not if I can help it.” He looked at Blaze with wide, haunted eyes. “You tried to warn me. I didn’t listen.”

“Whoa, what did he do?” Blaze asked, clearly surprised by Strongheart’s reaction to meeting the criminal.

“I don’t even know,” Strongheart said, his voice breaking for a moment. He composed himself quickly, shaking his head. “He just talked, Blaze. Just talked.”

Dash frowned. While she was still going to beat up this Max Cash for making the love of her life nearly cry, talking seemed like a really lame reason to wail on a guy for. She shrugged at the thought. Ah, well, he probably deserved it anyway.

“All right, follow me!” Blaze said, but Strongheart put a hoof in his way.

“Do you know where they took your friend?” he asked her.

Dash grinned at the question. He was talking to her, and that was the best thing ever. “The pink one, she said they were taking her to Cash’s room.”

“Okay. You’re strong and fast, right?”

“The fastest,” Dash confirmed, preening at his interest.

“I need you to get us one of the ponies out there, preferably one of the guards. They need to be conscious, and you can’t be followed back here. Can you do that?”

“In ten seconds flat!” she boasted.

“Then go to it,” he said, pointing a hoof down the hallway at the door.

She was off in a pink-blue streak, bursting through the door and up in to the air. The camp was in an uproar. Teams of guards ran through the muddy paths between buildings while workers rushed towards trucks that were being filled with equipment and ponies as fast as they could be loaded. Gunshots rang out in staccato bursts, familiar to Dash ever since her run through the Maul. Several of the watchtowers were dark, another was on fire.

She ignored all that, instead searching for a straggler, some guard on their own or fallen behind. She saw a few likely candidates right away, chose one at random, and dove for him. She thought she heard someone call her name, but she didn’t take the time to make sure, too intent on getting the guard and returning to Strongheart with her prize.

The pony she had chosen was a blue pegasus. He was trotting around the side of one of the buildings, one wing outstretched and keeping the rain off of a tube-device that Dash had learned was the modern age’s version of a gun. He never knew what hit him.

She grabbed him on the run, whisking him off his hooves and into the air. He cried out, but she stuffed a hoof into his mouth to muffle his shouts. His flapping wings and flailing hooves were a nuisance, but one she could easily weather as she rushed back into the building where Strongheart and Blaze were waiting.

She dropped the captured guard at their hooves, stepping on him so he couldn’t get up and point the weapon. “How’s that?” she asked, grinning.

Strongheart blinked at her in shock. “Ten seconds. I didn’t expect you to be so literal.” Her grin only widened. Strongheart sank to his knees and touched his forehead to the guard’s. Dash was reminded of what he’d done with her not too long ago, but couldn’t figure out why.

For a moment the world regained its color, and Dash shook her head, trying to identify the source of a sudden sense that something was very wrong. Then everything went back to dullness and she relaxed. The guard relaxed too, staring up at Strongheart with a green tinted eyes. “Sir?” the guard said, frowning in confusion.

“Let him up,” Strongheart told Dash. She quickly got off the guard, who rose slowly to his hooves, never taking his eyes off of Strongheart. “Do you know where Max Cash’s personal room is?”

“Yes sir, I do,” the guard said, coming to attention.

“Give me directions from here,” Strongheart said. The guard proceeded to do just that, giving a clear indication of where they needed to go, when prompted he even told them where the guards were usually stationed in that building. “Thank you,” Strongheart said, massaging the side of his head with one hoof. “Now, go out there and get as far away from this camp as you can without endangering yourself, and don’t work for Max Cash anymore, do you understand?”

“Yes sir,” the guard replied, saluting. “Loud and clear.” With that he turned and galloped away.

Strongheart sighed, sagging against the wall. “Buddy,” Blaze said, coming close and nuzzling his friend. “You gotta let her go.”

Dash had no idea what Blaze was talking about, but she knew Strongheart was in distress. “If something’s hurting you, tell me about it,” she urged him. “I’ll take care of it.”

Strongheart let out a harsh laugh. “I can’t let her go,” he said.

“Why not? You just did it with that soldier, right?” Blaze asked.

“This is different,” he insisted. ”Because this is the only way.” His voice dropped to a hoarse whisper. “The only way to be who I’m supposed to be.”

Dash was filled with a sudden understanding. She might not get exactly what he was talking about, but the feeling behind it was as familiar to her as her own wings. “Is that who you want to be?” she asked, stepping up next to Blaze.

“What?” He looked up at her, his confusion and anguish clear to her now that she knew what she was looking for. She couldn’t let him keep hurting like that, but she knew that the only one who could do anything for him was himself. She could, however, show him the way.

“You’re doing something to be who you’re supposed to be,” she said. “I don’t know what that is, or what it means for you, but I know what it meant for me. It’s kind of silly, thinking about it, but it was so important. I thought I had to be one way, that I was supposed to be a certain person. But I wasn’t. I found out something about myself that just didn’t fit with who I thought I was. I got scared. I felt like I couldn’t be who I was supposed to be with this new part of me I’d discovered, but I couldn’t make it go away either. I couldn’t make the two fit together, so I did some pretty stupid stuff to try to keep them apart. It didn’t work and it’ll never work.”

“So I should just give up?” he asked, shaking. “I should just abandon everything?”

“No,” Dash said, laying her head on his shoulder and drawing him into a hug. “But you gotta figure out if who you’re supposed to be is who you want to be.”

“I don’t understand,” he said.

“Hey, it’s okay. Took me a while to figure it out myself,” Dash assured him, rubbing his neck soothingly. “It’s like this: we so get caught up in things like what we ought to do or who we’re supposed to be that we lose sight of who we actually are. And when that happens we start to forget that who we’re supposed to be isn’t always who we want to be. Maybe something happened that made you think you’re not who you ought to be, that who you actually are is different than what you thought.

“Now, you can be like me and do the dumb thing of trying to keep them apart, which’ll only hurt you in the end. Or, you can look for who you want to be. Really deep down, the best, most awesome you that you can be. Find that idea of yourself and ask if it’s the same as who you think you’re supposed to be. Ask what is important to that version of you, and how he would deal with what you found out about who you actually are. I can tell you one thing: he wouldn’t just give up.”

“Buddy, I know you,” Blaze said. He gestured to Dash. “This, right here? This isn’t you. Maybe, before we went through the Storm together, I would have let it slide. Not now, not when I know how you feel about using other people. A trick like with that soldier? That’s one thing. This, with her? Not you. This isn’t extortion, this is robbery. Remember the difference?”

Strongheart nodded. “I remember,” he said.

“So do you want to be Silas, or do you want to be Trail Blazer?”

“I want to be Strongheart,” he said, the words choking off in his throat. “But I have to be Calumn.” Green fire enveloped him, and when it cleared he was once more in his Changeling form. Dash frowned at the smoothness of his carapace and the gossamer feel of his mane under her hoof. It was at once strangely soothing and disturbingly alien.

“Calumn,” she said, testing the name. It felt good to her. Right.

He pulled back, laying his black, hole-filled hooves on her shoulders. “I have to fulfil my mission, but I don’t want to do this to you. How do I reconcile that?”

She had no idea what he meant by ‘do this to her’, but she figured she could help with the other. “What’s your mission?” She asked, meeting his strange green eyes.

“To find out everything about you. Why you were at that dig, what your connection to Cash is, whether you’re a threat or a possible ally or something else entirely. To bring you back if I can.”

Dash smiled, this she could do. “Okay. I can tell you some of that, but I don’t know all of it myself. We’re working real hard on finding out. Star’s mentor is kinda cranky, but she’s supposed to be the smartest pony around, so when she figures it out I’ll let you know.”

“Star’s mentor. Twinkle Shine?”

“Yeah, how did you know?”

“I heard you two talking in the Everstorm,” he said. “I’m good at putting things together like that.” He sighed. “She’s the white pegasus you were with, right?” Dash nodded. “She’s special, isn’t she?”

“Absolutely,” she said, happy that he thought one of her friends was special. “Her Special Talent is Magic, just like Twilight Sparkle!” That made his eyes widen in shock. She figured it was her mentioning Twilight again, the people in this era had a lot of respect for the purple bookworm. She probably shouldn’t be namedropping her friend as much as she did, but she also wanted his admiration and approval, and Rainbow Dash knew that one of the many things friends were good for was lifting yourself up, so long as you gave them a helping hoof in turn.

“No wonder she...” he trailed off and shook his head. “Blaze, I can’t help rescue Star.”

“Why not?” Blaze demanded.

“If she’s a Magic Talent she’s resistant to my powers. I can’t even do minor suggestions for sure. We’d have to kidnap her.”

“Hey! No kidnapping friends!” Dash admonished him.

“I’m with her on that one,” Blaze said.

He grimaced, his fangs reminding her of Nightmare Umbra. Only this time they were beautiful and not scary at all. “Who do I want to be?” he said, the question directed at himself, quiet enough that she only heard because of how close she was to him. “I have to fulfil my mission, but you have to rescue your friend. I can’t rescue your friend and fulfil my mission. So... so I can’t fulfil my mission.” His shoulders slumped as he spoke. “I can’t. I have to let you save her.”

“What are you going to do?” she asked, not liking the thought of being parted from him.

“Blaze and I will leave,” he said. “Get away from here. Find civilization.”

“Okay, let’s meet up in giant-new-Canterlot, or whatever it is they call the city with the castle,” she said,

Calumn paused, his green eyes looking at her strangely. “I’m an idiot. Why didn’t I think of that?”

“Think of what?”

“Blaze, do you think you can find us a way to the capital?”

The green earth pony laughed. “Well, duh, it is my Special Talent after all.”

“Firefly,” Calumn said, his voice riveting her attention onto him.

“Rainbow Dash,” she corrected. “My name is Rainbow Dash.”

“Rainbow Dash,” he said, sending shivers down her spine. “Listen carefully...”

Rainbow Dash blinked, shaking off the strange sensation that she was forgetting something. ‘Watch out for yourself. Don’t let Cash talk.’ The thought came to her in a voice that wasn’t her own, but one that tugged at her recognition. She looked around, wondering where Blaze had gotten to. A vague memory of him finding his friend and then running off came to her, but she shrugged it away. It didn’t matter, she had to rescue Star Fall.

She rushed out of the building into the pouring rain. The fire had gone out, as had most of the lights not trained on the dig, though she couldn’t remember exactly why she knew there had been a fire in the first place. She turned and rushed across the compound, keeping low. It seemed that most of the ponies had cleared out, though she spotted several guards still rushing about the place. She ignored them, making a beeline for the one door she knew would lead her to her friend.

She burst into the building, zooming past a shocked guard and down a narrow hallway. She counted doors as she went, finally coming to the one she knew should be where Star Fall was being held. The door was locked with a heavy latch, but with an expertly placed kick she burst the flimsy door completely off its hinges.

Star Fall gave a high-pitched shriek as Dash made her entrance. She scrambled against a wall, sitting on a small bed, but quickly realized who had come for her. “Dash!” she gasped out. “Am I glad to see you!”

“Me too, Star,” Dash said, grinning at her friend. “Are you okay?”

“Physically, yes,” Star Fall said. “Mentally? I’m not sure yet. You?”

“I’m good,” Dash said. “A bit confused, though. This place is like a maze, everything looks the same.”

“What’s going on out there? I heard Cash order an evacuation.”

“Seems like they’ve evacuated,” Dash said. “Almost everyone’s gone. A few leftover guards, though.”

“Is Cash gone?”

Dash shrugged. “I don’t know. I didn’t see him.”

“Then there might still be time,” Star Fall mused. “Come on, we have to get into that dig.”

“You’re not going anywhere,” a new voice cut in, accompanied by a hoof shoving Dash into the room.

Dash sighed, turning to look at the guard she had blown past on her way in. He was standing in the doorway pointing the barrel of his gun at them. “Seriously?” she asked him. “I’ve beaten up a platoon of your buddies already tonight. Are we really going to do this now?”

“So you’re the one,” he snarled, eyes narrowing as he stepped into the room. Dash knew she could dodge any shot he took and knock him out, but that gun was dangerous, and the room was too small. If he started firing he could hit Star Fall. She needed to maneuver him into a position where he wouldn’t hit her. “I’ve lost a lot of good friends tonight. Some real asses too, but friends all the same. Nice to know I can lay all their deaths at your hooves.”

“Hey! That’s not my fault!” Dash protested. “I haven’t killed anyone! It’s you guys who have been shooting all over the place!”

“We know how to aim, bitch!” he screamed in her face, not noticing the shape that loomed behind him in the doorway. “We’re not shooting each other! I’m going to kill you just on principle for that remark. But I would like to hear your explanation, so if it’s not you killing them, then who?”

“Me.”

The guard’s eyes widened and he spun. Astrid’s talons met him mid-turn, stabbing into his chest. He gasped, then let out a chilling whine as she lifted him up with one claw, dangling his body from her embedded talons. She stared down at him, naked contempt in her golden eyes. He drew breath into punctured lungs to scream, but her beak flashed down and came away with his throat. He gurgled and kicked, but soon went still. Astrid let the body fall to the floor as she threw back her head and swallowed the gobbet of flesh she had taken.

“Astrid, thank Celestia,” Star Fall sighed.

Dash could say nothing. She could only stare at the dead guard.

“Sorry, Fall,” Astrid said, looking abashed. “I would have been here sooner, but I had to run interference for some pony who was flying all over the place and not listening when I tried to get her attention.” She gave a pointed look to Dash, who returned the look with a blank stare.

“Did you bring my spell-sheets?” Star Fall asked.

“Uh, yeah, why?” Astrid replied, reaching into her bags and pulling out several of the magical papers. Star Fall grabbed them from the Griffin and with a sweep of her leg cleared off the desk.

“I think Cash is still in the dig,” Star Fall explained, snatching up a pen and scrawling out the sigils that channelled her magic. “We need to get in there now, but I need to be prepared for him.”

“Don’t talk while magicing, Fall,” Astrid said. “Explain when it won’t screw up your spell.” Star Fall didn’t bother to reply, devoting all her attention to quickly and correctly setting down the spell-forms. Astrid turned to Dash. “You look poleaxed. You okay?”

“I coulda taken him,” Dash said, quiet and angry. “You didn’t have to do that.”

Astrid glanced down at the body. “Sure,” she agreed. “But Fall might have been hurt, and my way was more certain.”

“Would you kill?” Dash said, thinking of Gamma’s question from what felt like months ago.

“In a heartbeat,” Astrid said. “But only for the right reasons. How about you?”

Dash looked at the body, then shook her head. She remembered fighting Umbra that morning, remembered her hooves breaking bone and pulping flesh. “I don’t know,” she said. “But I’m thinking even if I say yes, my ‘right reasons’ are a lot different from yours.”

“No one’s asking you to be a Griffin, Dash,” Astrid pointed out.

“And I’m not asking you to be a pony,” Dash replied. “But next time, could you at least let me try?”

“Not if it puts Fall in danger,” Astrid said. “Other than that, go nuts.” Dash nodded, it was the best she was going to get.

“There! Done,” Star Fall said, pulling up two completed spell-sheets.

“Where to, Fall?” Astrid asked. Dash pulled her mind from the body on the floor and set herself for whatever action came next.

“The dig, and whatever’s inside,” Star Fall said, determination filling her eyes. “This has gone on too long, and he’s too dangerous to let him keep going. It’s time we ended this. We’re going to capture Max Cash.”

Chapter 14: Loyalty

I have separated the Harmony Event into four processes: Charging, Reassociation, Reconstruction and Renewal. Each process happens in that order, but it can also be accurately said that each happens simultaneously. It is best to imagine a Harmony Event not as a proper sequence of events in time so much as a logical progression where each element flows from the previous one.

... The Charging sequence is the one we are most familiar with, as it and the Renewal process are the only observable parts of a Harmony Event. This is the process by which the Elements of Harmony create the energy used in the Magic of Harmony. The Charging sequence takes the form of a self-feeding resonance across all dimensions that grows via its own constructive interference at a simple geometric rate, doubling with each period. Experiments have verified that the starting energy of the sequence is the total energy that makes up the ponies wielding the Elements at the time they initiate a Harmony Event or Proxy Event.

... This geometric growth has an absurdly short period, with the major difference between a Proxy Event and a Harmony Event most evident in the varying length of this period. A Proxy Event's period is approximately 8.3x10E-2 seconds. For an average Charging sequence of three seconds, this generates more than enough power to accomplish any practical goal.

For a true Harmony Event the period is much, much shorter. While measurements are wildly inaccurate at these scales, from the equations described above I have been able to discern the period during a Harmony Event must be no more than 6.234x10E-40 seconds, and may in fact be orders of magnitude less. The total time the Charging sequence takes is between two and four seconds from a perspective internal to the Event. This, unfortunately, cannot be verified objectively, since any external points cease to have meaning less than half a second into the sequence.

-From the seventh section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Fourteen: Loyalty

The empty hills stretched out before them, indistinct in the rain save as darker shadows against the black sky. Calumn followed Blaze as the earth pony kept up a brisk pace despite the darkness. Normally trotting or running in the dark was a bad idea over open land, as there was no way to see pitfalls or rocks that could break legs and worse. For Blaze, though, this was probably equivalent to a walk in the park. No floating skulls, no alluring voices, no targeted lightning, and no giant undead bears. Calumn figured that the dark and the rain might be a welcome vacation from the malicious chaos of the Everstorm.

A sudden intense burst of feeling made Calumn stop, turning to stare back at the compound. “Hey, what’s up?” Blaze asked, noticing his stare.

“Conrad,” Calumn said. “He just died.”

“Wow, you can tell that?”

Calumn nodded. “I didn’t think the connection was still open. I guess it was. I just felt it snap. It only does that when the pony I’m connected to dies.”

“I wonder what happened.”

“I don’t know, but he died scared,” Calumn said, frowning at the memory of the last emotion to come to him through the bond. It wasn’t the usual fear he’d gotten from Conrad, but it was close. Instead of a colt’s fear of getting caught being naughty, it was a colt’s terror at having been caught.

“Come on, buddy,” Blaze said, turning back to the dark hills. “We’ve got a long way to go yet.”

***

Lieutenant Hard Boiled scratched at the bandages that wound all the way around his torso. The wounds that the would-be assassin left him with itched. None of them had been life-threatening, but they’d taken him to a hospital anyway, where he'd been stitched up and was now healing slowly but cleanly. He’d wanted to get back to work immediately but his superiors had insisted he spend at least the night in the hospital. He’d obliged, if only because they gave him enough painkillers to dull the roaring ache of his horn to a sullen throb. A good night’s sleep later, though, and he was up and working again. Mandatory injury leave be damned, he’d finally gotten a break in his case.

Barry had been extremely helpful in HB’s end-run around the rules. He’d surreptitiously brought the case files to HB in the hospital and covered for him as he’d slipped out. He was seriously re-evaluating his opinion of the earth pony. Barry was nowhere near as clueless as he first appeared. He was still a little too eager to please, but that could be chalked up to youth and inexperience, and it kept him working the long hours Hard Boiled was demanding of him.

Not being officially on the clock had another bonus for him: it meant he didn't have to log what he was doing now in the records. That would be good for him, and even better for the pony he had come to meet.

HB sat on a plush bench in the spacious grand foyer of Senator Alan Birchfield's mansion. The ceiling was high and domed in glass, allowing the moon to shine down from the cloudless sky. The centre of the foyer had an artful arrangement of plants and statuary, the centrepiece being a life-sized statue of a playful mare with a frizzy mane, her head thrown back in laughter and a gem gleaming blue at her throat. It caught his attention and it wasn't until another pony came to collect him that he realized he'd been staring at it. He flicked his magic on for a moment, but nothing important jumped out at him so he dismissed the oddity as simple fatigue.

"The Senator will see you now," the unicorn butler said, gesturing for HB to follow him. The detective obliged. He followed the butler down the north wing of the mansion, trying not to stare at the ostentatious displays of wealth that adorned every wall. It wasn't often that a cop got to make a personal visit to the estates of the powerful. Senators weren't above the law, but they were usually rich enough to make them close to untouchable. No, when a Senator did wrong it wasn't a pony like HB that would bring them down. That wasn't a good thing for them, it just meant the ponies who did bring them down were much, much harsher about it than a law-bound detective could ever be.

He was led into a warm study, plush benches and chairs spaced around a thickly-carpeted room that was lit by a fireplace and a few old-looking lanterns set into the walls. Bookshelves full of leather-bound tomes were set between displays of antique art and trophies won in distant lands across the seas. Senator Birchfield had been a renowned adventurer, soldier and diplomat in his youth, and had seen much of the world outside the borders of the Republics. This was part of the reason HB had sought a meeting with him now.

The other part was displayed behind enchanted glass in the center of the room, taking up a place of honor amongst so many other trophies of times long past. It was a small statue of a pegasus mare taking flight, her wings wide and her eyes trained upwards. The work was exquisite, and so well kept that it looked almost new, despite being a millennium old.

"Beautiful, is it not?" Birchfield asked, standing next to the display as Hard Boiled entered the room. He was an aging pegasus, his sandy feathers running to gray and a well-trimmed silver beard giving his muzzle greater definition. His accent was refined, but still held the sharp edge of a stallion used to barking orders in the field. He turned, walking with a pronounced limp up to the detective. "It cost a fortune at auction. Three hundred thousand full moons. Which is nothing compared to all the tax I've had to pay to keep it since. So much spent on such a small piece of stone. Yet it is beautiful."

"It is," HB agreed, stepping closer to the other pony. "Though I noticed you have more like it in your foyer."

He chuckled. "More statues, yes, but none like this. Which is why you've asked after it, and not one of them."

HB ducked his head in acknowledgment, though something about what the Senator had said bothered him. He shoved to the back of his mind and focused on the conversation. "This is one of three pieces of art to survive the Schism with provenance intact."

"Indeed, and the only one not in a government museum," the Senator said. "I'm surprised that you have an interest in art history, Lieutenant Hard Boiled."

"I don't," HB admitted. "But my current case has forced me to become an expert in at least a small part of the field: Art found or saved from pegasus cities. Specifically the crash sites of old pegasus cloud cities."

The Senator quirked an eyebrow. "Cloud cities? I thought you earth-bound ponies believed them to be a myth."

"I did, until recently," HB said. "Circumstances have changed my opinion. I know that there were cloud cities, I know that they crashed during the Schism. I also know that there have been several artifacts recovered from those crash sites over the years, many of them illegally, and that you are holding forty percent of the ones I was able to find out about."

Both the Senator's eyebrows rose at this. "Is that so? Are you here to arrest me then, Lieutenant?"

HB shook his head. "I'm not here in my capacity as an officer of the Orion City Police. I'm just trying to get answers. Nothing you tell me here will lead to charges against you or will be put in any official report."

"Is that a promise?" HB nodded. Birchfield stretched his wings out as he contemplated that, resettling them as he smiled at the detective. "I've heard you're an honest stallion, Lieutenant. A good reputation to have for someone in your position."

"Only if you live up to it," he replied.

"Quite. For what it's worth, you seem to have done your homework, at least. What questions do you have for me, and what does this have to do with old pegasus art?"

HB took a deep breath, glad that the Senator believed him. If he hadn't, there wasn't much the detective could do to force the issue. "You collect more than just art. Any artifacts that are linked to pre-schism pegasi you like to snatch up at the first opportunity. White, gray or black market, you have buyers working for you in all three. You are especially interested in anything to do with the cloud cities."

"My people once ruled the sky, Lieutenant," Birchfield said. "We may have lost those heights, but once we touched the heavens and slept among Luna's stars." He turned back to the small statue, looking at it with undisguised longing and sadness. "I wish I knew what that was like. I dream of it sometimes. Do you ever dream of magic, Lieutenant? Do you ever imagine wielding power such as your ancestors once did, when all the forces of the cosmos were theirs to command?"

HB shook his head, though the old Senator wasn't looking his way. "No. I can't say that I do." His dreams had always been bizarre and disjointed, when he could remember them at all.

Birchfield accepted his answer with a shrug. "I dream so brightly. But then I wake, and all that is left of that dream is in these. Artworks and artifacts, our only link to a better, more glorious past. So I gather them and cling to them. And I let myself dream my foolish dreams in hope that one day I shall find something that can make them true."

"Have you?"

Birchfield looked at HB, blinking in confusion. "Have I what?"

"Found anything that can fulfill your dreams? Return the powers of a classic pegasus?"

Birchfield let out a disbelieving laugh. "Of course not! Something like that I would share with the world, not keep to myself! What made you think there would even be something like that?"

An impossible mare, HB thought, then nodded. "Right. What do you know of Max Cash?"

Birchfield snorted. "Too much. He's a businesspony and a crook. Too much money for one bank to handle and not enough morality to fill a teacup. He's funded several of my opponents during election season, and has successfully gotten some of his puppets elected to high office on more occasions than I'm comfortable with."

"He's also a rival in artifact collection," HB pointed out. "You've butted heads with him several times. You also served with him briefly."

"Very briefly," Birchfield stressed. "And he was a civilian contractor, never a true member of the Republics forces."

"Do you know why he collects artifacts?"

"I'm not sure that he does," Birchfield said. "He picks them up, but they're back on the market two months later."

"Why buy them at all then?"

"Perhaps he's looking for something," Birchfield sighed. "He's not in it for the same reasons I am, that I am sure of."

"What could he be looking for?"

The Senator frowned at him. "What makes you think I would have the faintest idea?"

"You're the closest thing to an expert on black market artifact collection I have access to," the detective pointed out. "You're also his rival, and that means you're aware of his purchasing history and patterns. You may not know for sure, but I'd lay odds you have a guess."

"That's a bet you'd lose," Birchfield told him. "There's barely a rhyme or reason to what he buys. Sometimes it's pegasus artifacts, sometimes it's unicorn, sometimes it's earth pony."

"Only pony artifacts? What about Dragon or Changeling stuff?"

"Sometimes them too," the Senator confirmed. "Sometimes an important piece will come up for sale and he won't make a twitch for it, and sometimes something innocuous is brought up and he falls all over himself to get his hooves on it. I really cannot say what it is he wants from them."

"Did he ever make a bid for that?" HB asked, nodding at the figurine.

"No," Birchfield said, looking pensive. "He was at the auction, bought several other pieces, but he never made a bid for it. He took a long look, though, when they had it on display. I was grateful at the time, since he could have outbid me, but I remember that it was odd."

"Why was it odd?"

"Because if there is one pattern he has, it's a favourite artist," Birchfield explained. "Some of the pieces he will definitely work to acquire are done by one artist, the same one who created this beauty."

"And he had no interest in it?"

"No interest in buying it, no."

HB nodded, feeling one of the puzzle pieces realigning in his head. "That is interesting. The subject of this sculpture, it was one of the ancient heroes, right? One of Twilight Sparkle's companions."

Birchfield smiled. "Quite right. This is a maquette, a kind of rough draft for a larger, more detailed piece that was said to have been displayed in the city of Cloudsdale, one of the greatest of the old cloud cities. That statue was lost with the Schism, but this was in the keeping of a unicorn family who safeguarded it through the chaos afterwards and ensured that its history was not lost, as so much else was."

"This mare, the one this, ah, maquette depicts, she's come up several times in my investigation," HB said. "Did the artist that created this make any more with her as the subject?"

Birchfield shook his head. "Not that I am aware of, no. He was supposed to have done a series on them, Twilight Sparkle and her friends. They were shown far and wide across the old Equestria before the Schism. All are now lost."

HB's horn gave an aching throb at that. Something about what Birchfield had just said didn't ring true. He couldn't fire up his magic and find out, though, that would end this interview faster than anything but pulling a weapon could. And likely his career would follow shortly after. He made a mental note to remember what was said and look into it later, though. "Do any of the other maquettes survive?"

"A few," Birchfield said. "But they don't have a clear provenance, so we cannot be absolutely sure if they are legitimate. Most of them are out of our reach in any case. Captives in the sunlands."

"How much would the actual statue be worth?" HB asked.

"Loyalty?" Birchfield asked, his eyes widening. From the context HB could gather that was the title of the statue. "Beyond price, Lieutenant," the Senator shook his head. "Legally, at least. The Senate would declare it a national treasure in seconds, and it would be in the Library of the Senate before the ink was cold on the declaration."

"How about illegally?"

Birchfield gave him a sidelong look. "Purely hypothetically?"

"Of course."

"Millions. Tens of millions."

Hard Boiled closed his eyes as the weight of that number sank in. "Enough to kill for," he breathed. "How about in the sunlands? Would it be worth as much up there?"

The Senator shrugged. "Probably. It's a lot harder to be a private collector in the Kingdom, though. The Royals keep all the best pieces for themselves. "

"But it would still be worth a lot," HB asked, and Birchfield nodded. "You said it was part of a series. Where were the other statues kept?"

The Senator frowned in thought. "I know that the most important of them, Twilight Sparkle's statue, was in Ponyville, and is completely lost. I believe there was another in Canterlot, and there was a rumor for a long time that one of them was in Las Pegasus before it fell. The others? No one can be sure exactly where they were, all the records were lost."

"Is it possible that there was another on one of those cloud cities?"

"Yes," Birchfield said, watching the detective warily. "Your questions have a point to them, don't they Lieutenant? Should I take this to mean one of them has been found, and by Max Cash no less?"

HB shook his head. "No, I have no evidence of that."

"But you have a suspicion." HB didn't make any reply to that, keeping his face carefully neutral. It wasn't enough to keep the old soldier from seeing the truth. "More than a suspicion," he said. "Tell me."

"I'm sorry, I can't do that," HB said, shaking his head. "The investigation is ongoing."

"You're not on duty, Lieutenant," Birchfield said with a sly smile.

"All the more reason why I can't divulge details of the case," HB said, knowing he'd given too much away already.

"I can help, Lieutenant," Birchfield said. "I've answered all your questions freely. Bring me in on this and I can help."

HB paused, considering it. He hadn't learned everything he wanted to. There were still many questions he had come to the Senator with that had yet to be touched on. But for all that he was willing to bend the rules and come out here on his own, he wasn't willing to compromise the investigation for what might turn out to be nothing. He shook his head and smiled as politely as he could. "Thank you for your time, Senator, but I should probably be going now."

The smile dropped from Birchfield's face. "I will find a way in on this, Lieutenant. Don't anger me by making me do it the hard way."

HB nodded. "I don't intend to anger you, but I can't talk freely about an active investigation. You said yourself I have a reputation as an honest stallion."

"And a reputation is only good so long as you live up to it," Birchfield nodded. "I understand."

"Thank you," HB said, turning to leave.

"Lieutenant," Birchfield called out, making the detective pause. "One more thing. If Cash has found Loyalty, then he might not be taking it into the sunlands to sell it."

"Why then?"

"He might be bringing it up there to authenticate it," Birchfield replied.

"They can do that? I thought without provenance no one could be sure."

"For us, and for most works, that is true." Birchfield chuckled. "But not for these. There is one who can verify them, the same one who created them."

"The artist?"

Birchfield nodded. "He lives in the sunlands. Reclusively, to be sure, but a known figure all the same."

"A thousand years," HB said, putting it together. "He's a Dragon. One of the eldest."

"If he verifies it, that hypothetical statue goes from priceless to absolutely priceless," Birchfield said. "And the black market price more than triples."

HB swallowed hard. "What about if there were a pair of them? Two from the series? Or more, what would the price be then?"

"A pair?" Birchfield shook his head slowly. "Lieutenant, wars have started over less."

HB absorbed that, then turned. "Thank you for your time, Senator."

"I'm always happy to help the police, Lieutenant," Birchfield replied. A pulse of pain from his horn only confirmed what HB already suspected: the Senator was lying.

***

The rain hadn't let up, but Dash could feel the clouds beginning to lose their strength. It was an odd sensation, she'd never realized how much she could actually sense the weather until she was in a world where she didn't control it. The storm had gone on for too long, but soon the remnants of the Nightmare's power would finally be spent. It wasn't going to go without one last blast of fury, though.

Despite the evacuation, the muddy streets between the metal buildings weren't quiet, far from it. They could hear the shouts of the remaining guards as they ran through the rain, looking for the intruders that had so disrupted their compound. Dash didn't know what Astrid had done to cause all the havoc, but she was sure it left a lot of dead bodies behind. She didn't know how to feel about that, but she decided that no matter what her personal feelings were, it wasn't going to change how she saw the Griffin warrior. Astrid did her job, and had never pretended to be anything other than what she was.

Star Fall had barely seemed to notice the death of the guard right in front of her, a fact that made Dash think she had already seen her fair share of such things. For all of the danger she'd faced in her life, Gamma had been right about Dash. She'd come from a time of peace and didn't quite understand the necessity of killing. She could accept it, but didn't understand it.

All of that contemplation kept her uncharacteristically silent as the three of them made their way between buildings towards the brightly lit dig site. The closer they got to it the more a feeling of wrongness grew in the pit of Dash's stomach. It was like the first time she'd leapt off a cloud to fly on her own, the anticipation of the fall before her and the thrill of danger in her untried wings.

"Dash," Star Fall said, staring at her. "Your eyes are glowing again. Are you alright?"

"They are?" Dash said, stopping for a moment. She didn't notice anything different. The anticipatory feeling was getting worse, but it wasn't anything like what had preceded the scream from earlier.

"What the hell?" Astrid said, the words coming out in a disbelieving whisper. "When did this happen before? What does this mean, Fall?"

"I don't know," Star Fall said, swallowing hard. "But she did this right before she screamed."

"Don't do that again, Dash," Astrid warned, her eyes wide and fearful as she grabbed Dash by her shoulders. "Do you hear me? Whatever it was, do not do it again!"

"I won't, I won't!" Dash protested. "Let me go, oaky?"

Astrid released her. "Sorry. I just... that was bad."

There was a surge of anxiety that leapt up through Dash, nearly choking her. She staggered and had to steady herself on a nearby building to keep from falling. Then, just as suddenly as it had come the feeling was gone and she felt normal again. "Am I still glowing?"

"No," Star Fall said, frowning. "Not any more. What's happening, Dash?"

"I don't know!" Dash said, kicking at the mud. "I wish I did, alright?"

Star Fall shook her head. "We don't have time to figure it out now. If you start feeling whatever it is start again, warn us. It could be important."

"Yeah, totally. I'll do that," Dash promised them, and they got moving again.

The sandbag walls that had been set up to protect the dig were still intact, a quick patch job shoring up the places where Dash's lightning strike had toppled a tower down onto them. The ground inside was still muddy, the covering tarp unable to keep out all of the blowing rain, but far less so than the dirty rivers that the streets in the compound had become. They cleared the sandbag wall with a few spare flaps of their wings, and were about to rush forward when Dash jumped ahead and put both front hooves out wide, halting her companions.

"What is it?" Star Fall asked.

"There's someone in the tunnel," Dash said, narrowing her eyes in the glare from the bright lights. The large entrance to the excavation yawned black and nearly impenetrable in front of them, but Dash could see a lighter patch of shadow waiting in the darkness.

"Good catch," the shadow said, stepping forward to reveal Charisma, smirking at the three of them with an eager gleam in her dark rose-colored eyes. She held her wings half-flared, ready to propel her in whatever direction she wanted to go, and a wicked knife was strapped to her side, in easy reach if she wanted to grab it. Dash could detect no trace of fear in her at facing three opponents, one of which was a Griffin. Only excitement. "Ah, my lady. I should have known you would have more than a single pony as your escort. But a Steelwing Griffin! I am left in awe of how your clear superiority to us common folk requires such a retainer."

"That's not going to get to me, Charisma," Star Fall said, carefully pulling out one of her completed spell-sheets.

"Yeah, leave her alone!" Dash called out.

Charisma's gaze switched to her. "Well, look at you. Feeling better?"

"Good enough to kick your ass!" Dash replied. Astrid winced next to her, shaking her head slightly. Dash ignored the gesture. "I saw what you did to Blaze. You got some real payback coming."

If anything the gleam in her eyes only grew brighter. "Blaze. You don't happen to have him with you, do you?"

"He got out," Dash said, readying herself to charge and flaring her wings wide. Anger flared in her remembering the treatment he'd been subjected to. "They were beating him. On your orders."

Her smile widened. "Did he scream?"

"No," Dash growled.

She shuddered in clear pleasure, eyes dilating. "That's my stallion," she said, tossing her mane back from her face.

Dash recoiled. "You are sick," she said.

"She's stalling," Astrid said, stepping forward. "Cash is in there. We've got to get past her."

"Good luck," Charisma said, laughing. She had a pretty laugh, as pretty as the rest of her and just as deceptive. "Well, come on! I haven't fought a Griffin in years. You obviously know who I am, but you don't look familiar to me. Did we ever spar at the palace?"

"Once," Astrid replied, lowering herself into a wary crouch.

"Then you know what to expect," Charisma said with a nod. She glanced at Dash and Star Fall. "What about you, my lady? Are you going to lower yourself to the level of base violence? Dirty your hooves a bit?"

"You know what, Charisma? I only have one thing to say to you," Star Fall said, glaring at the pink pegasus.

"Oh? And what's that?"

"As above, so below," Star Fall intoned. "As within, so without." The spell-sheet she'd readied flared to life. The burning crimson sigils of her power flashed bright and leapt off the page as the magic extended into long chains that reached for Charisma. The enforcer jumped away, trying to avoid the attack, but the chains lashed like whips and caught her. They wrapped around her wings, tying her two back legs together, and then doing the same to her front. A length of chain bound tightly about her neck and dragged her down to the ground, a leash still connected to Star Fall's spell-sheet.

"What the hell is this?" Charisma shrieked, eyes wide as she struggled in the magical bindings.

"How I got in the club," Star Fall said. "Astrid!"

"On it," the Griffin replied, pouncing at Charisma. She raised a claw, talons gleaming in the worklights, then brought it down.

"Astrid stop!" Dash cried out.

Astrid hesitated, eyes flashing to Dash. Charisma wasted no time and took full advantage of the pause. She writhed on the ground, twisting her body so that she bounced up and into Astrid's talons. They sank into flesh, but were caught between links of the magical chain, exactly as the enforcer wanted. Charisma kicked at the ground hard, sending her into a somersaulting spin. Astrid was too heavy to be pulled with the spin and too surprised to roll with it, and her claws paid the price. Scaled flesh tore as the bones and talons snapped under the twisting pressure.

Astrid shrieked in pain, drawing back her mangled claw. She left a pair of talons behind, buried in Charisma's flesh, but the pegasus barely seemed to notice. She twisted again, bringing her tied back legs to bear and kicking Astrid hard enough to send the off-balance Griffin staggering back into Star Fall. The scholarly pegasus tried to evade, but it was all happening too fast for her. All she managed to do was get her legs tangled with Astrid's, bringing them both to the ground.

With Star Fall's concentration gone the spell faltered. Charisma rolled free of the disintegrating chains with a grin on her face and blood dripping from the pair of talons sticking out of her side. She looked at Dash and winked. "Hey, hot stuff. Thanks for the assist," she quipped, then leapt at her prone opponents.

Dash couldn't believe how badly she had just screwed up. She couldn't even remember making the decision to stop Astrid, and now her friend was hurt. Because of her. With a scream Dash launched herself at Charisma. The enforcer had started her leap first, but Dash was faster by orders of magnitude. She hit the other pegasus in the side, and the two of them went barrelling out into the dark and the storm.

The rain lashed at them as they rocketed out above the compound. Charisma cursed and jabbed a hoof into Dash’s side. The pain from such a small attack was impressive, but nothing that Dash hadn’t felt before. She grit her teeth and continued, looking for something to smash the other pegasus into. She ignored Charisma’s next jab, which quickly turned out to be a mistake.

With a wrenching pop that Dash felt through her whole body, Charisma’s probing hoof managed to catch her in exactly the right place to dislocate her left wing. Dash called her magic up instinctively, thickening the air to cushion her as they began to spiral down. Charisma fought to disengage, but Dash held on, struggling to keep the enforcer from doing any more damage.

They crashed into the mud with a splash, rolling over and over as they bled momentum and tried to end the spin on top. Dash was stronger, but Charisma moved with a violent precision that didn’t allow Dash to put that strength to use. Eventually they slid to a stop, each on their side, legs straining against the other’s.

Charisma’s grin looked like a manic rictus as she applied her whole body to keeping Dash from overwhelming her. “Who are you?” she grunted. “I know all the best fighters in the Kingdom and Republics. You don’t fight like any of them.”

“You’ve never seen anything like me before!” Dash snarled, pushing harder. “I’ve got moves like you wouldn’t believe. So, are you going to give up nicely, or do I have to start showing off?”

Charisma laughed. “Oh, I like you. You’ve got the attitude, let’s see if you’ve got the skills.” With a rolling twist of her forehooves Charisma slapped Dash’s knees, locking them as she dove in and closed her teeth around Dash’s throat.

Dash threw herself back, feeling the tug on her neck hairs as she barely avoided Charisma’s bite. She rolled to her hooves, but the pink pegasus was already moving. Charisma slid along the mud, splashing it up into Dash’s eyes and making her rear back. Dash twisted, trying to fall away, but still got a glancing kick to the gut.

Knowing Charisma was going to keep attacking, Dash turned her fall into a series of quick backflips, heedless of what direction she was going in and counting on her superlative reflexes to keep her from falling or crashing into something. She used her good wing to wipe the mud from her eyes, and came back to her hooves looking for her opponent.

Charisma had taken to the skies, but even splattered with mud her light-colored coat stood out in the darkness. Dash saw her coming and leapt to the side as Charisma dropped on her. The enforcer hit the ground and immediately rolled towards Dash, lashing out with a wing that sprayed more mud towards her eyes. Dash was ready for it this time, using her own good wing to shield her face while she stomped down with her forehooves.

She missed Charisma’s body, but caught her mane, stalling her roll. Charisma changed tactics in an instant, using the caught mane as a pivot to slide her body around so her rear legs were in a position to kick up at Dash. She caught Dash full on this time, throwing her away.

Dash hit the ground wheezing for breath. It had been a hard hit, but nothing like what she’d done to herself on occasion. She blocked out the pain and jumped away, barely avoiding another strike by Charisma. The enforcer kept up the attack, but Dash kept moving, going purely defensive and keeping ahead of the other pony through sheer speed.

Suddenly Charisma stopped her attack, stepping back and regarding Dash with an air of amused calm. “I’m impressed,” she said. “Most would be down by now. You’re obviously a Speed Talent, but you took that kick like an earth pony.”

“Yeah, well you’re … crazy,” Dash said, cursing herself for not being able to think of something cooler.

“I am,” she said, shrugging. “What’s your excuse?”

“What?”

“Come on. You know who I am. You have to know what I do,” Charisma said. She began to walk sideways and Dash mimicked her, keeping her distance as they circled each other. “But you’re right here, fighting me anyway. Not that I don’t enjoy it, but that’s a kind of crazy all on its own.”

“You’re not so tough,” Dash said.

Charisma laughed again. “Oh, that’s beautiful. I was wrong, you really don’t know who I am. Okay, you win, you’re not crazy. Just stupid.”

“I’m not stupid,” Dash snarled. “And I don’t care who you are. You hurt my friend. I’m not going to let you hurt anyone else.”

“Do you actually hear yourself when you talk?” Charisma asked. “You’re very heroic, I’ll give you that, but you have to know all the words in the world won’t save you.”

“Seems to me like you’re the one doing all the talking,” Dash said, giving her own cocky grin. “Are we going to get to any actual fighting tonight, or are you just trying to bore me to death?”

Charisma shrugged. “Just thought you needed a time out.” She leapt at Dash without any warning, her hoof streaking right for Dash’s eye. Dash reacted in an instant, spinning to the side and kicking out. Charisma twisted, lashing out with a back hoof even as her initial attack missed. They hit each other at the same time, Dash knocking Charisma from the air but getting dropped to the ground herself in return.

Charisma scrambled at her, punching out and striking the already injured wing joint. Dash hissed and grabbed the enforcer, bringing her close to deliver a vicious headbutt. Dash had been through a lifetime of head-on collisions with various unyielding substances and was barely fazed while Charisma was momentarily stunned from the blow. Dash took full advantage, wrapping the enforcer in a bear hug and heaving up. Without the use of both wings she couldn’t gain momentum like she had when fighting the soldiers, but she still managed to pile-drive Charisma face-first into the muddy ground.

The enforcer slumped down. Dash backed off, getting to her hooves and watching her opponent for any signs of movement. There were none. In fact, after a moment it looked like Charisma wasn’t even breathing. Wary of a trap, Dash waited. Still Charisma didn’t breathe, face covered fully in mud.

Would you kill? The question weighed heavily on Dash. She didn’t know. Even if her answer was yes, was this the situation in which she would do it? When she’d already won the fight and her opponent was at her mercy? The answer was easy, which of course meant it wasn’t easy at all. She trusted her friends, and so believed them when they had said Charisma was terrible and dangerous. She had seen what Charisma had ordered done to Blaze. She had seen Charisma’s reaction to hearing about it. There was no doubt in her mind that Charisma was evil, and letting her die in the mud would be a boon to the world.

Yet she was Rainbow Dash. Rainbow Dash didn’t let ponies die, she saved them. Even when it was a bad idea. Even when it was probably a trap. She might kill under the right circumstances, she didn’t know. But she would never, ever just let someone die when she could have saved them.

Decision made, she stepped forward and rolled Charisma onto her back. The enforcer’s head lolled to the side, limp and unresponsive. “Damn it,” Dash swore, wiping the mud from Charisma’s face. She put her ear to the enforcer’s chest, hearing her heart beat strong and slow. Dash knew in that moment it was a trap.

Charisma’s hooves flashed out, a kick hitting Dash in the inner thigh and making her entire right flank go numb. Another hard-edged hoof caught her just under her ribs, digging in and seizing up her chest so she couldn’t draw breath. Dash dropped to the mud, good wing fluttering as she tried to inhale. Charisma sucked in a deep breath of her own, and wasted no time in kicking Dash aside.

“You almost had me there,” Charisma wheezed. “But I guess the hero talk wasn’t all for show.”

Dash finally got her lungs to respond, drawing in a breath as she tried to stand. Her rear right leg was unresponsive, though, and so she only managed to flop into a sitting position. “I knew it was a trap,” she growled.

“Good for you, you can see the blindingly obvious,” Charisma snapped back. Then she grinned again. “You know what? I’m not sure which of us is going to win. I’m better than you are, but you’re just so damn tough and I have no idea why. If I snapped your neck, would that stop you? Or would you just shrug it off and keep coming?”

“I’d like to see you try,” Dash replied, forcing herself up on three legs.

Charisma started towards her, but paused mid-motion and shook her head. “Oh, I’d love to. I really would. But I’ve got more important things to do right now. Stay strong, hot stuff, we’ll fight again.” Charisma whirled and took off, flying back towards the dig.

Dash yelled after her, trying to follow. Her injured wing and numb leg made the attempt futile. “Damn it!” Dash screamed, pounding at the muck. The feeling was slowly returning to her leg, but she was at a real disadvantage so long as her wing was dislocated. She remembered Star Fall relocating Astrid’s wing that morning, and decided she could do the same if she found something solid to use. She’d never had to fix her own wings before, there had always been hospitals or medic ponies about to take care of that part, but she’d had it done often enough that she figured it wouldn’t be too hard.

She lurched towards one of the watchtowers. The heavy steel leg beams would do. With care she held her wing out wide with her teeth, and slammed her side into the metal. Pain ripped through her, bad enough to make her momentarily black out. When she came back to her senses her wing was throbbing like it was on fire and still dislocated. Frustrated with her failure she slammed into the beam again, with similar results. “Dumb wing! Just go back in your socket!” Dash screamed, and tried again. This time the agony was accompanied by the satisfying pop of things moving back into place.

She stood there panting for a long moment, letting the pain fade to a dull ache that she could easily ignore. She gave a few tentative flaps of the injured limb, and while each motion sent new spikes of agony through her body it was strong enough to support her. Triumph and adrenaline surging through her, Dash took to the air and rushed towards the dig.

When she got close she looked down and saw a unicorn standing in front of Astrid, the Griffin crouched and trembling. She recognized him. A picture in a dossier she couldn't read. A flash of magenta light in the darkness. The smell of blood and the sound of a body hitting hard earth. She was afraid of him. Terribly afraid. This was Max Cash.

Her wings trembled and she lost a few feet of altitude, but she steadied herself. Don't let Cash talk. Well, he was talking now, and she had to do something about it. Astrid was hurt, and Star Fall might be too. Her fear was nothing. Her pain was nothing. Her friends needed her. Dash took a deep breath and grit her teeth, wrapping her fear in determination. Then with a cry she called out her best speed and dove.

***

"Damn it!" Astrid swore, rolling off of Star Fall. She cradled her injured foot to her chest, looking at the twisted wreckage with more annoyance than pain.

"Astrid!" Star Fall gasped. "Are you okay?"

"Oh yeah, perfect." Astrid rolled her eyes. "Dammit Dash! Did you have to be such a wimp?"

"Where did she go? I couldn't see."

Astrid jerked her head out towards the storm. "Out there, with the Asskicker."

"We have to go help her!"

"In a bit, help me bind this up first," Astrid said, reaching into a pouch on her harness and drawing out a roll of gauze and medical tape.

"We don't have time, Charisma will kill her!"

"Sure," Astrid said, "but not quickly. If I'm going to help her I need to get this fixed, so are you going to help me or not?"

Star Fall stared at her friend for a moment before sitting down and grabbing the gauze between her forehooves. "What do you need me to do?"

Astrid inspected her injury, turning it to see the extent of the damage. "I'm going to straighten these out, then you need to bind them together. I'll make a fist and then we'll tape it that way. It won't be pretty, but I should be able to walk on it."

"Won't that hurt?"

"Like fiery fuck, but I'll deal. Here, hold this." She tossed the tape to Star Fall, who caught it in her mouth. Then Astrid gripped one of her broken fingers and yanked it straight. The pain made her wince and clack her beak, but she refused to cry out. She repeated the process for the other finger that was grossly misaligned. She poked at the third, but decided it didn't need to be forced into place. "Gauze," she said, holding the injured claw out to Star Fall.

The pegasus quickly set to wrapping the injury, taking care around the digits so as not to aggravate the breaks any more. The gauze quickly became a mitten that tightly bound the broken fingers. Astrid clipped it with a sharp snap of her beak before tying it off. Then, with a single grunt of pain Astrid folded the fingers down and Star Fall set to work taping the claw in place. When it was done Astrid set her foot down and tested her weight on it.

"How is it?" Star Fall asked.

"Not good," Astrid replied. "It'll do, though." She quickly stowed the remains of the gauze and tape. "I can't hear them out there."

"Neither can I," Star Fall said, shivering.

"What's the play, Fall? We go for Cash, or we go help Dash?"

Star Fall's eyes narrowed. "We help Dash," she said.

"Help her with what?" a new voice asked. Max Cash stepped out of the tunnel, magically tucking a book into the saddlebags he wore.

"Shit, new priority," Astrid said, leaping between Star Fall and Cash, her head low and her wings outstretched protectively.

Cash regarded the Griffin with an amused smirk. "I don't think this qualifies as 'everyone' Lady Star. You probably should have waited for your real backup."

"What's he talking about, Fall?" Astrid asked.

"No idea," Star Fall whispered back. "Stall him."

Astrid gave a slight nod and lowered her wing to obscure Star Fall from the unicorn's view. "Maximillian Oswald Cash," she called out to him. "You have violated the laws of the Solar Kingdom. You are hereby taken into custody to stand trial before the light of the sun and have your guilt weighed."

Cash's eyebrows rose at this proclamation. "Wow. That's a fancy way of saying I'm under arrest. Are you going to read me my rights?"

"You're a Republican criminal on Kingdom soil," Astrid said, narrowing her eyes. "You have no rights."

"Well, then we're in the same boat, aren't we?" he said with a chuckle.

Astrid tensed. "What did you just say to me?"

"I've got no rights, you don't either," he replied, a friendly smile splaying lazily across his face. "The way I hear it, Griffins are more like fancy pets and guard dogs than actual citizens. In fact, don't Dogs actually have more freedom than your kind?"

"You shut the hell up," Astrid snarled.

"Am I wrong?" he continued, ignoring her threat. His eyes caught hers, and she found she could not look away. "Tell me I'm wrong. Tell me you have all the same liberties as the pony you stand there protecting. Tell me you chose this life. Come on, be honest."

It was like a terrible weight had fallen on her, his words striking like a hammer-blow. Her legs trembled, her wings drooped, her remaining talons dug into the mud as she fought the compulsion that welled up in her. It was a futile effort. "No!" she gasped out. "No I don't have the same freedom she does, I didn't choose this life. You're not wrong."

His smile widened to a vicious grin. "In that case, I've got an offer you might be interested in."

"Astrid no!" Star Fall called from behind her. There was an electric snap that sounded through the air and a smell like ozone. Suddenly the pain in her injured wing was too much to hold it up. Her injured claw throbbed to insistent life, forcing her to clutch it close as the pain nearly brought her to her knees.

Cash staggered, eyes wide and blinking drunkenly at the world as he steadied himself. "What was that?"

"Magic dampening spell," Star Fall said, coming around to stand beside her Griffin friend. "No more of your tricks."

Cash laughed. "That is damn effective! And you say you're not a unicorn."

"Astrid, are you alright?" Star Fall asked, laying a comforting wing on Astrid's back.

"I don't know," she replied. "I don't know what just happened.”

“Whatever it was, he can’t do it now,” Star Fall said, turning towards Cash. “You’re done, Cash.”

He laughed, throwing his head back and letting loose wild, braying laughter that grated against their ears. “Oh, nice,” he said. “You really got me. Reversed the last situation entirely. Now I’m in your power. That’s poetic, it really is.”

“It’s not poetic,” Star Fall snapped. “It’s just what needed to be done.”

He shrugged. “Sure. Why not? Well, I commend you for a gambit well played. I am at your mercy, please don’t hurt me in your wrath!”

Astrid stepped forward. “Fall, how long can you keep this spell going?”

“A while,” Star Fall said. “But not forever.”

“Do you think we can bring him back to the capital to stand trial?”

“No.” The dark look in Star Fall’s eyes told Astrid she knew exactly what this meant.

Astrid nodded. “Cash, you forgot something.”

“What’s that?”

“I may not have all the freedoms that others do, but I do have rights. Rights others don’t have. For instance, when dealing with enemies of the Crown, I have the right to be judge, jury and executioner.” She forced her injured foot to take her weight, and raised her good claw, spreading her talons wide. “You are an enemy of the Crown.”

He saw what she was about to do and smiled. “And I think you’re forgetting something. Something that I have, and you don’t. Something that beats out your rights and this spell a hundred times over. Something that means you won’t make a scratch on me.”

“You don’t have anything,” Astrid said, preparing to pounce.

“Sure I do. It’s called Charisma.”

The pink pegasus slammed into Astrid, knocking her to the side. Star Fall gasped, trying to get out of the way, but Charisma was too fast, kicking her in the head and sending her rolling into the mud, dazed.

“Took you long enough,” Cash said.

“I was busy,” Charisma replied, eyes narrowing at Astrid. “Their third wheel is a real talent.”

“Did you take care of her?”

Charisma shook her head, and Astrid’s heart surged. Dash was still alive, and from the look of Charisma, able to actually hold her own against the enforcer. She rolled into a defensive crouch. Charisma smiled. “We’ve got to get out of here, Max. I’ll break the kitten’s neck and we can go.”

“Hold off on that,” Cash said, stepping towards Astrid. “Hey, we were cut off earlier, sorry about that. Your friend doesn’t have a very good opinion of me.” Astrid didn’t respond, wondering what the hell he was up to. “So. I think we left off at me giving you an offer.”

“I’m going to kill you,” Astrid growled.

“But you haven’t heard my offer yet,” he said. “It’s a real simple one. You see, I’ve started having some openings in my organization, and I think a Griffin like you would be a perfect fit.”

Astrid was agog. “You’re offering me a job?” In the background Charisma seemed similarly incredulous.

“A way out,” he replied. “An option. You admitted you have no freedom. You have no rights either, not really. You got your fancy judicial powers, sure, but you really don’t. You’re given instructions, orders, expected to behave and do as you’re told and never given a choice about anything. Lady Star has the same problem, and I’ve offered her the same solution. I’ve got plans, Astrid, plans that you are going to be very interested in. I’m going to shake this world, and nothing on either side of the Storm is going to be the same ever again. You can come with me, be a part of that, have a say in how it all plays out. You and Lady Star both. Not as a puppet, or a tool, or as a leashed animal given orders to obey, but as an equal, as a partner.” His eyes held her again. She knew Star Fall’s spell was still in effect, she could feel the lack of magic making her weak and slow. Yet she could not look away, could not even blink as his gaze bored into her and burned away all the layers of determination she had wrapped around the weak core of her soul.

“Why?” she managed to gasp out.

“For a lot of reasons,” Cash said. “Mostly because I see something in you. Something stronger than steel and deeper than the ocean, something that connects you to others beyond the simple bonds of society. You have a greater purpose than just being a tool of the Crown, Astrid. You have more to offer the world, but you can only fulfill that promise if you are free to do it, and you will only be free if you cast off the yoke of your servitude and take your destiny into your own claws. Join me, Astrid. It isn’t wrong, it isn’t even a hard choice. You have so much to gain, and only your oppression to lose. All it takes is one. Little. Be-”

Max was gone in an instant, the book he had put into his saddlebag spinning in the air before falling with a splat into the mud. A rapidly fading pink and blue streak hung in the air, crossing through where he had been standing. It led into the tunnel, back into the darkness. The wind of Dash’s passage blew mud and water all around, but Astrid barely noticed. She was free of whatever compulsion Cash had laid on her, and she had no time to be gawking at her miraculous rescue. She aimed herself at where she remembered Charisma to have been and leapt through the ethereal trail.

***

Calumn was content to follow Blaze in silence as they walked through the rainy darkness. He’d reassumed Strongheart’s form soon after feeling Conrad's death, the familiar body comforting him. He thought about Conrad, wondering what had made him so important to Cash. He hoped Dash wouldn't share his fate. He also hoped that Dash would rescue her friend and get out of there without running into Cash. The thought of the criminal unicorn sent chills into Calumn’s heart. Whatever it was Cash had done to him had shaken Calumn’s entire sense of self.

Now, walking in the darkness, his mind ran in circles. Who did he want to be? It was the question Dash had asked him, a question that Blaze had echoed. The truth was, Calumn wasn’t sure anymore. He knew who he didn’t want to be: the kind of person who would force someone else to abandon their friends just for the sake of a mission he didn’t fully agree with himself. What did that mean? What did that make him?

He was breaking. Everything he thought he knew about himself was thrown into doubt and contradiction. He’d never had to face questions like this before, never been tested like this before. The loyalty of Changelings was their core, but he’d lost that. In his despair he’d found that there were higher principles for him than his mission. What did that mean? Too much of himself was lost. He felt like a monster pretending to be a proper civilized person, while underneath was the black, evil truth.

Yet no monster would have let Rainbow Dash go. No monster would be so conflicted over the choice between doing his duty and doing what was right. Even if they were, a monster would not have come down on the side of right. What did that make him?

Perhaps it was his friendship with Blaze that started all of this. A friendship without illusions, without pretense. He’d never experienced anything like it before, he didn’t think any Changeling he knew of had either. They hid as a matter of course, and as a matter of survival. Their handlers knew the truth underneath the illusion, but they weren’t friends. Straff was never anything other than professional with Calumn, and for good reason. Anything closer opened a connection to the Changeling, opened the handler to influence.

Changelings couldn’t be trusted. He couldn’t be trusted. He’d just proven it, throwing his mission aside for the sake of the one who was supposed to be his target. Or did he prove the opposite? Did he prove that there was more to his species than guile and manipulative hunger? Could he be trusted? Not as a Changeling following orders, but as a person with his own wants and dreams and motivations?

Who did he want to be? He didn’t know, and as he followed Blaze into the night he could think of nothing else.

Something rumbled in the clouds overhead. At first Calumn ignored it, expecting it to be more thunder. It wasn’t until Blaze tackled him to the ground that he realized it was something more.

“Head down, buddy,” Blaze said in a harsh whisper. “We’ve got company.”

Calumn looked up and saw the clouds swirl and part as a flying vehicle dropped through them. It was a heavy aerial transport, a Kingdom military vehicle designed for moving troops large distances at a quick pace. It was suspended in the air by six large crystals that glowed white with the magic charged into them. There would be a dozen unicorns inside providing power for them, supplemented with arcane batteries and electrical generators. Calumn remembered seeing reports on these vehicles, and knew they were rare and valuable. Too valuable to be used without very good reason.

The transport hovered just beneath the clouds, a glowing shape that resembled some enormous fly that was standing on the roof of the world. Soon enough the doors opened in its underbelly and two flights of pegasi dropped out. These ponies flew with precision and coordination, their dark forms hard to make out. Calumn was still able to clearly see that they were wearing armor and carrying weapons ready. One flight took up positions around the transport while the other circled once before winging off towards Cash’s compound. A minute later the transport ascended back into the clouds, most of its pegasi escort going with it.

Calumn let out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. “Thank you,” he told his friend. “I wasn’t paying attention.”

“You’ve got a lot on your mind,” Blaze said, standing up and moving off of Calumn. “What do you think they’re here for?”

“Cash maybe,” Calumn said, getting back on his hooves. He snorted. “No. I’m an idiot again. Star.”

“Dash’s friend?”

“She’s Twinkle Shine’s apprentice, or something similar,” Calumn said. “If she knows her student is in trouble, then Twinkle Shine can get whatever she wants.”

“She’s important, huh?”

“Very,” Calumn confirmed. “It’s a good thing we got out of there when we did. That transport is going to reach the camp in a few minutes. After that, no one’s getting out.”

“Do you think Dash will be okay?” Blaze asked.

Calumn considered the question. She had not turned out to be what he was expecting, but he had no idea how far those differences went. What he did know was that she was no fake. The power he had felt from her still left rainbow traces at the corners of his vision. She was no normal pony, and he was sure that she would survive to meet them in the capital. “She’ll be fine,” he assured Blaze. “Somehow I think nothing short of the Gray Mare herself could stop Rainbow Dash.”

Blaze smiled, and the two friends continued their long walk into the night.

***

HB left the same way he came in. His head was pounding, but not enough to do more than make him wince. He kept going over the conversation with the Senator. He knew that Birchfield had been lying, more than once, but he couldn’t quite tease out where the real lies were and where he had just been trying to cover up some of his own illegal activities.

On the plus side he’d confirmed some of HB’s theory, but unfortunately that only left him with many more unanswered questions. Stealing a piece of priceless artwork was one thing. That was a matter of money, and money was a motivation that HB could easily understand. Yet Cash was not lacking in funds. His legitimate activities alone brought in more revenue than most Senators could boast. He had money.

Was it something else, then? The same sort of drive that made Birchfield spend his own resources in acquiring old statues and trinkets? That was possible, but it didn’t fit. Cash bought his trinkets, but then immediately sold them again. The evidence said that Cash didn’t care about art or history. He didn’t care about money, either. It wasn’t really clear what he did care about, save manipulating others and sneering at the law.

HB didn’t know what to make of this. He knew he had more pieces to the puzzle, but he also knew that something wasn’t right with how he was fitting them together. His horn ached with the knowledge of a truth lying just beyond his grasp. It was infuriating, but at least he was on the right track.

“Lieutenant,” a voice called out. HB stopped, looking up from his contemplations to see a pale off-white unicorn standing at the gate to the mansion, a dark car parked behind him. “I would like to have a few words with you.”

HB frowned. He recognized that voice. “My RIA liaison, I presume?”

If being identified disturbed the pony, he didn’t show it. His intense blue eyes never left the detective as he stepped to the side, gesturing at the open car door. HB sighed and slid in. He was surprised to find a pretty yellow earth pony mare already sitting in the car, smiling at him. HB took her in, noting a few details that made his horn pulse, then sat in the middle as the pale unicorn got in after him.

“Detective, thank you for all the work you’ve put in for us,” the mare said. Her voice was like silk, smooth and cool. “I’m sorry it got you in trouble.”

“No trouble,” HB said, though being sandwiched between the two other ponies made him uncomfortably aware of his stitched injuries. “Cash has to be caught.”

“He does,” she agreed. “Though I think you might be going a bit too far in your investigation. No evidence we have points to Senator Birchfield in any way. If you’ve found something new you should have informed us before following up on the lead.”

“I’m taking what steps I think are necessary,” he said. “Considering there’s a mole in your organization.”

That gave her pause, though in his peripheral vision HB noticed that the pale one didn’t react to the statement. “What makes you think there’s a mole?”

“I was attacked by an assassin,” he said, giving her a sharp look. “That doesn’t happen to cops often. Not even detectives investigating murders. We get bribed, threatened, cajoled or stonewalled. Actually trying to kill us is a mark of desperation.”

“That is odd,” she allowed. “But it doesn’t mean that we have a leak, merely that your quarry is, as you say, desperate.”

“She gave me a message,” HB said. “While she was strangling me. ‘Max Cash wants you to know you shouldn't go poking your horn into things that don't concern you.’ That’s what she said. Max Cash, by name. I’m investigating James Bay’s death, but Cash’s name has not come up in the investigation. Not even once. So why did she make a point to mention it? The solution is simple: she knew that my real investigation was into Cash. No one in my department knows, therefore the leak is in yours.”

“I assure you, we run a tight ship,” she said, her voice going low and dangerous. “There is no leak.”

“Is that your expert opinion?”

“That’s a fact,” she snapped.

“You’ll forgive me if I want to hear that from someone who isn’t an insect,” HB said. Her eyes widened and she opened her mouth to snarl something at him, but was interrupted.

“That’s enough, Traduce,” the pale unicorn said. His voice was soft, but cold and HB could hear the iron bands of control that backed it. “Lieutenant, do not antagonize my assistant.”

HB peeled his gaze from the false mare as she shut her mouth and relaxed into the seat. The unicorn wasn’t looking at him, but was instead contemplating the view out the window as they drove through the night streets. “You have a mole in your organization.”

“I am forced to consider the possibility,” he replied. “Traduce, what is your estimation?”

“He’s good enough,” she said. Her voice had lost its snarl, back to being cool silk. She even flashed him an amused smile. “I figure he made me the moment he got in the car.”

“Overall impression was right, details were wrong,” HB grunted. “You know my abilities, why in Luna’s night am I sitting in this car taking tests?” He gave a pointed look to the unicorn. “And who the hell are you?”

“I am Director Straff, of the Republics Intelligence Agency,” he replied. “I am the one in charge of the investigation into Max Cash.”

HB’s eyebrow rose quizzically. A director was a serious authority in the RIA. “And you’ve been my liaison?”

“As you have surmised,” he confirmed. “Traduce was not exaggerating, we keep a very tight seal on this case. Very few know the details of it, and I personally picked all those involved, including you. I had thought there was no possibility of a leak.”

“There is.”

“So you say, and so the evidence points.”

“So you know why I can’t share the details of my investigation.”

“Lieutenant, the only ponies I trust with your investigation are in this car,” Straff said.

“What about her?”

“Traduce’s loyalties are above reproach,” Straff replied.

“Director, she’s a Changeling,” HB said. She snorted back a laugh. “Her kind are all about lies and manipulations. How can you be sure of anything about her?”

“Because it is my business to be sure,” Straff said. “And because you are here. Traduce, if you will.”

There was a flash of green fire, and suddenly the pretty mare was replaced with a chitinous horror that stared at HB with hungry green eyes. “I have no guise and no defenses now,” she said, and he could hear her voice double over, like there were two of her speaking just very slightly out of synch with each other. “Use your Talent, detective. Hear my truth.”

HB’s eyes narrowed. “I can’t be sure of your abilities. You might be able to defeat my Talent.”

She laughed. “A pony with a Talent always wins out, detective. Always.”

He weighed her words. He’d heard something like that before, but never seen it put to the test. He shook his head, horn lighting up with a copper glow as he tapped into his truth-detecting magic. “Fine. State your name, allegiances and intentions clearly and unambiguously.”

“I am Traduce,” she said. “I serve the Republics as a whole, and Director Straff as an individual. I hold no allegiance to Max Cash or any of his allies. I intend to find the traitor in our ranks and scour their mind clean. I also intend to bed you as soon as possible.” HB blinked and pulled back. She grinned, fangs flashing in the passing streetlights.

“Traduce, strive for professionalism,” Straff admonished. “If you will direct your magic at me, Lieutenant?” HB gave a worried look at Traduce before turning to the unicorn. “My name is not Straff, but that is the one I have gone by for three decades now. I serve the people of the United Lunar Republics first, the RIA second, and the Senate last. I hold no allegiance to Max Cash, and furthermore believe he is a direct threat to all three of my stated allegiances. My intentions are many, but germane to this discussion I intend to allow you to continue your investigation unimpeded, but also learn what you have learned. I intend to see Cash caught, and I intend to see him swinging from a gibbet. Is that sufficient?”

HB nodded, letting his horn go dark. The headache was only slightly worse than it had been, it was always easier when there were no lies to detect. “As near as I can tell, you’re both truthful. What of the driver?”

“This section of the car is soundproof, and I personally swept it for listening devices and spells,” Straff said. “We are secure enough.”

“They’ll still be watched, of course,” Traduce said, reassuming her pony disguise. “But they won’t be a problem.”

“What did you discover that sent you to Birchfield?” Straff asked.

HB took a deep breath and laid it all out for them. The things Barry had discovered, and the additional research HB had put into it. He told them about the cloud cities, and the artifact hunts that Cash funded that targeted them. He told them of what he had learned from Birchfield, and his own suspicions about what it all meant.

“Art,” Traduce said, shaking her head in disbelief. “This can’t all be about art.”

“No, it can’t,” HB agreed. “But the art’s only part of it. I think it’s just a part of some bigger plan. It could be bait, or a bribe. Birchfield said that the right sorts of people would go to war over this. People like him. How many of those people are in the Senate?”

“Too many,” Straff said. “I still don’t see what he stands to gain.”

“We don’t have the full picture,” HB said. “We’ve got some of it, but not nearly enough. His plans only look like chaos because we don’t see how it all fits together. A key piece of what we’re missing is his motivation. He doesn’t want money. He doesn’t want the art, I’m fairly sure of that. He doesn’t want fame. He doesn’t have any political goals that anyone’s been able to discern.”

“There are only three other possibilities,” Straff said. “Religious, ideological or personal. I doubt the first, and the second would be better served by exerting political pressure, which he has not done.”

“Which leaves personal,” Traduce said. “As in he’s doing it for either love, a need to prove himself, or shits and giggles.”

“None of those fit him, either,” HB said, shaking his head. “No, we’re going around in circles. We know what he doesn’t want, but not what he does.”

“We know one thing he does want,” Straff pointed out. “Whatever is in those places he’s digging up. You said you know what his next target here is going to be.”

HB nodded. “The last cloud city crash site. He hasn’t touched it, no one has. I don’t think anyone but me has ever put together the clues for where it went down.”

“But you think he knows about it?” Traduce asked.

“From all the times his people have accessed the college records, he’s done most of the same research I have, and probably more,” he said. “I don’t think he’ll miss it for long.”

“But it does give us the chance to get the drop on him,” Straff mused. “Yes. I can use this. Lieutenant, you will continue your investigation. We will contact you at regular intervals so you can keep Traduce and I informed of your progress, and only Traduce and I. Cultivate your paranoia, do not trust appearances. Confirm it is us before you pass along any information. We will provide assistance where we can, but until we discover the source of this leak our hooves are tied. You will be left to your own devices. I will, however, guarantee your job security should you need to go beyond conventional policing procedures and tactics.”

HB knew what he meant, and didn't like the implications one bit. “That’s it?” he asked. “Just ‘get back to work, feel free to break the law'?”

“What were you expecting, Lieutenant?” he asked with the barest wisp of a smile. "A medal?"

HB rolled his eyes. He hated this cloak and dagger crap.

***

Star Fall shook her head, trying to clear it, but it only made her feel like she was going to throw up. She looked around, but the world spun in her unfocused vision. Giving up on orienting herself for the moment she closed her eyes and concentrated on getting one thought to properly follow another. She knew she had just sustained head trauma, that was the only explanation for her current symptoms, but she couldn’t quite grasp how it had happened.

She felt cold, wet and dirty. That was a place to start. She contemplated why she was feeling these things, and concluded that the best explanation for all three was that she was lying in mud. She basked happily in her inductive reasoning for a moment, then set to work building on that foundation. She was lying in mud and had sustained head trauma. Likely explanation: she hit her head and fell down. From the difficulty organizing her thoughts it was a serious blow her head had taken. Natural pegasus reflexes usually allowed her to avoid such serious accidents, which meant that this was more likely the result of an attack.

She’d been attacked. She felt comfortable with that conclusion. Now, attacked by whom? Again, her natural reflexes were usually sufficient to avoid this level of injury, even against superior opponents. That meant whoever attacked her must have been extremely proficient, very fast, operating with surprise, or some combination of all three. Astrid would have shielded her from any attack she could foresee, so surprise was likely. As was speed, since surprise alone would not be sufficient if the attacker could not overcome Star Fall’s reaction times. Skill was the outlier, but reasonable to include. Pure luck was also a possibility, but could be ignored in favor of intentional action.

So she’d been attacked by surprise, her assailant being at least pegasus fast and likely very skilled. She was lying in mud, so outdoors. She didn’t feel rain falling on her, but could hear it, which meant she was underneath something. An image came to her of a hill with a piece of it sheared off to reveal a buried building. Cash’s dig. She was in Cash’s dig, which meant that the likely culprit for the attack was Charisma.

Memories snapped into place and Star Fall opened her eyes. The world came into focus, just in time for her to see Astrid leap through an ethereal trail at Charisma. The pegasus reacted quickly, but not fast enough to prevent Astrid from landing on her and slashing a trio of deep cuts along her flank. Charisma lashed out, becoming a flurry of striking hooves and wings.

Star Fall tried to get up, but the motion made her head spin again, and she fell back into the muck. She could only watch as her best friend fought the greatest warrior the Kingdom had seen in generations. They parted, Charisma calmly examining the new cuts dripping blood down her leg and Astrid nursing her broken foot while coughing up bloody phlegm. Then they squared off again, and the fight began in earnest.

Astrid had the advantage of size and reach, as well as slashing talons that could rend flesh. If Charisma got too close or engaged in a grapple then Astrid could bring her back claws to bear as well, shredding her opponent to ribbons. Charisma knew this, of course. She’d fought with Griffins, had in fact been responsible for training many of them. She knew how to fight them, knew all their tricks and every way she could take advantage of their weaknesses.

Usually a pegasus relied on superior speed and maneuverability, taking to the air and making it a game of chase where they could keep ahead of their opponent. Charisma didn’t bother with normal pegasus tactics. She stepped right in to Astrid’s reach and proceeded to show her exactly why she was feared.

Astrid slashed, bit and kicked. Charisma moved like water, ducking and weaving her way through the Griffin’s attacks. Charisma didn’t strike with her hooves, but every chance she got she slapped out with her wings. The blows didn’t do any damage, but Star Fall could see that they were aimed at joints, repeated blows weakening Astrid’s limbs and forcing her to fight more defensively.

Frustration showed in the Griffin’s golden eyes. She knew she was losing this fight. Star Fall tried to rise again, managing to stand. Her legs were weak, though, and she had no idea what she could do to help even if she had been perfectly fine.

Charisma surged forward, the motion completely untelegraphed. She ducked under Astrid’s swinging claw and came up with her knife held in her mouth. Astrid tried to jump back, but the mud was too slippery and all she managed to do was unbalance herself. Charisma slashed across Astrid’s injured leg, cutting muscle and making the claw go limp. Astrid scrambled back, but the damage was done. She couldn’t use the limb to support herself while she attacked with her talons anymore. If she wanted to slash she’d have to sit on her haunches to do it, giving her no mobility.

Astrid spread her wings, striking out with them as Charisma advanced. She used the limbs as distractions, looking for a chance to either bite or set herself to claw her opponent. Charisma wasn’t distracted, and in a motion so fluid Star Fall could barely follow it she rolled with one of the flapping wings, using it as cover to hide herself from Astrid’s sight. The Griffin blinked, momentarily confused by the enforcer’s maneuver. Charisma slid up right next to Astrid and sunk her knife deep into the Griffin’s side. Astrid’s breath left her in a strangled gasp. The wound only gave her pause for a moment before she twisted to attack. Charisma was already moving, ripping her knife out and jamming it into the shoulder of Astrid’s uninjured foreleg.

Astrid went down. Her back legs scrabbled at the mud, but her forelegs were unable to support her. Charisma leapt on her back, leaving her knife in Astrid’s shoulder. She struck out multiple times with her hooves, battering the Griffin’s wings until one of them broke with a loud snap and the other fell into twitching stillness shortly after.

Charisma hopped off of Astrid, giving a casual kick to the Griffin’s flank that paralyzed a fifth limb. Immobile and bleeding into her lung, Astrid could only glare balefully at the pink pegasus.

Charisma stepped around in front of Astrid, kneeling down just out of biting distance, a satisfied grin spread across her face. “You are wonderful,” she said. “I give you high marks for skill, top marks for determination, and a special mention for good use of a distraction. Passing grade, overall. You’ve still got to work on your situational awareness, though. Also, you forgot the cardinal rule: fight from advantage. If you and hot stuff had come at me together, that would have been a much more even fight. Either of you alone?” She eyed Astrid’s prone form. “Well, you know how that works out. It’s too bad I have to kill you now, or –“

Star Fall didn’t let her finish. Strength surged into her legs and she rushed at Charisma with a scream. Charisma twisted and bucked Star Fall with both hooves. The force of the blow threw her back, out of the sand-bagged area and into the rain. She landed on her back. She lay still for a moment, stunned, but the thought of Astrid at Charisma’s mercy forced her into action. She tried to get up, only to find a hoof on her chest, holding her down.

“My lady, did you have something you wanted to interject?” Charisma asked, faux-sweetness dripping from her voice like poison. “A plea for the life of your retainer, perhaps?”

“I’ll kill you,” Star Fall managed to gasp out.

Charisma’s eyes went dark and she dropped onto Star Fall, holding her in place with her weight. The enforcer’s hooves found Star Fall’s throat and began to squeeze. “You’ll kill me? You? You pampered little puppet! You had your chance with the magic chains, and you blew it! Now here you are, no Griffin, no glowing chains, only you and me and a world of pain.” She shook her head in disgust. "What made you think you ever had a chance against me?" Charisma snarled, breath hot in Star Fall's face as her hooves pressed into her throat, cutting off her air.

Star Fall's eyes bulged, her hooves scrabbling uselessly against the pegasus on top of her. Any attempt to shove Charisma off of her was foiled, any strike blocked by snapping wings. She looked up into the sky, the rain falling into her open eyes and sliding down her face like tears. Her thoughts were scattering again, falling apart almost as soon as she put them together. She wished the clouds weren't there, that her last sight could be of the stars. The thought of the clouds in her fading thoughts brought to mind a vivid image: Dash's weather-manipulation lesson.

A sudden hope surged through her, cutting across her graying vision like the first rays of sunlight. She forced her oxygen-starved brain into motion, falling deep into the meditative exercises drilled into her by her mentor. She needed absolute focus, and she found it deep beneath the layers of thought and psyche that made up her conscious mind. Down where her soul met her body, in the place from whence her magic came.

She stopped struggling, instead only putting a feeble hoof on Charisma’s chest. The enforcer let her, knowing that Star Fall didn’t have the strength to push her away. She gathered her magic, all that she could, all that she had in her, and focused it into that hoof. Then, with all the effort she could muster, she kicked.

Light and thunder exploded from her. Charisma didn’t even have a chance to yell as she was thrown back, arcing high over one of the buildings and slamming into the side of a guard-tower. She dented the metal wall with her impact, then fell insensate to the ground below, well out of sight.

Star Fall heaved in a breath, then started coughing. She rolled to her side and tried to control both her gasping and the reflexive coughing that came with it. Finally she managed to breathe smoothly. Her throat felt half-crushed, and when she swallowed it felt like a whole apple was sliding down her esophagus. Still, she was breathing and that was the important part.

She looked in the direction that Charisma had fallen, smirking. “Magic, bitch,” she whispered hoarsely. “That’s what.”

***

Darkness engulfed them. Dash held on to the unicorn with all her strength as her wings propelled them at dangerous speeds down the dark, earthen tunnel. She was uncomfortably reminded of the headlong run down another tunnel that had started her journey. Unlike then, however, she could see the end of this tunnel.

They broke through a door made of wooden planks, sending splinters everywhere into the cavernous room beyond. The impact wrenched Cash from her grip and sent her skipping along the ground like a flat stone across still water. Dash rolled to a stop, breathing heavily, and took a look around.

The sight that greeted her was like a waking nightmare. Half-collapsed buildings thrust their way out of the earth and rock of the walls, sitting bizarrely tilted compared to each other. Brilliant white work lights around the cavern threw everything into stark contrasts of light and shadow, making angles seem sharp as knives. Doorways and windows were like eyes and mouths opening onto oblivion, staring at her from every angle.

She swallowed her fear, forcing it away as she searched for Cash. The floor was uneven, though paths had been smoothed out by the many hoofsteps of the workers as they excavated this cave, and left many places to hide. She caught sight of a dirty shape near the center of the cavern and leapt for it.

Instead of Cash, she found a body. The pony had been a unicorn stallion, his cutie mark proclaiming his skill at games. His throat gaped from a deep slash that had spilled his blood into the earth. Blood still oozed slowly out of the wound, he had died very recently. Next to him was a pit, but Dash didn’t care to look into it.

She felt the squish of the dirt under her hooves, and knew there was blood on them again.

“Conrad was fun.” Cash’s voice echoed around the chamber as he spoke. “It’s a real shame what happened to him here.”

“You did this,” Dash said, tone dark as she flew up to get a better view of the cavern.

“Me? I hardly think Conrad was my fault,” Cash replied, chuckling. “I gave him every chance, after all. All he had to do was one little thing, and he could have walked out of here free and clear. Sadly, he insisted that I kill him.”

“I doubt that,” Dash muttered. She couldn’t see him, but she knew he would make an appearance. Don’t let Cash talk. She had to find him to shut him up.

“It’s true!” Cash said, laughing. “In the end, he said he wanted me to do it. Quite the noble sacrifice of him, if you think about it. ‘Greater love hath no pony than this, to give their life so another may take what he desires!’ At least, I think that’s what the passage was saying.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Dash said, looking for incongruous shadows, anything that might give the unicorn away.

“You should brush up on your literature,” Cash suggested. “You could critique me on my gross misrepresentations of scripture.”

There. Dash dove, blasting through an ancient wall and into one of the excavated structures. Cash leapt away, surprised at her maneuver, but laughing. She jumped at him, and his horn lit up with magenta light, freezing Dash in place.

This wasn’t anything close to the absolute hold Umbra had caught her in, though, and with every slow, agonizing beat of her wings she came a little closer to the unicorn. “Shut up!” she snarled.

“Wow, you are determined,” Cash said, smiling even though his brow furrowed at the strain of keeping her suspended. “You know, I hadn’t given you a second thought. I saw Lady Star and thought: yay, this is great! Then I saw the Griffin and, wow, even more great! Both of them are exceptional, both of them exactly what I need. I had no idea the real ace was waiting in the wings.” He winked at her. “Get it? Wings? Because... yeah, you get it.”

Don’t let Cash talk. “Shut! Up!”

“You! You’re just exploding with power. I have no idea where they found you, but, seriously, are there more? ‘Cause it would be very nice if there were more.”

“Shut up!”

“Yes? No?” He shrugged. “Hard to figure out what you meant by that. Doesn’t really matter anyway. Lady Star and her Griffin friend are exactly what I need, but you, oh you, you’re perfect.” She was getting closer. His magic couldn’t hold out forever. It was already weakening, but he didn’t seem even a little worried, and he wasn’t trying to get out of the way. “I’m pretty good at reading people. I’ve got this knack for figuring them out. It’s a bit of a give and take, though, and you’re not giving much, so I’m going to keep this simple. You want something.”

“You to shut up!”

“Yeah, but more than that,” he said, cocking his head to the side as he looked at her. “You want something, and you’re afraid that you aren’t going to get it. Am I close? Lukewarm?” Dash refused to listen, focusing all her attention on breaking his hold and clobbering him. “Nothing? Damn, okay, usually I like to talk them down, but since I’ve got nothing going here, I’ll just get to the meat of it. I want you to come with me. I can offer you whatever you want. I mean that. Whatever you want, no limits, open season on your deepest desires.”

“I don’t want anything from you, except for you to stop talking!” Dash growled, forcing herself another inch closer.

“You don’t really mean that,” Cash said. “Or, you do right now, but you won’t after you’ve thought about it a bit. Trust me. Everyone’s got a breaking point, everyone’s got something they want more than anything else. I can give it to you. Luna’s honest truth. Not immediately, but soon. Riches? Fame? Power? Stallions? Mares? Hot and cold running adulation and worship from everyone alive? I can give it to you.”

He winced, his horn shooting little magenta sparks as his magic began to tire. “I’m not even asking you to turn against your friends. I don’t need that. I don’t need you to sacrifice your family, or kill your buddies, or eat a kitten. You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do except one thing.” Dash lurched closer, Cash’s magic failing. “All you have to do is stop. Right now, just stop attacking and listen. You don’t need to agree with what you hear, you don’t need to make any promises. All you need to do is stop, despite what you’ve been told to do. All you need to do is make one.” Cash’s control slipped. Dash’s wings sped up to a blur. “Little.” Cash’s magic winked out. Dash rushed at him, hooves outstretched. “Betrayal.”

***

“I’m betraying you”

***

Dash dropped to the ground next to Cash, limbs beating against the ground as she seized. Her back arched until it felt like her spine was going to snap. Her wings flapped aimlessly, pulling at the already injured muscles until they simply could not move anymore. She choked, bile filling her throat. Finally the seizure ended and she fell to the dirt, vomiting out everything she had swallowed that day.

She couldn’t move. This was exactly like what she had felt after the scream. She didn’t know what had happened. One moment she was almost on him, the next her whole body fell apart on her.

“Okay, that was unexpected,” Cash said, looking down at her prone form.

“What did you do to me?” Dash rasped out, barely more than a whisper.

He laughed. “I have no idea,” he said. “You look like a mess, though. Want some help?”

“Get away from me,” Dash snarled, unable to even lift her head to make the implied threat meaningful.

“Yeah, you want some help.” Cash’s magic grabbed her, dragging her away from the puddle of vomit and out into the open cavern. He wasn’t gentle, and she was dragged over rock and soil. He flipped her onto a shelf of stone, then leapt up after her, standing above her and looking around the cavern, smiling. “This is a nice spot,” he said. “A good place for the foreman to stand, giving orders and making sure everyone’s doing their job. I’ll admit a little bit of jealousy. I wasn’t here as they carved this place out, but I would have loved to see it take shape. Can you imagine it? A little corridor of earth slowly being peeled back like the skin of a cat to reveal the beautiful structures within. I wish I’d been here for it.”

"You're crazy," Dash said, panting as she tried to move her uncooperative legs.

"You know, I thought so too for the longest time," Cash said, and gave her a shove so that she rolled onto her side, pinning her wing in a painfully awkward position. "I hear these voices in my head, these silly little nagging voices talking at me all day and all night. They keep telling me to do things, pushing me on and on. So I did the only sensible thing: I checked myself into an institution, got the help I thought I needed. Do you know what I found out?"

"That you're nuts?"

He chuckled. "No. That everyone hears voices in their heads. Absolutely everyone. Most just don't admit it. They give them names like 'conscience' or 'pride' or 'temptation'. They stuff them into neat little boxes and then shove them aside so that they can ignore them until they want to hear from them. I just have some trouble with the ignoring part. So you see, I'm not crazy. I'm just a really good listener."

“Shut up.”

“You, on the other hoof, are a terrible listener.” His horn lit up. “And unless you have the weirdest dye job in history, your roots are showing. Let’s get a real look at you.” Magic blasted out of his horn, scraping across her. It felt like a million needles digging into her skin, and she would have struggled against it if she could have gotten her limbs to move more than a twitch. It took moments, but it seemed like minutes as his spell stripped away the dye in her coat and mane and spread it all over the rock she lay on. When it was done Cash’s eyes widened. He said something in a language she didn’t understand, but it sounded like the same one the police had used right before trying to beat her up. From the tone and the hushed way he said it, she figured he was shocked. “This is incredible,” he said, switching back to Solar.

“What, you’ve never seen a blue pegasus before?” she gasped out.

He threw his head back and laughed. “I know you!” he crowed. “Oh, this is impossible! Unbelievable! Too good to be true!” He knelt down, practically lying on top of her. “Rainbow Dash,” he breathed, and she went cold. “I’m your biggest fan.”

“Get off of me!” Dash shrieked, trying to move.

He just laughed in her face. “How are you here? No, wait, it doesn’t matter. You’re here now, and that’s just.” He paused, breathing in as if smelling a sweet aroma. “Perfect.” She spat in his face. It was the best she could do. He didn’t even react. “You know, this might not be the best time,” he continued in a conversational tone. “But I’ve got a gift for you.” She struggled, her body slowly responding. “I was actually saving it for someone else, but, well, she’s probably dead by now. The good news is that it’s practically meant for you anyway.” His horn lit up, his magic opening a flap on his saddlebag and lifting something out. Dash looked up and saw the necklace dangling in a field of magenta. Golden, with a central red gem in the shape of a lightning bolt. The Element of Loyalty. “So, what do you say? Want it back?”

“No!” Dash screamed, struggling with all of her feeble might. “No!” She could feel the Element. It was wrong, twisted. She knew that if he put it around her neck something terrible would happen. At the same time she was drawn to the necklace. She could almost feel the weight of it, the crystal hot and strong on her chest. It felt like confidence, like power. She wanted it.

“No?” Cash asked, quirking an eyebrow. “You’re giving me some mixed signals here.”

“Get it away from me!” Dash pleaded, unable to take her eyes from that red lightning bolt.

“Huh. Gimme a sec,” Cash said, frowning. His saddlebag lit up again, pouches opening as he searched through it. “I think there was something about this in… in… damn.” His eyes grew dark. “I must have dropped it.” He sighed and rolled off of Dash. “Well! That’s awful.” He tucked the Element of Loyalty away, and Dash felt an immense pressure suddenly lift. “Sorry about this, Miss Dash,” he said, sounding genuinely apologetic as he patted her head. “I’ll get this cleared up as soon as possible. You just wait right there. If I’m not back in ten minutes, come find me. Kay?” He grinned at her, the expression chilling and devoid of any recognizable emotion.

Then he turned and strode away, chuckling to himself. Dash lay on the flat stone, shivering as thoughts of red lightning flashed in her mind. She knew it now, even if she found a way back to when she was supposed to be tomorrow, even if Nightmare Umbra was going to kill her for sure, she couldn’t leave. She had to stop him. No matter what the cost.

***

Star Fall staggered into the dig. She immediately rushed over to Astrid’s side. Her friend’s eyes were closed, but her chest still rose and fell. Star Fall let out a sigh of relief. Astrid’s wounds were terrible, but if Star Fall was able to staunch the bleeding she would pull through. To that end she snapped open the case on Astrid’s harness that held the spell-sheets she’d taken. Another moment to find a pen to draw with and she started to sketch out a quick healing spell. It wasn’t much, but it would stop bleeding and keep her friend alive until she could set up a more powerful healing array.

She completed the spell quickly, double checking to make sure it wasn’t going to go terribly awry. She didn’t have the time to go over it with a fine-toothed comb and make sure it wouldn’t cause some damage along the way, but any problems it created would only manifest in the long term, and she needed the help now. Star Fall set the completed spell-sheet against the Griffin and focused her magic. It hurt -- she’d used too much of herself in blasting away Charisma -- but she managed to energize the spell.

The script on the sheet flared to a bright red and began to move. It was sluggish, though, and Astrid could already see the effects of it fighting something. She cursed as vilely as she could and tried to figure out what was blocking her spell.

It only took a moment for her to realize that her dampening spell was still in action. Charisma had broken her concentration on it, but she’d invested it with enough energy to keep it going in a weakened form for minutes yet.

She turned away from Astrid, looking through the mud to spot the telltale spark of crimson that was her magic. She spotted something and rushed towards it. Instead of her dampening spell she found a book lying open in the muck. She ignored it for the moment, still searching, and finally spotted her mud-covered spell not far away.

She pounced on the spell and ended it with a thought. Immediately the script of her healing spell began to spider-walk across the page with greater speed, infusing her friend with its power and keeping her alive. Star Fall let out a breath of relief, slumping down into the mud.

A moment later her eye caught the book again and she slid herself over to it. It looked old, but well preserved. It was open to a page near the end of the book. The paper had been covered in mud during the fighting, but she could still see a few words clearly, and they were in Old Equestrian. She was filthy with mud herself, but she wiped her hoof off as best she could on her wing and scraped some of the muck off. Words became clear, but only a short passage’s worth:

Nothing can stand against the Elements. Not even my faith.

I’m sorry, Princess. I’m so sorry.

“Elements,” Star Fall whispered. “Elements of Harmony?” She closed the book, wiping the mud off its leather cover. Emblazoned there was an image of a magical array laid out in a five-pointed star. At each of the points was a strange image, an image that she recognized even when it didn’t make sense. A red lightning bolt, an orange apple, a purple diamond, a pink butterfly, and a blue balloon. In the center of the design was another symbol, a six-pointed magenta star. Above the image was the title and beneath it the name of the author.

Harmony Theory

By Twilight Sparkle

Star Fall’s breath caught in her throat. She’d never heard of this book. She had never even seen any references to it. It couldn’t be real.

“Hey, you found it,” Max Cash said, exiting the tunnel. Star Fall scrambled away from him, clutching the book to herself. He watched her with an amused gaze. “Ah, it’s gotten all muddy. That sucks.” He looked over at Astrid’s prone form, then kept scanning the dig. “You didn’t happened to see my bodyguard around here, did you?” Star Fall kept silent, watching him warily. He was dirty in places and had several cuts and scrapes, but otherwise looked no worse for wear. Dash should have been able to trounce him, but here he stood, practically unhurt. “No? Yes?” She said nothing, but he nodded as if she had. “Yes, then. Mind telling me where she went?”

“Go to hell,” Star Fall hissed at him.

“Ouch, you sound terrible,” he said, wincing in mock sympathy. “She really did a number on you, huh? Well, sorry about that. I didn’t want it to come to this. I really didn’t. If you’d just stayed in the room you could have… well, alright, one good thing did come of this.” He bared his teeth in a sly grin. “You know your friend’s a legend, right?”

Star Fall’s guts clenched up in dread. “What did you do to her?”

“Not a clue,” he said, laughing at her fear. “I’m pretty sure she’ll be fine, though.” A scream echoed to them from out in the compound, and the sound of gunfire made rapid pops in the dark. Cash shook his head and shrugged at her. “So little time nowadays, huh? Well, there’s your backup, and my cue to leave. About my girl, Charisma? I’d really appreciate it if you told me where you last saw her. Come on, be honest.”

A weight crashed down on Star Fall. She tried to fight it, but it crushed her before she had the chance to resist. “I knocked her into the guard tower over there,” she said, pointing with a hoof. “She fell. I don’t know what happened after that.” The weight vanished as suddenly as it had come, leaving her coughing and gasping.

“Thanks,” he said with an affably warm smile. “And thanks for finding that for me.” His horn lit up and pulled the book from her hooves. She tried to hold onto it, but in the midst of her coughing fit she could barely keep herself from falling over. He tucked the muddy book into his saddlebag, securing it tightly. Then he stepped up to her and gave her a pat on the shoulder. “You should probably see a doctor about that cough, Lady Star. In this kind of weather, you’ve likely caught a cold. Here, have a cookie. Try it. Trust me, you’ll like it.” He floated a little chocolate chip cookie and dropped it on her head. Then with a grin he walked away as she stared helplessly after him. He stopped just as he got to the exit and gave her a wry look over his shoulder. “Oh, and by the way? Offer’s still open. Anytime you want a real choice, come see me.” Then he was gone.

***

By the time Dash managed to get herself out of the dig, Gamma’s forces were already cleaning up the remains of Cash’s security. The massive transport hovered over the compound, dropping three squads of Royal Marines onto the already broken defences of the dig. It didn’t take long. Soon the entire place was secured and the transport landed in a clear space just beyond the buildings.

Dash stayed with Star Fall and Astrid as the latter was carted to the transport for immediate medical attention. She barely paid attention to the huge flying machine as they went inside and got the Griffin to a unicorn doctor who spent ten tense minutes looking her over before declaring that she would be fine. After that Dash and Star Fall collapsed into a pair of cots and fell deeply asleep.

Hours later Dash woke. She felt like garbage. Her wings were so sore they barely moved, and the leg Charisma had kicked was similarly stiff, making her limp as she walked. She could smell food, though, and ignored the pain in her back to tend to the pain in her stomach.

The interior of the transport was a wide open space with three levels. There were exterior doors on each level, and a large bay door in the belly that could be opened to drop troops or let pegasi fly. The top level was devoted to command and control, where the ship was flown from, where troops could be directed from, and where the unicorns that powered its flight were stationed. The second floor was where the infirmary was, as well as the on-board mess and facilities for a long flight. The lowest floor was the staging and cargo area, with weapons, ammo, and plenty of room for smaller vehicles or anything else that might be needed on a mission. It was more like a large airborne boat than the sleek, balloon-lifted airships Dash was used to from her time. Now that she had the chance to admire it, she decided that it was both cool and awesome. Not radical, though, it was too military-efficient to have any real flair.

The food smell was coming from the mess area, so Dash made her way over there. A dozen ponies sat around metal tables, shoveling food into their mouths. They looked up as she limped past, but none of them said anything. She didn’t know if they were being friendly or not, and she was still too tired to really care. All she wanted was to get some food and maybe go back to bed.

The soldier doling out the food stared at her too, but he still gave her a heaping plate full of scrambled eggs, oats and cooked hay. She mumbled her thanks and took her food to an empty place at the tables. She looked around at the ponies staring at her. “Hey,” she said. One of them opened his mouth to speak, but another put out a hoof, stopping him. The soldier rethought what he had been going to say, and then just gave Dash a nod before looking away. The others also returned to their meals, eating quickly.

Dash sighed. She didn’t know what to make of that. The look the soldier had given her had been curious and a little awestruck. She didn’t know why, but she figured she’d find out later. Without any other thought she dug into her food. It was both horrible and delicious all at the same time, and she couldn’t imagine it any other way.

When she had finally finished her food she looked up to discover that Gamma had taken the seat across from her at some point, and the rest of the mess was deserted. She couldn’t remember the other mare sitting down or the soldiers getting up, but she figured being focused on food had a lot to do with that. “Hey,” she said again.

“Good morning, Agent Dash,” Gamma replied. “How are you feeling?”

Dash took stock of herself. She hurt all over, especially in her wing joints and right rear leg. She was still filthy, and still incredibly tired. She’d spent what sleep she’d gotten dreaming of ashen Alicorns and red lightning bolts. “M’okay,” she said.

“Excellent,” Gamma said, her flat gaze declaring exactly how much she believed Dash’s statement. “Since you are the first to awaken, I have decided to begin the debrief with you.”

“The what?” Dash asked, in not entirely dishonest confusion.

“Tell me what happened, Agent Dash,” Gamma clarified. “Beginning with the Destroyer.”

“You know about Umbra?”

“Half the world knows about Umbra,” Gamma said. “The other half will know by the end of the week. What they don’t know, what no knows, is exactly what happened with her. I know you were there. Tell me everything.”

“Can this wait? I kinda need a shower.”

“Now, Dash,” Gamma commanded, then frowned as she looked over Dash’s dirty coat. “If you’d like a shower then you may have one, but I will be joining you in there and you’d better be talking the whole time.”

Dash saw no reason not to take her up on the offer, and so began the story as they made their way to the showers next to the infirmary. She’d seen enough of Gamma’s incisive mind not to intentionally leave details out, but she still had to backtrack several times as she forgot sequences of events or was asked to clarify things she’d thought were obvious. Overall it took two hours to get all the relevant information out, from Nightmare Umbra all the way up to Max Cash and the Element of Loyalty.

“And you’re sure this is the Element of Loyalty you wielded against Nightmare Moon?" Gamma asked.

Dash had decided to stretch her legs after the shower, so they were now walking around the compound. Umbra's storm had completely dissipated, leaving clear skies from horizon to horizon. The morning sun was just above the hills, and the mud was drying slowly at their hooves. Soldiers had taken up residence in the guard towers, watching for any of Cash's forces that they might have missed in the night.

Dash nodded to Gamma's question. "Yeah. No doubt at all. I could feel it. I don't know how to describe it, I just knew."

"But it was 'wrong'?"

Dash nodded again. "Like everything about it was flipped upside down and backwards."

"Could he be using it?"

Dash shrugged. "I don't think so. You gotta be loyal to your friends to use it, and even then it's just a fancy necklace without the others. At least, I think it is. We were never too clear on how they did their thing."

"Disturbing," Gamma said. "I had never heard of the Elements before I met you."

"Star hadn't either," Dash sighed. "But before Nightmare Moon, neither had I. I guess they got lost again or something. That Schism thing really messed Equestria up."

"Yes," Gamma agreed. "It did." They walked in silence for a minute before Gamma spoke up again. "We found the body in the cavern. Without access to my files I can't be sure, but I think he's a pony named Conrad Sherman. A low-birth unicorn. He's on record as a petty criminal, con artist and pathological liar."

"Cash did call him 'Conrad'," Dash said.

"So you’ve said," Gamma replied. "I believe that is confirmation enough, but I want to be sure."

"Was he working with Cash?"

"I suspect so. I sent an agent to investigate him not too long ago. At her last report she'd been jumped in a nightclub, left unconscious in a bathroom stall. By the time she had awoken Sherman was gone. The window to his hotel room was broken, as was the door. I suspect that he found out Cash's intention to kill him, and did not come here willingly."

"What happened here, Gamma?" Dash asked, coming to a stop. "I mean, I was here and I don't get it! Who is this Cash guy? Why does he have the Element of Loyalty? Why did he kill Conrad? Why did Umbra try to stop me from coming here? Is it because of the Element? Did she know he had it and just not want me getting it?"

"All good questions," Gamma said, frowning. "Invisible connections."

"What?"

"That's what I've been calling them. Invisible connections. Between you and Cash, between Umbra and you, even between Agent Fall and you. There are so many questions, and the questions themselves point to some greater events going on where we can't see them, connecting all of you into some sort of grand design." Gamma sighed. "Every new bit we learn brings us closer to seeing that design, but it also brings that design closer to fruition. We have to see it before it becomes unstoppable, but so long as these questions hang over us, so long as those connections are invisible..." She trailed off.

"You're going to help, right?"

Gamma gave Dash a flat look. "Agent Dash, if I were not going to help I would not be here. Whatever you are embroiled in, it threatens the Kingdom. It is my duty to ensure that no threat to the Kingdom goes undiscovered and unanswered. Of course I'm going to help. I'm going to be running the damned show. You are going to be helping me."

Dash snorted out a laugh, smiling. "Okay, okay, just makin' sure."

"Don't test me, Agent Dash," Gamma warned.

Dash laughed again, but grew serious. "He's dangerous, Gamma. I don't know how, but he scared Star, and he did something to me. Something that messed me up bad in that cave. I've got a freakin' Nightmare gunning for me, and he's the one I'm really scared of."

Gamma let out a little shudder. Barely enough to be noticeable, even to Dash's keen eyes. "Don't underestimate Umbra," Gamma warned. "You should be afraid of her. Scared for your life."

"Yeah, I get that, and I am," Dash said. "But that's a normal sort of scared, you know? She's just going to kill me. Cash? He's wrong. Seriously wrong. I think if you spend too much time around him, some of that wrong starts to get into you. Like with Charisma."

"Charisma was an unstable personality long before she met Cash," Gamma said. "But I will agree that his influence has been detrimental even to her. Her skills, however, are by all accounts even sharper than when she worked for us. You should be proud that you fought her to a standstill."

"I kinda got my ass kicked," Dash admitted. It was hard, but not as hard as she had expected it to be. Gamma knew all the details at this point, and boasting about that fight wouldn’t make her feel better about it. "She said the only reason I was doing okay was because I'm so tough. I kinda believe her on that, after what she did to Astrid."

"Both of you are lucky to be alive," Gamma said. "And even if it was your superior resilience that allowed you to fight her and live, it's a testament to Sergeant Steelwing's skills that she managed to do the same. Charisma is a killer, make no mistake. She has a confirmed bodycount in the triple digits, most in melee combat."

"How many of those were from before she met Cash?" Dash asked.

Gamma paused, thinking it over. "As far as we know? Twenty."

"Which was when she was working for you guys, right?" Gamma nodded. "Yeah, Cash got into her. She was almost happy that I was going hoof-to-hoof with her. It was like a dream come true. That's crazy, Gamma. That's Max Cash crazy."

They walked in silence for another minute, coming up to the dig site. It looked different in the sunlight. Less imposing, less stark. "Still looks like a barn to me," Dash quipped.

"Help!"

"I think it has a more municipal feel," Gamma said. "Certainly there must have been a town here at one point, though even our oldest maps don't have any mention of it."

"Hey! Anypony out there?"

"Maybe for you guys it looks, um, municipal, but back in my time we... do you hear that?"

"I'm a little stuck! Anypony?"

Gamma frowned. "What do you hear?"

"Somebody calling for help," Dash replied, her ears swivelling to find the source of the sound.

"Help!"

"It's coming from inside!" Dash cried, running towards the tunnel.

"Agent Dash!" Gamma called after her. "Wait for backup!"

"No time!" Dash yelled back. "They're calling for help!"

She lurched into the tunnel, cursing her sore wings and her stiff leg. The shouts had stopped, but she could hear the sounds of a pony struggling from up ahead. She struggled through the darkness, tripping on the uneven path. Finally she burst out into the cavern, blinking in the glare of the work lights. She saw who had been calling and skid to a stop, mouth hanging open.

"Nevermind, got myself out," the pony said. Her Old Equestrian was perfect, but laced with an unmistakable country drawl. She dusted some dirt off of her orange coat with a beaten old stetson that she then placed neatly atop her blonde mane. She gave the pit she had crawled out of a nasty look, but when she turned to Dash her green eyes lit up. "Rainbow Dash! Well aren't you a sight! Mind tellin' me where in the wide, wide world of Equestria we happen to be? 'Cause I have to admit I have no idea how I got here, and I am mighty confused right now."

Dash trembled, working her mouth a few times without making a sound.

"What's the matter, sugarcube? You look like you've seen a ghost."

Finally Dash managed to work up enough spit to swallow. Then with a hoarse voice that verged on sobbing she said the only thing she could think of right then: "Applejack?"

Chapter 15: Waking Pains

Attempting to determine the physical composition of the Elements of Harmony was an exercise in futility. While I could break parts of them down at will, I could not in any way analyze their structure. They are immune to every metallurgical analysis, from simple heat melting all the way through dissolution in acid. They are chemically inert and magically impenetrable.

At one point I obtained use of an electron microscope at Canterlot University, and discovered something astounding: the Elements are solid. Not in the same way that most matter is solid, but absolutely solid. Forced to devise several unique tests to confirm this, I ultimately came to a few startling facts about the physical Elements.

First they are absolutely reflective, at least down to the neutrino level. Heat, light, stray thaumic radiation, all of it bounces off without imparting a single iota of energy to the Elements themselves. This should render them blindingly white except under special lighting, but they remain plainly and simply visible in their current forms. They should also be very cold to the touch, but remain at a temperature we would expect them to considering the environment around them.

Second, they have no mass. This was difficult to determine, as they feel as if they have weight, and several scales will show that they do. However, this is just more perception bias in regards to the Elements, and more in-depth gravity testing has proven without a significant margin of error that they have a total mass of zero.

Taking all these facts together, I can only come to the conclusion that the physical Elements are not composed of atoms. As all known matter in the universe is composed of atoms, the Elements are therefore not made of matter as we understand it, and are therefore not truly 'physical' at all. In fact, I would be willing to say that whatever the Elements are made from, it resembles nothing else in the universe, and certainly doesn't conform to the laws we commonly believe sustain existence.

I cannot stress the importance of this discovery enough in my studies of the Elements. It changed everything.

-From the second section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Fifteen: Waking Pains

She awoke to darkness and pressure. A great weight was pressing down all around her, holding her in a binding embrace. She gasped for air, and got a mouthful of dirt for her trouble. Spitting and snarling she tried to get up, but found to her rising panic that she was completely stuck from the neck down. There was dirt over her eyes, and when she opened them it stung badly enough that she could only take a quick glance before having to squeeze them shut again. However, she did manage to see that she was stuck down a hole, and there was a harsh white light coming from above.

She was buried alive.

She struggled, fighting the panic that she knew wouldn’t help one little bit. After an eternity of effort she realized that she could shift the dirt around her head and neck, and it gave her some wiggle room to start getting out.

She shifted until she could take a deep breath, then called out. "Help!" she cried. Her own voice echoed back to her. "Hey! Anypony out there? I'm a little stuck! Anypony? Help!"

She didn't wait for a response, figuring that if there was anypony there to hear, they would come running. Instead she twisted her body from side to side, wiggling and pushing with all the little leverage she had. Inch by inch she pulled herself free of the earth and up the sides of the hole she was in.

Then, with a jerk she was free. She scrambled up the hole and out to the open, panting and shaking with relief. A look around showed that she was in a huge cavern with buried buildings jutting out of the walls, all lit with a harsh electric light. She had no idea how she'd come to be here, and that lack of knowledge sent a shiver down her spine.

She set the slow-blooming fear aside and took stock of herself. To her relief she found that she was uninjured, merely dirty and confused. A few swipes with her hat got rid of the worst of the dirt, and just in time, as she heard hoofsteps on the ground behind her.

"Nevermind," she told whoever it was, putting her hat securely back on her head. "Got myself out." She turned to the new arrival, and her face split in a grin. "Rainbow Dash! Well aren't you a sight! Mind tellin' me where in the wide, wide world of Equestria we happen to be? 'Cause I have to admit I have no idea how I got here, and I am mighty confused right now."

Dash just stared at her, her mouth open and moving a little, but no sound coming out. She took a closer look at her friend, and realized that Dash looked terrible. There were huge bruises visible under the pegasus' blue coat, one of her wings was bandaged up and she was clearly favoring one of her back legs. She looked like she'd had one of her worse tumbles, but some of those bruises were suspiciously hoof-shaped. Worse than the physical damage was the way she was staring at Applejack.

"What's the matter, sugarcube? You look like you've seen a ghost."

"Applejack?"

The pony in question frowned at her friend. Rainbow Dash sounded like she was about to cry, and that just wasn't in the athletic pegasus' nature. "Of course it's me," she said. "Now, are you going to answer my question or..." She never got to finish. Dash pounced on her, folding her into an embrace that threatened to squeeze the air out of the farmer.

"Applejack! I thought... I didn't..." Dash stammered out before just flat-out crying into her friend's coat.

Something was going on here, and not knowing what irked Applejack fiercely. A crying friend always took precedence, though, so she hugged her back. "Hey, there. Take a deep breath and tell me what's going on."

"I... I thought I'd never see you again," Dash sobbed. "I'd just given up."

"Given up?" Applejack exclaimed. She didn’t know where she was, how she got there, or what was going on in general right now, but she could handle all of that. That was just weird. Rainbow Dash giving up? That was flat-out wrong, and it left her disoriented far worse than any of the other stuff ever could. "Now, since when does Rainbow Dash give up on anything?"

"Since Max Cash brought out the Element of Loyalty," Dash mumbled. Applejack had barely caught that, and the misery in Dash's voice was deeper than anything she'd ever thought to hear from the pegasus. Dash took a deep, shuddering breath and pulled back from Applejack's embrace. "You're here now. Okay. Gotta think. Gamma's gonna be here any second and I gotta know what to tell her."

"What? Who? Rainbow Dash, just what is going on?"

Dash frowned, scrubbing her tears away. "Oh, man, this just got complicated.”

"Complicated?"

"Yeah, she's gonna want to question you, but you don't speak Solar," Dash said, pacing back and forth. "I can translate, I guess, but she's not gonna like it. I'm not going to like it. I don't... Argh! This is Star's thing, I can't deal with Gamma right now; you're here! I don't even know how Star's doing, she'll totally flip when she meets you!"

"Rainbow?"

"The Professor's gonna flip too, but not in a good way," Dash continued, heedless of Applejack's attempt to get her attention. "Oh crud! Does this mean he's got your Element too? Oh jeez that is not good. Right! I gotta tell you about that! But maybe I should talk to Star first and..."

“Rainbow Dash!" Applejack snapped, pushed to the limits of her patience. "Stop your ramblin’ and just tell me what's goin' on!”

Dash stopped, turning back to Applejack and swallowing hard. “Okay, okay. This is going to sound really crazy, and you’re not going to believe me, but just trust me, it’s true.”

“I do trust you, sugarcube,” Applejack assured her, her impatience settling as she saw how nervous her friend was. “And I will believe you, once you get around to actually tellin’ me what it is that’s so hard to believe.”

Dash sighed. “Um, okay. AJ, we're in the future."

Applejack blinked at her for a long moment. "The future? What do you mean we’re in the future?"

"Like, a thousand years in the future." The deadly earnest look in Dash's eyes was all Applejack needed to be convinced that the pegasus wasn’t kidding.

"A thousand... why? How?"

"Uh, nopony knows," Dash said, shrugging. "But Twinkle Shine, um, she's this really smart but kinda grumpy unicorn, anyway, she's trying to figure it out." Dash paused as the sound of a dozen ponies coming through a tunnel echoed around the chamber. "Gamma's here. AJ, do not freak out, okay? They don't speak Equestrian, and talking really loud and really slow won't get them to understand you any better."

Applejack frowned. "If they don't speak Equestrian, why would you think talkin' slow and loud would help?"

"I..." Dash's eyes darted to the side for a moment before focusing again. "Didn't. Just let me do the talking, okay?"

Applejack nodded in agreement. "Sure thing, sugarcube. Just remember to fill me in on what's goin' on, alright?"

"You got it," Dash said, gracing her with a genuine smile that was reassuringly Rainbow Dash: cocky, confident and irrepressible. Applejack smiled back, and kept still as a squad of oddly-clothed ponies brandishing strange devices surrounded them with clearly military precision and efficiency. Applejack couldn't help but glance around at them, feeling a palpable sense of danger from them, but she checked her impulse to shy away and instead waited with as much nonthreatening stillness as she could muster. A unicorn stepped into the circle of soldiers, dark green coat and black mane making her blue eyes stand out like beacons. Those eyes were so intensely focused that they almost distracted from her cutie mark, which was a series of glyphs that somehow clearly spelled out 'Intelligence' despite the fact that Applejack had never seen anything like them before. Applejack forced herself not to stare at the bizarre cutie mark, not wanting to be rude as a first impression.

Dash and the unicorn talked, and Applejack couldn't help a start of surprise at hearing the foreign language flow so easily from the pegasus. Hearing her own little sister talking fancy was nothing compared to hearing a different language from Rainbow Dash of all ponies. Rainbow Dash didn't even like to read!

Finally, the two seemed to come to an agreement. The soldiers relaxed and Dash turned back to Applejack. "Okay, so that went well. I guess," the pegasus said, scratching at the back of her head sheepishly.

"Who are these ponies?" Applejack asked.

"Well, they're, uh, special forces or something," Dash said, shrugging. "Think elite guards. That's Gamma," she pointed at the unicorn she'd been conversing with. "She's a spy, but, like a totally awesome super-spy. Look, I'll explain it all to you, but you gotta come with us right now."

Applejack nodded. "Sure I will. Why are you actin' all jittery?"

"You promise not to get mad?"

"Why would I get... Rainbow Dash, what have you gotten me into?"

"Look, it's just until Star can talk to you. She'll vouch for you and this'll all be good," Dash said quickly. "They're not going to tie you up or anything!"

"Tie me?! What?"

"It's not that bad!"

"Rainbow Dash, you are gonna tell me right now what you just agreed to for me!" Applejack said, steel and invulnerable earth pony stubbornness lacing her voice.

"Well," Dash wheedled. "You're kinda, sorta, maybe a prisoner."

"A prisoner!"

"Just until my friend Star can talk to you and make sure you're, um, you. Gamma trusts her more than she trusts me right now. It'll be cool, you'll see."

Applejack took a deep breath. She could deal with this. After thinking about it for a moment it even started to make sense. These ponies didn't know her, and she didn't know them. Dash was all beat up, and they were soldiers, so maybe something was going on. Something that would put them on edge, and in that case it was only smart to be careful around strange ponies. "Fine. I'm a prisoner. Great. Just so long as I get to keep my hat."

Dash let out a weak chuckle. "Oh, hey, about that."

If looks could kill...

***

Star Fall watched the gentle rise and fall of Astrid's chest. Her head pounded and her stomach demanded food, but she couldn't pull herself away from her injured friend long enough to take care of either of those problems. Astrid slept soundly, kept from waking or feeling the pain of her injuries by the drugs that flowed into her system from the tubes and needles she was hooked up to. It was a peaceful sleep, especially now that they'd patched her injured lung.

Star Fall's sleep hadn't been nearly as peaceful. The doctor had kept waking her every half an hour to ensure that her concussion wouldn't turn into something worse, and that meant what sleep she got was never very deep or restful. When morning finally came she'd been subjected to a careful scan by the doctor before he had pronounced her healthy enough to not need any more observation.

That was good news for her, but Astrid’s prognosis wasn't nearly as bright. Charisma's attack had seriously injured the Griffin, and only Star Fall's light healing spell had kept her alive. When she'd asked, she'd been told a lot of medical jargon that her biology studies informed her meant that Astrid wasn't going to have any permanent injuries, but would take a month to heal and even longer to fully recover.

"I'm so sorry," Star Fall said, laying a gentle hoof on her friend's side.

"Her duty was to protect you," Gamma said, coming up behind her. Star Fall was too tired to be very surprised by the sudden appearance of her boss. "She did that admirably. You have the fewest injuries out of the three of you, even if Dash seems to handle them better."

"She's different," Star Fall sighed. "I wish I could give half of her resilience to Astrid. She'd be up and healthy in a week."

"I do not doubt that," Gamma said. "But I do doubt Sergeant Steelwing would want you to sit by her bedside moping when there is work to do."

Star Fall nodded, standing. "You're right. We have to find Cash."

"I agree," Gamma said, turning to leave the medical ward. "But a more immediate concern has come up. One that requires your personal attention."

Star Fall frowned at that, but followed Gamma closely. "What's happened?"

"Not what, but who," came Gamma's cryptic reply. "I won't say any more yet. I want your unbiased first opinion."

Star Fall contemplated that as they left the transport, crossing to one of Cash's buildings. There were a pair of soldiers standing at the doors, and their obvious alertness for any threats managed to make its way past her headache to trigger her own awareness. They were worried about something, and soldiers like these only worried when something seriously wasn't right with the world. "What's happened?" she demanded of Gamma as they passed the guards into the building.

"We discovered something this morning," she said. "Something that might bring some connections I’ve been guessing at closer to the light. In here." They entered one of the rooms, and were in a hastily set-up monitoring room. There were crystal screens showing images magically projected from various places around the compound. A pair of unicorns were maintaining the screens, and both nodded silently to Gamma as she entered. "Tell me what you make of this," Gamma instructed Star Fall, pointing to one of the screens.

It showed Rainbow Dash in a room with another mare, both sitting at a table with a glass of water in front of each of them. The other pony was an orange-coated blonde earth pony with a trio of apples as her Glyph. She was sitting with her forelegs crossed in front of her and pointedly not looking at Dash. Something about the pony caught at Star Fall's attention, and she took a closer look, squinting to make out details on the screen.

When recognition hit, it hit hard. She jerked upright, eyes wide and wings spread. "Celestia's light! Is that Applejack?"

"I don't know," Gamma replied. "Is it?"

Star Fall searched her memory, dredging up every fact about Applejack's appearance that were scattered throughout Twilight Sparkle's writings. "Her coloration is right. Glyph is right. Freckles are right, too. I can't tell more without talking to her."

Gamma nodded. "Of course. I'm putting you in charge of her interrogation."

"We're interrogating her? To what purpose? Where did she come from?"

"That is one of the items I wish to address with the interrogation," Gamma said. "Agent Fall, you are first to determine if she is actually Applejack, or at least as much Applejack as Agent Dash is Rainbow Dash. Second, you are to discover how she came to be here, if she knows at all. Third, you are to determine her loyalties in regards to the Kingdom, and if at all possible secure those loyalties for the Crown. Do you understand these orders?"

Star Fall nodded. "I do."

A moment later she was escorted to the room where Dash and Applejack waited. Another pair of soldiers guarded this door, and carefully checked Star Fall over before letting her into the room. Inside, Dash was talking in Old Equestrian.

"Come on, AJ! This is important!"

"I ain't talkin' to you," Applejack said, turning her head firmly away from the pegasus. Her Old Equestrian had an accent to it that gave Star Fall pause, but it was still understandable once she gave it some thought. "You let them take my hat."

"I didn't want to! Gamma insisted!" Dash replied.

"I don't care, I'm still mad at you," Applejack said.

"What are you saying about hat?" Star Fall asked as she walked into the room.

"Star! You're alright!" Dash cried, leaping up and over the table to give Star Fall a tight hug. "How's Astrid?"

"Astrid is... sleeping," Star Fall told her in Solar. "The doctor's say she'll be back to normal in a couple months."

"Months? Oh, man that sucks." Dash shivered. "I can't imagine being laid out for months!"

"Uh, beg pardon, but you were saying something about my hat?" Applejack said, looking at Dash oddly before turning her green eyes to Star Fall.

"I was asking about hat," Star Fall replied. "It was taken?"

"Yeah, Gamma said she had to check it over, or something," Dash said.

Star Fall frowned. Why would Gamma insist on something like that? The answer came to her a moment later, and she sighed. "Wait. I will try to get it."

"Appreciated," Applejack said, her posture relaxing.

"What's going on, Star?" Dash asked.

"Gamma's doing her usual games," Star Fall told her. "Don't worry, it'll all be okay." Dash accepted that, backing off to sit back at the table. Star Fall exited the room and went back to the monitoring room. Gamma was waiting outside it.

"Are there problems?" Gamma asked.

"I'd like to return the prisoner's hat to her," Star Fall replied, holding out her hoof.

Gamma let a faint smile show through her professional mask, and the hat floated over to Star Fall in the blue glow of Gamma's magic. "I took the liberty of cleaning it a bit. She should appreciate that."

"I'm sure she will," Star Fall commented before turning away from the unicorn and returning to the interrogation room. "I have it," she said as she entered, laying the hat on the table.

"Thank you kindly," Applejack said, wasting no time in grabbing the hat and laying it back on her head. Star Fall took the opportunity to call her magic into her eyes and take a look at the pony's aura. What she saw was just as intense as Dash's aura, but completely different. Where Dash's magic was a constant explosion of color and light, Applejack's was a solid, steady presence of life and growth. Earth pony magic, definitely, but so uniquely strong and vibrant that there was almost no comparison to a normal pony. "Why'd they have to go and take it anyway?"

"So I could give it back to you," Star Fall said, letting the magic fade from her eyes.

Applejack frowned. "Now, how does that make a lick of sense?"

"Gamma is watching," Star Fall said. "She knows ponies, how they act. I give your hat back, you trust me more. Talk more. We become friends, she watches, sees how you act. Then she knows if you are dangerous to the Kingdom."

"Aw, she played me," Dash said, sagging.

"She couldn't have just had you ask me?" Applejack asked.

"No. Gamma does not trust. It is her job not to trust."

"Well, ain't that just wonderful," Applejack said. "Aren't you messing up her plan by telling me all this?"

"Maybe. I do not think so," Star Fall said, shaking her head. "I tell you truth now, you know I will tell you the truth later. We have trust, and maybe friendship, too."

Applejack smiled. "Well, that's a plan I can get behind. My name's Applejack." The orange pony held out a hoof.

"Fallen Star," she replied, shaking the proffered hoof.

"Dash has been tellin' me you're a good pony," Applejack said. "I'm glad to see she's right." She looked over to Dash. "And as for you, I forgive you."

"Yes!" Dash pumped a hoof in the air. "I told you I didn't want to let them take it!"

"Yeah, well, a pony just wants to keep her hat when she finds out she's suddenly in the future," Applejack said. "Speaking of, I've got a lot of questions, and I haven't the first idea where to begin with them."

"I will answer what I can," Star Fall assured her. "But first I must ask you questions."

"Well, alright, I guess. Fire away."

"I need to know how you got here. What is it you remember about coming here?"

Applejack shrugged. "I don't know. I was going to bed, then I woke up buried and in the future."

"What were you doing before going to bed?"

"Getting ready mostly. Cider season'd just started. Our farm relies on the money from it to get through the winter, and I was worryin' about not havin' enough for everypony again this year."

"Wait. Are you talking about the time with the Flim-Flam brothers?" Dash cut in.

"The who now?"

"But that was months ago!" Dash exclaimed. "I–I don't understand."

Star Fall frowned. "Dash. We will talk about that later. Applejack, I am going to ask you some questions about your life. I need to make sure you are you, and not a pretender. I do not think you are, but I still must ask for Gamma. Then I promise that I will answer your questions. I do not promise that I have all the answers, but I will try."

"Well, okay. So long as you try," Applejack said, then took a deep breath. "But before I say anything, I want to know. Am I really in the future? And how did I get here?"

"You are," Star Fall said. "More than a thousand years have passed since... since you died." Applejack took that particular bombshell impassively, just nodding for Star Fall to continue. "We do not know how you are here. We are trying to find out, but it is part of things happening with a pony named Max Cash. He is a very bad pony, and he is doing very bad things. Maybe he wants you to be here, maybe not. We don't know, but the more sure we are about you, the more you can help us find out."

Applejack settled herself in her chair, laying her forehooves on the table. "Well, alright then. I trust Dash, and I'm trusting you too. Just tell me what I can do to help out, and I'll do my best."

"Thank you Applejack," Star Fall said, smiling at the earth pony. "Now, first, um, what is your favourite food?"

***

Twinkle Shine stared at herself in the mirror of the well-appointed washroom she'd been given to freshen up in. The purpling bags under her eyes stood out starkly in contrast to her golden coat. The eyes above the bags were bloodshot and weary, focusing only with effort. Her mane hung limp and unwashed around her head, and she feared that she'd begun to smell. Exhaustion hung heavily from her, and even the cold water she was liberally splashing on her face did little to alleviate the weary dullness that clouded her mind.

She filled the sink and dunked her face in, holding her breath as long as she could before pulling herself up and gasping. When she looked in the mirror again her eyes had been replaced by those of the Nightmare. They weren't tired, and even from her dishevelled and soaking face they held the unmistakable expression of absolute rage held in an adamantine control.

"No," Twinkle Shine sighed. "Now is not a good time to talk."

"Events Are Outpacing The Plan," her reflection said. "I Feel A Shift In The Cosmos."

"Another one?" Twinkle Shine mused, putting a hoof to her chin in distracted thought. "Bad dreams, maybe?"

"I Do Not Dream."

The unicorn snorted. "Of course not. I'm the one that gets all the dreams. Fine. This just means the timetable is moved up. How long?"

"This Shift Was Not Accompanied By An Acceleration Of My Ascension," the Nightmare admitted, looking ever so slightly annoyed. "It Was The Result Of An External Influence."

"External?" Twinkle Shine pulled back, surprised. "Celestia and Luna?"

"Remain As They Were," Umbra confirmed.

Twinkle Shine growled and shook her head. "Figures. Then it's something new."

"No. Not New," the Nightmare countered. "Familiar."

"How familiar?"

"I ... Do Not Know."

Twinkle Shine's head sagged. "Then why tell me this? If it doesn't affect anything and the cause is unknown, what good will it do to put this on me now? Now, when I'm working on my third day with an hour of sleep? Now, when I'm worried sick about Star Fall? Now, when I have to handle the King in the middle of a crisis I helped cause? I'm practically falling asleep on my hooves here!"

"Exhaustion Is Not An Excuse For Lack Of Concern. The Plan Is Becoming Irrelevant."

"Not yet it isn't," Twinkle Shine snarled. Then sighed and rubbed at her head. "Fine, I'll keep it in mind. Along with everything else I have to keep track of right now."

Umbra narrowed her eyes. "I Will Not Have Inattention Cost–." A knock at the door silenced the Nightmare.

"What is it?" Twinkle Shine snapped.

"Professor Shine, we heard voices. Are you alright?" came the voice of a Griffin from the other side of the door.

"Yes," Twinkle Shine said, casting one last look into the mirror where her reflection's eyes had returned to normal before opening the door. "I was talking to myself. Something I do when I'm worried and tired," she explained to the guard.

He cocked his gray-feathered head to the side as he looked down at her, but didn't comment on her choice in conversation companions. "We've received word that Agent Gamma is going to make contact soon. The King has requested you in the Steel Hall."

The Professor nodded slowly. This could be either very good or very bad, depending on what Gamma had to say. "Lead the way," she told the Griffin.

Of the several throne rooms the Court of the Sun contained, the Steel Hall was the least seen by outsiders. It was primarily a place from whence the Kings and Queens of the Solar Kingdom planned and prosecuted their wars. As such it was built for function over form. There were no windows in the Steel Hall, instead it had wide and tall walls. In the distant past those walls held tapestries picked out as maps of Equestria and the other known continents which could be used to plan troop movements and battle strategies. In modern times they were lined with monitors and large crystal screens that served much the same purpose, but with more flash.

Those screens were alive with images, many of them maps showing the positions of the Kingdom's forces. Most prominently displayed was a topographical map of the Stile islands. Red and green symbols were scattered across the map, representing the standoff between the Kingdom and Republics.

There were rows of desks and benches, each set with a series of crystals and manned by unicorns with the power and Talent to use them. This was the central communications hub of the Solar military, from whence all orders began and to where all reports eventually were made. In times of peace it wouldn't have been unusual for only a third of the desks to be full. Now there wasn't a single one empty.

When Twinkle Shine entered the Hall the King was sitting on his throne, a simple, comfortable chair that did not seem out of place in the utilitarian Steel Hall, but projected a sense of the power of the pony sitting on it nonetheless. The King was engaged in heated debate with one of his generals as she approached, but they broke the conversation off before she could get an idea of what it was they were arguing over. It was interesting that he'd gotten one of the generals riled enough to argue, but what was more interesting was that the Queen was sitting on her own throne next to his, and hadn't been playing her customary role as peacemaker.

"Your majesty," the Professor said, dropping into a bow.

"Professor!" he said, getting up to greet her. She rose as well, stepping close. He'd gotten as little sleep as she had through the night, but somehow he bore it better than she did. "I hope you're feeling better?"

"Not quite yet, your majesty," she replied. "I will feel much better once Gamma has told me about my student."

"As will we both," the King assured her.

"As will we all," the Queen put in, rising to stand beside her husband, her wings opening ever so slightly as she asserted her presence. "Professor," she inclined her head to Twinkle Shine. "You have obviously gotten less rest than my lord husband. I had hoped you would have more sense than to run yourself ragged like he does."

"When my student is in danger, my better judgement is often strained," Twinkle Shine said. "I imagine you feel the same for your children."

The Queen's smile was genuine and warm. "Quite right. Though if my lord husband has his way your daughter will also be my daughter, so I suppose I should start worrying now."

"Aqua," the King gently admonished her. "It is done. Do not burden the Professor further."

The Queen nodded in acquiescence. "As you wish. We shall speak more personally later, Professor."

"As you say, your majesty," Twinkle Shine acknowledged. She and the Queen were both opposed to the King's plan to marry Star Fall into his family, and their failure to prevent him would obviously be a topic she wanted to discuss. Twinkle Shine turned her attention back to the King. "When is Gamma due to make contact?"

"Any moment now," the King replied. "Sit with me."

A bench was quickly brought out and placed beside the King's throne, on the opposite side from the Queen. Twinkle Shine was grateful to sit down, even if it did mean she would start to nod off at the first moment of inattention.

It didn't take long before the communication crystal connected to the one Gamma had taken with her began to pulse with magic. The signal went up and the glowing crystal was slotted into a panel that controlled one of the large screens that adorned the wall opposite the King's throne. The room fell into a hush as the screen lit up with an image of Gamma's face. The distance and residual magic interference from the Nightmare's storm made the image waver and fuzz at random moments, but otherwise it was a clear picture.

"Your majesty," Gamma said, her voice coming through better than the image was. "Reception is good. I'm ready to give a preliminary report."

"By all means, Agent Gamma, begin," the King said.

Gamma nodded. "First, I can confirm that the Shadowed Alicorn has returned." There was a buzz of low conversation at this. Rumors had abounded, but there were always rumors of the Nightmare haunting some far-off place, or lurking in the Everstorm. To know that she had attacked the kingdom directly was terrifying even to the military-trained ponies in the room. "She left a trail of devastation twenty miles long through the Reedchime grasslands," Gamma continued. "Including a new crater lake, apparently made in a manner opposite from the usual."

"Was there any sign of where she went?" the King asked.

"No. She engaged in combat with three of my agents and discorporated upon her defeat, making tracking her impossible."

"Defeated," the King mused, eyebrows raising as he thought about it. "I assume our guest had a hoof in that."

"Yes," Gamma replied, frowning. "It should be stressed, however, that the Shadowed Alicorn admitted to being weak during the encounter, and vowed to return at full strength." Twinkle Shine winced at that. Gamma was going to obsess over that comment, she could already see it starting. "She is particularly interested in our guest."

"Is she?" the King looked pointedly at the Professor. "Enough evidence for you yet?"

"Hardly," Twinkle Shine replied. "But it does add to what I already know."

He smiled at her, then turned back to the screen. "Please continue."

"We arrived at Cash dig site three at oh one-hundred hours, but he'd gotten word of our coming and evacuated. We found a small contingent of security, digging equipment, and not much else of substance. My agents were recovered, all of whom sustained injuries in combat immediately prior to our arrival."

Twinkle Shine sat up straighter. "Star Fall?"

"Agent Fall is fine," Gamma assured her. "Mild concussion and bruising only. Sergeant Steelwing is in much worse shape. She's stable, but we'll be moving to the military base at Harrenhorn so she can be treated at the facilities there."

"Astrid was hurt?" a tall, red-feathered Griffin suddenly asked. Several eyes fell on him, and he had the good grace to look abashed at his breaking discipline.

"Roan," the King addressed the Griffin. "You were to be her mate, were you not?"

"I am, your majesty," the Griffin replied, ducking his head.

"Then you have reason to speak," he said, turning back to Gamma. "How did Sergeant Steelwing gain her injuries?"

"She fought Charisma, one on one," Gamma said. There were scattered gasps from the few who knew how dangerous the traitorous pegasus was. The Griffins in particular stiffened, their expressions showing pride and worry for those who could read them. "She lost, but managed to injure Charisma and slow her down enough for Agent Fall to take her out of the fight."

"Charisma is dead?" the King asked.

Gamma shook her head. "She was merely injured, and Cash later retrieved her. The other Agent was injured both in the fight with the Shadowed Alicorn and another personal battle with Charisma. She is currently in good condition, and most of my information is coming from her debrief."

"Magnificent," the King said, a distant look coming into his eye. "Agent Gamma, you are to bring her and the Lady Fallen Star to me as soon as they are able to travel."

"Of course, your majesty," Gamma said, her features carefully neutral. "There is more that I must report, and I fear I can only do so in private. I will await your convenience."

The King nodded. "Very well. Clear the room." There was a prolonged moment of silence as his command was processed. The Steel Hall was the communications hub of the Kingdom military, it was never left unmanned.

It was the Griffins that broke their surprise first. "You heard the King! Everyone out!" came the call from the guard. Within a few minutes the room was empty save for Twinkle Shine, the royal couple and their guards.

Gamma had watched all this impassively, merely quirking an eyebrow at the King's impatience. "Your majesty," she began as soon as the guards made sure the room was secure. "I have learned more about what Max Cash is after."

"Oh? And you saw that as a matter requiring privacy?" the King asked.

"I do," Gamma assured him. "It concerns our guest." The King's interest was definitely piqued. "My previous report indicated that I drew a connection between Rainbow Dash and Max Cash. That connection is now a certainty. Moreover, Agent Dash has told me that Cash now possesses an artifact of immense power. One that she once used in her own time to defeat a Goddess. She called it the Element of Loyalty."

Twinkle Shine had to grit her teeth hard to clamp down on the scream of primal rage that burned through her. She shuddered, as Umbra roared through her mind, beating against the reins of her self-control. She felt something wet on her lip, and when she reached up to wipe it off the hoof came away red with blood.

"Professor!" the Queen said, looking at her with wide eyes. "Are you alright?"

Twinkle Shine took a deep breath before responding, pushing the Nightmare down far enough that her rage and power wouldn't show in her voice. "Not entirely," she admitted to the Queen. "I've had far too little sleep, and I was doing high-energy experiments the other day. It all adds up to a few nosebleeds now and then. I'm sorry, Gamma, did you say Element of Loyalty?"

"I did," Gamma replied, regarding the Professor carefully.

"Star Fall mentioned something about that," Twinkle Shine mused. "I'd never heard the term before. I didn't get the full story about them from her, and I didn't think they were important enough to ask Rainbow Dash. You say they were used to defeat a Goddess?"

"Nightmare Moon," Gamma said. "From what Dash has told me she was actually an Alicorn Goddess and, from the name, a predecessor to the Shadowed Alicorn. Agent Dash said that she and her friends, including Twilight Sparkle, used these Elements of Harmony to defeat her. Dash herself wielded the Element of Loyalty, but there is also Honesty, Laughter, Kindness, Generosity and Magic. Max Cash has the Element of Loyalty, and has somehow managed to either corrupt it or tap into its power."

"You're sure of this?" Twinkle Shine demanded.

Gamma's eyebrow twitched at the Professor's tone, but she continued without pausing. "Agent Dash is. Agent Fall has also said that Cash has some sort of ability to influence others, possibly to the point of mind-control, and possibly powerful enough to work even in a magic-dampened area. She cites one time when he nearly talked her into betraying the kingdom, and another when he forced her to speak truthfully. She resisted the first instance, but not the second. This is not consistent with what we know of Cash's magical abilities, though with his Talent I can't put it out of the realm of possibility. I am inclined to attribute these powers to this artifact Agent Dash says he possesses."

"I see. So you were right to prioritize your investigation of this Republican unicorn," the King said, rubbing thoughtfully at his chin. "A weapon that could defeat a Goddess. To control such a power... could this be why the Shadowed Alicorn is focused on Rainbow Dash?"

"Almost certainly," Gamma said. "There is something else. Something that I believe connects Cash even more deeply into recent events, and Agent Dash's presence. I cannot yet determine the nature of what is going on, and because of that I request that you allow me to hold off on bringing Agents Fall and Dash back to the capital until I know more."

"Gamma, I have plans for the both of them, and I wish to see them through before the Republics work up the courage to attack," the King said.

"I understand that, your majesty," Gamma replied. "But as your spymaster I am saying that there are too many unknowns to allow them access to the royal family. I only request some time in which to make a determination of the security risks."

The King's lips thinned as he set his jaw in a hard line. "Very well. Professor Shine has already discussed certain timings with me. You have twelve days. After that I want them at my side, are we clear?"

"Yes, your majesty," Gamma said, bowing carefully.

"Now, what is this thing you've discovered that gives you so much doubt?" the King demanded.

"Early this morning an earth pony mare was discovered in the dig itself. We had done a thorough sweep of the dig, and she hadn't been hiding beforehand. We checked the perimeter security, and she did not sneak past our sentries. She somehow appeared inside the dig, half buried in the dirt. Agent Dash was the first to get to her, and was able to convince her to be taken into custody without force. She does not speak Solar, Lunar, or any of the languages spoken across the sea. She is apparently completely unfamiliar with where she is, and Agent Fall tells me she possesses incredible levels of intrinsic magic. Most importantly, she and Agent Dash know each other. Her name is Applejack."

NO

Umbra’s rage swelled up in her so fast that she had no chance to hold it down. It snapped the bonds of her control and burned through her brain. Twinkle Shine barely had enough time to gasp before darkness closed in on her vision and she fell unconscious to the floor.

***

Charisma snapped upright, her hooves reaching out to attack before she was even conscious. She hit solid flesh, instinctively grasping and twisting, lurching her body up and on top of whoever she had caught. There was a strangled grunt from her victim as she rode them to the ground. Her wings flared out, ready to take off if she sensed a danger coming from the sides. Finally, she opened her eyes and looked beneath her to find her forelegs wrapped around Cash's neck, her weight holding him in an awkward position on the ground that gave him no leverage and her total control.

Kill him, her Talent urged. Snap his neck.

She let go, staggering back as she felt a wave of nausea descend on her. A moment later she was on her knees, retching empty bile onto the grass.

She used the time it took Cash to get up and her stomach to stop roiling to take in her surroundings. They were in a hilly place, trees growing in green copses that were too thin to provide much cover from the air. The sky was clear and blue, and from the smell of things the rain hadn't completely dried from the soil.

The smell made her nausea return, and she spent a few moments regaining control of her stomach before turning back to Cash, who was watching her with a small smile as he rubbed at his neck. "Sorry," she managed to say between slow breaths.

He shrugged. "Meh, what's a little strangulation between employer and employee?" His voice was jovial and energetic. Just great, he was happy about something. He was always at his most unpredictable when he was happy. And after a night like they had just been through? Happy meant something terrible had happened. "Aw, come on, buck up there!" He teased. "Don't feel bad for trying to kill me, I hired you because you're a murderous psychopath! I'm frankly amazed you haven't taken a shot before now."

"I don't want to kill you," she told him, standing up. She shook her head in a vain attempt to clear it, and nearly pitched over on her side. It was like her skull was filled with some viscous fluid that was sloshing just out of sync with how she moved. "What happened?"

"Well, after I got pounced on by the third wheel you didn't take care of, you then proceeded to not kill a Griffin and then get beaten by a pampered little noble of a pegasus," he said, grinning all the while. "All in all, a good night's work." She narrowed her eyes at him, but the implied threat only made his smile widen. "Anyways, you're probably feeling a little sick right now. Balance problems, a little stiffness in the wings."

She sighed. "Concussion. I hit something pretty hard."

"A guard tower," Cash supplied. "And concussion is putting it lightly. I had to seal up a couple skull fractures and realign some vertebrae."

Charisma froze, an icy thread of fear tickling at the back of her neck. "You used healing magic on me?"

"Lots of it," he said. "Lots and lots and loooots of it."

Lunge low, strike up with right forehoof, aim for his throat, her Talent whispered into the back of her mind. She ignored it. "How long until the cancers start?" she asked him, shaking out her legs to keep them from tensing up.

"With your lifestyle? I wouldn't worry about it," he replied.

She huffed in annoyance and sat down, stretching out her wings and running them through a few limbering exercises. "Where are we?"

"Not sure," he admitted, sitting down as well and rummaging through his saddlebag. "I just picked a direction and started dragging you. Wherever we are, it's leagues away from all the military-types, so I figure it's a good place. Cookie?"

She rolled her eyes and took the cookie he floated over to her. One sniff though and she gave him an incredulous look. "A poison cookie? Really?"

He chuckled. "Yeah. Hold on to that for a moment, would you?"

She sighed and began working on her legs, stretching and rotating them. The stiffness and dizziness was fading fast. The speed of her recovery was a testament to how good Cash's magic was, even if his Talent didn't lie specifically in healing. She was glad for it, the danger to her long-term health notwithstanding.

"So, how'd you get away from hot stuff?" she asked him as he kept nosing about in his bag. "She's pretty hardcore."

"Yes she is," Cash agreed, giggling a bit. "You have no idea. I was worried at first, but it turns out I have her off button."

"You couldn't have used it earlier?"

"Woulda, coulda, shoulda," he shrugged. "I didn't know."

"Well, if we meet her again, I get first crack," Charisma said, getting to her hooves and moving slowly through a series of training poses. "You can off-button her if I lose."

"Sure, why not?" Cash said. "I thought you'd be more interested in Lady Star, though. She was the one that put you down."

"She's got magic," Charisma replied. "Don't know how, don't care. If I fight her again I'll kill her right away. Quick, clean, no chance for her to pull something like last time. No challenge, no fight, just dead. Hot stuff's different. She's a real opponent."

"Hmm. No," Cash said. "No killing. Not her, not any of those three."

Charisma didn't even pause in her routine. She'd worked with him for years now, and knew Cash well enough that odd prohibitions against removing obvious threats weren't anything to be surprised at. "Fine, but they'll just keep coming at us. I'll try not to kill them. Fortunately, even if the Griffin isn't dead she's not going to be up to challenging us before we're out of the sunlands."

"We'll be seeing her again," Cash said. "I'm absolutely sure of it. Those three are perfect for what I need. Just so deliciously perfect." He laughed softly to himself as Charisma ignored him. Suddenly his head snapped up to her. She froze, he was doing that thing with his eyes that made you look at him. It was weird as hell and she hated it when he did it to her, but from the way he used it she thought he didn't actually control when it happened. "Speaking of delicious," he said. "Aren't you going to eat that cookie? You've got to be hungry, and it does smell delicious."

Released from his gaze she looked down at the cookie. It did smell delicious, and her stomach rumbled in a reminder of how long it'd been since she last ate. For a moment she wondered why she hadn't eaten it when he'd given it to her, but she shrugged off the thought and tossed it up to her mouth.

A bolt of magenta light smacked into the cookie and knocked it away from her open mouth, sending it spinning into the dirt. She flashed Cash an indignant look. "If you were going to smack it away, why bother even giving it to me?"

He looked down at the broken remains of the cookie, then back up to her. His eyes had gone wide and intense in a way she had only seen from him a few times in the past, none of them ever pleasant. "It was poisoned," he said, his voice calm and quiet but filled with such absolute focus that it chilled her.

"It was poisoned," she repeated. She remembered now, how obvious it was. Yet a moment ago the cookie had smelled like the most delicious treat she'd ever had. His horn hadn't glowed, that hadn't been a spell. He'd just told her what she was experiencing and it was so. "How did you do that?"

"Deceit," he said, as if that explained everything. The intense look faded from his eyes and he let out a wild, delighted laugh. "Oh, this is going to get hilarious!"

Kick dirt into his eyes, then rush in while he flinches. Her Talent demanded. Strike his horn first to disorient, then grab his head and use wings to swing around and snap his neck. She shuddered. "Max, what did you do to me?"

"Just tried out a little trick I picked up," he replied. "It's hit-and-miss right now, but as my old hoofball coach used to say: practice, practice, practice!"

"Yeah, well, don't practice it on me again, okay?"

"Cross my heart," he said, snickering. It was the best she was going to get out of him, so she just accepted it without comment. "How are you feeling? Up to a bit of wandering aimlessly until we figure out where we are?"

She shrugged. "I could walk. I'm a little hungry though. I don't suppose you have anything non-deadly in that bag?"

"Not really."

"Figures. Grass for breakfast, then. I hate grazing."

"That's good. Maybe you can focus that hate into a way to get us to civilization," Cash urged, using his magic to tighten the straps on his saddlebag. "We've got to get back to our people and moving before the Kingdom gets the drop on us."

"You really think they'll be coming after us?" She asked him. "They've got a war coming, they've got bigger things to be worried about than you."

"Without a doubt," he chuckled. "I'm just one little pony with a thing for antiques. Except, of course, that they've got a living legend working with them, and she is gonna tell them I'm bigger than the war. And if they're smart, which a few of them are, they'll listen."

"Living legend?"

"Rainbow Dash, your ‘hot stuff’."

Charisma frowned in thought. "I've heard that name somewhere."

"Your parents ever tell you Celestia stories? Maybe a few about Twilight Sparkle?"

"No." Her family was never something she talked about. Especially not with Max Cash. It was safer that way.

He shrugged. "Too bad. Well, it's no surprise you had such a hard time with her, let's just say that. I don't know how or why, but she's here, and that's all that matters. We'll have the whole Secret Service hounding us if we take too long. Which means we have to move quick. Which means you have to find us a town."

"I have to find us a town," she deadpanned. "And what will you be doing?"

"Something a lot more important," he said, pulling out a mud-stained book from his saddlebag. She'd seen the book before, of course, he was practically never without it. It was written in a language she couldn't read, so she didn't know what was so important about it, but he treated it more carefully than he did anything else. "Reading!"

"Reading," she snorted. "You don't pay me enough for this crap."

"You don't work for me because I pay you," he replied, fixing her with a non-supernatural stare. She held his gaze for a long moment before dropping her eyes. He was right. "Good girl. Now eat up and get those wings flapping."

He is distracted. Kill him now. She shrugged off the insistent voice of her Talent and ducked her head to the grass as Cash's horn lit up and he began to carefully, methodically clean his book. The taste of the grass was, as usual, unpalatable, but she choked it down. She let her thoughts wander as she grazed, thinking back to the night before, and to the best fight she'd had in a long time.

"Rainbow Dash," she said, testing the name out. It still sounded vaguely familiar, but she didn't bother trying to figure out from where. All that mattered was that she was tough, strong, fast, and absolutely one hundred percent a hero. They would meet again, they would duel again, and this time Charisma wasn't going to let anything stand in the way of them finishing it. To the death.

Chapter 16: Likely Stories

The traits that the Elements are named for are not, specifically, what those Elements are. Instead the traits are expressions of the primary function of each element in creating the Magic of Harmony. We sense the Element's function, and perceive it as a particular trait. Binding is seen as loyalty, openness as honesty and so forth. This is merely the method of naming them, the causation flowing from Element to name. The Element of Loyalty does not bind because it is Loyalty, it is Loyalty because it binds.

It is important that we remember this distinction. When we forget it we begin to assign other traits to the Elements, ones that do not necessarily fit. For instance, when we call something 'generosity' we start to think of it in terms of morality. Generosity is good, helpful, selfless. This seems self-evident to us, but it is in fact a consequence of our own biases.

The Element of Generosity is not good, or helpful, or selfless. The Element of Generosity is distributive. It makes no moral judgements and cares nothing for the effects of this distribution. Worse, it can easily be made to create a distribution where all things flow to one place. That isn't generosity, that is greed.

The Elements do not distinguish, they simply accomplish their function. This is another solid block in the foundation we need in order to build an understanding of the Elements beyond the perceptions and biases of ponies. A clue to their true nature.

-From the third section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Sixteen: Likely Stories

Twinkle Shine did not sleep. Sleep was restful, full of dreams and regenerative quiet. Instead she drowned in the Nightmare, awareness strangled by endless black rage. There was no time in that sea of ashes, and no surcease from the howling storm of Umbra’s thoughts. Yet Twinkle Shine endured, and eventually she fought her way once more to the waking world.

Her first thought upon regaining consciousness was that her bed usually wasn't this soft. The realization that it meant she wasn't in her bed hit immediately afterwards, kick starting her into full wakefulness. Memories of the disastrous report from Gamma and the Nightmare's intense reaction to news of Applejack's appearance flashed through her mind. She forced herself to relax and keep her breathing slow and even to prevent anyone watching from realizing she was awake.

This was going to cause problems for her. She needed to formulate an explanation that allowed her to bypass the natural questions that would arise. It wasn't possible to just bull her way through it, not with the Royals as personal witnesses. She quietly cursed the Nightmare's overpowering emotions, but she couldn't quite fault Umbra for her anger. There had been entirely too many impossible surprises recently, all surrounding Rainbow Dash and her miraculous return from the dead.

Having decided on a story that would suffice, she put it into motion. She jerked up, her eyes flying open as she gasped and flailed about for a second before looking around and catching her bearings. She was in a beautiful, plush bed that stretched out at least a pony length to either side. The sheets of the bed were smooth silk dyed in the red and gold colors of the Court. Under less pressing circumstances she would be tempted to luxuriate in the bed, but time was against her and she recognized whose bed it was.

The rest of the room was a high-domed, open space that boasted large, balconied windows at three of the cardinal directions, each overlooking the gardens surrounding the Court of the Sun. The ceiling was a colorful mosaic showing ponies frolicking through sunlit fields, all three races represented in the tiles. A trio of winged unicorns, mare, stallion and foal, stood careful watch over the herd from the top of a hill. It was hard to see, but the tiled sun at the center of the dome also contained the image of a unicorn mare's head in white. The perfect image of the ideal Kingdom.

Sitting in front of a shrine to Celestia on the east wall, next to the window that would let in the rays of the rising sun at dawn, was Aqua Regia, Queen of the Solar Kingdom. The Queen sat with her head bowed in prayer. Her dark blue mane fell to either side of her long horn and screened her face from the Professor's sight. She was not considered one of the great beauties of the Royal family, yet she carried herself with dignity and had made the plight of common ponies her concern. Both qualities had earned her more love from the populace than if she had just been another pretty face.

"Welcome back, Twinkle," the Queen said without looking up. A quick glance around confirmed that they were alone in the room. "I have been praying for you. It appears I have been answered. How are you feeling?"

"Confused, but otherwise whole." Twinkle Shine brought a hoof up to her head, blinking in the late day's light. "Your majesty? What... what happened? How did I get here?"

"Do you remember the communication from Gamma?" the Queen asked, still not looking up from her prayerful posture.

"I... yes," Twinkle Shine frowned. "She was telling us about... about Applejack? No, that can't be right."

"It is," the Queen assured her. "You fell into seizure."

The Professor's eyes went wide. "Oh," she said. It was a small sound, barely more than a whisper of understanding. "How long have I been unconscious?"

"A few hours," the Queen said, sighing. "The physicians did not know when you would wake, though they assured me you were in no danger of becoming worse. They also said the seizure was due to mass of powerful magic infecting your system, spreading through you like a cancer. They treated it, but that does not prevent a reoccurrence. What have you been doing, Twinkle? What dark powers have you been tapping into?"

Twinkle Shine shuddered. "Your majesty–" she was cut off before she could get any further.

"Professor!" the Queen snapped, her wings flaring wide as she rose to her hooves. "Whatever evasion you are about to employ, discard it! I am your Queen!" She turned and Twinkle Shine saw her tear-streaked face. "More than that, I am your friend. And I am owed an explanation."

Twinkle Shine deflated, sinking back into the plush bed. "Of course, Aqua. I'm sorry, it's just..."

"Speak to me, Twinkle," the Queen urged, stepping up next to the bed. "My lord husband is beside himself. He has half convinced himself that the Destroyer has cast a curse upon you in order to rob him of your counsel. Set me at ease and I will work to calm him."

"The experiments I told you about," Twinkle Shine said, levering herself up to a sitting position. "This Rainbow Dash, she has magic in her unlike anything that has been seen since the Schism. She's too powerful, much too powerful to exist in the world as it is. I tried to figure out where she was getting that power, that magic. She couldn't be getting it from the environment, there just isn't enough. So I... I used what I'd learned about her in my examination to try to tap into the same power source."

"Did you succeed?"

"No. I couldn't find whatever it was that gives her that strength. But I found something else. I touched something, something vast and dark. No, not dark, not really. I'm sorry, Aqua, I can't describe it to you. It wasn't magic, though. It was... deeper, somehow."

A glimmer of recognition shone in the Queen's blue eyes and she sighed. "You overreached yourself, Twinkle. Your lack of sleep after such an experience likely made things much worse."

"Star Fall was in trouble," Twinkle Shine defended herself.

"I understand," the Queen said, smiling gently. "But I do not condone. You are dear, both to our nation and ourself. You must take better care of yourself."

"I will," Twinkle Shine promised her, smiling back for a moment before becoming serious again. "But the news Gamma brought, it's disturbing. First Rainbow Dash, and now Applejack? And the Shadowed Alicorn returned? What could this possibly mean?"

"My lord husband is of the opinion that it is a sign," the Queen said as she stepped back from the bed and turned to the west window. She stared out at the city beyond the gardens as the sun slowly sank behind the buildings. "A warning to prepare for a coming conflict. The Everstorm is not the barrier it once was. For the first time since the Schism the Kingdom and the Republics have the means to strike at each other directly, and with great force. War. War unlike any that has been seen in eight hundred years."

"It won't come to that," the Professor assured her. "If the King truly heeds my counsel, he will not begin that war."

"I fear that he is no longer listening to any counsel," the Queen sighed. "Heroes from the past alive again, the return of the Shadowed Alicorn, your daughter's marvelous Talent. And now these Elements of Harmony. He sees portents in all of them."

"What portents, though? Towards war, or against it?"

"I cannot say," the Queen admitted. "He has stopped sharing his innermost thoughts with me of late. It is often now that I only hear of decisions after they are made. Such as the choice of Regal Stature to wed your daughter." She turned to look at the Professor again. "All of our efforts, gone in an instant that neither of us were privy to."

"What made him choose, though?" Twinkle Shine asked, pulling herself over to the edge of the bed. "I wasn't aware that Prince Regal was even in the running until the King said he was the one."

"My son has... awakened to a certain part of his nature," the Queen said, choosing her words carefully. "Something that is unique to the Royal family."

Twinkle Shine frowned. "I've heard about this. When I read the journals of the past advisors they said that the blood of the Goddesses causes visions, gives insight beyond mortal wisdom. The King has spoken of it before, a 'deeper power' than magic. I've never heard you mention it, though."

"We do not easily share this with those outside our family," the Queen said. "Not even with those as close to us as you are. That my lord husband has said as much to you already is a sign of how deeply he trusts and respects you. Suffice it to say that in my son this 'deeper power' is particularly strong. My lord husband decided that this means Regal is the one most fit to sire a Goddess." The Queen stamped a hoof in frustration. "Such idiocy! I can tell you for certain that the portents he sees all point to that being a good idea, despite, or perhaps because of its utter absurdity."

Twinkle Shine shook her head. "If he's decided, there's nothing we can do to stop it. We can only make the situation as easy as we can on the Prince and my student."

"As usual, you are the soul of reason," the Queen said, holding her head high as the last rays of the day fell through the window and framed her in golden light. "Celestia grant that we are not leading our children into a disaster."

"Celestia grant that the King feels the same way," Twinkle Shine said, standing up from the bed. Her legs wobbled slightly, but felt stronger than she expected. In fact, she felt more rested than a few hours of unconsciousness and a seizure should have allowed. She filed the thought away until later, knowing there was no way to test her worries until she was out of the Queen's sight.

"Professor, I require your counsel," the Queen said. "What position should I take in regards to these returned heroes? Should I embrace them, as my lord husband insists, or should I remain aloof and suspicious, as is my own instinct?"

Twinkle Shine took a deep breath, considering her answer before giving it. "They are an unknown quantity, and should be treated with caution. I do not believe they are truly the heroes returned, but they are powerful. I know this of Rainbow Dash directly, and I trust my student's estimation of Applejack. Such power cannot be dismissed or ignored. Treat them as you would a foreign dignitary. Polite, friendly, but distant and guarded. Until they prove themselves, one way or the other. Then your course should be clear."

The Queen nodded. "And what of this Max Cash? Is he the threat Gamma says he is?"

"Yes," the Professor said without hesitation. "Before this I was inclined to dismiss him as a simple criminal, but the coincidences have stacked up to high to be ignored. He must be caught."

"Very well. And the Destroyer? What is your opinion of her appearance?"

Twinkle Shine's mouth set itself in a grim line. "I must agree with the King on that. She is a harbinger of war. It is her element as much as the sun is Celestia's. Her power. If we are to combat her, then peace without conflict is our only option."

"A prospect that seems more distant with every day that passes," the Queen said. "I will encourage stronger diplomacy, though I doubt it will be to great effect. Now, to my lord husband. What can be done about him? Is he falling to madness, or can you discern logic in his workings?"

"I'm sorry, Aqua, but we're already doing all we can," the Professor said, stepping up next to the Queen. "He's not mad, just blinded by fear and hope and determined to make the wrong decisions because of it."

"I feel like I'm losing him, Twinkle," the Queen confided. "And I would hold on to him tighter if there were not so much else demanding our attention."

"For the Kingdom to survive, duty must always outweigh love," Twinkle Shine said. The sun finally sank completely behind the buildings of the city, throwing them into twilight. The Professor felt a shudder go through her as the Nightmare stirred.

"You must go to him," the Queen said. "Perhaps in his relief that you are well he will be more receptive to reasonable advice."

"I will do my best, your majesty," Twinkle Shine said with a bow. She turned to go but was stopped by the Queen's wing fanning out in her path.

"Professor, your experiments. They must cease. You cannot know what it is you reach for."

"I understand your concern, your majesty, but I can't stop," Twinkle Shine said, ducking her head respectfully as she refused. "These revived heroes are too important not to discover everything I can about them, and the source of their power is at the heart of that."

The Queen sighed. "Some powers are beyond what a mortal can handle, Twinkle. You are a great mage, but you are not Twilight Sparkle. You have limits."

"I know, Aqua, and I will be careful," Twinkle Shine assured her. "I won't let it get that far again. I won't collapse again." Right? She added silently. A subdued growl was all the response she got. It was enough. "I promise."

The Queen folded her wing. "Be well, Professor."

"And you, your majesty," she said, then left the room. The guards in the corridor beyond nodded to her and she started the long walk back to the Steel Hall, where she was certain the King could still be found.

Cleverly Done, the Nightmare's voice whispered through the back of her mind. It was better than the indignant screams she'd been getting recently, but still surprising.

"Thank you," she whispered back. "But when I find a mirror I have a few things to discuss."

I Too Have Much To Say, the Nightmare replied, before falling silent once again. Twinkle Shine shivered. She could guess at what the Nightmare would demand, and she was running out of reasons to deny her. The appearance of this Applejack was only going to make her worse.

One thing was for sure. No matter what the Professor wanted, someone was going to die, and soon.

***

“So, let me see if I’ve got this right,” Applejack said, rubbing at her forehead. “Rainbow Dash, you’ve been in the future for, what two weeks? And you come from a past that’s further along than I do?” Dash nodded from her place across the mess table. After Star Fall had assured Gamma that Applejack was who she said she was, or at least close enough to count, they had allowed her onto the transport to get some food and be introduced to the future in a more friendly setting. What had followed were hours of attempted explanation that, between Star Fall’s imperfect grasp of Old Equestrian and Dash’s frequent interruptions, managed to take twice as long as it should have and convey half the information it was meant to. Still, Applejack was taking it all with an impressive calm. Dash was proud of her, and a little jealous.

“That looks right,” Star Fall said.

“Okay, bucked that tree, on to the next one,” Applejack said. “Star, y’all are some kind of secret agent, and you’ve got a Special Talent in Magic to boot. You found Rainbow Dash, who had gotten herself into a heap of trouble just by bein’ her, took care of her until she was healthy, then brought her to your side of this ‘Everstorm’. A storm that sits over the Everfree Forest and Ponyville, and got there because of some kinda evil Alicorn callin’ herself Nightmare Umbra. Am I right so far?”

“Yes, but Everstorm goes across all Equestria,” Star Fall said. “It just has its center at Ponyville.”

“Either way, my home’s about as gone as it gets,” Applejack sighed. “Movin’ on. Next y’all met with Gamma, and she pulled some dirty tricks to get Dash here to show off, which I don’t imagine was all that hard.” Dash smiled sheepishly. “Then she up and recruited you to bein’ a spy too.”

“Super-spy,” Dash corrected.

Applejack acknowledged that with just a slight roll of her eyes before continuing. “Then you took her to meet your mentor, who is also your adopted mother, without your actual parents bein’ gone, mind, and she’s lookin’ into how and why Rainbow Dash is here because she’s the most magical pony in the whole kingdom.”

“The Professor’s a cranky golden Twilight,” Dash supplied.

“She is not as smart or powerful as Twilight Sparkle,” Star Fall clarified. “Not by far. She is still smartest pony in the Kingdom. If an answer can be found, she will find it.”

“Appreciated,” Applejack acknowledged. “Now, there’s this bad pony named Max Cash, and he’s been causin’ trouble on both sides of the Everstorm, and you’re set on figurin’ him out and stoppin’ him. Dash showed up at one place he’d been diggin’, and y’all figured you’d go to another place he was diggin’ and see what was what. Along the way Nightmare Umbra shows up and gives you a lickin’, but you manage to get her to leave. Y’all keep goin’ anyway, because you figure she was tryin’ to stop you for a reason. You find the dig, find Cash, and things go real wrong for y’all. You find out Cash has the Element of Loyalty, and him and his personal bully hurt your friend Astrid real bad before they get away clean just as Gamma shows up with the cavalry. Then, this mornin’, I show up in the dig. That about sum it all up?”

“You got it, AJ,” Dash grinned.

“You have general truth, yes,” Star Fall said, also smiling. “I am glad you are not stubborn about it. Twilight Sparkle wrote that you were very hard to convince to change your mind once you decided something.”

“I’ve got my faults,” Applejack sighed. “But when the bull’s comin’ at you with the horns, it don’t do a lick of good to just stand your ground and say he won’t hit you. Can’t say I’m happy about any of this, but I can’t say it ain’t happenin’ either. This is no dream. This might be some weird spell or Discord messin’ with us, but I don’t think so. This feels real to me.”

“She is much better at this than you are,” Star Fall said to Dash.

“Come on, Star!” Dash protested, her wings twitching half open in agitation. “I was all alone in the future! AJ knows it’s gonna be okay because I’m here, I just had you, and I didn’t even know you then.”

“Whoa there, nelly,” Applejack said, putting a hoof between them. “Rainbow Dash, you’re right. I’d likely be in a much worse state if you weren’t here. But I ain’t sure everything’s gonna be alright, yet. I’m still takin’ it all in, and just ‘cause I got the general sense of it down, don’t mean I’ve got it all settled. Understand?”

Dash backed down, chagrined. “I’m sorry, I did not mean to insult you, Dash,” Star Fall offered. “It was a bad choice of words.”

“Forget it, Star,” Dash said. “I know you didn’t mean anything by it.”

“Alright.” Applejack settled back on the seat. “Now, I appreciate all the help you’ve been giving me, Star. Since I’ve been brought up to speed, I gotta ask: what now?”

“Gamma is taking us to the base near town of Harrenhorn,” Star Fall said. “Astrid will get medicine there. Taken care of by good doctors. Dash, Gamma and I will try to think of where Cash will go next, what he will do. Then we stop him. Gamma wants you to help, but you need to understand what is happening, and speak Solar, first.”

“I’d be happy to help any way I can.” Applejack said, and then sighed. "Though I'm not too keen on tryin' to learn a whole new language. I guess if I'm stuck here there's no help for it. No time like the present. Where do we begin?"

“With Dash I began like this: I. Am. Star Fall," Star Fall said, going through the motions to make sure she was understood. "You. Are. Applejack."

Dash knew that she wouldn’t be able to sit still through language lessons she’d already learned, so she made her excuses and bugged out of the mess area as fast as her limping legs could take her. She thought about finding Gamma and trying to talk to her, but after a moment of clear thought shuddered and tossed the idea. Instead she went to the infirmary, where Astrid still slept.

“Is it alright if I talk to her?” Dash asked the doctor.

“Yes, that’s fine,” he replied. “If she wakes up make sure she drinks some of this before she passes out again.” He indicated a little bottle of some red liquid with a bendy straw coming out of it.

“You got it,” Dash promised. The doctor then left her alone as she sat beside the injured Griffin. “Hey,” she began, not entirely sure what she wanted to say. “You’re kinda missing all the exciting stuff. It’s okay, I guess. Talking to ponies you can’t understand isn’t your thing. I get that. I bet you got all your kicks last night, huh? I heard they found a dozen bodies from the ponies you, uh, you killed.”

Dash faltered, but forged onward. “I still don’t like that, you know. There had to have been something else you could have done. Something that would have taken them out without killing them. I mean, it doesn’t mean the same thing to you that it does to me, I know that. You should have seen me the first time I saw Gilda kill a rabbit and wolf it right down! Ha! I ran all the way back to the camp screaming at the top of my lungs. It was a big part of why I kept her and Fluttershy apart, you know? Well, I guess you don’t, but trust me it was seriously important that I did. I got over it then, nothing else to do if you want to be friends with a carnivore, but …”

She trailed off, hanging her head. “It’s not the same. Ponies aren’t animals, we aren’t… It isn’t right. I don’t know how Gamma can talk about it so easily. I don’t get why she thinks it’s so important that you be able to kill someone. There’s got to be another way, a better way. There always is, if you look for it. I know that. I know there has to be. I’m not like you; I can’t just take a life like that. I can’t even think… I can’t…”

She leaned against Astrid’s feathered neck. She knew what she wanted to say, what she had to say. It was so selfish, so stupid, but it needed to be said out loud to be made real. Saying it to an unconscious Griffin was a cheat, and she knew it, but there was no way she could tell this to Applejack, and Star Fall wouldn’t understand the gravity of it. Astrid would understand. Even if she never heard the confession itself, she would understand.

“I’ll kill him,” she whispered. “It doesn’t even have to be life or death. If it’s a choice between killing him or letting him put that necklace on me, I’ll do it. That’s my answer. Those are my reasons.”

“Now you know,” Astrid whispered back. Dash scrambled back, falling off the chair she’d been using and to the floor. Her heart pounded in her chest as she realized that Astrid really had heard all of that. The Griffin watched her, golden eyes still and clear. “I’m happy you could admit it.”

“Astrid! You’re awake,” Dash said, getting to her hooves. “I’m, uh, I...”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever,” Astrid sighed. “I won’t tell anyone you get all sappy when you think no one’s listening, and you don’t tell them I didn’t ruffle your feathers over it, okay?”

“Deal,” Dash said, sitting back down. “Hey, I’m supposed to get you to drink this.” She held up the bottle.

Astrid took a sip through the straw, then made a disgusted face. “Yugh! Fucking field medics. They think if you pour enough sugar in it no one’ll notice that it tastes like fermented ass.”

Dash chuckled at that. “How are you feeling?”

“High as a damned kite,” Astrid replied. “And like Charisma stuck a fucking knife in my side. How do you think I’m feeling?”

“Grumpy?”

Astrid let out a pained laugh. “Yeah, that too. You doing good?”

“Eh, could be better,” Dash replied, indicating her bandaged wing. “But things are looking up. One of my friends from the past has shown up.”

“Bet Fall’s all over that.”

“Like white on a cloud,” Dash said.

“Cash got away?”

“Yeah.”

“Figures,” Astrid sighed. “I keep waking up, but they’ve got me full of this shit that makes me fall asleep before I can get anyone to tell me what happened. What’s the next step?”

Dash shrugged. “We’re going to some base or other, and you’re getting put in a hospital until you’re better. Then we’re going after Cash.”

Astrid growled at that. “Celestia’s shining mane, I hate getting injured.”

“Me too,” Dash said in commiseration. “They said you’d be down for a month, at least.”

“Screw that,” Astrid said, her speech slurring a little as her eyes blinked slowly. “I’m not getting left out just because the asskicker got the better of me. If you can bounce back from a supersonic faceplant in a week, then I can shake this just as fast.”

“I thought that was because I was special or something?”

Astrid favored her with a raptor’s grin, even as her eyes drooped closed. “Just watch me.”

“You got it,” Dash promised her, then set the bottle down and left her friend to rest.

***

“Precious Corners,” Blaze read off the sign in front of them. “Huh. Well, I got nothing, what about you, buddy?”

Calumn, still in Strongheart’s form, dragged himself out of his thoughts to pay attention to what his companion was talking about. They were standing in the evening twilight before a sign reading ‘Welcome to Precious Corners, population 1200’. There was a picture of a happy looking pair of earth ponies in farming clothes smiling at a genteel unicorn stallion who seemed delighted and surprised to be receiving a bouquet of flowers from an overly-cute pegasus filly. He shrugged. “At least it’s not named after some unicorn and his horn.”

“That does seem to be the Solar naming convention,” Blaze mused, then yawned. “Wow, you’d think that a day and night of straight walking, a few beatings and a car ride wouldn’t tire a guy out like this, but here we are. Why don’t we find a hotel?”

“There’s no rail line through this town. You think they’ll have an inn?” Calumn asked.

“Buddy, there’s always a hotel,” Blaze assured him, trotting past the sign and into the town. “Always.” Calumn shrugged and followed his friend.

Precious Corners was not the most aptly-named community, but at least the wealthy-poor disparity wasn’t as visible as it was in other places in the Kingdom. One could still tell the houses the unicorns lived in at a glance, but the earth ponies and pegasi seemed to be comfortable enough. There were no large buildings around, the tallest being the spire of the temple of the sun near the center of the town. Everything had that ‘thirty years behind the times’ feel that some of the more remote villages always seemed to have, from main streets done up to look cobbled to the open air farmer’s market they passed.

As Blaze had predicted there was, indeed, a hotel. The proprietor was a hard-eyed, middle-aged pegasus mare who gave them one look and decided her best manners weren’t needed here. “How long are you planning on staying?” she asked with bored disdain.

“Tonight at least,” Calumn said, taking the lead as Blaze got distracted by a plaque on the wall and wandered away. “Maybe a few days.”

“If you’re looking for work, they’ll be hiring at the market at first light,” the mare said, pulling out her register. “But you’ll have to find someone to stay with. Can’t have day laborers carousing all over my rooms.”

“We’re…” Calumn paused and rethought what he’d been about to say. They had enough money for a few nights in the hotel, and maybe a train ticket. But there was no train through here, and until he knew how close another town with a station was he had to be frugal. “Thank you,” he said instead. “You know anyone who might be willing to take on a couple stallions?”

She shrugged. “Might. Might not.”

Calumn sighed. He didn’t want to do this, it was going to cause trouble for him later, but they didn’t have enough bits to haggle over bribes and he was too tired to do it the proper way. His eyes tinged to green as he reached out with his magic and touched her mind. Not much, just enough to flip a few switches and change a couple reactions. He gave her a warm smile. “Please, ma’am? It would be a kindness to a couple of strangers.”

Her pupils dilated wide open and her breath started coming in short, rapid bursts. “Oh, well.” She shook herself, flustered. Her wings stretched out at her sides, and she returned his smile. “I suppose you could ask for Bigwig. He’s strict, but he pays better than the others. And… and I guess staying here for a few days won’t be too hard on the rooms.”

“We wouldn’t want to impose,” Calumn said.

“So long as you promise to keep yourselves friendly… uh, I mean civil. As long as you’re civil I don’t see how it could be a problem,” she said, leaning over the counter towards him and batting her eyelashes.

“I promise, ma’am. There won’t be anything uncivil from either of us,” Calumn looked over to Blaze, who was somehow balancing two potted plants and a vase while standing on one hoof. The look on his face shone innocence like a beacon. Calumn sighed, replaced the plants and vase before Blaze could drop them, and dragged his friend over to the counter. “We won’t make trouble, right?”

“None at all, buddy,” Blaze said with a grin.

They got one room with two beds, and made their way up the narrow stairs. Calumn could feel weariness dragging at his hooves with every step of the long walk to the room. It was a fatigue that was only compounded by using his magic while already tired. He wasn’t in any danger, but if he wanted to keep going as he had been he’d have to recharge soon. Still, he insisted that they each take a shower before they went to sleep. The mare at the desk was disposed towards them now, but even a little bit of annoyance at them could flip those switches right back and she would start questioning things.

“I am going to have weird dreams,” Blaze declared from the shower while Calumn waited his turn. “Like, lots of little candy people attacking my gumball fort, and then I start pouring boiling butterscotch on them, but I don’t really want to do that, because my favourite candy is on the bridge, and he’s all like: ‘Blaze, why are you pouring hot butterscotch on me? You know I taste best with chocolate sauce!’ So I go down to talk to him about it, but it’s a trap, so I get tied up in licorice strips and dragged to the candy cave where they mine for those fake gold coins, you know the chocolate wrapped in foil, but sometimes you don’t really notice they’re fake and when you try to spend them you get charged with theft and have to run for five miles with a fat security guard chasing you on this totally awesome scooter that has flashing lights and a siren and everything until you steal it and crash it into your neighbor’s garage and do they ever let you forget it? I don’t think so! So I’ll be in there and there’ll be that security guy looking at me like he’s going to call my parents, but then Charisma will be there, and then it’ll get strange.”

“What did she do to you?” Calumn asked, discarding most of the rambling discourse that was usual of Blaze and cutting to the important stuff.

“Flirted, mostly,” Blaze said, shutting off the water. “A few punches here, a slap there, a black eye for luck. You know, the usual.”

“That’s flirting?”

“That’s… her, buddy,” Blaze said, coming out of the bathroom with a towel draped over his head. His coat was still wet, but he’d done enough that it wouldn’t take long to get it completely dry. “She was hurting pretty bad. Don’t know what to make of it, really.”

“She was hurting?”

“We’ve got a complex relationship,” Blaze said, smiling as if that explained anything. “But I guess she still likes me even after I dumped her.”

“And if she didn’t like you?” Blaze shrugged, but didn’t say anything to that. Calumn understood. He hung his head. “I’m sorry I got you into that, Blaze.”

“Aw, not your fault,” Blaze said, laying a hoof on Calumn’s shoulder. “Besides, I got a new friend out of the deal, and you got a lead for your mission! Net positives all around!”

“Yeah,” Calumn said, forcing a smile. “Net positives.”

He showered quickly and did a fast transformation to his natural form and back again to dry off. Then they both crawled into their beds and turned out the lights. Blaze was asleep in moments, and soon muttering something about the ‘king of all cashews’. Calumn found that as hard as he tried he couldn’t get his mind to stop, and it denied him rest. What he’d done to the innkeeper didn’t sit well with him. He’d used his magic to manipulate her because it had been convenient. That wasn’t something a good person did, and dwelling on it sent his thoughts back into the dark places that had been unearthed in him.

He thought of Cash, and what the unicorn had done to him. It still shook him, forcing him to re-evaluate everything. He thought he was through the worst of it. The hours of doubt and self-loathing had passed and left him scarred, but still alive. But it wasn’t over yet. He hadn’t put himself back together after Cash had shattered him, and he knew he was missing pieces of who he had been. Whatever whole being walked away from this, it wouldn’t be the Calumn that had first crossed into the sunlands.

He thought back to Rainbow Dash. She had told him to find an inner idea. The ‘best, most awesome you that you can be’ she had called it. Blaze had asked him who he wanted to be. He’d said that he wanted to be Strongheart, and that still held. In the darkness and the stillness of his exhaustion, however, he had to admit that he had never been Strongheart. He had always just been Calumn, wearing a mask and playing a part.

Stongheart had been a kind, shy, loving pony who was as attached to his mother as she was to him. He’d lived his life for another, and cared deeply for everyone who knew him. Then his loyalty to his country demanded his service and he did something brave and selfless, joined the army, and died for it.

Calumn was a manipulative Changeling, able to play the thoughts and emotions of others like a drum, making them dance to whatever beat he wanted. He was a selfish being, taking from everyone and giving only a cursory allegiance to the cause of those who allowed his existence. He deluded himself into thinking that he was a good person, to the point that he’d stepped into Strongheart’s life and started to forget his own.

Cash had shattered that delusion. Strongheart had been loyal and good, but Calumn was deceitful and self-serving and his loyalty had just been a deception he’d played on himself. That was the truth he had to face, the reality of his existence. He’d accepted that, but he was still broken.

It was an opportunity. He was seeing that more clearly now. An opportunity to become something better. To become someone better. Calumn didn’t want to be the person he had been, underneath the mask. He didn’t just want another mask to hide behind, either. He wanted to be better, without deception and self-delusion. Rainbow Dash had shown him the way, and when he looked inside, to the best, most awesome person he could be, he saw the heart-shaped shield that was Strongheart’s Glyph.

He wasn’t Strongheart. He would never be Strongheart. He was a Changeling, and he couldn’t forget that. Yet he didn’t have to discard Strongheart entirely. He could take lessons from the dead stallion he’d imitated for years, and use them to be the better person he wanted to be. He could care, he could be loving, he could be kind.

He took that thought in, settling it in his heart and using it to rebuild the shattered parts of his psyche. He could be kind, and the first person he should be kind to was himself.

“I’m sorry,” he said to the night. “I’ve been treating you poorly. You’re not a pony, you’re a Changeling, and I shouldn’t have expected you to be everything they are.” He waited, letting the words fade in his ears before continuing. “It’s okay to be a Changeling. You aren’t a bad person because you feed on love, or because you can change your shape. You aren’t a bad person because your magic alters people’s minds. It’s what you do with that power that counts. It’s what I do with that power that counts.”

He lay in silence for a long moment, shaking. “I’m not a bad person,” he said finally, his voice gaining strength. “And I won’t make myself a bad person, not for Straff, not for the Republics, and not for Max Cash. I will be good. I will find a way, no matter what. I swear in Luna’s name that I will be strong, I will be kind, I will be good, and I will deserve to be loved.”

He sank back into the bed, panting slightly as his exhaustion suddenly hit him. He felt better. Not as if a weight had been lifted from him, but as if one had been draped over him. Not an oppressive weight, though, more like a thick blanket on a cold night. His vision blurred and consciousness faded away. The last sight before sleep took him was Blaze’s yellow eyes staring at him from the other bed, the stallion grinning from ear to ear. “Well said, buddy,” Blaze whispered as Calumn drifted away. “Well said.”

***

The carrier lifted off just as the sun was setting, the magical crystals blazing to life as they heaved the great craft off the ground and sent it rushing up into the sky. For the takeoff the crew and passengers had to buckle themselves down, but as soon as the flight leveled out they were free to roam about the ship. Rainbow Dash took the opportunity to lead Applejack out one of the exterior doors and onto a small deck at the fore of the ship. The deck was designed to allow a pegasus patrol to land and enter the ship, but it had a railing to allow a unicorn or earth pony to stand on it without fear of falling over the edge.

Stretching her wings as much as the sore muscles would allow, Dash luxuriated in the feel of wind through her feathers. It wasn't as good as flying herself, but it was a decent substitute for now. Applejack just leaned up against the railing and watched the leagues pass far below them.

"How are you holding up?" Dash asked her friend. The wind was surprisingly quiet for being this high and going this fast, but Dash didn't question it. This was a giant magical airship, quiet wind was probably designed right in.

"Honestly? My head is spinnin' more than a greased up cider wheel when Big Mac sets to with a will," Applejack replied, shaking her head in exasperation. "Almost like I've been drinkin' everything that would come out of it, too. Y'all got so much goin' on! I'm tryin' to take it in, but I just can't keep it all straight."

"Yeah, I said it was gonna get complicated," Dash sighed. "The future's a mess."

"Magic goin' away. The Princesses puttin' themselves in the sky," Applejack snorted. "Likely story. The Princesses wouldn't abandon us like that, and they wouldn't take magic away if it was gonna cause so much trouble."

"AJ," Dash said, her tone going withdrawn as she remembered her own thoughts on the matter, and why they changed. "They had to. Nightmare Umbra was gonna wreck the world."

Applejack's ire fell away as she saw the serious expression on her friend's face. "She really did a number on you, didn't she?"

Dash nodded. She was proud of how she'd stood up to the demonic Alicorn, but here with her one of her best friends she could show how scared it had made her as well. "She almost killed me, AJ. She wanted to. She didn't think I was the real Rainbow Dash, said some of my ashes were part of her. What does that even mean?"

"I don't know, sugarcube, but I'm pretty darn sure I'm the real Applejack, so I'd bet good money that you’re the real Rainbow Dash too."

Dash chuckled at the reassurance, but shook her head as her thoughts continued on their dark path. "You know what the worst part is? She's not even what I'm most scared of."

"Max Cash," Applejack said, nodding. "With the Elements of Harmony."

"Loyalty for sure, and I think he's got Honesty too," Dash said. "I think that's how we got here. He's doing something to them, messing them up. I don't know how or why, but that's gotta be why we showed up in the future."

"You think he's gonna keep doin' it. Gettin' more of the Elements, and when he does..."

"The rest of us will pop up right after," Dash finished. "I thought it was Umbra at first. It made sense, you know? If I wasn't there to use the Elements to stop her, then this whole crazy future kinda falls into place. But now... now it doesn't stack up at all. Not with you coming here when you did. Where you did."

"I wish we knew more," Applejack sighed. "If Twilight were here, she'd be lookin' for the nearest library. Probably find the answer right quick."

"Yeah, she would," Dash agreed, smiling a little.

"We're gonna stop him, though, right?" Applejack asked, looking back out over the dark landscape. "This Max Cash pony."

"Yeah," Dash said, the smile falling away. "We're gonna stop him."

"Well then, I don't see how workin' for Gamma's gonna be too bad. I'm not big on the spy stuff, mind, but if she needs four strong legs and a level head, then this rodeo pony's all for it."

Dash laughed at that, and together they looked out towards the twinkling night, and the future that the dawn would bring.

***

Charisma was exhausted, hungry, and more than a little annoyed. The place Cash had dragged her to appeared to be the exact geographical center of nowhere considering the number of settlements she’d spotted, which was precisely none. The closest she’d come to civilization all afternoon was an abandoned farm in the middle of a bunch of overgrown fields. That’d been a fun ten minutes of half-hearted searching for processed food before the house had tried to collapse on her.

What made things worse was that Cash wouldn’t just sit still, so she couldn’t use him as a touchstone to do a proper mapping sweep of the territory. He’d laid some sort of homing spell on her so that she always knew where he was, but he kept wandering around, which forced her to shift her own searches to stay within flight distance of him. Every time she came in sight of him her Talent demanded she drop on him like a rock and end him right there. In her current state she almost contemplated it.

So it was that when the sun fell below the horizon and the stars spread across the sky that she was about ready to give up for the night, go back to Cash and demand he actually be of help the next day. She was about to do just that when a glow on the horizon caught her interest. Half an hour of flying later she landed in the outskirts of the first town she’d seen in all her searching. It wasn’t ideal, there was no rail line or highway in sight, but it wasn’t a total backwater either. They would have beds, and maps, and maybe communication crystals. Best of all, they would have food. Real, cooked, processed, fatty food. She could feel her mouth watering at the thought.

“Excuse me, miss, are you lost?” a voice called from behind her.

She was moving before she even consciously registered the question, twisting and leaping. Her wings propelled her through the air at the source of the voice, a brown Pegasus mare who shrank back from Charisma far too slowly to avoid her. Strike the eyes with edge of hoof, use one wing to entangle theirs, foreleg chop to throat. Her Talent prodded lazily, this girl was obviously no threat, killing her was too easy to put much effort into.

Charisma halted her charge with a vicious backstroke of her wings, bringing her down to earth hard enough to make her stumble. She took a deep breath, and brought her best smile to her lips. “You startled me,” she said.

The other mare relaxed from her frightened posture. “Oh, for a moment I thought you were going to…”

“To what?”

“It’s nothing,” the mare dismissed with a shake of her head. “I haven’t seen you around, did you just arrive?”

“Yes,” Charisma said, stepping closer. “My friend and I got a little lost out in the wild, and I’ve been scouting for towns all afternoon. Do you happen to have any food on you? I’m starving.”

“I’ve got half an apple,” the mare offered.

Charisma snorted in annoyance but nodded. “It’ll do,” the mare frowned at her tone, but pulled out half a fresh apple and gave it to Charisma, who gobbled it down in a few bites.

“Where’s your friend? If you don’t mind me asking.”

“He’s still out there,” Charisma waved a hoof to the darkness.

“It’s dangerous out there, I hope he’s not far.”

Charisma laughed. “He can handle himself. He’s a Magic Talent unicorn.”

“Oh,” she said, then her eyes widened and she looked at Charisma again. “Ooh. I see. You’re his retainer.”

“Something like that,” Charisma said. Dislocate her wing, break left rear knee with kick, strike her head repeatedly against ground when she’s immobilized. Charisma ignored her Talent. Leaving bodies around small towns was never a good idea when you were the stranger. It was acting unusually insistent, probably as a result of her loss to Lady Fallen Star. “We’re going to need a place to stay once he gets here. You know anywhere decent?”

“Well, there is a hotel, but, um, it’s not really fit for a noble,” she said, thinking. “Any of the landowners should be willing to give him board. All he’d have to do is ask.”

Charisma barked out a laugh. “Sure. You happen to know where I can find one of those?”

“Well, um, I work for lord High Fashion,” she said. “I can show you his estate.”

“Sounds great. You lead me there, I go and get my, er, ‘lord’, and maybe I get to sleep before the sun’s up.”

“Okay, follow me,” the mare turned and started walking. Charisma obliged her. “By the way, my name’s Melody Drop.”

“Charisma,” she replied.

“Pleased to meet you, Charisma,” Melody Drop said with a friendly smile that the pink mare did not return. “Welcome to Precious Corners.”

Chapter 17: Precious Corners

Consciously using the Passive and Activated abilities of the Elements is a difficult task that requires many hours of practice and the distinct possibility of catastrophic failure. Subconscious use of an Element's abilities, on the other hoof, seems to be natural or even instinctive. Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy have all displayed use of their Element's abilities practically at will. Pinkie Pie in particular seems to use hers nigh-constantly. Conversely, Rarity has only occasionally called upon her Element's powers without directly intending to, and to my knowledge Applejack has never done so. Furthermore, this subconscious activation does not seem to carry the same risks of unintended consequences that intentional activation does.

It is interesting to note that the Proxies who bore the Elements for us seemed to have a much easier time calling upon the powers of the Elements intentionally, but were practically incapable of doing so subconsciously. The reason for this is unclear. Activated and Passive abilities are the same strength and complexity for both true bearers and Proxies, so there is no material difference in the abilities themselves.

While determining the cause for certain is beyond my capabilities, I believe that the difference has its roots in the Harmony Event. The circumstances of a Harmony Event being such that true bearers emerge with a much more intimate understanding of their Elements than a Proxy does. Thus using a power can be likened to an adult walking. It's such a natural process, ingrained and refined over years and decades of repetition, that having to think through each individual part of the motion only leads to stumbling and difficulty. Whereas just walking without thinking about it accomplishes much with little danger of a misstep. Proxies can then be likened to a pony who must learn to walk from scratch, perhaps after an injury, where working through each individual motion produces better results.

In brief: Proxies are like novice walkers, moving only with intention, while the true bearers are master athletes who can run instinctively, but cannot explain how.

-From the fourth section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Seventeen: Precious Corners

The morning air was crisp and the dew wet under their hooves as Calumn and Blaze walked in the pre-dawn light to the open farmer's market. Calumn felt like he was seeing the world with new eyes. All the color that had exploded in his vision when he'd connected himself to Rainbow Dash had sunk into the world and saturated it with a vibrancy that he'd never thought possible.

His vision wasn't the only thing that felt heightened. He lifted his muzzle and drew in deep the scents of the morning. He could practically taste the coffee as they passed a cafe that was just opening its doors. The wind shifted and he could smell the fields surrounding the town, and all the things growing in them.

Even the regular clip-clop of their hooves was like a natural music to his ears. He found himself regretfully wishing that he had chosen a pegasus form so that he could feel the wind through feathers. It had never struck him before how beautiful the world was. He couldn't help but wonder if it had always been this way, if he had just failed to see it. One thing was for sure: he loved it. He loved it all.

Blaze yawned loudly, but gave Calumn a lazy smile. "I'm excited," he said, nudging the changeling. "I haven't done work like this since I was a teenager. I wonder if it'll be like before, with the shouting and the running around and the heavy things falling and it really wasn't my fault. I liked those jobs, but they really weren't 'me', you know? All the lifting and hauling?"

"You don't seem the type for it, no," Calumn replied.

"I liked the other work ponies, though," Blaze mused, letting out a nostalgic sigh. "They always had the best stories. Did you ever have to do the manual labor stuff?"

"I spent three months as a dockworker once," Calumn said. "And part of my training was on a farm outside of Aquila City. We had to grow our own food, take care of livestock. Basically keep up all the appearances of being an actual farm."

"Was that hard?"

Calumn nodded. "Yes. It was only others like me there. To the outside world it looked like a normal farm, with the same ponies doing their jobs day in and day out, living their lives like you would expect. Underneath that surface there was... us. Secretly, we'd get assigned a new identity every day and we'd have to take over the role as smoothly as we could. Like playing musical chairs, but with everyone in different rooms so they don't know where anyone else is sitting. We had to do the work, make conversation, everything our given identity would do, the whole time without ever breaking character. At the end of the day we'd try to figure out who had gotten which identity. We were graded on how well we kept our character and how well we spotted everyone else's. Do too badly on either side and, well..." Calumn trailed off, shaking his head. "It's not important."

"How did you do?" Blaze asked, pausing. His tone was light but the look in his yellow eyes was focused and serious.

"Better than most," Calumn admitted. "I'd rather not talk about it."

"Okay, buddy," Blaze said, throwing a leg over Calumn's shoulders. "But if you ever want to, you know I'll listen."

Calumn nodded, and the two continued to the farmer's market. There were ponies already gathering, waiting to hear what work they could do for the day. The two of them got a few sidelong glances, but no outwardly hostile looks. They were more of a curiosity than a threat to the work ponies, which was good. That meant there was enough work to go around and they wouldn't have to compete for the positions.

A few inquiries pointed them to a pair of tables that had been pushed together as a makeshift stage. Sitting beside it was the unicorn they had been told about: Bigwig.

Bigwig was a rotund stallion with a knobby horn and squinting gray eyes. His yellow coat was darkened, likely from years of working in the sun, and the shadows of the wide-brimmed straw hat he wore only cast the lines on his face into deep relief. His clothes were clean and well-fitted to his wide frame, but basically the same worker's outfit that many of the other gathered ponies wore. He watched Calumn and Blaze approach with an appraising stare. "You two fellas looking for work?" he asked in a rough voice that displayed a distinct lack of the high-class pretensions many unicorns in the Kingdom took to.

"Yes, sir," Calumn said.

"What's your names?"

"Strongheart, and this is Trail Blazer."

"You can call me Blaze," the green pony chimed in.

"Bigwig. I usually don't take on ponies I don't know. What's your business in Precious Corners?"

"We're just passing through," Calumn replied. "We'll be in town for just a few days as we figure where we go next, but we'll work for our supper while we're here."

"Hah! A pair of good, hardworking earth ponies, huh?" Bigwig chuckled. "Alright, I've got spots for you today. Stand with the others and we'll get this show on the road."

Calumn and Blaze did as instructed, waiting as the last few ponies trickled into the small crowd. When Bigwig was satisfied with the numbers he saw he rose from his seat and ponderously climbed on top of the tables-turned-stage. He surveyed the workers gathered in front of him, nodding to himself in approval.

"Alright, a few new faces this morning," he said, pitching his voice to be heard easily in the crowd. "You all know the drill, I won't be taking it easy on them, so help them out where you can and make sure they know the ropes. You all good with that?" There were nods and a few murmured agreements. Bigwig proceeded to pass out the work assignments, sending Blaze to a warehouse and deciding that Calumn would be working for him there in the market, hauling produce to the stalls from deliveries. "Any questions?" the unicorn finished. Calumn bumped Blaze to stop him from raising his hoof. "Good. Get your groups together and get going."

The heavy unicorn puffed a bit as he dropped off of the table. Calumn watched him for a moment before turning to Blaze. "Are you going to be alright?"

Blaze smiled and nodded. "I told you, it's not the first heavy lifting job I've had. And, hey! I'll get to make new friends!"

"I hope so," Calumn sighed. "Too bad we don't get to work together. I'm not shy about hauling, but we don't really have a cover story ready. If we answer too many questions people are going to start figuring out that something is wrong."

"Nah, they'll never suspect a thing!" Blaze said, waving Calumn's worry off. "Don't worry about it, buddy."

Calumn shrugged. "I guess we won't be here long enough for it to matter. Just don't do anything that gets the attention of the law. We need to keep as low a profile as we can for as long as we're in Precious Corners."

"You got it!" Blaze said with a salute. His name was called and he trotted away to join the other workers heading to the warehouse.

Bigwig stepped up to Calumn after the others were gone. "You look like you got a sober mind, boy. More than your friend there, at least. He won't cause trouble, will he?"

"No he won't, sir," Calumn assured the unicorn. "Blaze might be a little funny to talk to, but he's as dependable as anyone."

"Here's hoping you're not shining me on. He looks like he's been through a fight, and I don't want him starting one here."

"Not a problem," Calumn said. "What do you want me to do first, sir?" Bigwig nodded and directed Calumn towards a laden cart that was trundling up even as they spoke. Calumn nodded and got to work.

***

In her dream it was raining. A downpour that fell from the sky in ribbons, leaving her wings and mane heavy with water. Lightning flashed in time with mocking thunder, each burst of light revealing the silent horde that surrounded her. Ponies. A sea of them, dark and waiting. Forever patient, but eternally demanding. She backed away from them, but there were more behind her, and even more to each side. Her soaked wings spread wide but for all her flapping refused to lift her towards the flashing sky. She couldn't get away.

The ponies had faces, a blur in the darkness that was thrown into sharp clarity with every strike of lightning through the boiling clouds. She knew those faces, those eyes. They looked at her with a dead neutrality, not happy, not sad, not angry, not anything. They were the living, watching her with the eyes of the dead. With each passing second they advanced, but somehow still kept their distance. They wouldn't touch her. They needed her to come to them.

She looked around wildly, seeking any avenue of escape. In a blast of thunderous light she saw a new figure standing tall upon a high rock: a pegasus mare. The mare stared up at the sky, her wings spread and her face set in determination. Pink coat, blue mane, strength and speed in every line and curve of her body, nobility in her bearing. A hero.

"Help me!" she screamed at the pony on high. The pegasus deigned to look down from the storm. Her eyes weren't dead, not like the others. Instead they burned with an inner light, crimson in the darkness. She looked down in anger.

"Save me!" But the pony looked away again, flapping her wings and rising into the swirling clouds, a pink-blue trail hanging in the air behind her. That trail changed as it lingered, bleeding into a rainbow that illuminated the storm-tossed landscape of the dream brighter than any lightning bolt. Yet the light was not comforting, and all it revealed were the ponies that surrounded her, always edging closer, always waiting for her to make the first move.

There were so many of them, stretching to the horizon in every direction. All looking at her, all moving to her, all demanding that she come to them and serve her blood-soaked purpose.

With a cry of despair, she lunged.

***

Charisma was off the bed and across the room before the door was fully open. She slammed one hoof into it, reaching out the other to shove the pony coming through it off balance enough that she could slam the door on them and knock them to the floor.

"Oh! Excuse me!" Melody Drop said, staggering back. "I thought you were still asleep." Awareness came back to the pink pegasus as the last vestiges of the nightmare fled.

"I was," Charisma said, looking around. The sun was coming brightly through the curtained windows for the small, sparse room she had been given to sleep in. "What time is it?"

When she and Cash had arrived at High Fashion's estate it had been well into the small hours of the morning, but the unicorn noble himself had still appeared. He was obviously ecstatic about hosting a Magic Talent, as any rural noble would be. Get in good with a Magic Talent and you could have an in with the capital, perhaps even all the way up to the Crown. It was an avenue to escape the quiet stasis of the countryside, and no noble was going to turn that down.

So it was that their reception had been warm and lavish. There had been a meal and some servants roused to prepare a room for Cash's use. The two unicorns had chatted a while before Cash made his excuses and went to bed. Charisma found it tiresome. The same politicking and brown-nosing that had been rampant in the Capital, but directed at her certainly-not-noble boss. Worse yet, with her cover as Cash's 'retainer' she had to stay up with him until he went to bed, regardless of how tired she was. At least there had been food.

"Just after noon," Melody replied.

Charisma snorted. "I suppose Max is up already?"

"Yes, he requested that we let you sleep. I was just coming to see if you were up, and since you are, to inform you that lunch is being served."

Charisma's stomach growled. She let a smirk slip onto her lips. "Food sounds good. Lead the way."

"Of course," Melody said, stepping aside so that Charisma could leave the room and then walking beside her down the hallway. It was a calculated gesture, of that Charisma was certain. She was probably indicating that she wasn't Charisma's servant or lesser, which meant she was a free citizen working for pay, and not an indentured servant. That was rare enough outside the cities that she supposed Melody had a right to be proud of it.

Her Talent whispered murder into her thoughts, but she ignored it. "How long have you worked here?" she asked in lieu of breaking Melody's neck.

"Since I was sixteen," Melody answered. "Lord Fashion's family has employed mine since Precious Corners was founded."

"Ah, one of those." Charisma nodded to herself. It was an uncommon arrangement in the cities, but there were always a few pegasus and earth pony families that kept close ties with a particular line of unicorn nobles. The nobles provided employment and low-interest loans and the commoners tacitly served them in return. All the benefits of serfdom with none of the drawbacks.

"I'm not 'one of those'," Melody protested. "Whatever 'one of those' happens to be."

"It wasn't an insult," Charisma said before the other pegasus could go into detail about what she thought she actually was. "I've just seen a lot of different servants over the years, and I figured you for a type."

"Well, you were dead wrong," Melody said, then her lips turned up in a small smile. "I'm not even a servant. I'm a bodyguard."

Charisma couldn't hold back a laugh at that. "A bodyguard? Really?"

"Yes, absolutely," Melody said, giving Charisma a haughty look. "My family has served as guardsponies for nobility since the Kingdom was founded."

"What are you guarding him from?" Charisma had to ask, laughing at the absurdity of it. "Do they grow the grass vicious out here or something?"

Melody chuckled, taking the mocking far better than Charisma would have in a similar position. "You'd be surprised. I guess I don't have a lot of call to use my skills, but that doesn't mean I don't ever. Lord High Fashion owns most of the land in and around Precious Corners. That can get ponies upset sometimes, especially when taxes come due. I've had to break up more than a few nasty situations, and I've gotten my hooves bloodied before. I guess for someone travelling with a Magic Talent that might seem a little tame, but I do a lot more than you might think."

"Do you?" Charisma re-appraised the mare, looking for the signs of a skilled combatant. Sadly, she only saw the same thing she had the night before. This girl might have been able to defend herself ably from a few drunken commoners, but she was no warrior. She walked with a decent sense of self, no clumsy swaying or misplaced hooves, but she didn't have the dancer's poise that Charisma possessed, or the coiled tension that Rainbow Dash had displayed. If she had been a potential recruit for the army Charisma would have let her try out, just to see how far she would push herself, but she wasn't elite material.

"I do," Melody replied with a curt nod. Charisma didn't take the banter further, just inclined her head in acceptance. Soon they came to the dining hall where Cash was already in deep conversation with their host. They were both seated at the long table, half-eaten meals sitting forgotten in front of them.

High Fashion was the perfect image of the country noble. He was well-dressed in an immaculately white suit that had just the right accents to set off his blue coat instead of clashing with it. His mane was long and hung down the left side of his neck in a curtain of shining curls, topped with a stiff felt hat that sat right behind his horn. Charisma stifled a snicker at his appearance. All he'd need was a monocle and he could pass for a cheap television show's idea of a noble.

"Charisma!" Cash called out, getting to his hooves. "You're up! How'd you sleep?"

"Perfectly," Charisma lied, baring her teeth at him in what might be considered a smile.

"My dear, you look lovely this morning," High Fashion put in as his own greeting. He gave her a small bow and even doffed his hat. Use his horn as a handle to smash his face into the table, then take a table knife and slash his throat while he's disoriented. Charisma folded into a bow of her own, sinking lower than he did to show her relative position. It wasn't something that many country unicorns would notice, but she had a feeling he would.

"Why thank you, my lord. I'm afraid I have overslept, and haven't had time to see to my appearance yet. I know I do not look my best. Your politeness is appreciated, however."

Cash giggled to himself as High Fashion gave her an understanding smile. "Well, why don't you and Melody come and join us?" The two pegasi obliged him, taking seats at the table. In moments new trays of food were brought out by silent servants. Charisma resisted the urge to just devour what was set before her. If she was going to be playing the role of a noble's retainer, she was going to do it right. "Max has told me that you used to be in the marines," High Fashion continued as they settled in. "Would you care to share a few stories with us?"

Charisma shot her employer an annoyed look. "I'm sorry, my lord, but my time with the marines is something I prefer not to talk about."

The damage had already been done, though, and Melody was looking at her with awestruck eyes. "You're a marine?"

"I was a marine," Charisma stressed.

"Come now, you never got a dismissal," Cash said, goading the situation on.

"Is that true?" Melody asked.

"Yes," she hissed, trying her best to smile while also resisting the urge to put her fork through Cash's eye. Of course she'd never got her dismissal, there was an entire court martial and public execution she had to go through before they'd give her that.

"Did you ever meet a Griffin?" Melody pressed.

Charisma sighed and gave in. Cash wasn't going to let her drop this, and little miss thinks-she's-a-guard wouldn't either. "Yes. I even fought alongside them a couple times. And trained with them. There isn't much interesting to say, though, and some of the most interesting bits are classified so I couldn't tell you anything in any case." She smiled at her cleverness, let them try to get past that little evasion.

Melody's jaw dropped open in amazement. High Fashion's eyes widened at that, and he gave her an admiring nod. "You must have a most accomplished career, my dear," he said, raising his glass to her. "I would surely love to hear more, but I understand if you can't freely speak about it. Perhaps I could persuade you to tell some of those 'not very interesting' stories, I'm sure they'd sound a lot more exciting to these peaceful country ears than they do to you."

"Another time, please," Charisma insisted.

"Another time," High Fashion allowed. Melody looked disappointed, but she composed herself well and began eating. Charisma didn't take any longer herself, digging in with abandon. If they wanted to think of her as a marine, she might as well eat like one. High Fashion turned back to Cash. "I'm sorry, you were asking about something, but with the arrival of your lovely and fascinating companion, I've completely forgotten what it is."

"Communication crystals," Cash said, slipping into that slick salespony tone that he used so often. It always set her feathers on edge to hear it, but it was still better than the alternative. "I'm looking to contact a few people, and I need an open crystal to do it. I realize this isn't exactly a major trade center, but I hope you've got at least one of those available somewhere around here."

"We do," the other unicorn replied. "At the town hall. A fine young stallion named Bright Lantern works them. He's the only Communication Talent in a hundred miles or more and quite a boon to my little town. I'm fairly certain he has an unbound crystal available. There's a fee for his services, of course, but that shouldn't be an issue for you." He leaned in. "I've got a lot of respect for Magic Talents, you know. It's in my blood, you see. My great-grandmother was a Magic Talent. It's how my family gained these lands. I had hoped when I was younger that I might carry on her legacy. But alas, my talents are more suited to managing my businesses than in using my horn."

"A Magic Talent gets a lot of undeserved glory," Cash said with a sly smile. "Like everything else, it's what you do with it that really counts."

"Hear, hear!" High Fashion crowed. "Spoken like a true gentlepony. Are you sure you weren't born a noble?"

"Absolutely," Cash replied.

The conversation wandered after that. Charisma kept up her end when she was required to, but otherwise focused on eating as much as she could and ignoring the looks Melody gave her. The country pegasus was going to push to find out more about her; Charisma could see it in her eager eyes. She was going to get herself hurt, and Charisma refused to feel responsible for that.

Finally the meal was over and she and Cash took their leave to seek out the communication crystal in the town hall. "You told them about me?" she snapped at him as soon as they were out of sight of the estate.

"Oh yes," he said, chuckling at her anger. "I'm a big, important Magic Talent unicorn, right? I've got to look impressive. I can't really tell him about myself, so I told him about you instead. What better way to make me look special than having an extra-special retainer?"

"You couldn't have just made something up?" she snarled, looking away from him. "Don't you have a 'trick' you should be practicing?"

He laughed. "Who says I'm not?" She snorted in disbelief at that. "There are rules to these things, Charisma. Rules that honestly don't make a whole lot of sense. I've got the rulebook, but it was written a thousand years ago in a language almost no one still speaks. Until I'm absolutely sure about how to use that 'trick', I'm not risking a nice, comfy bed and three square meals a day on it."

She stopped dead in the street, turning to give him an incredulous look. "Really."

He held a straight face for a mere second before breaking out into a smile. "Nah, I just wanted to see you squirm. Lighten up, you're making friends."

She snorted again and started walking. As they passed a busy farmer's market it was Cash's turn to freeze. She turned to him, curious as he stared into the market. "What is it?"

"One of these things is not like the others," he sing-songed, letting out a high-pitched giggle that sent a shiver down her spine. "One of these things does not belong."

"What are you talking about?"

He turned to her, a wild grin stretching his features. "Just an unexpected friend."

Her eyes narrowed at that. "Should we go and... say hello?"

"Oh no," he chuckled. "No, no, no. Well, not yet, and not you. If my guess is right, you'll be too busy with your own friend anyways."

"What?"

"You'll see," he said, striding off with an excited skip to his step.

"Damn it, Max! What do you mean?" she demanded as she followed him. He didn't say a word.

***

The afternoon was hot and dry, Celestia's sun burning high in the sky and baking the open-air market below. Calumn's sweat stained his coat a darker grey and dripped from the tips of his mane. Despite the body he was wearing he wasn't as durable as a true earth pony, and he was feeling the long day's work in his bones. His head sagged, his legs wobbled and his back ached. Yet Calumn gloried in the exhaustion. It felt right. Fatigue earned through hard work. And it had been hard, Bigwig hadn't been joking about that part.

The unicorn had also proven himself to be fair, which was something that came as a small surprise to Calumn, even though it shouldn't have. He knew that much of the propaganda in the Republics about how sunlander unicorns treated the other pony races was false, but it was still so pervasive that he'd ended up believing some of it anyway.

Bigwig didn't put the lie to all of the stereotypes. He was condescending, arrogant, and bossy. He had money and he was in charge, and he didn't shy from reminding everyone around him about either. Yet he had a simple charm that meant he never seemed vicious when he was giving orders, or snobbish when he talked about his fortune. It was a good trait to have when most of his employees were earth ponies or pegasi. By the end of the day Calumn wasn't even resentful of the hard work he'd done while the unicorn had sat on his rotund behind and gave orders.

Even better, everyone who worked for Bigwig seemed to share his friendly demeanor. There wasn't much politics or drama to go around. They were all working together, and it seemed they all felt their wages fair for what they were asked to do. The fact that Bigwig himself handled most of the selling upfront helped. He was seen among them, doing his part. Even if his part didn't require him to lift anything his telekinesis couldn't handle, which actually turned out to be a surprisingly large amount of weight.

By the time the market was starting to close, Calumn was nearing collapse. Blaze and the other day workers showed up shortly afterward, looking just as tired. Blaze met up with Calumn, and the two of them began the walk back to the hotel.

"Like I said, it's not really my line of work," Blaze was saying. "Lifting and hauling. I'm more about the guiding and running. Totally different skillset. How did your day go?" Calumn wobbled and tripped over his own hooves as he tried to reply. "Oh, well, that good, huh?" Blaze steadied his friend and directed their walk towards a nearby park.

They sat down on a bench, resting. Calumn sighed in joy as his weight left his throbbing hooves. The park was filling up as ponies ended their day's activities and decided to relax. There were already a dozen colts and fillies rampaging through the park's playground. The sounds they made were like music to the Changeling, soothing and invigorating.

"I'm a little out of shape," Calumn admitted.

"I thought you got all the earth pony stuff in that body," Blaze commented.

"I get stronger, yes, but that's because of muscle size and bone density," Calumn explained. "Earth ponies have magic to bolster all that, even if it's not their Talent. I don't get that when I take this shape."

"Nifty, didn't think about that. So can you fly in pegasus form and magic in unicorn form?"

"Both, but limited. I'm a weak flyer by pegasus standards, and my telekinesis is barely a quarter of a kilogram. I'm better at both in my natural form, but not by much. It really depends on how much energy I've got coming in. A strong source of love that I've been feeding from for a while can make me as strong as a Strength Talent and as fast as a Flight Talent, temporarily."

"But you don't have that right now."

Calumn shook his head. "No. Friendship is good, but love is best."

"How about food?" Blaze asked.

"Food is always good," Calunm replied, chuckling.

"Want me to go get us something to eat?"

"I would be eternally grateful," Calumn said, lying down on the bench.

"You got it, buddy," Blaze said with a grin, then trotted off to find some food.

Calumn's gaze and mind wandered as Blaze left. The vibrant feelings and colors hadn't left him as the day progressed, and he indulged in them now, filling up his senses with everything he could take in. He watched a young couple nuzzling under a shady tree, tracked the flight of a hummingbird as it darted around the flowers that grew in carefully cultivated beds. A delighted laugh caught his attention and he looked over to see the children at play. He smiled as he watched them. They had a carefree innocence that he had never known. Young Changelings didn't get to play, they had to learn. He'd never had to mimic a child long-term, and had thus never got the chance to even pretend at it. He wondered what it would be like.

Then he noticed that not all the children were playing. One colt was sitting by himself, away from the others, poking at the dirt with a hoof. Calumn watched, curious, and saw the colt look up from time to time and stare forlornly at the other foals. At one point he almost got up to join them, but sank back down, looking ashamed and sad.

Calumn's heart went out to the young pony, and he resolved in that moment to do something about it. When Blaze came back with food, Calumn pointed out the lonely colt to his friend. "I'm going to help that kid."

Blaze laughed. It wasn't a laugh of surprise or disbelief, but the laugh of a pony who had just discovered some delightful secret. "I am completely behind that. How are you going to do it?”

"I'll be Holly for a while," Calumn said. A plan was crystallizing in his thoughts, though it was a gamble.

"You want me to turn on the juice while you're at it?" Blaze asked.

Calumn shook his head. "Not this time. Thanks, though."

"No problem."

Calumn ate quickly, then found a secluded alley and changed to the form of Blaze's sister. He immediately felt the wave of love energy flow into him and flashed Blaze an annoyed look.

"What?" the green stallion asked, eyes wide and innocent. "You've earned it, buddy."

Calumn shook his head and gave Blaze a thankful smile before taking a deep breath and heading back to the park. The moment her hooves touched the grass she had immersed herself in the character she had created. A bright smile curved at her lips and she darted off to look wide-eyed at the playground. "Awesome," she crowed, then launched herself with fervor into the laughing fray. She angled for a group of five ponies playing with a ball.

"Hey, who are you?" one filly asked as she came up to the group at play.

"My name's Holly," she replied. "Can I play with you?" She sent a hint of Changeling magic through her voice, just enough to provoke easier acceptance.

The other children shared a look, but grins broke out before doubts could be shared, and they quickly opened a spot in their circle for her to join in. She set to playing with a vigor that was surprising after a long day's work. A full stomach and a loving pseudo-brother provided all the youthful strength she needed.

Soon enough she had learned all their names, and showed them she was a good player at their game. Taking a pause from bouncing the ball around she frowned and gestured towards the lone colt. "Why don't we ask him to join in, I think it'll be even funner with seven of us!"

This time the look shared by the other children lasted longer. "We don't want him playing with us," an earth pony filly named Chelsea said.

"Why not?"

"He sucks," a fluttery pegasus colt named Dive replied. He and Chelsea seemed to be the leaders of this group, the other children would go along with them.

"Sucks?" she repeated. "How does he suck?"

"He just does," Dive said. "He just sucks."

"Come on, he can't be that bad," Calumn cajoled. "I picked this game up pretty quick, he can too."

"Teacher says he's got an attitude problem," Chelsea said.

"What do his friends think?" she asked, knowing what the answer would be.

"He doesn't got any friends," Dive replied.

"No friends!" Calumn gasped, putting a lot of shock into her voice. "What did he do to get no friends?"

There were confused looks all around. They didn't know. Calumn was glad for that. If this lone colt had been a bully or some other real troublemaker then they wouldn't have hesitated to tell her. His ostracism could be the result of any number of factors, but this reaction showed Calumn that it was through no fault of his own. That made everything easier.

"Nobody knows? Well no wonder he's got an attitude problem! Anybody would if they had no friends for no good reason. I'm gonna go be his friend."

"Don't," Dive said, reaching out to stop her. "He sucks. If you hang out with him, you'll suck too."

She grinned at him. "I'm fun, right?" There were nods all around. "I'm not going to stop being fun, right?" The nods came again, though more uncertain this time. "Well, I think he can be fun too. All you got to do is get to know him."

Without waiting for the group consensus she hopped out of the circle and ambled up to the lone colt. He looked up as she approached. His expression was guarded, but she could see the hurt and loneliness plain behind it.

"What do you want?" the colt snapped at her.

"I'm Holly," she said, plopping herself down next him in a sprawl. "What's your name?"

"Andy," he said, confused by her forwardness into forgetting that he was supposed to be a loner. "Andy Quick."

"Hi Andy," she said, sticking out her hoof for him to shake. He did so, reluctantly. She rolled until she was in front of him, enjoying the feel of the grass against her coat. "Wanna come play with us?"

He frowned, then looked back towards the playground where the circle of ponies was watching them intently. He turned back to her with anger kindling in his eyes. "They don't want to play with me."

"Why not?" she asked, touching him with a sliver of Changeling magic. It was only enough to get him talking and not shutting down or running away yet, not even enough to tinge her eyes green.

"They don't like me," Andy replied. "Nobody likes me."

"Pfft, that's not true," she said, smiling up at him but carefully refraining from laughter. "I like you, and I just met you."

He paused, contemplating that. She didn't push him, didn't use her magic to make his decision for him. She let him think it through himself. "You're just saying that."

"Well, yeah," she replied. "I'm saying it because it's true!"

"Why do you even want to play with me?" he demanded, but she could see the wheels turning, crushing his anger with hope.

"'Cause you look fun and cool," she said, making a fairly poor attempt to stand on her head. "And playing is always more fun with more people."

He paused again. Her explanation was child's logic, but it was still logic, and she wasn't hiding any traps that would trip his defenses. He could see her sincerity, and understand her reasoning. He wanted to believe her. "They'll make fun of me," he said, the light of hope in him finally bright enough to reveal the insecurities that would try to snuff it out again.

She replaced her smile with a serious expression. "Do you think so?"

"I know they will," he said, his voice hitching. "They always do."

"What do you do when they make fun of you?" she asked, using a gentle prod of magic to let him respond freely.

"I get mad," he admitted. "I can't ever think of a good comeback. I just yell at them, then I run away. I'm just so stupid!"

Calumn was surprised at that last comment, but saw how she could use it. "That's not stupid," she said. "I can't ever think of a good comeback either."

"Really?" He didn't believe her. She could tell he'd had adults belittling his insecurities before, the usual 'you're not stupid, don't think that way' and 'I've been there, I got over it' stuff. She was fairly certain, however, that he'd never been told this by another child his age.

"Really," she said. "I got mad, too. But you know what I didn't do?"

"You didn't run away?"

"Yup. I didn't run away. And they stopped making fun of me, you want to know why?"

"Why?"

"Because I had a friend there, and he made up comebacks for me." She smiled again. "They sucked. Like, totally, absolutely, mega-sucked." Andy laughed. "I was all like: 'Hey, stop it! Stop defending me!' But he kept going, and everyone just started laughing. You know what I learned?" He shook his head. "Everyone gets made fun of." She let that sink in for a moment before reaching out to poke him in the flank. "You, me, my friends, your friends, your enemies. Everyone."

"Is it 'cause ponies are cruel?" he asked.

She shrugged. "Nah, it's 'cause ponies are ponies. We're all kinda dumb, you know? We all do dumb things and we get made fun of. We're not stupid, though. You're not stupid. You just need a friend to make some sucky comebacks for you. Wanna be my friend?"

He contemplated her offer. She hadn't won him over, not completely, but she'd gotten him thinking about it. "What if I do something stupid?"

"I'll do something stupider," she promised him. "Just come play with us. It'll be fun."

She could see the decision written plainly in his features as he nodded, a smile transforming his lonely face. "Okay."

"Yay!" She leapt up, crowing at her victory. She did a victory lap around him, turning somersaults and jumping as she went. He laughed at her antics, as did the circle of children that she led him to. Soon they were all playing together. Calumn worked hard to keep the games fun, and made a point of inviting the other children in the playground to join them as well.

They played with the ball, they pushed each other on the swings, they ran all about the play structure pretending to be pirates or Griffins. Calumn vetoed a game of Changeling Hunt, but taught them one of the games she'd seen Republican children play instead. Children made friends easily, and in the few short hours of play she connected with each of them. She could feel their friendship flowing through her, and with only a few nudges to the more obstinate kids she made sure Andy was included in that web of friendship. It wouldn't be a permanent solution, children lost friends as easily as they made them, but it would give him a foundation to build something more solid on.

At the very least she had given him an afternoon of fun and friendship. She counted that as a victory.

The park filled up with ponies as the afternoon went on, and soon enough parents came to retrieve children for supper. They parted ways, promising to play again the next day. It was a promise Calumn intended to keep, even if it would only be for that one more day. When he left the park he found Blaze waiting for him, a huge smile on the green pony's face.

"Good imitation," he said as Calumn fell into step beside him and they headed towards the alley he'd changed in earlier. "But try to tell more jokes. Oh! And props! You need props! Do you think they sell rubber chickens around here?"

Calumn laughed. "I'm not trying to perfectly imitate your sister, Blaze."

He pouted. "But I was looking forward to the apple-and-chicken routine."

"Apple and...?" Calumn shook his head. "Nope. Not going to ask. Thanks, Blaze. I helped a kid today, and it feels better than I ever imagined. Thanks for letting me do this."

"Anytime, buddy," Blaze said, laughing. "Any time."

***

"Trail Blazer," Charisma breathed, watching the stallion walk the familiar-looking filly away from the park. Her heart thudded in her chest and her wings twitched restlessly on her back.

"Yup," Cash said, his own eyes locked on the smaller of the pair. "Well, I know what I'm doing tomorrow. How about you?"

Charisma could barely keep herself from rushing after Blaze immediately, but Cash insisted she hold back. "Tomorrow," he told her, smiling in that way he did when something awful was about to happen. "You can have all the fun your little black heart can stand, but tomorrow."

She could do nothing but grit her teeth and accept it. They made their way back to High Fashion's estate with Cash scheming and her smouldering. A bad combination for anyone who got in their way. Which made Melody coming out to meet them unfortunate.

"What do you want?" Charisma snapped at the other pegasus as she approached.

She flinched back. "I, uh, I just wanted to see if you could, um..."

Cash laughed. "Of course she wants to, well, whatever it is you were about to say," he assured her, giving Charisma wink as he did. "I've got to work out a few things in private, so why don't the two of you swap bodyguard stories until dinner?"

Charisma itched to twist his head off right there, but forced her hooves to stillness. "Alright, Max. Why don't you go and leave us alone for a while?"

"Play nice," Cash said, his voice pitched low and hard. It was a command, and from the look in his eyes, one he wouldn't brook her transgressing. Then, with a jaunty wave to them both he trotted into the estate.

Charisma watched him go, pawing slowly at the dirt. Only after he was gone did she switch her attention to Melody. "Sorry about that. I got some news recently, and it's been causing me some stress."

"Were you able to use the communication crystal?"

Charisma nodded. "Yes, we got in touch with our people. They'll be here to pick us up in two days."

"Oh, I was hoping you'd stay longer," Melody said, frowning in disappointment. She perked up quickly enough, though. "I'd like you to help me with something."

Charisma sighed. "What do you need my help with?"

"I want... I want you to show me how you fight."

Charisma couldn't help but laugh. "Melody, listen. You do not want that. I'm sure you're a good enough bodyguard for Precious Corners."

"No, I do," she insisted. "I see the way you move, the way you hold yourself. You've come at me a couple times now and I was sure you were going to attack me. I was so scared I almost peed myself. I've never, and I mean never seen anyone move like you do. If I could learn even a bit of that, I could, I don't know, I could be a better guard, I guess."

Charisma saw where this was going. "High Fashion's talking about moving to the city, isn't he?"

Melody blinked at her, taken aback by her insight. "I, um, well, yes."

"Figured. You're afraid your skills at busting bumpkin heads won't work well there, right?" Melody nodded. "Yeah, well, they won't. You're right about that."

"Teach me," Melody said, staring intently into Charisma's eyes in a way that she probably thought conveyed sincerity and determination. "Please."

"Melody, what the hell do you think I can teach you in two days?" Charisma asked, rubbing at her temple.

"Something, anything!"

"Nothing! At all!" Charisma snapped. "I can show you some stuff, sure, but only enough that if you try to use it without the years of training that come before it you'll get yourself killed."

"Just give me a place to start! Something to build on."

Charisma snorted and stepped away, shaking her head. Melody didn't know, couldn't know. Her entire body yearned to crush the other pegasus, to utterly dismantle her. She stilled the impulse and took a deep breath. "Fine," she said. "I'll see what you can do and give you some pointers." She rounded on Melody before the inevitable thanks began pouring out. "That is all it is, do you understand? This will not be training, this will not be a lesson, this might be educational, but that depends on how much you take out of it. This is advice about areas you should focus on when getting real training. Do you understand me?"

Melody swallowed hard and nodded. "I understand."

Charisma backed off. "Good. Because that's my first piece of advice: find real training. Before you move to the city. Get Lord Fashion to sponsor you. Any of the military academies are good, but the Stavishorn school has the best bodyguard program. It's expensive, it's tougher than anything you've ever done in your life, but it's worth it if you want to be halfway decent at your job. Whatever you do, do not mention that I recommended it to you. Hell, don't even mention you've ever met me."

"Why not?"

"I've got a reputation," Charisma said, taking another half-step back and looking away. "Let's just say there's a reason I'm working for Max right now instead of on operations with the marines."

Melody nodded as she absorbed the unspoken implications of what she'd been told. "Okay. It might be a hard sell to Lord High Fashion, but I can try."

"Do," Charisma snapped. "You're his bodyguard, it's your duty to do anything and everything it takes to keep him safe. This is what it will take. Don't let him screw with your duty just because it pinches his purse. Don't try, do." Melody took this in with the wide-eyed solemnity of a novitiate priest receiving the secrets of Celestia. Charisma shook her head, trying to keep the derision from showing. "Do you have some place to practice? A sparring ground or something?"

Melody did, and twenty minutes later Charisma found herself in a small field surrounded by forest. Various training dummies had been set up, most looking like they were mannequins raided from a department store dumpster. A shed stood nearby, housing weapons and water.

"I set most of this up myself," Melody was telling her as she pulled out some of the weapons she'd practiced with. They were a sorry lot. Mostly clubs, a few makeshift spears and, surprisingly, a decently maintained mace. There were no modern weapons, no guns or tasers or extendable batons. There was a good selection of knives, though, and Charisma spent a few minutes looking them over.

"You're a hereditary bodyguard to a noble unicorn, and this is all you've got?" Charisma had to ask once she was done with her inspection.

Melody looked at the ground, her expression pained. "My family hasn't exactly taken its duty seriously."

Charisma rolled her eyes. "Right, country living and a town called 'Precious Corners'. Should have seen that one coming. Look, just show me what you already know."

Melody did her best to do just that. She showed off all the techniques for disabling or overpowering a pony she had learned from years of experience and what little training she got from her family. Charisma watched it all impassively. Finally, when Melody had finished and stood sweaty and panting before her, Charisma spoke.

"What you did right: You engage your targets with confidence, you know how to set your shoulders, you know which end of a weapon to hit with and which end to hold. What you did wrong: Everything else. Every-damn-thing." Melody cringed back from that appraisal. "You've done most of your fighting against earth ponies, haven't you?" She nodded. "Yeah, figures. You're not an earth pony, you're a pegasus. Those wings on your back? Use them! You keep planting your feet to land a blow, that's an earth pony tactic. You should be attacking from above, diving down on your target, not standing in front of him and punching up. Earth ponies need to be grounded, solidly set, but you need the opposite. You've got the reflexes and weight to move quicker than they can. Use it! Instability is your friend: use your wings to hold yourself up, touch down to stabilize or add momentum. Roll with blows, don't weather them. If they push you, let yourself be pushed and fly. I could go on all night for this one thing alone."

"I didn't–"

"No, you didn't," Charisma cut her off. "Let me show you how it's done." She launched herself at Melody without warning. The brown pegasus squeaked and flinched back, spreading her wings in a futile attempt to take off and escape. Charisma dropped on her with the inevitability of the sunset. Her leading hoof hit Melody in the left shoulder, collapsing that leg under her. Charisma's wings snapped down and caught hers, bending them painfully. With a deft twist Charisma flipped around so that she could land on Melody while facing the same way. She rode the other pegasus to the ground, wrapping her foreleg around Melody's neck and hauling back.

Melody's breath cut off with a squeak. Charisma held her there for a long moment. End her, her Talent demanded. She let go and Melody sagged underneath her, gasping for breath. Charisma leaned down until her mouth was next to Melody's ear. "You are a pegasus," she growled softly. "You have six limbs, all of which are weapons. You are faster than other ponies, both in terms of reaction time and flat-out speed. Most importantly, most importantly, you can fly. That is the greatest weapon of our kind, and if we forget about it all we are is weaker, more fragile earth ponies. All the others think in two dimensions by nature, we think in three. Remember that."

"I will," Melody gasped out. "I'll remember."

Charisma rolled off the other pony, coming to her hooves and stalking a few paces away to calm herself down. She shouldn't have jumped Melody like that. Shouldn't have agreed to this in the first place. It was seeing Blaze again. She'd barely gotten to spend any time with him back at the dig, just enough to whet her appetite for him again. It distracted her, made her control slip. He always had.

She looked back at Melody, who was on her knees, coughing. "Sorry," she said.

"It's okay," Melody assured her once she got her breath back. "I needed to see that. To know what I have to live up to."

"You don't have to live up to me," Charisma said. "Just get some real training."

"I will," Melody promised. "I will."

They held their places for a long minute, each contemplating their own failings. "Hey," Charisma said, breaking the silence. "There's a guy in town that I know. He's not local either, but I think he might be doing some piece-work at the farmer's market or something. You think you could help me find him tomorrow?"

"I can," Melody said. She sounded small and tired, but there was a new conviction in her voice. Charisma recognized that sound. She'd seen the extent of her inadequacy and was determined to overcome it. It was an attitude that could take her far, or it could kill her.

Either way, it wouldn't be her problem. She could, however, help tip the scales a bit. "Come on, get up. We've only got so much time before we'll be missed, and I want to show you a few things."

***

The new day was as beautiful as the last. Calumn couldn't help but smile as he and Blaze once more made their way to the farmer's market. He laughed at Blaze's rambling jokes and gloried in the early sun’s rays. He still worshipped Luna first and foremost, but he had to admit that Celestia, too, knew something about beautiful skies.

When they reached the table where Bigwig sat, the fat unicorn gave them a wrinkled smile. "You two again. You did good work yesterday, both of you." He nodded his horn at Blaze. "The boys say you talk up a storm, but know your way around the equipment. Said you even found a few things that were mislabelled or buried and almost lost. Good work."

"I'm good at stuff like that," Blaze said. "You hire some really interesting people, Mr. Bigwig."

"I hire who I'm given," Bigwig said. He turned his attention to Calumn. "You were good around here. I was right about you, boy. You've got a good head. I've got a late shipment coming in today for the warehouse. Why don't you two switch up and I can get to know Blaze here better today and you can get some extra pay for late hours. I'll put you in a supervisory position, earn you some extra pay without as much heavy lifting."

Calumn hesitated. It was the best way to maintain their cover. Rocking the boat and protesting work assignments wouldn't look good. But he had promised those kids that Holly would be there to play again today. The two options hung before him, but in the end he found the choice was easy. "I'm sorry, sir. I've got plans this afternoon, I can't stay late."

Bigwig looked at him with an appraising eye. "You sure about that?"

Calumn nodded. "I am, sir."

The unicorn stared hard at him for long enough that Calumn worried that he was angry, but instead he just snorted. "Have it your way. Same assignments as yesterday for you two then. Blaze, you'll get the overtime, but I'm not gonna make you a supervisor."

"Works for me," Blaze said, and Calumn nodded as well. They parted for their separate assignments shortly after, and Calumn set to work. The day would be long and hard, but he looked forward to that afternoon, and the young ponies waiting for their new friend, and knew that it was all worth it.

***

"There he is," Melody said, pointing towards the yard adjacent to the warehouse where they could see the green stallion with the yellow-striped mane carrying a heavy load from a truck to the inside. The afternoon sun was high overhead and the ponies working were practically dripping with sweat. Melody was obviously appreciative of some of the stallions, but Charisma had eyes for only one.

She still had no idea what Cash was up to, but he'd given her free reign to track down Blaze today, so she really didn't care. It hadn't been too hard, a good description allowed Melody to easily locate anyone in a town this small. Now that he was in front of her, Charisma felt the old urge bubbling up again, her wings twitching with it.

"Thanks, Melody," she said. "I'm going to go have a reunion."

"Do you want me to stay here? In case, uh, he doesn't want to talk to you?" Melody offered.

Charisma chuckled at that. "No. Go talk to Lord Fashion about getting you some training. I'll be fine."

"Are you sure?" Charisma tore her eyes away from Blaze to give the other pegasus a very strongly worded look. "Okay," she squeaked backing off. "I'll see you tonight?"

"Maybe," Charisma allowed, then turned back to her quarry and dismissed Melody from her thoughts.

She watched him at work, noting the little tells that spoke of injuries not completely healed. She had hurt him back at the dig. Not enough, though. Not nearly enough. He still smiled and laughed and talked the ear off of any pony that would listen. Her hooves trembled in the dirt as his laughter drifted across the distance to her ears, she could wait no longer.

She timed her attack so that he was alone in a stretch of the warehouse yard that had several tall stacks of material, likely waiting to be loaded onto some truck and sent elsewhere. For her purposes they provided good cover from any of the other work ponies or passers-by. It was the next best thing to privacy. She dove on him from above, swooping down like an owl on a mouse. Silent and deadly. She caught him mid-step, lifting him from his hooves and carrying him behind one of those tall stacks.

She dropped him to the ground with a grunt, landing in front of him as he got up. He stared at her, eyes wide, smile missing for once. "Charisma," he said, surprise and disbelief in his tone.

She rushed into him, ramming his back up against the stack hard enough to make it shudder. She held him there, upright and pinned, then slammed a hoof into his side. Skin tore and a rib snapped from her jab. She set her hoof in place and pushed, grinding the jagged edge of the broken rib against his lung. Blood seeped from his chest, coating her pressing foreleg.

He smiled. She twisted her hoof and he shuddered with the agony of it, then let out a gasping laugh. "I guess somebody missed me," he choked out.

She sagged against him, shuddering. "Yes," she replied, rubbing her muzzle over the side of his face. "I missed you."

"What's wrong?" he asked, frowning in concern.

"No!" She snarled, pressing into his broken rib again, and also biting at the nerve cluster in his shoulder. He stiffened, hissing in pain before turning it into a chuckle. She released his shoulder, but kept up the pressure on his rib. "Better," she growled. "Keep laughing, Blaze. Keep smiling."

"Okay," he wheezed, giving her his best goofy smile. "But, hey, why don't we, and hear me out here, why don't we not try to kill me this time, huh? 'Cause I've been meaning to get around to that death speech thing, but, you know, one thing leads to another and suddenly you're no longer dating the girl who tries to snap your neck every morning. So you kinda get bummed about that and before you know it the whole thing's been shelved and you can't really remember it off the top of your head because it's gotta be cool, right? I mean, who would want their last words to suck. Or be 'suck'. Hey, how many people have last words that are 'this sucks'? I bet it's a lot. Maybe we should take a census or something. Oh! I bet we could get all the psychics together and get them to do the census, and then we can know how many people said 'suck' as their last word and how many dead people we should be taxing, 'cause I'll be damned if one quarter moon of my money is going to support those lazy, non-taxpaying dead people!"

It broke her. Only he could talk so much with someone actively trying to destroy one of his lungs. She collapsed against him, tears filling her eyes, but never falling. "You," she whispered against him. The smell of blood and sweat permeated the air in a heady mixture. "You, you, you. Always you."

"Well, I've tried to be other people, but it never works out," Blaze said, wrapping his forelegs around her in a tight hug. "I've got a friend who can probably teach me how, though."

She kissed him, feeding every passion that flared in her into their touching lips. His eyes went wide, and she could see the concern flare up in them again. She grabbed his head in her hooves and slammed it against the stack, dazing him. With a twist she flipped him into the ground. She straddled him, setting her hooves onto his forelegs to pin them to the ground. The blood from his chest wound was seeping onto her thighs now and she trembled at the feel of it, closing her eyes and taking a quivering breath.

"Hey, Charisma?" he said. She opened her eyes and looked down at him, her mane draping down to tickle at his nose. She leaned just enough so that it was falling in his eyes instead. He winced at the sting, but didn't blink. "I know we've got sexy reunion time going on and all, but, uh, you aren't really fooling me." She pulled back. "Yeah. So, why don't you break my nose and tell me about it?"

She smacked him across the muzzle hard enough to open the half-healed cut already there and draw fresh blood. "Why should I tell you anything?" she snapped. "You left, remember? Didn't want any part of it."

"I didn't want any part of him," Blaze panted. "Still don't. He's creepy. Also? Evil."

Charisma regarded the stallion coldly for a long moment before rolling off him. He didn't get up, and she snuggled up to his injured side, casually playing with the wound she had dealt him. "He's gotten worse," she said, leaning over to lick at the bleeding cut on his muzzle.

"Really?" Blaze asked, incredulous. "I've got a really good imagination, I mean, like, world-champion stuff, and even I can't see how that's possible."

"Ever since James died," she continued. "He's been... I don't even know how to say it. Worse. Making less sense than usual."

"Big Jim's dead?"

"And not paying taxes," she confirmed, laying gentle kisses along his neck.

"When? How?"

"A few weeks ago. Went into one of Max's digs, didn't come out again."

"Did you kill him?

"Only in my dreams."

"Did Max kill him?"

"I don't know, and he's not saying," she sighed. "I think so, though. Maybe that's why he's worse. James was his best friend."

Blaze laughed at that. She jabbed him in the stomach hard enough that his legs involuntarily curled up, but he kept laughing. "Really?" he wheezed out. "You think Max Cash would lose even one wink of sleep over killing his own best friend? Max Cash? The Max Cash? Are we even thinking about the same guy here?"

She snorted, swatting him in the ribs again, but not hard enough to break anything this time. "No, he wouldn't. But he did change, Blaze. He's more driven than ever now, and more powerful."

"What does that mean?"

She didn't answer him, instead laying her head against his bleeding chest and taking in the scent of him. His breathing was harsh, but even. She hadn't punctured his lung this time. "Stay with me," she said, barely more than a whisper.

"I kinda have this work thing I was doing–" She silenced him with a hoof grinding his lips against his teeth.

"You leave, and I kill every single pony here," she told him.

"Yay!" he mumbled around her hoof. "How could I say no to some afternoon delight?"

She climbed on top of him again, licking her bloodied lips as she stared down at him. "Keep laughing, Blaze," she told him, pawing at his shoulder joint until she found the exact right spot. "Keep laughing and keep smiling. No matter what."

She pressed down.

***

Calumn's day was perfect. If Bigwig had been disappointed he'd turned down the supervisor job, he didn't take it out on the Changeling. The work was just as long and just as hard as it had been the first day, but somehow the burdens seemed lighter and the hours shorter. Before he knew it the market was closing up and Bigwig was divvying out the pay. Calumn told him that Blaze would pick his up when he got back from the warehouse, then took off at a gallop. He thought that the unicorn called after him, but he didn't slow down. They were probably going to be leaving in the next day or so, but he would still have time to talk to Bigwig again before they left, and he could say whatever he wanted then. Right now there were children to meet.

Calumn snuck into the alley he'd used the day before and changed to Holly. She couldn't feel Blaze's love empowering her, but she figured the stallion had just done that 'turn it off' trick and hadn't flipped it back on yet. It didn't matter, she could already feel the power of friendship flowing to her. The day's exertion washed away and she laughed for joy as she ran to the park.

They were waiting for her, Chelsea, Dive, all the others, and Andy. He stood with them, smiling, happy. Calumn's heart surged with joy and pride. She'd done that. She'd gotten that lonely colt to smile and have friends. A little kindness that would go a long way.

She joined them, and they played. So many games, so much joy. It was beautiful. She lost herself in the play until the world spun with heady children's happiness. A taste so sweet and pure it brought tears to her eyes. Even if it wasn't as nourishing as love, she could feast on friendship like this forever and never tire of it.

She was so caught up in the fun that she didn't notice the stallion watching her at first. She just kept playing and laughing, but soon enough the icy feeling of unfriendly eyes on her cut through the distracting games and sent a chill down her spine. She spun, looking for the source of the feeling, and locked eyes with Max Cash. He smiled as she saw him, and beckoned to her.

"Hey, Holly, what's wrong?" Andy asked, seeing her freeze.

She shook herself out of her paralysis. "I, uh, I gotta go talk to my, um, uncle," she said.

"You'll be back, right?"

"Yeah," she replied, but she couldn't put much conviction into it. "You have fun, okay?"

"Yeah, okay," he dashed off, playing at some imagination game with the others.

Calumn walked over to Cash, knowing he might have no other choice. His legs trembled and threatened to collapse with every step, but somehow he managed to make it the whole way. He stood before the unicorn, a filly’s body seeming too small and too weak a form to face him with.

"Let's talk," Cash said, eyes twinkling in the sunlight.

"I don't have anything to talk about with you," Calumn replied. He looked around the park. He might be able to escape into the growing crowds, run down the street. If Cash was here, then Charisma would probably be close by. If he could change shape before she spotted him from above, he had a better chance of evading them.

Cash shrugged, unconcerned. "Okay, I can live with that, but I really want to talk to someone. Hey! What about those kids? You think they'll want to talk to me?" He gestured at the children playing on the swings.

Calumn froze, his heart thudding in his chest and his limbs feeling like they were wrapped in ice. He looked over at the children he'd been playing with only moments before. How happy they were, how innocent. He swallowed hard. "Fine. Let's talk." He surrendered, turning back to Cash.

"Excellent!" Cash said, tilting his head towards a close park bench. Calumn silently followed him, every step accompanied by an increase in his thundering pulse and ragged, gnawing fear. They settled in, Cash sighing happily as he took his weight off his hooves. "This is a lovely day," he began, smiling up at the sunlight. "I'm really surprised with this town. You'd think I'd be getting small-town-life flashbacks, but this place doesn't remind me of my old hometown at all. Too many open fields and not enough mountains, I guess. Plus the buildings are completely different. You'd think that wouldn't be a big factor, but really it is. Architecture is bit of a hobby of mine. Nothing serious, you understand, just something I've taken a look at. Modern construction, mostly. It’s really fascinating how much effort goes into just keeping buildings up."

"What do you want?" Calumn demanded, keeping his voice steady and soft.

"To finish our conversation, of course," Cash said. "We got interrupted last time, and that's kind of off-putting. I was all set to make a new friend. You like making friends, right?"

Calumn shuddered again. "What do you really want?"

"More than friends? An audience," Cash said. "Someone to look at what I'm going to do and understand why. Because otherwise what's the point? I could turn the world upside down, but if there's no one who knows it, did it really happen?"

"Stop this," Calumn hissed. "Stop playing affable. Just tell me what you want!"

Cash paused for a moment, giving Calumn an unreadable look that made a small voice in the back of his brain start screaming. "Let me tell you something, Calumn. I'm not the most sociable of ponies. Oh, I know I've got a bit of charm, a bit of flair. I can smile my way past most encounters and keep up my side of a conversation. But you see, I'm not really good at dealing with people. Do you know why?"

"Enlighten me."

"Because I know them. I understand them. I get them. You know how it is, right? You get them too. You understand how they'll react to things so it becomes really, really easy to get them to do whatever it is you want them to. I know people. I know them from the high to the low, from the noble to the degenerate. It's all pretty much the same, you understand. Top to bottom, no one's really different from anyone else in the most important ways."

"Except you, right?"

"Nope. Me too. Which is why I'm not good with them. Just like them I have my faults. Just like them I lose sight of things. Just like them I have a big, gaping blind spot in my understanding. For most people it's themselves. They really don't get the whole 'know yourself' side of things. They prefer 'know everybody else's business'. I think it's cute, but that's me."

"So what's yours?" Calumn asked, knowing it was expected of him.

"Friendship," Cash sighed. Calumn blinked at that, he hadn't expected a straight answer. "I really don't get it. I've had friends. A few, at least. But I never understood friendship for other people. It makes them act in weird ways. Ways that don't make sense even if you know them from nose to tail. Love's the same way, but at least it's focused. At least you can count on it. You can never count on friendship. Sometimes it’s there, sometimes it's not, and always it can make the difference between a pony doing exactly what you want and haring off in the wrong direction. That's what I don't get, Calumn. That's my blind spot. Friendship."

"Why are you telling me this at all?" Calumn asked, confused again by Cash's strange behaviour.

"Well, maybe because I like to talk," Cash mused. "I'm a lot like Trail Blazer in that way. We're two stallions cut from the same cloth, except he does it because he's got no filter and I do it because it suits my purposes."

"And telling me that you don't understand friendship suits your purposes?"

"Eh," Cash shrugged. "It kills time, at least. That's all I'm really doing right now." He flashed Calumn a vicious, conspiratorial grin. "Wanna know why?"

Calumn shook his head, but sighed. "Go ahead."

"Well, I'm in a bit of a pickle here," Cash said setting his face into a pensive expression. "I've still got stuff to do on this side of the Storm, but the Kingdom's finally decided to go after me outright."

"Shouldn't you be running for the Verge then?"

Cash chuckled, winking at Calumn. "That's exactly what they expect! But, no. That's the dilemma. I can't leave yet, but with the Kingdom actively looking for me I can't stick around either. What to do? What to do?"

"Turn yourself in and face your hanging like a stallion?" Calumn offered.

"Honestly? Tempting idea," Cash said, sounding like he meant it. "But not in character for me. No, what I need to do is shift the situation. I can't leave, so I've got to do something about the Kingdom looking for me. I need them distracted, focusing all their attention on something else while go and do my thing. In short: I need a war."

Calumn laughed at that. "You want the Kingdom to go to war? I'll admit they're ready for it, but nobody's going to make the first move. Even you don't have the kind of pull it would take to make the Republic attack, and now that the Kingdom's on to you, they won't be doing anything you want them to do."

The unicorn hummed at that, tilting his head from side to side in a show of consideration. "Well, it's true that I don't have the influence. I can't just order up a war like I would a sandwich," he said. Then he stopped, looking sidelong at Calumn and letting a small, cruel smile begin to form. "But thankfully, I don't have to worry about it. You see, an opportunity has come up, and I intend to take full advantage of it. Which brings me to why I'm killing time. You want to know why, right? Go on, ask me."

Calumn sighed. "Sure. Fine. Why?"

"Because the park is filling up," Cash pointed out.

Calumn looked around, and sure enough the park was getting a little crowded from all the ponies relaxing after the day's work. "What's your point?"

"My point is that I want to start a war, or at least make it a greater priority than me. I need a flash point, a spark to ignite the whole powder keg," Cash said, his lips splitting in a manic grin. "How about news of a Changeling wrecking up a town and murdering a bunch of citizens? Sounds nice and spark-like to me. What do you think?"

Calumn's eyes went wide. The park was full of people. He leapt from the bench and started running. He wasn't fast enough. Cash's magic caught him mid stride, the tearing, peeling sensation making him stumble and fall to his knees. When he rose again it was on hole-filled hooves. There was a long moment of silence as the ponies around stared at him, uncomprehending. He looked back at Cash, who was smiling at him and slowly waving his hoof in farewell. Then the first scream sounded, and the running began.

Chapter 18: Practice and Perfection

Destiny, fate or doom is a well-known but little-understood concept. In The Magic of Friendship, I described destiny as a kind of causality. The events of the past lead to the decisions of the future. With a wide enough view of those events, a trajectory can be discerned with regards to the future, and thus one's eventual choices can be predicted. That, then, is destiny: the trajectory of one's life.

I also clearly pointed out that while all ponies are subject to destiny, they are not chained to it. Ponies, and indeed all sapient beings, have the capacity to overcome the trajectory of their life and choose a new course. This capacity is called many things throughout the world. Many refer to it as Free Will, others call it the Chaos Factor. One word for it that I find particularly inspiring and poetic: the soul. Your soul is greater than causality, greater than destiny. It is that indefinable part of you that is not reliant on your experiences and what has come before. It is greater, deeper, stronger. It is the place where our Talents and cutie marks come from. It is a primal magic, fundamental to the very universe itself, beyond mortality.

It goes without saying that the Elements of Harmony can alter destiny. Their very presence distorts causality, and when linked to bearers they alter the path of the world without ever being fully activated. They do this in unpredictable and possibly dangerous ways. Ways that cannot be prevented or even impeded.

What does not go without saying, but needs to be said, is that the Magic of Harmony can toy with the soul as easily as one might dye their mane. This goes beyond the simple effect they have on causality. The Elements can completely change who a pony is without altering any of the experiences that have led them to where they are. Moreover, they are capable of doing this so absolutely and so perfectly that nopony will ever notice that anything changed at all.

I have spent many sleepless nights in the cold company of the fear that this is exactly what I did that night, so many years ago.

-From the seventh section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Eighteen: Practice and Perfection

Calumn ran. He tried to change shape–anything other than his true form would do–but Cash's magic clung to him and sent a wave of searing, scraping sensations all over his body that stymied every attempt. He was stuck as he was, and so he had to run as fast as his hooves could take him.

"It's a Changeling!" The cry went up from several throats at once. Chaos took hold as ponies began to run, panic filling them. Mothers ran to gather their foals, pegasi took to the skies, unicorns lit their horns. A few brave souls were already rushing at him.

"It was pretending to be a child! Don't let it get away!" That was Max Cash's voice. Calumn could hear the laughter in it, even if no one else would.

This would mean war. The Republics would deny they sent him, of course. He was just a rogue Changeling, acting on instinct. Not one of their tame, loyal allies. It was the standard response to a dead Changeling that everyone knew was a lie, and no one said anything more about. Not this time. This time it would be the thing that sent both sides of the Storm at each other's throats.

He dodged through ponies that stood stunned and horrified at his appearance. His wings buzzed as he lifted himself above the crowd and shot down the street, taking the first turn he could, dodging through buildings. There were screams erupting behind him. Screams of fear and screams of anger. He had to hide.

He scanned the buildings, looking for a some place he could hole up in and not be noticed, at least until Cash's magic wore off. He was running too fast and too panicked to make a conscious effort at it, so he let his training and instincts take over. He buzzed down the street, and took a quick turn down another that was thankfully empty of ponies.

Without knowing exactly why, he rushed to a cozy two-story house with an old cart sitting out front. He slammed into the door, trying the knob and finding it locked. He called on his Changeling magic, mimicking a unicorn's natural telekinesis. Magenta light sparked across his crooked horn and he hissed in pain as Cash's magic choked off his own.

He snarled a few choice curses in Lunar before remembering that houses usually had more than one entrance. He galloped around to the back of the house and found, to his delight, that the owner had left the back door open. He rushed in and locked it behind him, hoping that his instincts hadn't led him to a place that was occupied.

After a few long, tense minutes of listening he decided that he was alone in the house, and relaxed. He slumped to the ground, panting and shivering. Cash had gotten to him again. Nothing had prepared him for that unicorn. Not all the years spent investigating him, not all the stories he'd heard about him. Nothing. He wasn't bitter about that, he doubted he could adequately explain everything that was wrong with Cash himself.

Yet dwelling on it would not help him now. No, he needed to rid himself of Cash's magic, then find Blaze, and then the both of them could make their escape from Precious Corners. Preferably before the Griffins arrived and made everything a lot more complicated. To that end he pulled himself up, set his hooves in a wide, strong stance, and tried to shift.

He was proud of himself for not screaming.

***

Charisma heard the shouting before Blaze did. It was only natural that this would be the case, Blaze was a lot more distracted than she was at the time. Yet she was still distracted enough that she dismissed the noise for a long time before it began to be truly intrusive.

"Uh, is it just me, or are other people screaming?" Blaze asked, blinking drunkenly up at the sky. "Nope, pretty sure that's not me. I've got way better sustain."

Charisma stood up, her ears swivelling towards the source of the noise. "Max," she breathed. It wasn't a terribly difficult leap of logic to make. She knew her employer, and he was perfectly capable of causing any number of disasters that would provoke a response like what she was hearing now. Capable and more than willing.

"Charisma," Blaze said, getting to his own hooves and laying one on her shoulder. "Don't go to him. If he's getting worse, you don't know what he's going to do. He killed Jim, he probably killed that Conrad guy, right?" Charisma could only nod to that. "He's killing them for a reason. You might on that list somewhere, too."

"Probably," she agreed, but only in a whisper.

"So don't go to him. You can come with me, we can hang out. It'll be like old times, only better because he won't be around."

She chuckled, knocking his hoof off of her with a swipe of a wing. "Stay safe, Blaze. I will see you again." She didn't wait for a reply, leaping into the air and letting her wings take her high above the compound.

What she saw was like an anthill kicked over. Ponies ran through the streets in all directions, some clustering in groups, others on their own. Many had the hurried, jerky movements of panic. Others seemed frightened, but not terrified to the point of blind running. Whatever Cash had done, it had been big.

She landed in front of one of the ponies who seemed to have it together. "What's going on?" she demanded

The earth pony mare shied back. "A Changeling was spotted in town!" she said. Charisma tensed up immediately, going on high alert. There were few things in the world that could frighten a sunlands pony like the thought of Changelings. She didn't fear them now as she had when she'd been a filly, but they were still the monster hiding under her childhood bed, and the mention of them conjured up those old, half-remembered fears. The fact that the mare she'd been torturing at the camp had really been a Changeling still sent shivers up her spine.

"Are you sure?"

The mare nodded vigorously. "It was seen. In the park. Dozens of ponies saw. Everyone's getting to their homes, hoping the Griffins can get here before... before it gets to us." The mare looked closer at Charisma, frowning. "Wait, I've never seen you before," her gaze travelled down to Charisma's hooves, still covered in Blaze's blood. Her eyes widened and her mouth dropped open in a gasp. "Who are–"

Charisma lunged forward, and a moment later lowered the mare's body to the ground. A quick look around confirmed that no one had seen, and a moment more was all it took to hide the mare's body around a corner. It would be found, and quickly, but she would still be long gone before it became an issue. She wiped as much of the blood as she could off on the mare's coat, leaving her forelegs a darker shade of pink than normal.

Her hooves tingled as she rushed onwards. She hadn't even thought about killing that mare. She'd become a threat the moment her suspicions turned to Charisma, and the pegasus had acted without having to even consider it. It was like getting a single breath of fresh air after spending a day in an abattoir.

She couldn't risk stopping another pony and asking more questions. She needed to find Cash as soon as possible, and leaving a trail of dead in her wake would quickly turn counterproductive. So she took to the air again, skimming above the streets and trying to sort out the form of her boss from all the other running ponies. It wasn't the best way to go about it, but it was probably the safest.

Deciding that Cash was probably still lingering at the origin point of the madness he had undoubtedly caused, she headed for the center of town. As she got closer she saw a group of ponies gathered in a tight cluster by the town hall and decided to take a closer look. As she approached she heard raised voices arguing. Flying over them, she thought she caught sight of her employer among the crowd.

"We don't know if there's only one of them!" This was Cash's voice, she was sure of that. She wheeled and descended towards the group. There were probably only around thirty ponies standing there, but they were so close together that she couldn't pick him out immediately. "They could be anywhere! Anyone!"

"There could be a dozen of them standing right here!" a near-hysterical mare cried.

"Don't be an idiot! They always work alone!" came a scornful reply.

"No they don't!" yet another voice called out. Charisma didn't bother listening as the ponies in the crowd began arguing over whatever rumors about Changelings they had heard.

"Now hold on, we can't just go around accusing people of being Changelings!" This was a new voice. Authoritative, masculine. She saw a yellow light flare up from the horn of a fat unicorn stallion who was drawing attention to himself.

"Why not? Are you working with them? They can get in your head, make you do things, we all know that!" That was Cash. She shoved her way into the crowd, ignoring indignant and angry rebukes and making her way to where she thought the voice was coming from.

"It was going after the children!" a mare cried. "It wanted our foals! Why did it want our foals?"

"The kids are safe!" the authoritarian voice again. "We've gathered them at the school, and they're being protected until we can sort this all out!"

"How can we be sure of that?" Cash again. Charisma's ears swivelled to the sound, homing in on her employer.

Other ponies took up Cash's cry again, and soon everyone was shouting to be heard. Charisma kept pushing, and finally found him. He standing, stone-faced, in the middle of the crowd. When she poked him in the side he looked over without a hint of surprise, and gave her a quick wink. "How can I trust any of you, huh?" he shouted into the rising din. "How can I know any of you aren't being controlled by it?"

Charisma sidled up to him. "We have to talk," she hissed to him. He shrugged at her, and waved a hoof around, indicating that he couldn't hear her through the noise. She snarled and grabbed him, shoving them both a path back out of the crowd. She dragged him down the street until the voices of the crowd were just a muddled murmur. She stood so that she had a clear view of the crowd over his shoulder, ready to get him out of the way if it turned violent. "What the hell is going on, Max?" she demanded.

"A good, old fashioned small-town lynching," Cash said, his eyes gleeful as his face broke into a wide grin. "Or it will be, if they ever get their act together." He looked towards the arguing crowd, chuckling as the accusations flew thick and fast. "I really wish we still used torches for light. I've never seen an actual 'torches and pitchforks' mob, and I think that's a shame. Well, they are farmers, at least there'll be pitchforks."

"Changeling, Max," Charisma snarled, trying vainly to keep him on topic. "They're saying that there's a Changeling loose in town. Is it... the one who was with Blaze?"

"Calumn," Cash supplied. "And yes, he is Blaze's friend."

"Friend? Is he controlling Blaze?"

"I doubt it," Cash said. "No, those two are connected through the bonds of true friendship, not Changeling magic."

"I didn’t think Changelings made friends."

"Neither did I," Cash sniggered, barely suppressing his mirth. "But sometimes the world just does me favors."

"What are you talking about?"

"How was your afternoon with your stallion?" Cash asked, giving her a sly nudge and in no way acknowledging the question she had asked.

"Exquisite," she replied. "But interrupted by a damn riot breaking out! Did you out this Changeling? In the middle of the town we are currently hiding out in?"

He chuckled. "Oh, yes. Yes I did."

"Are you trying to get us caught? Because if you are there are a dozen easier ways!"

"I love your eternal faith in me," he said. "How's the crowd looking? Ready to do some ill-thought-out violence?"

"No," Charisma replied. She took a deep breath and held it for a moment as she calmed her temper. Cash wouldn't do something like this for no reason, and if she was patient enough he might even explain it to her. Forcing the issue wouldn't get her answers, only frustration. "It looks like some unicorn's taking charge, calming things down."

"Oh, well, that's unfortunate," Cash sighed. "I was hoping plan 'p' would work this time."

"Plan 'p'?"

"'P', for 'paranoia'. Changelings are good for that. But if these ponies have a leader they trust, things might calm down for them. Then this mob can be a calming influence on other mobs, and before you know it the whole town is working through the fear and uncertainty in a responsible, rational manner."

Charisma knew where this was going. "And you don't want that."

He shrugged. "It would make what comes next harder. So let's head it off before it grows, huh?"

"So you're going to go stir things up again," Charisma reasoned. She eyed the calming crowd. He could do it, she'd seen him do things like it before. A clever word here, a voiced doubt there, and he could shift the mood of a crowd like a conductor directing an orchestra.

"Actually, no," he said. "I'm going to raid the local confectionary and feed my chocolate addiction."

"Seriously?"

"Absolutely," he replied with a solemn nod. "Don't get in the way of a chocolate addiction. I'm almost out of cookies. Well, ones that are safe to eat, at least. I need to restock! Oh, hey, while I'm doing that, kill them all."

Charisma froze at the command, her pulse quickening to thunder in her ears. Slowly, she flexed her wings out, feeling the slight breeze blowing down the street through her feathers. Except for that breeze the world could have fallen into stillness for all she noticed it, like she was the only thing that moved. Her nightmare danced behind her eyes, a sea of ponies waiting for her. "All of them?" she asked, her voice a mere wisp of breath, quieter than a whisper.

"Um, yeah, I did say that," Cash said after a moment's contemplation. "Oh, and make it look like they did it to each other, okay?" He didn't wait for her to reply, giving her a friendly smile before skipping away. She didn't watch him go, all her attention was drawn to the crowd of ponies down the street.

She moved without thought. Her open wings caught the air and pulled her into the afternoon sky. She closed her eyes as she flew towards the sun and just let herself feel the kiss of light on her face. It had been so long since she had felt so light, so free from the burdens that weighed her down every moment of every day. For an eternal second she hung in the sky, in balance with all things. It was a perfect moment, the kind that only came before a storm.

"Watch me, Goddess," she whispered to the sun. "See what I can do."

She dropped into their midst. Several of them stumbled back from her in surprise, but the press of the crowd was too great for them to get far. She took in a deep breath, letting it out slowly. Then with deliberate calm she opened her eyes. The ponies stared at her. Waiting.

Kill them all, her Talent commanded. She obeyed without resistance.

When Charisma had been just a filly she had loved to dance. She had loved to move and spin and jump and fly, with rhythm and agility and a beat that felt like thunder in her ears. Her parents had gotten her into dance schools from a very young age, and she had always excelled. Many had assumed it would be her Talent, a perfect fit for the beautiful mare they all knew she would grow up to be.

Then came the day she earned her Glyph, and it found her with a bloodied coat and bodies at her hooves. It had been impossible, unthinkable. How could such a beautiful dancer have such a terrible Talent?

Her Talent prompted her to block a kick. She spun in place, redirecting the hoof into the throat of an adjacent pony. A flick of her wing caused another to flinch back, and so he was in the way when a large earth pony tried to stomp on her. The two went down in a tangle of limbs, and all it took was a couple well-placed kicks from her to crack their skulls against the other's. She twisted, rolling over the back of one stallion and tripping a mare who was trying to escape. A moment later that mare was trampled by another pony trying to charge Charisma.

She was still a dancer. Combat was her dance. Each fight was a new routine with its own steps and rhythms. She could hear the melody of violence, and she knew how to move with it. It wasn't her Talent, but it synergized well. She spun through the panicked crowd like a pink whirlwind. Each of her limbs struck out with every bend and twist of her body, she barely ever had more than one point of contact with the ground as she moved. In her wake ponies fell. Some were dead before they hit the ground, others suffered a slow choking death from punctured lungs or broken tracheas. Others were merely tripped and bruised, but they were not safe. She soon came back to them and made sure of their end.

Most civilians would be shocked at the speed with which she moved, but to her she was being lazily slow. She took her time, savoring each kill and ensuring that her prey was dead in such a way that left most of the blood on the hooves of a fellow citizen of Precious Corners. Max would be pleased.

There was resistance, though. Someone interfering in the rhythms of her dance. A pony suddenly pulled from her path, a rock flung at her head that no one had thrown. She compensated for all of them, avoiding the attacks and eliminating those that were momentarily saved. Finally the killing ended. She spun en-pointe, only the edge of one hoof touching the ground. Her breathing was shallow and even, and while her face felt hot it wouldn't be noticeable under her coat. She turned slowly, gracefully to the last pony standing. It was the fat unicorn stallion who had been taking charge. He stared at her, eyes wide under the brim of his straw hat.

"I know you," he breathed. "They told stories about you in the barracks. Charisma. The killer."

"Oh? You were in the army?" Charisma dropped to all four hooves, regarding the unicorn with curiosity. "How long ago was that? It couldn't have been that long if you've heard of me, but if it wasn't then you really didn't keep up with your PT."

"It doesn't matter," he snapped. "All these people, why?"

She shrugged. "We may never know."

Without warning she leapt at him. Her wings blurred as she thrust her hoof at his face, aiming to break his horn. She was less than a foot away when his horn burst into yellow light and she was halted in midair. The stallion grimaced up at her. "Figured you'd attack from above. Typical pegasus, makes you easy to track."

Charisma found herself grinning. This one knew how to fight. She struggled against his hold and found it to be firm, flexible and very, very well done. Only middling marks, though, because he wasn't using the advantage to attack her immediately. "This is impressive," she said. "Telekinetic Talent?"

A flap of fabric tore away from his overalls to show his wide flank, and the Glyph emblazoned there. He was, indeed a Telekinetic Talent. No wonder he was so fat, he was a pony who literally didn't need to move a muscle to grab whatever he wanted. "My name is Hefty Bigwig, and I served as a lieutenant with the five-nine-eight squadron. I retired just about when you were making a name for yourself, but I still have my commission, and I'm still your superior officer. I am hereby taking you into custody and I swear to Celestia's sun that I will see you brought to justice for what you have done."

"The five-nine-eight, huh?" Charisma smiled. "Mobile artillery. Good crew, bad motto."

His eyes narrowed. "You're going to answer for this," he spat. "And every other crime you've ever committed."

"And you're the one who's gonna make that happen?" Charisma asked. "Knowing who I am and what I can do?"

"I've got you locked up tight," Bigwig said with a smirk. "Go ahead, struggle. Flap your wings. You aren't going anywhere, and I can hold you until the Griffins show up."

Charisma obliged him and gave her wings an experimental flap. It was like trying to fly through molasses. She could move, but the harder she pushed the stronger the resistance got. It was a good technique, but she'd seen it before. "Nice variability," she complimented him. "The holding me forever part is pretty transparent, though, so you should work on that."

"You're still not getting out," he growled.

"Really?" She asked, slowly stretching out all her limbs. "Not even if I do this?"

She spasmed violently. Each limb moved in a different direction as hard as she could make it go, twitching and shifting course erratically. To the outside it would look like a particularly nasty seizure, but she was in complete control of it, and there was a purpose behind it. Bigwig's telekinetic magic was strong and resilient, but it had its limits. One of those limits was trying to compensate for so much contradictory motion. She wasn't putting a lot of force behind any one movement, but the cumulative effect of all of them broke his hold in two seconds.

Bigwig stumbled back, reeling from the feedback of his magic being defeated. Charisma couldn't take advantage because her escape had left her unbalanced and unready to land properly, so she went sprawling among the dead. Recovery didn't take long, though, and she rolled to her hooves in a moment, jumping at him.

To his credit he recovered quickly, abandoning a second doomed attempt to grab her directly and instead grabbing whatever loose objects were lying about him and flinging them at her. She was forced to dodge, skewing her attack to the side so that she only landed a quick side kick to his flank. His fat cushioned him a bit, but she had still placed the kick well enough that his left hind leg folded under him.

He cried out in pain and anger, throwing a storm of small pebbles and other debris at her. She leapt high, flying over the telekinetic attack, then dove down at him from directly overhead. Again he reacted with admirable speed, dropping the projectiles and instead grabbing the piece of sidewalk he was sitting on. He ripped the slab of concrete out of its place in the ground and used it to throw himself to the side, barely avoiding her. She rolled as soon as she hit the broken earth, maintaining her momentum as she rushed him.

She saw the surprise and fear in his eyes. He had known who she was, what she could do, and he still underestimated her. She had expected better from a former 598.

He tumbled back, shoving the concrete slab at her. She was about to dodge when she felt his magic grip her again. The magic hold lasted barely an instant, but it was long enough to prevent her from getting out of the way. The broken slab of sidewalk slammed into her, driving the breath from her body and throwing her across the street and through the front doors of the church of the sun.

She tumbled down the central aisle of the church, slapping at the ground and bleeding momentum until she came to a rest halfway to the pulpit. She paused there, catching her breath and considering her options. Killing this unicorn was going to take a bit more attention than she'd been giving it so far.

She rolled to her hooves and leapt up, flying to the ceiling and one of the high windows. Like she had hoped, the window opened to let some air into the stuffy church during the hot summer months, and it was open right now. It wasn't wide enough for her to wiggle through, but that was okay. A few moments of work and she had removed the open pane from the frame. With careful intention she smashed the pane, grabbing a decent sized chunk of glass. The rest she threw out the open window before diving back to the door.

Just as she had hoped, Bigwig was waiting with a nasty surprise for when she showed herself. The smashing of the window and the object falling from the top of the church was what caught his attention, and he sent the deadly fusillade of projectiles towards the remains of the window while she rocketed out the door and straight into him. He reacted in panic, grabbing her with his magic, but she was already throwing the shard of glass. He saw it coming, too late to stop it, but soon enough to flinch. Instead of embedding itself in his eye it struck his shoulder, sinking deep into the thick flesh and staining crimson immediately.

He threw her back at the church, but she compensated as soon as his grip vanished. She was about to go after him again when he tore up another section of the sidewalk under his hooves. His yellow magic held the slab of concrete together as he used it to propel himself down the street, vanishing around a corner.

Charisma paused. She could chase him. This was a small town and there weren't many places he could hide, but she had the feeling that he was just making a tactical retreat. He would soon rally and come for her, perhaps with allies in tow. She debated with herself for a long moment on what to do, but slowly a grin spread on her face. So many bodies lay in the street, and there was now the prospect for more, and with a real fight to boot! No, her path was clear. They would come to her eventually. She had to prepare.

She thought of Melody, and her little practice field. That wonderful collection of knives. With a ringing laugh she took off, heading for the Fashion Estate to prepare her battlefield.

***

Calumn kept his cries down to a high-pitched hiss as the pain of Cash's magic assaulted him yet again. It was still clinging to him, preventing him from changing shape, but its hold was weakening. He kept trying, pausing regularly to listen for signs that anyone had noticed the burst of green fire that accompanied each attempt. He had been lucky so far, but the afternoon was waning, and as the light faded his magic was going to become ever more noticeable. His hiding place had kept him safe from the mob, but until he could reliably shift forms it was becoming less secure by the minute and would soon be a trap that he was stuck in.

He paused, panting at the exertion. Shape changing usually didn't take much energy, it was so natural to them that untrained Changelings had been known to shift in their sleep or with a stray thought. When that natural magic was blocked, though, it turned into chore that wore away at his reserves.

He tried again, clenching his jaw to keep from crying out as Cash's magic assailed him. It was definitely getting weaker, and it wouldn't be long now before he could shift properly. The damage was already done, though. He'd been seen. Clearly, publicly, undeniably. Even a town this small and remote would have a communication crystal linked to the capital for emergencies. They would have called in by now, and the Griffins would be on their way. If he and Blaze didn't escape in the next few hours, they weren't going to escape at all.

Thinking of Blaze reminded Calumn that he had to find his friend and warn him before he did or said something that would reveal his involvement. Because they were new in town they would be natural suspects. Cash would be too, but he knew that the mad unicorn had ways of slipping through chaos unnoticed.

A noise from above him made Calumn cease his attempts to shift. He crouched down, curling up under a table and going through exercises to slow his breathing. The sounds coming from above were hoofsteps. He'd thought this building unoccupied, but obviously he had been mistaken. He had to find some way out, but with the sun still shining he would be easy to spot in the streets.

The steps came closer to the stairs, walking with a strange cadence that the Changeling couldn't properly judge. Calumn forced himself to utter stillness. Cash's magic interfered with his other magic as well his shifting, but he was a fully trained operative of the Republics Intelligence Agency. He knew how to handle himself hoof-to-hoof.

There was a pause as the pony stopped at the top of the stairs. Calumn held his breath, readying to leap. Then there was a cry and Blaze fell down the stairs, juggling a flower pot, two fine china dishes and a vase. He rolled end over end, making a stuttering yelp with each thud against the narrow stairway. He hit the ground floor in a sprawl, each limb catching one of the objects he'd been keeping aloft and balancing them before they hit the floor. He looked up at Calumn. "Buddy! Am I glad to see you!"

Calumn had to take a moment to relax from his combat posture, and then another moment to take in the sight of his friend’s predicament. Blaze grinned up at him, still holding the breakables. Finally, Calumn shook his head. "I don't want to know," he muttered to himself. He quickly took the objects from Blaze and set them aside. He considered his lack of surprise that Blaze had found him here, but he remembered the stallion's Talent and decided it made as much sense as anything to do with Blaze. "Do you know what's happening?"

Blaze shrugged as he got up. "Panic and screaming and running and stuff," he said. "Buddy, did you show off in public? Because, I get that you gotta fly that Changeling flag high, but, um, there's such a thing as being too open. Or, that's what people tell me. All the time. So I figure there's a grain of truth to that. Which I don't think you can make bread out of, and what would it taste like anywa–"

Calumn stuffed a hoof in Blaze's mouth before he could get up too much momentum. "Cash," he said. It was all the explanation Blaze would need.

Blaze nodded. "Charisma caught up with me," he said, turning to show Calumn the bloody wound in his side.

Calumn hissed at the sight. "You need a doctor!"

Blaze shrugged and waved a hoof dismissively. "Nah, I'll be fine. Some antiseptic and bandages are all it'll take, really." Calumn gave him an incredulous stare. "Look, this isn't anything she hasn't done to me before. I know how to deal with it."

"You need medical attention," Calumn insisted.

"Okay, if you think so, but where are we gonna get that?" Blaze asked. "It's, um, kind of mobby out there."

"'Mobby'?"

"Mob-ish? Mob-like? In a general state of mobbery?"

"I get it," Calumn assured him. "Doesn't that hurt?"

"Oh, yeah, lots," Blaze said. "Don't worry about it. I mean, when you really think about it pain's just another feeling, right? Just like love."

Calumn frowned. "So you can just turn pain off? Like you can with love?"

Blaze shrugged. "Not really. But I can ignore it. And, buddy, I have had a lot of practice with that."

Calumn opened his mouth to say something to that, but thought better of it. He shook his head instead. "It doesn't matter anyways. I can't go anywhere until I can shift. Cash hit me with something that's stopping that, but I think it's getting weaker every time I try."

"Great! How long do you think it'll take to get it all gone?"

"I don't know. Half an hour, I think, maybe longer," Calumn replied.

Blaze nodded, looking somber. "Yeah, that sounds like a nice number and all, but we really need to be moving in, like, two minutes."

Calumn allowed himself only a moment of pause at that statement. "Why?"

"'Cause the mob of scared ponies I ran away from is heading in this direction," Blaze said. "They seemed pretty keen on catching me, and I think a pegasus saw what house I went into."

"Why did you run away from them?"

"'Cause people pointing at me and yelling 'get him, he's a Changeling' kinda makes me want to run, even though I'm not actually a Changeling so they really shouldn't be saying that. And I'm like 'nu-uh I'm not', and they went 'prove it', and I said 'how do you prove a negative?' and then they started running at me, so I took off."

"Luna's night! It's worse than I thought. We have to get out of here!" Calumn looked at the door, then down at his chitinous legs. With a snarl he tried to shift, and was rebuffed yet again. "Damn it!" he yelled, stamping his hoof.

"Don't worry, buddy, we'll think of something," Blaze assured him, looking around. "Uh, how about we dress you up as an old lady? Get you a flower print dress, and you can wear this really big hat and kind of hunch over and speak in that raspy voice that they always do, except not too raspy 'cause she obviously doesn't have a cold or anything because then why would she be out and about anyway? Unless she's really keen on this mob thing, and don't say she wouldn't be! I know a lot of old people who just want a good mob like they used to have when they were young and full of piss and vinegar. Oh! And you have to mention piss and vinegar a lot, even though I don't think you can be full of vinegar without dissolving because it's an acid. A little vinegar is good, but not on everything and I'm not sure if old people even eat hay fries, because those things are really salty and kind of bad for you if you don't keep really active."

"Got it!" Calumn crowed. "Clear a space out here." His wings buzzed as he took off, rushing up the stairs without waiting to see if Blaze was doing what he wanted. On the second floor there was a short hallway with two doors on one side and one on the other. They all stood open, and Calumn rushed into what appeared to be the master bedroom. Evidence of Blaze's entry could be seen in the open window and dirty hoofprints on the otherwise immaculate carpeting. Without pausing to take in any more details of the room, he pulled open the closet and gave it a quick scan. Finding what he was looking for almost immediately he pulled a thick blanket off a shelf and rushed back down the stairs to where Blaze had moved some of the furniture aside.

"This is how we'll do it," Calumn said, laying out the blanket. "We're going to roll me up in this. Then you are going to carry me out."

"Uh, buddy?" Blaze said, giving the Changeling a quizzical look. "I know you're not as big as me, but you're still pretty big. If you can't make yourself kid-sister sized right now, this is gonna be noticed. And heavy. And I've got a broken rib."

"You don't have to take me far," Calumn said, lying down on the edge of the blanket and grasping it to himself. "There's a cart out front, I saw it when I hid here. Toss me in it, hitch up quick and get moving. Look, it's not a good plan, but it's all I can give you right now! We have to move and this has at least a slim chance of working. So roll me up!"

Blaze looked at him for a long second before shrugging and grinning. "Whatever you say, buddy. Hold on tight and squish down!" He put his hooves on Calumn and rolled up the blanket.

Calumn flattened himself as much as possible, which was a surprising amount for anyone not familiar with Changelings. When the blanket was completely rolled up he said a silent prayer to Luna that he wouldn't show too much. Blaze didn't say anything, so he was hoping it was a good sign. A moment later he felt himself being dragged across the floor, out the front door and down the small flight of stairs, and finally hefted up and tossed onto the wooden cart.

He contemplated continuing his attempts to shift, but decided against it. The fire that accompanied a shape change usually didn’t get hot enough or last long enough to ignite cloth, but under certain circumstances it could have a cumulative effect that would start fires. Calumn was willing to bet that with his luck right now he'd set his blanket alight by the third try.

So he hunkered down and tried his best to keep from moving. Hopefully Blaze would get them out of town soon without encountering any of the terrified townsponies. If not, then Calumn would do everything he could to see that his friend made it out alive.

***

Bright Lantern was terrified for his life, but wasn't allowed to leave.

Of the many jobs Bright Lantern did for the town of Precious Corners, controlling the communication crystals was by far the easiest, and most lucrative. Most uses of the crystals were on a set schedule, and didn't even require his presence. All he had to do was make sure they were charged and ready for when their owners came to make their calls, which could be done days beforehand. The public crystal was a little different, as he had to spend some effort in tuning it to the receiver the client wanted, but the demand to use the public crystal was so small it was a busy week if he had to use it twice. This had been one of those weeks. Even when it wasn’t busy, though, his abilities with the crystals netted him both a crown stipend and a per-call fee that, while far from making him wealthy, would certainly allow him to live comfortably all even without all the other services he provided.

The one major downside to his duty as crystal operator was that in times of emergency he became the sole link to the outside world. Precious Corners was too far from the centers of Kingdom civilization for any pony on hoof or wing to bring help in time to make a difference. The crystals could get them help with great speed, and he had been fortunate to never have to use them for that purpose. Until today.

A Changeling. Of all the places in the sunlands, a Changeling just had to show up in Precious Corners. This could be the opening salvo in the war everybody knew was coming and nobody hoped would arrive, and it had happened in the park he could see from his office. He'd even seen the creature for an instant, running from the ponies who saw it for what it really was. He'd nearly thrown up just from that single glance. It had looked just as the whispered stories and lurid tales said it would: a monstrous pony-shaped insect, vile and black and flaring with green fire.

It had taken him almost a full minute before he'd realized what his duty was. A Changeling had been sighted, and he was the only one who could report it to the Crown before the creature escaped, or worse. It had taken another half an hour to find the proper codes and ciphers that would verify his identity and allow his message to be treated as anything other than a joke or the words of a panicked fool jumping at shadows.

Once he had jumped through the hoops, though, things had gotten deadly serious very quickly. They were sending Griffins. Not just a single warrior, or a pair, but two whole flights of them. More than a dozen Griffins, here in Precious Corners!

Of course, he couldn't just go and tell everyone else that was going to happen, no. He'd been ordered to sit by the crystals until they got there, in case something had to be communicated. Which would be fine if there was anyone else around, but they had all run off to do Celestia only knew what, and he was stuck here alone. When this was all over he was going to have some serious words with the nobles about disaster management policies and leaving the town hall empty during a crisis.

The crystal room was on the first floor of the town hall, just off the lobby. He could see the front doors clearly from his seat by the crystal board, which was good as it allowed him to get the attention of anyone coming in. What wasn't good about it was that he could hear things happening in the street outside, and ten minutes ago it had almost sounded like a battle. Screaming ponies, shouting and then loud noises. Not like explosions, but like heavy things slamming into each other. Then silence.

Bright Lantern sat by the crystals, all alone. He had been told in no uncertain terms that it would be treason to abandon his post now. That was the only thing keeping him from bolting for home. One thought kept repeating over and over in his head: He was terrified for his life, but he wasn't allowed to leave.

The knocking on the door was like a gunshot, making him scream and jump, his chair falling to the floor in a clatter. He stood, pulse pounding in his ears and breath coming in panting gasps, and tried to think of what to do as the knock sounded again.

The door creaked open slightly. "Hello?" a voice called out. "Anybody home?"

"Wh-who are you?" Bright Lantern asked, his voice weak, probably too weak to be heard at the door. His mouth was dry, but he worked up enough spit to swallow and tried again. "Identify yourself!"

"My name is Max Cash," the pony at the door replied. "I was here earlier today? To use the communication crystal?"

Lantern let out a thready laugh. "Yes, I remember you."

"Can I come in?"

"Oh, um, yes, please."

The door opened all the way, and Lantern immediately wished it hadn't. The street out in front of the town hall was littered with debris and it looked like someone had painted it red and then left multicolored bundles of fur and cloth strewn about it. Bright Lantern tried desperately to hold on to that explanation, but he knew what he was seeing. He wasn't even allowed a few moments of blissful, confused ignorance. There were bodies in the street.

"Hey, nice to see you again," Cash said with a horrifically incongruous smile. "You're the crystal guy, right? I mean, I know you worked them before and you're here now, but you're the only crystal guy in town, right?" Bright Lantern shook, but nodded his head without really thinking about why Cash would be asking a question like that. "Wonderful! Now, you're looking a touch panicky, why is that?"

"Why is...? Do you not see the bodies in the street?" he demanded. He wrenched his eyes away from the dead and looked at the pony walking towards him, then found that he could not look away.

"There are no bodies," Cash said, his voice slow and calm. "The street is clear and normal."

"But... no," Lantern struggled for words. Cash broke off his gaze, allowing the other unicorn to look to the street again. It was clear and normal. There were no bodies. "But, I could have sworn..."

"Could be stress," Cash mused. "You might be working too much, being the only unicorn with a Communication Talent in the region. Has there been something going on recently that's given you additional stress? A personal matter or something? Do you have girlfriend troubles?"

Lantern stared incredulously at Cash. "Are you mad? There was a Changeling sighting not an hour ago!"

"There was no Changeling sighting," Cash said.

"Yes there... I... I don't know," Lantern admitted, wondering why his heart was beating so fast. He felt dizzy, and would have sat down but his chair was lying on the floor. "I thought there was something... I can't..."

"Hey, it happens to the worst of us," Cash said, his horn glowing as he picked up Lantern's chair for him. Lantern gave the other unicorn a thankful nod and sat down, resting his head in his forelegs. "I wanted to ask, though, did you send out a message about a Changeling sighting or something?"

"Yes," Lantern said, frowning. "I think I did. I don't know why, but I did."

"Wow, that's gotta be causing a stir, don't you think?"

"It will," Lantern agreed, new panic rising in him. "Oh, Celestia, what did I do?"

"Nothing that can't be reversed, I'm sure," Cash said. "Just give them another call, right quick, and tell them it was a false alarm. Everything's fine here."

"Yes. Yes!" Lantern lit his horn, pouring his magic into the crystal array. It was already set up to send and receive to a Crown relay so he didn't need to jump through any hoops this time before he was connected.

"This is Crown relay fourteen, please state your situation update." The voice coming from the crystals was clear and precise. They couldn't afford any of the expensive visual crystals, so audio was all he had to go on, but he imagined some kind of military unicorn on the other end. A no-nonsense type who wouldn't be pleased to hear what was to come next.

"The update is that there is no situation," Lantern said. He tried to keep his own voice as calm and professional as he could, but he could feel it coming close to breaking at points. "The Changeling report was mistaken."

"Please repeat, you are saying that there was no Changeling sighting?"

"Correct."

"This is Bright Lantern, correct?"

"It is."

"You claimed that you saw the Changeling personally. Are you rescinding this claim?"

Lantern paused. "I... I don't... I didn't see any Changeling." He shook his head. This was no time to be getting confused about things. "There was no Changeling sighting. It was a false alarm. Everything's fine here." There was a moment of silence from the other end, then the communication array went dead. "They cut me off," Lantern said, staring at the board.

"Oh? Just like that?" Cash asked. He stood quite close now, and was grinning in a way that made Lantern want to put a lot of distance between them. "While you were in the middle of an important message? That's awful!"

"But why would they do that?" Lantern asked, meaning the question for himself more than the other unicorn.

"They don't think much of you, do they?" Cash said. "They're probably angry that you wasted their time. Just some country unicorn making wild claims."

"Why did I even..." Lantern squeezed his eyes shut. There was something there, but he couldn't put his hoof on it.

"You know what? They don't appreciate you," Cash said. "You do all this hard work, live in this Celestia-forsaken backwater, the least they could do is listen when you own up to a mistake."

"Yeah," Lantern said, opening his eyes and raising his head. They didn't appreciate him at all! "I deserve better!"

"Good," Cash said, glee bubbling though his voice. "Now why don't you show them what you think of their attitude? Smash the crystals."

"I... I can't," Lantern said. They deserved to know his anger, but he couldn't just smash the panel. That was a felony crime at the best of times.

"Oh, come on," Cash goaded. "You know the only way they'll ever pay attention to you is if you make them. What do you owe them, really? Come on. Smash the crystals. You can be free of it, you can make them appreciate you. All it'll take is one. Little. Betrayal."

Cash was right. What did he owe them? The military, the Crown, hell, even the local nobles would be lost without him. No, he didn't have any loyalty to any of them. Bright Lantern felt something break. It took him a moment to realize that it was the communications board snapping beneath his hooves. He felt a perverse sense of glee at the sight of expensive and delicate crystals shattering as he smashed the board again and again.

Finally, when there was nothing salvageable left of the crystals, Bright Lantern stood panting over the destruction. "That'll show them," he muttered.

"That'll show who?" Cash asked.

Lantern startled at the question. He had practically forgotten that Cash was there. "The, uh, the ponies at the relay?"

"Wow, yeah, good statement there," Cash nodded. "Though, considering the town's in a crisis, you probably shouldn't have done that."

"Crisis?"

"Yeah, you know. The Changeling sighting."

Lantern snorted. "There was no Changeling... sighting..." His eyes went wide as he remembered looking out the window of his office and seeing the horrible thing running down the street. "Celestia's burning gaze. What have I done?"

"Looks a lot like you smashed the only communication crystals in town," Cash pointed out. "That's, what? Misdemeanor? Felony?"

"Treason," Lantern breathed. His heart was pounding again and his vision was going gray at the edges.

"Ouch. Well, I've got good news and bad news for you," Cash said, giving Lantern a friendly pat on the back. "The bad news is that you've just destroyed your career, your family's safety and quite possibly your town's chance for a speedy deliverance. All in all, the rest of your life is going to be a miserable series of humiliations and disgrace." Lantern let out a strangled whimper. Cash grinned. “There is good news, though! So things are looking up! The good news is that the rest of your life doesn’t have to be very long.”

Lantern just stared blankly at the wall.

"Well, I've got some business to take care of, so I'll leave you to think on that," Cash said, giving him a pat before turning towards the open front door. There were bodies in the street again. Lantern had no idea how he hadn't seen them. “Before I go, though, do you mind giving me directions to the local school? It’s along the road out of town, right?”

"What are you going to do?" he asked, barely working up the curiosity.

Cash paused for a moment, flashing Lantern a smile. "Primarily? I've been told I should be practicing more by a violent psychopath, so I figure I should work on that. You know, just to keep her happy. But first? Well, I was lamenting the lack of torches earlier, and a thought has occurred to me: a lot of these houses are made of wood, so if I want torches why don't I just make some of my own?" Cash began to giggle. A moment later it had turned into a wild, braying laugh that grated on Lantern's ears.

Bright Lantern shook. His magic picked up a long, jagged shard of broken crystal. It floated before him, inviting. He'd ruined himself, and he didn't even know why. It was all so confusing, starting from when Cash walked in. He paused, fighting through the confusion. Cash had come in, and then everything had started to go wrong. He thought about what the unicorn had just said, and the realization kicked him into motion.

"No," Lantern said, turning towards Cash's retreating form, his body stilling. "Make torches? You're going to set fire to the school! To the whole town!"

Cash stopped, turning back to Lantern with an almost shocked expression. "Only parts of it," he said. "Now, why aren't you killing yourself? No, seriously, I'm practicing here and I want to know what I did wrong."

"You did this to me!" Lantern snarled, his horn glowing brightly as he gripped the crystal shard ever tighter, turning it to face Cash. He funnelled all his confusion, all his horror and fear into anger. He willed his rage into a shield to protect him from the mind tricks of the creature before him. "You. You're the Changeling!"

"Nope," Cash said, eyeing the crystal. His wild smile dwindled down to a mad smirk, but didn't vanish. "Just a unicorn."

"Then you're working with it," Lantern accused. Either way, he wasn't going to let this pass. He steeled himself, swallowing his failure. "I don't care what you've done to me. I do care about the people here, the people you've killed and the people you're planning to kill. They are my neighbours and they are my friends. I'm not going to let you burn this town."

"Huh, friendship again," Cash said, shrugging. "Thanks, I'm gonna have to work on that."

"You're not going to be doing anything," Lantern snarled, lowering his head and pawing at the ground.

Cash's eyes widened, as did his smile. His horn lit up with a magenta glow and point of light began to gather at its tip. "Oh, right! You're threatening me. I'd forgotten. Well, okay, go ahead. I'm standing right here, I'm not going to move. You do whatever you're going to do with that crystal and I'll do whatever I'm going to do with this glowy thing."

Bright Lantern screamed, lunging forward. He slashed across Cash's horn with his crystal, hoping to disrupt whatever spell the other unicorn was casting. Cash didn't move, didn't even flinch. Yet when the crystal met horn there was no resistance. The crystal passed completely through Cash's horn without even marking it. It was in that moment that Lantern knew he had been fooled, and knew he was dead.

There wasn't much pain, which surprised him, just a cold feeling that slid from one end of his throat to the other. Lantern slid to a stop, looking to the side to see Cash standing casually several feet from where he had appeared to be. Another shard of broken crystal held before him in a magenta glow that did nothing to hide the red stain that covered it. Lantern tried to jump at him, but his legs failed him and he tumbled to the floor instead.

"You know, I don't often get to do this part," he said, crouching down next to Lantern. "I've got all sorts of nasty people to do it for me. Recently, though, I've picked up this trick, and most people I show it to end up offing themselves. Sometimes in the most hilarious ways. You gotta be the right kind of person to get through it, and surprise, surprise that's not the kind of person you are. No, you're standard issue pony, and yet you managed to pull through. That's cool. If I ever have a really good flashlight, I'll name it after you. How's that sound?"

Bright Lantern gurgled, his mouth worked but was unable to make any proper sound come out. His vision was graying, it wouldn't be long. He had one thing left that he could do.

With a soft, wet noise the crystal shard Lantern was still holding stabbed into Cash's flank. His violet eyes widened in shock and he turned his head to see the shard jammed completely through his saddlebag and into his flesh. "Ow," Cash said, his voice tinged with annoyance rather than pain. "Okay, let that be a lesson to me. But my advice to you if you ever get a chance to do this again? Aim for the eyes."

Bright Lantern couldn't even spare the effort to glare at him. He closed his eyes and let the swirling darkness take his thoughts. He wasn't afraid any more, he was finally allowed to leave.

***

The cart lurched to the side, nearly overturning as something slammed into it. Calumn let out a yelp as the blanket he was rolled in was thrown from the back of it and onto the street. Being wrapped in a thick blanket was, thankfully, very good for cushioning a fall, but it did severely hamper his ability to know what had just happened. He debated rolling himself out, listening as a familiar voice shouted curses that were muffled by the intervening fabric.

"You!"

"Oh, hey Mr. Bigwig," Blaze said, sounding a little worried. "That's a nice, um, chunk of rock you got there. How's the steering?"

"You! You were with the Changeling!" Bigwig snarled, rage filling his voice. Calumn had the sudden sense that things were about to go very, very wrong. There was the meaty thunk of a body hitting the ground and Blaze let out a pained gasp. "Are you with her, too?"

"With who?"

"Charisma!"

"Technically we're still broken up," Blaze said, which would have caused Calumn to goggle if he wasn't too busy trying to struggle out of the blankets.

"None of you are getting anywhere near these kids, do you understand me? If it takes every ounce of power I have you will not get these kids!"

"Wait!" Calumn shouted. A moment later he was gripped in the telekinetic aura of Bigwig's magic and lifted into the air. The blanket unravelled quickly, revealing the scene to the Changeling.

They had been stopped on the road out of town, at a place where the houses few and far between. To his right was a building that proclaimed itself the Precious Corners Primary School. A blue-coated mare stood on the front steps next to an open first-aid kit, watching with fear. The roads were clear in both directions as far as he could see, the sinking sun shimmering off the heated pavement. The cart was lying tilted in the street, one wheel smashed completely by a slab of what appeared to be concrete. Blaze was on his back next to the cart, Bigwig's magic pressing him down to keep him immobile. The fat unicorn was standing on three legs, a hastily made bandage turning red on his right shoulder. He'd lost his hat somewhere, and its lack revealed a scarred and maneless head. His expression was twisted with exertion and anger, and the sight of Calumn only made the rage deepen.

"We aren't your enemy," Calumn said. "Please, sir, we aren't with Charisma, and I don't want to hurt anyone."

"That voice. Strongheart. You bastards," he snarled. "I welcomed you. Worked with you!"

"We were just passing through," Calumn defended. "I swear to you, sir. We didn't mean for this to happen. We didn't bring Charisma here. We don't even know what she's done."

Bigwig's scowl deepened and his telekinetic grip tightened. "And why should I believe the words of a lying insect?"

"Uh, guys," Blaze said.

"You don't have to," Calumn said, meeting Bigwig's eyes with his own. "You have no reason to trust me. I know that, but I'm telling the truth. I'm not here to start a war, I'm not here to cause you any trouble at all."

"Then why are you here?"

"Guys! Bigger, fiery-er problems!"

"We're running away," Calumn said. "From a unicorn named Max Cash. He's Charisma's employer. I swear to you, I had no idea either of them were here!" He took a breath, lowering his volume. “Look, even if you don’t believe me, let Blaze go. Please, he’s done no wrong.”

Bigwig grimaced, eyes narrowing as his horn got even brighter. "No. Can't take the chance. Sorry, boy, I just can’t."

"Incoming!" Blaze screamed, staring at the sky. Calumn and Bigwig looked up to see a dozen streaks of magenta light arcing through the air. It looked like they originated somewhere near the center of town, but they had long since passed the apex of their flight and were now falling across Precious Corners. One of them happened to be coming straight for the three of them.

There was no time to react. The ball of explosive magic landed less than ten feet from them and detonated. The blast overwhelmed Bigwig's magic, throwing Calumn through the air and into the school. He hit the wall, bouncing off and to the ground, knocking the breath out of him. For once he was thankful to be in his true form since his flexible carapace handled shocks much better than soft pony flesh would.

He got up, looking around to take stock of the situation. Bigwig and Blaze had both been knocked to the ground, their coats smouldering. Buildings close to the detonation point had caught fire, the flames burning with a bright magenta tinge. He heard a choked cry nearby and looked over to see the mare who had been standing in the school doorway lying on the ground, choking and pawing at her eyes. Calumn rushed over to her, looking over her injuries. "Hold on," he told her, pulling her legs away from her face. "Okay, you're going to be okay. You've got some flash burns around your eyes, but it looks like you closed them in time. Alright? You'll be fine. Try to breathe, you'll be fine."

"The... the foals!" she choked out. "The foals are inside!"

"Oh no," Calumn looked up at the building. The entire front was on fire, the entrance was an inferno of red and magenta flame. "What room?" She coughed and sputtered, trying to answer. Calumn felt panic well up in him and he shook her hard. "What room!?"

"The left," she gasped out. "The left of the entrance."

He dropped her, pushing her into a roll that would take her away from the burning building. Then, with a buzz of his diaphanous wings he took to the air, rising back over the street before rushing at the largest window to the left of the entrance. He smashed through the window in a shower of broken glass and burning wood, falling into the room beyond and crashing through a couple desks before coming to a rolling stop against the far wall of the room.

It took him a moment to clear his head from the impact, but once he did adrenaline threw everything into sharp clarity. The side of the room with the window he had come through was an inferno. Brilliant magenta flames curled and roared, spreading with supernatural speed as they clawed across the ceiling. The door to the classroom was still free of fire, though smoke was filling the hallway beyond. From the way the light was falling on the smoke he could tell there was an open back door to the school that they could escape through. Clustered in the corner of the room, far from both the fire and the door, were a dozen small ponies, most of whom he recognized as the children from the playground.

They stared, more afraid of him than of the fire burning out the ceiling above their heads. "Come on! Let's get you out of here!" he shouted at them. "To the door!" They just flinched back, huddling closer together and crying from the fear and the heat. The whole room was aflame now, the fires licking down the walls from the inferno that had become the ceiling, magenta bleeding into natural orange and red as the magic faded.

Calumn got up, the children screamed out. He had to get them out of the room quickly, before the smoke and heat could overcome them. He could see the problem with horrible clarity: They could escape through the door, but so long as he was in the way they wouldn't move. He could run for the door himself, but then he wouldn't be sure that they would follow, and he couldn't live with that uncertainty.

He leapt away from the door, deeper into the burning room. "The door!" he called, pointing a hole-filled hoof at the exit. "Run!" Still they did not move, too fixated on him, too frightened by his appearance to think clearly. Calumn closed his eyes, feeling the heat seeping into his carapace. He focused on shifting, and put all of his strength, all of his will into the change. Green fire swirled out of his hooves, wrapping around him. Magenta light burst in flashes across his body, trying to stifle the Changeling magic. He didn't let it, gritting his teeth against the pain and forcing the change to continue. When the shift came it felt like he was being flayed. His body shrank and the pain only multiplied, as if he was squeezing all the agony down into a more concentrated form. Yet he endured, even as the feel of wings disappearing and fur growing into place was accompanied by a thousand stabbing needles and the need to scream until his lungs bled.

Finally, he stood before the frightened children as one of them. "Please," he pleaded with Holly's face and Holly's voice. The pain didn't abate now that he'd fully shifted. Instead it remained a constant scraping agony that drowned out the heat of the fire completely.

"Holly?" a faint voice called out, and Andy pulled himself from the group. "Are you really Holly?"

Calumn nodded. "You have to run, Andy. You have to get everyone out, right now!"

"But you're a Changeling!"

"Yes, I am, but you have to escape!" There was a loud crack from the ceiling and Calumn looked up to see part of the roof above the children sagging. "Andy, please!"

"I..." Andy looked around, seeming to notice the fire for the first time. He grabbed at one of the other kids. "Come on, we gotta go!"

Reluctantly at first, but with rising urgency, the others got to their hooves and began shuffling to the door. Most still stared at Calumn with wide, frightened eyes, but others seemed to have come to their senses and ushered them on. Calumn ground his teeth and held his transformation, silently urging them to move faster.

It wasn't enough. With a loud crack, the roof collapsed. Calumn was moving as soon as he heard the sound, his form returning to its true shape as he leapt forward. Fillies and colts screamed as he rushed at them, cringing away. When they weren't immediately gobbled up they looked up to see the Changeling bracing a thick, flaming ceiling beam up above them. He held back the burning ceiling with bloodied hooves, his green eyes blazing with effort and magic.

"Go!" Calumn screamed, and they began to move. Too slow, far too slow. He'd spent too much energy forcing back Cash's magic, there wasn’t enough left to strengthen his limbs to the level he needed. The children edged around him, most coughing from the smoke, a few stumbling and tripping as they were slowly asphyxiated by the fire. His own lungs burned, but he ignored it. His legs shook and his vision blurred. He let out a growl as he focused on holding the ceiling up. He just needed to do it long enough for the kids to get out.

His strength began to fail. The heavy beam dropped an inch, and then another. Then the weight was suddenly gone, and Calumn stumbled from the loss of pressure. He looked up to see the ceiling held in place by the cool yellow aura of Bigwig's magic. His eyes shot to the door of the classroom, and there he saw the heavy stallion leaning against the doorframe, ushering children to the exit while staring at the Changeling with an appraising eye.

When the last of the children had made it out, the unicorn continued to stare at Calumn. The smoke filled the room with a murky haze, and breathing was all but impossible. Yet the two did not move. Finally, with a look of supreme reluctance, Bigwig jerked his head towards the exit, pushing off from the door to limp that way himself. Calumn wasted no time in following him, rushing out the back door of the burning school to the small playground where the children were sprawled out, being tended to by a pair of mares and a singed Blaze.

Calumn coughed and retched as he stumbled out into the light. Changeling physiology meant he was actually a little more susceptible to smoke inhalation than a pony would be. The shifting had helped with that, and so he only felt like was going to cough out one lung instead of both of them.

He didn't have much time to get his breath back, though, as he was gripped in a telekinetic vise and slammed into the ground. He coughed and sputtered as his muzzle was ground into the dirt, choking and unable to properly expel the smoke that seemed to fill his chest more and more with every failed breath.

"Don't do this," Blaze said, rushing over to stand in front of Bigwig. His stance was purely defensive, he didn't offer any threat to the unicorn, but he was clearly ready to stop him from getting to the downed Changeling. "He didn't lie to you. He's not here to hurt anybody, and we didn't bring Charisma."

"And why should I listen to you either?" Bigwig demanded, pausing to cough up his own lungful of smoke. "He could have you thralled for all I know."

"Yeah, sure, but he doesn't," Blaze said. "I think I'd know if I was being mentally dominated so that my every thought was twisted to his evil, fell purposes. Which they totally aren't. Because if they were then I would probably be thinking about his butt and stuff, which I'm not. Well, I wasn't. I am now."

Bigwig stared at Blaze in unbelieving confusion. Calumn had the mad urge to laugh. It was just like his friend to be so completely, unhelpfully goofy in the most serious situation. Yet he wasn't worried. If there was any hope of them getting out of this, then Blaze would find the way. And when he did, he'd leave everyone utterly baffled and unsure of what had just transpired.

His attention drifted. Bigwig was either going to kill him or he wasn’t, and there was nothing Calumn could do to affect that decision. He looked at the mares helping out the foals. One of them was the blue mare who had been burned at the front of the school, and he was glad to see that she seemed to be doing fine. The children were all breathing, though many were crying and coughing from the fear and the smoke. Most of them weren’t even singed. They would be fine, and Calumn felt a strong measure of peace in that knowledge.

A pair of watery eyes caught his attention and Calumn focused his gaze on Andy, who was staring at him from across the playground. He had just thrown up whatever he'd eaten that day and was being fussed over by one of the mares, but his eyes had found Calumn and refused to leave. There was no fear in those eyes, stung as they were by the smoke and heat. No, instead there was something else, something very much like awe. With a shock Calumn realized he was getting a stream of power from the small pony. Not friendship, not love. There was gratitude there, but it was laced heavily with something else, something stronger. He'd never felt anything like it before, and had no idea what to call it.

The Changeling looked at Andy and felt wonder rise in him. Here he was, a creature that they told stories about to give kids like this nightmares, and yet this child felt no fear. He had sworn to be good, to be kind, to be better. In the eyes of this colt, he saw the proof that he was living up to that vow.

Calumn twisted his face out of the dirt and smiled at Andy, doing his best to convey all that he was feeling even though he knew his fangs would make the expression frightening. Instead of flinching, Andy smiled back. A weak smile, but a smile nonetheless.

“Look at them,” Blaze said, stepping aside and gesturing between Calumn and the foals. “Just look.” Bigwig looked. He grit his teeth, pawing at the earth and tossing his head as he struggled with the contradictions he was faced with. In the end he let out a long, hissing breath, seeming to deflate as it went.

The pressure suddenly lifted from Calumn, letting the Changeling curl up and cough until his raw throat felt like it was being rubbed with sandpaper with each breath. When he could move again he levered himself upright, looking towards the hefty unicorn who stared at him with narrowed, angry eyes.

"Why'd you save them?" he asked. "You could have gotten away. Why save them?"

"They're kids," Calumn replied, amazed that such a question would even come up.

Bigwig grunted. "Get out of here. Just... just go."

Calumn didn't have to be told twice. He stumbled past Bigwig and up to Blaze. The earth pony bent his shoulders down slightly, and Calumn took the invitation, throwing a foreleg over his friend as they both limped down the street.

"Thanks, Blaze," Calumn rasped out. "Whatever you said to convince him? Thank you."

"Wasn't me, buddy," Blaze replied, grinning widely. "He looked over and saw how you and the kid were smiling at each other. It was so cute. I mean, absolutely cute. We're in a town called Precious Corners, and I don't think it's ever seen anything as cute as that before. They're gonna change the town's name to 'Precious Changeling And Colt Looking At Each Other And Smiling Super Cutely Corners' now. Except that's a really long name, and it'd be hard to address postage, so they'll just call it 'Pcaclaeoasscc' and the tourism will be huge!" Calumn choked out a laugh as Blaze sounded out every letter of his ridiculous acronym. "It was all you, buddy. You're a hero."

"No," Calumn said as they walked out of the town and towards the horizon. "Not a hero. Just a person trying to do the right thing."

***

Melody swooped down towards the burning school, landing next to the familiar bulk of Bigwig. The stallion looked worse for wear, with a bloody bandage wrapped around his shoulder and his coat burned and smoke-darkened. He was staring off down the road out of town, an absent, thoughtful look on his gruff features.

"What's going on?" Melody asked, looking with horror at the schoolhouse inferno. She had so many memories of attending this tiny three room school. To see it burn felt like a blow to her heart. It looked like all the foals had gotten out fine, which she was thankful for. Yet even with that there were still more important things for her to focus on. "People said there was a Changeling sighting, and when I flew over the town square there were... were..."

"I was there," Bigwig said. His voice was distant, his attention clearly elsewhere. "Something evil's come to our town, and it isn't the Changeling."

"So there is a Changeling?"

"Was," Bigwig said, finally looking away from the road. "It's gone now, and you and me, we've got bigger fish to fry."

"What?"

"Who. Her name's Charisma, and she's just about the worst pony you could ever have the bad luck to meet."

Melody froze in shock, her wings flaring wide. "Charisma? No, she wouldn't!"

"Wouldn't? You know her?" Bigwig asked, rounding on the pegasus, his horn lighting up with power.

"I... She's staying at Lord Fashion's estate," Melody explained. "She's a retainer for a Magic Talent unicorn."

Bigwig spat a glob of smoky phlegm on the ground. "That bitch is no retainer." He paused for a moment, breathing heavily and frowning at the ground. "This Magic Talent. His name Max Cash?" Melody nodded. "Huh, then the bug wasn't lying. You know where either of them are?"

"No, I left Charisma over by the east warehouse, but she wasn't there when I went to look. I don't even know where Lord Cash is."

"Fashion," Bigwig muttered. "They're staying with Lord Fashion." He stomped on the ground, gritting his teeth in anger. "Celestia burn it, girl! They're going to kill him!"

"What?"

"Charisma's killed more than two dozen ponies in this town. She and her master are going to want to get rid of witnesses. That means you and me and Lord Fashion. We're mobile, they've gotta find us, but Lord Fashion'll hole up in his estate. They'll know exactly where he is."

Melody saw what he was saying. "We have to protect him!"

"That's what they want," Bigwig snarled. "That’s their plan! They'll use him as bait to get us to come to them. It's a trap."

"I have to," Melody said. "He's my lord. It's my duty."

Bigwig spat again, running hoof over his scarred head. “Owe him my fealty same as you, girl. Don’t think I’ve forgotten it.”

“Then help me save him.”

He glared at her for a long moment before snorting and giving her a wry look. “You’re the one who’s gonna be helping me, girl. They’ll be waiting for us, but since we know that it won’t be an ambush. Charisma’s going to be there, though, and she’s the problem. I got away from her earlier, thought about getting together a good militia, but that's not going to work with her. She'd chew through any pony in this town faster than a chainsaw through dry straw. I can get her, but I can't do it alone. I'll need you to run a distraction. Can you do that?"

Melody paused, knowing exactly how much of a distraction she would provide for the former marine. "I don't know."

"Dammit, girl! You're the closest thing to a soldier this town has! Do you want to save Lord Fashion? Then do not prove a coward now!"

Melody cringed back from the chastisement, but rallied her courage and nodded. "I'm not a coward, sir. But I don't know if I can fight her."

"Just distract her.”

Melody stepped closer to Bigwig. "No, I really can't fight her like this," she said.

"I'm not sure I can take her on my own, girl," Bigwig growled back. "You just said you're not a coward, don't prove a liar too!"

"No, I mean I can't fight her hoof-to-hoof," Melody explained. "She's too good. I need a weapon, something that can keep her at a distance."

"You got a gun stashed somewhere?"

Melody shook her head. "No, but I might have something that will work. I've got a weapon cache in the woods. There's knives and spears there."

Bigwig's eyebrows drew down in thought. "That'll be useful," he mused. "Alright, let's go get your weapons before we head to the estate."

"It's a little ways," Melody cautioned. "Can you run that far?"

Bigwig laughed, his horn glowing as he grabbed a slab of concrete that was embedded in a partly-destroyed cart. He dragged the slab over to himself and stepped on it, then lifted the slab so that he floated a foot in the air. "Five-nine-eight special. We're not called 'mobile artillary' for nothing."

Bigwig could move his platform faster than she could fly, but had absolutely no maneuverability with it, and so it took a little longer than she could have moved alone to get to her training ground. It was still far faster than waiting for Bigwig to get there on hoof would have been. When they got there, though, she found the shed open. A quick look through confirmed her fears. "My knives are gone," she told him.

They were silent for a moment, thinking over the implications. Finally, Bigwig shook his head. "Doesn’t matter. The rest of it?"

"It's all still there. Spears, clubs, the mace."

"Lay them out," Bigwig said. "Pick the best one for yourself, something you feel comfortable using."

"What about the rest of them?"

He grinned. "Those are the ones I'll be using."

She selected her weapon quickly, a short-bladed spear that she had practiced with more than any other weapon. It wasn't the best weapon for fighting another pegasus with, but if she fought carefully she should be able to keep Charisma at least a pony's length away.

Their arsenal ready, the two of them took off for the Fashion estate. The sun was sinking to the horizon, and the smoke had formed a cloud that was painted a blood red by the low sun and burning buildings. The estate's lights were on, the gates open wide. Standing on the terraced lawn, watching them approach, was Charisma.

"I wondered when you'd show up," Charisma said as they touched down in front of her. She casually flipped a knife through the air and balanced it tip-down with one hoof. Melody narrowed her eyes, she recognized that knife, and all the others that were strapped to the pegasus. They were hers, from her training grounds. Seeing them used by the murderous enforcer felt like a betrayal. "I didn't expect you to be bringing just her though."

"She's all I've got," Bigwig growled. "And all I'm gonna need."

"Why?" Melody asked, shaking her head. "All those ponies. Why did you do it?"

Charisma smiled. "They needed it."

"What? What does that even mean?"

"It means that it's not important why I killed them," Charisma snapped, the smile disappearing. "I did it, that's all that matters. Run away, Melody. Run away or I'm going to kill you too."

Melody set herself, holding her spear at the ready. "I can't let you get away with this." she said. "I trusted you."

"No, you trusted Max," Charisma replied, staring at her with an unreadable blank expression. "That was your mistake. That's always the mistake."

Charisma launched herself at Melody, moving so suddenly she had crossed half the distance before the younger pegasus had realized she was moving at all. She brought her spear up, but Charisma was already twisting in the air to avoid the weapon.

A club whirled through the air, spinning like a propeller blade as it swung at the enforcer. Charisma flared her wings, changing direction with the same shocking suddenness that she had started moving with. The club missed her by half a foot, spinning into the red twilight.

"Get her!" Bigwig roared, launching a pair of spears at Charisma with a yellow flash.

Melody hesitated, but forced herself into motion. In that moment of pause Charisma had already avoided the spears and thrown a dagger at Bigwig. The unicorn caught it in a telekinetic field and threw it back with astounding force. Charisma barely avoided it, losing a few feathers as it brushed past her wing. The knife embedded itself into the ground with a dull noise that was more like an explosion than an impact.

Melody rushed at Charisma, jabbing with her spear. The other pegasus casually deflected the blow, sliding inside Melody's reach and jabbing her in the leg. Melody instantly felt the leg go numb and dangle at her side, forcing her to withdraw. Bigwig still used the opportunity to launch more weapons at the warrior. He smashed a wooden club to pieces on the driveway and used the resulting splinters as a cloud of flechettes that he sent spinning at her.

Charisma leapt high, avoiding that attack but opening herself up to another one. Bigwig tossed a metal club at her, forcing her to veer right into Melody, who was rising to meet her. With one leg out of commission, Melody couldn't put a lot of force into her spear jab, but her momentum combined with Charisma's did plenty. The blow looked like it was going to strike true, but the enforcer twisted at the last moment, taking a shallow cut along her side, but closing to a grapple with Melody.

She panicked. Young pegasi had many rules about flying that had to be drilled into them, but one was always more important than others: don't get entangled in the air. Any interference with her wings while she was flying would make her fall, and crash, and likely die. She wasn't high enough to do more than possibly break a bone, but it was still a terrifying prospect.

Charisma seemed to have none of the same fear, grabbing onto Melody with a strange, spider-like crawling motion. They began to fall, Melody struggling with all her might and Charisma casually ignoring her as she set herself and leapt. Melody recovered from the fall immediately, soaring up into the air and turning to watch what happened below.

Charisma's leap took her towards Bigwig. He stood stock-still, watching her approach with a snarl. At the last moment, as she set her hooves to attack, he rolled over. Beneath him he had hidden the mace, already surrounded with his magic and straining to fly upward.

Charisma reacted with impossible suddenness again, barely avoiding the mace as it swung up at her, then diving to the side as it came down again, slamming into the earth. She rolled back to her hooves, laughing. "The mace! Oh, I'd forgotten about that!"

Bigwig roared with effort and the slab of concrete he'd been using as a platform ripped itself from the ground and hurtled at her. The mace whipped up at the same time, rushing into the place where Charisma would have to leap up to avoid the concrete. She didn't leap, instead falling back and to the side, twisting and springing in a disturbingly un-equine way until she was out of the way of both attacks. Melody's jaw dropped open, astonished at the sheer ability of her opponent.

Charisma didn't pause to admire herself, however, and with a fluid motion that was just a flashing blur to Melody's eyes, she threw a dagger at the unicorn.

The dagger flew at Bigwig. He reacted with the swiftness of instinct, his telekinesis knocking the blade aside. His eyes widened as he realized the first blade had been a feint, and a second knife was following behind the first. He grabbed the second knife bare inches from his eye, holding it in place. Melody cried out, trying to warn him. She was too late.

The second blade had also been a feint, and with his attention focused on it he saw too late the pink pegasus streaking at him in a blur of flapping wings and outstretched hooves. He grabbed at her with his magic, but not soon enough. Her leading hoof hit the dagger floating in front of him, breaking it free from his divided attention. It didn't have far to go, far too short a distance for him to react, and it buried itself to the hilt in his eye.

His magic winked out instantly, dropping Charisma to the ground. She touched down lightly, gracefully turning the fall into a pirouette that set her facing Melody. Charisma smiled, the pure joy of accomplishment radiating from her. Bigwig's body crumpled to the ground, and Charisma's mouth opened in a small gasp of pleasure at the sound.

Melody felt rage unlike anything she had ever experienced before. It boiled through her body, energizing her wings and focusing her vision down to a point that encompassed her opponent. She screamed in fury and denial, hefting her spear and diving as fast as she had ever flown towards Charisma. The pink pegasus shifted her stance slightly, extending her wings in a gesture of invitation before taking off to meet her.

Melody knew she was going to lose. She knew that the only way this would end was with Charisma triumphant and her dead, but she would make her work for it. They came at each other, Melody with blind rage and Charisma with deadly grace, and knew this pass would end it.

A magenta explosion between them knocked both combatants out of the air. Melody hit the ground hard, losing her spear and rolling back towards the estate. Once she came to a stop she lay for a long moment, collecting herself. When she finally had her wits together enough to find out what happened she found Max Cash standing a dozen feet away, beside Lord High Fashion.

"Melody! Stop this at once!" Lord Fashion demanded.

"They're trying to kill you!" Melody shrieked. "Get away from him!"

"They are doing no such thing," Lord Fashion snorted.

"We're really not," Cash put in, his casual tone distractingly incongruous with the situation.

"They've killed ponies!" Melody said, throwing a glace over her shoulder to where Charisma stood a good fifty feet back, poised and ready but unmoving. "They set the town on fire! Look! She just killed Bigwig!" She gestured with a hoof to the dead unicorn.

Lord Fashion looked disdainfully at the corpse. "Fool," he said. "He deserved it."

Melody could barely keep on her hooves. She didn't believe what she was hearing. "No, they're criminals–" she began, but was cut off.

"So what?" Lord Fashion snapped. "What do I care if they're obedient to the wastrel king and his court of fools?"

"My lord, no!" Melody pleaded, her wings drooping. "That's treason! I don't... why are you saying this? I don't understand!"

"But I do," Lord Fashion said, stepping towards her, his eyes wide and burning with a fanatical light. "I understand everything. They left me out here in this backwater nowhere! A family forgotten the moment they were no longer useful to the Crown. They ignore me, they belittle me. 'Just a country noble', they say! Pah! What do I owe them? The nobles, the Crown, the Kingdom? I have no loyalty to any of them!" High Fashion ranted, spraying spittle with every pronouncement. "Cash has offered me everything I want, everything I could ever desire. I'll take it! It'll take it all and get what I've always deserved!"

"No," Melody's rejection was a small, broken noise. She stared at her lord with tears streaming from her eyes. "Please, Lord Fashion! You can't mean that!"

"Oh, he can," Cash said, stepping into her line of sight and catching her eyes with his. She tried to look away, but something stuck her gaze fast. She couldn't even blink. "He's your master, Melody Drop. You've dedicated your life to his protection. Surely you can see his point of view. Doesn't it make sense? Haven't you thought the same things before? You should stick by him, Melody. Come on, show me your loyalty."

Melody's breath caught in her throat. Her eyes widened. She felt as if something was pressing in on her from all directions, crushing her down into something denser than stone. Her wings shook and a low keen escaped her throat, but it cut off with a gasp as everything suddenly became clear. Duty, Charisma had said. Anything and everything to keep him safe. If he was going to turn against the Crown, then it was her duty to stick by him and protect him from the consequences of that decision. That was her first loyalty.

"Of course, Lord Fashion," she said with a bow, barely noticing that she was now released from Max's gaze. "Forgive my confusion. I swear that I will be by your side, no matter what." Her bow was low to show her humility before her lord, but it didn't stop her from seeing the mad grin that spread across Cash's face.

***

Charisma perched on the roof of the Fashion estate and watched the smoke rise from Precious Corners. Most of the fires had been put out long ago, but a few still smoldered enough to stain the air with soot. The town looked like a battleground: charred buildings and bodies lying in the street. She was responsible for many of those bodies. It had been a long night of blood and broken bone as she had sown death and confusion at Cash's direction. She had picked off stragglers and lone ponies who had braved the dark and the fires to try and organize the town. She had even slaughtered another group of a dozen ponies at once, though she had no idea why Cash had ordered it. All innocents, all dead by her hooves. It was the worst thing she'd ever done for him, and it had let her sleep peacefully for the first time in weeks.

Her hoof ground against the roof, the soft scraping sound of it the only outward indication of the tension that had risen inside her. She kept her breathing even and calm, repeating a silent mantra in her mind to force her pulse to slow and her muscles to relax. Old techniques for dealing with a problem that she had long ago given up trying to solve.

A window opened a little ways behind her. "Here you are!" Cash called out. She turned slowly to watch him climb out of the window and onto the roof. The slope of the roof wasn't terribly steep, but unicorns weren't made for sure footing and Cash wobbled as he made his slow way over to her. It would be so easy to trip him and just let him fall. Her Talent screamed at her to do just that. Instead, she rolled her eyes and looked back to the town.

"You are far too chipper in the morning," she snorted.

"Early to rise and early to bed, will make you wealthy, stealthy and dead," he said, then frowned. "Wait, one of those is wrong." He shrugged. "Ah, well, it's probably true anyways. How'd you sleep?" She snorted again, declining to answer. "Yeah, me too. Something about setting fire to a town gives me the late night munchies. Good thing Fashion's so obliging now, right?" He elbowed her in the side and pointed down to the estate grounds, giggling like a child with a secret.

Charisma followed his direction and saw Lord High Fashion stomping about his carefully manicured gardens, stamping on random plants and ranting loud enough that she could almost make out what he was saying from this far away. Melody followed him, her eyes wide and manic, darting to every corner and shadow. Charisma could see the tension in her, straining her muscles to the point where she was going to pull something soon, if she hadn't already.

"What did you do to them?" she asked.

"Practiced my trick," Cash replied. "You said I should, and you were right. I almost got myself killed yesterday when I assumed it would work like it always had, and wouldn't that have been embarrassing!" He let out an amiable chuckle, his magic pulling out a shard of crystal and spinning it in front of his face. "Nope, nowhere near the time for that little number."

Charisma looked at her employer, keeping her face as neutral as possible. "What's the trick, Max? How are you doing this?"

He paused, meeting her gaze. At first it was just a normal meeting of eyes, then it wasn't and she was locked in place by his stare. "You wouldn't understand even if I told you," he said, his voice filled with intensity and danger and all the undeniable power that made her sure he wasn't just insane. "Are you sure you want to know?"

"Yes," Charisma said, surprised at how smoothly the answer came out.

Cash smiled, breaking the gaze and looking out over the town. "Well, first of all you've got to understand that, for my purposes at least, people come in two different varieties: connected and unconnected."

"What's the difference?"

"All in the name," he replied. "You had friends when you were young, right?" Charisma reluctantly nodded. "Do you remember what having friends was like? That special, glowy feeling of knowing other people. That connection. Even when you were mean to each other, you were still connected, and you knew it, even if you couldn't describe it. That connection, that special, glowy thing, that's what I'm talking about."

"So the two types are ponies with friends and ponies without friends?" Charisma asked, sure that she was missing something.

"No," Cash said. "And yes. But no, not really. Except, in a way, yes. But a special, secret kind of friend. That special, glowy connection you feel is just an emotional thing, really. Nothing actually special, nor really glowy. But what if there really was a special, glowy connection? Imagine for a moment that that special, glowy connection was a real thing, and it connected you to a group of other ponies. A connection that was made before any of you actually ever met."

"How would that work?"

"There are ways," Cash said, giving her an infuriating wink. "Some take more effort than others. Anyways, stop imagining it, because it's a real thing. It's actually special, it actually glows if you know what to look for, and it really, really does connect you to other special people. It connects you and it will inevitably bring you together and allow you to fit together. Not necessarily as friends, but to work together in a very specific, very powerful way."

"Okay, fine. But what does this have to do with that trick?"

"Everything," Cash said. "These connections aren't, strictly speaking, natural. They're shadows, cast by things that exist in such a different state from the rest of us that I don't even have an analogy for it. For the casual observer, these connections don't make a lick of difference. But for me, using my trick? They're the difference between Fashion and Melody, and why one of them is going to kill himself within the week and the other won't."

Charisma froze. "He's going to kill himself," she repeated, her tone a numb calm that betrayed nothing. "Why?"

"Because, while I'm getting better at it, I'm still essentially using Betrayal more like a sledgehammer than a scalpel," Cash said.

"Betrayal?"

"Yup," Cash's magic pulled a golden necklace from his saddlebag. A crimson lightning bolt served as its central gem, gleaming like blood in the morning light. "This is the Element of Loyalty. Or Betrayal, if you know how to look at it right," Cash said. "Explaining what it is, well, it's literally impossible. For our purposes here it's a powerful magical artifact, and it's what lets me use that oh-so-ambiguous 'trick' we keep talking about."

"This thing?" Charisma said, poking the necklace. It didn't feel powerful to her, but she was no unicorn. "A necklace?"

"It's part of a set," Cash said, putting the necklace away. "And if you're a clever little girl you'll have figured out where the rest of them are."

"The digs."

"What's that thing you say when someone does something you like? Oh, right: 'full marks'. Yes, the digs."

"Why haven't you told me about this before?"

"Well, you never asked," Cash pointed out. "And it didn't matter. Still doesn't."

"Fine. So you used Betrayal on them?"

"I used Betrayal on Fashion, I used Loyalty on Melody," Cash corrected. "I'm not too good with either, honestly. Hence the sledgehammer approach." He chuckled again, this time it was a sound that made Charisma think he wasn't too broken up about his clumsiness in using Betrayal. "Back to the original point, the difference between the two of them is that special, glowy connection. She's got it, he doesn't. Most ponies don't. Most of everyone doesn't. When I hit one of those people with the sledgehammer they break. I'm getting better at delaying that, but it'll still happen. Most of the time, at least. Someone with the special, glowy connection, though? They survive. They bounce back, they adapt, they overcome."

"Have you used that on me, Max?" Charisma asked, not sure if she really wanted to know the answer.

He shook his head. "I used Deceit on you. Totally different thing. I'm way better with that one. But if I did?" He looked at her, his unreadable expression made twisted by the ever-present smile on his lips. "You would overcome."

"That doesn't make me feel any better," she told him.

"I always knew you were a smart girl," he replied.

"It's Blaze too, isn't it?" she asked, unable to keep her wings from rustling as she thought about it. "He's connected too, isn't he?"

"I'd give you a prize, but I'm fresh out of lollipops," Cash said.

Charisma stilled a tremble. "That Griffin. Lady Star." Cash nodded at both names. "James?"

"Yes."

"Conrad?"

He was silent, but the widening smile was all the answer she needed. She wrapped her wings around herself, suddenly cold. "You knew. You knew what was going to happen this entire time. This is what you wanted." She gestured out to the wreckage of the town. "All of this. All your plan."

"What makes you think I planned this all out?" Cash asked, his head turning to watch a pair of trucks drive out of the fields and into the town, heading for the estate.

"Come on, Max," she spat at him. "I'm not stupid and I'm not blind. Back at the dig you knew that the kingdom was going to attack. Lady Star didn't tell you a damn thing, but you knew anyways. Now Blaze and the Changeling just 'happen' to show up at this exact time? I don't care how you know this stuff is going to happen, but you do, and you've planned for it. So I want to know what is going to happen next. What crazy coincidence will just 'somehow' fall on our backs?"

Cash's smile widened, but his eyes grew intensely focused. The effect was a crazed grin, the look of a mad pony about to bite. "I have no idea," he breathed, his words hitching as he stifled a laugh. "I really don't. Sorry to break your confidence in me, but I'm not responsible for all of this." He let out a wild laugh that cut off as suddenly as it began. "I'm not responsible for it, but I am using it. I have no choice. I can't stop now, can't slow down, can't think about it, can't plan, can't do anything but charge straight ahead and laugh at the confusion I leave in my wake."

"You don't have a plan?" Charisma asked. It was a hard question to even contemplate. Cash always had a plan, even if that plan was a mad one.

"Charisma, please. Of course I have a plan. I've been working on this plan for over twenty years. It's a beautiful plan, scheduled and checked and triple checked and full of contingencies for every conceivable problem or opportunity that might arise. I've had it all nailed down and waiting to go for ten years now. Ten years to tweak and refine and make sure it was all perfect for showtime."

"If you've had this plan for ten years, why wait until now?”

"There's an order things have to be done in," Cash sighed. "I was missing the first piece. Betrayal. Once I found that, then the rest was always going to start falling into place. In fact, that's about the only thing in the plan that's still working. Everything else is way up in the air, ready to come tumbling down in ruins."

"Why? If your plan was so perfect, what went wrong?"

Cash grinned. "Rainbow Dash. The very best and very worst thing that could possibly happen. Utterly impossible, absolutely unpredictable. Perfection in pony form." He gave her a sidelong look. "Not that you're not perfect, either, but it's a different kind of perfection." He gave her a pat on the back. "Don't worry about it. The plan might not be whole, but I guarantee you it won't matter. Just because I built the perfect plan doesn't mean I expected it to succeed perfectly." His grin widened again. "And that's why I'm practicing."

She turned away from him, watching the trucks pull into the estate grounds. "Our ride's here," she said.

"So it is." He stood, stretching out his legs as he slowly turned back to the open window. "You should go say goodbye. If you meet her again, things might be very different for the both of you."

Charisma closed her eyes. "What's going to happen to her?"

Cash chuckled. "That's up to her. For the moment she's on track to growing as a person, but, well, special, glowy connections are fragile things. Who knows what'll happen tomorrow?"

She stayed still as he left the roof, closing the window behind him. She opened her eyes again, looking out at the drifting smoke. Cash came out the front door, greeting the ponies who stepped out of the trucks to meet him.

"Excellent timing!" Cash congratulated them. "How's our little passenger?"

"Sleeping," one of the drivers replied. "We're using up our sedatives quickly, though."

"Not to worry," Cash laughed. "Won't be much longer now, and we'll need him awake and walking soon enough."

Charisma tuned them out, looking down at where Fashion and Melody walked. She stood, flaring her wings and feeling the warm breeze blow through her feathers. She closed her eyes, letting the sunlight fall on her face, the warm kiss of a Goddess who refused to consign her to darkness. Drop on them from above, aim for the spine of the pegasus, immobilizing her. Attack the unicorn before he can react, single kick to the throat. Finish her by stepping on her neck. She opened her eyes, and leapt.

A minute later she flew over to the trucks, her blood singing and her entire body tingling. Cash gave her a questioning look. "Did you say goodbye?" he asked.

She rolled her eyes at him, stepping past and into the cab of the truck. Cash laughed and climbed into the back while the drivers started up the vehicles and began the drive out of the estate. She looked out the windows at the grounds as they passed them. She imagined eyes looking back at her, filled with rage and confusion. Then, with a whisper that was barely audible over the sound of the engine, she said one word: "Overcome."

***

Harrenhorn wasn't a big city by Kingdom standards, home to barely fifty thousand citizens of various species, but it had several advantages that justified its rail line and highway connections. The first was a pair of wide rivers that met there, giving the city access to waterways going north as well as east and west. The second was a university that specialized in technical and scientific studies, bringing a lot of young talent and money to the city. Third and most important was the full military base a few miles outside the city limits. Even without anything else, the needs of that base would have kept the city thriving.

When the transport had arrived at the base Star Fall and her friends had been caught up in a flurry of activity that was simultaneously head-spinningly hectic and mind-numbingly boring. Beyond the usual report filing and psychological counselling that came after an incident like what happened at the dig, Gamma's people had jumped at the chance of testing the limits of Dash and Applejack's abilities. The two of them were kept going from sunrise to sunset, and often afterwards as well. Since Star Fall and Dash were the only two on base who spoke Old Equestrian, one of them always had to be on hand to translate for Applejack as well. Between helping the earth pony with understanding Solar, visiting Astrid in the base hospital, and the constant questioning about what had happened, Star Fall was left with very little time to herself. Time that she needed if she was going to solve the mystery of Max Cash's intentions and power. So she had to stay up even later than everyone else to get in the research necessary.

This lack of sleep was why she was already on her fifth cup of coffee that day when Gamma found her. Star Fall was staring at a table covered with papers and books, many of which had been borrowed from the Harrenhorn University's rather sparse collection of classic literature. The spymaster was looking a little worn herself, her black mane limp and her saddlebag poorly positioned on her back. There was, however, a new light to her intense eyes that made Star Fall think something very important had happened. Most tellingly, her scarf had slipped a little, showing the edges of the scar tissue underneath.

"How are you progressing?" Gamma asked without preamble. Her appearance might have been dishevelled, but her voice held the same iron control as always.

"Pathetically," Star Fall answered, blinking at the spy and pushing aside her curiosity. "But not completely without progress." She slumped in her chair and gestured at the mess on the table. "The Elements of Harmony are not mentioned even once in any reference I have. Not directly as the Elements. But now that I know to look for something there are oblique references that pop up all over the place in pre-Schism art and literature."

"What about the book? Harmony Theory?"

Star Fall shook her head. "Nothing. No mention of it at all. No talk of a 'missing' Twilight Sparkle book, no indication that she ever wrote anything other than the well-known list of works we have. Hell, even the lost works of Twilight Sparkle are well documented. We know what they were and what they were about, we have surviving quotations, histories, everything! But no Harmony Theory. Nothing. Honestly, I don't think I'll have any luck tracking that one down."

"Do you believe this lack of information to be deliberate?" Gamma asked, her horn lighting up as she pulled a sheaf of papers from her bag.

"Yes," Star Fall said. "There's nothing to indicate it's missing, but the lack of any direct reference to the Elements of Harmony when there are all the sidelong mentions of them? No, that can't be coincidence. This was done on purpose by someone. I'm sure of it. Though I have no idea who could have orchestrated something like this. It had to have been done before all these books were preserved, which means at the very latest it happened during the Schism, most likely well before that."

"There are those who could have accomplished it," Gamma said. "We know at least one is directly invested."

"Umbra," Star Fall said, nodding. "But she's not working with Cash. At least, he acted like she wasn't. Who the hell knows with him?"

"They are linked," Gamma asserted. "Though I don't know exactly how. That they are is clear enough."

"What if it wasn't her, though?" Star Fall had to ask, squeezing her eyes shut. She could still see the words she had read through the obscuring mud. 'I'm sorry, Princess. I'm so sorry.' "What if this stuff was censored for a reason? A good one?"

Gamma sighed. "It's too late to worry about that. Cash has one Element, possibly two. He might be looking for the others. He has that book, whatever it turns out to be. Even if there is a very good reason to have hidden the knowledge of these things, that secrecy now works against us."

"I just wish the Professor were here," Star Fall said. "She's been studying magic and Twilight Sparkle for decades, I'm just a student!"

"You are an agent of the Crown," Gamma said, putting her hoof under Star Fall's chin and forcing her head up. She opened her eyes and stared into Gamma's, seeing confidence and strength in them. "I would not have given you that responsibility if you were not able to live up to it. The Professor has her own duties to attend to, as you have yours. I assure you that you will be reunited soon enough, and then I am sure the two of you will find a solution. The more you do now, however, the swifter that eventual answer will come."

Star Fall took a deep breath, steadying herself before nodding her assent.

Gamma nodded. "Good. These are sketches of the Elements done from descriptions given by Agent Dash. Perhaps they will give you more to work with in your search." She dropped the papers on the pile. "I want you to focus completely on this from now on," she said.

"What about Applejack?"

"She's learned enough Solar that your translation services are no longer necessary," Gamma said. "More importantly, our timetable has been forcibly shortened."

"How?"

"There has been an incident," Gamma said, her eyes narrowing. "A Changeling sighting has been reported."

Star Fall’s fatigue vanished in a burst of adrenaline, her body tensing. "Here?"

Gamma shook her head. "No. West of here, several hundred miles. Too close for any measure of comfort, and too close to Cash's dig to be assumed as coincidence."

"The Changeling we encountered in the Everstorm," Star Fall said. "Could it be tracking her?"

"Possible, but without further information all we can do is speculate pointlessly," Gamma said. "Regardless, this base is being put on high alert and the transport is being sent with support personnel to help the survivors."

"Survivors?" Star Fall asked, surprised. "What happened?"

"We aren't sure yet," Gamma said. "The first responders found chaos. Half the town was burned, the other half in a panic. There was apparently a massacre. Ponies killing each other in the streets."

Star Fall shook her head. "Why would a Changeling do that?"

"It wouldn't," Gamma replied. "They're infiltrators, saboteurs. Direct antagonism like this is contrary to their nature and their training. It's counterproductive. No, there may or may not have been a Changeling there, but I suspect the rest of it is the result of an outside agency pushing tempers in the town to a breaking point. Changeling sightings create paranoia, and a skilled manipulator can use that to cause a great deal of violence with little effort."

Star Fall may have been tired, but she could put the pieces together quickly enough. "Cash."

"Possibly," Gamma cautioned. "He would have the means and motivation to do this, but we have no evidence of his involvement."

"Do we need evidence?"

"Yes," Gamma said, giving her a hard stare. "This is currently being treated as an isolated incident. If, however, there actually was a Changeling there, and if we can find no evidence that Cash or one of his agents was the true cause of the mayhem, then the Crown is going to conclude it was an act of war, and act accordingly. Do you understand, Agent Fall?"

"Yes," Star Fall said. "You don't need to explain it to me."

Gamma turned away. "Then I also don't have to explain how important it is that you discover everything you can about these Elements of Harmony, and quickly. We must know what it is we are facing. Applejack and Agent Dash have told us everything they know, but that is woefully sparse. You are the only one who can give us the rest. Can you do that?"

"I will do my best," Star Fall promised. "But I don't have a lot to work with."

Gamma nodded. "Fair enough. Do what you can, Agent Fall, but hurry." With that she left the room.

Star Fall stared after the departed Gamma for a long moment before turning back to the papers. "All up to me, huh?" she sighed. "Hurry, she says. I'm trying to build a haystack out of needles that I have to find in a thousand other, bigger haystacks, and she says hurry." She spread out the pictures of the Elements that Gamma had given her. Five necklaces and a crown. She rummaged through the piles of papers until she found her own sketch of the cover of Harmony Theory. "Yup, you match," she said, looking from the sketches of the Elements to the symbols she'd seen on the cover of the book.

"So, there's that," she said, staring at the pages as if they would give up their secrets through her sheer obstinance. She muttered the name of each Element under her breath as her eyes went from one to the other. "Loyalty, Kindness, Honesty, Magic, Laughter, Generosity. Loyalty, Kindness, Honesty, Magic, Laughter, Gen–"

She cut off, her eyes going wide as she stared at the last sketch. The sketch was just charcoal, but she could almost see the purple tint in the central gem. "Generosity. Generosity. I know that one. Why? Where?" She began frantically sifting through the books and papers, shoving several small piles from the table to the floor. Finally she found what she was looking for, a book that she had barely thought useful before, save for a few key words that had appeared. She slammed it down, quickly flipping through pages until she found the one she wanted.

"'The series was displayed throughout Equestria to much praise," she read aloud, wiping at tired eyes as she tried to focus. "But by request of the artist two of the pieces were put in permanent installations. The most important, of course, in Ponyville where much of her life was spent. The other was displayed in Canterlot in the grand hall.'" She shook her head. "No, no, no. The name! Where was the name!" She flipped back and forth a few pages before she stopped, a smile growing on her features. "Generosity. Of course. Of course, why didn't I see it before?" She leapt up on the table, staring down at the pages beneath her while her wings buzzed with excitement. "There you are!"

***

Rainbow Dash flew down to where Applejack was pulling a heavily laden wagon. She'd been going around a wide track in circles, and the dull, half-asleep look in her green eyes told Dash that her friend thought all this testing was super-boring too. So she decided that a little friendly company would liven up the day and dropped down to land on the tarp-covered cargo Applejack was hauling. It was hard and gave a metal ring as she touched down, alerting Applejack to her presence.

"Are you really that bored that you gotta come down here and bug me about it?" Applejack asked.

"What? Bored? No," Dash protested. "I'm just here to see how you're doing in this crazy, crazy future."

"I'm doin' fine, now get," Applejack said, shaking her harness a bit to make the cart rock.

Dash flew off the wagon, but only to float down and hover by her friend. "So how long have they had you doing this?"

"A while," Applejack replied, shrugging. "A few hours at least."

"How heavy is that?"

"Can't rightly say for sure," Applejack said. "Look, not that I don't like talkin' to you, sugarcube, but don't you have things they want to test you on too? Flyin' through hoops and whatnot?"

"Did them," Dash said, stifling a yawn. "Easy-peasy one-two-threesy. Took no time at all. I was going to find a cloud to nap on, but then I remembered that nopony's stopping them from just drifting away."

"And the folks here'd get in a tizzy if you just up and disappeared like that," Applejack reminded her. "The way Star describes it, not a lot of pegasi that can walk on clouds are left."

Dash's face fell a bit. "Yeah. Don't remind me. Hey, how much longer are you going to be doing this?"

Applejack shrugged. "Can't say. Part of it's supposed to be how long I can go for."

"Sounds boring."

"Sounds like work," Applejack said. "I could use a job of work right about now."

Dash paused at that, and at the heavy emotions hidden in her friend's voice. "Right," she said, thinking. "So, anyways, how's the language stuff going?" Dash asked, hovering up a bit to take a closer look at the heavy load Applejack was pulling. "Star hasn't had a lot of time to talk to me about it, but it looks like you're doing okay."

"I wanted to talk to you about that," she replied, stopping her long walk and waving at the soldier who was watching. "Somethin' mighty strange is goin' on with this language stuff."

"Yeah, it's kinda half-familiar, right?" Dash said. "I asked about that and Star said that Solar is, like, descended from Equestrian or something. So they sound similar 'cause they are, but that'll confuse you if you think the words that sound the same still mean the same thing."

"Well, not quite what I mean, sugarcube," Applejack sighed. "The real question is how I'm learnin' it so fast at all."

"What do you mean?"

"Listen, sugarcube. I'm still doin' foal-talk, but every time I do I get better at it. I'm even understandin' the other ponies when they ain't slowin' down to talk to me."

"Cool, you're catching on almost as quick as I did!"

"Yeah, and that's the problem. I shouldn't be learning a language this fast."

"Wait, you're learning fast, and that's a problem?" Dash asked, perplexed.

"Too fast," Applejack sighed. "It ain't natural. You know my cutie mark story, right? How I ran off to Manehattan and lived with my aunt and uncle Orange for a spell?"

"Yeah, and you saw my totally awesome sonic rainboom and went home, right?"

"I did, but that's not what I'm aimin' for," Applejack said. "When I was there I had to work real hard to fit in. Part of that was learnin' how to talk like a high-falutin' Manehattan pony. Now, I wasn't learnin' any new language like I am now, and it still took a long time and a lotta hard work just to get the words right."

Dash bobbed in the air as she waited for Applejack to continue. "Okay? So?" she finally prompted.

"So, if it took so darn long to learn how to talk different with the same language, how come it's takin' such a short time to learn an entirely new language?" Applejack said, shaking her head. "My cutie mark sure ain't for languages, and I've never been a particularly fast learner, so why in the hay am I gettin' so good so fast?"

Dash dropped to the ground, folding her wings and frowning. "I don't know, AJ. I haven't really thought about it."

Applejack smiled at her friend. "Didn't figure you had, sugarcube. I just thought maybe that smart friend of yours might'a noticed and said somethin', is all."

"Yeah, well, she did say something," Dash replied. "She said it was impossible."

They stood in silence for a long moment, each contemplating what that might mean. One of the unicorn ponies who had been running the tests took that moment to come over to them. "Are you too tired to continue?" he asked as clearly as he could manage.

"No, am not," Applejack replied, working to get the unfamiliar words right, but not nearly as hard as she knew she should be. "Just talk to Dash."

"Yeah, she's fine. Why'd you think she was tired?" Dash asked.

"She has been hauling over two tons of steel for the past three hours," the soldier replied. "Why do you think she shouldn't be?"

Dash laughed. "Hey, AJ! Did you hear that? You've been pulling two tons all this time!"

Applejack frowned. "Sounds about right. Assumin' they use the same measures we do. Er, did."

"How much more can you pull?" Dash asked, excited.

"More," Applejack replied, giving her friend a flat look. "It ain't important. Never has been. It don't matter anyhow. I'm not gonna be sittin' around here all day lettin' 'em hitch me up to heavier and heavier weights just 'cause they can."

"Sorry, she says she's done with this test," Dash told the soldier.

"Agent Dash, does she understand what's going on here?" the soldier asked, incredulous. "These tests have phenomenal importance! She has outperformed every single benchmark for a Strength Talent earth pony, and not by a little bit. She's taken our best and blown it away. Even the strongest of Dragons would struggle at this level, but she keeps going! She is, quite simply, the strongest, most durable being alive, and we have not even seen her limits yet!"

Dash couldn't suppress another laugh. "Did you get that, AJ?"

"I did," Applejack dryly confirmed.

"You're the strongest pony alive!" Dash chortled.

"Yup, that's what he said," Applejack closed her eyes in exasperation.

"And I'm the Iron Pony winner!" Dash crowed.

"Yup, knew you were going to bring that up, too," Applejack sighed. She turned to the soldier. "I am sorry. Do not want make you sad. No more tests. Not important."

"Miss Applejack, these tests are important," he insisted.

"Ask me what that makes me!" Dash cajoled, nudging Applejack.

"They are not," Applejack insisted. Then she shot Dash an irritated look. "Will you quit it?!"

"Come on, ask me," Dash insisted.

"Fine, what does that make you?" Applejack relented.

"Stronger than strong!" Dash burst up to the top of the laden wagon in a rainbow streak, striking a pose. "Tougher than tough!" She blurred around the two ponies, kicking up a mini whirlwind that forced Applejack to hold onto her hat. "Faster than fast! Winner and still champion after a thousand years!" She flew up, twisting and weaving through the air, her ethereal trail hanging behind her the entire way. A solid sheet of color that eventually spelled out her own name in the sky. She dropped down a second after giving the final flourish to her aerial signature, landing in front of Applejack and the shocked unicorn. "The one, the only, the Iron Pony: Rainbow Dash!" She grinned widely.

"So what you're sayin' is that you're bored," Applejack reasoned.

"Not just bored!" Dash cried, dropping to her knees and flailing her forelegs at the sky. "What's the point to all this waiting around? We've gotta find Cash, we've gotta stop him! But we're just sitting on our butts taking stupid tests while he's out there getting ahead of us! If something doesn't start happening soon I am gonna explode!"

Star Fall burst onto the track, shouting and rushing towards them in an awkward two-legged run, her wings supporting her and her forearms full of papers and books. "I found it! I found it!" she yelled.

"Thank you," Dash sighed, happily falling onto her back as the scholarly mare approached.

"I found it!" Star Fall said again, skidding to a stop in front of them and dropping her burden to the ground. "Generosity. In front of face. Did not see."

"Agent Fall!" the soldier said in surprise, stepping over to her. "What's going on?"

"What? No, you can't. No." Star Fall shook her head, batting a hoof at the approaching unicorn. "You're not cleared for this! You can't see this. Go! Shoo!" The soldier was taken aback, and probably a little offended, but he obeyed nonetheless, retreating with Star Fall's glare following him the entire way. The moment he was well out of earshot she returned to her Old Equestrian ranting, her speech so slurred it was practically unrecognizable. "It was there. All along. I saw, but did not see. Lost meaning in mind. Clear with picture. Need two connections or more to make truth!"

"Whoa there, nelly!" Applejack said, laying a hoof on Star Fall's shoulder. "Slow down and think it through. We'll wait."

Star Fall stopped, taking a few heaving breaths. Dash rolled to her hooves and took a look at the things the pegasus had brought. She recognized the sketches she'd helped make, but the rest were either books or Solar gibberish. One particular sketch had been circled several times, unreadable notes scrawled next to it.

"I found it," Star Fall said, calming enough to speak clearly but still bouncing from place to place as her wings fluttered in excitement. "It was hidden. I do not know how. I have seen it before, but I did not recognize it until I saw this picture, until I matched it to my own picture of the book. But now I remember. Now I know. I found it."

"What did you find?" Applejack asked. Dash already knew the answer she would give and it sent her body buzzing with energy. Finally, things were moving.

"The Element of Generosity," Star Fall said. "I know where it is."

Chapter 19: Calling the Earth

A Proxy is quite capable of bearing different Elements at different times. While this has happened only twice within the Elements' current cycle of activity, during the time of the Royal Pony Sisters it was much more common. It is interesting to note that nearly every time this has happened the pony who switched their Element began with Loyalty, though one of the modern instances began with Laughter instead. This might have something to do with the nature of Loyalty compared to the other Elements, and its place in binding Elements and Bearers together.

When a Proxy changes the Element they bear, it is a complete transition. They no longer have access to the powers of their previous Element, and it will no longer resonate with them the same way. This is an exception to the general rule that a Bearer is always connected to an Element once they have wielded it in creating the Magic of Harmony. The change in Element is also usually accompanied by a shift in personality. Commonly, this shift is seen as positive, a 'growth of character', rather than a negative transformation, as if the previous Element was a 'placeholder' for them until they could grow into the proper one.

This concept of 'growing into your Element' leads to some intriguing questions. Chief among them is a variation of a common question concerning the Elements: is it the pony who changes, and thus needs a new Element, or the Element that wants a new Bearer, and thus changes a pony to suit? While I have no answer to this question, what I know of the Elements has told me that the latter is certainly within their capability.

What is worrying is that all of this does not apply to true Bearers. Only Proxies may change the Element they wield. What this means for true Bearers and the differences between them and Proxies, I can only speculate.

-From the fifth section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Nineteen: Calling The Earth

"Spike has it?" Dash goggled. "Spike? Our Spike? Little baby dragon Spike?"

The three of them sat around the table Star Fall had been using in her research, Star Fall having insisted that they come here once she had calmed down enough to start explaining. The table was a mess, with books and papers strewn across it from when she had jumped on it in her excitement. Many of those books were even in Old Equestrian, a language the two displaced ponies could read, though neither Dash nor Applejack seemed interested in reading them.

"Probably not so little no more," Applejack mused from her seat. "Even with how slow dragons grow up, he'll be an adult now. More than adult."

"Yeah, but... Spike!" Dash shook her head. "I didn't even think of him. Of course he'd still be around."

"It is Spike, but he's not the same Spike you remember," Star Fall pointed out. She shuffled a few of the papers to the side, then dragged a book closer to her and flipped rapidly through the pages. "He was just a baby when he knew you, that was a long time ago."

"Yeah, okay," Dash slumped back into her seat. "He still remembers us, right?"

Star Fall waggled a hoof absently. "He does and he doesn't. How well do you remember your foalhood? It's like that, but clearer. He remembers Twilight. He talked about her often enough, but he didn't say much about the rest of you."

"I suppose a thousand years is a long time to be keepin' a memory alive," Applejack reasoned.

"Princess Celestia did it," Dash said. "For Luna."

"Luna was kin." Applejack replied, "You don't forget kin. Plus, she had a big old reminder shinin' down on her every night. Spike didn't have that."

"Apparently he's got a statue of Rarity with the Element of Generosity attached to it," Dash said. "I think that's a pretty good reminder!"

"Girls!" Star Fall slapped a hoof on the table, catching their attention. "He remembers you. He remembers all of you. Maybe not perfectly, maybe not easily, but he does. And the statue? He might not even notice it is there."

"What do you mean, sugarcube?" Applejack asked, frowning at Star Fall. "He made the statue, right? So why wouldn't he know it's there?"

Star Fall shook her head, closing her eyes as she searched for the right words to explain. "I do not know for sure, but I think there is a spell on it. A spell that makes you not pay close attention to it, a spell that makes you forget that you have seen it."

"Why would the statue have this spell on it?" Applejack pressed.

"I think it is to protect the Element," Star Fall said. "I think that was the plan to keep it safe. I have seen spells like this before. Make something unremarkable and ponies will ignore it. The statues were displayed all over Equestria. That meant that the Element was out in the open where everypony could see it. But because it looks like the Element is just an ornament on a statue it becomes part of the..." She paused, wracking her brain for several long moments. Her grasp of Old Equestrian had improved immensely, but difficult concepts were still a struggle to convey. Finally, she found something that would suffice. "Background noise. Even if you're looking directly at it, you will not notice it. The statues take the attention, the Element becomes invisible. Eventually the statue might become invisible too."

"So how come you noticed it?" Applejack asked.

"Harmony Theory," Star Fall replied. "The book Cash had. It has magic too, powerful and subtle magic, just like what I think is on the statue. I did not have a chance to look deeply, but I think... I think that the spell on the statue is supposed to be countered by the book. But only if you have more than one reference."

"Come again?"

"You need... you need something more than the book, something to push your memory or force you to recognize it. You still see the Element, but it is background, unremarkable, remember? Even when you know about the Elements, the memory of seeing it is... locked. Reading the book lets you unlock the memory, but you will not suddenly remember seeing the Element on the statue, you still need to be reminded of it. For me that reminder was the sketches Gamma had made."

"This is mighty complicated," Applejack sighed, rubbing at her head. "And you're sure about all of this?"

"No," Star Fall said, and her shoulders slumped at the admission. "It is a leap of logic, and it is based on a lot of guesses and very little solid evidence. It feels right, but, well, I don't know. All I do know is that Spike has the Element of Generosity. That I am sure of. And... and I think Cash knows it too."

"He could be there right now!" Dash cried, jerking up into the air, her eyes wide and alarmed. "Star, we need to get there, like, now!"

"I know," Star Fall assured her. "I know, but Spike's cave is a long way away from here, and a long way from any road or rail. We can't get the transport, so we will have to go there ourselves. Even at my best speed it will take days."

"I could be there today," Dash said.

"You could," Star Fall agreed. "But if you show up, what is Spike going to think? Rainbow Dash just appearing on his doorstep after a thousand years of being dead? He will think it is a trick, and Dragons are not known for their even tempers."

Dash paused at that, settling back into her chair. "I could convince him."

"Maybe, but that's not a chance we can take. What if Cash is there already? What if you fly right in there and he uses the Element of Loyalty on you again? What are you going to do then? You cannot go alone."

Dash shuddered. "Okay, fine. You’ve made your point."

"I need to be there," Star Fall said. "Preferably with a team of soldiers and Griffins at my back, but there aren't any fliers here capable of making it. It will have to be you and me."

"And Applejack," Dash said

Star Fall shook her head. "We can't carry her, Dash, and she won't be able to keep up on hoof."

"Yeah, she will," Dash insisted.

"Hold on, there," Applejack cut in. "I think Miss Fallen Star's right. I can't keep up with you in the air, Dash, you know that."

"Well, yeah, but you can keep up with her," Dash said, pointing a hoof at Star Fall.

Applejack frowned at that. "How do you figure?"

"I've seen her fly," Dash said, "You can keep up."

"Dash," Star Fall said. "Applejack is very strong, but keeping up with us isn't about strength."

"No, it's about how fast you can run and for how long," Dash said. "And Applejack can run. Not as fast as me," Applejack snorted at this. "But fast enough. And definitely long enough."

"Dash..."

"Star, how fast can you fly? Not sprinting, but for long-distance stuff?" Dash asked.

Star Fall sighed. "If I focus my magic on it and stay low enough that I don't get cold, I can fly faster than a car at top speed. Or a train, if you have a better idea of that. If I take good breaks and eat and drink regularly I can keep it up for ten or twelve hours a day. I can go faster for short periods, and a good tailwind can help me get more distance."

Applejack frowned a bit, but looked surprised. "I know how fast a train could go in our time. Assumin’ they’re about the same now, well, that's a bit of a tall order," she said.

"You can do it, right?" Dash asked.

"Yup," Applejack said. "It won't be easy, mind, and it'd depend on the lay of the land, but so long as I don't have to climb any mountains I can keep that pace."

"What?" Star Fall said, mouth hanging open in disbelief. "You can run that fast? Could everypony do this in your time?"

"No," Applejack said. "Most ponies from our time can't keep near that pace 'less they train for it. I do the Runnin' of the Leaves every year, it's hard on both speed and endurance, and I go for both. Plus, as they said in my time, this ain't my first rodeo."

"I do not believe it," Star Fall said, but smiled. "You two are incredible."

Dash grinned at the praise, but Applejack shook her head. "We're just athletic," she said. "Dash here may be the fastest thing in the air, but I'm not close to that on the ground. Or at least I wasn't."

"You are now," Star Fall said, standing up. "We do not have a lot of time to spare. I will talk to Gamma, you two need to start packing. We will need rations for a fast journey, and water. I will tell one of the soldiers to get you anything you ask for."

"Do you know what we'll do once we get there?" Dash asked.

"If we get there before Cash? We convince Spike to take the statue and we go back to the capital," Star Fall said. "If we don't get there first? I don't know. Try to protect Spike, try to stop Cash. Try not to get killed."

"That don't sound like much of a plan," Applejack said.

"It is all I have," Star Fall replied.

Applejack just nodded. "Then it'll do. Come on, Rainbow Dash, let's get packin'."

***

Astrid opened her eyes as the door to her hospital room swung open. "Hey, Fall," she said as her charge came in. She lay on the bed, mostly immobile. Only one of her forelegs had recovered enough to be useable, fortunately the one that hadn't had its claws mangled. The other was still bound up in bandages, which also covered most of her torso. Her wings were held outstretched by casts and wires. It was, in total, a hideously awkward way to lie. The only concession to comfort was the pillow under her head, and even that was small and hard. "Good news: they've taken me off of the blood thinners. Next time you see me I won't be puking and passing out every time I try to get up."

Star Fall smiled at her. "Glad to hear it."

"Oh yeah, and have I thanked you for that yet?" Astrid snarked. "I think I remember something about telling you to just give me a bandage and leave it."

"For the last time, you were bleeding into your lung," Star Fall said. "I had to do something. Would you prefer I try to kick the wound closed?"

Astrid chuckled, her eyes softening. "Yeah, look. I'm not complaining that you saved my life. I'm just..."

"Really bored," Star Fall finished for her. "Nothing good on TV?"

"I hate watching that crap," Astrid said. "I need to be out of this bed and doing something! Cash and Charisma got away, I should be helping you track them down!" She snarled, her good claw flexing. Suddenly her eyes snapped to the bags hanging from Star Fall's back. "Wait a minute. Where the hell do you think you're going?"

"Astrid, I'm going to Spike's with Dash and Applejack," Star Fall said.

"Right, next stop on the Rainbow Dash world tour. I remember."

"It's more important than that now," Star Fall said, looking at the ground. "I think Cash is heading there too, and I want to get there before him and pre-empt whatever it is he's going to do."

"You're going without me?" Astrid started up, rising from the bed as much as the restraints on her wings allowed before collapsing back down, light-headed. "Who's running escort?" she demanded.

"Nobody. It'll just be the three of us."

"What? No!" Astrid snapped, giving Star Fall a hard golden stare. "Fall, you need someone watching your back. Someone responsible. Dash is too crazy and I don't even know this Applejack person!"

"There's no one who can keep up," Star Fall said, hanging her head. "You could have, but there aren't any Griffins on base other than you. Any pony with a Flight Talent has been redirected to deal with this Changeling situation."

"Keep up? I heard this Applejack was an earth pony," Astrid said. "How the hell is she supposed to 'keep up'?"

"Dash insists she can, and I kinda believe her."

Astrid clacked her beak in anger, then took a deep breath and let out a long sigh. "Fall, this isn't a good idea."

"And leaving the Element of Generosity to Cash is? He'll hurt Spike to get it, Astrid. I know he will. I can't let that happen. He was my teacher, and my friend. I just can't let Cash have his way."

Astrid huffed at that, but hung her head. "I know. This has got to be done, but I don't want it to be you who has to do it. Not without me there to back you up."

"We're not going to be doing any fighting," Star Fall assured her. "Gamma's orders. Get the Element, get Spike, get out."

"Yeah, and considering how well our plans have gone so far, what's the chance of that actually working?"

Star Fall gently brushed some of Astrid's green-edged feathers out of her eyes. "It'll be fine. I've got two ancient heroes protecting me now. I figure both of them together can almost make up for one of you."

"Right, because flattery's gonna make it all okay," Astrid snorted, but her eyes brightened. "Don't fuck this up, Fall. I don't want to have to avenge anything. We Steelwings take vengeance seriously, so it'll be a real pain in the tail for me if I have to avenge you."

"I'll be fine. Now, you get rest. The sooner you're up and fighting again, the happier I'll be."

Astrid snorted at that. "I'm not planning on lazing around in bed," she said. "Be safe, Fall, I'll be coming as fast as I can."

"I know it," Star Fall assured her, and left.

***

Applejack checked over her bags again. The provisions the soldier had given her looked and smelled odd, but she'd been assured that they were safe to eat and full of everything a running body would need to keep going. There were a few items that she still didn't understand, like a jar with a slightly-glowing crystal floating in it that was apparently some sort of magical emergency flare, or a packet of little white tablets that she'd been told to put in whatever water she got from streams and rivers before drinking it, or a little book that had her picture and a bunch of words she couldn't read in it. The rest looked just like the stuff she'd take on a camping trip back in Ponyville. No tent or sleeping bag, but Applejack was no stranger to roughing it.

The thought of Ponyville gave her pause. She found herself staring at her packed bags without really seeing them, her mind a blank as she fought off a surge of tears. She tilted her hat down over her eyes, taking slow and even breaths as she struggled to put her thoughts in order.

The sound of hoofsteps behind her gave her enough focus to drag herself back to the present. "Sorry, Rainbow Dash, I'll be right along," Applejack said without looking up.

"My apologies," a strong, but very slightly raspy voice replied. Applejack pushed her hat back and looked up to find Agent Gamma standing before her. "I don't speak enough Old Equestrian to understand that."

"Sorry. I thought you were Rainbow Dash," Applejack said, giving the other mare a friendly smile.

Gamma did not smile back. Her blue eyes were focused squarely on Applejack's, so intense that they almost seemed to glow. "I've been told that you can understand Solar quite well, even if you can't speak it fully yet." Gamma said.

"Yes," Applejack replied, her smile dropping. "I understand."

"Good. You know who I am."

"Gamma," Applejack confirmed. "Pony in charge."

"And you are Applejack. Farmer, athlete, hero," Gamma finally broke eye contact, her eyes tracking down to the open saddlebags. The farmer knew that it hadn't been a contest, but even if it had been, Gamma's change of focus hadn't been a loss. It was a deliberate move, a message, but one that Applejack didn't understand. "I've been doing some reading up on you and your friends. Twilight Sparkle had much to say about all of you. Most of that lines up with what I have already seen regarding Rainbow Dash, but so far you are more difficult to place."

"Not trying to hide anything," Applejack said, the hackles on her neck rising and a nervous energy coiling in her legs.

"I didn't say you were," Gamma said. "But you are acting in a more reserved fashion than I had expected."

"Don't know what to say," Applejack said, taking a deep breath and forcing her legs to relax.

"Agent Fall trusts you. I hope you understand that I do not have that luxury." Gamma leaned down and sniffed at the stored rations. "These are quite good, you know. Still, after a few days of nothing but, you're going to be cursing them as cardboard and glue."

"What is this?" Applejack asked.

"An opportunity," Gamma replied. "I do not know you, Miss Applejack. I do not know your loyalties, I do not know your desires, I don't know what buttons can be pushed to make you go one way or another."

"Not a puppet."

"No, you're a pony, and we've all got our points of cleavage. If you hit us the right way, we will shatter." She met Applejack's eyes again. "I do not want you shattering in the field with the lives of two of my agents on the line."

"I can hold up," Applejack assured her.

"'The most dependable of ponies'," Gamma said, and it sounded like she was quoting. "That's the legend of you. Applejack, the most dependable, hardworking, strong pony Twilight Sparkle had ever met. She never mentioned the Element of Honesty, but I suppose we can add that on. So, honest Applejack, why do you think I'm having difficulty in trusting you?"

Applejack waited for a long moment before deciding that Gamma wanted an actual answer. "You don't know me," she said. "You don't trust what you don't know."

Gamma nodded. "A succinct, but accurate, answer. I don't know you, and unlike Agent Dash I have been unable to come to know you through observation. You lack her exuberance, her need to be known. In the time you've been on this base you have been sullen, withdrawn, barely interactive. This does not line up with the descriptions of you from Twilight Sparkle, meaning I can't even use that source to come to base my conclusions on. So please, Applejack, tell me: how am I to know you?"

Applejack and Gamma stood in silence for a long moment. Applejack took off her hat, setting it on top of her bags, then pushed them aside so that she could face Gamma directly. "I don't know," she said. "Not enough time to know me right. But I will tell you why I am sad. I am sad because I have no home. I have no family. I had a sister, a brother, a grandmother, and many, many cousins. Now? Now I am alone. Rainbow Dash is my friend, and maybe I will make new ones like Star Fall, but they are not family. It hurts. It always hurts."

Gamma tilted her head to the side, her dark blue eyes seeming to find a new light to shine with. "Honest, indeed. If you had the chance to get back to them, back to your family, would you take it?"

"Yes."

"Of course. What if that chance came at the cost of Agent Dash, or Agent Fall?"

Applejack shook her head. "You really do not know me. I would want it, yes, but I will never give up my friends. Not even for that."

"What if your friends weren't on the line? What if all that was required was that you do nothing while Max Cash took the Element of Generosity? No one would be hurt, all you would have to do is stand there, and you could see your family again. Would you?"

Applejack gave the idea all the thought it deserved, snorting. "No. Rainbow Dash says he's bad, that him getting the Elements is bad. That's good enough for me."

Gamma nodded. "Will you fight?"

"If I have to."

"Yes. I believe that," Gamma stepped back, her shoulders slumping as she relaxed. "Is your grief going to be a problem? Will you be able to handle it?"

Applejack considered that for a moment. "My family, they had good lives, right?"

"Yes," Gamma said. "And supposedly you did as well, alongside them."

Applejack nodded. "Well, then. I may not remember it, but a good life is a good life. I'll be fine."

"And on that, I think I can trust you," Gamma said, turning to leave. "I believe I know you a little better now, Miss Applejack."

"Hold on," Applejack said, making her pause. "It isn't really fair, you getting to know me without me getting to know you."

"Your grasp of Solar is improving at a fantastic pace," Gamma noted. "Even during this conversation."

"I am aware," Applejack said. "And don't change the subject. You heard somethin' about me, I want somethin' about you."

"And what makes you think you have any right to demand that?" Gamma asked, though there was no heat in her voice.

"Common courtesy," Applejack replied.

Gamma let out a snort that was almost a chuckle. "Fair enough. Would you like to hear about my family?"

"No, I don't think they're as important to you as mine is to me," Applejack said. "How about that scar?" Gamma raised a hoof to the scarf around her neck. "How'd that happen?"

Gamma touched the scarf, gingerly tracing the twisted marks underneath. "Twenty years ago I was a spy in the Republics. I was caught. The usual punishment for such crimes is execution by hanging."

Applejack winced. "How'd you survive?"

"Nightmare Umbra," Gamma said, her voice holding a slight shake as she said the name. "Though I don't think saving my life was her intention."

Applejack absorbed this and nodded. "Dash says she's coming back."

"That's one of the things I'm afraid of," Gamma said. "She is a threat to the Kingdom, to the whole world. But what is worrying me more is that the mission where I got this scar, the mission where I encountered the Destroyer, is the same one that I first heard the name 'Max Cash', and I can't help but think this is all connected."

"I'd like to hear that story," Applejack said.

"It's classified," Gamma said, but her lips twitched up in a smile. "Make it back with my Agents safe and sound, and I'll tell it to you anyway."

"I'll do my best," Applejack promised her.

"Good. Now, I have to be on the transport when it leaves, and I believe that Agents Fall and Dash are waiting for you outside. The quicker you start, the better. You have a long way to run."

"That I do," Applejack said. She slung the bags over her back, and thanked Gamma when the unicorn used her magic to cinch them tight. She picked up her hat and turned back to the spymaster. "I can't see us ever bein' good friends," she said. "But no one ever said that the 'good' part was the important one."

"I will consider it," Gamma replied, though her expression was unreadable.

Applejack accepted it with a nod and placed her hat securely on her head, trotting out of the room and down to the training field. Rainbow Dash and Star Fall were both waiting for her in the middle of the track she'd been hauling multi-ton weights around earlier, each wearing their own bags. Star Fall looked pensive while Dash was zipping around impatiently.

"There you are!" Dash cried, flying up to Applejack in a rainbow blur. "What took you so long?"

"Talked with Gamma," Applejack replied in Solar, walking towards where Star Fall waited.

"Oh, man, how'd that go?" Dash asked, dropping to the ground and walking next to her.

"Good," Applejack said. "She's not a bad pony."

"Nope. Kinda scary, though," Dash said. "You gonna stay talking Solar?"

Applejack nodded. "Got a lot better as I was talking to her. I think the more I use it, the faster I get good."

"Makes sense," Dash said. "Hey, Star! You ready to go?"

"I am," Star Fall replied. "How about you, Applejack?"

"I'm good," Applejack said. "Ready for a lot of runnin'."

Star Fall paused, her face scrunching up as she squinted at Applejack. "Was that an accent?"

"Suppose so," Applejack said, shrugging.

Star Fall rubbed at her head. "Impossible," she muttered, but shook it off. "Okay, Dash and I can fly pretty straight, but you're going to have to move with the land, Applejack. I've sketched out a quick route here." She pulled a map from her bag, spreading it in front of her. A long, snaking line had been drawn from a city to a range of mountains near the northern edge of the map. There were little red 'x's drawn at points along the map. "These are, I've been told, good rest points," Star Fall said, pointing to the markings. "If we go at a steady pace we'll be stopping approximately every two hours to eat and rest. Whatever stop we make it to when night falls is the one we're making camp at. Is that going to be alright with you?" Applejack nodded. "Good, this one's your copy. I know you can't read it, but the terrain features should be good enough to navigate by."

"I know my way around a map," Applejack said.

"If you get lost or in trouble, use the signal crystal and we'll come and get you," Star Fall continued, pulling out her own crystal-in-a-jar for illustration. "If you can't keep up and have to stop following try to make it to one of the towns. There's a military identification in your bag. Show it to town officials and it will get you to a communication crystal to call Gamma and arrange a pickup, as well as food and shelter."

"AJ'll keep up," Dash said.

"If she doesn't then we can't wait for her," Star Fall said, giving Dash a pointed look.

"She'll keep up," Dash repeated with a cocky smirk.

Star Fall sighed, folding up the map and giving it to Applejack. "Fine. Do you have any questions?"

"Nope," Applejack said, securing the map in her bags. "Just let me get set up and we can set off."

"No time," Dash said, lifting off and hovering above their heads. "Star, we're going now, Applejack will catch up."

"Now come on, Rainbow Dash," Applejack said, frowning at her friend. "Not all of us can just flap our wings and get going. It ain't so simple for the rest of us. It'll take me a minute or two to get my speed up."

"We've already taken too long," Dash said. "Cash could be getting to Spike's at any moment, we can't waste more time!"

"Dash, a few minutes won't–"

"It's okay," Applejack said, cutting Star Fall off. "Go. I'll catch up. In fact, I bet I make it to the first rest stop before you do."

Dash narrowed her eyes. "Are you challenging me to a race?"

"Nope," Applejack said, letting out a cocky smile of her own. "I'm challenging Star Fall. I suppose if you kept to her pace I'd be challenging you too, but, nah, that'd be too hard for you."

"Oh no you don't!" Dash cried, poking a hoof at Applejack's nose. "You want me to have a handicap? Fine, I'll fly slow and still beat you there!"

"Really? Well you should get to flappin' then, shouldn't you?" Dash grinned and took off towards the forest north of the base, but Star Fall stayed, watching Applejack. "You go too," Applejack told her. "Go on. I might not be able to honestly win this race, but I won't be far behind."

"See you there," Star Fall said, then leapt into the air and followed Rainbow Dash towards the trees.

"Really, expectin' an earth pony to just start movin' like that," Applejack snorted. She trotted off the training grounds, past the track and to the wild field that led up to the forest. She stopped a little ways from the base, finding a place where the soil was loose and the grass fresh. Then she took in a deep breath that made the straps on her saddlebags creak and slowly let it out. She wiggled her hooves, digging them into the dirt until they were sunk to an inch beneath the surface.

She stood with her eyes closed, her hooves dug into the loam and her head dipped low. She could smell the earth, could practically taste the life growing through it. She dug deep with her senses, feeling the rock beneath the soil, tasting the water that ran through underground rivers. She could hear the singing of the metal ores that stretched in veins throughout the world, and beneath their song came the feather-light whispers of the rarer elements that hid in pockets amidst the crushing pressures of the stone. Further down, beneath the deepest bedrock, she could feel the fiery heart of the world take another shuddering beat.

"Howdy, there," she whispered, letting the feelings behind her words sink through her hooves into the sleeping world below. "I’m gonna need a little help with this one." There was a subtle tremble in the ground, barely enough to be felt, but she felt it all the same. Applejack smiled. "Thank you kindly," she said, tipping her hat to the ground, and called to the earth.

The earth answered her with power, giving its vast spirit to her need. She gathered it to herself. She drew up the heat of the world's core and set it in her heart. She took the strength of the stone and filled her bones with it. She drew up the song of metal and wove it into her muscles. She let the water of the rivers quench her thirst and the steady presence of the soil guide her hooves. It wasn't anything she could describe, nothing a unicorn would recognize, but it was magic, and she'd been doing it her entire life.

Finally, she took a deep breath. She breathed in the smell of grass, of trees and flowers and all the growing things of the world. She took it all into her and let it fill her blood with the effervescent energy of life itself. When she let the breath out the earth rolled in a wave that spread out from her. In its wake the grass was brighter, the trees spread new leaves and flowers bloomed, turning to face the earth pony who had awakened them.

This was her power, the strength of an earth pony. The pegasi could rule the skies and the unicorns could move the stars, but the earth was theirs. The earth was hers.

Her first step shook the ground like an earthquake, knocking ponies from their hooves and rattling the towers of the base. Her second step boomed across the ground with no less force, but she was focusing now, putting her gathered power to a purpose. She walked forward, each step shaking windows in their frames. Then she stepped up to a trot, and the world shook a little less. Then a canter, and the rumble of her passage only shook loose leaves from the trees. Then, with the suddenness of an earthquake and the force of an erupting volcano, she shot forward into a full-on gallop.

She rushed into the forest with the force of a locomotive, each beat of her hooves resounding through the earth. She could feel the path ahead of her, the raised bumps of tree roots and the deceptive hollows of animal dens, as clearly as if she had walked these woods a thousand times. She was already moving at a blinding pace, and she only accelerated as she weaved through the trees. She ducked under branches and leapt fallen logs. She rushed across a shallow stream so fast that the water sprayed up to either side of her in sparkling waves. Animals dodged out of her way, yet they were also drawn to her, and the eyes of beasts both large and small lined her path, watching her passage with wild interest.

She burst out of the woods and into the fields beyond, picking up even more speed as she spotted the pegasi ahead of her. She saw Rainbow Dash look back and let out a gleeful cry, and Applejack couldn't help but let out a joyful shout of her own. She might be stuck in the future, she might miss her family fiercely, but there was still joy to life, and friends to save. She lowered her head and set herself to running. It was time for adventure.

***

Lieutenant Hard Boiled opened the last drawer in his desk, the one that had held the Cash files and the crystal he'd used to contact Straff. Both were gone, but in their place was a note that said 'For safe keeping -T'. HB cursed softly and shoved the drawer shut. "Cloak and dagger," he muttered to himself, eyeing the rest of his desk. It was bare, most of the papers and files having been moved to the care of other detectives. A small box on the ground held all of the few personal effects he had kept at work.

He was just preparing to get up and leave when he saw the burnt-orange form of his captain heading his way. HB settled back into his chair, knowing that he wasn't going to get away so easily.

He and Captain Gerald Rivers went back quite a ways. They had served together for years before making detective and moving up in the ranks. Gerald had always been good at the politics of police work, and had advanced quickly because of it. When given command of the Special Investigations Unit he'd quickly offered HB a position there, leveraging their old friendship into scoring a departmental coup and getting the best investigator in the force on his team.

"You," Gerald snapped as he stepped into HB's office, shutting the door behind him with his magic. "What the hell is this?" He slapped a signed paper form down on HB's desk.

HB leaned forward and took a look at the page. "It's my acceptance of two weeks of voluntary leave after an injury on the job," he replied.

"And you expect me to believe this?" Gerald asked. "After you sneak out of your hospital bed to harass a Senator?" He shook his head. "What do you think you're doing?

"I was conducting a murder investigation, Captain," HB replied, sliding the paper back towards the captain.

"It's not just a murder investigation," the captain growled. "You questioned a Senator, HB! You questioned him off the record! Which you damn well know means that even if he did tell you something it would be inadmissible. Now whatever you said to him has got him pissed off and looking for blood. His goons and lawyers have been snooping around and demanding answers, of which I have none to give! They've been talking about launching an investigation into this department because of it!" Gerald slid a chair up to the desk and sat down facing HB, dropping his voice. "This is serious, HB. What you've done has got all the wrong eyes pointing at my unit, and you in particular. It's getting attention, and you know how badly that always goes. Some of the higher ups have petitioned to have you suspended."

HB leaned back, giving his old friend and superior officer as blank a look as he could manage. "And how did that turn out?"

The captain grunted. "No suspension. A bullshit statement about how the central police command 'has faith in the methods and integrity of one of their most celebrated detectives'."

"Most celebrated, huh?" HB snorted out a laugh. "That was nice of them."

"It's true enough," the captain allowed. "But central only uses flowery bullshit like that when they've been told to play nice by someone they have to answer to. Since the other side of this thing is a Luna-damned Senator I have no idea who you've got in your corner, but I sure as hell want to find out before my department becomes the center of a government turf war. So tell me, HB, as a friend. What the hell is going on?"

"Ger, I don't like to lie, you know that," HB said.

"I know. That's why I'm asking you straight out," the captain said, then he spotted the steady look HB was giving him. "And that was your answer, wasn't it? You're just not going to tell me."

"I wish I could," HB said, sitting up and laying his forehooves on the desk. "You have no idea how aggravating this whole thing is. I can't tell you more than what you already know, but I can tell you that I am working on solving this case. It's just bigger than it looks."

The captain shook his head and turned away. "When did you get involved in this crap, huh? You used to be the most dependable cop I'd ever met, now you're working for something that can override a Senator? Getting attacked in libraries and carrying around your gun?" He gave a pointed look to the pistol holstered at HB's side. "This isn't you, HB. You're not the shadowy type. Leave this bullshit to the Changelings."

"No I'm not," HB agreed. "But it's got to be done, and the bugs have their hooves full already. You heard about the Stile Islands, right?"

"It's just more Sunland posturing," the captain said, waving the comment away. "And don't change the subject. You're in deep, HB. If you stay down where you are right now, I can't help you when it starts to go bad."

HB was quiet for a long moment, thinking it over. In the end, he knew Gerald was right. He was in way too deep, and it was going to start crushing him eventually. For now, though, he had a job to do, and he intended to see it through. "There is something you can do for me, Captain," he said, tapping a hoof on the paper. "Approve that vacation request."

"Vacation my ass," Gerald grunted. "You're chasing down a lead and you don't want it on the record."

"I am, and I don't," HB admitted. "But this is way outside Orion City jurisdiction. I need to do this unofficially."

"Like your visit with the Senator?"

"Exactly like that, yes."

Gerald shook his head again. "You're gonna give me an aneurysm, HB. Fine, vacation approved. I'll get Barry to cover your current cases until you get back."

"Already asked him to," HB said, smiling at the older pony. "Thanks, Ger."

"Just come back in one piece," the captain grumbled before getting up and leaving the office.

Barry snuck in just as the door was closing behind the captain. "Hey, the boss give you an earful?"

"He's just worried," HB replied. "This investigation's kicking up a lot of dirt, it's making the waters murky and no captain likes it when that happens."

"But you’re actually taking the injury leave?" Barry asked. "I thought you were going to stick this one out."

"I am," HB said. "Barry, I've got a lead, but it'll take me out of the city. A long way out."

Barry's eyes widened. "The Senator?"

"Doesn't know about it," HB said. "And I want it kept that way. No itinerary, no travel plans. Just a cop on vacation."

"But you've actually got a lead?"

"I actually do," HB confirmed. "It's not for certain, but if I do find what I think I will, well, this case might just crack wide open."

"Wish I could come with you."

HB shook his head. "Need you here, if my lead doesn't pan out I want you looking into the local angles. Work the case, find the connections. Investigate Bay's people, his friends, his family, the whole works. But be careful. I don't want you ending up with a knife in your back too."

"Hey, don't worry," Barry said. "People are a lot less nervous when I'm on a case." HB snorted. "I'll stick to the gruntwork. Information gathering. When you get back, maybe you can figure it out." Barry turned to go.

"Hey," HB said, bringing the other pony up short. "You're doing good work here, Barry. The stuff you came up with from the college, everything you ran down for me when I was in the hospital, all good detective work."

Barry smiled, seeming surprised. "Thank you, sir. I don't get compliments like that often."

"Well, you deserve it this time," HB said. "I underestimated your skills before, I'm sorry for that."

"It's okay," Barry said. "A lot of people underestimate me. But in the end, I always show them." HB frowned at the bitterness he heard, uncharacteristic of the other detective. "I won't let you down, Lieutenant, you'll see," Barry finished, grinning.

"I know you won't," HB said. "Now, I've got a vacation to start. You've got all the files you'll need?"

Barry nodded. "Everything on the Bay murder."

"Then I leave it all in your capable hooves. See you in two weeks."

HB left the office without any fanfare, slipping past well-wishers and curious ponies to the lamp-lit streets. The trip from the station to his apartment went swiftly, but not completely without incident. He spotted the pony following him almost as soon as he left the station, his magic notifying him of their attempt to be surreptitious. After catching a glimpse of his pursuer he recognized him as a local private detective of the sleazy-but-legitimate variety. That meant he was likely hired by Senator Birchfield and not sent by Max Cash. After the attack in the library, he doubted he'd recognize the face or Glyph of any assassin Cash sent after him.

Still, he made sure his gun was loose in its holster, ready for his magic to draw it at a moment's notice.

He didn't bother trying to lose the tail. He wasn't going to be doing anything unexpected, so making the private eye suspicious would just lead to more headaches. When he arrived at his apartment he noted how the detective walked past him as if he was just out for a stroll, but in the revealing glow of his magic he could see the camera in the window of a building across the street, pointed at his living room.

HB shook his head and headed up to his apartment. It wasn't a very large place, but it also wasn't as small as most. He'd gotten a good deal on the rent after helping the landlord legally evict some bad tenants, and he hadn't once regretted it.

The door was locked as usual, but something about it made his horn throb with a dull, insistent ache when he used his magic to open it. He paused for a second, then pushed into the apartment. It was very dark inside, the curtains pulled closed. He hadn't left the apartment that way. His horn was still lit up from opening the door, providing some light, and he used his telekinesis to carry his keys in front of him while also quietly lifting his pistol out of its holster.

He called on his Talent as the door shut behind him, letting his magic run at full blast. Details leapt out at him: a rug that slightly out of place, two picture frames showing the faint traces of a hoofprint smaller than his own. There was a smell in the air, a faint perfume that almost, but didn't quite cover up an unidentifiable odor beneath it.

He walked as casually as he could manage into the apartment, then tossed his keys over his shoulder. There was a soft cry as they hit the intruder who had been skulking in a corner that had been blocked by the open door. HB spun, whipping his pistol out and training it on the intruder while stepping away so as to avoid having the weapon knocked away from him. His magic flicked on a floor lamp. "Step into the light!" he commanded.

"Nice work," the intruder said, her voice like smooth silk, carrying a lilting, sultry edge. She stepped forward, a yellow mare who smiled at him with lascivious intent. "Straff is asking for an update."

HB's horn flared copper, almost glowing brighter than the lamplight. "State your identity and your intentions clearly and unambiguously."

She paused, frowning at him. "Please, Lieutenant, you know who I am. There's no need for games."

"I will not ask again," HB replied, putting enough pressure on the trigger of his pistol to have it slowly draw back.

She stared at him for a long moment before nodding. "Good. My name is Traduce, I am the chief assistant to Director Straff of the RIA. You first met me in a car outside of Senator Birchfield's estate. I am here on orders from Straff to get a status update and offer my assistance."

He narrowed his eyes. "There's more. What else?"

"And, I intend to seduce you," she replied, her eyes flaring with a bright green inner light.

HB stared at her for a long moment before he lowered his pistol. “You've been to my office," he said.

"I can't have any other detective discovering your RIA connections," Traduce said, taking a slow step towards him. She glanced at his pistol. "Aren't you going to put that away?"

"I'll consider it," HB growled, then turned and walked into his small kitchen. "Is this how it's going to go? You lurking in my apartment, waiting for me to come home and nearly getting shot?"

"There are other ways," Traduce said. "None nearly as fun." HB grunted at that, pulling out a glass and pouring a small drink. Traduce raised an eyebrow at him. "Aren't you going to offer me one?" she asked with a coy smile.

"No," HB replied, opening one of the cupboards and pulling out three bottles of pills. He removed two pills from each bottle and began to swallow them one after another. "I only offer drinks to guests, and I believe you're here on business."

Traduce gave him an acknowledging tilt of her head, her smile never faltering for an instant. "As I said, Straff wants an update."

"I'm on vacation," HB said. "And I'm heading south. I'm going to investigate that crash site I told you two about."

"On your own?" Traduce asked, walking over to his couch.

"I don't see anyone else lining up to volunteer for it," HB said.

"You do now," Traduce said.

HB gave her a flat look. "You're coming with me?"

"I am," she confirmed, laying down on his couch in a way clearly designed to be provocative.

He closed his eyes and looked away. "Please stop that."

"Am I making you uncomfortable?" she asked, and he didn't need his magic to see that she was enjoying the thought.

"Yes," he said. "Now stop it."

"Straff thinks you need backup," she said, stretching very slightly in a way that made it clear she was going to ignore his request. "Especially if Cash's people are going to be looking for the same thing you are. He's already got you in his sights, we don't want you alone in the field. It's far too easy for a pony to disappear in the southern jungles."

"Who knows you're coming with me?"

"You, me, Straff," she replied. "That's it. We haven't found our leak yet, so that's about as far as the circle of information is allowed to extend."

"Do we have a cover story?"

"Sure we do," she grinned. "You're sleeping with me, and this is our romantic getaway."

HB shook his head. "Please don't lie to me. Not even for a joke."

"Who's joking?" she asked, laughing. "But since Straff didn't think you'd go for that one, he suggested that you've hired a bodyguard. Perhaps your brush with death has made you a little paranoid, perhaps you're just being pragmatic. Either way, I've been hired to watch your back as you do your little jungle cruise."

HB nodded. "That should do. How are you with a gun?"

"Better than you," she said. "Mouth and magic."

"Good," HB said. "Now, are you going to be able to be professional?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean it's going to be very distracting to have you twitching your tail at me for the next two weeks, and I want to know if you can keep yourself under control."

Her smile faded and she regarded him with a spark of anger in her eyes. "I've been trained from birth, Lieutenant. Trained to be whoever and whatever I need to be to complete my mission. Whatever my personal feelings, I will not be jeopardizing this one, I can promise you that. Self control is a hallmark of Republics Changelings, and I'm no exception."

HB sighed. "I don't mean to insult you," he said. "But I had to be sure."

"I'm not lying," she said, half rising. "I'm not joking. I'm not playing an angle. When I say I want to seduce you, I am expressing legitimate interest."

"I know that," HB said. "And that's the problem."

"Why?"

"Because your interest is real, but you are lying," HB said, waving a hoof to indicate all of her. "That body is just a lie you've put on to fool the world. I can tell that, and every time I look at you my horn starts to hurt. I'm sure the body you've got on is very beautiful, but I can't see it. All I see is what's wrong with it. I'm sorry, even if we weren't working together, I could never be intimate with you. It's just not going to happen."

She stared at him for a moment before shaking her head and laughing a slow, sad laugh. "Damn," she said. "It's always something."

"Is this going to be a problem?"

She shook her head again, relaxing back onto the couch. "No, just another regret. When are we leaving?"

"In the morning," he said. "I've got a spot on a bus heading down to Leo city. From there we take a boat down to the Redwater Delta and head upstream. After that it's all jungle work. Are you going to be able to get passage? I only got one ticket."

"I'll be fine," she assured him.

He regarded her position on the couch. "Aren't you going to go and make your arrangements?"

"No," she said, grinning. "Straff thinks you actually do need a bodyguard, remember? I'm going to be sticking to your side until this is all over."

"I can take care of myself."

"I'm sure. But with this place already being watched, we thought it most prudent to have assurances," she said.

HB snorted. "Well, if you're staying, then there's an extra blanket and pillow I can get you."

"I know," she said, smiling at him. "I was hoping to spend the night in your bed, but I familiarized myself with the other options just in case."

He paused, narrowing his eyes at her. "You're not going to stop, are you?"

"Sometimes you have to work for what you want," she said. "And giving up never got anyone anywhere."

"Why?" he asked, echoing her.

"Because sometimes opposites really do attract," she replied. "But I'll keep it professional for now."

"Thank you," he said, turning to his bedroom.

"Good night, Lieutenant," she called to him. "Sleep well, this is going to be a long trip."

He paused, but decided against replying. He knew that with her along for the ride, it was going to be a whole lot longer than he had expected.

***

"How's our patient this evening?" the nurse asked, prodding Astrid awake.

"Pissed off and tired of sleeping all the time," Astrid growled, looking around bleary-eyed. "What time is it?"

"I'm glad you're feeling better," the nurse said, her eyes twinkling with too much good cheer for Astrid's liking. A hospital was supposed to be a morose place where people went to be sick and die, the sight of someone who seemed to genuinely enjoy being there put her on edge. "And it's after nine. How is your head?"

Astrid took a moment to evaluate how she felt. "Like some ass is jackhammering his way out of my skull from right between my eyes."

"Any dizziness? Nausea?"

Astrid twisted her head from side to side, testing. "Nope. Just a headache."

The nurse smiled again. "Great! You should be up for some solid food! Won't that be wonderful?"

Astrid narrowed her eyes. "Is it going to be that vegetable mush or something that bleeds?"

"The mush, dear," the nurse replied, unflinching in the face of a disappointed carnivore. "Oh, don't give me that look. It's better for you until you've healed enough for meat."

"Yeah? And how long is that gonna be?"

The nurse glanced at the chart hanging from Astrid's bed. "From the look of this? I'd say you'll be dining on rabbits in a couple weeks."

Astrid swallowed. "And how long until I'll be back on duty?"

The nurse shook her head. "I wouldn't jump the gun on that one, dear. Take your time, heal fully and heal right before you try to fight any more battalions on your own."

"Battalions?" Astrid repeated, frowning. "What kind of stories have they been telling you?"

"Oh, the soldiers talk," the nurse said, laughing and waving a hoof. "You've earned yourself quite the reputation on base. I'm told you were very brave."

Astrid snorted. "Yeah, sure. Brave is good. Victorious woulda been better." Astrid watched in silence as the nurse checked over her bandages and the wires holding her wings outstretched. As the nurse was finishing her inspection she decided to speak up. "I guess Fall's already left, huh?"

"Your friend? Yes, that earth pony who left with her made quite a stir. She rattled the windows."

"Really? She do some crazy super-thing?"

The nurse shook her head, her eyes going distant. "No, she just... I don't know how to describe it. I think you'd have to be an earth pony to understand. Anyway, there was a lot of rushing around, but since the transport left everything's been quiet. Which is better for you."

"What if I don't want quiet?"

"Then you can always turn on the TV," the nurse pointed out.

Astrid slumped, grumbling. "A few weeks, huh?"

"So long as you get plenty of rest and keep up a positive attitude," the nurse said, practically glowing with enthusiasm. "Why, a big, strong warrior like you? I bet you'll surprise us all and be out of that bed in a week and a half!"

Astrid felt her heart speed up at that. A week and a half, just to get out of the bed. She clenched her claw, taking slow breaths. "And that's good?"

"For your injuries? That's very good indeed."

"Right," Astrid said, her voice barely above a whisper. "Doing good. Just wait out my time, get healed, then I'm back in the fight. Nothing else for it. Nothing." She squeezed her eyes shut.

The nurse started humming brightly to herself as she checked the medication that was being dripped into Astrid's bloodstream.

"Yeah, screw this noise," Astrid said, opening her eyes and locking them onto the nurse.

"Sorry, was the humming bothering you?"

"No. Getting knifed by a bitch I had dead to rights not ten minutes earlier bothers me. Knowing that my best friend, the pony I have sworn my life to protect, is flying headlong into danger without me, that bothers me. This pathetic rock hard excuse for a pillow bothers me. These fucking wing casts bother me. The humming? That I'm fine with."

"Oh, well, just bear with it, dear. By the time it's all healed it won't seem so bad."

"Sorry, but that shit's not going to fly with me until I'm flying myself," Astrid said. "Get me a healer."

The nurse paused, the pleasant gleam dulling for the first time. "A doctor, dear? Are you feeling any new pain?"

"Sure, I just gutted my own survival instinct and it fucking stings," Astrid snarked. "And I didn't say doctor. I want a healer. A full-on Healing Talent unicorn."

The nurse frowned. "That's a very dangerous avenue to take," she cautioned. "I can tell you right now that the doctors are not going to recommend it."

"Yeah, got the message loud and clear," Astrid said, pressing her good claw to her forehead and wincing. "But it's like this: I heal up nice, safe and natural and it'll take me weeks just to get moving, and then a lot longer to be back in fighting shape, right?" The nurse nodded. "How about if I do it the other way? How quick am I back up then?"

"I'm not a doctor," the nurse said.

"But you've got experience. I can tell by the way you're looking at me that you've got an answer, you just don't want to give it. I want to hear that answer, and I promise that I'm not going to hold you to it. So spill."

The nurse held Astrid's gaze for a long moment before answering. "If the healer does their job right? You'll be out of the bed in a couple days, and back to your pre-injury condition within the week. If they do their job wrong..."

"Yeah, I know. How likely are they to screw it up?"

"The healers we have on base are very good," the nurse began.

"But..." Astrid prompted.

"But they usually treat minor injuries. Cuts and scrapes and bruises. You took serious wounds. Your lung was punctured, your wings broken quite near the joint. Those are delicate things to heal, and letting your own body do it at its own pace really is the best thing. As I said, the healers we have are very good, but for injuries like yours there's a lot they would have to keep track of, and a lot of places for them to make mistakes. And when a healer makes a mistake you don't notice it right away. Everything will look perfect right up until the bone cancer starts or your body tries to grow a third lung."

"How long will that take to show?"

She shook her head. "There's no timetable. If you take magical healing you live the rest of your life knowing that the side-effects can appear at any time."

Astrid favored her with a raptor's grin. "In my clan we've got a saying: life'll gut you eventually, so dig your talons in while you've got the chance."

"I take that to mean you'll be ignoring my advice, as well as the advice of every doctor who's going to tell you not to do this," the nurse surmised.

"Bingo."

"Well then," the nurse said, regaining her glowing smile. "I'll talk to the doctors and we'll get you a healer."

"Thanks," Astrid said, laying her head back down. "Oh, and a better pillow!" she called out after the retreating nurse. "And food that can try to get away! Vegetable mush, seriously?"

***

Rainbow Dash settled down on the sparse bedding of leaves and grass that she had put together. The fire was down to a few glowing coals, but the starlight alone was enough for her to see her companions lying on their own beds.

Star Fall was dead asleep, her wings twitching from the exertion she had put them through. Dash was proud of her for pushing the pace more than she should have, but they would have to take it a little slower the next day to let her compensate, and that delay galled.

Applejack was asleep as well, though she showed no signs of the fatigue that wracked Star Fall. The farmer had caught up and kept up, just like Dash had expected. She'd be able to make it all the way to Spike's place just fine.

At that thought Dash rolled onto her back, staring up at the starry sky. She would be asleep herself soon enough, but for this moment she was alone with the night. The moon was low on the horizon barely visible through the trees around them, but she found it easily.

"Hey, Princess Luna," Dash said. "So, uh, I'm trying this prayer thing again. I don't know if you had anything to do with Applejack being here, but, uh, thanks, I guess? Anyways, if you hear this, and if you have any way to help out, I'd really like it if we could get to Spike before Cash does. If he does anything to Spike and you could have helped us stop it... well, okay, I'll be really mad with you. I was going to try a threat there, but, yeah. Kinda dumb, huh?"

She sighed. "Look, I still suck at this, okay? Just, if you can do anything, anything at all, please help us. If you do, I'll call us, um, partly even, okay? Like, half-even. Anyways, just help us. Just, please, let Spike be okay."

The moon crested the trees, silvery half-light falling over the camp. "I hope that was a sign or something," Dash said. "Uh, thanks for listening again, Princess. I, um, hope you're okay too?" Dash shook her head, rolling onto her side and curling up. "Just be okay, Spike," she whispered into the night, letting sleep close her eyes and slow her breathing. "We're coming."

Chapter 20: Generosity

Element and Bearer together create a kind of circuit. Energy flows between the two, from Element to Bearer and from Bearer to Element. This is not precisely analogous to electrical or magical current, and the metaphor will break down, but for simplicity’s sake I will continue using it.

The energy that flows in this circuit is generated both in the Element itself and in the Bearer, and can be characterized as self-feeding. As the Bearer increases the amount of energy they put into the circuit, the Element will naturally increase its own energy output to match. Since the Bearer gains the energy the Element gives them, they then have more to put into their end of the circuit, causing the Element to increase its output, and so on. In such a way a Bearer and their Element can generate enormous amounts of power. This power is then used for the Activated abilities that the Element grants its Bearer.

This is not an automatic process on the Bearer’s side. They must put effort and will into increasing their own energy contribution, though they need not be precisely aware that this is what they are doing. Normally this is not a problem, the Bearer only increases their energy output when they need to accomplish something. The danger is if the Element increases its own output without a corresponding increase from the Bearer. In this case the energy the Bearer is receiving is not equivalent to what they are outputting. The energy builds in their system without release and will eventually cause serious issues for the Bearer.

This is a danger because the Elements are not stable power sources. They fluctuate randomly, and sometimes to great degrees. Worse yet, after these fluctuations they do not return to their original baseline, but to a new level that is invariably at a higher energy output than they were before. Thus the burden on the Bearer will only ever increase with time.

-From the fifth section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Twenty: Generosity

Twinkle Shine strode down the palace hallway, nodding to guards and courtiers as she passed by. She didn’t pay much attention to them, though. She was occupied with mentally preparing herself for the coming conversation with the King. She needed to get away from him and her palace duties to find Rainbow Dash and Applejack, but with tensions on each side of the Storm skyrocketing, and all the other crises that had dropped on them recently, she knew the King would be reluctant to let her go for any length of time. As such, it was critical that she be able to convince him that it was necessary.

And it was necessary. She had a plan, and if it all went well then she would be solving several problems at once.

She came up to the King's private study, nodding to the two Griffins flanking the door. "Do I need to be announced?" she asked them.

One of the Griffins speared her with his gaze. Had she been a courtier or servant he probably would have frisked her for weapons, but as chief advisor to the Crown she wore no clothing, and couldn't conceal so much as a penknife. Besides, her horn was the most dangerous weapon she could wield, and he couldn't take that from her easily or safely. "No, his Majesty has instructed that you are to be let in immediately."

Twinkle Shine quirked an eyebrow. "Is the Queen with him?"

"No, but Prince Stature is currently in audience."

"Regal?" Twinkle Shine thought about that for a moment. Then she thanked the guard and entered the study.

She heard the King's voice as soon as the door was open. He sounded excited, almost gleeful. "You must spend more time with her," he was saying. "I'm ashamed I haven't provided this opportunity earlier."

The study was actually a suite of rooms, each connected via open archways. Books, maps and the trophies of past royals decorated the walls. Several comfortable chairs and a pair of writing desks were scattered throughout the first room, each with an attendant floor lamp so the King could read at his leisure any time of the day or night. She moved past them, heading towards the adjoining room that she heard the voices coming from.

"Of course, father," Regal replied. He sounded much as his father did, though his voice had not yet fully deepened. Twinkle Shine imagined that once he was fully grown it would be impossible to tell the two apart by sound alone. "I am quite looking forward to spending more time with her. She is the pre-eminent Magic Talent of our times, after all."

"She's more than that, Regal," the King admonished. "She's to be your mother-in-law. Trust me when I say that makes her much more important to you than what her Talent is."

"You would know, your majesty," Twinkle Shine said as she entered the room. This one was traditionally referred to as the smoking room, though no royal had smoked for generations. A billiards table had been set up in the middle of it, and father and son had apparently been enjoying a friendly game, their cues floating in the glow of their magic by their sides. "If I recall, your mother-in-law put you to quite the gruelling test when you accepted your wife's proposal."

"As I recall, dear Professor, it was thanks to you that I eventually passed that 'test'," the King said, smiling widely. "It pleases me greatly to see you looking hale again. After the last week I was worried there would always be bags under your eyes."

"Your wife was quite insistent that I rest," Twinkle Shine said. "And, as always, I am at the service of the Crown." She turned to the Prince, bowing slightly. "Your Highness. It's good to see you again, and I will be quite pleased to get to know you better."

"Professor, are you coming around finally?" the King asked.

"Hardly so," Twinkle Shine replied. "I just know when to accept what will be. And besides, I have many other reasons to want to know this fine young stallion."

"Professor!" the prince said, his own smile sheepish, but just as wide as that of his sire. "Would you like to join us in a game?" He gestured towards the table. Regal Stature was taller than his father, though still gangly with youth and several years from filling out to his muscular potential. His coat was a subtle shade of blue that looked white until he was out in the sun, at which point he gleamed like a gem. His mane was a thick and wild tangle of blue and purple curls that had frustrated many a royal stylist over the years. His horn was a beautiful spiral that darkened to a midnight blue towards its tip, just as the feathers on his wings darkened towards their trailing edge. A pair of amethyst eyes and a Glyph of three blue stars completed the look that had likely driven many a royal-obsessed filly to swoon at every picture of him that appeared in papers and on television. He was, in short, a handsome stallion even by the high standards of the royal family, and sure to become more so as time added age and wisdom to him.

The King laughed. "My son, a piece of advice: never play the Professor in any sort of game where she can use her magic or her mind. She will beat you every time."

"And I'm afraid I have urgent matters to discuss with your father," Twinkle Shine added. "Though I'll be sure to give you a chance to test his opinion of me at a later time."

"Ah, straight to business," the King sighed. "Very well, has there been any word from Gamma? No, Regal, stay," he called to his son as the Prince went to leave. "You are old enough to participate, and you must know of what is happening in our Kingdom if you are to one day rule it."

Twinkle Shine kept herself from narrowing her eyes with the practice of long years. Regal, however, was caught off guard, his mouth hanging open for a long moment before he closed it with an audible click. "Of course, father. Thank you."

"Good. Professor, continue."

"Gamma has reported from Precious Corners," Twinkle Shine began, careful to show no sign that the King's statement had unnerved her in any way. Regal Stature was third in line for the throne, after his elder sister and brother. Both of whom had proven themselves able statesponies and capable commanders. What the King had just done was tantamount to leapfrogging his youngest over their heads. Civil wars had started over less. "She says that there was definitely a Changeling there, but also that there is evidence of a third party causing most of the disturbance. She suspects Max Cash, and apparently has evidence to support it. Not solid evidence, but enough to convince her."

The King mused on this for a moment, his expression turning to a pensive frown. "But she is certain there was a Changeling?" Twinkle Shine nodded. "Then this is still an attack on our Kingdom by the Republics," he declared. "One they must answer for."

"I advise caution, your Majesty," Twinkle Shine said. "The Changeling could be working for Cash, or there could be something else at work that we do not see. We should not take it as carte blanche to start making rash decisions."

"Decisions such as invading the nightlands?" the King asked with a wry smile.

"Exactly those decisions, yes," Twinkle Shine replied.

"Ha! You are becoming predictable, Professor," the King said with a renewed grin. "Or is this just you and Aqua trying to counterbalance my hot head?"

"I would think it's a bit of both, your Majesty," Twinkle Shine allowed.

"Well, fear not. I am reaching the end of my patience with the Republics and their Senate, but patience is something a true ruler must cultivate even when it aggravates him to do so. Remember that, Regal. War is always the harshest of choices, never resort to it quickly or easily."

"I will, father," the Prince dutifully replied, though his eyes held a question directed at the Professor.

She couldn't parse that question out, so she ignored it for the moment. "Gamma is going to be in Precious Corners for the next two days. After that she will be taking the transport north to pick up my student and our, ah, visitors."

"You mean the heroes come back from the dead?" Regal Stature asked, eyes wide and eager.

Twinkle Shine was slightly taken aback by the prince's knowledge, and his lack of discretion with the news, but she was far too good at the courtiers’ game to let it show. "Yes. And, actually, what I really wanted to discuss deals with them."

"Professor, have you been continuing your research into them?" the King asked. She nodded slowly. "Aqua told me that was the cause of your collapse. I cannot afford to lose you, and I cannot allow you to continue any line of inquiry that would leave you so injured."

"I am not pursuing the source of their magic," Twinkle Shine assured him. "I know that door is closed to me. Instead, I have been taking a more tangential approach. I believe I have found something which will finally lead to some answers."

"You have? Wonderful news. Quickly, tell us what you have found! I am eager to know more about our returned heroes."

Twinkle Shine nodded. "As you wish, your Majesty. In the spare time I've had over the past few days I have been researching these 'Elements of Harmony' that the, ah, heroes speak of. There are no references to them, or to the heroes ever wielding something like them. I've scoured the palace library, as well as the one at the university, and have come up blank."

"Yes, you told me about your difficulties before," the King mused. "But now you've found something?"

"Not directly. I was thinking on some things that Rainbow Dash said when I was examining her. She mentioned that she used these Elements against Nightmare Moon. Exhausting any search for the Elements directly, I have begun looking for oblique references, and I believe I have found one in the story of Nightmare Moon."

"I don't remember that story very well," the King said, tapping a hoof on his chin. "Regal, do you know it?"

"I do," the Prince said. His voice took on an almost lecturing tone that was would have been wholly alien to his father, but somehow worked for him. "I've been studying the lives of the heroes since you told me they had returned, and this story is mentioned a few times. Nightmare Moon was an ancient spirit of evil, a creature of the night who would travel the lands once Celestia's light was hidden and devour lost children or the unwary. It is said that she hated the day, and that she sought to usurp the sky and bring about an eternal night where she could roam and feed without fear of the cleansing sun."

"What the legends about her do not usually say is that she was supposedly defeated by the heroes. The first of many evils they faced," Twinkle Shine pointed out. "Twilight Sparkle rarely talks about what happened in her writings, but whenever she mentions Nightmare Moon it is in the past tense, as a creature who no longer exists. What we can be sure of is that this incident is what took six disparate ponies and forged them into a team of heroes who would be credited with saving Equestria and the world time and time again. This is what is known. What interests me is that Rainbow Dash spoke of Nightmare Moon, and said that she had been an Alicorn. A Goddess they defeated with the Elements of Harmony."

"Fascinating," the King said. "But what have you found, Professor? What has excited you about this?"

"I don't know yet, your majesty. What I do know is that this opens a line of inquiry for me. We don't have wide stores of old legends like that here. A Pre-Schism relic of a tale even less. But Nightmare Moon? I know a place that has a comprehensive set of tales concerning her."

"The Temple of Luna!" Prince Stature cried out. "They've been collecting tales about creatures of the night for hundreds of years!"

"Exactly," Twinkle Shine said. "I got a message to them earlier, and they confirmed it. They have ten volumes of legends concerning Nightmare Moon, and other creatures that are probably the same being under different names."

"Will these be useful to you?" the King asked.

"Absolutely," Twinkle Shine replied, filling her voice with as much conviction as she could manage without seeming cartoonish. This was the crux of it. She needed him to accept this part for her plan to work. "Not only are these important to my search for the Elements of Harmony and the truth of these returned heroes, but if Nightmare Moon truly was an Alicorn then she might be connected to the Destroyer. The secret to combating the Shadowed Alicorn might be there, under our noses this whole time."

The gleam in his eye told her she'd hooked him. "Truly? You have found her weakness?"

"No," she said. "Nothing is for sure yet, but I must get those volumes. I must learn everything I can from them."

"Excellent. When will they arrive?" The King leaned over the billiards table, heedlessly knocking a few of the balls out of position.

"That's the problem, your Majesty," Twinkle Shine said, twisting her features into frustration. "Some of these volumes are ancient. Too old for transport. They refuse to part with any of them."

"They believe they have a choice?" the King scoffed.

"Your Majesty! We cannot send soldiers to the Temple of Luna!" Twinkle Shine snapped. "Not unless we want to declare war immediately and anger our own people in the bargain!" She glared at him, letting him see a hint of the Nightmare's anger in her eyes. He pulled back immediately, surprised and, she could see, a little frightened. "For Celestia's sake, it's a monastery! A monastery dedicated to the worship of the sister that she loved! What would your divine ancestor think of you sending soldiers to steal their books?"

The King backed off, dipping his head. "Of course," he said, suddenly sounding weary. "We spoke rashly. Remember this, too, Regal. Even a king has his limits, and lines he is not allowed to cross."

"I will remember, father," Regal replied, his own voice solemnly quiet.

"I have to go to them," Twinkle Shine said. "A couple days, no more."

"I need you here, Professor."

"I need to see those books, your Majesty."

For a long moment there was silence in the room, then the Prince spoke. "Father, the Professor is right. She needs to see those books."

"We are on the verge of war, son."

"But not over it," Regal reminded him. "A few days. How many? Two? Three?"

"Four," she said, pleased with how the Prince was aiding her. "A day there, two to study the texts and copy as much as I can, then one back."

"Four days," the King sighed. "In four days the world can change completely."

"I know," Twinkle Shine said. "But if you refrain from those rash decisions we spoke of earlier, then you should be able to hold out."

The King smiled. "You're just doing this to force me to keep my temper, aren't you? You know I could never make the decision to go to war without your counsel, Professor."

"Well, I guess you've caught on to my diabolical plan," Twinkle Shine said with an answering smile. "Besides," she said, letting the smile become resigned. "Isn't there a wedding to plan?"

The King's eyes brightened immediately and his head came up. "Quite so. Quite so. I imagine you'll want to leave soon?"

"Immediately," Twinkle Shine confirmed.

The King walked around the table and quite unexpectedly enfolded her in an embrace. Twinkle Shine didn't know how to react, though the tickle of his wings as they wrapped around her brought up old memories. "Thank you, Twinkle," he whispered. "I know it isn't easy, but it will all be well. I assure you of that." He released her and stepped back. "Celestia's light travel with you, Professor. Be safe."

"Good journey, Professor," the Prince joined in.

"Thank you, your Highness, your Majesty," she bowed to each one in turn. "I will not let you down."

With that she left the royal study and made her way out of the palace. That had gone much better than she had expected, the Prince had helped her immensely.

Perfect, the Nightmare spoke in her thoughts, her voice as loud as close thunder and as soft as a lover's whisper. All Obstacles Have Been Removed.

"Yes," Twinkle Shine agreed aloud, though she kept her own voice quiet. "It's coming together just like I said it would." She took a steadying breath and looked towards the sun. It was the same as it always had been, as she assumed it always would be. She looked away, instead turning her gaze to the north, where Spike's lair waited. "Hold on, my little Fallen Star. It will all be over soon."

***

Star Fall stumbled as she set her hooves back on the solid earth. Her breath came in long, gasping pants as she settled into a clipped half-trot that let her rest her aching flight muscles without breaking her forward motion. The other option for her would be falling down, and if she did that she knew she wasn't going to be getting up any time soon.

Dash dropped to the ground next to her, a frown of concern on her face. "You okay, Star?"

Star Fall shook her head. "Too much," she managed to gasp out. "Can't keep flying." A flash of annoyance soured Dash's concerned expression, her eyes going to the mountains that rose high in front of them. Star Fall followed her gaze, squinting in the midday light, and saw the shape of the path which led to the plateau that Spike had made his doorstep. Having seen no evidence of Cash or any of his people this close to the mountains, she was fairly certain Spike was safe. Fairly certain, but not completely. "We're almost there."

Dash took a moment to respond, but finally gave a curt nod. "Yeah, nearly there. Okay. Take it easy, it's no good if you're too tired to use your magic when we get there." Star Fall didn't say anything to that, preferring to catch her breath and work on ignoring the burn in her wings.

They had been travelling for four days now, moving at a punishing pace that had left Star Fall with very little in the way of energy reserves. Worse than that, though, was the knowledge that her two companions were barely breaking a sweat. Applejack was matching, sometimes exceeding, Star Fall's flying pace, and doing so with an ease that was humbling. Dash was even worse, casually shooting ahead by a hundred miles or more on 'scouting missions' that did nothing but remind Star Fall that they were under a time limit that she was just not equipped to meet. Still, she had persevered, and done damn well for a pony who wasn't super-powerful. She wasn't setting any records for long-distance flight, but she had certainly surpassed her own expectations by far.

Unfortunately, there were still some limits that couldn't be overcome, and she'd come up hard against those now. She couldn't even fold her wings down, they were so sore. Her legs weren't much better, suffering from being held for long hours as close to her body as possible for aerodynamic purposes, but they could at least move. Exhaustion was like a lead blanket draped over her, so heavy that she barely noticed the weight of her saddlebags bouncing at her flanks.

"Y'all okay?" Applejack called, and Star Fall looked up to see the farmer ahead of them. She hadn't noticed Applejack passing her, and the sight of the earth pony coming back to them threw her so off that for a moment she wondered if she was the one who had turned around.

"Star's hit the wall," Dash said. She lifted one wing and began to fan air over her fellow pegasus. Star Fall moaned at the sensation, she hadn't realized how hot she had been feeling.

"Dang," Applejack said, giving Star Fall a sympathetic smile as she settled in beside her. "You kept up real well. Why don't we take a breather here and we can keep goin' in a couple of hours?"

Star Fall shook her head. "We're close," she mumbled. Her breath was coming back to her, but now she was becoming aware of all the other aches and problems that were plaguing her travel-numbed body. She needed a drink. She reached for her saddlebag, but her half-extended wing was in the way and refused to move aside. She sighed and turned back to the mountains, giving up on trying.

"Here ya go," Applejack said, and Star Fall looked up to see a canteen being offered to her, cap already unscrewed. She took it and began drinking greedily. "Whoa, there," Applejack said, laughing. "Not too much at once, now."

Star Fall lowered the canteen, berating herself for forgetting one of the basics of rehydrating after a long span of physical exertion. "Sorry," she said, giving the canteen back to Applejack. "My head's kind of mushy right now."

"No apologies, now," Applejack chastised. "You done good. You say we're close?"

Star Fall nodded. "That mountain, at the end of that path," she pointed her nose to the closest peak. "That's where Spike lives."

"Sweet!" Dash cried, lifting into the air.

"No goin' ahead," Applejack warned.

"But I wasn't–" Applejack's glare silenced Dash's complaint. "Fine. I was just going to get a closer look."

"Wards," Star Fall said. "He already knows that there are ponies headed his direction. He'd know you came close then turned back. It would make him suspicious. He might not be too friendly if that happened."

Dash shrugged, but accepted the wisdom of the decision. They plodded on in silence for a while, Star Fall guiding them towards a faint path that began to twist up the lower slopes of Spike's mountain home. By the time they were hitting the second switchback she had her wings fully folded and was feeling a lot better about the whole moving thing.

"So you lived with him for a bit?" Applejack asked. "Spike, I mean."

Star Fall nodded. "He and Twinkle Shine are old friends. He taught her, too. She decided to continue the tradition and sent me to live with him for a year." She smiled as the memories came to her. "That was a tough year. Good, but tough."

"What? Did Spike turn into a hardcase or something?" Dash asked.

Star Fall laughed. "No. He just expects a lot from any student sent to him. He's not very strict or overbearing or anything like that, he just expects you to perform up to his standard, and gets really, really sarcastic when you don't."

Applejack snorted. "Okay, that bit sounds like Spike."

"He annoyed the hell out of me sometimes," Star Fall admitted. "For a while there it was like everything I did earned me a snark-filled quip. But that wasn't all he was doing. I didn't realize it at first, but he was also giving advice, providing support when I needed it and motivation to do better. About two months in I realized that he wasn't trying to be my teacher, not like all the professors and tutors I'd ever had before. He was trying to be my friend. He wanted me to get better, to be better, and he wanted me to do it without being forced or dictated to."

"Sound's like he succeeded," Applejack said.

Star Fall gave her a grin. "Thank you. Anyways, after that epiphany things went a lot more smoothly between us. He taught me a lot. About history, about magic, about languages. He's the one that taught me Old Equestrian. He actually knows about as much of magical theory as the Professor, maybe even more, though he can't put it into practice like she can. He helped me refine my spellcasting, and even showed me a better way to channel my magic into enhancing my pegasus abilities. I owe a lot to him."

"Well, I for one am glad that he didn't turn out to be a giant, greedy monster," Dash said.

Applejack shot Dash an annoyed look, but Star Fall giggled at the absurdity of the notion. "Of course not," she said. "Spike's probably one of the most generous souls on both sides of the Storm." She frowned as a new thought hit her. "Do you think that might be because of the Element? He could have had it in his cave since the Schism."

Dash shrugged. "Dunno. Maybe."

"No, I think Spike got that way all on his own," Applejack said. "Having the Elements didn't change us none, and I don't think it'd do anythin' to someone not even usin' it."

"It was just a thought," Star Fall said, looking up the path. "We're almost there. Look!" She pointed a hoof up the path. About a hundred feet above them the switchback path came to a plateau, and in the lead-up to that the mountain changed from the rugged natural terrain to artfully sculpted stone. Rough angles became smooth curves, dark stone was run through with glittering veins of polished metals, little rivers of light spreading like vines down from the plateau. Trees and scrub plants were placed at precise, carefully chosen intervals and beds of flowers lined the path, nestled in stone gardens that blended with their surroundings in a way that could be mistaken for natural at a distance.

It was beautiful, and the closer they got to the end of the path the more clearly sculpted the mountain became. Finally they cleared the top, and the three ponies couldn't help but stop and stare.

The plateau was tiled in colorful marble, red for the places to walk and swirls of other colors to accent the works were displayed, for this courtyard was also an artist's gallery. Statues both grand and humble were placed throughout the wide space, each placed just so that it could be seen clearly from the end of the path. The subjects of the statues were varied. Most were of ponies of the various tribes, some even of specific individuals, the great generals and thinkers of the past. Others were more abstract, or representative. There was even a stone orrery that spun with barely perceptible slowness to one side, keeping time almost as well as any clock.

The center of the courtyard was dominated by a tiered, pyramidal fountain. Each tier of the fountain held hundreds of small statues of ponies, Zebras, Dogs, and Griffins, all standing in joyful and triumphant poses, the water of the fountain flowing in glistening rivers between them. Star Fall even spotted the Changeling statue, half-transformed and grinning slyly, hidden amongst a group of revelling ponies. At the top level of the fountain stood a pair of Alicorn figures, Celestia and Luna, their wings wide but their heads turned down towards the many beings under their watchful gaze.

Star Fall smiled. She'd spent a lot of time sitting by that fountain, examining the thousands of figures that adorned it. She'd been told that there was a figure on that fountain for every friend Spike had known and lost in his long life. She found herself wondering which ones were figures for Dash and Applejack.

Beyond the fountain the red marble path led to a pair of massive doors carved with the image of a large, asymmetrical tree. Star Fall realized with a start that the tree was the same she had seen in Ponyville, at the center of the Everstorm. The Golden Oak library. The recognition left her with an odd feeling, like she had taken a peek into a friend's diary without permission.

"Wow," Dash said, staring wide-eyed at everything around her.

"Is this... Did Spike do all of this?" Applejack asked.

Star Fall nodded. "He's an artist. Maybe the greatest of the classic sculptors. My art history textbooks certainly seemed to think so."

"Sculpture," Applejack shook her head. "Well... I don't know what I was expectin' him to get into once he was grown, but this wasn't even on the list."

"Wow," Dash said again. "Yeah, this is pretty cool."

Star Fall shook off the wonder that seeing Spike's gallery always brought on and started towards the door. "Come on, we should get the, um, reintroductions started."

Dash and Applejack stared at the many statues that surrounded them as they approached the door. Star Fall could barely stop herself from doing the same. It had been a couple years since she had last visited, but she knew that not all the statues were in the same places, and she was curious as to what new pieces had joined the gallery.

The doors loomed before them, though when Dash looked at them it was with a confused frown. Star Fall didn't question it right then, too focused on what was next. She knocked on the door, barely more than a couple hoof taps. She wasn't trying to get Spike's attention, he already knew that he had guests. If he was going to answer, he'd be waiting.

The sound of tinkling bells playing a happy little tune came from a crystal set into the stonework above the door. Star Fall swore under her breath, Spike wasn't going to answer. Spike's voice, made a little tinny by the magic-charged crystal recording, spoke to them in all-too-upbeat tone.

"Welcome to my lair! I'm sorry, but I'm unable to answer the door right away, and it might be several hours before I am able to attend to you. If you would like to wait, I invite you to enjoy my outdoor gallery. The fountain water is quite drinkable and the flowers are very tasty, so please feel free to use them as refreshments. If you would rather not wait, please leave a message with a forwarding address and your reason for coming so I can get back to you at a later date. Please note that I'm not accepting new commissions right now."

Star Fall sighed. "Great, he's working."

"He just leaves guests standin' at his doorstep?" Applejack asked, frowning.

"He's an artist, and a thousand year old Dragon," Star Fall explained. "He gets lost in his projects, doesn't like to stop in the middle of working on one. He's probably in his studio right now, carving another masterpiece."

"So, what do we do now?" Dash asked. "Wait around for him to get off his scaly butt and see who's at the door?"

Star Fall put her hoof on the door and closed her eyes. "Knock louder." She focused her magic into the door. She didn't have a lot of energy left after her long flight, but there was more than enough to accomplish what she wanted. Lines of crimson light stretched across the door, flowing through channels etched into the metal and making the tree design appear as if it were on fire. With a heavy thunk the locks opened and the great doors swung open, revealing the well-lit hallway beyond.

Applejack whistled. "Fancy."

"Wait, you could open the door all along?" Dash asked.

Star Fall took a deep breath, and nodded. "He gets his students to rebuild his security as a project. When I did it, I built myself a key."

"Does he know you've got this key?" Applejack asked.

"He does," Star Fall assured her. "And he knows that I just used it. Come on. He'll be expecting us soon."

***

Dash looked around as they stepped into Spike's lair. It wasn't what she had been expecting. For one, this wasn't really a cave. This was a mansion that just happened to be carved out of a mountain. The floors were polished, the walls carved to look like brickwork, and the ceilings arched and decorated with leafy patterns. Crystals set into the wall lit up as they approached, providing a warm white light. The place screamed class, and she didn't doubt for a moment that Spike had personally carved every nook and cranny of it.

The initial hallway had a room immediately to the right that Star Fall bypassed without even a look. Curious, Dash poked her head in, only to find that it was a large closet that seemed to be well kept, but empty. She shrugged and continued on. The hallway extended a ways into the mountain before coming to a wide, domed room where large crystal lights shone down on a library. Dash and Applejack stopped in their tracks, looking around in interest.

The library was ringed in shelves, and even more were arranged in a broken circle around the center of the room, where a wide, round table sat. A statue of Celestia raising the sun stood atop that table, reminding Dash of nothing so much as the bust that had sat at the center of another library, a long time ago. Cushions were strewn about, most of them large and plump.

It was all very grand, but Dash had the niggling feeling that she was missing something important. It was grand, but it wasn't big. This was all pony-sized stuff, and for Spike's home she had been expecting something much, much larger.

"Spike's, like, normal, right? For a Dragon, I mean." Dash asked as she hurried to catch up to the other pegasus as she wended her way through the library.

"Hardly," Star Fall said, not slowing down. "He's one of the oldest, most powerful Dragons alive today. Most of them died in the schism, remember? More than that, more than being a link to the world before the Storm, he's been a friend to the Crown since the Kingdom's inception. He helped find a way to preserve all Dragons. He's the most respected of his kind, they all look up to him. Spike is... well, he's Spike. He doesn't like to get involved in politics so he's not a household name or anything, but in the halls of power he's still about as famous as a Dragon gets."

"No, I meant..." Dash shook her head. "Never mind. I don't know what I meant."

"So, where are we headed?" Applejack asked. "This place looks pretty darn big."

"Up," Star Fall said. "If Spike's working, he'll be in his studio. And since my legs and wings are killing me, we'll take the easy way." She pointed to a small room that stood open in the wall. Dash took only a moment to realize that it was an elevator. They piled into the car, which was spacious enough that it could have fit a dozen ponies comfortably. Star Fall pressed down on one of the crystals in the wall and the doors slid shut as it began to rise. She turned to Dash. "How about elevators? Future enough?"

"Seen 'em," Dash said.

Star Fall rolled her eyes, turning to Applejack. "How about you? Don't you think elevators are just really cool?"

Applejack gave her an apologetic smile. "Sorry. We had elevators since before I was born. I didn't see one 'till I ran away to Manehattan as a filly, mind, but they were there all the same. Nothin' quite this fancy, if that makes you feel any better."

"There is no justice," Star Fall sighed.

"The airship was awesome," Dash volunteered.

"I will agree to that," Applejack said.

"Futures are supposed to be cool and different," Star Fall griped. "Not exactly the same a thousand years later."

"Trust me, sugarcube," Applejack said. "This ain't nothin’ like our time."

Before Star Fall could respond the elevator came to a stop and the doors slid open on Spike's studio. Applejack and Star Fall shivered as the chill from the room beyond made their breath mist in the air. The room was a wide open, curved space. They were high up in the mountain now and the outer wall of the studio was a long glass window that showed a breathtaking view of the mountain range beyond. Blocks of stone both large and small were scattered across the room, some in the process of being shaped into statues, with figures emerging from them like a pony caught halfway through leaping out of water. Cloth hung from the ceiling in sheets. Some of it was blank, but others were adorned with detailed images, plans for the statues that had yet to be completed.

Amidst all of this, a Dragon sat with his back to them, a block of stone the size of a large dog in his claws. As they stepped out of the elevator the Dragon inhaled deeply and breathed a pencil-thin stream of green fire onto the stone. He turned the stone this way and that, and to Dash's wonder she saw that the fire was stripping away layers of the stone, letting a shape quickly form, like a wax figure melting in reverse. The three ponies stepped closer, and Rainbow Dash got her first good look at Spike in over a thousand years.

Spike had changed, but he wasn't what Dash had expected. He looked practically nothing like the Spike she remembered, and certainly not like the monster he had turned into on his birthday. There were similarities, of course, he was still purple and green, but to Dash's eyes he might as well have been a completely different Dragon. His body was long and tightly muscled, his tail stretching out even longer and curled around him as he sat. A line of hard, dark green ridges ran from the back of his head to the tip of his tail. His foreclaws had long and flexible fingers that were tipped with bone-white talons that gleamed clean and sharp in the emerald light of his fire. His head was long and wedge-shaped, set at the end of a graceful neck. Instead of the brutish look that other Dragons had sported, Spike's features were sharp and elegant. A pair of horns swept back from his head, and when he paused in his work to examine the stone Dash was struck by the thought that the horns almost looked like a crown. For that was the overall impression of the Dragon that stood before them. Spike had grown from a baby into a truly regal creature, a noble wyrm.

Yet for all of the changes that Dash saw, it was the one that she didn't see that brought her up short. Rather, it was the one she didn't see enough of. He was small. Not the same size as he had been as a baby – sitting on his haunches like this his head rose to more than twice Dash's height – but compared to the behemoth she had been expecting, he was almost childlike.

"You know, most ponies write ahead if they're going to visit," Spike said. His voice was deep, smooth and resonant. Dash could still hear the baby Dragon she had known in it, though. It was something in the tone, in the way it travelled, that made her believe it could still chortle in the way the Spike she remembered always had. "But I'm always happy when my number one assistant drops by." The switch to Old Equestrian made him sound even more like his childhood self. "Assuming that you kept up with your languages, of course. Give me a minute to finish this up and I'll give you a hug and your friends a tour."

"Spike," Star Fall said, stepping forward. "This is important."

He stopped contemplating his half-finished statue, his head coming up. "Important?" He repeated. Then, with careful slowness he set his unfinished sculpture down and turned to face them. His eyes were just like Dash remembered them. Brilliant green with serpentine-slit pupils, but filled with warm joy and life. Looking into those eyes dispelled any doubt that this was her friend. His gaze slid over her and Applejack towards Star Fall, then he did a double-take, his eyes widening and his jaw dropping open. "Wha?"

"Spike," Star Fall said, her voice deadly serious. "I know you're not going to believe this, but–"

"AJ?" Spike said, not hearing Star Fall's words at all. "Dash?"

"Hey, Spike," Dash said, shrinking a bit from the look in his eyes. "Uh, long time no see?"

He sucked in a deep breath, visibly shaking off his shock at the sight of the two ponies from the past. His gaze snapped to Star Fall. "What is this?" He demanded. His voice wasn't angry, but it was intense, like it teetered on the edge of several different emotions at once and didn't know which way to fall.

"Exactly what it looks like," Star Fall replied. "This is Rainbow Dash and Applejack."

"That's impossible." The assertion had certainty behind it. Conviction.

"But it happened," Star Fall said.

"Now, Spike," Applejack said, and his eyes flashed to her, pupils shrunk down to almost invisible slits. "I know this looks mighty strange. I don't blame you for bein' suspicious. But I promise you, we ain't foolin' you here."

"Prove it," he growled.

"Remember when you first came to Ponyville? You and Twilight were makin' sure all the festivities were ready for the Summer Sun celebration?" Spike nodded. "Well, when y'all came to Sweet Apple Acres I was doin' a bit of last-minute applebuckin'."

Spike paused, his green brows coming down in a hard frown. "Go on."

"Well, the Apple clan was havin' a bit of a reunion and when we heard y'all were on a mission from the Princess we got Twilight to sample at least one of every one of our specialty Apple-family dishes. Though, when I say 'we', I'm pretty sure it was Apple Bloom's big eyes that did the trick."

Spike's frown faded, but he still didn't look convinced. "Come on, Spike," Dash said, catching his attention. "It's us. You know us."

"I knew Rainbow Dash a thousand years ago," Spike said. "And when I last saw her she didn't look like you."

"Well, yeah, I apparently got old and died or something," Dash said, rolling her eyes. "But this is prime-of-her-life me. Want me to prove it? Because I've been flying really slow for days and I am so ready for a race."

Spike snorted. Just a little laugh, but it was enough to dispel the tension that had been building in the studio. "You've got the attitudes, that's for sure." He shook his head, then crossed the room. He walked on all fours, though Dash would never describe the gait as being like a pony's, and while his foreclaws seemed delicate when handling the stone they just looked powerful and deadly as he strode up to them. "Star Fall, I can see why you'd bring them here, but I don't like this. I want to know everything that led you to them. From the beginning until now."

"There's something we have to do first," Star Fall said. "We came here because you might be in danger, Spike."

"Danger?" He cocked an eyeridge at that. "What kind of danger?"

"There's a pony named Max Cash," Star Fall said. "He's very powerful and very dangerous and I think he's coming here."

"Cash. I know that name," Spike said, frowning again. "He's an art collector from the nightlands. He's bought a lot of my work. Why would he want to hurt me?"

"I don't know if he wants to hurt you, but he won't hesitate to do so," Star Fall said. "I think he wants something you have. Something he will kill for."

"I admit, some of my stuff is pretty overpriced," Spike said. "But I don't think any of it's worth killing over."

"Not even Generosity?"

Spike froze, his eyes wide and shocked once more. "What did you say?"

"Generosity," Star Fall repeated. "The statue in your back cave, the one you never put on display. I know you have it. Do you remember it?"

"Of course I do," Spike said, shaking his head. "But how would Cash know about it? It's not like I ever advertised it. It's not like it's important either, just a piece of history I don't want to part with."

"Spike," Applejack said, reaching out to him. "It's okay. You don't have to protect it from us."

"Yeah, it's not the statue that he's interested in anyway," Dash said. "But Star says it's got the Element of Generosity on it, and that's what Cash is going for."

"What do you know about the Elements?" Spike snapped, rage burying all traces of her friend in his voice as he rounded on Dash, rising to loom above her with licks of fire escaping from his mouth and nose. Applejack pulled back as if she'd been burned, and Star Fall stared at Spike in shock, like he had slapped her.

Rainbow Dash was shocked by the sudden turn in the Dragon, but she was no mare to be that easily frightened. She stared Spike in the eye and smirked. "Plenty. Element of Loyalty, remember?" Spike growled, the sound low enough that Dash felt it more than heard it. She scoffed and flashed Spike a cocky grin. "Come on, you remember me. I'm Rainbow Dash! Fastest pegasus in Equestria! You want to get tough with me, mister? Fine, but remember that I'm two-for-two against the forces of cosmic evil, and I've faced down bigger Dragons than you." Spike glared at her, but the fire was fading from his eyes.

Dash switched tack, her tone becoming pleading. "I know it's been a thousand years, Spike, but to me it was, like, a month and a half. The last time I saw you, you were taking care of that phoenix baby you got during the Dragon Migration. I still remember that Spike, and I can still see him when I look at you. He was a lot smaller, and a lot goofier, but he was my friend. I'm counting on you to still be my friend, Spike. We need you, here. This is big, crazy stuff, and you are, like, the only person who knew us from back where we came from. We need you." She held out her hoof. "Come on, man. Don't leave me hanging."

Spike stared at her for a long moment before letting out a heavy breath, curling his claw into a fist and bumping it against her hoof. "For the record," he said. "It was knowing about Peewee that convinced me."

"Peewee?" Applejack asked.

"After your time," Dash replied, then paused with a bemused expression on her face. "Wow, is saying that a weird feeling or what."

"Can't be any worse than bein' on the receivin' end," Applejack sighed.

"Tell me about it," Dash said. "The future is crazy."

"You know about the Elements," Star Fall said, ignoring her fellow ponies.

"Yeah," Spike confirmed with a sad nod. "But you shouldn't. No one should."

"I told her," Dash volunteered. "She didn't know before that." Her face fell. "But Cash knows. He's got the Element of Loyalty, Spike. He used it on me. He's done something to it. I don't know what, but it's gone bad."

Spike stiffened again, then visibly forced himself to relax. His draconic face, as expressive as any pony's, showed his turmoil. Finally he came to a decision and his features relaxed into resigned worry. "Huh. Well, that's not good," he said, shaking his head. "Come on."

"Where are we going?" Star Fall asked.

"Exactly where you want to go," Spike said. "To Generosity. I figure it's as good a place as any to have a conversation, because, believe me, we all have a lot to talk about."

***

This part of Spike's lair was rough-hewn stone. Clearly it was a natural cavern that he had smoothed out over the centuries, but hadn't found important enough to perfectly finish like he had the rest of his cave. The cavern was being used as storage, with boxes and crates labelled and stacked in neat rows between large blocks of stone waiting to be turned into something. Dash couldn't read most of the labels, of course, but some of them were in Old Equestrian, and those boasted of an entire barrel of sapphires, or a box of gold. She snuck a peek in one of the barrels and found it full of a fine blue powder that smelled of chalk.

Beyond the rows of stored materials, almost hidden in a back corner of the room, was Generosity. Once she saw that, all her curiosity about the rest of the room's contents vanished. The statue stood on a low plinth, and was life-sized and almost perfectly life-like. It was Rarity, exactly as Dash remembered her. The statue was made of a pure white stone that almost glowed under the storeroom lights and the hair was streaked with veins of amethyst, tinting it to a perfect shade of purple. It stood in an elegant pose, one of Rarity's favourites, with one foreleg raised and her head held high and straight. The cutie-mark was three blue gemstones that Dash just knew would be diamonds. It was so perfect that it almost seemed like the statue was a breath away from moving and speaking.

It was the eyes that dispelled the illusion. They were as beautiful as the rest, made with sapphires and blackest obsidian, but they were just stone.

Around the statue's neck gleamed a golden necklace with a purple diamond gemstone. The Element of Generosity.

Star Fall sucked in an awed breath as she gazed at the statue. "It's like I'm seeing it for the first time," she said.

"Well, I know I definitely am," Applejack said. "And, Spike? This is some darn good work."

"Thank you," Spike said. "You should have seen yours."

"Mine?"

"I did one for each of you," Spike explained, walking over to Rarity's statue and gazing at it with a smile. "My finest works. I've done a lot that I'm really proud of over the years, but these... these were special."

"Why put the Elements on them?" Dash asked. "I mean, Star said something about hiding them in plain sight, but I didn't really get that."

"It was Twilight's idea," Spike said, his eyes darkening. "She said it was a way to make them safe. After you were all gone, people were supposed to forget about them, about the Elements. Only a few would remember. Like me and the Princesses."

"Well, okay," Dash said. "So this makes it easy, right? Let's just grab the Element and go."

Spike chuckled. "Sure. Let's do that."

Dash grabbed the Element and tugged. It gave a little, but refused to come off. Dash frowned, examining the necklace. "What the?"

"What's the hold up?" Applejack asked, coming over to the statue as well.

"It's not coming off," Dash said.

"Maybe you're not pullin' right," Applejack said, grabbing the necklace and hauling back. Again, it gave a little, but didn't come loose. "What in tarnation?"

"Right there with you," Dash said. "There's gotta be a catch somewhere."

"I don't see one," Applejack said, frowning. "You remember how we got them off before?"

"I don't know! I just pulled and it came off, I've never really had to think about it."

Applejack growled, then pulled harder. She put a hoof against the statue and reared back, her muscles standing out clearly as she put the full force of her strength behind the attempt.

"Here, try this," Spike said, tossing them a prybar.

"Thank you kindly," Applejack said, apparently missing the sly grin on Spike's face. She slipped the crowbar under the Element, then proceeded to bend the iron bar nearly double in her attempt to remove the necklace. Finally, she dropped the bar. Neither the Element nor the statue had budged in any way. "Okay, what is goin' on here?"

Spike laughed, chortling at the angry frowns on their faces. Star Fall just stared at the Element and statue, her wings rustling restlessly as she thought about it.

"Hey!" Dash called, stabbing a hoof angrily towards the Dragon. "Instead of laughing at us, why don't you, you know, help?"

Spike quelled his laughter and stepped forward. "Okay, sure. Let's see now, it's stood up to pulling and prying. Hmm." He walked over to one of the storage boxes, pulling the nailed-on top off effortlessly. Inside were emeralds, rough, unpolished and flawed but still enough to be a decent fortune even back in Dash's time. Spike grabbed a bunch of them and tossed them into his mouth, barely chewing the stones before swallowing and grabbing another clawful.

"Uh, this is helping how?" Dash asked.

"Move away from the statue," Star Fall said, stepping back herself.

"Why? What's goin' on?" Applejack asked.

"He's fuelling up," Star Fall explained.

"Fuelling?" Applejack frowned, then her eyes went wide as she understood. "Come on," she said to Dash, stepping away from the statue. "We'd best be doin' as Star Fall asks."

Dash didn't have to be told more than twice, taking to the air and hovering back to where Star Fall waited. Spike shoved another fistful of emeralds into his mouth before turning away from the gems. He swallowed hard, and smoke leaked from his mouth, smelling like incense and brimstone. He moved up to just in front of where Star Fall and Applejack stood. "Let's see if this works," he said, then took a deep breath, and loosed dragonfire.

A blast of emerald flame, much brighter than the fire he had been using to carve the statue earlier, blasted out of his open mouth. The cavern was filled with the roar of the flames, and the heat scorched at them. Dash found she had to battle against the air currents that were flowing towards those magical flames with the power of a windstorm. The dragonfire engulfed the statue, obscuring it completely from sight. The wall beyond the statue heated to a white shine, the stone melting and flowing down in glowing streams.

Just as the air was becoming unbearably hot there was a gleam of violet light from within the inferno. Dash felt something shudder through the air, a pressure wave that made her coat stand on end like static electricity. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Applejack shudder and shake her head as if to clear it. Spike's breath cut off abruptly, the sudden lack of emerald light making the cavern seem as dark as night in contrast. Dash's eyes adjusted quickly, and she nearly dropped to the ground at what she saw.

"Oh come on!" she snapped. "That was, like, a million degrees!" The statue stood, as clean and as whole as ever, the Element of Generosity gleaming at its throat. Even as the molten rock around and behind it still glowed and bubbled, she had a feeling that the statue would be as cool to the touch as ever. She drifted over to the statue, ignoring the burning heat coming from the melted rock at its base, and gave it a hard kick that only succeeded in hurting her hoof. "Damn it, Rarity! Why do you have to be so stubborn?"

Spike gasped and coughed, little spurts of fire jetting out of his mouth as he did. "I think you can blame Twilight for this one," he said. "When she puts up a protection spell, she does not mess around."

"I'm not seeing the magic," Star Fall said, sounding overawed. "It looks so... ordinary."

"She tied it to the Element," Spike sighed. "I don't know how, but that somehow means it's invisible, the statue's indestructible, and the Element is irremovable."

"Seriously?" Dash cried. "You couldn't have told us this before?"

"This way was funnier," Spike said, grinning up at her.

"So," Applejack cut in. "Does this mean we've got to carry the whole statue, then?"

"Uh, no," Spike said, shaking his head sadly. "That's not going to work either."

"Why?" Star Fall asked. "Please, Spike. We need to know."

Spike nodded, sitting back on his haunches. "Star Fall, I'll tell you everything I can, but first I need you to tell me what you know. About AJ and Dash, how they got here, what Max Cash is doing. Everything. I know you guys think we have to move quick, but believe me that Element is not going anywhere, so we have the time."

So they told him. The whole telling took several hours, in which time the conversation was moved to the kitchen when it was agreed that everyone was quite hungry, then returned to the base of the statue once the rock, with some encouragement from Star Fall's magic, had cooled enough to be comfortable. Star Fall started with her investigation into Max Cash, then she and Dash switched off on telling the events after Dash's awakening up to the discovery of Applejack in the buried town. Spike stayed mostly quiet through it all, only asking questions in a few places, most of which they didn't have answers to.

"That's how I realized that this was the Element of Generosity," Star Fall said, finishing up the tale. "We came here as quickly as we could after that."

"And you think Cash is coming here?" Spike asked.

"I'm certain of it," she replied. "Your lair was marked out on his map, and he's always been a step ahead of us, knowing things he shouldn't have any way to know."

Spike contemplated this for a long moment. "He has Loyalty. So he's obviously discovered a way to remove them from the statues."

"Probably Honesty, too," Dash said. "At least, that's what I figure."

"It makes sense," Spike mused. "Star Fall, you said he compelled you to answer him honestly, that's consistent with what that Element could do."

"Is it?" Applejack asked. "I never got it to do anythin' of the sort."

"From where you say your memories leave off, you never got the chance to," Spike said. "Applejack, the Applejack I remember, could do a lot of things with her Element. She could make ponies be truthful, could see through illusions and lies. She could... well, there were a lot of things she could do. A lot of things all of you could do. Usually not anything as... vicious as Cash seems to use them for, though."

"Which is why we can't let him have them," Star Fall said. "Spike, we told you our story. It's time for you to tell us yours."

Spike sighed, looking over to the statue and the gleaming necklace. "It's a long story," he began. "So I'm not going to tell you all of it. You don't really need to know some of the crap that happened to us, to you, to know what came after. Celestia Nova was the last straw, really. After that we all figured there was really no way we were going to need the Elements again."

"Alright, I've heard that name before," Dash interrupted. "Who the heck is Celestia Nova? Did the Princess go crazy or something?"

Spike snorted. "You could say that. She was the last great foe you faced, the last challenge. It, well, it didn't end up quite the way we expected. It doesn't matter. What does matter is that Twilight decided that the Elements of Harmony had to be retired. I was already working on these statues. They were my masterpieces, the six of you as you were during your days in Ponyville, commissioned by Princess Celestia to be displayed throughout Equestria in recognition of your saving the world a bunch of times. I poured my heart and soul into making them, and when Twilight came to me with a plan to make them indestructible I jumped at it. I wanted them to last at least as long as I was going to live.

"You agreed to the plan, all the bearers did. I don't know exactly why, but you all had your reasons. When I unveiled the statues to the public, they had the Elements on them and no one said a word. Twilight said it was for protection, that after your lifetimes no one who hadn't borne an Element would be able to see them. People could still see the statues just fine, though, and I guess that was all that was important for me."

He reached out and touched the statue's face, almost a caress. "They were beautiful. I used to sit in the gardens at Canterlot castle, looking at her and remembering." His face fell and his shoulders slumped. "Then the Schism began and Canterlot fell, and I wasn't sure if Twilight's spell would be enough to protect her. I dug through the ruins for days, searching. And there she was, as perfect as the day I finished her. The world was falling apart around me, the Royals and the Rebels were about to annihilate each other and everything caught between them. I couldn't stay and I couldn't leave her there. So I took her and found this cave, far from the fighting, far from any civilization. I'm sorry, I couldn't save any of the rest of your statues. I don't even know where they all ended up."

"Not your fault, sugarcube," Applejack assured him. "Now, tell us what happened next."

"Next the Destroyer happened, and, well, everything got a lot harder, let me tell you. I did a lot of things I'm not too proud of just to survive. Got really paranoid about all the bandits and little kingdoms popping up all over the place. I could barely leave the cave, I was so afraid someone would come in and steal her. I even carved out a secret room to hide her in." He gestured to a bare spot of wall. "Thought that was a great idea. But when I tried to move her into it, she wouldn't budge. I tried everything I could think of, but she's stuck in place. I think maybe after magic was sealed into the Everstorm the spell on her went a little wonky. Wouldn't be the only thing that got messed up then."

"So that's why," Star Fall said, tilting her head in thought. "After the Kingdom rose up, after civilization was restored. You stayed here instead of moving to the capital or another city. You stayed because of Generosity."

Spike nodded. "Though, gotta admit, the privacy's been pretty good for an artist like me."

"And you never told anyone about the Elements?" Star Fall asked.

"Nope," Spike said. "Twilight wanted them forgotten, and I wasn't about to go against her on that."

"What do you know about Harmony Theory?"

Spike sighed. "Nothing useful, and more than I would like to. It was the book Twilight wrote about the Elements of Harmony. She spent thirty years researching it, finding out everything she could about them. When she was done she only made four copies. One for herself, one each for Celestia and Luna, and one for Zecora. I helped her with some of the early stuff, but by the time she was really making discoveries I wasn't her assistant anymore."

"You never read it?"

"The Elements had been on the statues for a decade when it was finished," Spike said. "No one was going to use them, or even remember them. And I saw what writing that book did to Twilight. I wanted no part of it."

"Celestia burn it," Star Fall swore. "I was hoping you'd at least have read it."

"What did it do to Twilight?" Applejack asked.

"Hurt her," Spike said darkly. "She got depressed while researching the Elements. Seriously depressed. She tried to hide it, and for a long time we didn't even notice." Spike squeezed his eyes shut, speaking through a clenched jaw. "You, me, all of her friends, we were all busy with our own lives, spreading out all over Equestria to follow our dreams. After a while it overwhelmed her, and we couldn't ignore it any more. We helped her out of it, eventually, but there were some really bad years before she was back with us, and even then she was never the same."

"Hey!" Dash protested. "I would never let Twilight down like that!"

Spike chuckled. "Sorry. Lots of guilt there for me. When I say she tried to hide it, I mean that she put a lot of effort into making sure we wouldn't find out. She took advantage of our trust, played it so that we'd be too busy watching our own lives to notice what was going on in hers. Which she apologized for, a lot." He gave them a warm smile. "She came out of it, guys. She got better. I'm not giving you bad news here. Or, not totally bad news."

"I guess that's okay," Dash said. "And I guess it makes sense that you never wanted to read that book."

"Oh, I was tempted," Spike clarified. "But I learned a long time ago how to resist temptation."

"Is that why you're still, uh," Applejack searched for the word.

"Tiny?" Dash volunteered.

"Mostly pony-sized," Applejack said.

Spike looked down at himself. "Wow. I had never even noticed that before. You guys!" His head shot up, his eyes wide as if he had just had a revelation. "I'm a mini-Dragon!" Dash snickered, Applejack shook her head in exasperation and Star Fall just looked confused. "A Dragon that learns how to be generous is a Dragon that doesn't become titanic," Spike said, his mock-surprise fading away in an amused chuckle. "It was an important lesson. One that my people needed to learn the hard way."

Star Fall yawned, her jaw cracking wide. "Okay, this is all too much for someone who just flew across most of the continent. Spike, we need to figure out how to move that statue, but there's no way I'm going to be able to think of it tonight. Are your guest rooms made up?"

"As always," Spike said. "How about the two of you, ready to hit the hay?"

"Eyup, I'm not so bad off as Star Fall, but I'm all for gettin' a good night's sleep in an actual bed," Applejack said, standing and stretching out her legs. In the middle of a stretch she stumbled, nearly falling on her face. "Whoa, nelly! I guess I'm more tired than I thought."

"Well, I could use a nap, I guess," Dash allowed. "But I want to hear more about what happened, Spike! What happened to us, I mean, after when we remember? Did I ever get into the Wonderbolts? Or, hey! The waterspout! I was just about to organize that, and we totally had a shot at breaking the record! Did we make it? I bet we made it!"

"Waterspout?" Spike frowned, then his eyes lit up. "Oh yeah! I remember that. Fluttershy's tornado."

"Fluttershy?" Dash asked. "Oh, man, you have got to tell me what hap–" She was cut off by the sound of Applejack collapsing. "AJ!" Dash cried out, rushing to her friend's side in a blur. "You okay?"

"Yeah," Applejack answered, trying to get back to her hooves and only succeeding in fumbling to a sitting position. Her breath came in short, fast gulps, and she waved a clumsy hoof at Dash to keep her back. "I'm fine, probably just tired."

"No," Star Fall breathed, her wings spreading wide. "Dash! Look at her eyes!"

Dash did as she was instructed, and found that Applejack's eyes were glowing. The farmer's green irises were already fading away, and her pupils had become dark pits against a brilliant field of white that was slowly growing more intense. Dash turned to Star Fall. "Is this the same thing that happened to me?" Star Fall's mouth worked, but no sound came out, her eyes going between Dash and Applejack. "Star! Is this what happened to me?"

"Dash," Spike said, his voice careful and controlled, his gaze fastened on her. "Your eyes are glowing too."

Dash didn't know how to respond to that, so she ignored it. She turned to Applejack, grabbing her by the shoulders. "AJ, can you hear me?"

Applejack's eyes had been almost completely overcome with white light, but Dash could still see that they weren't focusing right, each eye moving in its own random direction. "I can hear you fine," Applejack protested, then began to tremble. "I think somethin's wrong," she said.

"Feedback," Spike muttered, glancing at Generosity.

"Come on, AJ, don't do this," Dash pleaded. She turned her head to look at Star Fall. "He's here."

"Cash?" Spike asked. "If he's coming he's got to be pretty far out, the wards–"

"No," Star Fall cut in. "She's right. He's here. He's here, now. Either inside the lair or about to be."

"AJ," Dash said. "Keep it together, alright? Just keep it together. Don't scream."

"Rainbow Dash!" Applejack protested, though her indignation was undercut by her chattering teeth. "I'm not some little filly. This don't even hurt, though it is mighty... mighty frightening." Her shudders stilled. "There, seems to be done now."

"Cover your ears!" Dash cried.

Then Applejack threw her head back and screamed.

Chapter 21: Greed

The fact that the Elements change their physical forms to reflect their bearers was of particular interest to me in my early studies. I personally observed this phenomenon when my friends and I acquired them during the Nightmare Moon incident, where they changed from the shattered remnants of stone spheres into their current forms. It was seen again in spectacular fashion when we passed the Elements on to our 'successors', and then for every Proxy bearer since.

The mechanism for this change is as unknown and unknowable as the Element's physical structure, but the metamorphic nature of the Elements has itself displayed some interesting peculiarities. The first is that when borne by ponies they prominently incorporate the form of the bearer's cutie mark, or rather a simplified version of it. This does not hold for non-ponies, obviously, but the Elements still take a form that is approximate to a simplified cutie mark. For instance, when Spike bore Loyalty it took on the form of a heart-shaped red gem, which was quite appropriate for him.

The second peculiarity is that after my friends and I became bearers, the Elements seemed to use the forms they took for us as a kind of 'default'. Whenever a Proxy relinquished their Element, or it was left unattended for a time1, they would revert to these default forms. This perplexed me at first, but I soon came to realize that it was connected to the differences between True and Proxy bearers.2

The third peculiarity is tied into the first. At several points the Elements have displayed the ability to alter the cutie marks of their bearers. The first time this occurred they switched the cutie marks of my friends, at the same time inserting them into each others' lives without similarly altering their skills or talents to cope with their new situation. While I was focused on resolving this crisis, I did manage to note the change that had come upon the Elements themselves. The cutie marks of the bearers had changed, but the forms of the Elements had not. Loyalty remained a lightning bolt, Honesty an apple, etc. What had changed was the color of the Element's central gem, nothing more. It is essential to note that my friends had not changed in personality or abilities, only in situation.

This was a major clue that led me to discovering the true traits that the Elements represent, and how deeply the connection to their bearers runs.

1 The length of this time seems to vary from a matter of minutes to over a year without discernible reason.

2 This leaves the question of why they took the form of stone spheres when we first found them.They did not do so when used in the first era of the Royal Pony Sisters, only during the interim. Was that their true 'default' form? As far as I can tell, the answer is no, and I have found no concrete reason for why they took that form in the first place.

-From the second section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle, including footnotes

Chapter Twenty-One: Greed

Charisma looked around the library with trepidation. It wasn't as if the space would be bad to fight in, quite the opposite. The freestanding bookcases and the high, domed ceiling allowed for a mix of cover and mobility that actually made it ideal for a pegasus. No, what worried her was the owner of the library, who had spent centuries in it and would know it like the back of his scaly, immensely strong claw.

Dragons were not something even she would take lightly.

Unfortunately for her, there appeared to be nothing at all that her employer wouldn't take lightly. So she found herself in the lair of one of the oldest and most powerful creatures in the world with only a dozen ponies and a couple Dogs for backup, none of whom were carrying the firepower needed to deal with the potential threat. Despite what she knew of the plan and what she had learned of the Elements Cash carried, she couldn't share in his confidence.

"This is a nice place," Cash said, whistling as he regarded the statue of Celestia at the center of the room. "You think he does all his own decorating? My gut says no, but my appreciation for his work says yes."

"Does it matter?" Charisma asked.

"Oh, don't be grumpy," Cash said, chuckling. "It hasn't even been a week since our vacation, you should still be basking in the afterglow."

Charisma rolled her eyes and looked to her troops, such as they were. They were scattered along the edges of the library, ostensibly watching all of the exits and waiting for word from her or Cash on where to go next. Their shoulders slumped and their eyes were dull, all of them were tired from the breakneck pace they had set in getting here. Cash had insisted on moving things along as fast as possible, and with the carnage they had left behind in Precious Corners, Charisma fully agreed with him. The toll of that rush was obvious in the sloppy way they were guarding the room, drooping eyes glossing over several places that a more alert mind would be paying attention to.

"Sound off!" she shouted to the room, jerking the guards to attention.

"Squad two, all clear!" the most alert of the guards barked out. The others joined in soon after, four squads of three ponies each. Charisma was pleased that most of them looked embarrassed at their inattention. Most of her soldiers were military trained, and for those that weren't she had put some effort into instilling proper discipline. They all knew their places and what was expected of them, with the very real threat of her displeasure should they fail to live up to those expectations.

"How's the cargo?" she asked the Dogs once the squads had finished reporting.

"Docile," came the response from the one of the two Dogs holding their guest's leash. "But getting grabby."

"Almost time, then," Cash said. "Isn't it exciting? Like waking up on your birthday knowing that there are presents waiting to be opened."

"Let's just get this over with," Charisma said. "Whatever 'this' is. You still haven't explained to me exactly what requires us to invade a Dragon's lair." Charisma didn't bother to hide the apprehension in her voice.

"Watch and learn." Cash chuckled as he scanned the several entrances to the room. "That one," he said, pointing a hoof at one tunnel. "Charisma, you and I should be up front." Charisma quirked an eyebrow at him. "Safety reasons," he replied. "The rest of you, make sure our guest doesn't get into anything. Well, not yet, at least."

The 'guest' in question blinked slowly in response to Cash's disturbingly wide grin. The drugs they had given him were fast wearing off, but he would remain quiet for a little while longer.

Charisma stepped up to her employer's side and the both of them walked into the tunnel he had selected. It sloped downwards quickly, the floor losing the tiled appearance of the other passages she had seen and attaining a simpler, though still clearly worked, appearance.

"What made you pick this one?" she asked.

"Resonance," Cash replied, his violet eyes rapt on the tunnel in front of them.

Charisma narrowed her eyes at him. "Something else to do with these 'Elements'?" He smirked at her, all the answer she would need.

"Oh, Charisma," he said, his tone lightly mocking. He looked like he was going to continue the thought, but before he could say any more he suddenly stopped in his tracks, holding out a hoof to bar her way. "Whew, I was worried for a moment," he said. His horn lit up, illuminating a shimmering field of green and red across their path.

"Another one?" Charisma asked, incredulous. Cash had stopped them several times in the leadup to the lair, using his Magic Talent to bypass fields just like this one. Wards that alerted the Dragon to anyone approaching. She hadn’t thought that he'd lace the inside of his home with them as well, but here it was. "I knew Dragons were supposed to be paranoid, but this is ridiculous!"

"Only if you don't know what he's got down here," Cash said. He closed his eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. When he spoke again his voice held utter conviction, taking on a strangely solid quality that Charisma had to take a step back to avoid feeling crowded. "Oh, this is a nice one," Cash said, touching his horn to the field, adding his magenta light to the red and green already there.

"You can get around it, though. Right?" she asked.

Cash chuckled. "Sure. Not the same way as the others, though. This is old and complex. Layered. Someone better at magic than I am built the foundation for this ward a long, long time ago."

"Anyone we know?"

Cash's smile was bright and far too eager. "I hope so," he said. The light of his horn went out. "There we go."

"You got it?"

"Not yet," he said, staring at the still-glowing field of magic. "But here's a piece of advice for you: If you want a lie to be believed it isn't so much how you say it as what you say that's important. For instance, if I told this ward that we weren't here, it would know something was up and trip. However, if I say, oh, 'we are expected'." The field shimmered, flashing on and off rapidly for a few seconds before opening a hole that quickly widened to allow easy passage down the tunnel. "Well, you see the results."

"You didn't even use magic there," Charisma said.

"Practice makes perfect," Cash chuckled. "Come on, we don't have much farther to–"

Cash was cut off by a new sound, one that for a moment cut through noise and stillness with equal power. Charisma shuddered as it rolled through her, her coat standing on end at the unnatural feel of it. It was a scream, that she was certain of, one not dulled or muddled by walls of stone and dozens of echoes. It was a mare's scream, but there was something fundamentally wrong with it, something that made her guts twist and her breath come in short gasps. It sounded like fear and it sounded like anger, but there was something else in there as well, an emotion that didn't express itself so easily. An image came to her as she listened to that scream, wandering in a maze made out of mirrors, every path a mirage. It sounded like the scream of someone who was hopelessly lost.

It wasn't the first time she had heard a scream with this much power.

"Did someone step on a cat?" Cash asked as the scream faded, quirking a confused eyebrow. He turned to his entourage, a dozen ponies and Dogs and one very special addition. They were shaken, but recovered quickly. Only their guest seemed to have been affected as strongly as Charisma; he clutched his sack closer and stared wide-eyed at the world. "Anybody? No? Okay, I guess. Charisma, where would you say that was coming from?"

"Deeper in," she answered, taking deep breaths as she shook off the lingering feelings that the scream had conjured up. "Still connected to this part of the complex. Close."

"That's a relief," Cash said, gesturing down the tunnel. "I was worried we were going the wrong way for a moment there."

"That scream. That was Rainbow Dash, wasn't it?" she asked.

Cash shrugged. "Maybe, who knows?"

"It was her last time."

"If it is, no killing," he warned her. She didn't look at him, refusing to meet his gaze and risk being captured by it. "I know, I know, you're disappointed. But hey, why don't we depopulate a nice little village on our way back to the Storm? Come on, doesn't that perk you right up?"

"Why don't we just finish what you want to do here and get going?" she growled.

He laughed, but started walking. The tunnel split and twisted, but Cash was confident on which way to go, and it wasn't long before he had led them to a large cavern. Worked and level, but obviously natural, it had tall rows of crates and barrels with various labels stacked throughout it. A storage room. Charisma signaled to her soldiers to have their weapons ready and be on alert, her own eyes scanning every angle for positions of attack and defense. They walked down one of the paths through the stores, their hooves echoing against the stone with every step. One turn later and they were faced with the back of the cavern, where the master of the lair sat waiting for them, gazing up at a statue.

“Max Cash, I presume,” the Dragon said, turning away from the statue to glare at them, his eyes gleaming with reptilian cunning. Charisma didn’t like that look, it had the air of someone who knew more than he should and was already well prepared for her. It was better than what she was seeing from Cash, though. He had the wide, happy grin that she had come to associate with the worst sort of glee. Even faced with an angry Dragon, he thought things were going his way.

“Spike,” Cash said, leaning forward as if he were about to run up to the Dragon like an obsessed fan. Charisma tensed to stop him if he tried anything of the sort. “You knew I was coming.”

“I was informed that you might drop by unannounced,” Spike said.

“Lady Star?” Cash asked. Spike didn’t answer, but Cash nodded as if he had. “Good to see she’s getting around. I was worried Charisma had done permanent damage to her. Have you met Charisma?”

“I know of her,” Spike said, sparing her a glance that told her everything she needed to know about his combat experience.

“That’s great!” Cash said. “Introductions can get so tedious. Anyway, is Lady Star still around? I’d like to ask her if she’s considered my offer any.”

“What do you want, Cash?” Spike asked. Charisma could see his strong muscles tensing and his claws curling ever so slightly, ready to attack.

Attack en masse, her Talent whispered. Find solid, pointed weaponry. Do not attack with hooves. Guns are ineffective, use them to distract rather than kill. Use squad one and three as flankers and harriers. Have the rest rush in to give more opponents than he can easily keep track of. Wait for opportunity attack. Aim weapon for eye or roof of open mouth. Do not stay still, fly erratically to prevent being targeted by dragonfire. Do not allow quarter. Do not aim to wound.

She could see it playing out in her mind, could envision the move and countermove of fighting a skilled, ancient and incredibly tough opponent with a built-in flamethrower in a confined space. In the best case she would lose half her soldiers before they brought him down. It was more likely that she would have to sacrifice all of them for the kill shot. In none of the scenarios could she guarantee the safety of Max Cash.

She relaxed, forcing her Talent to silence. She had no choice now, it was trust Cash’s plan or nothing.

“The Element of Generosity,” Cash said, his eyes flicking to the statue behind the Dragon. Spike rose protectively, blocking the gleaming statue. Charisma shook her head, she had barely noticed the statue was there, had completely ignored it in her mental calculation of the battlefield. It didn’t change anything, but it was disturbing that she could have missed it so completely. “I’d very much like it if you would hand it over. We could avoid all sorts of awkwardness.”

“I’m not giving it to you,” Spike said.

Cash chuckled. “Oh, but please,” he said, a false simper twisting his voice. “You and I both know that Generosity is all about giving.” Spike didn’t respond, his eyes going to Charisma and her soldiers, evaluating them. “So come on,” Cash continued, his demeanor switching to a familiar, cajoling tone, as if he was trying to convince a friend to accompany him to a party. “Let’s skip all the theatrics and the name calling and the murder and go right to the part where I get the necklace. I’ll give it right back when I’m done with it. I promise.”

Spike ignored him, rearing up to display his full, towering height and staring straight at the soldiers. “One of you is going to burn to death,” he said. It wasn’t a growled threat, more a statement of simple fact. He almost sounded sad. “Some of you are going to get torn apart; some of you are going to be crushed. But at least one of you is going to burn, and all of you are going to die. So before we start, I want you to ask yourselves if it’s worth it. Is what Cash has promised you worth dying for? Because If you follow the orders of this madpony, that’s just what’s going to happen. Think about it. Think hard. Because the first one of you who makes a move towards this statue is going to end up as a greasy soot-stain on my floor, and I’m not liking the odds of the second guy, either.”

There was a long moment of silence as his words sank in. Charisma found herself smiling; she was beginning to like this Dragon. Cash shuddered theatrically and leaned towards her. “Wow,” he said in a stage-whisper. “That was intimidating. If I was wearing pants, I’d probably have wet them. Anybody else think that was scary? Show of hooves?” He turned around to the soldiers, who, if they were intelligent at all, were probably thinking very hard on the Dragon’s words. “No one?” Cash turned back to Charisma. “We’ve got a courageous bunch here. You do know how to pick them.”

“Max!” she snapped. “No games. He’s shown us his. Let’s show him ours.”

“Spoilsport,” he chided, but put a hoof to his lips and let out a piercing whistle. The soldiers moved to either side, clearing a path between, though they were careful not to move any closer to Spike and the statue he was protecting. Out of the tunnel came the two Dogs, and waddling between them on two legs, pulled along by a leash around his neck and clutching a burlap sack full of random odds and ends, was a blue and green adolescent Dragon.

Spike’s eyes went wide, his intimidating stance faltering as he saw the new arrival. “No,” he breathed, barely loud enough for Charisma’s ears to catch.

“Hey there, little guy,” Cash said, stepping up to the baby Dragon. His horn flared as he detached the leashes, causing the Dragon’s amber eyes to latch on to the glowing point of light. “How are you doing?

“I…” the Dragon said with a high, scratchy voice. He blinked slowly at Cash, reaching out with one claw to touch at Cash's glowing horn. “I… want...”

Cash chuckled. “Yes, I bet you do.”

“Don’t do this, Cash!” Spike called out, a sharp edge of fear and desperation cracking his voice.

"What's your name?" Cash asked, ignoring the ancient Dragon for the child.

"Boomer," the young Dragon replied, his eyes leaving Cash's horn to wander with increasing awareness around the room. "Want," he repeated, serpentine tongue darting out to lick his lips as he spotted an open crate full of uncut emeralds.

"Okay, Boomer, you want what's in this room?" The Dragon nodded vigorously.

"Cash!" Spike roared, smoke billowing out of his toothy maw.

"Ah-ah, careful there," Cash admonished. "You know you can't hit a target accurately at this distance." Spike looked confused for a moment, but shut his mouth. There was a sound, like a shriek that cut off before it really got going. Charisma spared a glance away from Spike to search for it, but it had gone silent so quickly that she couldn't find a source. "So, Boomer, how much do you want it?"

"Want!" the young Dragon cried, and Charisma took a step away as she heard his voice drop an octave.

"Boomer, don't listen to him!" Spike cried out, but was ignored.

"Really, really want it?" Cash asked.

"Boomer want!"

"Cash, please don't do this!" Spike pleaded.

Cash looked over to him. "Going to give me the necklace?"

Spike looked stricken. "I can't," he whispered, barely loud enough for them to hear.

Cash shrugged. "Fine with me. Boomer, you want it?" The small Dragon nodded. Cash looked at Spike, meeting the Dragon's eyes and locking him in place. He chuckled, a sound too gleeful by far. "It's yours."

The reaction was instantaneous. Boomer doubled in size, his limbs elongating and his face taking on a more bestial cast. He reached out with a claw that was now as large as Charisma's head and tore the side off of a crate. Small multicolored gems spilled out, scattering across the floor. Boomer scooped up a clawful and threw them into his sack before turning to another crate, his size increasing by the moment.

Cash broke eye contact with Spike, tugging at Charisma with his magic as he moved away from the rampaging Dragon. Charisma didn't need any more encouragement. "Retreat to the exit!" she called to her troops. "Set up a defensive position!" Her forces moved with swiftness borne of fear, galloping back to the tunnel that led out of the cave. Charisma's wings extended, but she didn't fly, making sure that Cash was behind the soldiers before turning and looking at the confrontation.

Boomer was expanding like a balloon being filled with air. Every new handful of gems or other detritus seeming to fuel the transformation. She couldn't see him clearly through the stacks yet, but with every new spurt of growth she was catching greater and greater glimpses.

"Boomer!" Spike screamed out, and a wall of barrels crashed down as the older Dragon slammed into the younger. Spike held Boomer down, fighting the struggling youth. Charisma watched in appreciation as the ancient Dragon quickly subdued his inexperienced opponent, locking limbs and forcing him into a position of no leverage. Spike knew his stuff.

"Give them up," Spike hissed in Boomer's ear. "You have to give them up. Remember what your caretakers taught you! Remember what they said about greed and giving! Please, Boomer, listen to me!"

"Boomer want!" the young Dragon cried out, struggling vainly.

"I know," Spike said, anguish filling his voice. "I know you want it. But it's bad for you, Boomer. You have to let them go. You have to give them up. Remember your caretakers. They were nice to you, werent they?" Boomer's struggles slackened, his gaze going distant. "You love them, don't you?" Boomer nodded slightly. "What would they think? What would they say if they saw you like this? Think about it, Boomer, please. Do it for them, Boomer. Give it up for them."

"Boomer!" Cash called out, catching the attention of both Dragons. His horn flared as he slid a small pile of rubies over to the prone Dragon. "For you."

Boomer's eyes fastened on the gems, all traces of thought gone from them. His muscles bulged with new growth, and Spike was thrown away to crash into a stack of crates, spilling chalk and raw ores everywhere. "Boomer want!"

"This is so fun!" Cash crowed as Boomer tore into another stack of boxes. "I wish I had brought some popcorn. Do you think Spike has any in his kitchen?"

"I don't think we have time to check," Charisma said.

Spike climbed out of the debris he had landed in and launched himself at the other Dragon. "No!" he roared. "Listen to me! Stop before it's too late!"

Boomer was twice Spike's size now, and with a swing of his massive tail he knocked Spike across the cavern and into the wall. Spike barely seemed to notice the hit, rushing right back at the other Dragon as soon as he could. Spike dodged another swing of Boomer's tail, scrambling across the ground with great speed and leaping onto Boomer's back. He sunk his claws into Boomer, holding on as the larger Dragon began to buck and roll to shake him off.

The carefully sorted and labeled stores were in complete disarray now. Crates and barrels had been smashed to flinders, their contents spilled across the ground and then scattered further as the two Dragons struggled against each other. Both of them were bleeding, Boomer from the claw wounds Spike was inflicting and Spike from the little gems that cut into his scales every time Boomer rolled over on him. Neither were hurt badly, though.

"Feel this, Boomer!" Spike shouted before sinking his teeth into Boomer's shoulder and ripping out a chunk of flesh. Boomer reared back and let loose a scream that shook the cavern. "Focus on it! It hurts! You don't like pain, you don't want to keep it! You want to get rid of it, to give it away! Focus on it! Focus on giving it away!"

Boomer didn't listen. He rushed at the wall, turning and smashing Spike into it with all his strength. Spike yelped at the impact, his claws coming free from Boomer's scales. Boomer, now more than five times Spike's size, grabbed the at the attacking Dragon and slammed him into the floor.

Spike squeezed himself free of Boomer's grasp with a serpentine wriggle, gripping the stone with his claws and rushing up the wall. He avoided a few smashing blows from Boomer to hang from ceiling above the adolescent Dragon's head. "Boomer, you're too big," Spike pleaded, staring into empty eyes the size of his head. "You have to stop. You have to give it away or you're going to die."

Boomer responded by slamming his tail into the ceiling, causing rock to crack and stalactites to fall. Spike dropped too, twisting to avoid debris and Dragon, but he wasn't fast enough. A massive claw crashed down on him, brutally crushing him to the floor. Boomer then lifted Spike up and smashed him into floor ground again. Spike cried out at the impact, his green eyes wide and dazed. Boomer repeated the move, battering Spike against the ground like a craftsman taking a hammer to a stubborn nail.

Draconic blood splashed across the debris-strewn floor, sizzling in the open air. Boomer lifted Spike's limp form up in front of him, inspecting the other Dragon before casually tossing him aside. Spike crashed into the wall opposite the statue and fell to the ground, still.

Boomer paused and looked around the room. His teeth showed in a monstrous approximation of a grin. "Mine!" he roared, and grew until he had to lean over to fit in the cavern. He hung his head and gasped, obviously struggling to catch his breath. "Mine," he said again.

"That's our cue," Cash said. He turned to the soldiers. "You should all probably stay put. You know, workplace safety standards and all that. There's a lot of debris out there, a pony could slip and fall. Charisma?"

"Right beside you," she said, and they both walked out into the cavern. She picked her way carefully through the broken remains of crates and barrels and the glittering, sharp objects that had once been their contents. Cash was all too eager to get to the heaving behemoth that Boomer had become, ignoring the cuts and scrapes that he picked up while forging his path.

Boomer saw them coming, twisting to face them. "Whoa, there little guy," Cash said, chuckling amiably as he came to a halt. "I'm not here to steal your treasure."

"Mine," Boomer growled. This close, Charisma could actually hear his heart pounding.

"Yes it is," Cash laughed. "But I think you've missed the greatest treasure in this room." Cash's horn lit up for a gentle magenta push that directed Boomer's eyes towards the statue that had miraculously survived the rampage untouched. "See that?" Cash asked, and his voice became so intense and focused that Charisma shuddered at the sound of it. "Do you see it?"

"Want," Boomer breathed, his voice rattling with every heaving breath.

"You want it?" Cash asked, his magic sifting through the debris around him. "Go get it."

Boomer took a step towards the statue, but as he put his weight down on the leg it snapped with a sound like a whole tree splitting in half. He collapsed, shaking the cavern. He moaned in pain, but his eyes never left the statue. With a grunt of effort Boomer stood again, but this time it was one of his back legs that folded under him, his bulk falling down once again and crushing his limb beneath it.

Cash sighed, walking up to Boomer's head, a prybar suspended in his magical grip. "You know, I'm beginning to think you don't actually want it," he said.

"Want," Boomer rumbled. Charisma could hear his heartbeat speeding away, could practically feel it, and it did not sound healthy.

"Well, then why aren't you taking it?"

Boomer reached out with his good forelimb. He seemed to lose strength as he held the leg aloft, his head coming down to rest on the ground. He huffed in his breaths, in obvious agony, but remained absolutely focused on the statue. He reached as far as he could, and with one careful talon he touched the gem at the statue's throat. Purple light flared from the gem, reflected in Boomer's eyes. His breathing eased and he seemed to gain strength. "Mine," he said.

"No," Cash interrupted, stepping between Boomer and the Statue. "It's mine." With a flare of magic he rammed the prybar home, right into Boomer's eye. There was a sick squelching sound as the length of metal burst the eye and penetrated the Dragon's brain. Charisma shuddered as a feeling of bubbling warmth rolled through her. She had to resist the urge to close her eyes and bask in the sensation.

Boomer shuddered, his muscles moving with too little coordination to shift his immense bulk more than slightly, and he began to shrink. Within moments the enormous beast that had destroyed the room had become a small, portly, blue Dragon no bigger than a ten-year-old filly. A final, rattling breath left the Dragon, and he lay still.

A moment later there was the tinkling sound of falling metal. Charisma looked over to see that the golden necklace had fallen from the statue, and now lay atop the pile of debris at its hooves.

"Three down," Cash said, and let loose a wild laugh as he scooped the necklace up with his magic and secreted quickly in his saddlebag. He turned to Charisma. "That was bracing," he said, grinning widely. "He was a good kid. Did I get any eye gunk on me?" He turned so that she could see him clearly.

She gave him a cursory examination. "No. You're clean." She turned to where Spike lay. "But he's waking up. He might still be dangerous, stand back while I take care of him."

"Nope," Cash said, giggling like a schoolcolt with a secret. "He's on the list, Charisma. No killing."

"You can't be serious," Charisma snorted, but one look at her employer told her that he was. "He'll come after us, Max. We've got a chance now. I do not think he'll let us get another one."

"Fine with me," Cash shrugged, then scrambled over the piles of loose stone and wood towards the prone Spike.

"Max!" Charisma called out, taking to the air to keep ahead of him. "What are you doing?"

"Going to have a little chat," Max chuckled, continuing forward before Charisma dropped into his path, blocking him.

"Then have it from here," she said.

He gave her a long, steady look before grinning again and looking past her towards the prone Dragon. "Spike! You awake yet?"

"I'm going to kill you," came the growled answer. Spike shifted to glare at them, but Charisma could see he was in no shape to fight.

"Great!" Cash replied, sounding like he meant it sincerely. "Though that probably means I can't get your autograph, right? Yeah, okay. Hey, did you know Rainbow Dash is alive again?" Spike didn't respond, but Charisma thought she could detect a hint of recognition in the way his body tensed. "It's true! I thought you might like to know. You two should get together, you know, so you can hang out, catch up, plot revenge, all those things friends do. Could you give her a message, from me? Tell her I'll be waiting for her in the nightlands. Tell her I've still got something for her, but she's going to have to come to me to get it. She'll know what I'm talking about. You good with that? You think you could pass that along for me? Thanks a bunch!"

"They aren't what you think they are, Cash," Spike said as Cash turned to leave.

"Oh?" Cash asked, pausing. "So what are they, then?"

"I don't know," Spike replied. "But whatever you're thinking? They aren't that."

Cash laughed. It began as a quiet chuckle, but quickly progressed to a wild, braying laugh that grated at Charisma's nerves. Then it cut off suddenly and Cash went cold, all expression lost as he stared at something only he could see. "I know," he said. Then his smile reappeared, crawling across his face like a spider crossing its web, and his eyes focused on the world again. "Stay strong, Spike," he said, strolling towards the exit. Charisma followed, keeping a careful eye on the downed Dragon in case he had enough strength to try something. "I'll be seeing you."

***

The wall cracked open, a seemingly natural seam in the stone splitting to reveal a small second room adjoining the storage cavern. Rainbow Dash worked a wheeled mechanism, puffing as she had to put her full strength into turning the wheel and opening the door to Spike's secret chamber. The moment it was wide enough Star Fall shot out, wings carrying her over the destruction to land by Spike's side.

"Spike! Are you alright? Are you... I..." she shook her head. She didn't know what to say.

Spike slowly, painfully pulled himself up to a sitting position. "I'll survive," he said, but he didn't sound happy about it.

"What happened out here, man?" Dash asked, flying over to them. "Did he throw a ton of bombs at you or something?"

Spike made a choking sound, his shoulders hitching and shaking as he raised a claw and pointed. Star Fall looked where he indicated and saw the tiny form of a dead Dragon. Her eyes widened as the implications hit her. "Oh, Spike," she said wrapping her forelegs around the Dragon in a tight hug. "I'm so sorry."

"I couldn't save him," Spike said, staring into the middle distance. "I almost reached him, almost talked him down, but Cash..." he trailed off, squeezing his eyes shut and taking a shuddering breath.

"I don't understand," Dash said, but she sounded lost. "Why is this little guy dead? What happened?" Spike tensed up, becoming harder than rock under Star Fall's embrace.

"Dash," Star Fall admonished gently. "Let me talk to him." Dash blinked at her in confusion, but nodded and flew back to the secret room to help Applejack. "Did you know him?" Star Fall asked Spike, indicating the fallen Dragon.

He shook his head. "I'd never heard of him. I haven't kept up with all the hatchlings for centuries. I don't even meet them until they're almost adults. Now there's one less that I'll ever get to know."

"Did you...?"

"No," Spike said. "Cash. After Boomer got too big to fight back, Cash killed him," He coughed, spitting out a glob of blood and phlegm that bubbled and smoked as it hit an errant chunk of wood. "Not before Boomer did a number on me, though."

"What are you going to do now?"

"Kill him and his little pink errand girl," Spike growled, eyes narrowing with hate and claws digging into the stone.

"No, I meant about... Boomer," Star Fall clarified.

Spike relaxed. "Oh." He looked around, surveying the devastation. "He didn't deserve this," Spike muttered. "Not this." He stood, walking on unsteady, limping legs to where Boomer lay. Gently he picked up the body, cradling it close. "I'm so sorry," he whispered.

"Spike, you okay?" Applejack asked. She was coming out of the secret room with one foreleg thrown over Rainbow Dash's back, her limbs wobbling and her head drooping. Her eyes, however, were alert and trained on her friend, full of compassion and a need to help.

"No," he answered. "I'm not."

Applejack accepted that with a slow nod. "Anythin' we can do?"

Spike was silent for a long moment before nodding. "I could use some help digging through this stuff. I need to find a sack. A brown, cloth sack. It's full of random junk but... but it was his random junk. I also... I want to find a few gemstones. Big ones, clear ones."

"Of course we'll help," Applejack said, pushing off from Dash's back and managing to stand on her own. "But what're we gonna do with all that stuff?"

Spike looked down at the body he carried. "We're going to give him a funeral. And then we're going to go after Max Cash."

***

The sky was clear and bright, a waxing moon hanging over the world like a pale beacon. The rocky hills before them were calm, merely blank, dark humps of bare earth stretching towards the deeper shadow of a forest in the distance. The mountains behind them were silhouetted against the stars, shadow puppet versions of themselves. She stretched her wings out to test the air, feeling the cold stillness of it. It was quiet, and it was bugging Charisma to no end. Only the sound of hooves against earth broke the silence.

"Sound off!" she called out.

"Squad one, forward clear!" came the immediate response.

"Squad two, left clear!"

"Squad three, right clear!"

"Squad four, rear clear!"

"Eyes open, weapons loose!" she commanded.

"Something wrong?" Cash asked, sidling up next to her.

"I don't know," she told him, but kept her eyes searching up and ahead. "Something's wrong. Could the Dragon have called allies to intercept us?"

"Spike's practically a hermit. There's no settlements for a hundred miles," Cash mused. "But I'm certain Lady Star and her friends are close by. So there could be more. Do you think we're being followed?"

Charisma shook her head. "Something else. Do you feel the air?"

"As breathable as ever," Cash said, taking a deep breath. "What's wrong with it."

"It's oppressive," Charisma said, flapping her wings a couple times. "Like something's weighing it down."

Cash's eyes narrowed. "Describe it to me, exactly what you're feeling right now."

"Apprehension," Charisma replied. "Uncertainty. Fear. The air is too still, the night is too quiet. Is this you?"

"No," Cash said. "I'm not feeling it now, but I have felt something like that before." He looked up at the sky, searching. His violet eyes looked black in the moonlight, but his graying mane shone silver against the brown of his coat. He looked otherworldly, inequine, and Charisma had to fight extra hard against the voice of her Talent demanding that she end him right then. "Be ready. If this goes badly, we're going to have to run."

"If what goes badly?" Charisma demanded, but Cash was silent, simply scanning the skies. "Max! What is it?"

"Contact!" the lead pony of squad one called out.

"Identify!" Charisma snapped, taking to the air to catch up to the forward scout.

"Pony, dead ahead," the soldier said, pointing out into the darkness with his flashlight. Charisma squinted and managed to make out a vaguely equine shape standing in their path, too far for the light to fully illuminate.

"Everybody stop," Cash said, and for once his tone had lost its jovial edge. They came to a halt, the soldiers falling back to a tighter formation around their employer. "Let her come to us."

"Her?" Charisma asked, but at that moment all their flashlights flickered and died. There was a moment of ominous silence, then the ground shook and bucked under her hooves and the air howled as a whirlwind dropped from the clear sky to swirl in front of them, glowing like a pillar of embers in the darkness. Charisma leapt away from the smoky column, dropping down beside Cash. He stared at the burning tornado unmoving and unafraid, a wry half-smile playing at his lips. "Weapons hot! Light it up!" She screamed to be heard over the wind.

Her soldiers leveled their guns and opened fire, staccato bursts of light flaring from the weapons at their sides every time their mouth pressed the trigger. The bullets tore into the cloud, but it was obvious within moments they weren't doing any good. "Cease fire! Fall back!" she commanded, grabbing Cash to make sure he moved and hauling away from the whirlwind.

"You Will Not Escape," the whirlwind said, and the sound of that voice alone almost made Charisma drop to the ground. Some of her soldiers weren't able to keep their hooves, stumbling and tripping as their legs suddenly no longer obeyed them. Their retreat stalled, and Charisma turned to face the funnel. It roared and writhed, twisting around itself at impossible angles. Tendrils of ashen wind whipped about, scoring the earth where they touched and leaving the scent of charred flesh in their wake. With a convulsive wrench the whirlwind folded in upon itself, gaining definition, becoming a solid form. An extremely tall pony mare, with wide, dark wings and a long, wickedly pointed horn. Her mane was translucent, but turned the world seen through it gray and barren and lit with a sickly half-light. Her Glyph was a heart of thorns pierced by a sword, and her eyes burned brightly, white within gold within black.

Charisma knew this mare, this fallen Goddess. She had heard a description of her from one who had seen up close. She knew that this was the Destroyer, Nightmare Umbra. She stared at the revealed Goddess with wonder, not because of the power of the being before her, not because of the terrible weight of those burning eyes. No, what had captured her attention and seemed to make the whole world fall away from her was something else: Her Talent was silent. For the first time since she had gained her Glyph it was not demanding she kill, was not providing her with the best way to accomplish that. She looked upon the Nightmare, and it had nothing to say.

"I Seek Only Maximillion Cash," Umbra said. Her voice was barely a whisper, but Charisma heard it as clearly as if it was spoken in her ear, and it brought her mind back to the situation. "I Care Nothing For The Rest Of You. Leave, And Live."

"Hold fast!" Charisma warned her troops, looking to Cash. "I can't kill her," she said, still amazed that she could ever make such a statement. "Now what?"

"Now we roll the dice," Cash said, then he raised his voice to address the Destroyer. "Umbra! Can't say it's nice to see you again, but, hey, we got off on the wrong hoof last time."

"You Cannot Distract Or Dissuade Me," Umbra said, taking a step forward. The soldiers jumped at that step, a half-second from breaking. "Your Words Will Not Save You."

"Are you sure about that?" Cash asked, chuckling. He fixed the Nightmare with his eyes, his voice taking on an intensity of focus that she had only heard from him when he was straining with a particularly complex spell. "Because I'm not the pony you're looking for. What you want is back in the capital. You should go there."

Umbra screamed in rage, the sound thundering through the air and knocking the ponies back as if they had been hit with a hurricane gale. They went skidding across the bare ground, Charisma planting one hoof into the soil to halt herself. She looked around to find her soldiers scattered, but mostly unhurt, clambering back to their hooves. She spotted Cash a short distance away, being helped up by one of the Dogs.

"You Think You Can Use The Elements Against Me?" the Nightmare roared, rearing up and spreading her wings.

"Uh-oh," Cash said, looking at Umbra with all traces of his usual cheerful demeanor gone. For the first time since she had met him, Charisma saw Max Cash look worried.

"You Do Not Know What Power You Attempt To Wield!" Cracks ripped open in the earth, lightning flashing up from them to the sky. Ember clouds formed in moments, swirling in a dozen burning infernos that began to extend glowing fingers down towards the ground. "Arrogant Foal! Die For Your Hubris!" With a wave of her horn, black fire washed over the battlefield towards Cash.

Charisma didn't spare the time to think, leaping from her position to tackle her employer, sending them tumbling away from the magical fire. She felt a sting as a tongue of clinging flame licked at her leg, burning with intense pain that quickly began to spread. The Dog that had been helping Cash screamed as the fire engulfed him, turning him into a dark torch. His screams only lasted for a moment, though, his body falling apart into ashes that swirled through the air towards the Nightmare, becoming part of her gray coat.

"Charisma," Cash said, quiet and commanding. "Don't move, don't struggle. Don't try to fight the pain, don't try to put out the fire. Stay perfectly still." It was an effort of will, but she complied, stilling herself. Cash's horn lit up and Charisma felt her leg go numb, but the crawling, burning sensation went away as well.

"This isn't worth it," a nearby soldier said, his eyes running with tears, his voice shaking with fear. "Luna please save me! No amount of money is worth this!" A quick look from Charisma showed her that the rest of her troops seemed to have similar sentiments.

"You Have No Hope Against Me," Umbra said, her rage once more contained, controlled. She walked forward, each step sending out tendrils of black fire that ran in snaking lines towards the soldiers as she addressed them. "Run Or Die."

"She doesn't look so tough!" Cash called out before the ponies could start running. They stopped, looking around them in confusion, as if they had forgotten why they were running. "You guys can take her!" Umbra's gaze snapped to Cash, her eyes flaring bright. The soldiers looked at the Nightmare, and their fear was gone. "Also, she's got your paychecks, and I know you want them!"

"Do Not," Umbra warned.

"So go get her," Cash said.

"Give us our money!" the same soldier who had been begging help from a Goddess moments ago yelled, rushing at the Nightmare. The other joined in, charging the living Goddess and demanding money that she clearly did not have.

"That'll give us a moment," Cash said as Umbra began fighting back. She kicked out and a soldier went flying, landing with a dull thud.

"Can I move yet?" Charisma asked.

"What? Oh, right," Cash chuckled. "Yes, I took care of the Ashfire. You should be fine now."

Charisma rolled to her hooves, wings flaring. "We have to get you out of here," she said, watching as the Destroyer demolished her soldiers. They were fighting in earnest now, soldiers blasting her with their guns, using proper tactics, keeping her from just obliterating them all with magic.

"Absolutely," Cash agreed. "Say, that was a good save back there. You could have died for me."

"So?" She searched for an exit. The fiery tornadoes were swirling about them. She could probably evade them in the air, but Cash was nowhere near nimble enough to do so on hoof.

"So that was pretty darn loyal of you. Want some new jewelry?"

"What?" Charisma turned to Cash, and saw him removing the necklace with the crimson lightning bolt from his saddlebag. "Max. What are you doing?"

"Improvising," he replied. "Now do you want it or not? By the way, saying yes will possibly save our lives, and saying no means we're both dead right here."

Charisma stared at the necklace. She knew, somehow, that it was a much bigger decision than he was making it out to be. Yet if their survival depended on it, there could be only one answer. "Yes. Of course yes! Just give it to me!" She snatched the necklace from his magic and had it around her neck in an instant. "Now what?"

"I do hereby declare you a Proxy bearer of the Element of Loyalty. Now get us the hell out of here!" Cash said. He glanced over to the fight, and Charisma followed his gaze. Umbra stood uninjured despite the firepower being leveled at her. Half the soldiers were down, and the other half looked like they might be reconsidering the lie Cash had forced them to believe.

"How?"

"Pick me up and fly," he said.

She glared at him. "Are you insane? No, don't answer that. I can't carry you!"

"Try!"

She grabbed him with her forehooves, her wings pumping in a futile effort to take off with so much weight.

Except it wasn't futile. Her wings caught at the swirling air like sails, lifting her up with a greater ease than she had ever known before. They shot skyward, rocketing towards the burning clouds faster than she had ever flown on her own. She adjusted, furiously flapping as she fought her own momentum and tried to direct them between the fiery pillars that twisted through the air. It was astounding, the ease with which she flew, and what was more surprising was that it didn't feel strange to her. No, for some reason it felt right, like she should always have expected to fly this well.

She angled them between two ember funnels and shot out into a clear, starry night. Her breath came easily, her muscles worked tirelessly, Cash's weight was nothing, and the chill of the northern air was a forgotten thing. She felt like she could fly forever.

"Faster," Cash said.

"I'm going as fast as I've ever gone!" she snapped, glaring at him incredulously.

"She's coming," he said, looking back. She turned her head, and saw that the Destroyer was indeed following them, her fire-storms spread out vertically behind her like hellish portals, reaching out sideways towards them with burning tentacles. "This'll probably work better if you go faster."

She worked harder, her wings finally beginning to burn with effort as she pulled out all the stops. She felt something in front of her, like she was pushing against a gelatinous barrier, giving but more solid the harder she pushed.

"A little more," Cash urged, his horn flaring so brightly the normal magenta began to look white. "Come on, give it a little more!"

Charisma pushed harder. One glance back at the Nightmare rapidly closing the distance and she put the last of her energy into it. She pushed against that strange barrier, then with a mighty surge of effort she forced herself through it. It hurt, like every part of her was being crushed at once. She cried out at the pain, but then they were through, and she found that she barely had to flap her wings to maintain her speed. A trail of light followed her, striped pink and red and glowing like a rainbow in the night.

"Yes!" Cash crowed, and his horn flashed as he completed his spell. A dozen copies of herself and Cash split off from them, each leaving their own ethereal trail. "Veer randomly!" he screamed at her, his voice strangely faint for being so close.

She did as he asked, shooting off to the right. The images scattered, flying in a dozen different directions. Umbra shrieked in rage behind them, the sound of her voice making Charisma falter for a moment before she recovered and put a renewed effort into flying. She laid her ears back and blocked out the rest of the world, focusing on flying as fast and as far as she could. Her wings ate up the miles, every frantic beat of her heart marking another league gone by. She didn't realize how long she'd been flying until Cash smacked her with a hoof.

She blinked, shaking her head. She looked down to see Cash pointing a hoof towards the ground, mouthing something. She flared her wings to brake, which turned out to be a mistake when traveling this fast. The wind suddenly hit her wings like cement walls, nearly wrenching them from their sockets. They began to fall, and she only barely managed to hang on to Cash as they tumbled through the air. She bit her lip to focus her mind away from the pain in her wings, forcing them wide to catch the air and control their descent.

It hurt. A searing agony that made her scream at the effort of maintaining it, but she did it. When they came to earth she had managed to slow them to a reasonable speed and maneuver them over a wide pond. She dropped Cash into the water before folding her aching wings and diving in herself. The water was blessedly cold, numbing her burning joints. She swam towards the shore and pulled herself up to the grass, lying there for a long moment and watching as the sky gradually lightened in the east.

"Nice work," Cash said, walking up to her. His horn was glowing, his magic stripping the water out of his mane and coat. "Could use a bit more practice on the landing, though."

"How did I do that?" Charisma asked him. She looked down at the necklace. Its central gem had changed. It was no longer a lightning bolt; now it was a teardrop shape, just like her Glyph. "What are these things?"

"Well, for the first question, there are some serious benefits to being a bearer," Cash said, sitting down next to her. "For the second?" he chuckled, winking at her. "Well, that's a good question." They sat there looking towards the coming dawn for a long moment before he spoke again. "You are going to have to give it back." She pulled the necklace from her neck without hesitation, holding it up to him. His magic caught it, and the moment it did the gemstone reverted to its original form. There was no transition, no visible change. It was simply a teardrop one breath and a lightning bolt the next. "Thank you."

"The guards," she said, remembering the fear in the voice of the soldier begging for salvation. She didn’t know where her thoughts were going from there. He had used them as a distraction for their escape, but she had been casually contemplating sending them to their deaths against Spike a couple hours earlier. Somehow, for some reason, what he had done seemed worse.

"To be fair, I was going to have you kill them anyway," he said with a giggling laugh. "They'd seen too much. Umbra just saved you the effort."

Charisma accepted this with a nod. "Is the Shadowed Alicorn going to come for us?" she asked.

"Probably," Cash admitted. "If she ever figures out where we are."

"Couldn't she have seen through those images? Wasn't that a big gamble?"

He shrugged. "Oh, certainly. But I figured that if Deceit wouldn't work on her directly, it should be able to shore up an illusion so that she couldn't easily ignore it. Looks like I was right."

Charisma sighed, rolling onto her stomach and laying her head down on the grass. "So it's not enough to have the Secret Service and the RIA after us, now we have to have a Dragon and a Goddess too?"

"The whole world's going to be against me, Charisma," Cash said, patting her shoulder. "That's just the nature of the game."

"This game is going to kill you."

"Eventually," he said. "But we're almost home free, now. Come on, we've should get moving."

"To the nightlands," she said, slowly getting up. "The next Element."

"Yes indeed, but we can afford to take our time," Cash said. "If my guess was right we've still got a couple weeks before everything's in place down there. Hey! We could visit my old hometown while we wait! You look like you could use a vacation. What do you say, huh?" He nudged her, grinning again. "Visit the homestead, see the sights, look up some old chums and murder them messily. Sounds nice, right?"

She didn't bother to respond, instead rolling her eyes at him and walking away. She started towards the south with her head full of questions and the sound of Cash's wild laughter in her ears.

***

The sun rose as Spike was putting the last touches on Boomer's funeral pyre. It stood at the foot of his mountain, an iron crucible stacked with wood and coal. The small body of the fallen Dragon was nestled in a bed of jewels at the top of that stack, curled around his sack of meagre possessions. Spike stood over the pyre with a bagful of his best rubies, slowly swallowing them one after another, stoking his flames high. Applejack, Rainbow Dash and Star Fall stood a little ways off, watching him.

"Should we say a few words?" Dash asked, pawing at the ground in quiet worry.

Spike shook his head. "None of us knew him. None of us has anything to say."

"Should... should we stay and watch with you?" Star Fall asked, hesitant to impose. He smiled at that, she was still as sensitive as ever, even after working for the Secret Service and studying under Twinkle Shine's tutelage. It brought him incredible comfort to know that she hadn't changed.

"Fire hot enough to cremate a Dragon is fire that will burn a pony even as far away as you are now," he told her. "I'll be alright. Go inside, rest. It's been a very long day for all of you."

"If you ever need us, man, we'll be here, okay?" Dash assured him.

"Darn tootin' we will," Applejack agreed. "If you need to talk to someone, Spike..."

"I got it, guys," he said, waving them off. "I'll be up when it's done."

"We'll be waitin'," Applejack said, then turned and began the walk up the path to his lair. Star Fall followed her after one long look back at him, clearly wanting to stay but trusting his word that he'd be fine. Dash just gave him a curt nod and shot up into the air, flying into his home and leaving a prismatic trail behind that glimmered as it faded into the morning light.

Spike watched them until they were halfway up the switchback trail before he began. He inhaled deeply, mixing the air with the magic he had gathered from the gems he'd been eating. Then, with a roar that shook the loose stones around him, he breathed dragonfire. It wasn't the same kind he used for carving his statues, or the kind he had once used to send letters across the world. This was a dragonfire devoid of any power other than heat. It splashed like liquid into the crucible, igniting the pyre in an instant and engulfing it in red flame.

He breathed until his flame ran out, then began stuffing his face with the remaining rubies, quickly refilling the magic until he could send out another gout, stoking what was in the crucible even higher. He couldn't see Boomer's small body anymore, only flames. Once he had run out of fire again he fell back to his haunches. He spent a long time like that, sitting and staring at the burning pyre, occasionally keeping the flames stoked high. He might have been crying, but if he was the heat evaporated any tears before they could fall.

He felt her coming long before she arrived. The feeling manifested as a premonition of doom, an apprehension that he had long ago learned to associate with one being. He stood, walking partly around the pyre, and saw her. She appeared as a cloud of billowing ashes, obscured from view on the mountain side by the smoke of the fire. As he watched the ashes formed into the familiar, cruel face of a unicorn mare. Spike's eyes narrowed and his teeth ground together as he looked at her.

"Spike," the Nightmare said, her whispering voice clear though it was no louder than the mountain breeze. "You Have Failed."

"Shut up, Umbra," he growled.

"The Element Of Generosity Has Been Stolen!" Umbra hissed. "You Were Its Guardian. You Bear Responsibility."

"Sure, and since you’re talking about it, you must have seen the thief on your way here. So, did you manage to get it back from Cash?" Umbra swirled in silent rage. "Yeah, didn't think so."

"He Is Proving Elusive," she admitted. "Which Does Not Absolve You Of Your Failure!"

"No," Spike sighed. "I’m not doing this. I want to talk to Twinkle Shine."

Umbra sneered at him. "You Think You Have The Power To Demand Anything Of Me?" Dark fire played about her ashen horn.

"I'm not afraid of you," Spike said. Umbra twitched as if she had been slapped. "I hate you, but I'm not afraid. Twinkle Shine. Now."

Umbra snarled, but her features melted away to be replaced by the smaller visage of the Professor. "I'm sorry," she said. "It's been hard. The plan's so close to fruition, but everything's been falling apart. What happened here, Spike?"

Spike let out a deep sigh. His blood surged at the raw memory, but he forced himself to stay calm and relate only the cold facts. "Cash brought an adolescent Dragon. Fed his greed, played on it. He used it to activate the Element, and then killed him to take it."

"Boomer!" Twinkle Shine gasped, ashen face looking stricken. "He kidnapped a Dragon and I was so preoccupied I never even saw the connections. But to use him to release an Element? That... that shouldn't be possible!"

"How would you know?" Spike grumbled.

The Professor flinched, taken aback by his question. "I wouldn't," she said, her gaze falling to the ground and her ears drooping. "Not for sure. But that spell was created to last through everything. It shouldn't be that easy to just... bypass it!"

"It happened," Spike said. "That's all that matters."

Twinkle Shine was silent for a moment. When she spoke again she had regained her composure, her voice steady and calm and her eyes once more meeting his. "The two mares, you must have met them, one claiming to be Rainbow Dash, the other claiming to be Applejack."

"I know," Spike said, cutting her off. "It's them."

She frowned. "How can you be sure? I wasn't able to find any evidence to confirm it, and I did a full examination of Rainbow Dash."

"Come on, Professor," Spike chided, smiling slightly. "You think a couple of ponies could show up at my lair claiming to be my old friends, knowing about the Elements, and I wouldn't test the resonance?" He shook his head. "It's them. Young and innocent and missing a lot of memory, but according to the supposedly foolproof methods Twilight left, it's them."

Twinkle Shine's frown deepened at this news. "How?"

"I'm tired of asking that question," Spike said, looking towards the fire. "If we're just going to worry about the how of all of this, we'll be here forever. They're here, they're real, what are we gonna do about it?"

"I don't know." Twinkle shine shook her head. "I was so sure Rainbow Dash was a trick of some kind. Something aimed at disrupting the plan. Part of the reason I came here was to kill her," she admitted.

Spike let out an exasperated sigh. "Typical Umbra. Deciding to just wipe out anything that looks like it might remotely get in her way. No alternatives considered or taken.”

“A Rainbow Dash lookalike appearing out of nowhere? With my student? At this precise time?” She scoffed. “Spike, without knowing what Cash was doing, how could that seem like anything other than an attack? One aimed at anyone who might remember her. Like Umbra. Or you.”

“Whatever. Killing them isn’t an option."

"No," Twinkle Shine agreed. "It isn't."

"What about Umbra? Is she on the same page?"

"I don't... I can't say."

"Well, get her there," Spike growled. "Cash is the enemy now. We've got to put everything we have into stopping him."

"Spike, the plan is nearly done," she said. "It is my purpose. It has to be my priority."

"To hell with your plan!" Spike snapped.

"If I don't monitor it, it could lead to a world-wide war!" she snapped back. "How easy is it going to be to catch Cash when that's going on?!"

He snarled, but calmed quickly and nodded. "Fine. You keep your end under control. I'll find Cash."

"Agreed," she said, then let her gaze drift over to the pyre. “I’ve been trying to get you down off this mountain and into the world for a long time. Any victory would have been empty without you. I knew you’d join me eventually, but I didn’t want it to be like this. I’m sorry, Spike.”

“Yeah,” he said. “Me too. And I’m not joining you. This is about stopping Cash. That’s all it is, that’s all it will ever be.”

They spent another minute in thoughtful silence. "How is Star Fall?" she eventually asked.

"Good," Spike said, his shoulders relaxing. "Tired, worried, but good." He chuckled. "Flying four days straight to get to me. I think Dash is rubbing off on her."

The Professor snorted. "I'll have to nip that in the bud. I don't want her becoming the new Scootaloo."

Spike smiled. "No chance of that, Star's got a different hero."

Twinkle Shine smiled. "Yes she does." Then her face fell. "How much have you told them?"

"Some, not all," Spike said. "I'm not going to lie to them."

"No, but some of the truth..."

"Yeah. If they don't ask, they don't have to know." He sighed, watching the fire for a moment. "I hate talking to you like this," he said, gesturing at the ash cloud. "You remind me too much of her."

"Transforming takes too much out of me to just switch back and forth at will, Spike," the Professor said. "But if the plan works, it won't ever be a problem again."

"If the plan works," Spike repeated, shaking his head. "Eight hundred years, and you pick now, of all times, to put it into motion."

"The world is ready, Spike," she said. "Finally, truly ready."

"Yeah, we thought that before, remember?" He turned to face the waning fire. "Turned out real great that time, didn't it?"

"This time will be different."

"And if it's not? What then?" He turned back to her, only to find himself faced with the hateful visage of the Nightmare.

"Pray That It Is," she whispered, her cinder cloud already falling apart and drifting into the sky. "For If The Power Of Friendship Fails Again I Will Be There, And All Will Be Turned To Ashes." With those final words she swirled away, taking a few flecks of ash from the pyre with her as she left.

Spike watched her go. "Good luck, Professor," he said. "Something tells me you're gonna need it."

***

Rainbow Dash sat staring at the statue of Rarity, quietly willing something to happen.

The storeroom had been swept up, most of the debris settled into neat piles around the edges of the room, leaving the floor clear. The statue still couldn't be moved, they’d found that out soon enough, but Star Fall had talked about 'fading residual effects', which Dash took to mean that it wasn't going to stay that way much longer.

She was still amazed at how quickly it had all happened. Applejack's scream had knocked her for a loop, and the next few events were confused in her mind. She knew that Spike had recovered first, but the first thing she could recall clearly was him shoving her and Applejack into the secret room and Star Fall whipping out her spell sheets and drawing furiously. Dash had just gotten her hooves under her again when Applejack had started another scream. Star Fall had activated one of her spells, and the whole room had gone completely silent.

They had huddled together after that, Dash protectively curling her wings around the other mares, feeling the impacts of the titanic struggle that had taken place just a thin layer of rock away. She had wanted to open the door, to go and help, but she knew that it would only expose Applejack and Star Fall to whatever was going on, and with Applejack out of commission that would be too dangerous. So she had stayed, and they had waited.

When the vibrations finally stopped, Star Fall had still held Dash back. It had seemed like an eternity waiting in the dark, only the light of Star Fall's magic to see by, and no sound to indicate what, if anything, was happening. When Star Fall had finally indicated that it was time to leave, Dash had been all too eager, but unprepared for what they had found.

If she hadn't hated Cash before, she did now. There was no kind of pony who would kill a child like that. He was a monster.

"You just gonna sit there?" Applejack asked, walking up next to her.

"Waiting for Rarity to show up," Dash replied.

"You think that's actually gonna happen?"

Dash nodded. "Cash got Loyalty, I showed up. Cash got Honesty, you showed up. Notice a theme here?"

"Yup, that strikes me as a pattern too," Applejack agreed. "But it ain't for certain, and you've got to be as tired as the rest of us. Star's sleepin'. Went out like a candle the moment her head hit the pillow. You should be joinin' her, not sittin' here starin' at stone."

"Spike's still down at the funeral, isn't he?" Dash asked, a little more roughly than she had intended.

Applejack paused, but nodded. "He is," she said. "And if I could get him to rest some, I would. But the way he took it, he basically just lost his kin, so I don't got that option with him. Instead, I'm doin' what I can for you."

"I am resting," Dash said, slapping at the ground. "See? No flying, no running, no heavy lifting or anything. Totally restful."

"Not what I meant, and you know it," Applejack huffed. "It's been hours, Dash. If Rarity were gonna show up, she'd have done it by now."

"Oh come on, you know Rarity," Dash said with a forced chuckle. "She's always gotta be fashionably late or something. She’s just waiting until it’s all dramatic."

"Dash, what if she doesn't show up?" Applejack asked. "What then? How long are you gonna wait?"

"I don't know!" Dash shouted, then took a deep breath to calm herself and continued in a quiet voice. "I don't know, okay? Maybe she'll show up, maybe she won't. Maybe it'd be better if she didn't."

"Why's that?"

"Do you think she'd want to be brought back like this?" Dash asked. "Because somepony got killed? Do you think I wanted that? Did you?"

Applejack shook her head. "No. I wouldn't have wanted it. But what's done is done, and the best we can do is keep it from happenin' again. And you can't do that if you're sittin' down here waitin' for a friend who may never be comin'. And you can't do it if you're refusin' rest when you need it. I learned that one the hard way, remember? I ain't gonna see one of my friends make the same mistake without tryin' to stop her."

"I thought you learned to ask for help and not let your pride get in the way?"

"I did learn that. I also learned that tired ponies are stupid ponies," Applejack said, giving Dash a light shove. "I can learn more than one thing at a time. Now get to bed."

Dash reluctantly got up. "What about you?"

"I'll be joinin' you 'soon as I let Spike know where we are."

"What about Rarity? What happens if she appears?"

"Then she'll be confused and wonderin' what's goin' on," Applejack said. "But she'll also be in some of the nicest caves I've ever laid eyes on, with friends sleepin' not too far away and a friendly Dragon just outside the only exit. She'll be fine."

Dash's head drooped, her wings falling. "Yeah, you're right."

"Yup."

"Just... can I have ten more minutes?" Dash pleaded. "I just really wanted somepony to be there when she woke up. Not be all alone, like what happened to me."

Applejack set her jaw, ready to argue, but her face softened as she looked into Dash's eyes. "Alright, sugarcube. Ten minutes. I'll go and tell Spike what we're up to, but when I get back you're heading to bed if I have to drag you there myself."

"Thanks, AJ." Applejack just shook her head and left.

Dash sat back down, staring once more at the statue called Generosity. But her concentration had been broken, and she soon found herself fidgeting. Her wings stretched with idle energy, and after only a few minutes she stood. "Sorry, Rarity," she said, sighing. "Applejack's right. It didn't take her or me this long to wake up in the future. Maybe you aren't coming back. I don't know whether that's good or that sucks, but, well, I think we could use another friend here."

She turned and began walking towards the door. She hadn't made it halfway before she heard a faint sound. Nothing much, just a small intake of breath. She spun around, wings flaring, and her eyes widened as she looked at the dais.

Rarity opened her eyes, blinking and frowning at the cave around her. Then her gaze landed on Dash and she smiled in relieved recognition. "Rainbow Dash! Do you know where in Equestria we happen to be? Because for some reason I don't have the faintest clue how I got here."

"Rarity," Dash said, unable to keep the hitch from her voice, but answering the unicorn's smile with her own.

"My goodness, Dash!" Rarity said, stepping down from the dais towards her. "Whatever is the matter? You look as if you're about to cry!"

"It's a long story," Dash said, grinning through the tears that blurred her vision. "But I'm glad you're here."

Chapter 22: Patterns of Behaviour

The most prevalent, almost ubiquitous, Passive ability of the Elements is what I have taken to calling Intrinsic Understanding. The term is not precisely accurate, but it serves well enough for my purposes. Intrinsic Understanding can be viewed as an extra level of perception that the Elements grant to their bearers. A ‘sixth sense’ if you will. This sense allows them to detect their Element’s purview on a subconscious level. That is, it allows a bearer to sense that which their Element acts upon. This might still seem overly vague, but the limitations of language restrict how I present this concept.

To illustrate: using this ability allows the bearer of Honesty to detect the connections that can then be altered or controlled using the Activated powers of the Element, which connections are strengthened, which are weakened and so forth. The bearer of Generosity can sense the distribution of variables in any system, and is thus able to control within extreme tolerances where they want those variables to go. Without Intrinsic Understanding they would be effectively firing blind, pointing the power of their Element at a target and hoping it works. Intrinsic Understanding allows the bearer to pinpoint with acute precision what they want to target, and how.

The bearers regularly experience this information as intuitive, and never question how they acquired it without prompting. It never leads to information overload regardless of the number of factors they are tracking, and is always easily comprehensible to the bearer. They are not, however, capable of explaining what they know, or how they know it, in any coherent manner. This inability does make sense, my own attempts to explain above should provide a clue as to how difficult it is to convey even in the very abstract.

My experimentation into this ability showed that with training it can be used consciously, though I later found this to be more dangerous than helpful. I did discover that there is apparently no limit to the size of the system Intrinsic Understanding is able to confer mastery over, either in the macro or micro direction.

While the experiments I had my friends perform in looking into the limits of this ability did bear fruit, it also showed me how closely Intrinsic Understanding is linked to the more dangerous Activated abilities of the Elements. This fact was brought to my attention because of an incident that involved asking Rainbow Dash to use Intrinsic Understanding to examine as small a system as she could. It was going fantastically until she, quite by accident, caused the atoms in a small glass of water to fuse. I subsequently abandoned all experimentation into this ability for reasons I do not believe need to be explained here.

-From the fourth section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Twenty-Two: Patterns Of Behaviour

Spike knew something was up the moment he trudged back into his cave. His thoughts were on the conversation with Twinkle Shine, wondering if her mad plan had even a hope of success. Yet even those dark contemplations could not detract from a Dragon’s awareness of his lair. It was a sound he hadn’t expected to hear that drew him out of his thoughts and forced him to turn his attention outward. Three voices came from his kitchen, echoing faintly through the halls. Old Equestrian, the language nostalgic and familiar and spoken in a way it hadn’t been since his youth. Applejack’s voice was the clearest, the country drawl easy to identify even with the muddling of echoes and distance. Dash’s wild exclamations and excited pitch were not much more difficult. It was the third voice that truly caught his attention, that made his body feel like all the scales on his legs had suddenly stood on end. It was high, controlled, proper, but with an edge. A voice he had ached to hear for a thousand years. Rarity.

He didn’t rush, didn’t break into a run and barge his way into the kitchen to see if what he was hearing was true. He wanted to, so very badly, but he took deep, slow breaths, and walked. Yet every step felt like a hundred, and every second stretched to minutes. As he came closer the conversation became more clear, and he paused just outside the door to the kitchen, out of sight. Every bone in his body wanted him to rush in, but he knew that if he did that he would probably terrify Rarity. He didn’t want her to fear him. Never that. He peeked in, just enough to see what was going on.

"The future," Rarity was saying, shaking her head. "I can barely believe it. Not that I don't believe you, darling. This is too far to go for a prank, Rainbow Dash, even for you. But… how can this be the future? And such a dreadful one at that!"

"It's kinda complicated," Dash hedged, looking down into a mug that steamed in front of her. Dash and Applejack sat at the table in his spacious kitchen while Rarity nervously paced back and forth. Dash drooped, looking tired but clearly unwilling to show exactly how much to her returned friend. Applejack was sitting opposite her, her gaze switching from following Rarity's pacing to giving a worried look to Dash, and then back again.

"Complicated?" Rarity huffed. "It's absurd! Why, I was just going to bed, I think I would remember some kind of time travel!"

"Anythin' interestin' goin' on before you hit the hay?" Applejack asked.

Rarity frowned. "No, nothing that I can think of. It was just another day. Why?"

"We've all come from different times," Applejack told her. "I'm from right before cider season opened up. Dash comes from later, after Ponyville got chosen to provide water for Cloudsdale."

"Yes, I remember that," Rarity said. "But, this is just too... too..."

"Crazy?" Spike supplied, deciding that was cue enough and stepping into the room. The three ponies turned to stare at him, but his eyes were locked on Rarity. "My sentiments exactly."

She stopped dead in her tracks, her mouth hanging open to stare at the Dragon. "Sp... Spi... Spike?"

He nodded. "It's me, Rarity. All grown up." There was a beat of silence then he dashed forward with a swiftness that belied his size but made his injuries ache. He reached for the unicorn seamstress and managed to catch her just before she collapsed to the floor in a swoon. He drew her close, cradling her in immensely strong arms. Memories flooded through him. Memories of a voice and a smile and sparkling blue eyes. He breathed softly, taking in her scent. Even that was the same.

"Whoa! Nice moves," Dash said, half-risen from her seat.

"I was expecting it," Spike explained, not taking his eyes off of the unicorn he held. "Come on, Rarity, I haven't seen you in a thousand years, I kinda don't want you sleeping through the reunion."

Rarity's eyes fluttered at his gentle cajoling, finally opening to gaze in wonder. "Spike? My little Spikey-wikey? Is it really you?"

"In the flesh."

"So... it really has been...?"

"A thousand years."

"I... I'm sorry Rainbow Dash, Applejack," Rarity said, turning her head to look at the other two ponies. "I didn't believe you."

"'S'alright," Applejack said with a wave of her hoof. "It took me a while to really get it myself."

"Spike," Rarity said, reaching out with a hoof to touch the side of the Dragon's face. There was a moment of communion in the contact, then she looked down and realized the position she was in. She scrambled back to her hooves quickly, a faint blush of embarrassment warming her cheeks. Spike stepped back, giving her space, but his eyes remained locked on her. "Well, I don't even know what to say! Dash has been telling me all sorts of fanciful things about the Elements of Harmony and this strange future world, but I... well, how is one supposed to react to something like this?"

"If I knew, I would tell you," Spike said. He finally tore his eyes from her, looking instead to Dash and Applejack. "How did Rarity arrive?"

"The statue," Dash said. "It just sort of, I don't know, came to life? I wasn't looking at it when it happened, but one minute it was just a statue, and the next there was Rarity."

"As far as I am aware, I simply went to sleep in my own bed in Ponyville, and awoke in that cave," Rarity added.

"Pretty much my experience," Applejack said. "'Cept I woke up buried."

"Me too," Dash sighed. "With, uh, yeah, other stuff."

"The statues coming to life," Spike shook his head. "That's really not possible. Twilight would have a fit."

"You think maybe the spell she put on the Elements had something to do with this?" Applejack asked.

Spike shrugged. "Right now? Anything's as likely as anything else."

"Something for the Professor?" Dash asked.

Spike paused for a bare fraction of a moment, just long enough to be noticeable, before nodding. "Yeah. Twinkle Shine would be the best one to figure this out."

"Sorry to interrupt," Rarity said. "But I'm feeling somewhat left out of this conversation. Now that I am fully convinced of that this is the future, perhaps you can start at the beginning?"

"Sounds like a good idea," Spike said, then swept into a bow. "First off, though, welcome to my home. Though I suppose you've been in it for as long as I have, so it's as much yours as it is mine."

"I... Well, thank you," Rarity said with an answering curtsey. "After I hear what Rainbow Dash and Applejack have been up to, perhaps you can tell me how you came by such a magnificent residence. Why, the detailing in the corridors is exquisite!"

"Thank you, I do take pride in my work," Spike said with a smile that very carefully did not show his teeth. "Dash, will you be okay to tell your story to Rarity? You look beat."

"Well, yeah. But I'll be fine," Dash said, but yawned widely in refutation of her words.

Applejack sighed. "Come on, sugarcube. I told you you needed to get to bed, you’ve put it off long enough."

"But Rarity!"

"Spike heard our story last night," Applejack said. "He'll give her the gist of it, and we can fill in the blanks later, alright?"

"But!"

"Go to bed, dear," Rarity said. "As much as I do want to hear your story, I don't want you to nod off in the middle of it. You said something about flying four days straight to get here, did you not? Well, if anyone deserves a rest, then it's you."

Dash hung her head, defeated. "Alright, alright. Don't nag me about it. Spike, don't tell her all the exciting bits, okay?"

"I'll stick to the facts," he promised.

"Come along, sugarcube," Applejack said, and the two mares left the kitchen.

There was a long moment of silence as Rarity and Spike regarded each other. He felt calm, strangely so considering. He gestured for Rarity to take a seat, but she shook her head. "I'm feeling a touch restless," she said. "I fear that if I sat down I'd soon be reduced to the most unladylike fidgeting."

He nodded. "Then I'm comfortable standing. Can I get you something to eat? Drink? I'm fairly well stocked for tea, but most of it probably isn't a type you'd recognize–"

"Spike," she said, cutting him off. She paused, frowning slightly as she thought over what she wanted to say. "I'm not particularly thirsty,” she finished, though from the way her frown deepened it was clearly not what she had wanted to say. The silence stretched out between them. Rarity looked at the ground, at the ceiling, at the rest of the kitchen, only taking awkward peeks at him. He knew what she must have been thinking, knew that her hesitance was his fault. Yet he couldn’t take his eyes off of her, couldn’t stop drinking in the very sight of her. He’d been staring at a statue for so long he’d forgotten what she had been like filled with life and motion.

He had to say something. Had to break the spell on himself or things would only get more awkward until neither of them could stand being in the presence of the other. He wouldn’t tolerate that. So he closed his eyes for a moment to summon up the experience and courage of a thousand years, and spoke. “I'm sorry this happened to you,” he said, not sure if it was the right thing to say but unable to find something better. “You were never meant to be in this time. And what’s happened, what’s still happening, it’s bad. I don’t know if Dash has told you yet.”

“She did say,” Rarity said, her head remaining down, but her eyes looking up to see him. “I thought it was insane, just like I thought being a thousand years in the future was insane. But it’s not, is it? It’s true. Somepony died to get my Element.” Spike nodded. “Then I am the one who should be sorry.” She brought her head back up, a new depth in her eyes. Spike had seen that look on her face before, but it had been so long ago and so far away that seemed almost a dream now. “I’m sorry for your friend.”

“He wasn’t my friend,” Spike replied. “But he could have been.” They stood in quiet commiseration for a long time, but this wasn’t an awkward silence like before. Now they were sharing an understanding that didn’t need words.

“I... I’m not sure how to take it all," Rarity said with a bewildered shake of her head.

"You seem to be doing fairly well," Spike pointed out.

She gave him a wan smile. "I'm a thousand years from my fainting couch," she said with a forced titter. "How is one to collapse in hysteria without a proper place to lie?"

“How indeed,” he chuckled.

She smiled at him, warm and genuine. “So! You’ve become an artist!”

“Sculptor, mainly,” Spike said. “Though I have branched out over the years.” A toothy grin crept onto his face, one she did not recoil from. “Would you like to see my gallery?”

Her eyes lit up. “I would be delighted to.”

They made their way from the kitchen out to the plateau that served as his doorstep and gallery. She gasped in wonder as she saw the statues arrayed in their patterns between the marble paths. The wind was cold, but she didn’t seem to mind, too excited about all the grand and subtle works that he proudly showed her. She asked questions, about when he created them and why, about the choices he had made for colors and poses and materials. He answered her as best he could, using it as an opportunity to tell her more about the world she found herself in. His description of the Schism shocked her, and the changes brought on by the loss of magic horrified her. Yet when he explained the fountain to her, showed her the figures of all the friends he had made, she was delighted.

“So many,” she said, taking in the hundreds of ponies and other creatures he had included. “What a life you have lived, Spike! Despite all the horrid things that have happened, the world must still be a better place just for these ponies having known you. And these statues! What incredible beauty you have created!”

“And it was all because of you,” Spike said.

She frowned at him. “What do you mean?”

He paused, unsure of how to answer that. “Well, for one I’m only alive now because of you,” he said. “You taught me how to be generous. More than just teaching me how, you showed me what it meant. I would never have survived the Schism if I hadn’t known that.”

“Oh. I’m flattered, but I’m sure you would have discovered a way on your own,” she said. There was something in her tone that seemed almost disappointed, as if she knew that there was more to it that he wasn’t saying.

“Rarity,” he began, but hesitated.

“Yes, Spike?” she prompted when he didn’t seem like he would continue.

“I don’t know how much I should tell you–”

“Tell me,” she said immediately.

Spike blinked at that, but shook his head. “It’s about you and me, but it’s something you never lived through, so I don’t know if it’s important to say or if it will just make things… weird.”

“Oh, Spike,” Rarity laughed. “After what I have already learned today? I doubt anything you say could be any more shocking than waking a thousand years in the future.” She paused for a moment as a thought crossed her mind. “Well, almost anything. Still, you can’t just leave it like that. I simply must hear what it is you are so reluctant to say.”

“But, Rarity–”

“Tell me,” she demanded, stamping a hoof and stepping towards him in a way that made him nervously pull back. “Tell me, tell me, tell me!”

“Okay! Okay,” Spike relented, chuckling. “When I said this was all because of you, I meant it as more than just how you saved my life. I meant that even if I had survived, if it wasn’t for you I would never have done all of this.”

“Why?”

“You were my mentor,” Spike said, gazing around his gallery, eyes going from statue to statue with a soft fondness as memories of their creation played through his mind. “You saw the talent in me, when I would never have thought to look. You showed me how to be an artist, how to find my creativity and let it out into the world. You found something beautiful in me and helped it become something beautiful I could give to others. Everything I’ve made, everything I’ve done, it owes its existence to you as much as it does to me.”

Rarity stood, blinking as tears made her eyes sparkle. “Oh my, Spike. That was lovely. Was I really… did I truly give you so much?”

He nodded, smiling again. “And more. I missed you. So when I see you again, like this, it’s just… amazing.”

She graced him with a soft, affectionate smile. “Well, in that case I am honored to have nurtured such a talent! Even though I never got around to doing it myself. Hmm. That is going to get confusing, isn’t it?”

“Probably,” Spike agreed.

Rarity looked back to the fountain, a tension gone from her shoulders. “You know, I was worried you were going to say you still had a crush on me.”

“I’m a little old for you, don’t you think?” Spike asked, and the two burst into a fit of chuckling laughter at the reversal. Then he caught a whiff of smoke, carried by a cold wind up to the plateau from the still-smoldering pyre at the base of his mountain. He sobered immediately, his grin falling away. “I wish this was a happy reunion,” he said, and his somber tone drew all of Rarity’s attention. “But it’s all tainted. Max Cash made sure of that.”

“Yes, I suppose we’ve put it off long enough,” Rarity said with a sigh. She gave a longing look to the fountain, but dismissed it and focused on him. “I believe I would like some of that tea now. Let’s go inside, and you can tell me all about what’s happened.” He simply nodded, and they left side-by-side.

***

Astrid shoved herself up, her forelegs straining as the muscles burned from continuous effort. The light was slanting through the window, the sting of it in her eyes giving her a good place to hold the push-up before lowering herself until her beak brushed the floor, then repeating the whole process. She silently counted off each repetition; the only noises she made were growls and grunts as the effort taxed her. She'd made it to eighty nine the day before, and today she was determined to hit a hundred before giving herself a rest.

Subjecting herself to magical healing might have shortened her life long-term, but she couldn't argue with the immediate results. Her wounds were completely gone, her bones set and her muscles rapidly returning to peak condition. So far the only side effects were a voracious hunger and a deceptive feeling of strength and energy that could fail her in a moment and leave her collapsed on the floor unable to move. She'd been getting a steady diet of meat for the former, and had been warned about letting the latter fool her into trying something her body wasn't ready for. So far everything was working out fine. She would be ready to leave soon, and she focused on that. She would be able to catch up to Star Fall and Dash and make sure they were alright.

The door opened behind her, but she didn't slow down her workout. The doctors were always checking up on her, making sure that the magical healing hadn't gone wrong. The tap of hooves on the floor was measured, deliberate. Whoever was approaching her wanted to be heard, and wasn't moving casually like a doctor or nurse would have been. Her muscles tensed, ready to leap into action, but she forced herself to continue doing push ups instead of turning and confronting whoever had just come in. She was in a military hospital, surrounded by soldiers. There wasn't any danger, and besides, if she stopped now she'd have to start again from the beginning.

"What do you want?" she snapped.

"Sergeant," Gamma's replied, her sharp tone stopping Astrid mid-push. "I want to speak to you about your recent decisions."

"You're back," Astrid said, abandoning her exercise and turning to face the spymaster. "You catch your Changeling?"

"No," Gamma replied. She regarded Astrid with a cool indifference that the Griffin was sure didn't last past the surface. Gamma wouldn't be here if she wasn't very interested in how Astrid was doing. "But I am fairly certain that the mayhem in Precious Corners had nothing to do with the Changeling sighted there, and a great deal more to do with Max Cash."

"He was there, huh?"

"Yes."

"We know what he wanted there? Another one of Dash's dead friends show up?"

"Yes, actually," Gamma said, surprising Astrid. "But not in Precious Corners. He appeared at Spike's lair shortly after Agents Fall and Dash arrived."

"Fuck!" Astrid swore, slamming a clenched claw into the wall. "Fall, is she...?"

"Agent Fall is uninjured," Gamma assured her. "We still do not know what his purpose in Precious Corners was, but from what I've been able to piece together he was likely attempting to instigate a war between the Kingdom and the Republics."

"A war! Is he–" Astrid cut herself off, shaking her head. "Of course he is."

"There are still many unanswered questions," Gamma continued. "Such as why there was a Changeling in Precious Corners in the first place. It is not a location of any strategic significance."

"Maybe he was a rogue?"

Gamma considered this with a tilt of her head. "Doubtful. The Changeling was new in town, accompanied by another pony who bears a striking resemblance to a Storm-Guide known to have been in the employ of Max Cash for several years."

"A set up? Something he planned from the beginning?"

"That is the logical conclusion," Gamma said.

Astrid sensed her hesitation with that answer. "But you're not buying it?"

"I am not taking anything at face value in this case," she replied. "Including your own actions. Why did you demand magical healing?"

"Had to get back on my paws," Astrid replied, flexing her wings out. "Can't protect Fall from a hospital bed."

"No, I suppose you can't," Gamma said, but her intense eyes were locked on Astrid, making her skin crawl and her feathers feel like they were standing on end.

"Just come out and say it," Astrid prompted. Gamma quirked an eyebrow and said nothing, driving Astrid's irritation higher. "You obviously want something out of me. I've seen you operate often enough to know that you're fishing for information, trying to get me to reveal something. Well, I don't know what you want, so why don't you just fucking ask me? Save us both some aggravation."

"Fair enough," Gamma said. "I am concerned about your exposure to Cash, and whether it has compromised your judgement."

"He's pissed me off," Astrid said. "But that's pretty much how I'd feel about any scumbag who got away after I had the chance to get my talons into them."

"I don't mean your judgment in regard to Cash," Gamma said, her voice tightly controlled, revealing an edge of anticipation. "I am referring to your judgement in regards to Agent Fall."

Astrid blinked at that, surprised at the insinuation and caught off balance because of it. "Why the hell would you think that?"

"Several reasons," Gamma said. "First of all, magical healing of the extent you have received will disqualify you from the breeding pool."

Astrid snickered. "I thought you knew everything, Gamma. I was already out of that."

"Yes, as a result of your close association with Agent Fall," Gamma said. "But that disqualification would have been removed after a year of separation from Agent Fall, allowing you to attempt breeding once more. After this? That will not be an option. You will never have children, Astrid. You knew this when you made your choice."

"Protecting Fall is more important, " Astrid grumbled. "There's other Steelwings to keep the Clan going."

"Most Griffins would not think that way, not for a pegasus."

"She'll be a princess soon enough."

"Yes. And when she is she will have a squad of Griffins assigned to her. A squad you may not be part of. You sacrificed your future for a chance to protect her in the short term."

"So?"

"So, that is behaviour that concerns me."

Astrid snorted, turning away to stare out the window. "It's between me and Fall," she said. "Besides, shouldn't you be glad I'm that dedicated? Haven't you always worried that I wouldn't be as dedicated to her as she needed?"

"No. That has never been my worry. This reason alone is not enough to concern me. It is the second reason that has made me question your mental integrity."

"Alright, fine, hit me. What's the second reason?"

"Follow me," Gamma said, turning to the door.

Astrid frowned after her, not moving. "Why?"

"Because I told you to."

"You're not my boss, Gamma."

"Sergeant Steelwing," Gamma began, no anger in her voice, only calm certainty. "Your future as a player in this conflict is dependant on whether I think you are compromised or not."

"I've never jumped when you said frog, Gamma. If I did that now, then I'd start to wonder if I was thinking right."

"If you ever want to be allowed within ten miles of Star Fall again, you will do exactly as I say without question or complaint." That hit Astrid like a sledgehammer to the beak, stunning her.

"You can't–” Astrid began, but Gamma cut her off.

"I can, and I will." Her voice hadn't changed tone at all. Still calm, still confident. Astrid believed her. "Follow, and stay silent." She began moving, and this time Astrid followed.

As they walked she studied Gamma. The spymaster was an expert at hiding what she was thinking, but Astrid's sharp eyes could still see the tension in the way that she moved. This was about as agitated as she had ever seen Gamma, and that sent a shivering chill through her wings. Another thought crossed her mind: Gamma had referred to Star Fall by name. Not as 'Agent Fall', or her formal title of 'Lady Fallen Star', but as 'Star Fall'. That was a breakdown in professionalism that was unprecedented from the spymaster.

Something was very, very wrong.

They stayed in the military hospital, heading down into the basements, into the morgue. There were guards on duty outside the doors to one of the autopsy rooms, weapons ready and tense. Astrid's eyes narrowed, but she didn't ask for fear of provoking Gamma further. The guards came to attention as Gamma approached, then very carefully stood in her way.

"I'll need to check your identification, ma'am." One of the guards said. The other looked at Astrid, appraising her. Gamma produced her ID without a word, and the soldier spent an inordinate amount of time studying it. Security precautions in the middle of a military base, outside of a morgue? It didn't make sense.

As soon as they were verified, the guards stepped aside and let them in. The interior of the room was cold and dark, a long rectangular room that held six metal tables, several glass cabinets and a wall of drawers to store the corpses until they could be taken to wherever their final destination lay. Only a few bare fluorescent lights were glowing fitfully in the ceiling, their pale light barely enough to see that every surface reflected the dull sheen of brushed steel, and the far side of the room was almost completely dark. As Astrid put a claw down she felt the sting of something cutting her, when she pulled it up to see what had happened she saw a sliver of glass sticking from a shallow cut that oozed blood. “Damn,” she said. “I just got these things pretty again.”

“Sergeant,” Gamma said, her tone warning. Astrid’s beak shut with an audible click.

Gamma strode forward, her horn lighting and wisps of magic sweeping broken glass to the sides of the room. As her eyes quickly adjusted Astrid was seeing more details of the room. The first thing she noticed was that the glass on the floor was from the lights that had been smashed in the ceiling. She took a deep breath and smelled antiseptic, recycled air, but also the definite odor of decaying meat and the sharp tang of vomit. In the dark end of the room, she saw a shape on the last table, too dark to make out. It was oddly hunched, a strange bulge with angles that Astrid couldn’t figure out.

Halfway through the room Gamma came to a stop. She stared into the darkness for a long moment, her gaze not flinching as Astrid stepped up beside her. Then she spoke. “Melody.”

The dark lump on the far table moved, and Astrid’s eyes narrowed as a pony stood up, wings spread wide and slightly bent. There was still something on the table, something that the pegasus was guarding. Astrid knew that stance, that was something taught to special forces pegasi. She couldn’t see clearly enough to judge the pony’s form, but something about the way she was holding herself tweaked Astrid’s well-honed danger sense. She tensed up, her own wings spreading ever so slightly while her talons flexed, ready to tear.

“I tried again,” the pony in the shadows said, and Astrid was shocked at how small the voice sounded. It was a young voice, but so lost. She didn’t sound like a pony who was standing like she’s ready to attack in an instant. She sounded like someone who was curled up in a corner and sobbing. “I’m sorry. I couldn’t stop myself.”

“I trust you realize the futility of your actions?” Gamma asked, though her tone was more gentle than Astrid would have expected from her words.

“I know!” the pony, Melody, wailed, her voice ratcheting up in volume and panic with each word. “I know! But then I look at him… and… and he’s not breathing and I know that he’s dead but I can’t stop myself! I just have to get him breathing again! I have to protect him! I–”

“Melody,” Gamma said, and the mare fell quiet instantly. “I am going to move one of the lights to you. Do not break it or I will have you sedated and locked in the room farthest from this one I can find.”

“No.” The denial was made in a soft, defeated voice. Broken.

“Sergeant Steelwing,” Gamma said without looking at Astrid. “If she attacks either me or the light, subdue her, then dismember the corpse.” With that Gamma’s horn lit again, pulling one of the working fluorescents from its mounting and moving it over to the light above Melody. She slotted it into place and it flickered to life, revealing a scene of horror to Astrid.

Melody stood guard over a rotting corpse. The unicorn stallion lay with his neck twisted at a clearly unnatural angle, and he’d obviously been dead for days. His tissues were bloated and discolored, insects having eaten away pieces to expose the oozing mess that was his insides. Astrid had seen worse bodies, though, and this one failed to even register on her personal disgust metric. It was Melody’s state that truly unnerved her. She was thin, her eyes wide and crazed, her mane and coat ragged and filthy. Her wings were in terrible disarray and looked barely flightworthy. Her forehooves and muzzle were covered with gore. A quick look back to the body told Astrid why that was: she had been lying on the corpse, and at some point recently she had apparently tried resuscitating him.

The thought of that made Astrid’s gorge rise, and she took an involuntary step back, fighting to keep her lunch down. Gamma finally turned to look at her, eyes practically burning in the dim light. “Thank you, Melody,” she said. “We will be back in a moment. Do not break this light.”

“Please,” Melody pleaded. “The more I can see him the more I think I have to try again.”

“If you have moved more than two inches by the time I return, I will have his body incinerated immediately.” Melody froze, every muscle going rigid. “Sergeant,” Gamma said, turning and trotting back to the hallway. Astrid followed in numb silence. Gamma led her to another room much like the first, but this one had bodies laid out on the table, and more in bags stacked like cordwood around the edges of the room. Astrid barely had time to take this in before Gamma turned to her, demanding her full attention. “That is my second reason. You may speak.”

“What is wrong with her?” Astrid gasped. “Why do you keep threatening the body?”

“Cash apparently commanded her to be loyal to her master. Then Charisma killed him.” Astrid swallowed heavily, remembering Melody’s wide, mad eyes. “I threaten the late Lord High Fashion’s remains because that is what she responds to. Any other incentive is ignored, including threats of personal harm. This is the result of Cash using his power on someone. So you can understand why I would begin to question your judgement, given that by your own admission you were in a similar situation.”

“He didn’t finish,” Astrid said. “Dash got to him before he could… Celestia’s light! That could have happened to me!”

“Can I trust that?” Gamma pressed, her eyes boring into Astrid as if she could extract the truth with the sheer force of her gaze. “Agent Fall was unable to make an account of what happened between Charisma’s reappearance and your battle with her. You say that Cash talked to you, utilizing some form of mind control. He offered you… what was it?”

“Freedom,” Astrid breathed.

“Freedom,” Gamma repeated, filling the word with a mountain of black disdain. “My concern, Sergeant Steelwing, is that you have been compromised since that night, your attachment to Agent Fall artificially enhanced to the point where you are making dangerous choices.”

“No!” Astrid snapped. “He didn’t finish! Damn it! He used the same thing on Fall and Dash, what if…?”

“What. If.” Gamma shook her head. “I am in an unenviable position. I can’t remove her from play as an asset because she is too close to the center of things. I can’t remove you without destabilizing her. And I am unable to afford putting my trust in you, Sergeant. Either of you.”

“And Dash?”

Gamma took a slow breath before answering. “Nothing has ever been sure with her. But she has her patterns of behaviour and I believe I can still trust her to hold to them. I am no longer so certain of you. The second greatest duty of a Griffin is to ensure the next generation. You have never before been one to forsake her duty.”

“You’re wrong,” Astrid said, chest heaving as she panted for breath. Her heart was pounding and she felt like she had pushed her healing body past its limits. What Gamma was saying made too much sense. What had Cash been trying to do to her? She shook the thought off. There was no point in questioning it now.

“Am I?” Gamma prompted.

“I gave up on children a long time ago,” Astrid said, her voice dropping to a growl. “The moment I heard how it was being close to Fall that stopped me. That was a long time before I ever met Max Cash.” She spat the name, then took a moment to rein herself in. “The next generation of Griffins will have to look after itself.”

Gamma didn’t react for a long, quiet minute. Then she gave a single, curt nod. “Very well. I have a task for you.”

“Wait, you don’t trust me, so you’re giving me something to do? Gamma, I’m not going to do it. The moment my wings are strong enough I’m heading for wherever Fall is, and since my status as her guardian is a royal appointment, you don’t have the authority to keep me from her.”

“I very much do,” Gamma said, with absolute certainty but without venom. “But I am not interested in exercising that authority. I am taking the transport to Spike’s lair as soon as the pilots are rested. I intend for you to be on that transport as well.”

“Right,” Astrid said, turning the statement over in her head, searching for some double meaning or other rhetorical trap. “But you need me to do something first?”

“Yes. As it stands, Spike is now our only expert on the Elements of Harmony. Since Melody’s condition is the result of exposure to them, I want him to see what was done to her, perhaps suggest a way it can be countered or blocked. To that end, I would like Melody Drop to accompany us as well.”

“And you want me to…?”

“Convince her to come along,” Gamma said. “Without the corpse.”

“But you just said she’s mind controlled into staying with him!”

“I did say something to that effect, yes.”

“So what do you expect me to do?”

“Sergeant Steelwing, if I knew what it is you had to do to make that girl leave her dead master, I would have done it by now.”

Astrid shook her head. “Okay, but why me?”

“I think you and she have much in common,” Gamma said, turning to leave. “You are both guards to nobility, heir to a line of proud warriors. You have both fought Charisma and survived. And you both have made very ill advised choices because of your loyalties. The only difference is that her choices have been forced on her by another, and yours are entirely your own.”

“You really think I can help her?”

“I think you’re the only one who can,” Gamma replied as she reached the door. “Work fast, Sergeant. We lift off in five hours.” And then she was gone.

Astrid stared after her for a long moment, flexing her claw to feel the sting of the cut. “Well,” she said, putting all of her frustration, confusion and anger into the next word that came out of her beak: “Fuck.”

***

The city of Hoofprint was one of the most southerly outposts of Lunar civilization, sprawled along much of the Redwater River Delta. It was a port, a tourist trap, and a smuggler's haven all rolled into one. It was a place of contrasts, with towering hotels and beautiful resorts butting up next to shanty-towns and dilapidated neighbourhoods full of zebra immigrants, Dogs and impoverished ponies, all of whom served as a cheap source of labour for the port that dominated the shoreline.

The rule of law was tenuous here. It was enforced in the resorts and the gated communities where the city's wealthy made their homes, but police presence in the docks and the warrens was rare and more for intimidation than any attempt at providing justice. It was this lawlessness that had denied Hoofprint a place in the Republics Senate, forcing the city to be nominally administrated from Gemini City. This meant that all the tax money that could be extorted was going to that distant metropolis rather than being used to improve Hoofprint itself. Which only increased the lawlessness, leading to a vicious circle of poverty, corruption and mismanagement.

Hoofprint wouldn’t ever be completely abandoned by the Republics, of course. Not only was it a major port of call for ships crossing the ocean to the Zebra homelands, it was also the only starting point and supply hub for any expedition into the southern jungles. It was as vital to the nation’s economy as any full-fledged republic, but it was never allowed to rise above its place, squatting between filth and luxury.

Hard Boiled hated it here, but also found that it held a refreshing sense of honesty. The city wasn't putting on airs, wasn't trying to be anything other than what it was. It was ugly, noisy and brutal, but it didn't try to hide all that ugliness behind the caked makeup of civilization.

The trip to Hoofprint had been one of cramped quarters and bad food, but despite that and Traduce’s constant flirtations, it had also been a pleasant one. He’d had time to rest, exercise his telekinesis, and think over everything he knew about the case. He hadn’t come to any new conclusions, but it kept details fresh and allowed him to turn the facts over until they presented a new pattern. It was the core of detective work, and it was what he enjoyed most about his job.

Checking into a cheap hotel hadn’t been an ordeal, as neither he nor Traduce had brought much baggage or were too particular about the conditions of their rooms. Finding someone who would give them a ride up the river on short notice was more problematic. After a couple days of searching he had hit on the right people to talk to, and he’d gotten in contact with a tour-guide and smuggler who wouldn’t charge more than the detective could pay. The guide was a little squirrelly, though, which was why he demanded they meet in a public place. Specifically one of the hole-in-the-wall bars that dotted the poor districts close to the docks.

The bar the guide had chosen was humid and rank, causing HB’s nose to wrinkle as he stepped inside. The stink of sweat and booze was oppressive in the confined space, almost covering up the smell of old vomit and thriving mold. Still, it was a relief from the blazing wet heat outside, so Hard Boiled ignored the less pleasant aspects and focused on not having the tropical sun burning down on his shaven head.

"Your guy really said to meet here?" Traduce asked, eyeing the bar and the half-dozen patrons that were already working on emptying their wallets and slaking their thirst.

"He did," HB confirmed. "Grab a seat, I'll get us something to drink while we wait."

"I don't like it here," Traduce said in a harsh whisper. "We should go."

HB shook his head. He needed a boat down the river and this was the best option he’d heard. Still, a look around at the other patrons of the bar sent a pulse of warning pain through his horn. "Eyes open," he said. "We're being watched."

"Which is why I don't like it here," Traduce said, but sat down while HB made his way to the bar.

"What'll it be?" the bartender asked. Like bartenders in dives the world over, he had a look of wary apathy etched onto his features. A look that said he didn't care who you were or what you had done, but if you started trouble in his bar he wouldn't hesitate to kick you out.

HB dropped a pair of full moons in front of the pony. "A light beer for the lady and a scotch and soda for me."

"You expecting change?" the bartender asked, eying the coins.

"No, just a few quiet words while you get the drinks," HB replied. The bartender nodded and began to pull out the glasses. "I'm waiting for a pegasus who goes by Derek Baxter. Has he been in yet?"

The bartender paused, his eyes flicking about for a moment. It wasn't much, but HB didn't need his magic to know the next words out of the bartender's mouth would be a lie. "No, haven't seen him in days."

Hard Boiled tensed. That wasn't a good answer. If the bartender had wanted to pry more money from him, he would have played coy, talked about how he didn't remember any Derek Baxter, how a lot of ponies came through and his memory might need some encouragement. HB would then have forked over a few more coins and they would have been in business. This answer? The direct lie? That meant something had happened. Something that had the bartender spooked.

"Damn," HB said, trying to keep his tone even. "Guess we'll have to wait. Hey, you see him coming you give me a shout, okay?" He tossed another full moon on the bar as the bartender slid the drinks over to him. HB's horn flared copper as he picked up the glasses, wincing a little as the exertion sent a sharp pain through his head. He forced himself to work through the pain, using the levitation to cover the casting of a truth-detection spell, letting the details of the room wash over him.

He walked to the table Traduce had sat down at, setting the drinks down and taking a seat right next to her. The Changeling spy was more than capable of reading his mood in his actions, and her eyes narrowed. "Trouble?" she asked, putting her head right next to him, looking for all the world like a lover whispering in his ear.

"Everyone in here is going to try to kill us," HB murmured. "Except the bartender, who is going to be killed as well."

"Then we leave."

HB shook his head. "Zebra by the window. He's been signalling to someone outside."

"They're waiting for backup to surround the place, then. Who are they with?"

"Won't know until we question them."

"You think we'll get a chance to interrogate?"

"No. I think it's time to see if your hoof-to-hoof training is any good."

Traduce smirked at him. "I thought you'd never ask."

They stood in rough unison, turning in opposite directions. The bartender knew what was coming, and dove beneath the bar. The others in the room weren't so quick. HB lashed out with the drink in his telekinetic grip, smashing the glass into the face of the zebra who was busy directing the opposition outside. Traduce moved in a liquid leap, a move more appropriate to a pegasus than the earth pony body she wore. She landed on a table where three rough-looking ponies sat, and three of her limbs shot out, each catching an enemy full in the face and leaving her balanced on one forehoof. Graceful and deadly, she only held the pose for a second, long enough to be sure that HB had seen her, before spinning to fling herself at the next group while the one she had hit reeled.

A unicorn tried to use his magic to grab the glass away from HB, but that was a fight the detective won handily, and he kept pounding the zebra until he was slumped in his chair, bloody and dazed. A pegasus rushed him, and HB dropped one shoulder, letting the leaping pony roll over him to sprawl on the floor and only taking a glancing kick for his trouble. He lashed out at the downed pony, but the pegasus had quick enough reflexes to dodge. That dodge took him directly into the path of Traduce, who succeeded where Hard Boiled had failed.

Roaring in unison, a pair of earth ponies rushed him. HB stepped back, trying to put the table between himself and the charging thugs, but they just slammed into the table, flipping it over onto him. He dropped to the ground before the flipping table could force him down and rolled under it, coming up between the two bruisers. He slugged one, his hoof stinging from the punch while the earth pony barely reacted. The other wrapped his forelegs around HB's middle, hauling back and holding him so the first one could take his own shots.

The burly stallion began pummelling Hard Boiled, smashing a hoof into him first one way and then the other. HB was glad that this particular pony wasn't a Strength Talent, or he'd probably be dead already. Instead he took the blows, struggling to throw off the pony's aim and give the one holding him a hard time, all the while orienting the glass he still held in his magical grip. Growling with the effort, he brought the it down hard against the back of the attacking pony's skull, shattering the glass. The stallion dropped like a marionette whose strings had been cut.

"You're gonna pay for that," the pony holding him snarled in his ear.

"Not as much as you will," Traduce chuckled from behind him, spinning to snap out a kick that sent the thug flying.

HB dropped to the ground, taking deep breaths and looking around the room. Traduce had done her work well, incapacitating every pony in the bar that he hadn't. "Nice work," he said as she helped him up.

"I aim to impress," she said with a flirty smile that he carefully ignored. "We've still got the people outside."

"Out the back way, through the alleys," HB suggested.

"You don't think they'd anticipate that?"

"Doesn't matter," he replied. "It's still our best chance at escape." She nodded, seeing the logic of it. Then, without further discussion they rushed to the back of the bar, seeking an exit. They passed the cowering bartender, who silently pointed the way. HB nodded gratefully and floated a hoofful of coins over to him before exiting at a run.

There were shouts as they burst into the alley behind the bar, thugs calling out that they'd been spotted. Fortunately no one had blocked off the alley yet, but it meant there was already pursuit hot on their heels. The ground was a soggy mud that sucked at their hooves, but HB kept his steps high and was able to avoid stumbling. Traduce, for her part, moved like a mare half her size, darting from wall to wall and almost dancing above the muck.

HB let his magic feed him details, seeing the subtle elements of the city, little details that slotted together in his head until he was looking at a wider picture than his eyes alone could give him. "Turn right!" he called out to Traduce. She didn't question it, veering in the direction he said as soon as another alley opened up to her. Sounds of shouting and running echoed off the walls, giving the detective an even better idea of where their pursuers were, and how they were coordinating. "Left!" he shouted, Traduce again obeying without hesitation. "They've got pegasus overwatch, we need cover!"

"Market?" she called back.

"Lot of hoof traffic!"

"You think that will deter them?"

"I think we might get separated," HB replied. "Left again! Can you keep track of me in a crowd?"

“You? Not a problem,” she called back with a cavalier smile.

They burst out of the alley at a dead run. There was an open-air market just down the street, covered with awnings to provide some shade for the ponies and other creatures who mingled so thick that there seemed to be hardly any space between them. It would also provide cover for the two of them, both from the ground-bound pursuers and from any pegasi watching from the sky. Voices shouted behind them, but whatever they said was lost in the noise coming from the market. Hard Boiled and Traduce dove into the sea of bodies, and he immediately lost sight of the Changeling.

He forced his way between the people, shoving roughly without any care for politeness. His horn pulsed with warnings every few steps, picking out thieves and thugs and those who were not what they seemed. His bags would be considerably lighter by the time he got through the crowd. It didn’t matter. He kept up the magic even as the pain began to bleed into a single long agony that made him squint .

He didn’t doubt that the ones chasing them were sending their own toughs into the market, trying to hunt him down or herd him out. It didn’t matter. He’d gotten a look at the thugs, and he didn’t need his magic to tell him they were locals. They would know the market, but they wouldn’t know how to track a pony through this many bodies. He certainly couldn’t. He trusted that Traduce either had the right training for it or had attached some kind of Changeling magic to him that would let her find him. All he had to do was get away.

He shouldered his way past vendors selling all manner of things, from bread and hay to alcohol to old radios and knock-off watches. The shouting was a constant drone, hawkers and customers both yelling to be heard, and the rolling rumble of thousands of hooves hitting the ground every moment in a confined space. His horn flared as he kicked his magic up as high as he could, searching for the best exit. It turned out to be a mistake.

His magic made him hear it all, made him see everything. Details jumped out to him with even a minor glance, little truths that told him more than he needed to know about the market. A gem merchant was haggling with a tourist, demanding far more than the piece of costume jewelry was worth. A pretty unicorn was putting on a show with illusion magic, a show that was really a distraction from the fillies and colts who ran through the crowd, dodging between legs and cutting purses. A pair of lovers whispering in each other’s ears, each clearly cheating on the other, each unaware. A mare smiled as she examined a breadknife, but she was barely stopping herself from using the blade to open a vein. All of this and more, all at once.

He staggered, suddenly short of breath. He tried to shut off the flow of power through his horn, but it responded sluggishly. The damage was done. He stopped caring about the perfect exit and simply went for the first one he spotted. He stumbled through the crowd, pushing and getting pushed in return. He clipped a market stall, taking out one of the flimsy legs of the table and sending the bright orange fruit rolling into the packed market street.

Finally, he made it to a narrow alley, barely wide enough for two ponies to stand shoulder to shoulder. It was empty save a scattering of garbage both old and new that crunched underhoof. He trotted deeper into another maze of alleys and back streets, only stopping when the shouts of the market had faded enough to be indistinguishable from the usual noise of a city. Then he leaned against a dirty, sun-hot wall and heaved deep breaths while reigning in his magic.

His horn felt like it was on fire. His guts twisted in anxiety, and he gingerly raised a hoof to feel at it. Only after he confirmed that it was still solid did he feel the tension go out of him. He closed his eyes and leaned his head against the wall, trying to block out the pain. He was so lost in the agony that he didn’t even notice the knife at his throat until it had drawn blood.

He startled back, but a hoof shoved him up against the wall again. He turned his head to stare into the eyes of a light brown pegasus mare with a short-cut blonde mane. She had a knife attached to one of her wings, the blade pointed right at his eye. He recognized her.

"You again," HB said, keeping his head back. He wasn’t in a good position to attack her without losing an eye, and there was no way his magic would be strong enough to hold off her strike, even if he could use it without the pain bringing him to his knees. But he heard the steps of another pony coming, and he had to hope that a new arrival would at least distract her enough to give him an opening.

"I told you to keep your horn out of this," she said.

“What does Max Cash want in the jungles?” he asked, falling into the practiced bravado of a police interrogator talking to a suspect.

“None of your business,” she growled.

“I know about the statues.” She blinked at that, looking confused. She either didn’t know, or he was completely wrong about what Cash was after. Since she was here threatening him, he figured the former was more likely.

“You know, I thought you detectives were supposed to be smart,” she said, giving him a cruel smile and waving the knife around in front of his face. Never so much motion that he thought he could make a play for it, but enough to be distracting. “I thought you were supposed to be able to get a clue. But, nope! I send you a pretty clear message, and here you are. You know what? Maybe I’m wrong. Maybe it wasn’t clear after all. Maybe I just have to put the message somewhere that it can’t be ignored.”

“Maybe you should shut up and put the knife down,” a unicorn mare said, stepping into the alley. She levitated a small gun up and pointed it at the assassin. “Step away from the handsome guy, he obviously isn’t into you.” She winked at HB. Traduce.

The assassin froze, staring balefully at the detective for a long moment. “How about you put the gun down instead? I can have this knife through his skull before you pull that trigger.”

“I’m glad you think that,” Traduce said, laughing and apparently unconcerned. “I love a good challenge.”

The assassin snarled, but didn’t move. Hard Boiled forced his eyes away from the dancing knife point and spoke to Traduce. "She’s one who tried to kill me back in Orion city."

"Cash wanted to give you a chance to back off, you didn't take it," the assassin sneered. "If I had been trying, you'd be dead."

Traduce snickered. "Well, look who wants to be the next Charisma."

"Don't you compare me to her!" the assassin screeched.

"I see I’ve touched a nerve," Traduce laughed. "Professional envy? Don't like that you're not the only murderous pegasus in the world? Or something more personal?" HB watched as Traduce’s eyes turned a deep green. "Oh! Or, maybe you're just jealous that your boss keeps her close while you're out here, running errands any Dog could do." HB looked back at the assassin. He could see the fury etched on her face, but he also spotted a mote of green fire that had ignited in her pupils.

“I will carve his eyes out and feed them to you,” the assassin said, her voice shaking as she refrained from screaming the words.

“You know, Charisma would have already done it by now,” Traduce said, gleefully needling the pegasus. “Probably could have killed both of us ten times over just since I arrived. Have you seen that girl work? She’s an artist. I mean that. No wonder you don’t want to be compared. If I were you I wouldn’t want us to be ever mentioned in the same breath. You couldn’t ever hope to hold a candle to her.”

The assassin screamed, whipping around and rushing at Traduce. HB dodged to the side the moment he was clear, rolling through the dirt and back to his hooves in time to see Traduce engage the pegasus in combat. The Changeling moved like a snake, coiling and striking in ways that didn't look natural in the unicorn body she wore. Green licks of fire spread across her body, outlining ragged dragonfly wings and turning her horn crooked.

"Die!" the assassin shrieked as she attacked. "Kill you kill you kill you!"

Traduce laughed, and between one strike and another everything went still. Traduce had managed to get inside the assassin’s defenses and laid her horn on the pegasus’ head. The assassin had gone completely still, frozen in mid-motion. The only movements from her were the small adjustments needed to keep her balance in the awkward half-lunging position she had stopped in. Traduce held her own pose for a moment before pulling back, grinning with a mouth full of sharp teeth.

She chuckled as she turned to Hard Boiled. “I love the insecure ones,” she said. “They’re like an open buffet of negativity.”

“You’re feeding from her?”

She shrugged. “It’s junk food, really. I’m not getting as much back as I’m putting into holding her there. Don’t touch her, by the way, it’ll break the spell.”

HB glared at the frozen assassin for a moment, itching to be in a place with proper police. If he took her into any local station she’d be out of her cell before the hour was up. Especially if she had Max Cash’s money backing her up. He shook his head at the lost opportunity, but moved on. “Then we should get going before you’re tapped out,” he said. “Considering she confronted me alone, I think we can safely say we evaded the ones who were trying to trap us at the bar, but that doesn’t mean they’ve given up. We can’t go back to the hotel. Hell, we can’t stay in the city.”

“Alright, so we go with plan C.”

HB gave her a flat look. “Plan ‘C’?”

She smiled back at him. “Plan C.”

Plan C turned out to stand for ‘crime’. Traduce and HB made their way down to the semi-private docks of the wealthy where she used her Changeling magic to convince a sun-bleached stallion to simply give them his small river-boat. Hard Boiled could barely believe the ease with which she accomplished it, but he kept his mouth shut until they were navigating the boat out of the docks and into the river delta.

“That was… incredibly illegal,” he said.

“I’m authorised to use my abilities as I see fit for this mission,” Traduce said. “We needed a boat, and the semi-legal way was already a bust.”

“It’s still wrong,” he said, but resolved to let it go. You couldn’t partner with a Changeling without expecting them to play mind games. It was what they did.

"So, we have our boat, we’re heading upriver just like you wanted, what now?" Traduce asked, deftly navigating the boat.

"Now I get some sleep," HB groaned, rubbing at his rapidly growing-out mane and carefully avoiding touching his horn. He belatedly thought about the painkillers that had been in his bags at the hotel, but it was far too late for that now. He’d just have to live with the agony until they returned to civilization.

"Not a lot of room down there," Traduce noted, looking into the small cabin. "Only one bed."

"We'll take turns," HB said, and went to get whatever sleep he could.

***

Star Fall looked to the sky, laying a hoof against the glass of the wide window. It was cold up in Spike’s studio, but the chill felt good to her right then. A pair of spell-sheets were sparking as they shed the last energies of the communication spell she’d been using to talk to Gamma for the past half an hour. Other than that fading crimson glow and the reflected moonlight from the snow-capped mountains beyond the window, the studio was dark.

She heard another pony approaching, but didn't turn around to see who it was, too focused on the star-strewn sky. "Howdy, Star," Applejack's unmistakable twang echoed in the cold room. "What are you doin' up here all by your lonesome?"

"Thinking," Star Fall replied.

"Care for some company? Or is this the kind of thinkin' you've gotta do on your own?"

"I... don't know," Star Fall admitted. "I think, maybe, it'll help to talk it out with someone?"

"Then I'm happy to help," Applejack said, taking up a spot next to her and looking out over the mountains herself. "So, what's on your mind?"

"Marriage," Star Fall said.

"You've got a boyfriend?"

"No. I've got a king who wants me to marry into his family," Star Fall sighed.

"Come again?"

Star Fall frowned a little as she searched her memory for how much she had told Applejack. "Right, we didn't tell you about this yet, did we? Dash knows about it, and I've been so busy with the hunt for Cash and the Elements that I guess I just forgot that you didn't."

"Well, why don't you explain it to me now, then?" Applejack offered, sitting down and leaning against the glass. “I’ll listen.”

Star fall smiled, stretching her wings out and idly fidgeting with them as she sat down next to the farmer. "I'm not a normal Pegasus," she began.

"You're pretty extraordinary, alright," Applejack said. "That’s not somethin’ most would call a problem, though."

Star Fall chuckled at the compliment. "Thank you, but that's exactly the problem. I have a Magic Talent. I can cast spells without a horn. I can change the flow of magic in my body and release it to affect the world. This is... I guess it's unique. I'm not complaining about my Talent, though. It brought me to the Professor, got my family out of debt and allowed me to really make a difference in the Kingdom. I love my Talent. But it made the King think that maybe I was even more special, that maybe, just maybe, I could bear an Alicorn foal."

"Huh? You mean like the Princesses?"

Star Fall nodded. "A living Goddess. He's obsessed with the idea, apparently. I honestly didn't know anything about it until the Professor told me about it. Celestia's day, that was just over two weeks ago. It feels longer. A lifetime. Everything that's happened since then has been so chaotic, so overwhelming, that I haven't had time to think about it all."

"So you're doin' your thinkin' now?"

Star Fall nodded again, staying silent for several minutes while she stared out the window. Applejack didn't push, sitting close enough to be felt but far enough away to give her room to think. Finally, Star Fall spoke. "I spoke with Gamma again. She’ll be here in the morning. Then, she’s going to take all of us to the capital. Then you and Dash and Rarity will meet the King, and… and he's probably going to tell me who I'm marrying. I thought I might have more time, but Gamma said he’s decided."

"Wait, you don't know who you’re supposed to be gettin’ hitched to?" Applejack asked, confused.

"Not a clue. Well, someone from the Royal families, obviously, but there’s half a dozen eligible male Royals. Which one he’s chosen, I don’t know."

"What? How does that work?"

"The King has the authority to make decisions about who will marry for the good of the Kingdom. He's decided that I have to marry into the Royal family, so it's going to happen. All that's left is picking who my husband is supposed to be."

"That's crazy!” Applejack said, straightening in indignation. “No one can tell you who to spend your life with!"

Star Fall laughed, but it was a joyless thing. "Dash reacted pretty much the same way."

"She was right to."

"No, she's not right," Star Fall said, her voice quiet, but certain. Applejack's outrage fell away as she saw the thoughtful look on Star Fall's face. "I understand why you both think that. From what I know of you time it was much... simpler when it came to politics. In the Kingdom things aren’t so clear. Sometimes someone else really can tell you who to spend your life with, and sometimes they really do have the best interest of everyone in mind."

"And you think this is one of those times?"

"I think... I think that the reasons the King has for this are wrong. I'm not going to bear an Alicorn foal, that's just insane. But to marry into the Royal Family? A pegasus? That would be... that would be shattering to the status quo.” Star Fall’s eyes widened as she considered it. “A first, a huge step towards equality between the races. I've been told that just by being adopted into the nobility I've given a lot of ponies hope that things can change, that they can rise in status despite having no horn. How much stronger will that sentiment be if I were to be declared royalty? How much more can I do? For the Kingdom? For the world? I could influence peace negotiations with the nightlands. I could lobby for abolition. I could be a force! A real power player, able to do so much good!"

"But you'd have to marry someone you don't want to," Applejack pointed out. "You could do a lot of good, maybe, but what good will it do you to be unhappy while you're at it?” That thought echoed in the silence of the studio, and the two mares let it hang there for a long minute. “Look,” Applejack said with a small sigh. “Is there any way you can tell this King of yours thanks but no thanks?"

"Not really," Star Fall replied. "If the Professor couldn't convince him, I don’t have a chance. There is a way out, though. I can run away. I can escape through the Everstorm into the nightlands and make a new life for myself there, beyond the King's reach."

"And you'll be safe there? Able to live the way you want to?"

Star Fall shook her head. "No. They'd find out who I am eventually, then the Republics would want me to give them all the secrets I know. Everything I've seen and done while I worked with the Secret Service."

"That don't sound all that good either," Applejack said.

"No. It's not."

"There's gotta be another option. Maybe we could talk to Spike, he probably knows a bunch of ways to work this out."

"Maybe... maybe." Star Fall sighed again, thunking her head against the window. "That's what I'm thinking about. The Professor doesn't want me to just go along with what the King wants. And if this were normal times... I might just run. I don't know. But, now? I think... I think I can't run away. Not with Max Cash out there, gathering the Elements. Not with you and Rainbow Dash and Rarity alive. I think I have to accept it."

"That don't sound like a thing anyone has to accept," Applejack said.

"Maybe it shouldn't be," Star Fall said. "But it is. Thank you, Applejack. You really helped."

"I didn't do nothin'," Applejack said. "I was just a pair of ears you could talk to, but I'm glad that these ears were here when you needed them. I figure you're gonna let this king marry you off then?" Star Fall nodded. "Well, I can't say I have much experience with this sort of thing, but I think you should at least know the pony you're gonna marry. Don't go into this blind, find out who he's chosen and make sure that stallion’s someone you can at least live with. Get to know him before you take those vows, before things get a lot harder to step away from."

Star Fall smiled. "Good advice. You know, the histories say you were married."

"Not from the point where I left off," Applejack said. "Wasn't really anyone special for me then. I always figured I'd find someone at some point, though. Good to hear that I did."

"Do you want to hear more about your future?"

"Not in particular," Applejack said. "I don't think that future’s mine anymore. I think I'm gonna live the life I have, not the one I missed."

"Oh, sorry."

"No apologisin' necessary, Star,” Applejack said giving the pegasus a friendly punch in the shoulder. “I don't mind a few tidbits now and then, but I ain’t lookin' to obsess on the details. You understand?"

"I think I do," Star Fall said. "Not completely, but enough."

"Come on then,” Applejack said, getting to her hooves and holding one out to help Star Fall up. “Rarity's still attached to Spike at the hip, but she's startin’ to ask questions about frou-frou stuff that he don't know nothin' about. I figure you might know, and I think it’d be good for her to spend some time with a pony who wasn’t alive a thousand years ago."

"Sure, lead on," Star Fall said with a genuine smile, taking the proffered hoof. And, having shared her burden with a friend, she left the studio with a lighter heart.

***

The transport landed at the base of the mountain path, its bulk dominating the area. The uneven ground made it look lopsided as it sat tilted, but the angle didn't seem to bother the crew as the ramp lowered and a half-dozen people marched out to meet the waiting ponies. At the front of that group was Gamma, her intense blue eyes scanning the faces of the four ponies and one Dragon that were arrayed to meet her.

"Astrid!" Star Fall cried out, eyes widening as she saw the Griffin prowling at Gamma's side. A smile broke out on her face, but she shook her head in confusion. "I dont understand, you were so hurt. You shouldn't be out of bed yet."

"Come on, Fall, it's not like I'd let myself sit on my ass while there was someone else's to kick," Astrid said, rolling her eyes. "Turns out magic's pretty damn useful stuff. Who knew?"

Star Fall's smile immediately turned sad. "Oh, Astrid. I'm so sorry."

"Don't, Fall. Seriously. Do not."

"I'm assuming the one with the lovely dark green coat and the dashing scarf is Gamma?" Rarity asked, leaning towards Dash.

"Yeah, she'll probably want to question you for a couple hours or something," Dash warned. "She's pretty paranoid."

"Then I shall endeavor to put her at ease," Rarity said, and stepped forward. "Greetings, Miss Gamma," she said, her Solar practiced and smooth. Then she swept into a courtly bow.

Gamma paused, her face carefully neutral, before she returned Rarity's bow. "Lady Rarity, I had not expected you to be so fluent for some few days more at least."

"Ah, help?" Rarity asked, looking back at Dash.

"She didn't think you were that good at their language yet," Dash translated.

"Oh, of course," she turned back to Gamma. "I am still learning, please forgive me."

"Did you practice just a few sentences to impress her?" Applejack asked with a snort.

"And what if I did?" Rarity huffed in reply, her head thrown back in disdain. "A good first impression is essential to being seen as a proper lady."

"Agent Fall," Gamma said, catching the pegasus' attention. "Please translate. Lady Rarity, Miss Applejack, Agent Rainbow Dash, as a representative of the government of their majesties King Golden Scepter the Second and Queen Aqua Regia, I would like to formally welcome you to the Solar Kingdom. I would also like to extend a personal invitation from his majesty the King for you to enjoy the hospitality of the Royal Family at the Palace of the Sun during your stay in our fair nation."

"A palace!" Rarity gasped, her eyes wide and sparkling. "And royalty!"

"It's not as impressive as it sounds," Spike murmured, then raised himself up to his haunches to look down at Gamma. "I've heard a lot about you," he said.

"And I have always meant to meet you," Gamma replied. "I have one of your pieces."

"Terpsichore At Play," Spike said. "A unicorn chasing a butterfly done in green marble, I remember it well, and I keep track of all legal sales of my art. I'm glad you liked it, though that piece seems like an odd choice for a spymaster."

"No it doesn't," Gamma replied. "I apologize for the imposition, but I will be needing your assistance, and I would like to get started as soon as is possible."

"With what?"

"The Elements of Harmony. Specifically, what they are capable of."

"Individually? Astounding amounts. Together?" Spike shrugged. "Anything, I suppose."

"How about their effects on a pony? If their power is used to compel a certain behaviour, what can we expect?"

Spike sighed, shaking his head. "I wish I could tell you. They were never really used the way Cash is using them in my time."

Gamma’s expression barely flickered, but it still registered as annoyance. “I will need everything you know about their powers, and ways to counter them.”

Spike shook his head. “I’m not the one who knew them best.”

“You are now. Anything you know might be relevant. We have to be prepared for whatever Cash might do with them.”

“That’s not going to happen,” Spike said. “There’s no way to prepare for them, and if I tell you half of what I’ve seen them do, it would only terrify you.”

“Try me.” Gamma’s words fell into a sudden quiet. Everyone present had their attention riveted to the conversation between them, Rarity getting a quick translation from Star Fall.

Spike looked over the watching ponies, then seemed to deflate. “Fine,” he said. When he started talking it was in a quiet growl that gained in volume with every sentence until he was nearly shouting. “You want to know some of the things the Elements can do? Kindness once stopped a wrathful Goddess in her tracks. I’ve seen Honesty topple a mountain. I was there when Laughter broke the hordes of Tartarus with a smile. I used Generosity to raise Elysium from the sea! That is what the Elements can do!”

There was a long silence, Spike’s booming voice an echoing rumble in the wind. “And Loyalty?” Gamma asked.

“Rainbow Dash once used Loyalty to wipe out an army,” Spike replied.

“Wait, I did what?” Dash cried out, her wings snapping wide in shock.

“And Magic?”

“Magic was Twilight Sparkle’s Element,” Spike growled. “You figure it out.”

Gamma nodded slowly. “I see.”

“I can’t help you, Agent Gamma,” Spike said, the anger gone. “I wish I could. I really do. I know what we did with the Elements, but I never knew how they worked. It was hard. I can tell you that much. Using the Elements at that level was only ever easy for them,” he gestured at the three time-displaced mares. “Cash probably can’t wipe out cities. Yet. But what he is doing, he’s doing in a way we never knew about. I can’t tell you what he’ll be capable of. What I can tell you is that if he gets all of them together? There is nothing short of the Goddesses returning that will be able to stop him.”

“Well, then,” Gamma said, half-turning towards the transport. “We’d better get moving if we’re going to prevent that from happening. I trust you’re ready to leave?”

“Absolutely,” Spike said, walking past her and up the ramp. Rarity said a quick word to her friends before rushing after him, matching her pace to his and providing a comforting presence to the Dragon.

“Excellent,” Gamma said, then turned her attention back to Star Fall and the others. “Agent Fall, Agent Dash, you will be giving me a full briefing once we’re underway. I want to go over everything we know about Cash again, before we get to the capital and all of our time is taken up by… other matters.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Star Fall said. Then without a look back they all started into the flying ship. “Well, that went well,” she whispered to Dash.

“What does he mean I wiped out an army?” Dash asked, staring after Spike.

“I’m not sure, but there are stories of you doing something to stop Celestia Nova’s army from sacking Ponyville. I would have assumed it was this sonic rain-thing you told me about.”

“Sonic Rainboom, and it’s awesome and all but no way can it take out an army!”

“Well, you’ll have plenty of time to ask Spike all about it on the way to the capital.” Star Fall said.

“Hey, you two done with the secret code stuff?” Astrid asked.

“It’s not secret code,” Star Fall protested. “It’s an ancient language.”

“Same diff.” Astrid shrugged. “Look, Dash, Fall, I want to introduce you to someone, but, uh, she’s kinda… weird right now.”

“Weird? What?”

“She’s screwed up in the head,” Astrid said, but her expression showed that she was genuinely worried. “Cash messed with her. Gamma was hoping Spike could help, but after that scene back there I don’t think that’s gonna happen.”

“Well, hey, if you think I can do anything, I’ll help,” Dash offered.

“Thanks,” Astrid said as the ramp closed up behind them. The massive propulsion crystals lit up as the unicorns piloting the ship provided power and it lifted into the air, hovering for a moment before vaulting skyward and rushing towards the south and the capital.

Chapter 23: The Deep Power

The Elements of Harmony do not conform to any of the accepted theories of reality. They are, in fact, inimical to any understanding of existence that also includes us. Scientifically, they are shattering. Spiritually, they are poisonous. Materially, they are impossible. Even philosophy fails here, as they cannot be apprehended by even the loosest of reasoning. They are, simply put, not natural.

It might be tempting to claim them as ‘super-natural’, and considering the extent of a Harmony Event, this is not far-fetched. However, it is inadequate. The Elements are not simply something aside from nature or beyond it, they are completely, utterly outside of it. Beyond the scope of concepts like is and is-not. Their reality is self-contained and non-referential. They exist only because they exist, no more and no less. Even that might not be going far enough.

They have no place in our world. Yet they are in it. What does this mean for us? Is this, then, evidence of some external being that has placed the Elements in our hooves? A deity, working their ineffable will through these devices? I think not. No, that would make things far too easy. No matter how much I may wish it otherwise, I have to accept the truth of it.

I have only myself to blame.

-From the seventh section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Twenty-Three: The Deep Power

The transport shuddered as it took off, causing everyone inside to stumble. “Jeeze,” Dash said, her wings flapping to steady her against the sudden acceleration. “You’d think they could have warned us.”

“Gamma’s not wasting any time,” Astrid said, jerking her head towards where the spymaster was speaking in low tones to one of her agents. “Something about orders from the Crown.” Star Fall flinched at that, hard enough for Dash to notice through the shaking of the transport. “Full speed to the capital.”

“Rarity’s gonna love it,” Dash said. “Everypony wears clothes.”

Applejack chuckled. “Does sound like her kind of place.” She sobered as she spotted Astrid’s worried look. “So what about this person you want Star to meet? What exactly’s wrong with her? ”

“She’s up in medical,” Astrid said, moving towards the narrow stairs up to the second floor of the transport. “Fall, you know what Cash tried to do to you? What he tried to do to me?”

Star Fall nodded, expression turning grim. “I remember.”

“He did it to her, only this time it worked.”

“What was it he tried to do?” Applejack asked.

“Loyalty,” Dash replied, her ears drooping at the thought. “He used Loyalty on them. Like he did to me.” She shook her head, trying to clear the memory. “It hurt, AJ.”

Applejack frowned at the remembered pain in Dash’s voice, but gave her a quick nuzzle. “He didn’t get you, sugarcube. You beat him.”

“And I’m hoping you can help Melody do it too,” Astrid continued as they climbed the stairs. “He made her, I don’t know, super-loyal to her master. Then Charisma killed him, and left her with the body. It’s… it’s seriously messed her up. I need you guys to promise to keep it cool, alright?”

"When do I not?" Dash asked, forcing a cocky smile.

Astrid rolled her eyes at that. "Look, I had to go through a lot just to get her on this ship. She’s not right in the head, and she knows it, but she can’t stop herself. She’s gonna do some weird shit, and I need you to understand that it’s not her fault."

"We understand," Star Fall assured her. "Why don't you show us to Melody?"

"Okay, just... don't touch the doll, alright?" Astrid cautioned. “I’m going to try to grab it, but I don’t want you thinking it’s okay. It’s… not.”

"Doll?" Dash asked.

"You'll see." Astrid led them to the medical area, pulling aside a blocking curtain. There, sitting on one of the beds, looking around with wary, darting eyes, was a brown pegasus mare. Dash frowned at the state of her, noting the dishevelled wings and wild, tangled mane. Her eyes locked onto them as they approached, and her wings immediately snapped wide and threatening. Dash saw that she was hunched over something, a unicorn doll.

Astrid stopped about ten feet away. "Don't move," she whispered to them. "Remember what I told you, don't freak out." Star Fall and Applejack nodded, and Dash followed suit a moment later, still studying the ragged pony.

Astrid crouched down, then leapt at Melody, her talons extended and reaching for the doll. Melody's eyes went wide and she twisted, putting the doll behind her and meeting Astrid's claws with her hooves, halting the charge. It was obvious to Dash's eyes that Astrid had let the pegasus succeed, but Melody grinned at the accomplishment, flushing with pride.

"I saved him," Melody said, a hitching giggle following her words.

"Yeah, you did," Astrid said, backing off a step. "I want you to meet a couple friends of mine." Melody's eyes darted to the two pegasi, suspicious. "The colorful one is Rainbow Dash. She's beaten up Charisma before. Her friend with the hat is Applejack. The smart-looking one is Star Fall, and she's my charge. Remember the rules?" Melody nodded. "Okay. Guys, this is Melody Drop."

"Nice to meet you, Melody," Star Fall said.

"Yeah, nice to meet you," Dash repeated, stepping forward with a hoof extended. Melody's wings snapped wide again, her muscles tensing. Dash stopped in her tracks. "So... you got messed up by Cash?"

Melody nodded, relaxing but still unnaturally wary. "He came to Precious Corners more than a week ago," she began. She told them the whole story, from meeting Charisma to Cash staying at High Fashion's estate to the chaos he had caused and finally, to what he had done to her and her master. "I know it's wrong," she said, picking up the unicorn doll and clutching it close. Not like a filly would hug her doll, though, not for comfort, but more like it was the most precious thing in the world and she was desperate to keep it from harm. "I know it doesn't make sense, but I can't stop. I have to protect him. I... I just have to."

“Thank you, Melody,” Star Fall said, smiling kindly. “Do you mind if I talk to my friends for a bit?” Melody shook her head and they withdrew from the beds to stand outside of earshot. Star Fall shuddered and looked to Astrid. “The details, Astrid, how was she found?”

"With what was left of Lord High Fashion" Astrid replied. "Melody spent days defending his body, not leaving for anything. Anything. Even Gamma couldn't convince her to get away from it."

"So she was just hanging around with a corpse?" Dash asked.

Applejack took off her hat, holding it to her chest as she cast a sympathetic glance back to Melody. “The poor girl.”

"Yeah, don't ask for too many details on that," Astrid said with a shudder. "It's kind of gross. Gamma gave me the job of getting her on the transport without the body, and I mostly managed it."

"The doll," Star Fall reasoned. "You managed to shift her protectiveness from the corpse to the doll."

"Yeah, wasn't easy," Astrid said. "You gotta realize that she knows what's going on. She knows that Fashion's dead, that she's protecting a doll. She knows that it's all crazy, but she can't stop herself. She wanted to get away from the body but what Cash did to her wouldn't let her. When I came up with the doll idea, it wasn't me that convinced her, she convinced herself."

“Astrid,” Star Fall said, frowning. “You attacked the doll. Why?”

“We’re playing Succession,” Astrid replied.

Star Fall’s eyes widened in recognition and understanding, but Dash and Applejack shared a look of confusion. “Uh, pardon,” Applejack put in. “But could y’all explain that to the rest of us?”

"It's a game," Astrid said. "Griffin hatchlings play it as part of our training. We called it Succession. The rules change from year to year, but the basics are pretty simple. The adults give each chick a doll, and they're told they have to protect it. Then the hatchlings do whatever they can to protect their own doll and also destroy each other's. Attacks can come at any time, and you’re not allowed to hide your doll or put it in a box or anything. It’s gotta be out in the open and with you all the time. Once your doll is gone, you’re not out of the game, you just become a permanent attacker with nothing left to defend. The winners are the ones left with a doll at the end of the game who also took out the most other dolls. Takes weeks to play, usually."

"That's... huh," Dash said, scratching her head. "Sounds weird for a kids game."

"It's part game, part training," Astrid said. "They watch you, see how you handle your protection duties. They see where you’re weak, where you’re strong. Then they spend time training your weaknesses out and making your strengths stronger. It goes in cycles, for years. Eventually Griffins get really crafty, form alliances, secret cabals, death squads. It's all about doing whatever we can to protect our charge."

"How'd you do?" Dash asked.

Astrid shrugged. "Not bad, not good."

"You never won?"

Astrid shook her head.

"That's not entirely true," Star Fall said.

"I never won, Fall," Astrid insisted.

"But you never lost either.” Star Fall turned to the other ponies. “Astrid told me about this game before. You never lost your doll, right?"

"Once," Astrid quietly said. "They were making a point."

"They cheated,” Star Fall countered.

Astrid shook her head slowly. "No, they didn't cheat. The rules don't say anything about the adults not participating."

"Whoa, so the adults are the ones that made you lose?” Dash said, the very idea sparking indignant anger. “How is that fair?"

"It wasn't about being fair," Astrid said. "It never was, the point of the game is to teach you about protecting your charge. I did that, but I didn't attack anyone else's doll. That's why I didn’t win the game. I wasn’t playing half of it. They had to show me how aggression could be important too." Her beak opened in a raptor’s grin. “I got the message. Didn’t win the next game, but I came damn close.”

“It’s a good idea,” Star Fall said. “Melody’s fixated on protecting her master. You’ve gotten her to transfer that fixation onto the doll, but it’s a lie, and she knows it. So you play Succession, and every time she protects the doll from you, she reinforces the lie.”

“It keeps her from cracking up,” Astrid confirmed. “Well, worse than she already is.”

"And you think we can help her?" Dash asked.

"I got no idea," Astrid sighed, exasperated. "Personally, I think Melody should have been left back at Harrenhorn, getting a ton of counselling and being kept away from sharp objects. But I didn't get a say there. Gamma wanted her along to get Spike to look at her. I think she was looking for an angle to get him to open up about what he knew. Leverage, you know? Well, that’s not gonna work anymore, and I’m feeling kinda responsible. So as long as we might be able to help her, I say that we try."

"How?" Dash asked.

Astrid shrugged. "I don’t know. I’m a badass warrior, not a shrink. But you, Fall, and I’ve all been through what she has. Cash screwed with us the same way he screwed with her. It didn't take, but… but it’s something."

"Yeah," Dash said, looking back to where Melody was twitching, curled around her doll. "Yeah, we'll do what we can."

***

Hard Boiled slept in fits and starts. Every time his mind wandered too far into unconsciousness a burst of pain from his horn would bring him back to near wakefulness. It was no way to get any rest, but it was all he’d been able to get since they had left Hoofprint.

Still, it wasn't without its benefits. His wandering, half-asleep thoughts inevitably turned to the pieces of the grand puzzle he was solving. Ideas connected and changed in ways that his fully conscious mind would never have considered. Bits and pieces tangled in innocuous moments and offhand comments came together to shed light in unexpected places.

He came fully awake just as one of those pieces revealed itself to him. "Good coffee," he mumbled, opening his eyes.

Traduce stood by the small kitchen that the yacht boasted, preparing rations for use on their coming trek through the jungle. She gave him an apologetic smile as she saw him awake. "Sorry," she said. "No coffee on this boat."

"No," he said, sitting up and rubbing at his aching head. "A detective I was working with on this case likes good coffee." He yawned, feeling almost as tired as he had when he had gone to bed. Perhaps a little worse, actually, with a new soreness in his neck and back from tossing and turning. "He says he picked up the habit while still a beat cop."

"Interesting, but random," Traduce said, turning back to her preparations.

HB grunted in response. He dragged himself off of the bed, wincing as the short hairs of his growing mane brushed his horn. "Why aren't you piloting the boat?"

"Because we're here," she replied. "We reached the coordinates you gave me about an hour ago."

"We made good time. Why didn’t you tell me?"

"You were sleeping. You need it," she said, giving him a pointed look over her shoulder. "Exhaustion is a terrible enemy, and one we cannot afford to have you fighting."

He snorted. "Not much luck of that. Can't sleep without my pain meds, and we're not likely to find any out here."

"No," she agreed, but her serious gaze remained trained on him. "I could help you. Take some of the pain away."

"Let me guess, you'd have to sleep with me first?"

She shook her head. "No. I'd just need you to lower your defenses. That happens automatically during physical intimacy, so that would be the easiest way, but..."

He considered it. "What would that mean for you?"

"It would be uncomfortable," she admitted. "But I wouldn't actually be feeling your pain, so it wouldn't affect me as much."

He nodded as he mulled over the idea. "You've got an ulterior motive," he said, not bothering to make it a question.

"It would connect me to you. Let me know what you're feeling, where you are. It would make it easier to understand what makes you tick, gets you going."

HB grunted in acknowledgment, it was about what he was expecting. "Would it let you influence me?"

"Some," she replied. He could see her forcing herself to be truthful, the details that spoke of a deception both considered and discarded clear despite the throbbing pain in his head. "Not enough for direct influence, but you'd probably be more inclined to listen to my suggestions."

"Then no," he said.

"I wouldn't steal your will." She sounded bored, her voice betraying her hurt only in the subtlest manner. Another pony might not have caught it, even he might have missed it on a normal day, but HB was especially sensitive to the tells now. Every little hesitation, every slight waver sending a new pulse of revealing pain through his horn. "That would take more energy than it's worth."

"I didn't think you would," he said. "But I need to be able to trust my own mind. Messing with that, even a little bit, isn't something I can allow."

"You might not have a choice," she warned him. "If your headaches and lack of sleep debilitate you too much, I will take steps."

He nodded at that, accepting it without comment or complaint. "How are we for stores?"

"Not good," she said. "Assuming we can find good water in the jungle we're still going to be rationing food. I can eat the local fauna and be reasonably safe, but you're going to have to watch where you graze. Some of the plants out here are deadly."

"Got it," HB sighed. "Can we conceal the boat?"

"A luxury tub like this?" She laughed at the suggestion.

"So it might not be here on our way back," HB reasoned.

"We've got a day of overland hiking at least," she pointed out. "Losing the boat was always a possibility."

"How soon before we're ready to leave?"

"Half an hour for me to get this stuff packed and ready, and however long you need to get yourself pretty," she said with a wink.

"Then I'll be on deck." He suited actions to words, staggering up the narrow staircase to the open deck. The tropical sun burned at his eyes, but it was a pain that barely stacked up against the agony already inside his skull, so he ignored the stinging light and stepped to the edge of the boat.

The river was wide and slow-moving, the muddy waters like brown glass broken here and there by the shapes of animals and bits of debris fallen from trees. Insects swarmed under the trees, their shapes all but invisible were it not for the unnaturally hyper-aware state he found himself in. He could see things moving in those trees. Birds and monkeys and snakes and who knew what else. Eyes stared at him, fearful, wondering, hungry. Thousands of different creatures, all trying to stay hidden, to pretend that they weren’t there. Every deception coming with flaws that he could not help but pick out.

He collapsed to his knees, dry heaving with his head hanging over the railing of the boat. “Stop it!” he hissed, pounding a hoof into the side of his head. The new pain gave him focus, something to distract from the million little details demanding his attention. “Turn off the magic!”

He curled into a fetal ball, pressing his hooves against his eyes. He forced his breathing to even out. It wasn’t easy, and he lost track of time as he fought the helpless fear that was his rising panic. Once he had his breathing under control, he focused on his magic. It was running at a trickle, but that was more than enough to power the truth-detecting magic that was making his life hell. He realized with a shudder that it was the same spell he’d used in the market back in Hoofprint.

He remembered forcing the magic, making it as powerful as he could. He remembered the slow response when he had willed the magic to stop. Clearly, he hadn’t finished the job, and was now paying for that inattention. The moment that thought crossed his mind, a spike of pain drove through his horn like it had been smashed into his head. The magic turned inward, following the focus of his attention. It seared away deceptions and revealed stark truth, as it always did.

The spell hadn’t ended because he hadn’t wanted it to end. He was afraid, far from home and being chased by enemies who wanted him dead. His best defense was the insight his magic gave him, of course he wouldn’t want to shut it down.

“My own worst enemy, huh?” he grumbled as the pain faded back to a manageable level. “No. I’m done with this.” He focused on his magic, wrenching control from whatever subconscious process had kept the power flowing to his horn. Then, with a cold sensation that washed over his body as if he had been plunged into ice water, he ended the spell.

The sudden loss of information was like a numbing balm. The pain stayed, of course, but now it wasn’t being added to with every new bit of information that crossed his mind. He stayed like that for a while, simply breathing and staying still as he familiarized himself with a steady level of agony. Then, once he was ready, he climbed back to his hooves and took a fresh look at the jungle.

There wasn’t much to see. Tall, broad-leafed trees that were spaced closely and entwined with other vegetation to the point of being impassably thick. The river wound like a meandering snake through this green sea, a mud-brown ribbon of clear space to break up the shadows of the southern jungle. Clouds scudded through the sky, rolling over each other in thick, billowing waves. He noted all of this and let out a relieved sigh. For a moment he had been worried that he’d still see the eyes in the shadows, and the claw marks on the trees.

One thing that did catch his attention, though, was a thin trail of smoke rising above the canopy downriver. He regarded it for a moment, then turned away. He only made it two steps before he froze in place, his eyes narrowing as he warred with himself.

“Bad idea,” he said, trying to start moving again. This time he only made it one step. “Come on!” he snarled. “You just got it under control again. It’s nothing, now get back down there and enjoy a shower while you have one.” His legs still refused to budge, and he finally had to admit defeat. “Damn it. I’m going to regret this.”

His horn burst into copper light, and he turned back to look at the smoke. He stared at it, letting the magic burn through his mind, taking in every detail. The conclusion was inescapable.

He shut off the magic, taking an extra moment to ensure that it actually was off this time. Then he rushed back down into the cabin. “Grab what you’ve got!” he called to Traduce. “We’ve got to go now.”

“Why?” she asked, but was already pulling on her saddlebags.

“We’re being followed. They’re almost here.”

Her eyes narrowed, flashing green for a moment. “You’re sure?”

He gave her a steady look. “Absolutely.”

“It could be benign.”

“It doesn’t matter,” he said, grabbing his holster and slipping it on. “We stole this boat, or near enough to make no difference. That means that any report of it getting back to Hoofprint will get somebody out here investigating. If it gets spotted – and it will get spotted, no matter what actions the people in the other boat take – we should be long gone before they take them.”

She frowned in thought for a moment, but nodded. “Agreed. I’ve got the food and water. You grab the map.” She paused for a moment, regarding him. “Will you be able to keep up?”

“It’s not an issue,” he replied. She held his gaze for a moment before turning and heading up the stairs without a word. He quickly gathered everything that he could and followed her, still stuffing his saddlebag as he came up on deck. The smoke was gone, but a distant buzzing sound could be heard.

“Outboard motor,” Traduce said, eyes closed and ears twitching as she focused on the sound. “More than one. Not a river cruise, then.”

“We don’t have a lot of time,” he said, then suited actions to words and leapt from the side of the boat. He hit the muddy water with a splash, not pausing as he rushed to the riverbank and pulled himself into what passed for dry land in the jungle. Traduce joined him a moment later, having taken a pegasus form to fly down without risking getting their food wet. “You have jungle experience, right?”

“Enough,” she said. “Stay close, be careful of anything hanging into your face, and if you need to stop for any reason speak up.”

“If they’re Cash’s people, they’ll be tracking us,” HB warned.

“I know,” she replied. “Let’s hope they’re no good at it. Come on.” A burst of green fire washed over her, and when it was gone she had assumed her favored yellow earth pony form. She drew a heavy blade from her bags and began to hack an opening into the thick wall of the jungle.

Hard Boiled looked back to the river one more time, the sounds of approaching boats growing louder by the second. Then, with an annoyed growl, he followed the Changeling into the shadows.

***

"The ship is quite ex-ex... extreme?" Rarity said, stumbling over the new word.

"I think you're looking for 'extraordinary'," Spike supplied, leaning against the rail of the balcony-like pegasus landing platform next to her. "Though I'm astounded that you're already using words like that."

"It's coming to me quite easily," Rarity said, looking off the edge of the platform at the landscape swiftly passing below. "I am just as surprised as you. Though Applejack and Rainbow Dash both warned me that they learned quite quickly themselves."

"Not as fast as you," Spike said. "But then again, they didn't have any experience learning other languages. You do."

"Some," Rarity allowed. "So. Extraordinary. Yes. I like that word for it. Extraordinary, but ugly."

"It is a weapon of war," Spike said. "They are often ugly."

"Not always," Rarity mused, letting her eyes unfocus so that the passing world became a blur of shapes and colors. "I have often admired the elegance of a beautiful sword. And I once had the opportunity to witness a master spearpony practicing his forms. It was like watching a dance, the flashing steel of the spearhead making patterns in the air. Quite inspiring, I made a whole line of dresses based on it. They didn't sell terribly well, but bold lines and silver piping weren’t in that season."

"Swords," Spike snickered. "I remember swords. It's been a long time since they've been used."

Rarity sighed. "That’s sad. These new things those soldiers are carting around are just horrid. So boxy, so drab. No flair to them at all."

"They're guns, Rarity."

"Truly?” she asked, blinking in surprise. “Why, they look nothing like them!"

"Designed for function over form," Spike said. "The firearms you remember were the exact opposite. These modern guns may be drab, but they're much, much more effective."

Rarity's lips thinned as she looked back through the door into the transport. "Yes. I suppose they would be." She turned back to Spike. "Extraordinary," she said, carefully sounding out the word. "I do not think I shall be ready to meet King Scepter by the time we reach the capital."

"The King won’t mind that you don't speak his language perfectly," Spike assured her. “And, officially at least, all the Royals are supposed to be able to speak Equestrian.”

"It's the principle of the thing," Rarity insisted. They lapsed into a long, comfortable silence before she spoke again. "I do not believe I am prepared for any of this," she admitted. "Rainbow Dash is driven, as usual, but the way you and she talk about this Max Cash pony... I don't like it."

"He's not a likeable guy."

"No. I mean the way the two of you speak of him. I can hear the anger. You want to hurt him." Spike was silent. "Is the whole future like this? So... violent? The soldiers with their guns, this talk of war with that other kingdom, you and Dash. Dash! She has only been here for a few weeks, and yet she seems to fit in perfectly with Gamma and that Griffin and all these soldiers. Is that going to be my fate, too? Will I be talking like her soon? Ready to discuss killing ponies so easily?"

"I hope not," Spike said, reaching over to lay a comforting claw on her shoulder. "Dash has been through things. It's changed her from the mare you remember. From the mare I remember, too. I can't say it's a bad thing, but it's something I don't want you to go through."

She leaned into him. “Thank you, Spike,” she said. “I can’t imagine what coming to this place alone would be like. I shouldn’t judge, but…”

“But you are anyway,” he finished for her.

She nodded. “We should talk of something else. Tell me about this King. What is he like?”

Spike chuckled. “I don’t really know. I’ve never met him, and I’ve been removed enough from Kingdom affairs that I don’t have a sense of his character. From what others have said he’s a decent ruler. He’s got good ponies around him, at least.”

“Such as Fallen Star’s Professor?”

Spike hesitated for a moment, but then nodded. “Yes.”

“You were friends with her, right?”

“I am,” he confirmed. “A long time ago she spent years with me, learning.”

“I’m sure you taught her quite well,” Rarity said.

He smiled at that. “I try my best.”

“What is she like, then?” Rarity asked. “Both Dash and Star have mentioned her, but seem to have very different opinions.”

“She can have that effect,” Spike said. “She’s a complex pony. When I was with her she was… younger. Didn’t have the weight of the world on her back. I certainly never imagined she’d choose to have a daughter like Star. She wasn’t the type.”

Rarity frowned. “With Star’s parents still around, I’m still trying to understand how that part works.”

“That’s politics,” Spike said. “I suggest just letting it lie. Twinkle Shine loves Fallen Star like she really was her own. I can guarantee you that, and in the end I think that’s all that matters.”

“Yes,” Rarity said. “It is.”

She decided to remain silent after that. The time seemed to pass with unnatural swiftness, minutes and hours draining away like the miles of terrain they sped past. Rarity thought through everything she had been told, everything she had already seen. If there were tears in her eyes, they were quickly dried by the wind.

“I think you should stay in the capital,” Spike said suddenly and with great conviction, as if he had just come to a hard decision.

“What do you mean?”

“You’re right. This world, it’s too harsh. Too violent. I don’t want to see you get caught up in that. So you should stay in the capital. You’ll have a place there, at the Court of the Sun. You’ll be treated like the Lady you are, kept out of danger. You’ll get everything you always deserved.”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “But you won’t be staying as well, I take it?”

He shook his head. “I have to stop Cash.”

“Is that more important than your safety?”

“Yes.”

She was taken aback by the casual certainty in his tone. Her hesitation only lasted a moment before she sniffed delicately and turned up her nose. “Well, then. If it’s important enough for you to risk your life, then it is clearly important enough for me to do the same.”

“Rarity, please,” he reached for her, but she shied away.

“No!” she snapped. “You’re one of the only friends I have anymore, Spike! I’m not going to let you just leave me behind to be pampered like some pet while you put yourself in danger!” She paused, frowning in momentary thought. “Well, some pampering would be quite alright, but not at the expense of being left behind!”

He shook his head, falling back. “You don’t want to see what I’m going to do to him, Rarity. Trust me. You do not.”

“No, I suppose I don’t,” she agreed. “But that’s a sacrifice I am willing to make.” She glared at him, ensuring that he saw the determination in her eyes. “And that’s final.”

“Rarity–”

“Final!” she snapped, then reached out to him and pinched his cheeks, an act made extremely difficult by the steel-hardness of his scales. “Now be a good little Dragon and accept that you’re not going to be rid of me ever again!”

He shifted, but allowed a small smile to peek out. “Okay, Rarity. You win.”

She gave him a curt nod, keeping her stern expression only for a moment before it melted and she leaned forward to hug him close. “Don’t leave me alone, Spike. I couldn’t bear it.”

“I won’t,” he promised.

Their moment was interrupted by a dark shape dropping out of the sky onto the platform. Rarity jumped and let out a shriek of surprise, while Spike just tensed and narrowed his eyes at the newcomer. It was a Griffin outfitted in light armor of red and gold, the gray feathers of his head and wings dyed a bright red. His beak was open as he gasped in heavy breaths that made his armor creak and his sharp, gleaming claws flex. He regarded them with dispassionate golden-brown eyes and swept into a bow.

“Hail, master Dragon,” he growled out, his words made hoarse by the shortness of his breath. “And you, Lady Unicorn. I seek Agent Gamma on orders from the Crown.”

“You will find her within,” Spike said, dipping his head to the warrior. “I take this to mean we are close to the capital?”

“Mere moments from its sight, he confirmed. “I must be on my way.”

“Of course,” Spike said. The Griffin bowed again and loped into the transport.

“I think I understood most of that,” Rarity said. “He was saying we’re… near the capital?”

“Take a look,” Spike said, grinning and pointing to the horizon.

Rarity squinted into the distance, not sure of what to expect. Then she saw them: buildings. Tall, majestic spires and blocks of glass reflecting the fading light of the day. “Oh! It’s like Manehattan!” she cried. “I love Manehattan!”

“Keep watching,” Spike urged.

“Really? What could be so… special…” Rarity trailed off as more of the city became visible, and she began to realize the sheer size of the capital. An ocean of buildings stretched out before her, fields of houses studded with skyscraper mountains. Streets ran like rivers across the mammoth city, their lights just beginning to shine in anticipation of the coming dark. It was easily large enough to swallow ten Manehattans. “Oh my…”

“Welcome to the capital of the Solar Kingdom, Rarity,” Spike said. “Wait ‘till you see the castle! I helped design it!” And, laughing, they watched the city unfurl beneath them.

***

The transport sank from the sky, slowly descending onto the wide parade ground beside the Court of the Sun. Flights of Griffins and pegasus guards wheeled around and above it, ensuring that no one could interfere in the landing. Inside, Star Fall stood next to Gamma and waited for the ramp to lower and let them out.

“How are you progressing with Melody Drop?” Gamma asked.

Star Fall shrugged. “We’ve had, what, ten hours to work with her? It’s hard to say.”

“Speculate.”

“The mental distress she’s in is pretty severe. My psychology training is limited, but from the way she acts and what she says, I think most of that is self-inflicted.”

Gamma quirked an eyebrow at that. “Not the result of the Element?”

Star Fall shook her head. “As a root cause, definitely the Element at work. She’s obsessed with her master, and she consciously knows that it’s wrong. Artificial. The bizarre, self-destructive behaviours are her attempt to break that obsession. It’s like breaking conditioning, but done to herself.”

“Interesting thought,” Gamma mused. “I want to keep her close. I believe her struggles will provide insight towards negating the Element’s power in the future.”

“She needs real psychiatric help,” Star Fall said. “She should be in a hospital.”

“Should she?” Gamma asked. “If it were for her own good, I would agree with you. However, my concern is greater than the life of one mare. Keep her close, watch her, and see if and how she deals with this issue.”

“I…” Star Fall hesitated, prompting Gamma to give her a look that spoke volumes about her dwindling patience. “I don’t think I’ll be able to.”

“Explain.”

“I think you know,” Star Fall said, her wings sagging. “The King has other plans for me.”

Gamma nodded slowly. “You are correct. I suppose it cannot be delayed any longer. Well, then, allow me to be the first to congratulate you on your upcoming nuptials. I’m sure you and Prince Regal Stature will be quite… happy together.”

“Prince Regal?” Star Fall frowned at the name. She hadn’t expected the King’s choice to be someone younger than her.

“I take it you didn’t know the identity of your betrothed,” Gamma said, her head bobbing slightly in apology. “Sorry for ruining the surprise.”

“Is there some sort of formal procedure for leaving the Service?” Star Fall asked.

Gamma snorted. “Hardly. You aren’t getting away so easy, Agent Fall. Princess to be or not, you are in the Service until I say you are no longer needed, and not a moment before. Is that understood?”

For some reason Star Fall found herself smiling. “Yes,” she said. “I understand.”

“Good,” Gamma’s return smile was small and tight, but it practically beamed for Star Fall. “Now, prepare yourself, I believe we are here.”

The transport settled into place on the ground gently, shaking only a little as the crystal engines went dark. The main ramp lowered; a squad of Griffins snapped to attention as ponies began to make their way out.

“Agent Gamma,” one of them said, saluting as the spymaster and Star Fall made their way down the ramp. “The King sends his regards, and is pleased that you have made it home so quickly.”

Gamma returned the salute. “I serve at the pleasure of the Crown,” she said. “I assume you are to explain why the transport was directed to land here, and not at the military facilities where it belongs?”

“The King is eager to meet your guests, and has directed me to escort you to the Dusk Hall where you will be received.”

Gamma’s eyebrow quirked at that, but her voice showed no sign of what she might be thinking. “No time to freshen up?”

“The King was rather insistent on seeing you immediately,” the Griffin commander apologetically replied.

“Fair enough,” Gamma said, turning to look at the others who were just coming down the ramp. Spike and Rarity were walking together, the Dragon pointing out features of the castle to the excited unicorn. Applejack was coaxing a wary Melody Drop out into the open while Astrid and Rainbow Dash were trading jocular boasts behind them. They all looked at least slightly dishevelled from the trip, though Rarity carried herself well enough to hide it. Melody was the worst, of course, but that was only expected. Gamma turned back to the Griffin with an acquiescing nod. “Well, then. Let’s not keep His Majesty waiting.”

It didn’t take long to get the group organized. The only hitch was in deciding what was to be done with Melody. She wasn’t fit to be presented to the King, and the guards were adamantly against allowing a clearly disturbed pony into the King’s presence. Gamma’s will and authority proved stronger than their unease, however, and Melody was allowed to accompany them.

On the way Gamma gave the time-displaced ponies quick instructions on what they were expected to do for this meeting. “I don’t know how the King will want to greet you,” she told them. “But regardless of how he acts, this is not a social occasion. Bow when we bow. Remain silent unless asked a question. Reply with more formality than you are spoken to. This is for the King’s benefit, not yours.”

“It’s okay, Miss Gamma,” Applejack said. “We’ve met royalty before.”

“No, you’ve met divinity,” Gamma corrected. “And from the casual way you discuss those meetings, I can assure you the rules for mortal royalty are very different.”

The Dusk Hall was one of the more popular throne rooms of the Court, if only because it also served as a ballroom and hosted the more personal gatherings of the Royal Family. The polished floor reflected a high ceiling painted to resemble clouds lit by the falling sun, the effect somewhat like standing on the waters of a still lake at the close of day. Large west-facing windows looked out onto the terraced gardens and a patio that could serve as additional space for a party. In front of those windows were the thrones of the King and Queen, high-backed chairs topped with golden suns.

Sitting on those thrones, King Golden Scepter and Queen Aqua Regia looked every inch as regal as their titles demanded. Their carefully groomed manes were cut to accent their strong features while their wings were held high and open, displaying near-perfect feathers. Flanked by statuesque Griffins and backlit by the setting sun, they could have been posing for a picture. The contrast between them and the group of weary travellers that were escorted in was striking.

Standing slightly to the side of the King’s throne was the golden form of Professor Twinkle Shine. Her features were held in a schooled neutrality, but her eyes lit up as she saw Star Fall, a small smile breaking the careful mask of professionalism. Star Fall had to resist the urge to run to her mentor right there, knowing there would be plenty of time for that later.

They came up before the thrones, Gamma leading the way. Astrid and Star Fall were both used to meeting royalty, and so dropped into bows with practiced smoothness. Rarity curtseyed with a flourish of her own, eyeing the two rulers critically. Melody also knew what to do, but her own twitching nervousness made her bow more of a collapse onto the floor. Dash and Applejack fell into their own bows, though they were paying more attention to making sure Melody was okay than to their form. Spike did not bow at all, only nodding his head in deference to the King.

“Your Majesty,” the Griffin commander said, sweeping a wing out to indicate the ponies. “I present Agent Gamma and entourage, as ordered.”

“Thank you, Captain Arnor,” the King said, dismissing the Griffin with a flick of his wing. “Rise, my friends, please.” They quickly did as he asked. “It is with a glad heart that we welcome you to the Court of the Sun. While we do not know all of you personally, we have heard of your legends and your deeds, and would like dearly to know you better.” He stood, his wife rising with him. “Gamma, if you would.”

“Of course, your Majesty,” Gamma said, turning to the others. One by one she pointed them out, naming them to the Royals. “May I present Agent Rainbow Dash of Ponyville, recently come into your service. Applejack, of Sweet Apple Acres. Lady Rarity of Ponyville. Melody Drop of Precious Corners, a... personal guest. And this is Master Spike, Lord of Dragons and eternal friend of the Solar Kingdom.”

“Our warmest greetings to all of you,” the Queen said after the introductions were complete. “While you are a guest within these walls I promise that you will want for nothing.”

“Indeed!” the King said, his smile wide but his eyes locked on one particular pony. “I do see one face that is familiar to me, though. Lady Fallen Star, you know me, and I would be pleased if you did not greet me as a stranger.”

Star Fall took a slow breath, stepping out from the group and up to the King. She looked to the Queen, who gave her a sympathetic look and nodded. Then she threw herself on the King in a warm hug. “It’s good to see you again, your Majesty.”

“And you,” he replied with a chuckle, leaning down to give her a better grip. “It’s been too long since you last graced my home.”

“Yes,” the Queen said, leaning in to add her own nuzzle as the King released Star Fall. “On that my lord husband and I agree.” She shot a pointed look to the King. “Will you tell her, or must I?”

“Aqua,” he gently admonished her. “I was getting to it.”

“I know, your Majesties,” Star Fall told them. “The Professor… she told me.”

He looked surprised for a moment, shooting a wounded look to his chief advisor, but then shook his head and chuckled. “Of course she wouldn’t let me have my fun. Ah, well. Then you know why we are so pleased to see you safely home.”

“I do have one request, your Majesty,” Star Fall said, taking a slow breath and glancing back at Applejack, who gave her an encouraging smile.

“If it is within my power,” he replied.

“I would like to get to know my future husband before the formal announcement.”

He frowned for a moment at that. “So you know not only what my good news is, but with whom you are to share it.” This time the look he gave the Professor was chagrined. “I suppose I deserve this. I hope your revenge is well served, Professor.”

“Don’t be petty,” the Queen chided her husband. “Regal is probably in his rooms,” she said to Star Fall. “If not there, then look to the observatory.”

“Thank you, Your Majesties,” Star Fall said, stepping back and bowing to them.

"Now, if my lord husband is done with the attempted dramatics, there is another who is quite anxious to see you," the Queen said, turning to the Professor.

With that tacit approval, Twinkle Shine broke from her place and rushed over to enfold Star Fall in a tight hug. “I was so worried,” she whispered.

“I made it,” Star Fall whispered back, reaching her wings around her mentor to add to the embrace. “I’m safe. But we need to talk.”

“I know,” the Professor replied. “We will.”

Gamma cleared her throat. “If that is the end of formalities, then I have some things to discuss with Your Majesties and the Professor.”

The King nodded. “Of course. Our guests have been travelling for some time, and I am sure they want time to relax, refresh and restore their strength. In three days we shall reveal your presence to our Kingdom, an event that will bolster the spirits of our people in this trying time. Please, take full advantage of our palace!"

“If you need anything at all, do not hesitate to ask one of the servants,” the Queen added. “They have been instructed to make your comfort their top priority. For now, they will lead you to the quarters we’ve set aside for you. On behalf of my lord husband and myself, we wish you a good night and the blessings of a bright dawn.”

"We'll talk," Twinkle Shine said, squeezing Star Fall once more before letting her go.

Star Fall nodded, then joined the others as a pair of servants guided them out into the hallway. "Wow," Melody said as the door closed behind them. "I didn't know the Royal family was so... huggy."

"I didn't know they're Alicorns," Dash said. "I thought you guys worshipped Alicorns or something?"

"They aren't true Alicorns," Star Fall explained. "They're winged unicorns. They are descended from Celestia, though.” She shot a meaning-filled glance to Astrid, who caught the look and began to hang back. “Look, you guys go ahead. I’m going to go find Prince Stature.”

“It’s kinda late, Star,” Applejack pointed out. “Don’t you think it’d be better, for both of you, to try and buck that field in the mornin’? When you’re fresh and ready?”

“I don’t know if I’ll ever be ready,” Star Fall replied. “So now’s as good a time as any. Thank you, though. I don’t think I’d have done this without your advice.”

“Shucks, weren’t nothin’,” Applejack replied.

“Good luck, Star,” Dash said, giving her a confident smile. “And if this guy isn’t up to snuff, kick him to the curb! Whatever the King wants, it’s your life.”

“Thanks, Dash,” Star Fall said, then detached from the group and walked down a different hallway, Astrid at her side.

“You sure about this?” Astrid asked as they made their way to the Royal apartments.

“No,” Star Fall admitted. “But it’s got to be done.”

“If you say so. I’ll be right there if you need me,” Astrid said.

“Thanks,” Star Fall replied, and then they were there.

Star Fall rapped on the door, steeling her resolve. She'd met the prince before, of course, she still remembered him as a wide-eyed colt hiding behind his mother's legs. They'd never spent much time around each other; for one she was five years older, and while she had been a frequent guest at the palace it had always been as part of her training with the Professor, leaving little time to interact with her fellow children.

Now she was going to meet him, not as a fellow youth in the Court, not as a student of magic, not even as a subject. She was going as his future wife. How was she supposed to act? Formal or familiar? Reluctant or eager? Her wings twitched at her thoughts, anxious to take flight and bear her away. Yet it needed to be done, Applejack was right about that. She needed to know the pony she was going to marry if she was going to have any hope of happiness.

"Come in," a voice called from within. She looked up to the Griffins flanking the door and they gave her a gentle nod. She looked back to Astrid who nodded as well, taking up a position across from the door and sitting down. Then, with a deep breath and a vain attempt to calm her fluttering nerves, she went in.

The sitting room of the prince's chambers was filled with books. Some were stacked in haphazard piles, others set neatly along the shelves. The disarray made it clear that the servants were barred from this room, or at the very least commanded not to move anything. It brought a small smile to her lips, she remembered her own room looking much like this during the height of her studies, before she went to work for Gamma. A writing desk sat in one corner, three pens and a half-dozen colored pencils scattered across its ink-stained surface. A few pages were left out, and she saw the complex diagrams of a magic circle partially drawn. The penmanship of the circle was done with the flawless precision of telekinetic magic, a power she was still terribly jealous of, but some of the notations scribbled along the margins were clearly the result of a pen held in the mouth. Much of the light came from a glowing crystal orrery that swayed gently from the ceiling. She felt some of her nervousness evaporate at the sight of this room. It was comfortably messy.

Prince Regal Stature stood in the midst of the disarray, a book held in his magic floating by his face. He was chewing on the end of a pen, mumbling unintelligibly as he scanned the text. He didn't look up until she cleared her throat, but once he did his eyes went wide and the book and pen both fell to the floor. "Lady Fallen Star," he said, and she was surprised to hear a hint of wonder in his voice.

"Your Highness," she said with a short bow. "It's good to see you again."

He stared blankly at her for a long moment before snapping back to attention with a shake of his head. "What? Oh, right! Yes! Sorry. I, um... yes. It's good to see you... too."

Star Fall frowned at his reaction. She hadn't been expecting him to be like this. They waited in silence for a few long, awkward moments before she spoke again. "So..." she began, then trailed off as she realized she had no idea where to go from there.

"Oh, um... when did you...?" He gestured vaguely, his eyes roaming over the room, anywhere but towards her.

"Just now," she replied, inferring his meaning as best she could. "Your father told me where you would be, and I decided, well. I mean, considering that we're... uh..."

"Yeah," he said, nodding and staring at the ground. He didn't continue, leaving them both in awkward silence for a long moment.

Star Fall sighed, at the end of her patience. "Your Highness, we're going to be married," she said, blunt and direct but feeling much better for it. "Before that happens, I think it's a good idea that we have some idea who it is we will be marrying."

His eyes returned to her. "Yeah. That would probably be a good thing."

"So. How should we do that?"

"I... don't know," he admitted, gracing her with a sheepish smile that would probably have melted the hearts of many a star-stuck filly. "I was hoping you did."

She returned his smile. "Sorry, your Highness."

"Please, can we drop the formalities?" he asked, stepping over a small puddle of books towards her.

She nodded in acquiescence. "Of course. I'm sorry, Prince Stature, I–"

"No," he cut in. "I mean all the formalities. I don't think... I don't want to marry someone who calls me 'Prince Stature' all the time." He paused for a moment, then his eyes went wide with panic. "Not that I don't want to marry you! I do! You're an amazing mare and... and..."

Star Fall held up a hoof to quiet him. "I know what you mean," she assured him, smiling to show him it was true. "Alright. Regal." She took a slow breath, stretching out her wings to try to still them. She looked at him and found him doing the same, mirroring her motion with his own wings, and nervously chewing on his lip besides. "Okay, this is going pretty badly. I don't want it to be awkward between us. I really don't. But I guess it's kind of inevitable. Neither of us wanted this, and I'm sorry you got forced into it with me."

"I'm not," he said. That brought her up short, the honesty in his eyes beaming at her. "I'm not sorry. I meant it when I said you're an amazing mare."

"Regal, you don't have to flatter me," she said.

"I know, and I'm not trying to... do that," he sighed, running hoof through his already messy mane and leaving it in a far worse tangle than it had been. Star Fall tried and failed to hold back a snort of laughter at the way one of the curls was left wrapped around the base of his horn, as if it were a vine trying to climb a fence post. He gave her a quizzical look, and she pointed at the wild curl, laughing again at the way his eyes crossed trying to see it. With a grunt of frustration his horn lit up and his magic dragged at his hair, pulling it unnaturally straight, only to have it spring back into a bouncy tangle the moment he let go.

“I’m sorry,” she said, giggling. “It’s been a long day. I don’t mean to laugh at you, but…”

“No, it’s okay,” he said, though his cheeks were red from embarrassment and his eyes on his hooves. “I… like your laugh.”

That comment, and the overeager sincerity of it, sobered her as quickly as a cold shower. “Regal. Please stop.” He looked up at her. “You’re trying too hard. You don’t have to fake it for me.”

“I’m… no…” his wings snapped open and closed as he sputtered. “No. Star Fall, I’m not faking.”

“You’re talking to me like some girl you want to ask to a dance,” she said. “We’re not courting, Regal. That ship sailed a long time ago without either of us ever knowing it was in port. I want us to get to know each other, but this… not this.”

His ears drooped and his gaze once more found its way to the floor. “I just want you to like me,” he said, almost a whisper.

“And I want you to like me,” she said, stepping over and forcing his chin up. “For real. Not because your father says we’re getting married, not because you think you have to. Before anything else, before everything else between us, I want us to be friends.” She smiled at him, reaching out with a wing to flick an unruly curl of mane out of his eyes. “So, Regal. Will you accept my friendship?”

He returned the smile with the same sheepish grin he had flashed her earlier. “I’d love to.”

“Thank you,” she said, backing off a step and looking around the cluttered room. “So, what were you reading?”

“Amber Rose’s Commentaries on the Young Mage,” he replied.

“I never read that one,” she said. “Though considering everything that’s going on now, I probably should. It’s a biography of Twilight Sparkle, right?”

He nodded. “As soon as I heard about Rainbow Dash and Applejack I got every book on her life I could. Most of them just rehash The Magic of Frienship, but Commentaries has a lot of other information about her friends.”

“Find anything interesting?”

“A lot,” he said, picking up the book in question. “But Amber Rose doesn’t attribute anything, so I can’t confirm any of it with primary sources. You’d think a Royal advisor would know better.”

“I think no one was going to call her on it, so she didn’t care,” Star Fall sighed. “But if you really want a primary source, Spike’s staying at the palace.”

“Maybe,” he said, putting the book back down. His forehead creased with a frown and she could see him struggling with something. “Actually, I’m looking for something specific. None of the books talk about it, though, and I don’t know if Spike would know anything either.”

“Oh? What is it?”

“The Ascension.”

Star Fall paused. “Regal, I know what your father is expecting of us.” He perked up at that, surprise plain on his face. “It can’t happen. Please tell me you understand that.”

He blinked at her for a moment before shaking his head. “I understand,” he said. “Father thinks we can have an Alicorn foal. That’s not possible. I understand that, why would you think I didn’t?”

“Because you’re researching the Ascension of Twilight Sparkle?”

“Oh. Oh! No. I mean, yes, I am researching that, but not because of father’s… not for what he thinks will happen. I… Hmm. I, well…” He worried at his lip, running a hoof through his mane again. “I don’t know if I should say.”

“Regal, we’re friends now, right?” He nodded. “Then you can tell me. If it’s a secret, I promise I’ll keep it.”

He stopped fidgeting, looking directly at her. “Well, I guess since you’re going to be family anyway. It’s just hard to talk about. I don’t even know all that much about it, none of us do, but…”

“But what?” she prompted. “Regal, what are you talking about?”

“Maybe,” he said, muttering as if he hadn’t heard her. “Maybe I can show you.”

“Show me what?”

He reached out to her. “Come with me,” he said. “It’s easier to do it in the observatory. I don’t know why, it just is.”

“Do what?” Star Fall demanded, refusing to budge. “Regal, I’m tired and you are being far too cryptic for my patience right now.”

“I want to show you a secret,” he said, excitement making his voice tremble and his wings stretch wide. “Something my family’s hidden since before the Schism, the true power of our divine blood. I… I want to show you the Deep Power.”

The observatory was dominated by the great lenses that could align to magnify the night sky. They swung on massive arms that reached out from the unadorned white walls. Most were retracted now, but kept polished and ready for use at the whim of the Royals. The domed ceiling was able to rotate at the will of the ponies using the observatory, allowing different parts of the sky to be seen. Right now it was at its rest position, pointing straight up to let a shaft of starlight, magnified and enhanced by one great lens, shine down upon the marble floor. The observatory had been built a century and a half ago at great expense, the Queen at the time fancying that she could read the future in the subtle movements of Luna's stars. Whether she could truly discern the future or not, the observatory had stood as a favourite place of the royal families since.

Star Fall had been here before, during her lessons on astronomy with the Professor. She knew that for all of its impressive size and engineering, the telescope of this observatory was actually one of the less effective ones in the Kingdom. The lights of the capital overwhelmed much of the sky, and the relative lack of elevation further obscured the stars the telescope was made to observe.

Still, on a clear night the images it made were fantastic and had fired Star Fall's young imagination. Duties and events had intervened to prevent her from coming back to this place since, but it still held a special presence for her.

The walk to the observatory had been quiet. Regal had refused to say any more about this ‘Deep Power’, insisting that he would tell her everything once they were here. The Griffins followed them at a respectful distance, but she noticed that the Prince hardly seemed to notice them. He had been raised with a pair of them always close by, and not the same two every time. He might not think of them any more than he would a piece of furniture. Certainly not anything like the relationship she had with Astrid.

Another thing that struck her on the walk was the size of the pony she was to marry. Taller than the King, he was a full head and shoulders above her, practically towering. Yet he moved with such clumsy exuberance that when she wasn’t looking right at him she couldn’t help but think of him as shorter than her. It was a strange paradox, and she supposed it had a lot to do with his age.

Once they reached the observatory Regal didn’t bother turning on the lights, instead moving to stand at the center of the circle of light. He raised his head and closed his eyes as the gentle starlight fell on him. His wings worked as if caught in slow-motion flight, and she had the strange notion that he was about to break into dance. He opened his eyes as she watched him, and smiled at her. "I think I can do it," he said. "Come over here."

"Do what?" she asked, stepping up next to him.

"Show you what I've seen," he said. He took a deep breath and his horn lit up as he began to gather power. Then he paused, a look of surprised remembrance crossing his features, and turned towards the guards. “Leave us,” he commanded them.

His Griffins saluted and moved to the door immediately, but Astrid looked to Star Fall. “Go, I’ll be fine,” she assured her friend. Astrid nodded and followed the other Griffins without a word.

"I’m not allowed to talk about this,” Regal said. “It’s not a bad thing,” he quickly added. “It’s just… Not easy to explain.”

“Just try your best,” Star Fall assured him. “I’ll listen, whatever it is.”

He took a deep breath and looked up through the open roof at the stars. “My family has a secret,” he began. “A legacy that has stretched back to before the Schism. Our heritage."

"You're descended from the Goddesses, it's not exactly a secret," Star Fall pointed out.

He shook his head. "No, not that. They’re tied together, but not the same thing. It’s… we have a power, one that goes beyond magic."

"This ‘Deep Power’?"

He nodded. "I don’t know how well I can explain it. Father says that it's our divine blood speaking to us, guiding us in how to lead the ponies of the world to prosperity. It's what makes us special, gives us the right to rule. Mother thinks of it like an allowance, something parceled out to us by the Goddesses so that we can carry out their will. Either way, it's not magic. It’s something more than magic, more primal. Deeper."

"Primal," Star Fall repeated, thinking about it. "Why do you keep it a secret?"

"Because not all of us have it," Regal said. "Less than half of us do, actually. My family is lucky. Both mother and father have this power, and so does Platinum Seal and Imperius."

Star Fall thought about that, Platinum Seal was the eldest of Regal's two sisters, and Imperius was just older than Regal. One similarity between both of them jumped out at her immediately. "Neither of them are the heir apparent."

"No, we don't use this power as a basis for the succession," Regal confirmed. "If the public knew about it, they would insist that the throne go to a pony with access to the Deep Power."

“So that’s why you keep it a secret. But why? There's more, isn't there?"

He nodded, still staring at the sky. She couldn’t see his face, but his nervousness was plain in the tense muscles of his legs and restless rustling of his wings. "It shows us things, sometimes. Things we don't always understand, and we can't always interpret properly. But we can't ignore them, either. It can... well, you remember the stories of King Overspear, right?"

Star Fall nodded. Those stories were a favourite subject of the more entertaining history courses. King Overspear had been a Royal stallion whose madness had nearly destroyed the Kingdom in the days before it had secured the sunlands. He was eventually assassinated by his chief advisor, who had disappeared into obscurity immediately afterward, ostensibly to escape execution for her treason. The way the history teachers liked to spin it, she might have been hailed as a hero had she stayed, such was the hatred of Overspear’s reign.

"He had the power, but he couldn't handle it,” Regal said, finally looking down at her. “He saw visions of the Kingdom united, and he became obsessed with making it a reality. But what he was seeing wasn't meant to be for another two generations.”

“So these visions sometimes lead to madness,” Star Fall said. “A lot of families have unpleasant things that run in them. A bit of prophetic madness isn’t that bad, really. Just look out for the crazy ones, right?” Regal’s face scrunched up in pain. “What is it?”

“There's another example I could probably use. One a lot closer to home."

Star Fall opened her mouth to reply, but then shut it as a thought crossed her mind. She looked at the pain on his face and the answer was clear. "Your father."

Regal looked to the ground, his face twisting further in grief. "His obsession with Alicorns. It's your fault, actually. It didn't start until you came along."

Star Fall was taken aback by that. "I'm sorry?"

He shook his head. "No. Don't be. I don’t blame you. You can't help being who you are, any more than my father can help being who he is. It’s just… the Deep Power told him you were special, and he interpreted it in his own way. Now he can't let go of that interpretation, and no one can convince him of the truth."

"What about you?"

"I don't think Father's plans of an Alicorn child will happen," he said. "But you… he’s right about you. You are special. Very special. More than I think you realize."

She watched him for a long moment, considering what he’d said. "How?"

"That's what I want to show you,” he said, excitement once again quickening in his voice. “I touched the Deep Power for the first time not so long ago, and I saw something in it. Something I think I can show you, too. Open your mind to me, Star Fall. Let my magic flow through you."

She hesitated. This didn't sound like a safe activity, and she didn't know how far she trusted Regal yet, especially with what he had already said about this mysterious power driving his family crazy. Yet there was a sincerity to him, an innocence in his eyes that made her want to trust him. She had given him her offer of friendship, and she supposed it wasn’t sincere if she wasn’t willing to trust him this far. She took a deep breath, forcing her body and mind through the calming rituals she had learned in order to wield her magic. Then she nodded.

Regal lowered his horn to her, touching her forehead just above her eyes, and she felt the magic pour into her. It was unlike anything she had ever experienced before. She thought of the immense power Umbra wielded, but this was something altogether different. It wasn't a power that could move mountains, she instinctively understood that. Instead it was a still power, a vast, calm ocean. It wouldn't tear apart the countryside, but it could shift continents as easily as a pony could slide a piece of paper across a table.

The connection strengthened as the Prince gained confidence, and Star Fall felt her body slip away from her, like she was rising up the shaft of starlight into the cosmos beyond. Those stars poured over her and she was thrust into a space of endless, unbroken black. She tried to fly, but her wings were gone, tried to cry out, but she had no lungs. All she saw was empty darkness. Then, rushing towards her, a point of light that expanded into a galaxy of spinning lights.

She crashed into those lights like she was falling into a pool, and as the swirling energies of the place surrounded her she felt her body again. She stood on a pathway of shining stars, amidst a glowing cosmos of space and power. She felt it all around her, flowing through her. The eternal vastness of this place, the infinite extent of it, it took her breath away. Somehow she knew that Regal was barely touching this power. As immersed as she felt, she was only sharing the small piece of this place he had inherited.

She wasn’t afraid, even though she was lost in the depths of this place, even as she realized that she had no control here. She felt safe here, and she knew it would only take her where she needed to be. She was drowning in wonder, and she could no more stop it than she could stop the sun.

"What is this?" she asked, surprised at the clarity of her voice. It had a pure quality to it here, something she’d never heard before. The sound seemed to have ripples in the substance of the power. They chimed and rang like music, as if she could burst into song at any moment and it would only be right.

"This is what I see," Regal said. She felt him here, with her in spirit though he did not seem to have a body of his own in this place. "This is how it manifests with me. More than a vision, less than truly being here."

"It's amazing!" Star Fall cried.

She could feel his happiness at that, his pride. "It's not what I wanted to show you, " he said. "Look."

She turned, and the ocean of light and power swirled around her, the glowing nebulae curling and fading like spark-strewn smoke to bring her to a new perspective. What she beheld made the pit of her stomach drop away, as if she were falling from a great height. Spinning in the starscape were two enormous beings. When she looked at them she saw many things at once, too many to take in with a single glance. They were singular, yet they were multiple. They were the drops of water that made up an ocean. They were the ocean itself. Each a nation in their own right, each a whole being.

One was light. It was a radiance so great that she knew to look on it with mortal eyes was to be blinded forever. So pure that there was no comparison to anything she had ever experienced before. It was warmth, it was beauty, it was everything good. Yet she could see a darkness in it, a place of shadowed light. That darkness did not diminish the purity of the whole, but rather sharpened it.

The other was a darkness blacker than the deepest of caves. Yet it was not a lightless darkness, no mere shadow. No, for in the center of this consuming dark was a pale sphere that shed its own cold luminance, accentuating the black surrounding it. This darkness was cold, but not the violent freeze of the far north. This was an inviting coolness, the feeling of a gentle breeze on a hot day, the touch of the bedsheets at night.

They were all these things, and they were Alicorns. Sisters. They spun about each other, locked in a cycle that held all the weight of eternity. Their movement churned the substance of the Deep Power, rippling out to the ends of this unending place.

“The Goddesses,” Star Fall gasped out. She felt a distant sting, and was sure that back in the world she had fallen to the floor. “Regal, you can see the Goddesses!”

"I can," he said, and she felt his delight to be sharing this with her. She could feel more of him, the connection he had made opening his heart to her. She saw with some surprise that his fumbling flattery had been genuine. He actually liked her, and was looking forward to spending more time with her. It was sweet, but she knew he was also disappointed that he didn't see the same from her. Everything was laid bare here, but for some reason it didn't hurt. It didn't feel like being stripped of protections. It felt right. It felt almost unremarkable.

"Can you speak to them?" she asked.

"They don't respond," he said. "I don't know if they can hear my voice, if I'm too small for them to notice. Or maybe I just don't know how to get their attention. But there is one other thing I wanted to show you. Something that convinced me that you really were as special as Father thinks you are. Look between them."

She balked for a moment at the thought of approaching the two titanic beings, but the sense of safety here convinced her it would be alright. In the twisted perspective of this place, all she had to do was step closer and the lights were already washing over her, sweeping her closer to the Goddesses of day and night. She felt them as she approached, burning with opposing and complementary power. Between them, though, was something else entirely.

She frowned as she came closer, feeling like this was something out of place here. It was a pocket of stillness, a piece of solidity. In a place of such fluid reality, its unchanging nature made it seem alien, unnatural. Yet it was not unwelcome. Details became clear as the starry lights fell away from her vision. It was a pony. A winged unicorn with a purple coat and a dark mane streaked with magenta, her glyph was a large starburst surrounded by five smaller stars.

Of all the surprises Star Fall had been subjected to since she let Regal take her to this place, this was the greatest. In this world of constant motion, surrounded by the Goddesses’ eternal dance, this brought everything to a halt. “Twilight Sparkle,” she breathed.

“This is what I wanted to show you,” Regal said, his own voice as hushed as hers.

Star Fall's mouth dropped open, but there were no words for this. After a momentary infinity she managed to speak. "Are the others here? Her friends?"

She knew the answer before Regal put a voice to it. "No. Just her and the Goddesses."

Star Fall didn't respond. It had been a stray thought, a piece of remaining curiosity about how Dash and the others had managed to come to her time. She walked closer to Twilight's still form. The ascended unicorn floated in her bubble of calm between the Goddesses with her wings wrapped around her and her legs pulled in close. Her nose was tucked into her forelegs and her eyes were closed. She looked asleep.

Images flashed around her, almost too quick to see. They showed scenes of the mortal world, events both pedestrian and exciting. "She's watching us," Star Fall said. "Even from here, she's watching us."

She came right up to Twilight, watching the strange way the way the lights of the Deep Power bent around her. She was so different from Celestia and Luna. They were a part of this place, but Twilight was only in it. She lay between the Goddesses like the perfect representation of the mortal world, watching over all the little ponies. "Regal, how many people know she's here?"

"All the Royal families," he replied. "None of us have been able to come here like this for hundreds of years, since the days just before the Schism. I'm the first. But there is a journal left over from that time, and it talks about Twilight appearing here."

"Thank you for sharing this with me," Star Fall said, tears falling from her eyes and glittering like jewels as they joined the flow of power. "I don't know... I can't even say how much this means to me. Why did you ...?"

"Choose to show you?” he laughed. “It was those images around her. When I first came here, when I first found Twilight, they were of you. They were all..." His voice and the sense of his presence faded away, as if someone had turned down the volume.

"What?" Star Fall called, suddenly afraid. “Regal! What’s going on? What happened?” The lights of the Deep Power gave her no answer. She felt something change, a titanic shift that shook the ocean of power around her. She turned back to Twilight and found herself staring into the eyes of the most powerful unicorn who ever lived.

They glowed, burning with power. Star Fall stiffened as she felt the magic of the winged unicorn. It had been contained while Twilight slept, but now, as she came partially awake, it could be sensed. This was beyond description. It made Rarity's incredible power seem like a guttering candle. It even dwarfed Nightmare Umbra. And unlike the Destroyer, this was a pure power. Magic without aspect, magic without corruption. Will given form.

The power slammed into her, overwhelming the drowning flow of the Deep Power. Star Fall felt as if she stood next to an erupting volcano, the heat wrapped around her and drew her closer as Twilight unfolded from her fetal curl. Star Fall stopped breathing, unable to even look away as she stared into those blazing eyes. Twilight stretched forward, her wings spread, and with hooves made of solid power she drew Star Fall into a gentle hug and laid a tender kiss on her forehead.

Star Fall snapped back to the world at the touch of those lips, gasping for air and tasting magic. The world was burning with the power she had absorbed, crackling in arcs of lightning around her. She reeled, disoriented as the energy burned across her nerves. It was only belatedly that she realized that she was floating a good five feet above the floor, winds whirling in a screaming vortex and static flashes dripping from her flaring aura like rain. The observatory was lit with her blazing aura. Regal stared at her from the edges of the observatory, clinging to one of the arms that held the great lenses. Astrid was in the room as well, shrieking something that she couldn’t hear over the crackling power and screaming wind.

She closed her eyes, focusing on the power. It responded to her will, channelling out of her body and up through the open roof. The night above the castle lit up in a red aurora, ribbons of magic snaking across the sky. Given somewhere to go, the magic faded quickly, the wind dying and gravity regaining its hold on her. She dropped slowly, hooves touching scored marble with a quartet of soft clicks. She settled into a shaky stance, her wings trembling and her breath coming in heaving gasps. Finally, her crimson aura receded back into her skin, her magic no longer overflowing her body.

"Beloved of Twilight Sparkle," Regal said, eyes wide with wonder and raw excitement edging his voice. "Father isn’t wrong about everything. You are special."

Chapter 24: Kindness

One of the aspects of the Elements that took me the longest to study was how they interacted with outside magic. That is, whether normal spells could influence their power in any way. The results, like everything to do with the Elements, were mixed and frustratingly arbitrary.

My initial aim was to channel or limit an Element’s abilities, hopefully reducing the potential for disastrous accidents when experimenting. I started from a spell Princess Celestia had developed to keep the Elements from being stolen by Discord, as he had done once before. I soon discovered, to my great dismay, that this spell was accomplishing exactly nothing. The magic Princess Celestia used was tied to the Elements themselves, and their peculiar nature makes them terrible for anchoring certain spells to. The spell had, essentially, fallen off, unable to find purchase.

My further experimentation only solidified this discovery, but not in the way I had anticipated. Some spells anchored just fine to the Elements, especially ones that followed the function of the Element itself. Binding spells worked best with Loyalty, energizing spells worked best with Laughter, etc. Spells that attempted to prevent or limit the interactions between Elements and their Bearers, on the other hoof, slid off like oil from water.

In fact, I could find no way of blocking or limiting those connections at all, magical or otherwise. The closest I came was a method of redirecting the connections themselves which, while interesting, I could find no practical application for. This left me with no way to limit or regulate the amount of power that could be drawn from the Element, nor the use of Activated abilities. Like it or not, once an Element has a Bearer, the only limits it has are the Bearer’s own.

-From the third section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Twenty Four: Kindness

Twinkle Shine watched as Star Fall and her companions left the Dusk Hall. Her guts had roiled at the inclusion of Rarity in that group, but the Nightmare had thankfully kept her displeasure down to a thoughtful hiss. She couldn’t shake the feeling of wrongness from seeing the three mares from the past, though. It was impossible, but here they were. The genuine articles, according to Spike, and she had no reason to doubt him.

“So, Gamma, what have you discovered?” the King asked, as he stepped away from the thrones and towards the spymaster. The Professor, shaken from her thoughts, hurried to join him, the Queen following at a more sedate pace.

“Three things,” Gamma said. She waved towards guards at the doors. They opened them to admit one of Gamma’s agents, who gave the spymaster a thick folder before bowing and leaving without a word. “The first two pertaining to Max Cash, the last to the situation in the Republics.”

The King nodded, eyes narrowing. “Continue.”

“Five days ago, the same night Spike was attacked by Cash, there was a magical incident commensurate with the appearance of the Shadowed Alicorn,” Gamma said, her magic drawing forth a few pages filled with numbers and diagrams. “This is a comparison report I had made. Professor?”

Twinkle Shine took the pages and looked them over. “The pattern matches,” she confirmed. “Though the magnitude is significantly smaller in the recent incident.”

“What does that mean?” the Queen asked.

“It could mean she was weaker this time,” the Professor answered.

“Or, more likely, that she just wasn’t exerting herself as much,” Gamma added. “Regardless, this is Umbra. Correct?”

She looked to the Professor for support, who could only nod. “Without a doubt,” she said.

“The Destroyer, active in my kingdom,” the King shook his head. “As if there are not enough problems with the nightlands at our doorstep. You said that this had to do with Max Cash. Is there more evidence that he is in collusion with her?”

“No,” Gamma said, though there was a pause before the word that told the Professor that she wasn’t certain about that. “What we do have is this.” She pulled out another paper, this one a photograph of a night sky. There was a strange pink and red streak going across it, like motion blur from something moving very, very fast.

“What am I looking at?” the King asked.

“This is an object photographed moving at just over the speed of sound at the same time as Umbra’s activity was recorded.” Gamma pulled another picture, setting it beside the first. This one was an expanded part of the first image, showing the leading edge of the pink streak. Twinkle Shine made sure that her eyes widened at what she saw, imitating worried shock with understated precision. “This is the limit of our ability to enhance the photograph. Not ideal, but I think the conclusions drawn from it are still accurate.”

“Celestia’s day,” the Queen breathed. “It’s a pony. Then that trail of light?”

“Etherealization,” Gamma confirmed. “And this pony is carrying another. As far as I am aware, only one pony is capable of both travelling at these speeds and etherealizing, let alone carrying a load greater than their own mass while doing so.”

“Rainbow Dash,” the Professor said. Gamma nodded. “This clearly is not her.”

“No,” Gamma said. “Agent Dash’s position has been confirmed by trustworthy sources during the time this photo was taken. Furthermore, the colors are inconsistent with those of Agent Dash, even when she was still, ah, incognito. There is, however, one pony who comes to mind that they are consistent with.”

“Charisma,” the King growled, shuffling his hooves in agitation. “Will we never be free of her? Must she haunt my reign until my last breath?”

“Peace, husband,” the Queen said, reaching out a wing and laying it across his back to still his unease. She looked to Gamma, indicating the pictures with a dip of her horn. “If that is her, then I would assume she is carrying her master.”

“A logical conclusion, your majesty,” Gamma said. “This is a rather disturbing development, I’m sure you’ll agree.”

“She shouldn’t be capable of this,” the Professor said, frowning at the picture. “Flight, speed, strength… these are not her Talent. Even enhanced by Cash’s magic, this should be impossible.”

“Yet there it is,” Gamma said. “Charisma was a high-level threat to begin with, if she has acquired the physical abilities of Agent Dash, then the current procedures in place for dealing with her are… inadequate.”

She Is Using An Element, Umbra’s voice whispered into the back of the Professor’s mind. She stopped herself from nodding in agreement, but only just. “Can we counter her?”

“Presumably she is still mortal,” Gamma replied. “However, without a significant level of planning or luck, any attempt to remove her as a threat will result in losses. Under normal circumstances I would set two wings of Griffins against her and expect only one to come back, and not whole. At this level of ability? I would expect that any number of soldiers would be inadequate, used only to distract her from an incoming area-saturation bombardment.”

“You could have just said ‘no’,” Twinkle Shine sighed. “Do we have any idea where these madponies will strike next?”

“Cash bought passage through the Everstorm two days ago,” Gamma said. “Wherever he’s gone in the nightlands, none of my sources have been able to locate him.”

“Ha! Then they can be the lunatics’ problem,” the King said.

“As you say, your majesty,” Gamma said with a shallow nod. “But they will return, and I think it very prudent to prepare for that.”

“You sound very certain of this, Gamma,” the Queen pointed out. “Has Cash not already gained what he wanted from our lands?”

“Not entirely,” Gamma said, pulling yet another photo from the file, but not revealing it yet. “And regardless of whether they intend to return or not, I am certain that Cash’s actions will have dire consequences for the world as a whole. Master Spike has been candid with me about the abilities of the Elements of Harmony. The feats he ascribes to them are mythic in nature: shattering mountains, raising islands from the sea, annihilating armies, and other such abilities.”

The King frowned at that. “And you believe these stories?”

“Spike has been a friend to our kingdom since its inception,” the Queen rebuked her husband. “He treated with the Goddesses themselves. His word is above reproach.”

The King opened his mouth to argue, but then closed it as he thought better, nodding instead. “Of course, Aqua. I am merely worried about these stories of incredible power. It all seems… overwhelming. As if the Destroyer were not enough of a challenge.”

“I understand, but there is no call to doubt our allies.” The Queen touched her horn to his, looking into his eyes with an expression that spoke volumes in the private language of long-married lovers.

“I do not believe the situation is quite that dire,” Gamma said, catching their attentions. “There appears to be a learning curve to the Elements that takes years to master, and mastery with one does not translate to mastery with another. From the deliberate speed he has chosen to employ, I do not think he has that much time. Perhaps there is a limit to his own control of the Elements. Perhaps there is some other deadline he is racing to meet. Regardless, I doubt he will be gone from the Kingdom for long. You see there is something here that he still wants, and it’s something he can’t just pick up and run off with.”

Gamma revealed the picture she had been holding back. It was of much higher quality than the first two, showing a vast pit dug into deep ice and rock, revealing a thick, towering spire that gleamed with reflected light from walls as smooth as glass. There was an annoyed snarl from the Nightmare, but other than that the reaction of shock was all Twinke Shine’s. “The Crystal Palace!”

The Professor’s eyes weren’t the only ones that went wide at the sight of that picture. “It was destroyed!” the King said, shaking his head in disbelief.

“Apparently not,” Gamma said. “How it survived the Schism is not important, that it exists is. Cash has crews excavating the entire building, and from the reports I’m receiving they are making very good time. This is the second item connected to Cash I bring to you. Your majesties, I believe that your ancestral home is key to Cash’s plans. I don’t know how yet, but if my memory serves the Palace itself was used to amplify magic.”

“No, not amplify,” Twinkle Shine said. “It was a broadcaster. It could send magic farther than any unicorn could on their own. According to the legends, a spell cast from the Crystal Palace could reach all the way across Equestria.”

“How long have you known of this?” the King demanded of the spymaster.

“I’ve known for a year that he was digging in the north,” Gamma said. “But this particular picture wasn’t taken until a week ago. Until Agent Dash appeared I was not allowed to treat Cash as a priority, if you will recall.” If there was any heat in the comment, none of it showed in her voice or on her face. If the King noticed the barb in her words, he didn’t react to it. “However, now that we know of this discovery, I believe we can use it against him.”

“How so?” the King asked.

“We allow his crews to complete their excavation, and then take control of the site,” Gamma said. “We allow Cash to believe he has succeeded, then ambush him as he attempts to use the Palace.”

“With an empowered Charisma and these Elements on his side?” he scoffed. “How could we hope to succeed with an ambush?”

“As I said, careful planning,” Gamma said. “And I am not saying it will not come without sacrifices.”

The Queen made a small sound of understanding. “You don’t just mean lives, do you? You… you would collapse the Palace on them!”

Gamma tilted her head in acknowledgment. “That is one option.”

“The Palace could be a boon to the Kingdom,” the King said. “The power to send magical aid anywhere! It would be one hell of a deterrent to the Republics.”

“One villain is already planning to use it for his own purposes,” the Queen said. “Perhaps it would be best if that kind of power did not return to the world.”

“I cannot agree, Aqua,” the King said, shaking his head. “But I will let it lie for now. Gamma, see what you can come up with that will save the Palace. If it becomes necessary to destroy it to stop this madpony… well, we shall see, yes?”

“As you say, your majesty,” Gamma said again. “To my third piece of business, then. My sources have reported a new development with the Republics Senate. There has apparently been a power struggle going on behind the scenes.”

“Hawks against doves?” he asked, referring to the pro and anti-war factions in the southern government.

“No, but it is affecting the balance between them. One particular Senator has been calling in favors by the hooffull, directing his efforts against those of the RIA.”

Twinkle Shine frowned. “What is he trying to accomplish?”

“I don’t know,” Gamma replied. “This change came on suddenly, and with no apparent inciting incident. I’ve put out orders to tap all the usual sources, but so far the returns have been unhelpful. With my attention focused on the Max Cash situation, I haven’t been able to apply myself to the problem. It’s mere speculation, but my guess is that this Senator has done something highly illegal and is performing a pre-emptive strike against the only agency that could call him to account for it.”

“Is this connected to Cash?” the Professor asked.

“I will not rule that out. But there is no positive evidence in that direction.”

“Is there something we can do to stabilize the situation?” the Queen asked.

Gamma shook her head. “Normal diplomatic routes only. The RIA is too deeply involved. Any covert action would be traced back to us eventually, and seen as an act of war. I will monitor and report any major changes, but until we know the root cause of this the embassy is the extent of our influence.”

There was a moment of silence as Gamma gathered her papers and returned them to the file. Seeing that her news was finished the King turned to Twinkle Shine. “Professor, your counsel?”

She took a deep breath and slowly let it out as she thought about what to say. “Bring more of the army back to the mainland,” she said.

“That will leave us dangerously outmatched at the Stile Islands,” the King said. “I cannot do that.”

“It is the prudent move, your majesty,” the Professor pressed. “Those islands are not as important as protecting your subjects from Umbra, or Cash.”

“I agree with the Professor,” the Queen said. “We must think of the people before we worry about a small parcel of land.”

The King snorted. “You two! You would have me give up my kingdom by inches! No. Stay your words, Aqua, I am adamant on this. So long as the Republics continues to threaten us at the Stile Islands, that is where we shall keep the bulk of our armies. Gamma, you may have the use of any of the remaining forces to whatever plan you concoct, save the garrisons charged with the direct protection of our subjects.”

“They will not be enough if Umbra attacks,” the Professor said, keeping her voice carefully even.

The King turned to his spymaster. “Tell me, Gamma, you have faced the Destroyer personally, how many soldiers would it take to counter her?”

Gamma paused before responding, her intense blue eyes focusing on the middle distance for a fleeting moment. “She is a Goddess, your majesty,” she replied, a slight shudder marking her words. “Every soldier in the world wouldn’t be enough.”

“See?” he asked, looking back to the Professor. “I would rather my soldiers stay where they will actually do some good.”

Twinkle Shine knew a losing battle when she saw it. She caught the pointed look that the Queen was giving her, and knew that regardless of what the King said, it was not over yet. “Of course, your majesty.”

He smiled in his small triumph. “I will, of course, send an envoy to the Republics, asking for a reduction of their forces and pledging to do the same. If there is a shift in their thinking, perhaps the doves will finally have the edge and we can ease the tension between us.”

“Perhaps,” the Professor allowed.

“Good. Then that is settled. Now, before we adjourn there is one other item to share,” the King said, gesturing towards the Professor. “Your trip to the Temple of Luna. Was it a success?”

Twinkle Shine allowed a small smile to creep onto her lips. “More than I ever imagined, your majesty. Their collection of legends were just as complete as they boasted, and amongst the tales I found one in particular that…” she trailed off as she felt a wave of power wash through her. She shook her head, trying to clear the sudden fog that filled it. “That talks about…” she stopped again, blinking hard. Gamma frowned at her, but the Professor’s attention was drawn to the two Royals, who were both staring up at the ceiling, their gazes locked on the same faraway point.

“Regal,” the Queen breathed. “What are you doing?”

“Professor,” Gamma said, stepping close to her. She didn’t respond, swaying slightly on her hooves as something twisted and writhed within her. “Twinkle!” Gamma hissed. “What’s going on?”

She couldn’t respond. The Nightmare was burning along her veins, filling her mouth with ashes and fire. No! Umbra’s voice roared in her mind, burning through the fog of her thoughts like a lighthouse beacon. This Is Not Possible! It’s Too Soon!

“Too soon,” Twinkle Shine echoed the Nightmare. The castle shuddered around them, rattling the pictures on the walls and the windows in their stone frames. “Star Fall,” she gasped out as she fell, her body already falling into spasms and her vision going dark. The last thing she saw before consciousness fled was the sky bursting into light: a crimson aurora to announce her student’s power to the world.

***

They found Rainbow Dash in her room, staring out the large balcony window at the endless glow of the city that surrounded them. She didn’t look back as they walked in, her unblinking eyes scanning restlessly back and forth along the cityscape. “Hey guys,” she said. “How’s your rooms?” Her wings flexed open and closed as she spoke, sending little gusts of wind out to ruffle the sheets of the bed.

“Much like this one,” Rarity replied. “Large and quite well furnished, if uncreatively decorated.”

“Too fancy by half,” Applejack put in. “What are you lookin’ at?”

Dash shrugged. “Dunno. I just feel like there’s something that should be happening.”

“Like what?”

“Like I said, I don’t know,” Dash said. “So, what’s up? Shouldn’t we all be getting some sleep or something?”

“Of course, darling, but Applejack and I thought we should talk before turning in for the night,” Rarity said, reaching out to touch a hoof to Dash’s face, gently forcing her to look away from the window. “And we’d like it if we could have your attention.”

“Yeah, okay,” Dash said, pushing Rarity’s hoof away and turning to face the other two ponies fully. “So what’s the deal? What do we have to talk about that we didn’t get to at Spike’s?”

“Well, for starters, what the hay we’re goin’ to do next,” Applejack pointed out. “I ain’t exactly heard much real talk on that subject yet.”

“We go after Cash,” Dash replied. “I mean, that’s obvious, right?”

“Well, see, I’m not sure that’s what we all should be doing,” Applejack said.

“What?” Dash pulled back in shock, hovering a foot off the ground. “AJ! He’s going after the Elements! We gotta stop him!”

“Now, hold on, there,” Applejack said, putting up a hoof to forestall any more protests. “I’m not sayin’ he shouldn’t be stopped. He’s mad as a starvin’ fruitbat and needs to be seen to. But hoppin’ back in the skyship and goin’ after him might not be the best choice for us. We should think this through before we do anythin’ foolish. I’m not sayin’ we ain’t gonna, I’m just sayin’ we should make sure that’s the right thing to do before we go off and do it.”

“What else can we do?” Dash demanded.

“For one, we could let Gamma and her ponies take care of it,” Applejack said.

“I am one of Gamma’s ponies,” Dash said, crossing her forehooves in sullen resistance.

“That’s as may be,” Applejack said, keeping her voice even with an audible effort of will. “And if she tells you to go, then I guess you’re gonna. But you’re not the only pony she’s got. We could be more help to her figurin’ out exactly what Cash wants with our Elements rather than harin’ after him. Not that we even know where it was he’s goin’.”

“I know where he’s going,” Dash grumbled. “Ponyville, where Twilight’s statue is.”

Applejack paused at that, frowning. “And why haven’t you told anypony about that?”

Dash sighed, dropping to the ground and hanging her head. “I did. I told Gamma on the trip over here. The statues are where the Elements are, and that’s where Twilight’s statue is. I saw it when Astrid, Star and I crossed through the Everstorm.” She shivered at the memory, her eyes going back to the window. “I don’t know where the other ones are, but we know that if he wants them all he’s gotta find a way to go there.”

“So what do we do with that? Jump up and go get it? Set a trap?”

“I don’t know!” Dash snapped, tearing her eyes from the glowing city. “I don’t know. Maybe?”

“Girls, please,” Rarity stepped in, giving them both a pleading look. “Applejack, you’ve apparently given this more thought than either of us. What other options have you come up with?”

“Well, no matter what we do, it looks like Star’s goin’ to be stayin’ here,” Applejack continued. “It’s big business, becomin’ a princess. She’s gonna need some good friends by her side, and I get the feelin’ she don’t have too many of those.”

Dash’s wings drooped. “I hadn’t thought about that,” she admitted. “I thought she’d be coming with us.”

“You don’t send princesses into dangerous situations, dear,” Rarity said. “Fallen Star seems quite capable, but once she takes on that kind of responsibility, her life will be simply too important to risk.”

“I guess.”

“That’s not all,” Applejack said. “There’s also this rivalry with the southern lands that’s goin’ on. Lots of ponies are whisperin’ about it comin’ to war. Now, Cash needs to be stopped, but I don’t see how this war needs stoppin’ any less. Seems to me we’ve got some celebrity to us, and maybe we could be usin’ that to do some negotiatin’ or somethin’ to bring these ponies together. We’ve seen a united Equestria, we knew Celestia and Luna all personal-like, that’s got to carry some weight. Maybe we can use that to help them look past whatever bad blood’s got between them, head the whole thing off before it gets goin’.”

“I…” Dash shook her head, trailing off. She took a deep breath, looking again to the window, looking for something that was on the edge of her memory. “I don’t know, AJ. I’ve got this feeling in the pit of my stomach, you know? Like something’s going to happen and we’ve got to be ready for it. We can’t let Cash get all the Elements. We can’t. If he does… something horrible is going to happen.”

“Is that what we have to be ready for?” Rarity asked. “Cash getting all the Elements?”

“No,” Dash said, shaking her head and looking back to her friends. “Yes. Maybe. I don’t know. It’s just a feeling, alright? It’s not like I know what it means or anything.”

“Well, I trust your feelin’,” Applejack said. “But I don’t think bein’ ready means runnin’ off without thinkin’ about it first. Now, I’ve been workin’ at it, and I think that we should stay here, with Star. At least until we’ve got some clear idea of how to stop Cash. I think we should be here to help her become the best darn princess she can be.”

“What about stopping the war?” Dash asked.

Applejack snorted. “I’m a farmer, not some fancy-dancy diplomat. I don’t know the first thing about talkin’ to high-class ponies or negotiatin’ peace. It was just a thought on what we could be doin’, not what I thought we should be doin’.”

“I think it’s a wonderful idea, Applejack,” Rarity said with a bright smile. “As you say, Fallen Star will need all the friends she can get, and I know of no better friends to have than the two of you.”

“No better, huh?” Applejack asked with a sly smile.

“You do have to share the trophy six ways,” Rarity said, winking. Then her smile fell and her tone grew serious. “But I’m afraid I won’t be helping you.”

“What do you mean?” Applejack asked.

“Another trophy-holder needs me,” Rarity explained. “I’ll be leaving with Spike, whenever he decides to move on.” Applejack opened her mouth to respond, but Rarity held up a hoof to stop her. “I would much rather stay with you two, darling, but I doubt he can be persuaded to stay, even by the best argument. I made him promise not to leave without me, and I intend to see him keep that promise.”

“Rarity,” Applejack began, but Rarity shook her head.

“I’m not going because of Max Cash,” she said. “And I quite frankly would rather we didn’t find him. He sounds perfectly horrid. I’m going because of Spike. Like Fallen Star, he needs support, and I’m afraid of what might become of him if he’s left on his own.”

It took Applejack a moment, but she finally nodded. “Rarity, I understand what you’re sayin’, and I can’t think of one reason to stop you. I just wish it didn’t have to happen.”

Rarity graced her with a sad smile. “So do I, Applejack, but, well, it looks as if the future just can’t handle all of us together.”

Dash heaved a sigh, her wings stretching wide to touch both of the other ponies. “So is this it? Are we, like, splitting up now?”

“Looks like,” Applejack said, stepping into the feathered hug.

“We’ll be together for a few more days at least,” Rarity assured them, stepping in as well and letting Rainbow Dash’s wings hold them close.

“I just got you guys back,” Dash said, sniffing hard to hold back the tears she felt threatening to fall.

“We’ll still be here, sugarcube,” Applejack assured her.

“And we’ll be together again,” Rarity added. “Just let them try and stop us!”

Dash laughed at that, letting a few tears fall as she hugged her friends close.

Then Rarity’s head snapped up so fast her horn knocked Applejack’s hat askew. She stared up at the ceiling, turning to look at some point deeper in the castle, her eyes wide and shining. “Twilight?” she whispered.

Then the windows shook in their frames and Dash leapt into the air, instinctively reacting to a possible earthquake. She looked outside and gaped as the golden lights of the city were overtaken by sheets of crimson energy that ribboned across the sky.

“Rarity, what’s goin’ on?” Applejack asked, straightening her hat.

“I don’t know,” Rarity gasped. “For a moment there I thought I felt… no. I have to have been mistaken.”

“What did you feel?” Applejack prodded.

“I thought it was Twilight’s magic,” Rarity said. “It was faint, but… I could have sworn! Now all I can feel is Fallen Star. Whatever she’s just done, it’s quite impressive.”

“What did you feel from Twilight?” Dash asked.

“I’m… not entirely sure,” Rarity admitted. “It felt like her, for a second, but I could have been imagining it. Whatever it was, Star Fall was right at the center of it.”

“Should we find her?” Dash asked. “Maybe she needs help!”

“Now hold on,” Applejack said. “I don’t hear no alarms or shoutin’ goin’ on. Star had Astrid with her, and a whole mess of other guards in case she gets in trouble. I don’t think we should go harin’ off before we know there’s any trouble to fix, especially when we don’t even know our way around this here castle.”

“So we just sit here and do nothing?” Dash demanded, staring up at the red sky.

“I agree with Applejack,” Rarity said. “I’m sure she’s perfectly safe. The magic I’m sensing isn’t… distressed. It’s like she was simply letting off pressure, as it were.”

“Well, I suppose we can ask her about it when we see her again,” Applejack said. “I don’t see what else we can do without runnin’ around like scared chickens, no idea where we’re goin’ or what to do once we get there. For now, unless we get word that there’s an emergency, I think it’s better to sit tight and head to bed.”

“I agree,” Rarity said. “We are bound to have a few busy days ahead of us. Wherever we happen to end up going.”

“Yeah,” Dash reluctantly agreed, still looking out the window. “Get some sleep, guys. I’ll… I’ll think about what you said, Applejack.”

“All I can ask for,” Applejack said. “Night, all.”

They left as quietly as they had come, and Dash barely heard the door closed. She was fixated on the city, on the anticipation that was burning in her gut, a feeling she could not tie solidly to any source. Every time she tried all she found was a strange mental image of green eyes and a voice that she recognized but had no idea where she had heard it before. A voice that said three things: Watch out for yourself. Don’t let Cash talk. Look for me in the Solar Capital.

***

The world shook like it had been caught in an earthquake. Twinkle Shine was tossed about in a screaming vortex of fire and ashes, losing all sense of herself as thoughts both alien and personal tumbled and rocked around her. It took her far too long to realize that it what was happening, to gain her bearings in the turmoil and orient herself once again towards consciousness. Finally, after an eternity of effort, she opened her eyes. At first all she saw was darkness, an endless field onto which were pressed a billion sparkling lights. Her vision brightened by degrees, widening to a gray tunnel and from there to a view of a blank ceiling and the face of a friend.

“Back with us?” Gamma asked as the Professor’s eyes focused on her.

She nodded. “I am,” she said, frowning at the dryness of her mouth. Gamma brought a glass of water to her lips and she sipped from it eagerly. “What happened?” she asked as soon as her tongue stopped feeling like sandpaper.

“You collapsed,” Gamma replied. “Again.”

The memory came to her, a burst of fear making her sit upright suddenly, spilling some of the water. “Star Fall! Is she alright?”

“Your student is fine,” Gamma assured her. “Shaken, but fine.”

Twinkle Shine sighed in relief, sinking back. She looked around and realized that she was in a bed. Not the Queen’s this time, thankfully, but one of the many guest rooms at the Court of the Sun. A tray with a pitcher of water and several pills in a small paper cup sat on the nightstand, and the notes she had brought to the Court with her were sitting on the small reading desk, clearly having been read by Gamma before the Professor had started awakening.

“I could feel it,” she said, shaking her head. “Something was wrong.”

“You are much more sensitive to these things than I am,” Gamma said. “I didn’t feel any magic at all until Agent Fall decided to light up the sky. Fortunately Their Majesties didn’t react as badly as you.”

“Where are they?”

“With their youngest son,” Gamma said. “Berating him for something they forbade me to ask questions about.” She paused for a moment, studying the Professor’s face. “Though from your lack of reaction to that statement I take it you know what that something is.”

“I know some,” the Professor said, refilling her water glass. “Not all, and it’s… private.”

Gamma shrugged. “Fair enough. But since I’m not allowed to even ask what, exactly, has occurred, I will take the opportunity to say this: Twinkle, this is the second time you’ve collapsed that I know of. Are you okay?”

She considered very carefully what she would say to that question before answering. “I’m not perfectly alright, no,” she admitted, looking away. “I tried something when studying Rainbow Dash, and it… didn’t go well. I thought that first time would be it, but I guess not. I think any time I’m around powerful magic now I could–”

“How powerful?” Gamma asked, her voice hard.

“What do you mean?”

“How powerful does the magic have to be to incapacitate you?”

The Professor shook her head. “I don’t know. Not as much as any unicorn could conjure. It would have to be something big. Like what happened tonight, or Umbra appearing.” She risked stealing a look at Gamma as she said that. If she could get the spymaster to believe this lie, it would make life much easier for her later.

Gamma tsked in annoyance. “This is the worst possible time to have you out of commission, Twinkle. You’re one of the only people the King still listens to, and if you’re out at a key moment…”

“He will listen to you, Gamma,” the Professor assured her.

“Will he?” Gamma stepped back from the bed, walking over to the desk. “I happen to doubt that. Especially considering what you have discovered here.” She tapped the pages. “Really, Twinkle? A plan to trap the Destroyer?”

“The legends at the Temple of Luna–”

“Are wrong,” Gamma snapped. “I’ve seen this before, Professor. It’s didn’t work then, and it will fail now.”

“It’s different,” Twinkle Shine said, taking a deep breath and falling back to lie on the bed. “We won’t be making the same mistakes.”

“The only mistake,” Gamma said, her voice losing what warmth it had. “Is in thinking that Umbra can be trapped at all. If you bring this to the King he will act on it. You know he will. Nothing I say from that point on will be able to sway him from this course.”

“I know,” the Professor agreed.

“Then why are you even considering showing him this plan?”

“Because something has to be done!” the Professor snarled at her, putting just a hint of desperate anger into her voice. “What am I to do, Gamma? Sit here uselessly, watching while the Shadowed Alicorn attacks with impunity? What if she attacks a city? What if she comes to the Capital? She will, eventually, you know. It’s inevitable. Are we supposed to just let it happen?” She dropped her voice low, lacing it with new strands of anguish and fear. “Star Fall hurt her. What if she comes looking for revenge?” Tears came easily, her words close enough to truth that she didn’t have to work hard to bring the emotions to the surface. “I can’t just do nothing, Gamma. I have no idea what to do about Rainbow Dash or Max Cash or these damned Elements of Harmony. But I have found something that could deal with Umbra. How can you ask me not to use it? How could you?”

Gamma watched her outburst with stone-faced impassivity. Her intense eyes were fastened on Twinkle Shine’s, revealing nothing of the thoughts that spun like clockwork behind them. “I cannot stop you,” she said finally. “But I am asking you to refrain from giving this information to the King. You’ve already sacrificed your daughter to his obsessions, do not feed the rest of us to that disaster as well. Because that is all that will come of this.” She stabbed her hoof at the papers again. “Disaster.”

She looked like she had more to say, but a knock at the door cut her off. Twinkle Shine held her gaze for a moment before looking away. “Come in!” she called.

The door opened to admit Spike, the Dragon’s eyes going between the two ponies, noting the tension in their bodies. “Am I interrupting something?” he asked.

“I think we’ve said all we needed to,” the Professor said, looking to Gamma.

“It will suffice,” Gamma replied. “Master Spike, I thought you were going to bed.”

“I live in a mountain, Agent Gamma,” Spike said. “I’m not exactly used to the room shaking. I came out to see what was going on. Then I heard Twinkle was hurt and I thought I’d see how she was doing.”

Gamma nodded in acknowledgment of that and turned back to the Professor. “We’ll speak more later. Rest.”

She turned to go, but Twinkle Shine called out to her. “Wait! There is something you need to know.”

Gamma gave her a quizzical look. “Is it safe to share?”

“Spike won’t tell anyone,” Twinkle Shine assured her.

“I don’t exactly know many people I could tell it to even if I wanted to,” Spike added. “Whatever it is.”

“Very well,” Gamma said. “What do I need to know?”

“He’s changing the succession,” the Professor replied.

Gamma froze, her eyes twitching in surprise and understanding. “He wouldn’t.”

“You know he would,” the Professor said, echoing the words Gamma had used.

Gamma swore, spitting invective with a fervor Twinkle Shine hadn’t seen from her friend in many years. “Good night, Professor, Master Spike,” she managed to say between curses. “If you’ll excuse me I have a civil war to pre-empt.” And without another word she was gone.

Spike watched her go, shaking his head. When he turned back to her he took his time, looking over the room and the state of her before speaking. "So, you felt that," he said.

"How could I miss it?” she said in reply. “You?"

He nodded. "Barely. But even after all this time I know Alicorn magic when I feel it."

"And you were coming to see if it was me?"

He shrugged. "It wasn't my first thought, but yeah, it did cross my mind that you could be turning into Umbra right here and now."

"You know she's–"

"Yeah, yeah," he waved her off. "Close enough. So if it wasn't you, then...?"

She sighed. "Regal."

Spike tilted his head at that, frowning. "Really? The guy Star is supposed to marry?"

"The very same," Twinkle Shine deadpanned. "Apparently he's inherited Cadance's gift more than the rest of his family."

"This is some pretty crazy timing for that to happen," Spike mused.

"Isn't it, though?" the Professor snarked. "He poked something he shouldn't have. I’ll speak with Umbra. Get her to keep that from happening again."

Spike's eyes hardened. "I won't let her do that."

She scoffed at him. "She's not going to kill Regal, Spike!"

He relaxed a bit at that, but still kept a wary expression. "She wants to, though, doesn't she?" Twinkle Shine just gave him a level look, she didn’t have to check with the Nightmare to know the truth of it. Spike nodded at the unspoken confirmation. "Thought so. Well. As long as you're not turning into an equine abomination or plotting to murder your student's fiance, then I'll be going."

"Wait," the Professor said, holding a hoof out to him. "Please, I have something to ask you."

He sighed. "Sure, Twinkle. What is it?"

"You'll be leaving soon, right? Before the wedding?" He nodded. "I want you to convince Star Fall to go with you."

He cocked his head to the side as he thought about the request. "You know, I kind of want to."

"Please. She’ll listen to you."

He shook his head slowly. "No. Even if I tried, she wouldn't go. Not before the wedding. She's made her decision, Twinkle. She talked about it a bit back at my lair. She’s decided to accept the King's will in order to take the power it offers."

"Power?” Twinkle shine repeated, shaking her head. “She doesn't understand. She only sees the glamour of it, not the burden."

"I think she sees more than you give her credit for," Spike replied, turning to go. "She's not a filly, Twinkle, she's a grown and capable mare."

"It will destroy her," Twinkle shine tried in one last plea.

"She'll survive," Spike said, opening the door and half stepping through before looking back at her. "Just because you failed as a ruler doesn't mean she will. Good night, Twinkle. I'll see you in the morning."

***

“It’s mine”

***

Rarity woke at the touch of a hoof on her side. Her eyes snapped open and she jerked upright. Her breathing was quick and she could feel her heartbeat pounding in her chest. Sheets were tangled about her legs as if she had been thrashing in her sleep and were practically soaked with sweat. She frowned in disgust at that, but turned her attention to the hoof that was still at her side. There she saw an earth pony mare dressed in an elegant dress of red and gold, the crest of the Kingdom emblazoned on its sides. A servant.

“My lady,” the servant said, her eyes wide and worried. “Are you well?”

“Of course,” Rarity said, glad that her Solar was good enough for casual conversations now. “Is something wrong?”

“You were thrashing about terribly,” the servant said. “I feared you were in distress.”

“No,” Rarity frowned, taking stock of herself. “I’m quite alright.” She spent a few moments blinking in the light coming in from the windows. The servant, apparently satisfied that Rarity was fine, went to the closet and opened it to reveal racks of clothing in red and gold. “Excuse me,” Rarity asked, making the servant pause and turn towards her. “I’m sorry, dear, but what is your name?”

“I am Bridget, my lady,” she replied with a curtsey. “I’ve been assigned to be your personal servant for as long as you have need of me.”

“I see,” Rarity said. “And what are you doing now?”

“I’m laying out some clothes, my lady.”

Rarity waved a hoof at her. “Please, darling, call me Rarity.”

“As you say, Lady Rarity,” Bridget said with another curtsey.

“As for laying out clothes.” Rarity slid out of the bed, trotting over to the closet and giving what was inside a critical eye. “No. I’m afraid none of this will do.”

Bridget looked taken aback at that. “I’m sorry, Lady Rarity, what would be more to your liking?”

“Nothing for the moment,” Rarity said, picking out one of the dresses with her magic and running a hoof over the fabric. “This looks to be in my size, at least. The stitching isn’t terrible, but it was obviously done in a rush. Were these put together last night?”

Bridget nodded. “The castle tailors worked through the night once they knew you brought no clothing with you.”

“Thoughtful of them,” Rarity said. “How did they get the clothes into the closet?”

“There is a back way into the closets that servants use to fill them,” Bridget explained.

Rarity frowned at that, but accepted it with a nod. “I see.” She turned the dress over, examining it in greater depth before turning her attention to look more closely at the other items Bridget had laid out. “The material is very nice, but the colors are so… common. This entire palace is covered in red and gold.”

“They are the colors of the Crown,” Bridget pointed out.

“Yes, but I’m afraid that Rarity needs something unique. Do you happen to know where these tailors have their workshop?”

“I do,” Bridget said, though she didn’t sound terribly sure of herself. “But, Lady Rarity, you’re expected at breakfast.”

Rarity thought about that for the moment, then dismissed it. “I shall eat after I have seen these tailors,” she declared. “Now, lead the way, Bridget.”

“But, my lady!”

“Ah! That’s Rarity, please. Now, there can be no delay! I must get this sorted out before it becomes a fashion trainwreck!”

Bridget blinked in shock at her vehemence, but curtseyed again. “Of… of course, Lady Rarity. This way.”

Rarity followed the servant out of her rooms, carrying the dress with her and filling her mind with all the possibilities she could use to create an original, elegant and stunning dress that would truly display her at her best. One thing she was certain of: she was going to avoid red and gold. Well, perhaps only for a few highlights.

She spotted Applejack in the hall, dressed in a jacket and pants that practically blended into the walls because of the insistent color scheme. Her mane had been plaited into a golden braid that nestled nicely between her neck and the coat’s high collar. It actually looked rather good on her, Rarity admitted, but her hat ruined whatever effect the rest of the outfit would have had. “Not gettin’ gussied up?” she asked as Rarity walked by her. “The filly in my room was mighty insistent that I not be seen without these digs on.”

“Hardly, Applejack,” Rarity replied. “I’m just seeing to a more personal touch in my ensemble.”

Applejack shrugged at that. “Suit yourself. Have you seen Dash any?”

“No, dear, but I’ll send her your way if I do,” Rarity assured her, and then she turned down another hallway and Applejack was out of sight.

They walked for a while through the labyrinthine hallways of the Court of the Sun, moving into sections of the castle that were more bare than the opulent halls that held her room. The servant’s quarters, she surmised. Eventually they came to a pair of double doors that Bridget knocked on, then pushed her way through without waiting for an answer. Rarity followed her and got her first look at the tailor’s workshop.

It was larger than she had expected. Somehow, she had thought to find something like her own sewing room in the Carousel Boutique. In retrospect that had been a foolish assumption. The castle had hundreds of servants and guards, if not thousands. It would therefore need many tailors. From the number of sewing stations she saw, there were at least twenty. Each of those stations had a ponyquin next to it, some partly decked out in unfinished outfits, most empty. All the clothing she could see showed the crested red and gold of servant’s livery.

What really caught her attention were the massive rolls of fabric that took up the back of the room. Every color was represented there, and in enough quantity to make a whole season’s worth of dresses from each one. Three times as much red and gold as anything else, of course, but she could hardly complain about that.

“Is there a problem, my lady?” someone was asking. Rarity pulled her gaze away from the miles of beautiful fabric to look at the unicorn servant, likely one of the tailors, that was giving her a nervous look. More precisely he was staring at the dress she was levitating next to her with wide-eyed incredulity. “Is something wrong with the dress?”

“What? Oh, no, no, of course not,” Rarity said. “In fact, for having been made over the course of a night, it’s rather well done. My compliments on that.”

“We are used to rush orders from nobility, my lady,” the tailor said, bowing.

“Just Rarity, darling,” she said, smiling kindly at him. “But, I feel like It would be better to have something that had more of my own personal flair. You see, I’m a seamstress myself, and I design dresses for a living. Or, rather, I did.” Rarity frowned at that thought. Her career as a fashionista was long, long over.

“I… see,” the tailor said, frowning. “Well, if you would like to tell us how to alter the garment, we can accommodate any request in good time.”

“Ah, you see that’s not quite what I was getting at,” Rarity said. “I mean that I would like to make the dress myself.”

“I’m sorry, my lady, but this is not a place for one of your stature,” he said.

“Nonsense!” Rarity said with a smile, walking past him. She didn’t like running roughshod over a fellow clothier in his own domain, but she had the feeling that if she backed off now she would be relegated to wearing someone else’s designs for the rest of her stay. She wasn’t going to have that. Not at all. “I’m perfectly at home with shears, needle and thread.”

The tailor looked to Bridget, who shrugged, a helpless look on her face. “Well… as you wish, my lady,” he said eventually, though it clearly pained him. “I’ll assist you personally.”

She grinned at him. “Why thank you, but I would never take you away from your own creations. I’ll just take,” she scanned the empty sewing desks. “Those four places there. That should be sufficient.”

“Four?” the tailor repeated, perplexed.

“Yes,” Rarity confirmed. “Those will do. Now, to get started.” She closed her eyes, her horn lighting up and sending tendrils of sparkling blue magic through the room. There were a few gasps from ponies watching, but she ignored them. A bit of annoyance from her interrupting their work would only be normal. She could bear their disapproval for as long as it took to bring the beauty that was her designs to the future.

Her magic found very few true gemstones to work with, which was disappointing, but quite a bit of colored glass and bits of metal. She ran her power over the fabrics, discerning the fine from the coarse and the thin from the thick. The variety was a delight to her, and she quickly began picking out a few to start working with immediately. She realized that she’d need more than the four ponyquins provided by her chosen sewing stations. Fortunately she found several ranks of them hidden to one side of the fabric rolls. She pulled a half dozen of them out, floating them to their places at the same time as she was unreeling several yards of her chosen fabrics and sending a dozen shears to cutting it into useable pieces.

A bloodcurdling shriek interrupted her thoughts. She opened her eyes, letting her magic complete the tasks she had given it on automatic. She found the room in an uproar. Ponies were running for the doors. One was standing in place, screaming in fear. Rarity looked around, but could see nothing that could have inspired this reaction. She turned to the tailor and Bridget, only to find both of them staring at her. Bridget was frozen, her eyes wide and her mouth fallen open. The tailor was shaking like a leaf, and she could see how pale he was under his teal coat.

“What?” she asked, still confused.

The tailor fainted.

Two hours later, Rarity had the whole of the workshop to herself, which was far from an ideal situation. The other tailors had rushed out and apparently refused to return to their tasks. When Rarity asked Bridget about it, she was just told that they were afraid. Rarity couldn’t see why they would be scared, but allowed that she just might not be understanding the different attitudes of the future.

As it was, she was not only working on her own designs, but also finishing the work that had been so callously abandoned. It wasn’t easy, but they had all been making basic servant’s outfits, which were simple enough to copy and automate while she focused her efforts on the more elaborate designs she was creating for herself. In a way, doing so much work at once was soothing. It reminded her of all those times she had scrambled to create a new line of clothing right before a new season would start, making and scrapping entire outfits as her muse searched for that one perfect idea. If she closed her eyes, she could almost imagine she was back home.

Bridget stood by her side, shaking like a leaf. She was looking around like a particularly high-strung squirrel, and had been since the mass tailor exodus. She’d only left Rarity’s side to fetch a small meal that Rarity had requested once it was obvious she wouldn’t be making it to the formal breakfast. Every time Rarity tried to engage her in some conversation, she had barely said two words unless asked a direct question.

So Rarity tried her best to ignore the strangeness and bent herself over an odd-looking, but still perfectly recognizable, sewing machine and carefully fed the fabric through with her hooves, watching as the needle worked its own particular magic. She heard the door open, but didn’t look up from her task, knowing that to stop now was to potentially ruin a good stitch. She didn’t react even when Bridget let out a squeak and dropped to prostrate herself on the floor. She was a professional, and she would not be so easily distracted.

Thankfully, her new company didn’t care to interrupt her. She finished after a few quiet moments and examined her work for flaws before nodding and setting the half-completed garment aside. When she finally looked up to see who had come in to the workshop, she found herself facing the Queen of the Solar Kingdom.

“Oh! My apologies, Your Majesty,” Rarity said, hastily getting up and giving the ruler a proper bow. “I was just so absorbed that I didn’t notice it was you.” Rarity was surprised by how easily the words flowed. She’d been stumbling over speaking full sentences just the previous day.

The Queen, for her part, was staring around the room with the same wide-eyed terror that Rarity had seen grip the tailors before they had run away. She handled it better, though, shaking herself and giving Rarity a regal nod. “No apologies necessary,” she said, though her voice quavered. “I know an artist when I see one, and I know not to interrupt their flow.”

Rarity rose and grinned. “Would you like me to show you what I’ve been working on? It’s based on something I did for my friends, well, over a thousand years ago, I suppose! I’ve yet to see what the haute couture of this time is, so I’m not sure if it will fit in very well, but it will certainly be unique!”

The Queen swallowed her fear and smiled at that, nodding eagerly. “I would be delighted, Lady Rarity.”

“Just Rarity, Your Majesty,” she insisted.

“Then I will be Aqua,” the Queen replied. “And while I would love to see your work, I do have something I wish to talk about first.”

“Oh?” Rarity asked, absently shuffling the ponyquins to better display the outfits she had mostly completed. “Of course. What would you like to talk about?”

“Magic,” the Queen said.

Rarity paused, frowning at that. “I’m not sure I can help you with that particular subject. You’d probably be better off asking Star Fall, it is her Talent after all.”

“And as talented as she is, she could never do this,” the Queen swept her wings wide to indicate the room, and all the myriad objects moving within the blue glow of Rarity’s magic.

“This is hardly spectacular,” Rarity protested. “Just some telekinesis and a lot of experience at work.”

The Queen laughed, shaking her head. “To you, perhaps, this would be something all unicorns could do. Now? For us? This… this is mythical.” She took a deep breath, walking out into between the rows of sewing tables. The fear in her eyes gave way to wonder and she spun in a clumsy, dancing twirl. “I never thought I’d see magic like this! Never imagined what it would feel like to stand here and be surrounded by this much power! It’s like… like being given a breath of real air for the first time in my life. Like standing before a roaring waterfall on a hot day. It’s like seeing the ocean for the first time, when all I had ever known before were ponds. It’s exhilarating! It’s overwhelming!” She paused, giving Rarity a steady look. “It’s terrifying.”

Rarity understood. “Oh,” she said, her eyes dropping. “I had forgotten. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to frighten anyone.”

“How could we not be frightened?” the Queen asked, though there was no accusation in her tone. “You could crush any of us with a thought, and none of us would have the power to so much as slow you down.”

“I could not!” Rarity cried. “I am a lady! Not some brute!”

“Forgive me,” the Queen said. “I did not mean to imply that you would ever do such a thing. But the fact remains that with your power, it is within your grasp. For so long the only creature with this kind of magic was the Destroyer, many of us can’t help but equate strength like yours with her.”

“I… I suppose I understand why it could be frightening,” Rarity allowed. “But let me assure you, Aqua, that I could never hurt anyone. My magic is not violent, it is a thing of grace and glamour, meant for bringing out beauty. I suppose I could manage a stunning spell if I tried, but anything more is quite beyond me.”

“I believe you,” the Queen said with a warm smile. “Though it might have been better for all of us if you were capable of more.”

“What do you mean?”

“The Shadowed Alicorn is abroad,” the Queen said, walking back to Rarity. “And there is much more darkness than just her in the world. Power like yours could save us all.”

Rarity didn’t have anything to say to that. Instead of letting the silence between them become awkward, though, she knelt down to where Bridget was still laying. “You can get up now, dear.” Bridget gave a slight shake of her head, just enough to be seen. Rarity looked up to the Queen.

“Rise,” the Queen said, and Bridget shot to her hooves, standing at rigid attention. “Would you be so kind as to bring some tea for Rarity and myself?”

Bridget bowed low again. “At once, Your Majesty.”

Rarity watched the servant go, shaking her head. “The poor dear, she must have been terribly scared by my magic. Yet she stayed with me the whole time. Perhaps she should be given a break. My Solar is improved greatly, I think I can manage on my own.”

“That would not be doing her any kindness,” the Queen warned. “Serving you is very important to her.”

“Oh? I don’t see why.”

“It is her duty to serve,” the Queen explained. “To dismiss her would be an insult, saying that her service has been so poor that you can’t stand to have her near you anymore. After staying with you while you were doing all of… this, that would be a cruel humiliation indeed. And trust me, it will be difficult indeed to navigate the Court of the Sun without a good servant to keep you going in the right direction.”

Rarity frowned. “Well, I don’t mean to insult her. And I suppose I could use an assistant while I’m here.”

“I’m glad you see it that way,” the Queen said. “And I’m sure your servant will thank you for keeping her on. And it’s important to more than just her that you be happy in your stay. I believe my husband has offered manumission to the servants of yourself and your friends if they are able to faithfully see to your needs for as long as you are our guests.”

“Manumission?” Rarity asked, stumbling a bit over the unfamiliar word.

“Freedom,” the Queen clarified.

Rarity’s jaw dropped open. “She’s a slave?”

“An indentured servant, as most of our servants are,” the Queen said with a sigh. “It’s a rather sore subject for me, so if you wouldn’t mind that we avoid the topic?”

Rarity’s mouth worked soundlessly for a moment, then she shut it with a sharp click and gave herself a shake, pulling her composure back together. “Of… of course,” she said, regaining her poise. “I was going to show you my dresses.”

“They seem absolutely lovely,” the Queen said, walking over to examine the half-finished outfits. “This one looks quite nice. Did you take your inspiration for the gold highlights from the Royal livery?”

“I did,” Rarity said. “But, I’m afraid I won’t be finishing that one.”

“May I ask why?”

“Upon reflection it…” Rarity paused, taking a deep breath and forcing a pleasant smile onto her face. “Doesn’t suit me.”

***

Hard Boiled stared into the jungle, chewing slowly on the few rations he was allowing himself. Sweat lathered his coat and the harness for his gun holster chafed painfully with every movement, but nothing compared to the throbbing agony in his head. If there had been some way to protect his horn from all the incidental bumps and scrapes that trekking through untamed jungle entailed, he wouldn’t be doing so badly. As it was, the food he was forcing himself to eat sat uneasily in his stomach, the pain making him more nauseous with every swallow.

Traduce wasn’t helping on that front, either. She’d caught something, he hadn’t looked to see what, and eaten it alive. She’d tried to offer an explanation, but he had waved it away, uninterested. He was sure she had a good reason, but no matter what it was he was still sickened by the sight, and he kept flashing back to the image whenever he looked at her.

She was up above the trees now, in a pegasus form, searching for anything that might indicate their destination and also looking for signs of the group they knew was following them. HB hoped that the precautions they’d been taking to hide their trail were effective, but he had no illusions about his own ability to walk softly. He was stumbling in pain and exhaustion, leaving a trail that even Traduce couldn’t erase.

Lost in his agonized thoughts, he almost missed it when she dropped out of the canopy. As it was, his reaction to her appearance was slow, his eyes drifting towards her with dull lethargy. “What did you find?” he asked, swallowing the small bite of food.

“They’re still following,” Traduce said, frowning at him. “And they’re gaining on us.” He grunted at that, unable to work up much alarm. “But there’s something up ahead. Ruins. It might be the place we’re looking for. Even if it isn’t, it looks like a defensible position.”

That got a reaction, his eyes widening as adrenaline surged and pushed back some of the pain. He stood, putting away the rest of the food. “Alright,” he said. “No stopping until we’re there.”

She eyed him with uncertainty. “Can you make it?”

He met her gaze with one of determination. “I will,” he said.

She didn’t question him again, turning to lead the way into the jungle. He followed, focusing all his attention on following her, blocking out the pain that throbbed in his head with every step. They moved carefully, wary of the loose soil and the many creatures that might be hiding in it, their tails moving constantly to swat away the clouds of biting insects that swarmed from every quarter. They scrambled over huge, ancient roots and crossed the tiny streams that formed with water from the rains that were always falling somewhere in the jungle. They didn’t take shelter when those rains were overhead, pushing through muck with single-minded effort.

He lost track of time, the motion and the agony forcing everything from his thoughts except the next step forward. Eventually, though, Traduce came to a stop. He collapsed next to her, breathing heavily and barely keeping himself from whimpering with every little movement of his head. She knelt down, putting her mouth next to his ear and making her voice very soft.

“You can’t go on like this,” she whispered to him. Even as quiet as she was speaking, her words were like spikes driven into his skull, and he flinched away. “Let me help you.”

“No,” he managed to growl. “I’ll be fine.”

“You are a terrible liar,” she accused. “And a stupid, stubborn stallion.”

“I’m not giving you a hold on me,” he said.

Her lips pressed into a thin line, and her body tensed in repressed fury. “Not even to save your life?” He didn’t respond to that. “We’re being followed, Lieutenant. They mean to kill us, and as good as I am, I can’t fight them on my own. Your Talent is Finding Truth, do you think I’m lying about how serious this is?” He slowly shook his head. “Okay, how about this: I am trying to save your life. Let me help you!”

He struggled with himself. On the one hoof, she was right, and he knew it. On the other, she was going to use this against him, and he knew that too. The real question was, which would be the worse fate? To be manipulated by Traduce, but survive, or to remain his own stallion, but probably die. For a long, miserable moment, he didn’t know which he preferred.

In the end, though, there was only one choice where he got to the bottom of the mystery of Max Cash and the strange, impossible mare. “Do it,” he said.

She seized his head between her hooves and kissed him. It wasn’t a quick kiss, or a chaste one. It was full-lipped and passionate, burning in its intensity. Hard Boiled’s eyes went wide in surprise and a part of him responded to the honest emotion of the kiss before he could reflexively hold it back.

In that moment the connection formed between them. It blazed green in his mind, grabbing hold of the part of himself that had opened up to her in the moment of intimacy and forcing it wide. He felt her moving in his mind, his body, sending tendrils of her magic through him like veins filled with emerald fire. His body responded without direction, taking hold of her and kissing her back with a fervor to rival her own. Another pony might have been lost in the flood of emotion that threatened to drown him, but his magic could sense the falsehood in it and recoiled, keeping his conscious mind aloof from the power she was pouring into his body.

Then she was pulling back, her magic washing out of him and back into her. It took with it the emotions she had stirred in him, as well as all his fatigue and pain. It was a truly alien sensation to him, to have the pain go so quickly. He gasped, shuddering in a moment of pure emptiness where he was feeling, for the first time ever, nothing at all.

That emptiness was shattered a moment later by a stab of pain from his horn. He winced, but the expected agony wasn’t as intense as he’d been expecting. He felt a portion of the pain flow from him to Traduce, vanishing into the transforming fire of her magic. He shook his head and pulled away from her. It took a few moments for him to sort himself out, but when he was done he realized that he was feeling better than he had in years.

“Damn, that’s effective,” he said. Traduce was looking at him with a strangely sad expression. With a jolt he realized that she was feeling sorry for herself, as if terribly disappointed. He felt a surge of anger as he realized the source of that disappointment. “You tried something, didn’t you?”

She nodded. “I thought I could… make you see me as something other than a lie.”

He shook his head. “Damn it! I trusted you!”

“No, you didn’t!” she snapped back at him, but then her face lost its heat. “And I guess you were right not to.”

HB sighed, the anger leaving him. “Look, Traduce. It’s not you, personally, who is the lie. It’s the bodies you wear, the characters you take on.”

“I’m a Changeling, Lieutenant,” she said with a forced smile. “That’s all we are.”

“And that’s another lie,” he said. She opened her mouth to respond, but then shut it with a click as his words sunk in. “There’s more to you than your masks, and I’m willing to bet it’s the same for every Changeling. You want me to see something other than the lie? Then show me the truth. The real Traduce.”

“The real Traduce isn’t very pretty,” she said.

“No, but at least she’s honest.”

Traduce smirked at that. Then green fire rushed across her body, consuming the flesh and feathers and leaving black carapace and insectile wings in its wake. She shook out a sickly, spiderweb-light silver mane and stared at him with defiant green eyes. He resisted the temptation to flinch back. She looked horrifying, and hungry. “Honest enough for you?” she asked in the strange doubled-over voice of a Changeling.

“No,” he said, shrugging. “But it’s a start. Come on, we’re close to the ruins.”

She blinked in surprise as he got up and trotted towards the clearing in the trees he could see up ahead. She recovered quickly, though, her wings buzzing as she lifted herself from the ground and flew overhead. “So we’re looking for a statue of a pony?”

He nodded. “Or the remains of one.”

“Not a lot to go on.”

“No,” he agreed. He came to a halt at the edge of the ruins. “That’s… not what I was expecting.”

In front of them was a garden, or the remains of one. Flowers in a dizzying variety of shapes and colors covered small hills that had bits of stone sticking out of them at odd angles. It wasn’t hard to imagine that those hills were what was left of stone-walled flower beds after falling from the sky and the centuries of neglect that followed. Bits of other structures peppered the garden: broken sections of wall, decorative iron arches, and dozens of animal statues, weathered smooth but still recognizable, reared from the soil in poses of rest or play. None of it looked like something Hard Boiled would have thought to find in one of the fabled floating cities of the pegasi. It was all too solid, too heavy.

In the center of the garden there was a marble building, miraculously intact. It had the look of a temple, with a pillared entrance and a relief in the shape of a large butterfly still visible above the door. Hard Boiled pointed to the building. “If we’re going to find anything, I’d lay good money that it’s in there.”

“No bet,” Traduce replied.

“How long until they catch up to us?”

Traduce shook her head. “Couldn’t say. If they’re pushing as hard as I think they are, they could be here any minute.”

“Then let’s get inside,” HB said, starting towards the building. They crossed the open garden without any trouble, but the short hairs of HB’s mane stood on end with the feeling that he was being watched the entire way.

The interior of the temple was as surprisingly unbroken as the outside. The floor only showed a few cracks from the long years, and no plants had taken up the space. The far end had a small garden in it, an open skylight providing the light it needed to thrive. The garden had many small statues of various creatures cavorting around a larger, life-sized statue of a pegasus mare smiling gently down at them, a pink gem glowing softly at her throat. Other than that, the temple was empty.

Hard Boiled swore. “I was sure it would be here!” He looked again, running deeper into the temple and trying to see if there were any crevices or alcoves he might have missed. He found nothing. “Can you see anything I’m missing?”

She buzzed up near the ceiling, but shook her head. “No. Sorry. Maybe this is the wrong place?”

He kicked at the wall. “Probably. How’s our pursuit?”

Traduce flew out of the skylight, only to duck back inside immediately, the loud crack of a gunshot echoing from the marble walls. “They’re here,” Traduce said.

Hard Boiled rushed to the doorway, flattening himself against the wall beside it and drawing his gun. He slowly eased his truth-finding magic on, bracing himself for the rush of pain. Again, that pain was dulled to manageable levels as a portion of it was whisked away by Traduce’s magic. He sighed in gratitude, and chanced a look outside.

A half-dozen ponies were arrayed in the garden, taking cover behind the remains of walls and statues, the pegasus assassin standing front and center. These were more thugs, their stances showing the casual bravado of brawlers rather than the precise balance of military training. One was a unicorn who had set up a rifle on a tripod next to him, his magic swivelling the gun slowly to aim at any target that tried to come from the air. HB marked him as the most dangerous, his ease with the rifle showing long hours of practice to HB’s magically enhanced sight.

The assassin also caught his attention. She was dressed in an outfit similar to what he’d seen on SWAT squads in Orion City. It couldn’t be comfortable in this heat, but it would be armored. An hoof-clamping extendable baton and dart-gun hung at her sides, making him wonder just how much police ordinance had made its way into Cash’s hooves over the years.

“We know you’re in there!” the assassin called out to them in a mocking sing-song. “Come on out, and maybe I’ll forgive you for what you did to me back in Hoofprint!”

Traduce landed next to him, frowning at the door but staying out of sight. “What’s your opinion on our chances?”

“Depends on how patient they are,” he replied. “So long as we’re stuck in here, we’ll run out of food and water long before they will. They can wait us out.”

“She won’t wait,” Traduce said. “I’ve been in her head, and there’s not much patience in her.”

“Then it depends on how they choose to attack,” HB said, closing his eyes and putting his mind and magic to it. “They’ve got a unicorn sniper, three earth pony bruisers, and two pegasus attackers including Cash’s hitmare. If they rush us, we’ll be overwhelmed.”

“Maybe,” Traduce mused. “We’ve each got guns, they only have one.”

“The assassin has a dart gun,” HB corrected. “And body armor.”

Traduce hissed in annoyance. “Alright, then we’re in trouble. We can’t wait for them to come in. We might be able to pick off the first couple, but if they’re smart about it we’ll be taken out before we can do more than that. If one of those earth ponies is a Toughness Talent, we won’t even get that far.”

“Which means?”

“Which means we attack,” Traduce said.

“That doesn’t sound particularly safe,” HB commented.

Traduce smirked. “It’s better than waiting for them to get a plan together.”

“That sniper’s going to pick us off the moment we show our faces,” HB warned. “Can you neutralize him?”

“Yes, but it will take all my concentration.” Her horn flared and she took a few short breaths. “This is the plan. You duck out and start taking pot shots. Make them count, don’t fire blind. I’ll make sure the sniper is distracted, so aim for him first, if you can.”

“That will provoke them to attack.”

She nodded. “But with the sniper out of commission we can put a few shots in them before they reach us. If they make it to the door, fall back. Make them come to you.”

“And you’ll cover the roof entrance,” he surmised. She nodded again. He levitated his gun up and called upon his truth magic as strongly as he dared. “Ready?”

A slow smirk lifted her lips, showing one gleaming fang. “For you? Always.”

He snorted, then spun out into the doorway. The details of the scene leapt to his attention immediately, made brutally stark by the magic he was using. The assassin was saying something to one of her thugs, in the middle of planning her own assault. The sniper had been watching for Traduce to exit by the roof, and so was slow to pivot his rifle down to target the detective. Even so, he was faster in bringing the gun to bear than Hard Boiled was with his. Before he could pull the trigger, though, his eyes unfocused and his mouth dropped open in a screech of pain. HB could tell what Traduce was doing, redirecting his pain into the sniper. It struck a chord of sympathy in him, but he smothered the impulse. He brought his pistol around, letting his magic guide the aim until it was perfect, then pulled the trigger.

The unicorn sniper fell, dead before he hit the ground. Traduce gasped as her connection was cut off, and the momentary backlash snapped into him as well, returning some of the pain the Changeling had been siphoning away. He flinched, stumbling into the doorway. His vision going blurry with the renewed headache.

“Get them!” the assassin screamed, leaping into the air and drawing her baton. The other ponies were moving immediately.

Fear dumped adrenaline into HB’s system, sharpening his focus and letting him push the pain aside. He hefted the gun and took aim. His first shot caught the lead earth pony in a knee, exploding the joint and sending the thug into a tumbling somersault. He re-aimed at the next closest pony, firing the moment he was lined up. This shot hit the pony in his broad chest, but did little more than make him stumble in his run. He fired again, but didn’t see if the second shot did any more damage before the pegasus thug had rammed into him, sending him sprawling backwards into the temple.

He fought to keep hold of his gun, barely succeeding as the pegasus pummelled at him. HB pulled his legs close to his torso, using them to protect his vital organs as his attacker smashed at him. The beating aggravated the bruises he still had from the fight in Hoofprint, but that pain was nothing compared to the rising agony in his head. He swivelled his gun to point at the pegasus, not even bothering to aim properly, and pulled the trigger three times. At least one of his bullets must have gone true, because the pegasus went stiff and fell away from him.

He scrambled away from the bleeding pony, rolling to his hooves and taking stock of the situation. Traduce was nowhere to be seen, hopefully preventing the assassin from swooping in from above. The earth pony he had shot twice was stalking through the doorway, his dual bullet wounds bleeding slowly and clearly not slowing him down. A Toughness Talent, then. He snorted angrily as he saw Hard Boiled, then charged with a roar.

HB tried to dodge, but didn’t have the footing to move that quickly, and so took the thug’s charge head on. The earth pony had to weigh at least twice as much as the detective, making the result of their collision a foregone conclusion. HB was thrown back into the wall hard enough to daze him, making him drop his gun and giving the thug enough time to rush him again and crush him up against the stone. HB wheezed in pain, scrambling to grab the gun again. The thug responded by shifting his weight and stepping on the weapon, putting it completely beyond the detective’s ability to grab.

Hard Boiled struck out with his hooves. Aiming for throat, eyes, whatever he thought might make his opponent back off for just a moment. He might as well have been striking the stone behind him for all the good it did. The pony weathered everything stoically, taking even a blow to his eye with a barely a grunt of pain.

“Hey! You got him!” a new voice called out, this one from the third earth pony thug. He came through the door limping, one leg held tight to his torso and a malicious grin spread on his face. The pony crushing HB grunted in response. The new arrival limped over to them, chuckling evilly. “Yeah, not so clever now, are you?” he taunted as he came up beside the bigger pony. HB could barely spare any attention for him, but did manage a spiteful look. A look that was met with a wink.

His magic still operating, HB suddenly realized the truth. Traduce unfolded her ‘injured’ leg, revealing that she had been using it to conceal her gun. She put the barrel right into the thug’s ear and wasted no time in pulling the trigger.

As tough as the pony had been, he was still not tough enough to survive that kind of point blank attack, and he slumped down, dead. HB fell away from the wall, heaving deep breaths and quickly snatching up his own weapon. “Others?” he asked as soon as he could speak again.

“I got this one,” she said, indicating the form she was wearing. “The Charisma wannabe is gone.”

“Running?”

Traduce shook her head, transforming back to her natural state. “No. She’s still around, hiding somewhere. I can feel her. I don’t think she’ll attack on her own, though. Not as long as we have firepower and are ready for her.”

“We’ll have to be careful,” he said.

“Yes we will,” she agreed. “But this still went better than I was expecting.”

HB coughed, feeling the new bruises already beginning to ache. “For you, maybe.”

She smiled at that, and for once his magic could see no artifice in it. “Come on,” she said. “If this isn’t the place we should get going.”

“Yes,” he said, but trailed off, not moving to leave when she did.

She turned to look at him curiously as he failed to follow her. “What is it?”

“Something’s wrong,” he replied. “Something in what you just said.”

“That we should get going?”

He nodded. “Yes. Something… something that’s not true.”

“We… shouldn’t get going?”

He hissed in pain, closing his eyes and forcing his magic inward, trying to reveal the truth of what he was missing. “No. ‘This isn’t the place’, you said. That’s not true.”

“Wait, so it is here?”

“It… yes.” Something was blocking him. Something was obscuring the truth. He could only approach the idea obliquely, every time he tried to face it head on his magic stopped dead, like it had hit a wall. He opened his eyes again, certain now. “It’s here.”

“Where?” Traduce looked all about the temple, and in his magic he could see when she was looking in the right direction. He turned his own head, forcing himself to see what was there.

“Right in front of us,” he said. There was a barrier in his mind, a slippery, invisible film that held him away from the truth. It was powerful, he could sense that much. So much more powerful than him that there was simply no comparison. Yet his Talent was Finding Truth, and he would not be barred from it even now. He focused, drawing on all of his magic, forging it into a needle of burning truth that he pointed inward, at the barrier that kept him from seeing what was before his eyes. Then he shoved the needle home and pierced the barrier.

He screamed, the agony of the magic ripping through him in a torrent that brought him down to his knees. He retched, bringing up what little was left in his stomach. Yet the pain was ongoing, twisting like a snake that had coiled within him and now wanted to be free. He fell, wracked with convulsions. He felt like he was going to break, but a soothing green cool washed over him, numbing the pain and letting his shaking limbs relax.

He lay in quiet like that for a long time. Long enough that when he opened his eyes again the sun was dipping into the trees. Traduce was lying next to him, watching him carefully.

“Hey,” Traduce said, gently rubbing at his face. “You back with me?”

“Ow,” he said, making her chuckle. “I thought you were supposed to be eating my pain or something.”

“Whatever you did broke the connection,” she explained. “I had to force it back in place. Thank Luna you didn’t resist.”

“Don’t think I was up to much ‘resisting’ at the time,” HB sighed, getting up.

“What did you do?”

“Broke a spell,” he said. “One that did not like getting broken that way.” He looked around the temple and saw what he wasn’t supposed to. “There it is,” he said, grinning. The statue in the garden was exquisitely done, the work of a true master. A yellow pegasus mare with a long, flowing pink mane and tail, her Glyph a trio of butterflies. A golden necklace with a pink butterfly-shaped gem sat at her throat. She looked down at the little animals in her garden with such honest benevolence that Hard Boiled was astounded it could even be caught in stone.

“I don’t see it,” Traduce said. HB picked up her hoof with his, leading her to the statue and forcing her to touch it. She blinked a few times, then her eyes widened as she realized what was happening. “Luna’s night! It was right there and I didn’t even notice it!”

“Exactly,” Hard Boiled said. “Someone with a lot of power went through a lot of trouble to hide this statue from anyone and everyone. The question is, why? And what about it makes Max Cash want it?” He looked closer at the statue’s necklace. “This looks like a separate piece.” He reached out and poked at the necklace. It moved a bit, confirming his suspicion, but he could see no way to get it off. Still, something about that necklace bugged him. It looked familiar somehow.

In a flash of insight, the memory came to him. Waiting in an opulent foyer, a statue garden much like this one, but with a different focus. The blue gem that had caught his eye. “Birchfield, you son of a bitch!” he snarled.

“What does the Senator have to do with this?” Traduce asked.

“He’s got one of these,” HB waved his hoof at the statue, “at his Luna-damned house! Right in his front hall!”

“Does he know what it is?”

“I don’t doubt it for a minute,” HB snarled. “It must be protected by the same spell this one was, I completely ignored it when I was there, even after he told me about the statues. I don’t know how he beat that spell, but he obviously did. Damn it!”

“We need to have a few words with Senator Birchfield,” Traduce said. She eyed the statue. “We can’t carry this with us, obviously. What do you think we should do with it?”

“It’s safe enough where it is,” he said. “I doubt anyone else is going to find it.”

“But Cash is looking for it,” Traduce reminded him.

“Nothing we can do about that. We have to get back to Orion City.”

Traduce frowned. “I would like to get a report on this to Straff, but why are you in such a rush?”

“Because if Birchfield knows what he’s got in his house, then its possible that Cash knows too. And if Cash knows…”

“The Senator is in danger,” Traduce said, narrowing her eyes. “We have to get to him before Cash does.”

“Exactly.” HB rushed out the door, looking up at a sky swiftly changing from the boiling light of day to night’s cool darkness. The moon wasn’t risen yet, but he addressed it anyway. “Luna give us speed. Please, let us be in time.” Then he took off in a gallop for the jungle, Traduce rushing behind him. And, unseen to both, a third pony took flight from the roof of the temple and began winging its way north.

***

Star Fall lay on her back, her wings splayed out to either side. It wasn’t the most comfortable position, but she had been in it long enough for her complaining limbs to have gone numb. She stared at the ceiling without actually seeing it. Her thoughts turned over restlessly, running in circles that always led her back to the memory of Twilight Sparkle.

“You gotta eat, Fall,” Astrid said, interrupting the cycle of those thoughts.

“Not hungry,” she replied.

“Not an option,” Astrid said, then reached over and physically lifted Star Fall from the bed and onto her hooves.

“Hey!” she protested. “I said I wasn’t hungry!”

“Do I look like I care?” Astrid asked. “You’ve been moping for most of the day. You need to stop that and get back to life.”

“I wasn’t moping,” Star Fall said, but wasn’t fooling Astrid or herself. “Alright, fine! Maybe a little, but I’ve got a good reason.”

“Yeah, you met the nerd-saint and didn’t get an autograph,” Astrid said, rolling her eyes. “I know.”

“Astrid, this is important!” Star Fall said, flaring her wings and stomping a hoof. “I have to figure out what it means.”

“It means your personal hero’s a cradle-robbing pervert,” Astrid said, her attitude not shifting in the slightest in response to Star Fall’s aggressive stance.

“No she isn’t!” Star Fall yelled, then immediately backed off, her wings folding. “I told you, it wasn’t like that. It was familial, like the way my mother used to kiss me goodbye every day when I went to school.”

“Wow. So now you have three mommies. What’s that like?”

“Screw off, Astrid,” Star Fall sighed. “And whining about me moping around? What the hell have you been doing all day?”

“Taking care of your sorry ass.”

“Bullshit. You’ve been hiding in this room just like...” Star Fall paused, sitting down heavily and hanging her head. “Just like me.”

“Yeah, well,” Astrid said, sitting next to Star Fall and draping a wing over her. “Roan’s been looking for me. That’s a load of crap that I just don’t want to deal with today. Or any day.”

“I’m sorry, Astrid,” Star Fall said, snuggling closer to the Griffin’s side. “It’s just too much for me. Seeing Twilight Sparkle like that, it was the most amazing moment of my life. Including everything that’s happened in the past month. But… I can’t do it again. I can’t risk it. What Regal and I did sent the Professor into seizure, for Celestia’s sake! It could have killed her. I could have killed her.”

“She’s a big, powerful girl, Fall,” Astrid said. “She can handle herself.”

“Everything’s connected,” Star Fall continued. “Everything that’s been happening to us. All of it. The evidence keeps piling on that it’s all part of some big plan, but I still can’t figure out how!”

“You’ll get there,” Astrid assured her. “Since when do you ever not figure it out?”

“Since Rainbow Dash crash landed in front of me,” Star Fall sighed. “You’re right. I shouldn’t be stuck in this room. I should be talking this over with the Professor, or spending more time with Regal, or… something!”

“So get off your butt and go do it.”

Star Fall shook her head. “I don’t even know how to begin.”

“Begin with the Professor,” Astrid said, getting up and stretching. “Then talk to your other friends. I’m pretty sure they’ve been asking after you too.” She held out a claw to Star Fall. “But before all that, get some food. Hiding from your problems is hungry work. And, personally? I’m starving.”

Star Fall laughed, taking the offered claw and pulling herself upright. They left the guest room, stopping by the kitchens to fill their bellies before going off to follow Astrid’s advice. The Professor, however, was not in the Court. She was back at her estate, apparently working on something for the King. Star Fall felt a twinge of sadness at that, knowing that she’d likely never be living there again. She pushed the melancholy aside, reminding herself that growing up often went hoof-in-hoof with moving out, and it wouldn’t be the first time she had done so.

When she got to the rooms that her three friends from the past were staying in, she found their servants standing outside the door to Applejack’s room, looking nervous. The servants all pulled themselves to attention as she approached, bowing low until she gave them permission to rise. “What’s going on?” she asked.

The three servants shared a look that spoke volumes. “I’m sorry, my lady,” one of them said, her voice filled with wary caution, as if she were navigating a minefield. “Our masters are having a private conversation within. I’m afraid we can’t tell you what it may be about.”

Star Fall’s eyes narrowed. With the nervous way they were acting and the sheer amount of denial in that statement, Star Fall translated it as servant-speak for ‘our charges are talking treason’. “Thank you,” she told them. “I’ll be joining my friends now. Could you see to it that we are not disturbed?”

They bowed in unison. Star Fall went up to the door and knocked. It was opened by Applejack, who smiled at the sight of her. “Star! Well ain’t you a sight for sore eyes! Come on in, we’ve been hankerin’ to talk to you all day!”

“I’m sorry, I was, uh, not feeling well,” Star Fall said as Astrid snickered. She shot her guard a warning look before the two of them filed into Applejack’s room.

The three ponies inside were in a clear state of distress. Dash was hovering near the ceiling, bolting back and forth like a nervous hummingbird. Rarity had stationed herself near the window. Her elegant violet dress was fit for a ballroom, but the expression on her face was one of incredulous anger. Applejack stood by her bed, looking unhappy herself. All three turned to Star Fall as soon as the door was closed and began speaking at once, their voices fighting to be heard over each other.

“Star! You gotta tell me–”

“–most horrifying–”

“–don’t make no sense–”

“–and they know it–”

“–like, absolutely uncool–”

“–ain’t proper at–”

“Whoa!” Star Fall shouted, flaring her wings and stomping her hooves to halt the onslaught. “What the hell is going on here? One at a time, please!”

The three looked to each other, Dash and Applejack nodding to Rarity. “This morning,” she began, pacing back and forth with uncontrolled agitation. “I was speaking with the Queen. She let it slip that our servants were being offered their freedom for aiding us.”

Star Fall waited, but Rarity just looked at her expectantly. “And?” she asked.

“And she all but admitted that most of the ponies in the castle are slaves! Slaves!”

“Now, let’s not jump to conclusions, Rarity,” Applejack said. Rarity just let out an angry snort and went back to her pacing. “You said she called them ‘indentured servants’. Now I think that word means the same thing as you do, but I’ll allow that I could be wrong, and I think we should give Star a chance to explain.”

“Yeah, Star,” Dash said. “Tell me I’m not working for the bad guys!”

“Bad guys? What?” Star Fall put a hoof to her forehead, trying desperately to find a way to talk about this subject that wouldn’t be a total disaster. “Okay, so let me get this straight. You found out your servants were indentured, and now you want to know…”

“If the Kingdom is, like, evil or something,” Dash said.

“Right. First of all, no, the Kingdom isn’t evil. If it was we’d be wearing more black.” Star Fall smiled at her joke, but there was practically no reaction from her friends. Her smile slowly fell away as she realized the subject wouldn’t be deflected so easily. “This is… wow, this is heavy economics and ethics stuff.”

“Explain it to us, Star,” Rarity begged her. “Tell me that I am mistaken. Tell me that Equestria has not fallen this far!”

“Seriously?” Star Fall shook her head. “I… don’t think I’m qualified to explain the indenture situation.”

“Please, Star,” Dash said. “We’re trying to understand.”

“Why is this such a big deal to you guys anyway?” Astrid asked, leaning against the wall.

“‘Cause it’s wrong!” Dash replied.

“It’s life,” Astrid retorted.

“Astrid,” Star Fall said, silencing her guardian. She sighed and ran a hoof through her mane, her wings rustling as she thought about how to explain. “Guys, I don’t know what to say. This is something that’s been part of the Kingdom for, Celestia’s day, six hundred years? It’s been debated pretty heavily for just as long. I could probably give you a history lesson about it, but talking about the morality of it? No. There’s just too much for me to even begin explaining it.”

“Forgive me, dear, but I don’t see how this even warrants debate,” Rarity said. “This is exploitation!”

“Yes, but… It was a way to escape poverty,” Star Fall said. “A way to gain protection and to be taken care of when times got tough. A lot of ponies only survived because they were able to indenture themselves to a noble. Hell, there are entire bloodlines of hereditary servants, guards and farmers that got their start that way. In the hard times it was popular with the people, and the steady supply of labor made it popular with the nobles. It wasn’t about exploitation, it was...” she trailed off, waving a hoof at her helpless inability to continue.

“You’re tryin’ to make it sound like it as a good thing,” Applejack said. “But I’m not hearin’ much conviction from you.”

“It’s not a good thing, and it never was,” Star Fall said. “But it worked. Once. Not anymore.”

“Way to keep it objective, Fall,” Astrid said with a snorting laugh.

“What do you mean?” Rarity asked her.

“Fall’s an abolitionist,” Astrid said. “She wants to gut the whole system. Indenture, hereditary service, serfs, all of it.”

“Like Dash said, it’s wrong, and it doesn’t work,” Star Fall said.

“So what do we do?” Astrid demanded, stepping forward. “Make everybody slaves to money, like in the nightlands?”

“No!” Star Fall protested. “We do something better!”

“Whoa there!” Applejack said, getting between them. “I guess this is somethin’ you two disagree on.”

“Yeah, a lot,” Astrid said, backing off and slowly opening and re-folding her wings. “I got no problem with the system as-is. If it’s not broken, why try to fix it? Not that I’ve got a stake here, it’s not like changing it will affect Griffins anyway.”

“I’m sorry, Astrid,” Star Fall said. “I keep snapping at you today.”

“Don’t get your feathers ruffled about it,” Astrid said, then gave the other three ponies a pointed look. “Guys, this is a sore point, okay? Mention this stuff in public and it’s gonna get a lot of people’s blood up.”

“Aqua said the same thing,” Rarity said, sighing and dropping into a seat, the picture of resigned misery. “The Queen, I mean. She said it was a sore point.”

“She’s an abolitionist too,” Astrid said. “Most of the Royals are.”

“They’re also the biggest contract holders in the Kingdom,” Star Fall grumbled.

“You’re about to be one of them,” Astrid reminded her.

“So what you’re sayin is,” Applejack said before Star Fall could retort. “That you folks have had slavery for a while–”

“Indenture,” Star Fall corrected. “Not quite the same thing.”

“Whatever you’re callin’ it. It’s been around for a good long while, and like all bad traditions it’s somethin’ that got stuck and gettin’ rid of it’s gotten to be like pullin’ a big stump out of a stony field. It takes a long time and effort, and it’s got so many roots that in the end you might just be makin’ the field untillable anyways, so a lot of folks are arguin’ just to keep it and plow around it. That sound about right?”

“I… guess,” Star Fall said. “Like I said, it’s complex.”

Rarity let out a sigh. “This all seems perfectly awful to me.”

“Yeah, Star. This is bad guy territory,” Dash agreed.

“Dash!” Astrid snapped. “Enough with the bad guy crap, alright? I told you how Griffins operate. You think I get paid?”

Dash looked like she was about to snap back, but backed down and nodded. “Yeah, sorry.”

“Astrid’s right,” Star Fall said. “This isn’t about good or bad. This is about something people did to survive a long time ago, and they just never stopped doing it. But a lot of people are looking to change it, and I’m one of them. When I’m a princess I will do my best to make that change happen,” Star Fall promised. “Is that good enough for now?”

Rarity heaved another great sigh, but nodded. “I… yes. I suppose it will have to be, won’t it? It was just so shocking! I hadn’t thought…”

“A lot of people don’t think about it,” Star Fall said. “Now, in that grand tradition, can we talk about something else?”

“Of course, darling,” Rarity said, very obviously forcing her misgivings out of her mind. “Now, tell us what happened last night.”

Star Fall gratefully fell into telling them the entire story, starting from when she had met the Prince in his room all the way up to when Twilight Sparkle had kissed her on the head.

“I knew I felt Twilight!” Rarity said, clapping in delight. “Does this mean she didn’t die back then, like the rest of us?”

Star Fall shrugged. “That’s one of the tough parts of history where not a lot of information survives. I think she’s mentioned as being around as late as the Schism, but it always has the feel of a rumor, or a legend. Whether or not she lived that long, she was gone from the public around the same time you all, uh, died. No more books, no more letters, no more great deeds. I suppose we could ask Spike about it, but when he talked about her, it was never anything past that point either.”

“Could that be because she was in this, what did you call it? Deep Power?” Rarity asked.

Star Fall shrugged. “That’s a good possibility. If she transcended to the Deep Power, it would explain why she isn’t around, but there’s also no mention of her death.”

“Does this mean she won’t come back from her statue?” Dash asked.

“I wish I knew how you came back from a statue,” Star Fall replied. “I can’t even guess at how that works. Maybe she will, maybe she won’t.”

“If it takes someone dyin’ to bring us back,” Applejack said. “I’m hopin’ she won’t, if you catch my meanin’.” There were nods all around to that sentiment. “So, Star, what’s this all mean for us?”

“I don’t know,” Star Fall said. “I’ve been spending every moment since it happened thinking about it, and I still don’t know.” She closed her eyes, taking in a shaky breath. “I just know that when she stretched her wings out to me, something changed. Whether it was in me, or in her, or in the Deep Power, or something else, I don’t know. But it was important, very important.”

“Whatever it was, Twilight wouldn’t let anything bad happen,” Dash said, dropping down next to Star Fall. “Maybe she’s out there right now, finding a way to help us.”

“I wouldn’t doubt it,” Applejack said. “And if she likes you, Star, it only shows her judgement’s still good after all this time.”

“I hope you’re right about that,” Star Fall said.

“She’s right, Fall,” Astrid said. “Don’t you even think of questioning it.”

“Thanks guys,” Star Fall said, smiling at them. “I don’t know how I’d get through this without you.”

“Hey, we’re friends,” Dash said. “It’s what we do.” A moment later the smile on her face was replaced by a frown as a new thought crossed her mind. “Wait… wings?”

Chapter 25: Leavetaking

The bonds between bearers are just as important as the bonds between bearer and Element. Time and again the Elements have reacted to reaffirmations of friendship between bearers, showing a marked increase in the availability of Activated and Passive abilities when bearers are in accord. In fact, this effect can be observed even when the bearers share simple moments of friendship. A picnic, a party, a shared meal. Even as small a gesture as a shared smile creates a sympathetic reaction in the Elements. The force of this effect grows exponentially the more bearers are sharing in that moment.

Of course, the opposite of friendship also has this effect. An argument that comes to blows, an unfriendly competition, a vehement disagreement. Wherever bonds turn poisonous, there is also a corresponding rise in the power of the Elements. This is likely connected to the phenomena of Inversion, which I will discuss later.

It is important to note that that these moments must be shared. A bearer who smiles at another does not create this effect unless that other smiles back. Mutuality is the key. The moment must also be genuine. If there is no feeling behind the gesture, there will be no reaction. I believe this is a precursor or side-effect to the full-fledged Magic of Harmony. It certainly points to the fact that the interactions between Element and bearer are far more complex than they seem on the surface.

What that says about the nature of the Magic of Harmony, and its effects upon those who experience it, is subtle but important. The Magic of Harmony either arises from or directly creates a high-level synchronization of the bearers. Either way the effects of that synchronization persist in strange and unpredictable ways well beyond and outside of a Harmony Event. This suggests that it is possible to force such an accord, and that what happens to one bearer has a distinct chance of being carried over onto all others.

I do not need to point out the potential for cataclysm in this proposition. Though what is worse is the possibility that it has already happened, and we have simply failed to notice.

-From the fifth section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Twenty-Five: Leavetaking

Of the many grand rooms that the Court of the Sun boasted, the Solstice Hall was by far the grandest. It was certainly the largest, with two floors of galleries to look down on the long, white floor that led up to the dais upon which the Solar Throne sat. The pillars of the room were draped with banners of past kings and queens, and with the colors of the noble families that stood beside them. The domed ceiling was emblazoned with an enormous golden sunburst, balconies and perches for pegasi and Griffins hanging between the rays of the painted sun. All available space was full, with unicorn nobles and their retinues, businessponies and religious leaders, servants and diplomats, and one Dragon that had long ago earned his place within the hall, all waiting for the great announcement from their king.

A fanfare announced the arrival of the Royals, a procession that included more than a dozen winged unicorns who walked with studied grace to take their places to either side of the Solar Throne. Behind them came the King and Queen, whose own measured steps were followed both by every eye in the Hall and also by cameras that were sending their image to the great screens set up for the benefit of the great crowd that had gathered outside the castle. They ascended the dais together, the Queen whispering a few final words in her husband’s ear before taking her place on a smaller throne next to his. Then the King turned to regard his audience, his wings wide and his horn glowing with power.

“May Celestia’s light warm and guide us and all subjects of our Kingdom,” the King said, his voice enhanced by both his own magic and the speakers placed surreptitiously throughout the Hall. The audience stilled as he spoke the traditional opening of court. “Today,” he continued. “We have many reasons to celebrate. Today, I bring you a message of hope, a message of strength, and a message of change. First, I have the honor to welcome to our Kingdom three heroes that have come to us in incredible circumstance. From beyond the mists of the Schism and through strange magics they have come. They were subjects of Celestia herself when the Goddess still walked our world, and she honored them. I present to the Kingdom, before the light of Celestia, the Lady Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack! Come forward and be known!”

On their cue, and with only a little prodding from Star Fall, the three named ponies began their long walk up to the throne. The days since they had arrived had not been spent idle, and they had practiced their part in this ceremony to a polished ease. Rarity had put her free run of the tailoring workshop to good use, crafting an outfit for each of them that spoke to their history and character. She’d had to rein in her more flamboyant impulses, since after seeing some of the outlandish costumes the nobles of the Solar Kingdom were wont to wear she had decided that a more subdued approach would be more unique.

Rainbow Dash took the lead, keeping her wings stiff to hide the trembling excitement of having so many ponies watching her. Her outfit took inspiration from old pegasus military armor, and included a lot of silver that reflected the many colors of her mane. Applejack was to her right, dressed in vibrant reds and greens that reminded Dash of Sweet Apple Acres whenever she looked at them. Her hat, securely on her head, still looked out of place, but Rarity had done her best to make the rest of the outfit work with it instead of against it. Rarity was to her left, and her own dress was a diaphanous blue –the same shade as her magic– that sparkled with sequined gems. She walked with her head high and her poise perfect, ignoring the gathered nobility that surrounded them.

They stopped before the throne and bowed to the King, who dipped his horn in acknowledgement and gestured for them to rise. “In this time of uncertainty you have come to us, my friends. A light cast into the future by our Goddess, a renewed hope.”

As the King continued speaking, Dash tuned him out and leaned over to Rarity. “He’s laying it on a bit thick, huh?” she whispered.

“He sent us this part of his speech to look over,” Rarity replied. “Didn’t you read it?”

Dash blinked at her in surprise. “Wait, you can read Solar? Since when?”

“Since I decided not to be an unlettered barbarian and learned to speak it and read it at the same time!”

“Would you two quit it?” Applejack growled. “We got lines in this shindig, and I don’t want to miss them and look like a darned fool.”

“I didn’t know we could learn to read fast too!” Dash hissed. “Why doesn’t anypony tell me these things?”

“‘Cause you don’t shut your yap long enough to listen!” Applejack answered. “Now hush!”

Rainbow Dash did as she was asked, listening to the King recite some of the things she and her friends apparently did later in life. He referenced some of the same battles that the Professor had mentioned –Tartarus Dragons, Chrysalis, Celestia Nova– though he didn’t provide any more details on just who those enemies were. She wondered for a moment why he didn’t include their fight with Discord, considering how powerful an enemy he had been. She guessed with all the awesome bad guys they had fought later, one crazy Draconequus who got turned to stone pretty quickly didn’t rate a mention.

Finally he finished, ending with a call for each of them to step forward and declare themselves. They’d been drilled on what to say at this part, each following the same basic pattern. They each declared their name, where they were born and when, then they ‘proved’ their identities by performing feats that showed they were, indeed, pre-Schism ponies. Rarity went first, displaying some of her magical power by making a dozen ponyquins spin a few circles through the air. Dash showed off some of the more indoor-safe flying moves she knew, leaving a glowing rainbow trail that lit up the Hall. Applejack was given an immense weight to lift and carry, which she did without apparent effort or any appreciable showmareship.

There was applause, though Dash didn’t see how any of that would convince most of the people watching, and the King stood for another part of his speech. “I welcome these three into the Solar Kingdom, to the place of honor that is their due. These three are hope. Hope that the Goddesses have seen fit to give us. And it is a hope dearly needed!” His countenance grew dark and he let his wings droop in exaggerated sadness. “The Shadowed Alicorn walks the Kingdom.” There were gasps at this, and they could hear a great cry going up from the crowd outside. Then the King brought his head up, radiating defiant triumph. “But she has not found us easy prey! I bring you now a message of strength! The strength of our Kingdom! The strength of our Goddess, and the hope she has brought us! Strength enough to confound the Destroyer! I present to the Kingdom, before the light of Celestia, the Lady Fallen Star and Sergeant Astrid Steelwing! Come forward and be known!”

Star Fall and Astrid made their way up to the dais. Both of them wore outfits of red and gold. Astrid’s was clearly military, with medals and ribbons pinned to her breast, while Star Fall’s was a gown that made her look as refined as any of the unicorn nobles watching. They bowed before the King and Dash stepped up next to them.

“These three stand before us as heroes, not of a past age, but of our present need!” the King said. “Some weeks ago, the Destroyer attacked, and it was these three who together fought her to a standstill, and then, defeat!” The roar from the crowd outside could be heard even through the cheers within. “They have shown courage and valor of the highest calibre! They have embodied the strongest virtues of Celestia’s kingdom, and shown us all that the Destroyer is not unbeatable! Yes, her power is great and terrible. We are right to fear her. But we will not be ruled by our fear! As these heroes have shown courage, so shall we all! As these three have shown valor, so shall we all! The Nightmare is strong, but we are stronger! As these three have proven themselves heroes, by Celestia’s light so shall we all!”

The cheers, once again, roared in. Dash, however, couldn’t bring herself to bask in them. Not for this. Fighting Umbra hadn’t been some heroic feat for her, it had been a terrifying rush of narrow escape after narrow escape. Even though they had beaten Umbra in the end, it still hadn’t felt like a victory. Especially not after Star Fall had explained how the Nightmare hadn’t really been taking the fight seriously. She knew the value of a good rousing speech to keep morale up, but to her the King’s words fell flat. They weren’t stronger than Umbra, and all the cheering in the world wouldn’t change that.

The King commanded Dash to come forward, jarring her out of her thoughts. "Kneel before me," he said. She did not remember this part from the rehearsal she’d done. She shot a quick look around, searching for any sign that this was the wrong thing to do, before stepping up to the King and bending her forelegs to him. "For your service to the Kingdom in facing down the Shadowed Alicorn, I grant you the lands of your battle with the Nightmare, and decree that the new lake in those lands is to be henceforth known as Rainbow's Victory, a monument to your stand against the power of a Goddess." There were murmurs that rushed through the crowd like the ripples of a stone thrown into a still lake. "Furthermore," the King continued, a sly smile touching his otherwise stern countenance. "I hereby grant you the title of Dame Rainbow Dash, and raise you to the peerage as a Knight of the Sun." He dipped his head and laid his horn to each of Dash's shoulders in turn, and it was done.

The crowd fell into a hush so quiet that Dash could hear the tinkling sounds of something being dropped to the stone floor. Then the Hall exploded into noise as it seemed like every pony began shouting at once. Dash looked around at Star Fall. Her jaw was hanging wide open before she shut it with a quick snap, her expression changing to a wide grin and her eyes sparkling at some realization. Something big had just happened.

Dash looked to the King for some direction, and he gestured for her to rejoin Star Fall and Astrid. She rose and returned to her place, taking advantage of the noise of the crowd to speak to her friends. “What’s the big deal?”

“You just got raised to the nobility,” Astrid said, punching Dash in the shoulder. “And that’s giving every horn-head in the room a stroke. Congrats, my lady.”

“What?”

“Dash, remember when I told you that only unicorns were nobles?” Star Fall asked.

“Except you, right?” Dash replied.

Star Fall nodded. “Yes, except a very few ponies in my situation. Well… you’re not in my situation, the King just declared you nobility. He gave you lands and everything! That’s… unprecedented for a pegasus.”

“Can he do that?” Dash asked.

“He’s the King,” Astrid replied with a shrug. “Who’s gonna tell him he can’t?”

“It’s genius,” Star Fall said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if Gamma convinced him to do it.”

“What’s so smart about it?” Dash asked. “I’m still kinda lost on the whole ‘I’m now a noble’ thing.”

“I’ll explain it later,” Star Fall promised. “When we have time. Just… don’t be shocked if you can’t keep the title.”

“What? Why?”

“Politics,” Star Fall replied. “You’re the bone he’s throwing to the nobles so that they can save face after what he’s about to do with me.”

Dash frowned at that, but the crowd was quieting down and the King was signalling that he was about to begin speaking again. "Come forward,” he said, his voice booming over the few conversations that had yet to be silenced. “Sergeant Astrid of the Steelwing clan." Astrid marched forward, saluting the King as she came to a halt. She stood at stiff attention, wings high and proud and beak tilted up. "You have proven yourself time and again in your holy duty as a guardian of the Crown and all it holds dear. Your service in fighting the Destroyer is only further evidence of your dedication and bravery. In recognition of this, I hereby promote you to the rank of Captain, with all the duties and privileges that entails." There was some polite stomping from the gathered nobles at this, they had no stake and very little interest in the goings on of the Royal Guard. The Griffins, however, took this promotion with utter seriousness. They threw their heads back and let loose a cacophonous screech in unison, the mixing avian screams making ponies shrink away and lay their ears flat. Dash smiled at it, she heard the note of triumph and acceptance in that cry.

"Thank you, your majesty," Astrid said when the noise had faded.

"I am placing a great deal of faith in you, Captain," the King told her, his magic lapsing for a moment so that his voice didn’t carry to the crowd.

"I will not disappoint you," Astrid promised, then stepped back to her place.

“And now, at the crossing of hope and strength, I bring my message of change,” the King said. “Come forward, Lady Fallen Star.”

Star Fall stepped up to the dais, keeping her head raised and walking with the high, prancing steps of a pony on display. Dash’s keen eyes caught it when she stole a glance at the Professor, whose own gaze was full of support and love. That made Dash feel better about the whole idea of Star being married off. The Professor, at least, would make sure she was alright.

The King smiled warmly down at Star Fall. "Lady Fallen Star. I have known you for many years. Both as the beloved daughter of my closest advisor, Professor Twinkle Shine, and as the potent, capable mare you have become. I have always known that you were meant for great things, and in your actions against the Shadowed Alicorn you showed that prophecy to be true. You have always been a light of hope to me, even when all others would doubt. In justifying my faith, you have made that hope manifest. In the battle with the Destroyer you showed courage as great as that of your guardian and your friend, and so you embody my message of strength. So I find that you must also bear the standard of my message of change.”

He took a deep breath, raising his head and slowly looking over the crowd. They had gone silent, many leaning towards him, eager to hear what he would say next. Dash could barely keep from fidgeting as he drew the moment out to uncomfortable lengths, as if he wanted to personally meet the eyes of every pony in the Hall. Finally, he looked back to Star Fall and spoke again. “What I do now is not a reward for your services, even though a reward is richly deserved. What I do, I do because of who you are and not of what you have done." He turned his gaze to his gathered family. "Come forward my son, Prince Regal Stature." Regal stepped out of his place, bowing slightly to his father and walking over to stand beside Star Fall. "My son,” the King continued. “You have been diligent in your studies and attentive to your family. You have been wise in your words, and even-hoofed in your deeds. While you are young, I see in you the character of a great stallion. I wish only that you take your place on the public stage so that all the world may see you as I do. But I do not wish this for you alone. It is my wish that these two great ponies may together show the Kingdom a greatness not seen since before the Schism." He smiled gently and looked at Star Fall. "Lady Fallen Star, to you I give an invitation to join my family, at the side of my most excellent son, Regal Stature."

The reaction was immediate, the room erupted into noise greater than any of the previous uproars. The King called for silence, but they were beyond listening. The guards stepped in, threatening force if the audience didn’t heed the King’s command, but it still took more than five minutes for the room to quiet, time that Star Fall spent simply remaining still and looking at her king. "What say you?" He asked her as soon as it was quiet enough. "Will you be my daughter?"

She tried to speak, but no words came from her. She looked down, taking a slow breath and letting her wings take one long sweep before snapping to attention again. Then she looked up at him with a determined smile on her face. "Your majesty, I would be honored beyond words."

"Regal, will you accept this mare?" the King asked, though it was obvious he knew what the answer was.

"I will, father,” the Prince replied with no hesitation.

"Excellent." He looked back to Star Fall. "He will make you a good husband," he said, then smiled that sly smile again. "And, in time, an excellent king."

This time the noise was half cheer, half shocked gasp. There was none of the outraged shouting that had happened before, but the kind of surprise Dash was sensing might be worse than indignant rage. Star Fall’s eyes went wide and she stumbled back. Dash couldn’t help but rush forward as it seemed she would fall. She managed to steady herself, though, and waved Dash off with one shuddering hoof. Reluctantly Dash retreated. She knew that look in Star Fall’s eyes: something really, really bad had just happened. She just had no idea what it was. Astrid, however, seemed to know quite well. Her eyes were hard and locked onto Star Fall with an absolute focus. Her claws curled, making little scratches in the stone, and her entire body was rigid with ready tension. She was like a coiled spring, barely held down and yearning to explode into violent motion.

Star Fall regained her composure and bowed low to the King. It was hard to make out, but Dash was sure she heard her whisper something as her face turned towards the floor. When she rose, the King was holding out a hoof to her, which she took. “Welcome to my family,” he said to her, another private moment, not broadcast to the watching crowds. Regal and Star Fall took places on either side of the King, their flared wings overlapping his in a symbol of his support for their union. “Thus does our Kingdom hear our message! Come, friends! Come, heroes! Come, my family new and old! Let us greet our subjects together!”

He led them out onto the balcony behind the throne. It was a very wide balcony, more than enough space for the entire party as well as a dozen servants who had been coordinating things behind the scenes. When they got outside, the crowd spread out before them roared with approval. They stomped and howled and called out. Dash found herself overwhelmed by the sheer number of ponies standing there. There were thousands of them, probably tens of thousands, spilling out over the courtyard and all through the wide grounds that surrounded the castle.

The Royals waved to their subjects, then made way for Dash and her friends. The King prodded Star Fall into the lead. "Show them, Fallen Star," he said, gesturing to one of his attendants with a wing. "Show them why you are chosen to be my daughter."

The attendant rushed up, clutching a capped tube. He opened it and began pulling out a dozen spell sheets that he set around her. She frowned at the design. "You want me to show off my Talent?"

"They must see," he answered, his voice low and serious. "Otherwise they will doubt my decision, and it could lead to civil war."

Dash frowned at that thought. She was all for Star Fall showing off what she could do, but it couldn’t be that important. Star Fall actually relaxed at the warning. "Won't they accuse you of using your own magic to pretend?" she asked.

He chuckled. "The unicorns will know, and they are the ones who we must convince to accept your place. Go. Show them your power."

She took a deep breath, studying the spell laid out around her. It looked just like every other spell Dash had seen Star Fall make, which meant it could do just about anything. "As above, so below," she whispered, energy beginning to fill the lines of the pages. "As within, so without."

The sheets flared to life, the ink spider-walking across the pages, even crossing the space from one page to another as they all lifted into the air and began to orbit her slowly. The first spell took hold and Star Fall's aura became visible, a crimson glow surrounding her like fire. She spread her wings and took off, rising to hover ten feet off the balcony, drifting forward over the crowd. The next few spells activated, sending glistening sheets of light out in all directions, in clear imitation of the massive aurora effect she had created days earlier. The crowd gasped in awe at the display of power, many likely remembering that earlier aurora and making the proper connections. The last spells ignited in a burst, sending pulses of magic out in streaks of crimson that exploded into showers of multicolored light. Fireworks to celebrate the engagement.

Finished, she drifted back to the balcony and set herself down, breathing heavily from the strain of such wide-ranging spells.

"Well done," the King said.

"Yeah, Star, that was awesome!" Dash crowed, hitting her with a body-checking hug that nearly toppled her. "A little short, but it was almost as good as..." Dash trailed off. Her face went slack as she stared out into the crowd. Something was out there. Something that demanded her attention, that she find a way to get close immediately. An image of green eyes flashed through her mind. A voice speaking to her, fast and low. Instructions. She had to get closer, out into the crowd.

"Dash?" star Fall asked. "Are you alright?"

Dash shook her head. "What? Uh, no. Nothing's wrong. What was I saying?"

"You were saying it was almost as good as something and then you just started staring off into space."

"Oh! Right! Yeah, watch this!" Dash shot out over the crowd, leaving a prismatic trail hanging in the air.

The guards startled, unprepared for the impulsive pegasus. "Dash!" Star Fall called out.

The King held out a hoof, stilling the building alarm. "She is a hero," he said. "Let her have her glory."

Dash raced over the gathered ponies, taking a zig-zag path that left her signature prismatic trail almost close enough for them to touch. She passed over most of them before coming to a sudden stop. She stared, lost in a moment of green light that blinded her to everything else. She shook her head to clear it, looking around at the crowd. She didn’t really understand the impulse that had made her rush out, but so long as she was here she might as well put on a good show for the gathered ponies. So she grinned at her audience and rocketed skyward. She was at the cloud level in moments, taking quick stock of the thin, puffy materials she had to work with. She picked out a few that were good enough and set to work. The eyes of the gathered peoples watched as she became a blurred vortex of motion, spinning around the clouds so quickly that her glowing trail obscured them from view.

Looking down at the crowd she could see the wonder in their faces. It brought a flare of excitement to her heart that very little could match. She even saw the ponies on the balcony staring at her. She could practically hear Applejack saying: "Now what in the heck is she up to?"

She laughed at the thought, they wouldn't have to wait long for an answer. She dropped from the clouds just as the shockwave from her supersonic flight reached ground level. As she flew she drew the clouds out behind her, still wrapped in her ethereal trail like it was a solid thing. She dove for the ground next to the castle with frightening speed, causing many of the watching crowd to cry out in fear for her. They needn't have worried, but their reaction just made it all the sweeter. Dash pulled out of her dive a hundred feet above the ground, turning it into a curving flight that shot her in an arc above the castle, dragging the caught clouds into a thin line behind her. Just as she reached a similar point above the ground on the other side of the castle she reverse direction, rushing back along her trail and igniting it into a blaze of light that, for a brilliant moment, outshone the sun.

People shouted, some fainted, but most just stood staring with wonder. When the glare cleared, there was a moment of awed silence before the crowd leapt once more into wild cheering. Above the castle, shining bright and solid, was a brilliant rainbow.

Rainbow Dash flashed over the crowd, grinning from ear to ear and holding her hooves raised in triumph. The crowd roared all the harder, and she soaked in the adulation. The rainbow she had created began breaking up and fading immediately, and any pegasus from her time would have pointed out how it was really shoddy rainbow-work. But it was a good show-trick for the ground-bound ponies, and in this future that included pretty much everyone. She made one more circuit of the crowd before heading back to the balcony, vibrating from the rush of performing for such a large crowd.

"Huh,” Applejack sighed, looking to Star Fall and shaking her head. “She just had to upstage you, didn't she? Don't you mind, she's always been like that."

Dash crashed down between them, throwing a wing over each pony. "Now that,” she said, laughing. “Is how you start an engagement party!”

***

Charisma woke with a feeling of deep unease churning in her guts. She had been dreaming of their passage through the Everstorm, always a harrowing experience. Yet there had been something else in the dream, a presence that had haunted her for weeks now. Rainbow Dash. For some reason the other mare had been there in the Everstorm, hidden by the swirling mist and mad lights but there all the same. Waiting.

Charisma stood and stretched, feeling the strain of sleeping on the ground in her stiff legs. Her wings flapped lazily as she limbered up, catching the cold air and swirling it into eddies of icy pressure against her sides. She'd fallen asleep next to a quiet mountain lake, a sleep born out of the lethargy only supreme boredom could bring. Cash had made good on his promise to show her his childhood home, and she had found the experience so far to be less than stimulating. With the way the locals deferred to him, Cash was clearly in no danger. Every authority was securely in his pocket and every spy or undercover police officer had been rooted out long ago. No one would try to attack him here, and that made her presence pointless.

Not that she wasn't feeling increasingly pointless already. With each Element Cash collected his power grew. She'd seen the effects of that power, and the memory of Melody’s wild eyes made her shudder every time she thought of it. She doubted that any but the subtlest of assassins could reach him anymore.

Yet he wasn't invincible. His actions against the Destroyer showed her that much. He had needed her then. Her mind flashed with the light of a crimson gem. For a moment she was overwhelmed by the memory of flying faster than she had ever thought possible, feeling once again the crushing pressure and incredible freedom of it. Her wings snapped open, straining with an echo of that feeling, that power.

She would have taken flight then, though she had no destination in mind, but her chest suddenly seized up and she fell to her knees, coughing. The wracking cough ripped through her, taking up her whole body, like every muscle was working to expel whatever had caught in her lungs. There was a sound like spilling water, almost unheard, and the coppery taste of blood filled her mouth.

She got herself under control for a moment, though it still felt as if there was more to get out, and looked down at the blood-spattered ground before her. She stared for a long moment, her mind blank. That was a lot of blood, as much as she would have expected from a knife wound, but she knew she wasn’t injured.

"So soon," she whispered, wiping at the blood with a forehoof, smearing it across the grass. There were clots of tissue amongst the blood, bits of her insides torn out by her coughing. "Dammit, Max, this is too soon."

She staggered away from the bloodied ground and over to the still lake. She coughed every few steps, bringing up more blood and tissue and spitting it to the grass. She fell to lie at the edge of the icy water, looking at the glassy surface and seeing her reflection in its almost mirror-clear water. There was blood staining the pink coat around her muzzle. It made her look vicious, savage. Appropriate enough, but hardly presentable.

She dipped her face into the water and set to scrubbing herself clean. It took some time, but blood always did, regardless of whose it was. When she was finished she was fully awake, and ready to go back to Cash.

The flight back was bracing, the high mountain air reminding her of the arctic training she had done back in the sunlands. Horseshoe Valley was actually fairly high above sea level, which gave it a climate that she didn’t usually see this side of the Storm. That climate, combined with the way the surrounding mountains affected affected rainfall, left the valley very fertile. A fact that made it a prosperous area despite its remoteness from the rest of the Republics.

The house she made her way to was a large one for the Valley, set on a hill a little ways from a swift-flowing river that rushed down from the mountains. She could see the lights of the main village of Horseshoe Valley only a few miles away. An easy trot for company or supplies, but far enough to ensure privacy. She wheeled around the house, spotting her employer sitting by a stone pillar in the yard.

She landed quietly behind him, folding her wings and watching him for any sign that he had noticed her. He didn’t move, looking at the elaborately carved pillar with a faint smile on his face. Her Talent hissed deadly instructions at her, but she shut it out. She stood there for long enough that it became uncomfortable before he spoke. “You know, they say you can’t go home again. I always found that expression confusing. I mean, here I am, right? Home. Again. What do you think? Am I missing the point.”

She sighed. “As someone who actually can’t go home again, I don’t particularly care.”

He made an amused, thoughtful sound. “Maybe it’s in the details. Can this really be home when the people who made it my home are gone? What about you? If you could go back, would it still be your home if your family wasn’t there anymore.”

“How long are we staying here?” She would not discuss her family with Cash. Not even tangentially.

“I don’t really know,” he said, chuckling. “How long does it take to go from the middle of the southern jungles to Orion City?”

She rolled her eyes. “Max, I’m not kidding. How long?”

“Patience,” he chided, reaching out to lay a hoof on the pillar, just above where two names were carved into its surface. “Sometimes it takes a while to get what we want. Acting too soon only gives everyone else time to figure out what you’re up to and get in your way. I’m not going to let anything get in my way, Charisma. No matter how bored you get.”

“I hate to break this to you, Max, but they already know what you’re up to,” she quipped. “Remember all those people you’ve been telling me not to kill? The people who have personally seen exactly what you’ve been doing and, in at least two cases, know how dangerous it’s making you? They know, and they will tell everybody else. Your best chance is to move now, before they gather their forces and attack us en-masse.”

“It’s always nice to see you doing your job,” he said, turning to face her. “Well, you know as much as any of them do, what exactly do you think I’m doing?”

“You’re gathering these Elements,” she said. “Learning to use them.”

He nodded slowly. “Yup. Then what?”

“Then…” she trailed off, realizing that she didn’t know. “You… take over the world?”

He laughed, as if genuinely amused. It was a casual dismissal that grated on her nerves. “If I just wanted that I could have done it with Loyalty alone,” he said, shaking his head. “Guess again!”

Her discipline training helped her not stomp a hoof in frustration, but it was a near thing. “Fine. I don’t know. If you’re not looking to conquer the world, then what?”

He stepped closer to her, his eyes taking on that strange quality that made it impossible to look away. “Good question,” he said. “But if you don’t know, then I’m fairly sure they won’t either. Do you know what the secret to a really good con is?”

She couldn’t move, but she embraced that paralysis. Her Talent screamed at her to attack, to kick at his ribcage and smash it in until bone pierced his heart. She swallowed the need to strike. “Enlighten me,” she said, her voice shaky and weak, but still defiant.

“The secret to a really good con,” he said, leaning in so that his mouth was right next to her trembling ear. “Is to make sure the marks think they know the game.” He turned away and she sagged as his hold vanished. “Seriously, if you’re so bored, we’ve got a whole valley full of people. Pick a few, kill them in interesting ways, hunt the most dangerous game, I don’t know. Seriously, I don’t care, amuse yourself. We’re stuck here until we’re not.”

She snorted at the idea. “And what will you be doing?”

“Running an empire. Between catching up with my old school buddies and spending quality time with my parents, that is,” he said, sitting down in front of the pillar again. “Enjoy the anticipation. This is the last bit of quiet we’ll get. Once we start moving, we don’t stop until it’s all over.”

“And what happens then?” she asked.

His only reply was a quiet chuckle and a wide, mad grin.

***

The party was held in the Dusk Hall, spilling over into the garden patio where a quartet of ponies provided a chamber-music background to the hushed and hurried political maneuvering being done by huddled groups of the noble and influential. The King and Queen circulated together, making pleasant conversation with their subjects and arguing in furious whispers with each other. Regal Stature had been cornered by his siblings, who were grilling him on exactly how much he had known of their father’s plan. Guards were spaced evenly along the walls, Griffins, their keen eyes watching for any disturbance that might threaten their charges. Between all of these, caught in the spotlight of every eye, were the three mares from the past.

Star Fall took all of this in, her gaze dancing from one group to another with nervous speed. Her experience with the nobility told her to expect polite smiles and back-hoofed compliments as they schemed to control or remove her. Her training with the Secret Service told her to expect a knife in the back. Either way, the fallout from what had happened earlier would be painful. It was already painful enough just knowing what was coming. She wished she could find the Professor; she needed advice on how to handle it all.

“This is gonna take some getting used to,” Astrid sighed, poking at the captain's insignia she now wore.

“I know how you feel,” Star Fall replied, giving her friend a weak smile. “And I don’t even have a tiara yet.”

Astrid snorted out a laugh. “You are going to be the prettiest little princess!”

“Oh, shut up,” Star Fall said, barely restraining herself from slapping Astrid with a wing, though she was grateful for the distraction. “Shouldn’t you be finding my parents or something?” She immediately regretted that question. Any reminder of what she was going to have to do was like a knife in her chest.

Astrid shrugged, sobering for a moment. “I’m a captain now. I get to delegate that shit. They'll signal me when they're here. Besides.” Her eyes narrowed and she poked Star Fall in the side. “The King made sure you’ve got a giant, public target painted on you now. You’ll be lucky if I allow you to go to the bathroom without me.”

Star Fall shuddered dramatically at the thought, but managed a genuine smile. “You’d better not.”

“Watch me,” Astrid said.

“Hey, guys,” Rainbow Dash said, zipping up to them, stalling any further banter between the two. “Do you feel like everyone is staring at you too?”

“They’re not staring,” Star Fall began, then looked around at all the eyes that actually were on them. “Exactly. We are the guests of honor, after all.”

“Yeah, they’re staring,” Astrid said. “And probably up to no damn good. Fucking nobility. I’d compare them to vultures, but at least vultures wait until you’re dead before picking at you.”

“How are you holding up?” Star Fall asked, ignoring her friend.

“Not good,” Dash admitted, her wings twitching restlessly. “Rarity’s doing okay, and AJ’s just kinda waiting it all out, but I’m losing it! Ponies keep wanting to talk to me about ‘council rules’ or ‘taxation grading’ or something. How am I supposed to know any of that stuff?”

“You aren’t,” Star Fall said. “Just be polite and tell them you have people handling it.”

“Do I?”

Star Fall shrugged. “No, but don’t worry about that. Someone will explain it all to you. Gamma will make sure of it.”

Dash hung her head and sighed. “This just isn’t my thing, you know?” Star Fall made a sympathetic noise. “I just need to find… I just need to get out and fly. Do some tricks, practice my routines. We’ve been cooped up in this castle for days, and I need to stretch my wings.”

“What, that giant rainbow-thing you did wasn’t enough?” Astrid asked.

Dash shook her head. “That was a show. I need some me time, alright? No fancy clothes, no crowds, no guards, just me and the open sky.”

“Good luck with that,” Astrid said. “You’re a noble now, at least until the rest of the nobility make the King rescind it in revenge for putting Fall on the throne. You aren’t going anywhere without guards.”

“As if any of them could keep up with me,” Dash scoffed.

“She has a point,” Star Fall said. “But, Dash, if you want to go out, they’re going to insist that you take someone with you.”

“So? What if they don’t know I’m going out?”

Astrid snickered. “Oh, sneaking out of the most well-protected building in the entire Solar Kingdom. Yeah, that’s gonna happen.”

“I’ve done it,” Star Fall said.

Astrid froze, giving her a shocked look. “You what?”

“Years ago. It’s something the young servants do all the time when they want to go into the city without supervision. They let me come along every now and then when the Professor was in an all-night meeting and I was stuck here.” Star Fall smiled at the memory. “It’s in the timing. You have to go right after sunset, when the Griffins are saying their prayers. There’s a whole complicated route you have to take through the gardens, but, Dash, you could just zip across them and into the city. You’d just have to wear something to disguise your mane and not leave rainbows everywhere.”

Dash’s face brightened. “Really? That will work?”

“As long as you’re quick enough,” Star Fall assured her.

“Oh, I’m quick enough. Thanks, Star!”

“Remember the disguise,” Star Fall said. “It can’t be one of the outfits you have, or you’ll be found out.”

“I’ll get Rarity to make me something,” Dash said, turning and starting towards her fashionista friend. “I totally owe you!”

Astrid nudged Star Fall as soon as Dash was talking to Rarity. “You snuck out?”

Star Fall shrugged. “Everyone was doing it.”

“What the hell, Fall! You know how dangerous that was!”

“I didn’t at the time. Besides, it’s not like it actually worked.”

Astrid paused at that. “What do you mean?”

“You think teenagers can sneak out of the castle and no one will notice because they timed it right?” Star Fall chuckled. “No. Gamma’s got ponies watching for this sort of thing. They make sure the servants don’t get into trouble, and tonight they’ll be watching Dash to make sure she doesn’t get into trouble.”

“A bunch of teenagers is one thing, Fall,” Astrid said. “Dash is something else entirely.”

“Which is why,” Star Fall said slowly, scanning the crowd until she found the pony she wanted. “We’ll be giving them ample warning. Come on.”

They made their way between groups of nobles, smiling and greeting as necessary, until they stood next to Gamma, who was herself talking to one of the Griffins. The spymaster dismissed the guard quickly, turning to look at Star Fall and Astrid with a quirked eyebrow. “Whole and unbloodied, I see,” she said. “If this keeps up we might make it through this alive after all. What is it you need?”

“Dash is going to sneak out tonight,” Star Fall said.

Gamma nodded. “I assume you’re the one who told her how and when? No, don’t answer. She made some excuse about needing to ‘let off steam’ or some such, correct?” Star Fall nodded, frowning as she realized that Gamma was surprised by none of this. “Good. Agent Fall, I have a task for you.”

“Gamma–” Star Fall began, but the spymaster cut her off.

“Until the wedding vows are spoken you are only a princess presumptive, and thus still under my command. I will expect that command to be obeyed regardless of your personal feelings about it. Do you understand?” Star Fall frowned at that, but nodded in acceptance. “Excellent. The Professor will be proposing something to the King in the coming days. I need you to oppose that proposal by any means available to you.”

“I don’t understand,” Star Fall said. “What proposal? Why?”

“The why will be clear when the what is,” Gamma replied. “Neither are subjects I will discuss in a public setting.”

“Why do you need me to oppose it?”

“Because I will not be available to do so,” Gamma said. Star Fall opened her mouth to respond, but found that she had nothing to reply with. “I will be absent for some time. I am appointing you to act in my stead on the Privy Council.”

“What?” Star Fall gasped. “But… I don’t…”

“All necessary intelligence updates will be handled by my secretary, Therese. You will be responsible only for standing in my place and opposing the Professor’s proposal.”

Star Fall shook her head. “I don’t understand.”

“You will,” Gamma assured her. Then her features softened and she looked past Star Fall. “Don’t concern yourself with it now. All will become clear soon enough. For the moment, you have more important things to attend to.”

Astrid followed Gamma’s gaze and nudged Star Fall to get her attention. “That’s the signal,” she said. Star Fall felt her heart begin to pound as her wings snapped to attention. “We’ve got to go.”

“This will be difficult, Agent Fall,” Gamma said as they turned to go. “Remember not to let sentiment outweigh necessity. You are making the right choice, no matter how hasty it may seem now.”

Star Fall didn’t respond, sticking close to Astrid as they made their way through the hall and to the door. Once they were out in the halls of the castle, walking quickly towards the servant’s quarters, she allowed herself to take a deep, shuddering breath.

“You doing okay?” Astrid asked her. “Gamma just dumped a ton on you back there, not to mention that the King's gone nuts.”

“No, it’s not that,” Star Fall assured her. “It’s… Am I doing the right thing?” Star Fall asked, wings twitching nervously.

Astrid shrugged. “Gamma thinks you are. How the hell am I supposed to know?”

“Astrid, please.” Star Fall looked up at her guardian with wide, pleading eyes.

“Fine, Fall,” Astrid said with a sigh. “You’re doing the right thing.”

“They’re going to hate me,” she whispered.

“Maybe,” Astrid said, shrugging. “But at least they’ll be alive to hate you.”

“That’s not helping,” Star Fall said, but refolded her wings.

“You’re the one who wanted my opinion,” Astrid reminded her. “Look, Fall, you’re doing the right thing. You know you’re doing the right thing. It’s just like Gamma said: ‘don’t let sentiment outweigh necessity’. You need to do this, right? So why are you so stuck on it?”

“They’re my parents for Celestia’s sake!” Star Fall said. “And I’m going to have them removed like they’re some… inconvenience!”

Astrid stopped, laying a claw on Star Fall’s shoulder and forcing her to halt as well. “Yeah. It's shit, I get that. And you've had all of, what, two hours to come to terms with it? I see you hurting with this, Fall. I know how you work, how you've been picking at this since His Majesty all but handed Regal his crown. I know you're tying yourself in knots trying to see all the damn angles. Well, fuck that. It doesn't matter. There's only one thing here that matters. There's only one question you should be asking: who does this hurt more?” she demanded.

“What?”

“Who does this hurt more?” Astrid repeated. “You or them? In the end, after all the pros and cons of it are weighed, who ends up worse off?”

“I… Astrid, it’s not that simple,” Star Fall said, her head drooping as she stared sullenly at the ground.

“The fuck it isn’t. You want to know if this is right? That’s the question you ask. Does this hurt you more, or them?”

She sighed, shaking her head. “Me.”

“Then it’s the right thing to do.”

“But it will hurt them, too,” Star Fall said, finally looking Astrid in the eyes. “They’ve had to give me up before.”

“So it isn’t anything new for them,” Astrid said.

"It still feels wrong."

"Its supposed to." Astrid replied. "Don't get so twisted up about it."

"Easy for you to say."

"No. Not easy, and you know it.”

"Sorry, I... I'm just not thinking right. I don’t know what I’m going to say to them. I don’t know what they’re going to say, what they’re going to think. I..." She trailed off, just shaking her head.

Astrid nodded. "I get ya, Fall. This succession bullshit is really messing us up. Trust me, I'm not at my best either. Which sucks, because it's my job to keep you alive."

Star Fall snorted. "You’ll do fine. You always have."

"Not always," Astrid said. "But often enough. Come on, you're exiling your parents, the least you can do is not make them wait."

Star Fall nodded and they once more made their way down the narrow servant’s corridors. They came to the small room that had been set aside for this meeting. She could have chosen to use one of the lavish sitting rooms or throne halls, her status as betrothed to the Prince made her practically royalty already, but both she and Astrid had agreed that if they were going to do this right, they would have to do it quiet. That meant that Star Fall's parents couldn't be seen in the grand halls of the castle.

They paused at the door, a pair of Secret Service agents flanking it giving them professional nods. "Do you mind... waiting out here?" she asked Astrid.

Astrid nodded. "Take your time, Fall. If all goes well, you won't be seeing them again for a long, long time."

With a few deep breaths to bolster her, Star Fall opened the door and went in.

***

Astrid watched the door close behind her friend, taking up a place opposite it and sinking down to her haunches. She looked to the Secret Service agents that waited to take Star Fall’s parents away, appraising them with a practiced eye. “Green, Case,” she said, identifying the two who had been sent by Gamma to retrieve her, Star Fall and Dash when they had arrived in the capital weeks ago. “I was wondering if I’d ever see you two again.”

“Really?” Agent Case asked, blinking in surprise.

“Nope,” Astrid replied with a smirk. "You guys know the drill, right?"

Agent Green nodded. "No records, no contact. They'll be safe, Captain Steelwing."

"She's in the Service," Case added. "We take care of our own."

Astrid snorted in acknowledgement and settled in to wait for Star Fall to make her farewells. She was more tired than she had realized, though, and her mind wandered as her body relaxed into a simple resting pose. She thought of the things that had happened in the last few weeks, of the hard choices she and Star Fall had been forced to make. She thought of her charge now, having to explain to her parents that, because the King had made one careless statement in public, they had become weapons pointed at their daughter’s back. That the only answer there could be was to send them away. Astrid didn’t pretend to know much about family, but she knew enough to say that no one would be walking out of that room happy.

She was so engrossed in these thoughts that she completely missed the danger loping down the corridor until it was on her. When she did finally see it, it was too late to do anything, he was already there. She was looking at the ground, so she saw his legs first, claws tense, talons sharp and gleaming. She knew who it was just from the look of those claws, but still slowly raised her eyes to take in the whole of him.

He stood a few inches taller than her and weighed half again as much. The armor he wore did nothing to hide the hard, strong muscles that bulked out his chest and sides. It made him look overweight, but that impression was deceiving, and Astrid knew intimately how much power was in his body. The naturally brown feathers of his head and wings had been dyed a uniform red, a color reminiscent of spilled blood. He glared down at her with a mix of angry frustration and the gratitude of finally seeing someone he had been worrying about.

"Crap," she said, managing to maintain an air of cavalier calm despite tense readiness of her body and the worried pounding of her heart. "Roan. I meant to talk to you."

“Astrid,” he said, his voice caught somewhere between stern disapproval and angry snarl. “You have a lot of explaining to do.”

"Look, I get that you’re pissed, but do you really want to do this now?” she asked. “In front of the twitchy spies?" She cocked her head towards the agents who were watching them. The two ponies looked between the two Griffins with wary caution, and she could see the readiness in them to intervene. She gave them a hard look that she hoped communicated her desire for them to back off. If they didn’t get it, well, she wouldn’t be held responsible for any injuries they might take. This was a Griffin matter, and completely out of their jurisdiction.

"If not now, then when?" Roan asked, his talons scratching against the stone. "You’ve been avoiding me from the moment you got to the castle. I’ve sent messengers, booked formal time. Hell, I waited outside your charge’s room for three hours the day after you arrived!” He strode forward, pushing her back up against the wall until their beaks were nearly touching. “How long will you put me off, Astrid? Until your own body starts eating you alive? Until the Loonies finally attack? Until Celestia returns? When?"

"Fuck," Astrid said with a defeated sigh. She knew he was right. She'd put any conversation with him off forever if she could. "Fine. Let's have it out. You and me, right here, right now. You want to do this the bloody way, or the painful way?"

He looked at her with incredulous amazement. “Are you even going to take this seriously?”

“This is me being serious, Roan,” Astrid replied. “But if you want to be overdramatic, go ahead. Let’s get into it so we can get to the part with the weeping and the gnashing of beaks.”

He snarled and shook his head. "Why can you never just do what you’re supposed to?" He pressed even closer. “Why do you insist on betraying me?”

"Why don't you ever pick the bloody way?" Astrid sighed. She shoved at him, but he was set against it and didn’t budge. "I didn't betray you, Roan. I had a duty to Star Fall. It’s that simple."

"No, it's not," he snapped. "You had a duty to me! To your clan! What about that duty? Why? Why her?"

"She deserves it," Astrid said, her voice softening and her head turning to look at the door behind which Star Fall was facing something much worse than a spurned lover.

"I was waiting for you," he growled. “I was sure you’d come to your senses.”

"You're an idiot," Astrid told him. "And it's too late now. Has been for a while. They've probably got another girl lined up for you, so why wait? Go bug her."

“That’s not what it’s about,” he snapped.

“It isn’t?” Astrid gasped in mock surprise. “Could have fooled me, you know, with the whole ‘duty to you’ crap.”

He snarled in frustration, but controlled his voice. “This isn’t about me. This is about you. About what you’ve done to yourself!”

“I’m fine.”

“The hell you are!” he roared, reaching up to slam his claws into the wall on either side of her head. “I know what you did. Magical healing isn’t safe for large injuries, don’t pretend you didn’t know that. And don’t pretend you don’t know what this means for your breeding potential! Even if the magic doesn’t ever go wrong, they still won’t let you nest again!”

“And I’m fine with it!” Astrid snapped back. “Look, Roan, I get why you’re pissed. I really do. But I’ve been getting the same shit from everybody, and I’m sick of it. And this being big and threatening crap? It might have been sexy as hell when we were teenagers, but it’s winning you no points now, and I’m done with it.”

She snapped her beak out, grabbing his foreleg and wrenching it away from the wall. She bit hard, tasting blood and holding on as he tried to pull the limb away. He shrieked in pain and brought one of his rear legs up to kick her. She reached up with her claws and sank her talons into his shoulders, digging in and twisting her whole body, using his superior bulk against him and throwing him to the floor. She blocked his free claw from slashing at her, but his paws came up to rake at her belly and got a few good kicks in before she managed to spin him onto his stomach. She straddled his back, holding his wings down and dragging his foreleg behind his head, transferring her grip from her beak to a claw. He struggled for a few moments, then subsided. She spared another glare for the agents so they knew not to interfere.

“I expected you to still be a little weak,” he admitted from his pinned position. There was some pain in his voice, but much of the anger had vanished. “Guess I’m wrong again.”

“Magical healing is awesome,” Astrid said. “But that was pathetic. I’ve seen hatchlings kick harder than you. What has the King got you doing? Royal cake-eater and couch-sitter?”

“I didn’t want to hurt you.”

Astrid snorted in derision. “The hell not?”

“Because I care about you.”

"Oh, fuck you,” Astrid growled, jerking on his arm to make him hiss in pain. “You want to use that line? What are we now, ponies? Come on, you're a Griffin! Act like one!"

“I’m trying to get through to you!” he snarled. “But I have no idea what you’ll accept!”

“Have you considered talking about it like civilized adults?”

He clenched his free claw and slammed it into the ground. “That’s exactly what I mean! I did try dealing with it like that and you refused to talk to me!” Astrid hissed in anger, but he continued despite the increased pressure she was putting on his foreleg. “You never listen, Astrid! I’m trying to tell you something important, and you will not stop for a moment to hear it unless someone gets bloodied.”

“Well, the blood’s out,” Astrid said. “Start talking.”

“You knew the consequences of getting too close to your charge,” he said, turning his head so that he could look at her with one angry eye. “But you refused to let another take your place! A year. That’s all it would have taken, and then you could have done your duty to your people and gone back to her. A year! But, no. A year was too long for Astrid to be without her Fallen Star!”

“Getting real close to my patience threshold again, Roan,” Astrid said, giving his foreleg a jerk.

“You’re life isn’t the only one you’re ruining,” he said, wincing in pain but refusing to back down. “You’re famous now. You’re a hero! Who dares the Everstorm and walks in the nightlands? Astrid. Who fought Charisma and lived? Astrid. Who battled the Destroyer herself and came out victorious? Astrid!”

She could see where he was going, but she still didn’t want to hear it. “Alright, enough!” she snapped.

He wasn’t done yet. “Who removed herself from the breeding pool just so she could get back to her charge faster? Astrid.”

Astrid swore, letting him go and standing up. He slowly climbed to his feet favoring the limb she had injured. “Fine. So I’m a damned role-model. Celestia knows we’ve had worse.”

“Not at a time like this,” he said. “We need strong Griffins, Astrid, especially with a war coming. We need to be raising all the hatchlings we can get before the current generation is sent to die. Every Griffin who follows your example is a Griffin who isn’t fulfilling that duty."

"We’re not going to die," Astrid scoffed. “And there’s not going to be a war. The Loonies won’t risk it.”

"You haven’t seen what I have,” he replied. “I've been right next to the King as he was getting status reports. They outgun us. Two to one, at least, and they are gearing up for a fight."

"Shit."

"We've got the magical edge, but that won't last. And if we don’t hold them at the Stile Islands it won’t be about a territorial dispute anymore. They’ll be landing an invasion force on our coast and we’ll all be fighting for our lives. The King will have to send us in to hold the line, and a lot of us are going to die.” Roan sighed, leaning up against the wall and working his hurt foreleg. When he spoke again it was with a resigned sadness. “It's... it's going to happen. I was hoping... Before you got hurt I was going to ask you to try again. To make another nest, get away from your charge, let some other Griffin take over. I thought we had time. I just wanted... before I died I just wanted..."

Astrid snorted again, but her own voice lacked the contempt it had held earlier. "Damn, Roan, you really have gone soft."

"I'm staring death in the eyes," he said. "I won't flinch, but I wanted to be ready when she came for me. A lot of us are doing this, now. Securing the next generation, making sure we don’t leave any regrets behind. I wanted you to be part of that."

"Any girl would do."

"No, they wouldn't. We've been meant for each other since we were hatchlings, Astrid. It was always you, only you."

Astrid shook her head. "Roan, I've looked death in the eyes too. Recently. Twice in one day, even. You know what I learned? I learned that there is no time to prepare, no way to get ready. The Destroyer can break anything you build, and Charisma's better than any training can make you. All you can do, all you can ever do, is fight against it and try to survive ‘till tomorrow. You 'putting your affairs in order'? that's not fighting, that's being suicidal. Fuck that. Fight, you stupid bastard."

"I am."

"You are so full of shit. If you really were fighting you wouldn't be so damn upset about me."

"You're wrong."

Astrid scoffed at that. "The hell I am. Roan, I've got three words for you: Get. Over. It."

He let out a weak chuckle at that. "You really are a bitch, you know."

She favored him with a raptor’s smile. "Makes you wonder why you ever wanted me, huh?"

This time he let out a genuine laugh. "No, it doesn't."

"You gonna give me more of this fatalist bullshit?"

"Just because you don't like the attitude doesn't mean the facts aren't there," he said.

"Roan, I stabbed the Destroyer with her own horn, and she doesn't strike me as the type to forgive something like that. Also, I'm probably going to go fight Charisma again whenever we figure out where she is. War or not, odds are good that you’re going to outlive me."

Roan chuckled again. “I’m serious about the other Griffins looking up to you. You’re going to have to say something to them. Even if you don’t believe the war’s coming, that’s still a problem that’s gotta be killed quick.”

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll do it,” Astrid said, sighing. “And you and me? Am I going to have to watch out for you ambushing me whenever you miss cuddle time?”

He shook his head. “I just needed you to listen. To try to understand.”

“Yeah, I understand,” she said. “So long as we’re done with this crap.”

“We’re done,” he assured her. “By the way, congratulations on the promotion.”

“Thanks,” she said, poking at her new insignia. “It’s shiny.”

“And another thing. I hear you got your talons into Charisma before she beat the shit out of you.”

“That I did,” Astrid said. Roan held out his claw. She did the same and they bumped fists in celebration.

“Teach her to mess with a Griffin,” he said.

“Yeah, she’s scared now,” Astrid replied, and they both laughed.

Then the door opened and Star Fall stepped out, tears dripping from her face. “Astrid,” she said, her voice a whine of pain. “I need to see the Professor.”

“We’ll find her, Fall,” Astrid assured her. She gave a significant look to Roan, who nodded and loped away. Astrid walked up to her charge and laid a comforting wing over her. “We’ll find her.”

***

"I can't let this happen." Twinkle Shine fretted restlessly, pacing back and forth in front of the mirror. "She's not ready for this, she's too young, too innocent."

"The Student Lost Her Innocence Long Ago," the Nightmare rumbled.

"Not like this!" Twinkle Shine cried. "The way the nobles were looking at her! They're going to tear her apart, sweet Celestia, they'll hound her to death!"

"Then Eliminate Them And Be Done With It!" Umbra snarled. "This Incessant Preoccupation With The Student's Well-Being Threatens What Is Left Of The Plan!"

"She's my daughter!"

"She Is A Distraction!" Umbra snapped, the room shuddering in response to her anger. The Professor stood in silence for a moment as the Nightmare glared at her and the wisps of ash that had escaped drifted to the floor. When Umbra spoke again she had settled into a sullen growl. "She Always Has Been."

Twinkle Shine stared at her reflection for a long moment before speaking again. "I need her," she said, her voice fallen to a pleading whimper. "Don't make me abandon her."

Umbra snorted. "I Will Not Allow The Plan To Be Compromised Any Further. Too Much Has Been Lost Already, Too Much Unexpected Interference Has Been Allowed To Occur. Time Grows Too Short For Such Loss Of Focus. Even For The Student, I Will Not Brook Further Deviation."

"There has to be a way," Twinkle Shine said. "There has to be something I can do to stop this. To save her."

"No."

"Yes! I will find it, some way to keep to the plan and prevent her from being torn apart by the damn nobility. I will!"

"Professor?" a voice called out from deeper within the estate.

Twinkle Shine's eyes widened. "Star Fall?"

"See To The Student," Umbra said, her glow already fading from the Professor's eyes. "But Do Not Make The Mistake Of Valuing Her Above The Realisation Of My Purpose."

Twinkle Shine nearly spat out a retort, but held back as she heard Star Fall's hoofsteps nearing. "Professor?" she called out again.

"In here!" Twinkle Shine replied, checking herself in the mirror to ensure she didn't have any stray ash from Umbra's presence on her.

Star Fall nudged the door open, stepping into the room and looking at her mentor with blood-shot, watery eyes. "Star Fall!" Twinkle Shine gasped. "What's happened?"

"I sent them away, Professor," she said, taking a hitching breath and scrubbing at her eyes. "I made them go and I'll never... never see them again!"

"Them?" Twinkle Shine frowned as she tried to understand.

"My parents!" Star Fall sobbed. "I had to... I had to send them away!"

"Oh," Twinkle Shine's ears drooped. "Of course. That must feel like having torn out your own heart," Star Fall nodded. "Well, it was... probably for the best. They'll be safer wherever they end up."

"That's the thing," she said, new tears forming. "I didn't do it for them… I did it for me, Professor. I did it so that they couldn't be used against me!"

With that, Twinkle Shine understood. She stepped to her student and enfolded her in a tight embrace, letting her cry. "It's alright," she said, smoothing her student's mane with a gentle hoof. "It will all be okay."

"Is this going to be me?” Star Fall asked in a hitched whimper. “From now on? Am I just going to be doing things because they're convenient to me?"

"Of course not. You could never be that kind of pony."

"But, what I just did!"

"You did because you had to," Twinkle Shine assured her. "If you left your parents where they were, what would have happened?"

"They... It wouldn't have been good," Star Fall said.

"No, it wouldn't have." Twinkle Shine sighed. "At the very least they would be hounded by the media, their every word and choice scrutinized until they died. Never a moment of privacy. And at worst? Their lives would be used to force you to do terrible things. This was a decision you would have had to make eventually, at least now it was of your own will, and not because some kidnapper forced you to it."

"I know that," Star Fall said. "I know. But.... but it still feels like I betrayed them. It still feels like I'm a terrible daughter."

"You are not," Twinkle Shine quietly insisted. "You are as good a daughter as any parent could ever ask for. They are lucky to have you, and so am I."

"How did you deal with it?" Star Fall asked. "When you became Royal Advisor? How did you deal with sending your parents away?"

"It... wasn't an issue for me," the Professor said, choosing her words carefully. "They died a long time ago."

"Oh," Star Fall's tears stilled. "You never mentioned them before. I knew you were a commoner, like me. I just assumed you... didn't get along with them. Then when I realized what I'd have to do I thought you had hidden your parents too. I never imagined they might be... gone."

"You never knew because I never said,” Twinkle Shine said. “I loved them dearly, but they died when I was so much younger than I am now, I can barely remember what they looked like. I don't even have any pictures of them, anymore. It... hurt to lose them. But I can imagine how much worse it must be for you. Still, you did the right thing, for them and for you. Did you see them?" Star Fall nodded. "And of course they were sad to go, but did they understand?" Star Fall, hesitated a moment, but then shook her head. "Oh. Oh dear one. I'm so sorry."

"They don't see what goes on at the upper levels," Star Fall said. "They just imagine it's like on television, with nobles being honorable and intelligent. They don't know how much propaganda they're fed. They don't know how mean and petty and stupid they can be."

"We can be," Twinkle Shine sighed. "We're all ponies, no matter what our title is."

"They just won't see it!" Star Fall snarled, pulling away from the Professor, her wings snapping open and closed in furious agitation. "I tried to explain it to them, tried to get them to understand, but all they saw was their daughter telling them to disappear!" She stopped, turning back to the Professor with more tears welling up. "My mother... she... she said she wished you'd never found me."

The Professor took a deep breath and nodded. "So they blame me. That's good."

"Professor!"

"It's better than them blaming you,” she said. “Grudges against family are poison, and they kill slowly, but surely. I'd much rather them curse my name to the grave than spend one minute hating you for what you had to do. This way they can forgive you."

"I don't think I can accept that, " Star Fall said. "You're the best thing that ever happened to me."

Twinkle Shine couldn't help but smile at that. "I think Astrid would disagree with that sentiment."

"I wouldn't have met her if it wasn't for you,” Star Fall insisted, stomping her hoof with each pronouncement. “I wouldn't have done anything like this if it wasn't for you. I can't let my parents hate you just to soothe my relationship with them."

"Of course you can," Twinkle Shine said, taking her student in another hug but speaking sternly. "And you will. Many things can change, and the need to keep them hidden will be one of them, I assure you. One day you will see them again. On that day they may curse me for ever being born because I took their baby filly away from them. You can disagree as much as you want with that opinion, but you will hold your tongue and let them think what they may. Then you will embrace them as I'm holding you now, and all things will be forgiven."

They were silent for a long time, warm in each other's presence. Star Fall's tears dried and Twinkle Shine's worries eased. But the world moved on, and like all such moments, it had to come to an end.

"I'm sorry I gave you a seizure," Star Fall said, drawing away again.

"I'm told Prince Stature is mostly responsible for that," she replied.

"He was showing me something," Star Fall said, frowning for a moment in indecision. "I saw Twilight Sparkle."

Twinkle Shine managed to keep her reaction to one of surprise, though she felt the Nightmare stirring within her. "A vision?"

Star Fall shook her head. "Something more. He called it the Deep Power, he said that it's something only his family has."

The Professor nodded. "I know a little of it. Enough to say that you were let in on a very precious secret."

"I saw Celestia there, and Luna too. They were... incredible. Like... I can't even describe it. I remember all the lectures on the nature of divinity, but none of them even came close to what I was seeing. They're everywhere. Pushing and pulling against each other, turning the entire universe around them. And right in the middle, between them, there's Twilight Sparkle."

"Amazing," the Professor said. "So is she a fellow Goddess, or something else?"

"Something else, I think," Star Fall said. "She didn't feel... right, there. Not like she belonged. Professor, she kissed me."

Oh, damn, Twinkle shine thought, barely remembering to frown for the benefit of her student. "Kissed you?"

"On my head,” Star Fall said, touching at the spot. “It was... like she knew me. Do you know what that could mean?"

This Is What Comes Of Preoccupation, Umbra rumbled in her brain. "I have no idea," she said out loud. "Perhaps she recognizes the same qualities in you that were in herself. She was a Magic Talent as well, and I'm sure you share more than just your potential."

"It didn't feel like that," Star Fall said. "It was like.... sorry. I'm dwelling on it because it reminded me of how my mother would... It reminded me of her. And of you. I should… I never mentioned how your gift saved me."

"My gift?" the Professor asked, more than happy to allow the subject to change.

Star Fall fished the necklace from her dress, holding it up to catch the light. "You said it would protect me, and you were right."

"I'm flattered,” Twinkle Shine said. She had all but forgotten about the necklace, which she had made so she could locate Star Fall quickly. “But I don't think even my spellwork was what saved you from Umbra. You did that on your own."

"No, not against the Destroyer," Star Fall said. "Against Cash. He was doing something. We think he was trying to use the Element of Loyalty on me. I've seen what it does to ponies. It's... horrifying. He nearly had me convinced to abandon everything and go with him, but this necklace, your gift, it reminded me of all the people who loved me and cared for me. It gave me the strength to resist what he was doing, kept me safe. I haven't thanked you for that yet."

"Oh, Star Fall, I'm glad. I'm so glad it kept you safe." They shared another quiet moment before her student spoke again.

"This is going to be hard," Star Fall sighed. "There's so much good I can do, but when the King practically declared me queen! That was the moment it all came to me. Everything I'm going to be expected to live up to now. Everything I can't live up to."

"I'm sorry,” Twinkle Shine said, smoothing Star Fall’s mane again. “If there were any way I could make him take it back, I would."

"No," Star Fall said. "No, I don't want that. When Cash was trying to... turn me, he said some things that were true, but that I didn't want to acknowledge. Somehow he had me figured out completely."

"He's a manipulator, a con artist. People like that are good at cold reading."

"I guess, but it felt like it was more than that.” She took a deep breath, her brows drawing down as she set her mind to working an old problem from a new angle. “He saw things, made incredible leaps of logic that should have been irrational, but somehow weren't. It was more than just cold reading, he knew things that I didn't know and that he had no way of knowing. And he was right. He saw right through me and told me exactly what I wanted."

"What you wanted?"

"What I want,” Star Fall said. Then she blinked hard and her eyes went open wide, as if she’d come to some sort of revelation. “What I still want, and what I'm willing to fight for."

"What is that?"

"A choice," Star Fall said, practically shining with new energy. "Thank you, Professor, you've always been there for me, and it means so much."

"I'm sorry, a choice?” Twinkle Shine asked, trying to understand what revelation her student had come to. “Which choice?"

"I'll explain later," Star Fall said, her wings going wide with excitement. "I know what I have to do now. Astrid! We're going back to the castle!"

"Star Fall, what is this about?"

"Choice, Professor!" Star Fall called back as she rushed out the door. "I'll see you later!"

"Of course!" the Professor shouted after her, but did not give chase. "Oh, my little Fallen Star, what are you going to get yourself into now?"

"She Is Going To Further Disrupt The Plan," the Nightmare said from the mirror.

Twinkle Shine turned to face her reflection. "She wants a choice."

"She Has Had It."

"Not a real choice. But that doesn't have to remain so," Twinkle Shine mused. "The world has to know that the Nightmare is returning to her full strength. Star Fall has already said so, but the information has to go further. It has to reach all across the world."

"Yes. I Will Raid The Nightlands And The Nations Across The Oceans. They Will All Know Of My Return."

"That's not necessary," the Professor said. "And it will take too long. The plan has been accelerated, visiting each nation individually isn't an option anymore."

"Then What Do You Propose?"

"Something to reach all of them quickly, something to demonstrate what they have to fear. A grand gesture."

"It Would Have To Occur At A Time And Place When The World Is Watching."

"Yes... and I know just the thing. Something to solve both our worries."

The Nightmare's cruel eyes narrowed with interest. "I Am Listening."

Twinkle Shine smiled, and began to describe her idea.

***

Rainbow Dash paced her room with cagey impatience. Every few steps she looked towards the window, marking the descent of the rapidly sinking sun. A map of the city was spread out on her bed, several places circled in red ink. She'd had to get her assigned servant to pick those places out. She knew the names of what she wanted, but without being able to read all she could do was rely on others. A fact that only increased her agitation, she knew that she had to keep this as secret as she could. She didn’t know why it had to be secret, or why she had lied to Star Fall and Astrid about her need to get out of the castle earlier, but she knew it was important.

She went over her plan again, making sure she had thought it through. She didn't want another 'Daring Do hospital robbery' disaster. At least she didn't have an injured wing this time, it made the getaway so much easier. She just had to figure out how not to get recognized, which wasn't easy considering that every pony in the city knew her face now.

The answer to that problem would have to be the simple disguise that she had put together. Rarity taking over the castle’s tailoring facilities actually worked out for her here, though convincing her friend to make something simple, plain and concealing had been like pulling hydra teeth. Still, she had managed to convince Rarity to make her a simple black hooded sweatshirt. Coupled with an equally plain dress that hid her cutie mark and tail, it would serve to conceal her from the public.

She knew that she was doing something irrational. She knew that whatever was pulling her to go out into the city in disguise wasn't normal. She knew that she should tell someone about it. Someone like Gamma. Yet she couldn’t bring herself to do it. Every time she tried it was like a green light flashed in her mind and what she had wanted to say was suddenly changed to something else. It bugged her, but it also made her curious. She wanted to see what was causing this, wanted to find out why she felt it was so important.

The waiting was the most frustrating part, and the anticipation made her distracted and irritable. She had barely paid attention to what had happened after the big announcement that morning. After Star Fall had told her about when to go, she had all but ignored AJ and Spike at the party, going straight for Rarity and bugging her until she had made the disguise. There were still parties and meetings and receptions and dinners going on, some of which she was supposed to be at, but instead she was here, waiting for the sun to go down enough that her run into the city wouldn't be noticed.

Finally, after an eternity of waiting, the sun set. The world was still lit up with the million lights of the city, but the disk of the sun was down and the Griffins would be making their daily devotions. She donned her disguise, pulling the hood up and drawing it tight so that none of her telltale mane would escape. Then she gently opened the window and flew out.

She moved quickly, but was careful not to go fast enough that she formed a glowing trail, which meant she felt like she was practically crawling as she crossed the gardens surrounding the castle and finally made it into the city. She looked behind her as soon as she was hovering above a busy street, but while she could see some of the guard patrols that were circling the castle, she couldn't see anyone coming for her.

She relaxed a bit, zipping up above the buildings to get a better view of the city. She didn't trust herself to navigate the canyon-like streets since it would be too easy to get lost. She had memorized the map, though, and from a high perspective she could pick out the places the servant had marked out.

She took a deep breath of the high air, feeling the excited tingle of her nerves. There was something going on here, and she couldn't quite grasp it, but she had a feeling all would become clear as soon as she got where she was going. Like she had been in a long race but the finish line was in sight, all she had to do was make one last push.

The city was spread out below her in a sea of lights. It reminded her of the first time she had seen it, flying north with Star Fall and Astrid, still unsure of this new time, still expecting to be sent back home. She had been amazed at the size of the city then. It had looked so grand, so full. Now it was like some of the glitter had worn off. She was seeing beyond the lights and the colorfully-clothed people. She could see the dark patches, the dirt and the grime that inevitably came from so many living so close together. Back in Ponyville the streets had been made of dirt, but they had seemed cleaner than these paved roads scarred with soot and trash.

Still, the sight was breathtaking. She hung in the air, admiring for a long moment before she remembered the urgency of her purpose. She found the spot she had decided to start looking and dove into the streets.

She flitted through alleys and soared above wide boulevards, looking for something she couldn't quite define or understand. It played at the edges of her thoughts and just refused to come into focus. She just knew that when she saw it, all would become clear.

It wasn’t in the first place she went to, nor the second, or the two after that. She was beginning to think that she was chasing a phantom, perhaps some remnant of the dreams she couldn’t remember that left her sweating and shaken when she woke. It was a disheartening thought, but still she felt like she had to press on. Finally, she spotted something that caught her attention and tugged at that strange need she was feeling.

She didn’t recognize what the building was for from its appearance. Squat, two storied with several large metal doors that would roll upward to open. It was old, and it looked like it hadn’t been used for its intended purpose in a few years. There were a half-dozen similar buildings she had seen in her flight, and she would have passed this one by completely if it weren't for the pony sitting out on the roof, playing with a length of pink string.

She dropped to the gravel roof, frowning as the stallion looked up from the complicated weavings of the string between his hooves and smiled. "Firefly!" he called out. "I mean, Rainbow Dash! You're here! Right on time. Or, you know, a week later than expected, I guess. But who trusts calendars anyway, huh? I mean, it’s Sunday, and then a week later it’s Sunday again? How does that work?"

"Blaze?" Dash said, shaking her head in confusion. "What are you doing here?"

"Waiting for you," he said, trying to put away the string with a series of quick, complicated motions that only served to entangle his forelegs completely. He stared at his trapped limbs, for a moment, then shrugged. "We've been waiting for a week! Which is why we expected you here a week ago. Well, not here-here on this roof, because that would be kind of uncomfortable after the first night, which is always the best because that's when you can break out the marshmallows. But if you do that every night then you end up with this weird chalky taste in your mouth and a really bad case of sticky-hoof in the morning, which, well, since you’re not going anywhere anyway isn't so bad, but what if you need to scratch an itch? Having your hoof stuck to your butt for days on end is not a fun experience, trust me. Though I guess if it was a rainy season that would take care of itself. Or if you had a really long tongue. Oh! And showering! It’d work for that too. Not the tongue thing, the rain, because ponies can’t produce enough saliva to properly bathe in. But in any case it isn't the rainy season, so, yeah, my initial point stands."

Dash stared at him for a long moment before she was able to draw her mind back from the zen-like emptiness it had gone to. "What?"

"We gotta go inside! Calumn's been really excited."

Calumn. That name sparked something in her, a flash of green and the memory of a voice. Look for me in the Solar capital. "He's inside?" she asked.

"Yup!"

She didn't wait for him to disentangle himself, shooting towards the propped-open door and rushing down into the building. She passed by open, empty offices and into large, empty space that took up most of the building. Stairs led down to the floor of that bay, and she was halfway down before she found him. He was in his earth pony form, gray coat, blue and white mane, strongly built. She remembered that form in a hazy green-tinged surge of images. Following him down a narrow metal hall, talking to him as he looked near to tears.

“You,” she said, her voice raw with more emotions than she could properly categorize.

He looked up saw her, a small smile crossing his lips. “Rainbow Dash,” he said, green fire flaring all around him and burning away his disguise. More images came to her with that: him tied to a chair, leaping at her, her hugging him. “Finally."

She slammed into him. Bearing him to the floor and driving all the air from his lungs. She smashed a hoof into the floor hard enough to crack the concrete and snarled in his face. "What did you do to me!?"

He wheezed, struggling feebly against her. She let off just enough that he was able to talk. "I'm sorry," he said. "I'll explain everything, I promise!"

“You’d better.”

“I will,” he said. “I will, just let me up and we can talk.”

She wanted to. There was some kind of nagging emotion that told her to trust him. But memories were coming back strong and fast now. She remembered fighting through Cash's mercenaries, looking for Blaze's friend and finding the Changeling who had been looking for her in the Everstorm. Calumn. She remembered how he had invaded her mind, made her love him, and a blistering rage made her blood roar in her ears. But she held back. She also remembered him freeing her, letting her go to save Star Fall. She remembered how conflicted he had been, how she had talked to him about being a better person. Finally, with a cry of frustrated anger, she leap off of him, backing as far from him as she could and taking up a wide, ready stance in case he tried something. "Fine," she growled. "Talk. What the hell did you do to me?"

He slowly got to his hooves, rubbing at the spot where she had hit him. “Luna, you're strong," he said.

"Hey, guys, how's the reunion?" Blaze asked as he came down the stairs. He took one look at Dash's guarded stance and Calumn's pained expression and his smile widened. "Wow, nobody's killing anybody! That's awesome!"

"You said you'd talk," Dash said ignoring the goofy stallion. "So talk."

"I'm from the Republics Intelligence Agency," Calumn said. "It's like the Secret Service here in the Kingdom."

"You're a spy."

"Closer to secret police," Calumn hedged. "Changelings don't usually go into the sunlands anymore."

"You're here."

"Because of you,” he said, sitting down and taking a few deep breaths as he examined his wings to see if she had broken them, “After you beat up a pair of police officers near Orion City, my superiors were worried that you were working with Max Cash. Or that you were some kind of Solar super-soldier. We didn’t know. They sent me to find out as much about you as possible. To bring you back if I could.”

"You aren't taking me with you," Dash warned, crouching a little and setting herself to move.

"I know," Calumn said. He didn’t sound unhappy about that. "I won't try, I promise. But I do need to know what you do."

"I'm kind of part of the Secret Service,” Dash said, "I don't think I should be telling you anything."

“I don't need to know about the Secret Service," Calumn said. "I need to know about Max Cash. And you. From what I saw today, you're going to have the Republics terrified. That could lead to the war starting right now, and that would be bad for everybody. I can stop that, but I need your help, I need your information.”

"You can trust him," Blaze assured her. "He's cool."

Dash looked between Calumn and Blaze, frowning as her instincts warred with her outrage. Finally, she nodded, relaxing her stance. "Fine, but you go first. I wanna know who you are before I tell you anything."

"I told you that my mission was to find out as much about you as I could," Calumn began. "I met Blaze when I was going through the Everstorm. So if you want to blame me for what I did, don’t blame him too. We didn't know you were in the Storm with us, that was as surprising to me as it was to you. After we made it out the other side we were captured by Charisma who took us to Cash's base. You got tossed in with Blaze and… When I saw you there, I was... in a bad way. Cash did something to me, something I can’t explain, but it made me question everything about myself. When I saw you, I... acted without thinking. I thought I could get back what Cash took from me by taking you and finishing my mission. I used my magic to put you in thrall to me.”

“I thought I was in love with you,” Dash said, spitting the words out.

Calumn nodded. “That’s what it can feel like. It’s obsessive, monomaniacal, not like real love at all, but… well, it can get confusing once the magic is gone. It was wrong. I'm sorry. I'm just glad you were able to convince me to be a better person. I've tried to live up to that since."

"You're doing great, buddy," Blaze said.

“Why did I forget about you?”

“I told you to,” Calumn said. “I couldn’t take you with me, and I couldn’t stick around without being exposed and… probably killed. I couldn’t let you expose me either. So I told you to forget about me, and to find me here, in the city. I was in the crowd today, and I used what was left of our connection to give you this address, to tell you to come here tonight. So I could find out what you know and apologise for what I’d done.”

"So, you're not here to bring down the Kingdom or anything?" Dash asked.

"No," Calumn said with an emphatic shake of his head. “I’m just here to find out everything I can about Cash and how you connect to him.”

Dash stared hard at the Changeling. Then she nodded. “You know what? I believe you.”

“Thank you–”

“Still not happy about this whole ‘thrall’ thing you did,” Dash said, cutting him off. “But I believe you’re sorry about it. Have you been taking my advice?”

“I’ve been trying,” Calumn said.

“He’s been awesome,” Blaze put in. “You should have seen him rescuing all those kids from the burning building. Oh, hey, now that you’re a noble and everything, you think you could get them to rename a town for me? I’ve got a real gem.”

Calumn snickered at his friend’s words. “I’m trying,” he repeated.

“Rescuing kids, huh?” Dash asked, her own smile beginning to soften her face.

“Trying really hard.”

“Alright, then,” Dash said. “You want to know about what's going on? This is it." She told them everything. From her waking up in the future through Cash's appearance at Spike's lair. She told them about what they had discovered from Spike about the Elements of Harmony, and what they thought it all meant. She talked for hours, getting into as much detail as she could remember. They listened with rapt attention. Calumn asked questions and Blaze offered his own rambling insights into the minds of Charisma and Max Cash. The sun was threatening to rise by the time she was done, and Dash yawned as she completed her tale.

“So that’s it,” she said. “Is that what you needed?”

Calumn nodded. “More than enough.”

“What are you going to do now?”

“Blaze and I should head back to the Republics,” Calumn said. “My people need to know about this. If Cash is back in the nightlands, he needs to be stopped before he can get more of these Elements of Harmony.”

“Be careful,” Dash said, trying to put as much weight into the warning as she could, an effort that was hurt by another wide yawn. “He can really mess a pony up. I’ve seen it.”

“I’ve had it happen to me,” Calumn said. “I know you’re going to tell your superiors about me and everything I’ve told you. Make sure they understand that whatever he does, it doesn’t go away. I had to… I have to live with it now. I managed to grow from it, but another might not be able to. I’ll make sure my people are ready for it, and you should be doing the same.”

“Way ahead of you,” Dash said.

“You be careful too,” Calumn added. “What the King did yesterday… it was like an earthquake. You might notice the cracks in the floor and the broken windows now, but it’s the coming wave that you really have to worry about.”

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Dash said, flapping her wings to rise a bit into the air. “I gotta go. There’s only, like, a two minute window when the sun rises for me to get back into the castle. At least, I hope so. I never really asked Star how they managed to sneak back in.”

Blaze rushed over and drew her into a tight hug. “It was good seeing you again. If you ever get tied up and thrown in a closet again, remember your old prison-buddy, okay?”

“O… kay?” Dash replied. “I’ll miss you too, Blaze.”

“Good luck, Rainbow Dash,” Calumn said as Blaze let her go. “Luna guide you safely on your journeys.”

“Yeah and… I don’t know, something about Celestia back at you,” Dash said. “Catch you later, guys!” Then she rushed up the stairs and out into the sky, racing the rising sun back to her room.

***

"Now, what does one pack for sneaking into an enemy kingdom?" Rarity mused looking over her improved and extensive wardrobe. The floor was already littered with rejected outfits, most bearing the red and gold of castle livery. Open suitcases were all but empty as she fretted over what to bring on the train the next morning. "Do I dress to impress? Or keep a low profile."

"I don't know if any of this counts as 'low profile', Rarity," Applejack said, helping in the search through Rarity's closet. She tugged on the collar of the suit she wore to loosen it, ripping a few of the seams with a series of snaps that made Rarity’s eye twitch. "I hear they're not as keen on clothing down in the nightlands as there are here. It's probably better if you go without."

"Don't be ridiculous, dear," Rarity scoffed, ignoring the wanton destruction of fine clothing as best she could. "Even if they don't insist on it, a proper outfit will make all the difference in how they see me. So, do I dress the part, in something daring and transgressive, or do I understate it, go for a dress that is more elegant than showy?"

"Somethin' simple," Applejack suggested. "And somethin' you don't mind gettin' all dirty. Dash says that Everstorm's a doozy."

"Well, I don't intend to wear it while crossing that particular monster," Rarity said, musing on a blue and white striped dress that was one of her earlier creations at the castle’s workshop. "I was thinking more for introducing myself to the Republics. I will be accompanying a famous artist, after all."

Applejack hummed over that for a moment, then pulled a purple dress out of the closet. "This one. It works best with Spike's colors. It goes nice with your mane, too."

Rarity grinned in delight. "Why, Applejack! I never imagined you'd have such an eye for fashion!"

"I can be frou-frou when I need to be," she said, pulling her hat low to hide the blush on her cheeks. "Anyway, that's the one. Now if you're done rootin' through your closet..."

"Hardly, dear. This is just one dress, I'll need several more just to be presentable."

"You can't take your whole closet, Rarity."

"Blasphemy!" Rarity gasped.

The two locked eyes for a moment, then both burst out laughing.

"Woo, nelly! I needed that, sugarcube," Applejack said as their laughter subsided. "Ever since we got here it's been all high-falutin' parties and ponies fakin' smiles. I appreciate the clothes y'all have made me and Rainbow, but I've been itchin' to strip off and feel the sun on my back and the dirt under my hooves, if you know what I mean."

"Not entirely, darling," Rarity sighed. "But I understand where you're coming from. The facilities here are, well, extensive, but it lacks all the charm of my boutique."

"It lacks more than the charm," Applejack said, her smile falling away and her tone growing sober. "It's lackin' the most important thing of all."

Rarity refused to look at her friend, instead staring at the sequinned fabric of another dress. "I'm sure I don't know what you mean."

"And I'm sure you do," Applejack said. "Even if you don't want to think about it. I know you, Rarity, and I know you're missin' your family as sorely as I am."

Rarity made a little noise of anger and flung the dress away. "No," she said. "I don't think that one will do."

"Rarity..."

"I do not wish to discuss this, Applejack!" she snapped.

"Well, tough. I do!" Applejack shouted back. Rarity shot her a venomous glare, but the look melted when she saw the pain in Applejack's face. "I ain't got no one else, Rarity. Rainbow Dash doesn't understand, she left her kin behind a long time ago. You and me, we stayed close, and now... and now..."

"And now they're all long dead," Rarity said, her ears drooping. "I... I can't, Applejack. I can't do this. The thought that I will never see my mother or father or dear, sweet sister ever again!"

"It hurts," Applejack said.

Rarity nodded. "It hurts. I have so much to do. A world to understand, a Dragon to take care of... I can't let myself dwell on it or will simply not be able to function."

"I understand," Applejack said. "I completely understand. And that's why I know we need to hash this out now, before it sneaks up on you while you're out in the nightlands and gets you in trouble."

"I can keep it together," Rarity insisted.

"I thought so too, once," Applejack said, touching her hat in sad remembrance. "I don't think so no more."

Rarity paused, frowning in thought. "This isn't about me, is it?"

"No, sugarcube, it ain't."

Rarity squeezed her eyes closed and reached out for her friend, who obliged and returned the hug. "I'm so sorry," Rarity said in a whisper. "I'm a terrible friend."

"No, Rarity," Applejack assured her. "You're just hurtin' too. I figure." Her breath hitched as she choked back a sob. "I figure you mighta got through on your own, with Spike there to help you, but I can't. Not anymore."

"It's okay, Applejack," Rarity said, hugging tighter. "It's okay."

"I just... miss them... so much!" Applejack wailed, tears falling freely as she buried her face in Rarity's neck and cried. Rarity did her best to soothe her friend, but eventually her own tears came to the fore and she was just clinging to Applejack as Applejack was clinging to her.

They cried for a time, not long enough to make the hurt go away, but long enough to exhaust them. Finally, they sat side by side, leaning up against the bed and looking at the open closet once again. "They're really gone, aren't they?" Rarity asked.

"Not gone," Applejack said. "Not so long as we still remember 'em."

"Not gone," Rarity agreed. "Merely... absent." She sighed and leaned more heavily into Applejack's side. "Spike said that Sweetie Belle and Applebloom both were Element bearers after us. Do you think they're going to miraculously appear as well?"

Applejack slowly shook her head. "Sorry, sugarcube. I think this is gonna be us only."

"It was only a faint hope," Rarity said. "Still, there is little I wouldn't do to see my dear sister's smile once more. I can close my eyes and picture it so clearly."

"Eyup," Applejack agreed, letting out a smile at a memory of her own sister. "You hold onto that, Rarity. It'll see you through when times get dark."

"Thank you, Applejack. I didn't realize how much I was holding in," Rarity said, getting to her hooves and holding out a foreleg to help her friend do the same.

Applejack took the offered limb. "I should be thankin' you for lettin' me bawl all over your nice dress."

"Oh, this thing?" Rarity said, indicating the dress she was wearing with a dismissive wave. "I'm not taking this one with me, darling. I'm not going to be broken up about it needing to be laundered."

"All the same, thank you," Applejack said. "So, you still wantin' to take more dresses than you could ever carry when you head south?"

Rarity looked at her selection and laughed. "Oh, I suppose you're right on that. It would be silly to take more than a couple useful dresses."

"Eyup. I'm happy to be a help."

"Now we just have to pick out the accessories," Rarity said, turning her critical eye from the dresses to the plethora of accentuating items that also filled her closet.

"Uh, what?"

"Oh, you know, shawls, capes, mane-clips, that sort of thing," Rarity said, tapping a hoof against her chin in thought as her magic began sorting through the various accoutrements. "Yes, and then makeup, of course, and jewellry. Do you think they prefer silver in the nightlands? They do have a thing for Princess Luna, after all, and I always saw silver as her metal. Oh! And shoes! How could I forget shoes!"

"Oh, uh," Applejack looked from Rarity to the door and then back again. Rarity's rising enthusiasm was an inescapable vortex, though, so with one last forlorn look at the exit she sighed and joined Rarity by the closet. “Well, you will be walkin’ through a permanent storm, so I’d recommend galoshes…”

***

Calumn bit down. He took his time, savoring the flavors that danced across his tongue. Flat, earth pony teeth crunched through the vegetables, beans and other fillings. Finally, he swallowed it down, chasing the food with a long pull from his glass.

“Well?” Blaze asked, leaning over the table in wide-eyed anticipation.

Calumn delayed, smacking his lips loudly and taking another drink. Blaze only leaned farther, practically standing on his chair. When he thought his friend was just about to tip the table, Calumn spoke: “You were right.”

“Yes!” Blaze punched at the air, falling back into his chair so hard that it rocked and almost fell over. If the other ponies in the dingy diner hadn’t been looking at him before, they were now.

Calumn reached out to steady his friend, shaking his head. “You were right. This is the best damn burrito I have ever had.”

“Woo!” Blaze exulted, flushed and grinning. “This calls for some victory karaoke!”

“No,” Calumn said. “This calls for finishing dinner and getting back before it gets late.” He kept his tone light, but firm. In his peripheral vision he watched as the other ponies quickly lost interest and turned their attention back to their own conversations or the big television showing a nightly news program.

“Aww,” Blaze slumped. “But… but… karaoke! You can’t do that in the nightlands.”

“We’ve got a train to catch tomorrow,” Calumn reminded him. “But I’ll tell you what. When we go and see your sister, I’ll take you both out and we can all badly sing random pop songs together.”

“Oh, that would be fun,” Blaze mused, then leaned forward again and lowered his voice to a near-whisper, his eyes darting about furtively. “But she doesn’t like singing.”

“I’ll convince her,” Calumn promised. “Now, can I enjoy my burrito?”

"Sure thing, buddy," Blaze said.

It was their last night in the Solar capital. Train tickets had been bought, what meager possessions they had were packed, and in the morning they would be heading for the Everfree Verge. After that there was just the crossing of the Everstorm, and they’d be home again. This being their last chance, Blaze had insisted on going out and showing off his knowledge of Solar cuisine, and Calumn was in no mood to refuse him.

He followed Blaze from place to place, sampling food or drink or even just the ambiance of the sunlands’ greatest city. He probably would have preferred a quiet night to ruminate on what Rainbow Dash had revealed to them, but Blaze’s infectious enthusiasm was more than enough to allow him to enjoy the night out. So they ate and danced and laughed until Luna’s night was deep and the only places left open were dingy little hole-in-the-wall diners like this one.

Still, for all the fun he was having he was anxious to get back. Rainbow Dash's information was of incredible importance. Straff would need to know everything about these Elements of Harmony and the visitors from the past. He'd need to know that it wasn't just sunland propaganda, that this was all really happening, and that Cash was at the center of it. Then they could find a way to stop the madpony before he destroyed them all.

Calumn ate his sublime burrito and thought about all the implications of ancient magic returning long-dead heroes. He thought about what he could do, about what he should do. Even so deep in thought, though, he wasn't so far gone that he missed the other patrons of the bar getting up and leaving quietly, one by one.

"Blaze," he said, keeping his tone low and even. "We've got trouble."

"Is it the beans?" Blaze asked, frowning in concern. "They always take two hours to really hit me, but..."

"Not the beans," Calumn sighed. "The people. We should go."

"Without finishing your meal?" a new voice said. Calumn looked up into the intense blue eyes of a dark green mare who was walking up to their table as the last of the other patrons hustled out. "What's your hurry?"

Calumn swallowed, but tried to keep his reaction neutral. "What's it to you?"

Blaze looked from Calumn to the unicorn, recognition sparking clearly in his eyes as he saw her. "Oh, crap," he said.

"Indeed," the mare said, pulling up a chair. "I don't think it's necessary to inform you that maintaining the act will be futile. I know what you are, and I am fairly certain you know who I am."

Calumn sagged. "Gamma, spymaster to the Solar Kingdom."

She inclined her head in acknowledgment. "And the disguise you currently wear goes by the name of Strongheart." He didn't bother to respond and she turned to the other pony at the table. "And you are Trail Blazer."

"Hi, Miss Gamma," Blaze said with a weak wave. "I've, uh, heard good things about you?"

"Good things," she said in a flat deadpan. "Really."

"Well, you know Charisma, if she doesn't have something nice to say about someone she's not going to say anything at – buddy run for it!" Blaze leapt over the table Gamma, who calmly evaded his clumsy attack and flipped him to the floor. Calumn didn't budge. "Uh, buddy?" Blaze said, struggling to move as Gamma easily kept him in place. "Being a distraction here! Why aren't you running?"

"Because he knows it's pointless," Gamma said.

"That's right," Calumn replied, taking a slow breath. "So why don't you let my friend go and we can talk about what you want and why you're here."

"Is capturing a Changeling not reason enough?"

"No,” Calumn said, barely keeping himself from snapping at her. “And you know that I know it isn't. If you didn't want something from me I'd already be gutted by Griffins. So, please, let my friend go."

"Fair enough," Gamma said. She released Blaze from her hold, letting him climb to his hooves. "Sit down, Trail Blazer.”

“This has nothing to do with him–” Calumn began, but Gamma raised a hoof to silence him.

“On the contrary, Strongheart. Trail Blazer is essential.” Gamma leaned back in her chair as Blaze reluctantly sat down again. “Now, I don’t want there to be any misunderstandings between us, so I’m going to talk and you are going to listen, and I will not look favorably on any interruptions. Do you understand?” Calumn nodded, Blaze frowned but nodded as well. “Very good.

“First of all I know what you did with Rainbow Dash. I have, in fact, known for some time that she was compromised and have been watching her closely for any aberrant behaviour that would lead me to you. As usual for her, she did not disappoint. I also know that you, Trail Blazer, are not currently in thrall to Strongheart, so we can dispense with any attempt at subterfuge in that direction. I know that I am also in no danger of being influenced in that way, so any threats should be likewise abandoned. Strongheart, I know that you have abandoned your mission and are currently operating in a partially rogue capacity, though I expect that you will still be making your way back to the Republics to make a full report to your former masters before disappearing. Most likely getting near the Storm via a train leaving tomorrow morning.”

“Wow, are you psychic?” Blaze asked.

Gamma shot him a flat look that held no heat, but was also clearly unamused. “No, merely observant. Rainbow Dash’s description of her escape from Cash’s custody was noticeably vague in certain respects, especially surrounding you, Trail Blazer. That could have been the result of a concussion or the simple ravages of memory in stressful situations, but it was too clean a break, too precise in the information it omitted. The answer was mind magic, and considering that they knew a Changeling had been tracking them through the Storm, the connection was easy to make.

“It became even clearer in the aftermath of the events in Precious Corners.” Calumn couldn’t hold back a wince at that. “Yes. A heroic Changeling saves the lives of a classroom full of children. Quite the story. That Changeling was travelling with a pony that matches the description of you, Trail Blazer. The connections might as well have been gilded for how clear they were.”

“I’m not responsible for what happened there,” Calumn said in a pained whisper.

“I seem to recall asking for no interruptions,” Gamma said, though again there was no heat to it. “But, yes, I am fully aware of the true culprit of that massacre. I have toyed with the idea that you were working with Cash. I know Trail Blazer was his personal Storm Guide for years, and the idea that he could corrupt a Changeling agent is not far-fetched. However, the rescue of children? Not the kind of thing his minions have been known for. Nor are they known for helping colts make friends.”

Calumn jolted at that. “How?”

“I am very thorough in my interviews,” she replied. “Andy Quick spoke very highly of your actions. His testimony, as well as that of others who were there, gave me a fairly good view of what kind of person you are, and put to rest my fears of you working with Cash. No, you’re as much his enemy as I am. Which is why I allowed you to draw Rainbow Dash to you and speak with her as long as you did. Which is why we are sitting here now, instead of inside a detention facility. This is also how I know you’ve gone rogue. A Changeling still on-mission would never have allowed himself to be compromised like that. But with what I know you learned from Rainbow Dash, anyone who would jump into a burning building to save a bunch of foals would also feel the need to warn his government of the danger Cash poses to them. Therefore you are going to do one last service for your masters and tell them what you’ve learned before fading away to live whatever life you have chosen.

“Now,” she continued before they could respond, her unflinching blue eyes boring into Calumn. “Before we continue I do need to ask you one question, and I require a truthful answer. What is the name of your superior? The one you will be reporting all this to.”

Calumn considered the question carefully before answering. "Straff," he finally said.

"Straff," she repeated, and Calumn thought he could detect a hint of emotion finally making its way into her voice, though he wasn't sure what that emotion could be. "Very good."

"So, you know so much about me, have it all figured out. What do you want with me?"

"At the moment? nothing. No, Strongheart, I'm not here for you. I'm here for him," she pointed a hoof at Blaze.

“Me?” Blaze asked, pointing at himself. “Um, okay?”

"Trail Blazer,” Gamma said, a small smile twitching up the corners of her mouth. “I'd like to hire your services. I need to cross the Everstorm."

***

"I don't think we'll be able to take all of these," Spike said, looking at the pile of luggage Rarity had brought to the train platform with her.

"Nonsense, it's only the essentials," Rarity assured him, looking at the long, sleek train. It was very different from the Friendship Express that had run through Ponyville. And yet, at the same time it was clearly just a variation of the same thing. She could see now how Rainbow Dash could be disappointed in how futuristic this future was. “Applejack’s invaluable advice saw to that.”

"No, I mean we've got a baggage limit,” Spike said. “Two bags per person."

"What?" Rarity gasped, turning to regard the Dragon with open-mouthed shock. "Since when?"

"Since we decided to turn down the royal treatment," Spike said.

"Oh," Rarity paused, looking critically at her pile of bags. "Well, I suppose I could condense some of the the essential essentials down to two bags... or three?" She batted her eyelashes at Spike. He sighed and nodded. "Thank you, darling!" she crowed, then began sorting through her luggage, careful not to use her magic too much lest she be noticed. "You know, you've been very bad at telling me things."

"What do you mean, Rarity?"

"Oh, you know, the baggage limit on the train, the dreadful slavery issue, and, ah, yes, Twilight becoming an Alicorn!"

Spike chuckled nervously at that. "Oh, right. About that."

"I didn't even know it was possible!" Rarity continued, heedless. "How did it happen?"

"Well, the Elements..."

"The Elements again! Is everything going to be about them?"

"But it was–"

"No! I do not care," Rarity took a deep breath. "I forgive you, Spike. But please try to inform me about these shocking developments before they can be used to surprise me."

"I'll do my best," Spike promised.

"In any case,” she continued, separating three overstuffed cases from the rest. “I'm sure Twilight would have made a wonderful Alicorn. Why, it's almost like she was a princess."

"She did become a princess," Spike said. "It was a good time for us. She did her best, but eventually, well, she abdicated her throne. Let Cadance's children take over for her."

"Cadance?"

"Twilight's Sister-In-Law. Ancestor of the Solar royalty."

"Sister in law? Twilight had a brother?"

"Yup," Spike said. "That's a long story."

"Well, we've got a train ride ahead of us, I'm sure we'll have plenty of time."

“I’m sure we will,” Spike agreed with a laugh.

“Hey, y’all!” Applejack cried out, spotting them from down the platform. They looked over and saw her and Rainbow Dash weave their way through the other waiting passengers to come to their side. “You didn’t think you’d get away without sayin’ goodbye, did you?”

“Yeah, what’s up with trying to sneak out?” Dash asked.

Rarity sighed, but smiled at her friends. “Well, I was hoping to avoid a scene.”

“Who’s making a scene?” Dash asked, puffing out her chest. “I’m not!”

“Well, then I very well might!” Rarity said, rushing forward and grabbing Dash in a hug. “I will miss you, dear.”

“Me too,” Dash replied, squeezing Rarity back. “If you… if you find Cash, don’t let him talk, okay? Whatever you do, just don’t give him time to use the Elements on you.”

“I’ll remember that, darling. You take care of Star Fall. She needs a loyal friend right now.” Dash nodded and let her go, and Rarity turned to Applejack. “And I’ll keep in mind what we talked about last night, as well.”

Applejack nodded, leaning in to give Rarity a friendly nuzzle. “You do that, sugarcube. You take care of Spike, now, you hear?”

“Um,” Spike said, one eye-ridge raised. “I’m the thousand-year-old Dragon. Don’t you think it’ll be me taking care of her?”

They looked at him for a few seconds before turning back to each other. “Yeah,” Dash said. “Make sure he doesn’t get into too much trouble.”

“Oh, don’t worry,” Rarity replied. “I’ll make sure my little Spikey-wikey is safe and sound.”

“Ugh! You guys!” Spike said, throwing his arms up in protest.

They laughed, but their mirth was cut off by the crystal chime of the train doors opening as porters stepped out to help passengers with their luggage. “Time to go,” Rarity said.

“Saved by the bell,” Spike said, easily hefting all four of their allowed bags and moving to board the train.

“Take care, sugarcube. We’ll be thinkin’ of you,” Applejack said.

“Farewell, my friends,” Rarity said, stepping over to the train’s door. “I will return!”

“You’d better!” Dash called out, and then Rarity was on the train and they were out of sight.

While they had refused to use their royal connections to expedite their trip, Rarity had been unable to turn down the option of getting them a private room. It was a fairly nice room, with wide benches for sitting or lying on and a good window to view the passing scenery from. It was on the wrong side to wave goodbye to her friends, but she had already made her exit and didn’t really feel the need to prolong it.

She took up a seat opposite Spike and looked out the window as the train jolted into motion and pulled out of the station. The city spread out before her, a vast sea of asphalt and concrete and ponies. “It’s not like Canterlot, is it,” she mused.

“No,” Spike said. “Not at all.”

“Are the nightland cities any better?”

Spike didn’t answer, and that was all she needed.

They were well out beyond the limits of the capitol and into the rolling hills that led up to the Shield Wall mountains before their contemplative silence was broken by a knock on the door. They frowned at each other in confusion before Spike stepped over and opened it to reveal Gamma. “Excellent, you’re settled,” the spymaster said before breezing past Spike.

“Gamma?” he said. “What?”

“The question you should be asking is ‘why’,” Gamma said, sitting on the bench next to Rarity, who looked at her with deepening confusion.

“Then… why are you here?” Rarity asked.

“For the same reason you are,” she replied. “Cash needs to be stopped.”

“You’re coming with us,” Spike said. “But you’re… you practically run the Secret Service! Isn’t that dangerous?”

“Extremely,” she replied. “Which is why I have taken the necessary steps of securing myself an invite.” She raised her voice. “If you two would join us?” Two more ponies walked in past Spike. Both were earth pony stallions, one green with lemon-yellow stripes in his mane, the other a large, blunt-looking sort with a grey coat. The green one smiled at Rarity in a way that struck a chord with her, and she found herself automatically smiling back. “This is Trail Blazer and Strongheart, though that is not his actual name.”

“Ah, pleased to meet you?” Rarity said.

“Wow, a Dragon,” Trail Blazer said, staring up at Spike. “I’ve never met a Dragon before. Aren’t I supposed to answer a riddle or something?”

“That’s a sphynx,” Spike said.

“Bless you,” Blaze replied, making Spike blink in confusion.

“Strongheart, Trail Blazer, these are Rarity and Spike,” Gamma said. “And they will be accompanying us through the Storm.”

“Excuse me,” Rarity said, being sure to put as much indignant stress on the words as she could. “Just who invited you along?”

“You mistake me, Lady Rarity,” Gamma said. “I’m not coming with you, you are coming with me.”

“And why would we do that?”

“Because I am the best chance you have at getting close to Max Cash.”

There was silence in the train car. Rarity scanned the faces of the others. Spike had focused intently on Gamma, his entire body going rigid. Trail Blazer had hopped over to the window and was pressing his face against the glass to look at the passing scenery. Strongheart was looking at her, the light reflecting from his eyes seeming to take on a strange green tinge. Gamma sat with serene calm, taking in the entire scene and not giving anything useful back. Finally, Spike spoke: “You have a plan.”

“Of course,” Gamma replied.

“Do we get to know the plan?”

“In time.”

Spike snorted angrily at that, but his body relaxed a bit. “And this plan will get me a shot at Cash.”

“Oh, yes,” Gamma said. “You will get your chance for revenge.”

Spike looked to Rarity, who took a slow, worried breath, then nodded. “Alright,” he said. “We’re in.”

“Good,” Gamma said, though she gave the impression that asking had just been a formality. “Trail Blazer, can you lead us all safely through the Storm?”

He peeled his face from the window and looked back at them. “Sure, I guess. I mean, I’ve never taken a Dragon through before, so I don’t know if it’ll like him or not. And she’s super-powerful or something, so it’ll probably react to that. But, I guess, yeah, if we’re all good with running for our lives from giant zombie bears, I think it won’t be a problem.”

“Giant zombie bears?” Rarity asked.

“Trust me, it’s scarier than you’d think,” Strongheart said, the first words she’d heard from him. His voice wasn’t like she’d been expecting from a pony of his size and obvious strength. It sounded quieter than she had thought it would, softer.

“Our lives are in your hooves, Trail Blazer,” Gamma said.

“Just call me Blaze,” he replied with a friendly smile before looking back out the window.

“Very well,” Gamma said. “Now, once Blaze has gotten us safely through the Storm, it will be Strongheart’s turn. He is a member of the Republics Intelligence Agency, and he will be contacting his superiors with very important information about Cash.”

“Okay. So what then?” Spike asked.

“Then?” Gamma replied, and she smiled a small, mischievous smile that transformed her face from the unreadable spymaster into something strange and beautiful. “Then I surrender, and the fun really begins.”

Chapter 26: Summits

While a single pony bearing multiple Elements is indeed possible, as shown by the example of the Princesses in the Royal Sisters period, it is extremely dangerous for a mortal pony to attempt. The difficulties of dealing with a single Element are vast enough, but bearing multiple Elements has an exponential, not additive, effect.

The Princesses were spared much of this difficulty because of their divine natures. They have so much power naturally that they did not call upon the Elements except when needed to create the Magic of Harmony. A mortal pony, on the other hoof, would be making heavy use of the Activated and Passive abilities of the Elements, likely without even realizing it. The resulting energy buildup would rapidly create a host of physical and neurological issues ranging from hypertension and spasmodic muscle movement to full-blown grand-mal seizures and tissue necrosis. This is not even taking into account the explosive results of feedback from the Elements, which would be similarly enhanced.

Furthermore, it is not merely the energetic effects of the Elements that have to be taken into account, but their more metaphysical properties as well, especially Inversion. A major part of the problem here is the overlap between the Elements’ areas of influence. If one Element were to go into Inversion while another remains in an Active state, the overlapping mental traits would be forced into a schism, fracturing the mind of the bearer. From what my research suggests, this schism would not be resolved by the first Element returning to an Active state, as the damage would need to be healed like any other wound. Instead, the shift of the Element to a new mode would only exacerbate the issue, preventing any sort of mental reconciliation. Even without such an Inversion/Active split, the differing pressures of the Elements would still be doing incremental damage over time, eventually culminating in the same result: complete mental breakdown.

Considering the wide impact a single Element can have on the mind and personality of its bearer, I am certain that even the Princesses would have suffered extremely deleterious effects if they had called upon the powers of multiple Elements. Their bodies might have been able to weather the physical symptoms, but their minds would not have withstood the onslaught. To what extent they would be harmed, I can only speculate. However, the existence of both Nightmare Moon and Celestia Nova suggest that their personalities are as malleable as any mortal’s, and as vulnerable.

That is not to say there are no advantages to bearing multiple Elements. Indeed, if the side-effects could be controlled or channeled somehow, the benefits would be remarkable. And frightening.

-From the fifth section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle.

Chapter Twenty-Six: Summits

"This isn't going to work," Astrid said, watching Star Fall out of the corner of one golden eye as they made their way deep under the palace.

"It'll work," Star Fall said, hoping that she projected more confidence than she felt.

"Sure, because stuff like this happens all the time," Astrid said, snorting.

"That's exactly the point," Star Fall replied, stretching her wings out and straightening her neck. "Nothing like this has ever happened before. That means there's no precedent, no tradition. I have an opportunity here. I can either make the new rules or let them be made for me."

Astrid let those words hang in the still air for a long moment before speaking again. "I still don't think it'll work."

"If it does you have to sing."

"What!?" Astrid squawked in surprise, turning her head sharply to stare at her charge. "You can't be serious."

"Dead serious," Star Fall said, returning Astrid's stare. "It's a bet now. This works, you have to sing. In public. At my wedding."

Astrid shook her head. "No way."

"What? I thought you were so sure it wasn't going to work." Star Fall poked her wing into Astrid's side, accentuating the goad.

The Griffin's eyes narrowed. "Okay, you're on. If I win? You dye your mane green for the wedding."

"No!" Star Fall gasped, but couldn't help the smile that tugged at her lips. "You know how awful that looks!"

"Oh, I know," Astrid said, beak opened in a smirk. "Not gonna back out now, are you?"

Star Fall set her features in an exaggerated frown. "Not a chance." They crossed wings to seal the bet, wide grins marring the solemnity of the act, and continued on their way.

They came to an old area of the palace, one of the few that was entirely underground with no access to sunlight. Shards of crystal were embedded in the walls, letting off a soft, slightly-tinted glow that gave the cool stone corridor an eerie, unnatural feeling. A large, circular door stood at the end of the passage, flanked by a pair of Griffins sitting at studious attention. The door was engraved with an ancient symbol of the united Equestria: Celestia and Luna chasing each other in the eternal cycle of day and night. That door was rolled partially open, and a blue light cast harsh shadows from within.

Besides the Griffins there was a unicorn mare in a smart but otherwise nondescript charcoal business suit. She looked to Star Fall and Astrid as they arrived, annoyance writ clearly on her features. She walked up to meet them halfway to the great door. "Agent Fall, why have you demanded to meet me down here? I have a lot of work to do and I don't appreciate unnecessary dramatics."

"Therese," Star Fall said, inclining her head and ignoring the snippish tone. Therese was Gamma's personal assistant, and thus one of the top agents in the Secret Service. She outranked Star Fall by a wide margin, and normally the pegasus would have cringed at the thought of angering her. These were not normal times, however, and establishing a new relationship with Therese was part of what she was trying to accomplish here. She stilled her natural inclination to apologize and instead simply smiled. "Thank you for coming. We need to discuss the instructions Gamma has left with you, as well as the most recent intelligence reports from the Republics."

Therese frowned. "Agent Fall, the instructions Gamma left for you have already been delivered. You know what's expected of you, I don't see the need to go over it any more."

"No, Therese," Star Fall said, keeping her voice as level as she could, though there was still a hint of a shake in there that she couldn't quell. "Not the instructions for me, all the instructions."

Therese's mouth opened for an angry retort, but it died in her throat as she began to understand what Star Fall was doing. "You aren't cleared..." she managed to say, though even that thought fell away.

"Not yet," Star Fall said.

Therese's eyes widened and Star Fall was suddenly aware that she was being studied by the unicorn spy. It felt invasive, like the physical she had gone through before her first trip through the Everstorm. They had wanted to be sure that she wouldn't be vulnerable to any pathogens or allergic to any foods she might be exposed to in the Republics, and so she had spent a day being poked and prodded all over, stuck with needles and made to bear it all and report every little sensation. The stare Therese was giving her was like that, only on a much more intimate level. Therese wasn't examining her body, she was examining her mind, going over everything she knew about Star Fall, cataloguing and categorizing and paring down until she could find an answer to the question that had suddenly become all important: could she really do this?

A slight twitch of her eyes, a flicker of surprise, was all the evidence Therese gave of the answer she came to. "I suppose you're going to ask me to wait here, then?"

Star Fall nodded. "Please. It shouldn't be long." She didn't wait for Therese to reply, stepping past her and towards the door. Astrid stayed behind, giving Therese a smug look that the unicorn couldn't see because she was still staring at Star Fall.

The guards spread their wings to block her way as she approached. "The King is with his ancestors," one said. "He is not to be disturbed."

"Announce me," she said. "He will let me in."

The guards shared a look, but they knew who she was. That they would let her pass was never actually in question. The one who had spoken to her turned and stepped into the open doorway. "Your Majesty, the Lady Fallen Star is here to see you. Will you grant her audience?"

There was a short laugh from deep inside. "That's Princess Fallen Star," the King said. "Or will be soon enough. Of course I will speak to her." The guard turned back and nodded to Star Fall, letting her through.

She paused for a moment inside the door, out of sight from the others in the passage and the King both. She allowed herself a moment of rapid breathing and a shudder of nervousness. She couldn't afford to let her confidence crack in front of Therese or the King, and it had come close back there. She had to be in control. She had to be perfect.

She stilled her body and took a single, slow breath. This was her choice. She was ready.

Beyond the door was a long, wide cavern. It was partially carved and partially left as naked rock, leaving the entire chamber with the strange feeling of only being half-finished. A dozen pillars held crystal goblets, carved into the shape of soaring wings. Those cups burned with a cold blue fire that illuminated the chamber with unwavering light. Between the pillars were long stone tables on which sat the marble busts of every King and Queen of the Solar Kingdom going back to its founding. Other items accompanied the busts, weapons or banners or other icons of their time of rule. She had heard that each bust was also a reliquary, the marble holding a piece of the ruler it depicted.

Star Fall walked between the frozen faces of power. Some were stern, their mouths set in sneers and their horns pointed high. Others were smiling or laughing. A few looked sad and melancholy. She saw faces of pride and confidence, expressions of thought or triumph. Precious few seemed kind or warm. These were depictions as much of the character of their rule as it was of the rulers themselves. She caught sight of Overspear's bust, and shuddered at the intense madness that had been captured in his wide, stone eyes. It was a frightening reminder that she might be dealing with a similarly insane King now.

The King stood before the busts of his parents. Both had died relatively young, an accident while they had been touring the Kingdom. It had been before Star Fall was born, so all she knew of them was from history textbooks and the few stories the Professor had told her. From their busts they looked almost serene. Their rule had been one of peace and prosperity, of quiet borders and a complacent populace. They never knew the turmoil their son would face, with increasing immigration from the zebra nations and the Republics becoming ever more unified in their belligerence.

"I don't often come here," the King said, not turning as she came up beside him and made a quick bow to the faces of his parents. "I always thought it a little silly. I'm going to spend my death down here, why bother wasting my living years here as well?"

Star Fall was silent for a moment as she gauged the King's mood. Finally realizing that he was expecting a response, she mentally scrambled to think of something halfway intelligent. "A... reminder of what has come before," she said. "And a reminder of what will come after."

He snorted. "Aqua said something similar once. I don't think I agree, but regardless I come down here a few times a year and wonder at how many more faces this place can hold." He paused, looking to her with a smile that was made frightening by the harsh light. "Or, I used to wonder. My face may not be the last addition to his mausoleum, but yours will be."

That statement sent a chill down Star Fall's spine. She tried to think of something to say to fill the silence that stretched between them, something to bring the conversation around to what she wanted to talk about. But she could think of no way to guide the conversation smoothly, and so she simply held his gaze and waited to see what he would do next.

"Do you know what those are?" the King asked, tilting his horn towards the burning goblets.

Star Fall nodded, grateful for the change in topic. "Phoenixes," she said. "They all died in the Schism, but instead of turning to ash the ones in the keeping of your family transmuted into an eternal flame, and were set here to watch over the dead."

"Not quite eternal," he said, examining one. "They have to be fed a certain amount of magic every year, or they begin to gutter and fade. That's one of the secret duties of the King and Queen. They're still alive, you know. The phoenixes. Just a little. So long as their flames burn, they're alive. It's said that when the Goddesses return, the phoenixes will be reborn to herald their coming. So you see, the common story has it backwards. They don't watch over the dead, the dead watch over them. Waiting for the true dawn to break."

"Your Majesty," Star Fall began, but he stopped her with a raised wing.

"I'll be calling you daughter soon enough. We have no need to stand on ceremony between us."

"I... yes, of course... si... um..." Star Fall floundered, completely unsure of how to address the King now.

"Golden will do for now," he said, his voice gentle even as the light cast his features in hard angles. "Though I hope that one day we are close enough for you to call me father. Did you know I was prepared to adopt you before the Professor beat me to it?"

Star Fall nodded. "She told me."

"She is forever forestalling me," the King said, a wistful sigh accompanying the though. "Always caution from her. Every action thought out a thousandfold before the first step can be taken. On the day she takes a bold action, I swear the world will end."

"I know what you want," Star Fall said, blurting it out. The King looked at her, frowning slightly at her outburst. "An Alicorn foal. I know that's what you want from me."

"It's not just what I want," he said. "It's what the world needs."

"I..." Star Fall took another breath, trying vainly to control the quickness of her pulse. "Am I a real princess? Do you really mean to make Regal heir, and me along with him? Or am I just supposed to be a broodmare and this is all a setup to make it look legitimate?"

He was taken aback. Both unaccustomed to being talked to in that tone and surprised at the content of her question. She hoped that she knew him well enough that her guess at how he would react was correct. "Fallen Star," he said, hurt lacing his voice. "You would think so little of me?"

She shook her head. "I don't know what I should be thinking," she said. "That's why I asked. I need to know."

His ears drooped. "In truth, it's been a question I've been asked before. Most often by myself, in the quiet moments. Were you not the vessel for a Goddess, then I would never have considered elevating you as high as I have. Is it all for the child, then? The one you will birth, the saviour of the world? I suppose it is. But is that elevation false? Is your betrothal a lie? No. I mean to place you on the throne after my time is done. So that your daughter may in turn take her place and rule forevermore. It is no mere farce. You are a princess in truth. I swear it."

"Then I need to be a princess," Star Fall said. "I'm working at a disadvantage no other princess has ever faced. I'm an outsider, I'm not even a unicorn. I need to show that I am more than just a pegasus you've taken a fancy to. I need to show that I have power. I need to have power. And I don't mean magic. I need to have authority."

He frowned. "And what more can I do to give you that?"

"I'm standing for Gamma on the council," she said. "I want to make that official. Put me as acting head of the Secret Service."

"Fallen Star, I–"

"I'm not done," she said. She hoped the interruption would make him listen to her, not make him angry. "I want your official, open support as well. I want to make decisions and have those decisions acted on."

"You want the authority of the Crown."

"If I'm going to be Queen one day, then I'd better start learning how." Star Fall stepped closer to the King, lowering her voice to a more vulnerable, intimate tone. "I will not be a puppet or a figurehead or just a womb. I need a choice in how this all happens. If you want me to be Regal's wife, if you want me to be a princess and bear an heir, then I have to get it all. All the responsibility, and all the power."

The King stared at her for a terrifying moment, then threw his head back and laughed. Star Fall froze, she wasn't expecting this response, and had no idea what it could mean. "Oh, I made a terrible mistake in letting Gamma and the Professor have so much influence on you."

"I only learned what they taught me," Star Fall said, unsure if she should be angry at that or not.

"And learned well!" he said, grinning. "Very well! You shall have what you want, Princess Fallen Star. On two conditions."

"Name them."

"First, the wedding will be moved up. Two weeks from now."

Star Fall frowned. "That's not a lot of time to prepare a royal wedding."

"We will cope."

She couldn't see any reason that this would be a problem so she nodded in acceptance. "What's the second condition?"

"Honesty," he said. "I need you to be honest with me."

Star Fall frowned. "Of course, I..." she trailed off, not sure of how to finish that thought.

"As a ruler, you will find that it is the very rare subject who will be truly honest with you," the King said. "I have been blessed in that regard. Gamma, the Professor, Aqua. All of them have their opinions and are not afraid to share them. Though even they demur and hide their thoughts if they do not think I will like them. Something they have done ever more as of late. I hope you will be one on whom I can count to be absolutely honest with me. So, if you want the power so much, you will pay for it with your ability to hide or sugarcoat the truth with me. I will have your honesty, regardless of how much you think I might not want to hear it. Only in private, of course. Decorum must be maintained for others."

"I..." Star Fall frowned, trying to understand his request. She could see the point of it, but she didn't realize he would value her opinion as highly as the Professor's. She certainly couldn't deny him this, though, not with everything she was asking. In that case, it was probably best to get the most damaging truth out of the way first. "I think you might be going insane."

He blinked at her, shocked. "Well. I suppose I asked for that. Could you explain why you think this?"

"You think I'm going to have an Alicorn child."

"Ah, so it is that."

"What else could it be? Your Majesty, Golden, what you want is impossible."

He didn't seem angry with her, though it was hard to tell in the light of the dead phoenixes. "I know what Regal showed you, that he let you see the secret of the Deep Power."

"Yes, he also told me that it can sometimes make you see or think things that aren’t true."

"Oh, they're true," he said, a quiet, sad chuckle accompanying the words. "They're always true, just not always in a way we understand, or expect. I would like to assure you that I'm no Overspear, but I would say the same even if I was. Instead, let me tell you something. Something I have not revealed to any other, even Aqua." He turned back to the visages of his parents. "I first touched the Deep Power when I was barely more than a foal. I had a vision, I saw an Alicorn at the center of a great whirlpool of power, touching all parts of the universe, yet somehow separate from it. Ever since, all my visions have been of this Alicorn, this Goddess. They came to me at odd times, and with increasing power and frequency, until the day I first heard your name, and what you had done. That day I had the most powerful vision I have ever had, and with it came knowledge. Not a vague premonition or prophecy, either, but utter, absolute knowledge. The Goddesses would return, and they would return through you. So you see, I'm not insane, no more so than any ruler, at least. Certainly I am no Overspear."

Star Fall’s training as both a scholar and a spy emphasized picking out important statements and putting together larger pictures from limited information. Even surprised as she was by the way this conversation was going, that part of her mind was still working, and it brought an important piece of information to her attention. “Wait,” she said. “You… you expect Regal to take the throne. Actually expect it.”

“I do.”

“But I could foal as soon as next year. If you are certain that I will bear an Alicorn, an eternal ruler for the Kingdom, why not just give the succession to her once she comes of age? Why bother with Regal and I at all?” She shook her head. “You aren’t telling me everything.”

“No.” His wings twitched as grief tinged his voice. “Another thing I have been shown. I will not live to see the Alicorn’s rebirth. That, above any other reason, is why I have never told Aqua or the Professor about the nature of my visions. This must come to pass, even if it costs me my life. The Kingdom, no, the world needs the Goddesses. Only they can unite us after so long being fractured.”

Star Fall shook her head. “And the Professor just thinks you’re obsessed with Alicorns.”

The King laughed again. "I've been having visions of one since I was a child. Of course I'm obsessed with them. Wouldn't you be? So, knowing all of this, my closest secret, do you trust me more?"

"I... think I do," Star Fall said. "I'm not as worried that you're going to lose your mind and kill me if I don't bear a Goddess."

"I know you don't think you will, but it will happen. Trust in what I have foreseen, and trust in what you have experienced yourself in the Deep Power."

Star Fall didn't know how to respond to that. So she just shook her head. "Thank you for telling me. I... I have a lot to do."

"Yes, I'm sure there is much to be done. You are now the head of my Secret Service. It will be official as soon as I have a clerk draw up the papers. You may take your leave. I do not need to order you to keep my visions a secret."

"I won’t speak of them unless there is a dire need, I promise," Star Fall said, then left his side.

She stepped back into the corridor with a pensive frown on her face. She walked past the guards without really seeing them, and was halfway down the passage before Astrid stepped in front of her. "Hey," she said. "I'm not gettin' happy vibes from you, but I'm not getting failure either, what's up?"

"It didn't go as I thought it would," Star Fall said. Then gave herself one great shake and snapped her wings open. "But I still get to hear you sing."

"Celestia damn it," Astrid said, with only half-feigned horror.

Star Fall turned to Therese, who was already falling into a long-practiced stance of professional helpfulness. "Come on," Star Fall said, walking past the secretary. She joined Astrid in following in the newly-minted spymaster's wake. "We've got a lot to discuss. I’d like you to summarize the reports I asked for as we walk, once that’s done I'm going to explain how we're going to make sure Rainbow Dash keeps her title."

“That’s not possible,” Therese said. “No matter what promises and power you’ve wrangled from the King, there’s no way you can convince the nobles to allow a pegasus into the peerage like that.”

“Really?” Star Fall shot her new secretary a cocky grin. “Just watch me.”

***

“I know you told me to expect something big, Spike, but this...” Rarity shook her head. “Why, I've never dreamed of a storm so... so..."

"Wrong," Spike said. It wasn't the word she had been looking for, but she nodded nonetheless. He was right, it was wrong.

They were standing in a small clearing in what she had been told was once the Whitetail Woods, stowing all their gear for the coming passage through the Everstorm. The train ride south had been an awkward one, with Gamma and Strongheart staying warily silent while Blaze filled the air with a non-stop stream of bizarre and meaningless chatter. Rarity had still found the time to speak with Spike about many things, including the times he had crossed the Storm before. Standing before the towering, roiling wall of the Storm, though, she was sure that no amount of explanation and stories could prepare her for the real thing. It was too much to take in all at once, and she could feel the magic in it, clashing with itself. Confined, yet untameable.

"Like something Discord would find amusing," Rarity said.

Spike hissed in anger, making Rarity turn to him with wide eyes. "Don't," he said.

"Don't?"

"Don't use that name," Spike said, his furious eyes locked on the ground.

"Another thing you've forgotten to tell me?"

"Something I wish I could forget." He took a deep breath, and his claws dug furrows in the earth as he clenched his fists. "You don't remember what happened with him, and that's for the best."

"I remember enough!" Rarity protested. "I remember him nearly destroying Equestria, and him making me think an ugly, plain rock was a beautiful, enormous diamond!"

"That was... the first time," Spike said.

"He got out again?"

"You let him out." Spike turned away. "Look, it's a long story, and a bad one. Celestia thought he could be reformed so you let him out. It looked like it worked at first, even when he was being a jerk he wasn't nearly as bad as the first time, but... but it didn't last. When he finally turned on us it was the worst thing I've ever experienced."

"Worse than the Schism?" Rarity asked, stepping up beside him so that she could see his face.

He nodded. She could see the pain beneath the anger, a hurt so deep it was shattering. "The Schism was a war. What came after it was survival. It was all bad, but it wasn't aimed at me. With him it was personal. He knew us, he'd pretended to be our friend. He used that to hurt us, all of us. What you remember was only a taste of what he was capable of."

"I'm sorry," Rarity said, laying a hoof on the Dragon's shoulder. "I'll not bring up that ruffian’s name again."

"Thank you," Spike said, laying a claw atop her hoof.

Across the small clearing, but still within earshot, Calumn and Blaze were watching the exchange. "What's that about?" Blaze asked, keeping his voice low so it wouldn't carry.

Calumn shook his head. "Some villain from a thousand years ago, I guess. I don't recognize the name they were using, it's not a Solar or Zebra word, probably Old Equestrian."

"It looks serious."

"Not our business," Calumn said. He shot a look over to Gamma, who was carefully checking the packing of her own saddlebags. "What is she hiding?"

"A scar on her neck?" Blaze said.

Calumn shook his head. "Sorry, it was supposed to be a rhetorical question. She's definitely not telling us everything. That's a given. I'm just wondering what she's trying to accomplish by hiding the fact that we're being followed."

Blaze blinked at that. "What?"

"We've been followed since we got on the train." Calumn said, closing his eyes. "Someone who has kept pace with us. Someone who is desperate, angry, and terrified. I can feel her hating you."

"Me?" Blaze gasped, frowning in affronted confusion. "I work real hard to be a pony everybody can love! I'm so nonconfrontational I once lost an argument with an assertive billboard! I've joined three cults 'cause they said they'd like me if I did! Who could hate me?"

Calumn snorted back a laugh. "I don't know. I can just tell you what they're feeling, not why. But what's really important is when Gamma is planning on telling us. In the middle of the Everstorm, maybe?"

"Wait..." Blaze's confusion dropped away, replaced by sober concern. "You think this person's gonna follow us into the Storm?"

Calumn nodded. "Absolutely. With what I'm feeling, they won't quit. Not for anything."

"No." Blaze blinked at his friend, startled by the sudden hardness in his voice and the thin, angry set of his lips. Before Calumn could ask what he meant, Blaze was walking to Gamma. He stopped in front of the spymaster, waiting for her to acknowledge his presence before speaking again. "Call him in."

"Excuse me?" Gamma asked, quirking an eyebrow.

"Whoever you've got tailing us. Call him in now, or tell him to stop following." The unyielding tone was so unlike Blaze that everyone in the clearing was now staring at him.

"I'm not sure what you mean."

"Yes you are," Calumn said, giving her a hard look. He wasn't going to get in a staring match with her, but if Blaze was serious for once, it meant he should be taking this just as seriously.

Gamma shrugged. "Very well. Yes, we are being followed, but I'm not responsible for that."

"But you know who it is, and why,” Calumn said.

"I do, yes."

"Then call them in," Calumn said, managing to hold her gaze.

She let the moment stretch, testing his resolve. Then, satisfied, she shrugged and raised her voice. "Melody! We know you're out there, you might as well join us!"

There was a rusting in the trees, and a moment later a pegasus mare leapt from the branches, staring daggers at Blaze. Her coat was caked with dirt, wild clumps of hair sticking out and caught with burrs. Her mane and tail were similarly frayed and tangled with twigs and leaves. Scratches showed through her dirty coat and the skin around her eyes was dark and sagging with exhaustion, but her eyes were bright and alert –almost feverishly so. She wore a slim saddlebag that had a small doll sticking out of it, like some absurd passenger. That doll was the only clean thing on her.

"Why, Melody, dear!" Rarity said, staring at the newcomer. "You should be back in the palace, being cared for! You're in no state to be travelling!"

Melody Drop spared a glance for Rarity, though it was obviously an effort to look away from Blaze. "You're going after Cash. I need to be there when you find him."

"Darling, this is dangerous!"

"It's all because of him!" she yelled. "My home is destroyed, people I've known all my life are dead! And Charisma ki... killed my master." She shuddered, visibly restraining herself from some emotional explosion. "I have to come with you, Lady Rarity. I have to."

Rarity opened her mouth to reply, but found that she could not think of anything to say. Instead, Blaze spoke. "Charisma killed your master?"

Her gaze snapped back to him, eyes narrowing and lips pulling back to show teeth. "Yes," she spat at him. "Your lover killed the stallion I'd dedicated my life to protecting."

"You can't blame him for–" Calumn began, but Blaze stopped him with a raised hoof.

"I'm sorry," Blaze said. "I'm sorry she hurt you." Melody's whole body twitched, like she was trying to move in a dozen different directions at once, but her eyes remained locked on Blaze. "You're right, I was... am her lover. I think one of us might actually be in love with the other, though I'm not really sure which one. So you can trust me when I say that I know exactly what she's like. She hurts people, all the time. I understand if you want to hurt her back."

"No," she snapped. "I can't," she shivered again, her breath speeding and her wing folding protectively over the doll in her saddlebag. "I can't fight her. She's... she's just a puppet. It's Cash I want."

Blaze shook his head. "It's not like that. Cash tells her to do bad things, but he doesn't make her do these things, he just gives her permission. If she killed your master, it's because she wanted to."

Melody took a step back from him. "No... I..."

"You're afraid of her," Blaze said. She shrank back from him as though he had lashed her with a whip. "That's okay, she's really scary. But, Melody, don't make the mistake of thinking Cash is an easier target. If you're afraid of Charisma, you should be much, much more afraid of him."

"Blaze is right," Calumn said. He could feel the hatred ebbing from her, but the roil of emotions he sensed from her was too chaotic for him to see which way she would go. "The worst Charisma can do is kill your body. Cash... he can break you. All the way through."

She sank to her knees, shivering. "I know." Her wings swept out, indicating her state. "He did this to me," she said, her voice wavering with the weight of her despair. "He did this to me," she repeated, hissing like a snake as anger flooded into her again. She curled into a ball and shook. To Calumn it was like two opposing tides competing to fill a bay, hopelessness and rage cresting into alternating waves of emotion. From what he was sensing from her, the rage was winning.

"Oh, you poor girl," Rarity said quietly, one hoof raised to reach out to the mare, but held in the air as she knew her comfort would not be welcomed.

"The Element of Loyalty," Gamma said. "This is the effect it has."

"No," Spike said. "This is a corruption. A perversion of Loyalty."

"You were a bearer of Loyalty," Gamma said.

It hadn't been a question, but Spike nodded. "For a time. I know what Loyalty does, and this? This is not what the Elements are meant to do."

"Regardless, this is what Cash is capable of with them. I find Trail Blazer's estimation of his threat to be somewhat understated."

"Melody," Blaze said. She stopped shaking, peeking an eye out to stare at him. Calumn noted that her hatred for his friend was all but gone. "Are you going to follow us if we try to leave you behind?"

"Until you find him," she said.

"Oh, okay. Well, I can’t let you trail behind us through the Storm.”

“You can’t stop me,” she growled, glaring up at him as her wings snapped at the air.

Blaze smiled. “I bet I can.”

“Try it.”

“I thought you’d never ask!” Blaze said, a happy laugh accompanying the words. “Now, um, we're gonna need a bit more rope." Blaze said, pulling off his saddlebag and nosing through it.

“What are you doing?” Melody asked, beginning to uncurl.

“Yes, what are you doing?” Gamma echoed.

“Looking for rope,” he replied, his head still stuffed in the bag. “Here we go!” He pulled out a length of rope and held it out to Melody. “You’ll need to tie it around your middle and then to someone else. Spike’s a good choice. He’s heavy.” His eyes went wide and he turned to the Dragon. “Not like, heavy-heavy. I don’t mean that you’re fat or anything. Though I guess you could be and I wouldn't know because Dragons have weird ways of storing fat or something. I mean, you look all muscular and scaly, but I guess that could be some kind of inter-species misunderstanding. Actually, hey, do Dragons even have fat? They eat minerals and gems, right? So those aren’t really known for their high-calorie nature–”

“No,” Spike cut him off. “To… all of it.”

“Oh. Okay,” Blaze turned back to Melody. “So, do I win the bet?”

"You're going to let me come along?" Melody asked, standing. "Just like that?"

"Yup!" Blaze said, grinning. "It's just my policy not to let anyone go through the Storm without a guide. It’s not a good idea. Trust me on that one. And since the trip’s all paid for anyway, well, I’m not going to break that policy just because you like being a rugged individualist.”

“Rugged…?” Melody shook her head, but took the offered rope.

“Well, now that that’s dealt with, I guess it’s about time to head out,” Blaze said. “Please make sure all valuables are secured tightly to your person and that the rope tying you to the rest of the group is double-knotted, not just bunny-eared. Remember that in case of emergency the trick is to pace your screaming so that you still get enough air to run properly. Exits are located wherever I’m going and nowhere else, so stick close, kids! Oh, and if you need to use the facilities, now would be the time. Once in the Storm, if you stop to squat you’ll lose your plot. Like… literally. There are things in there that can and will bite your ass off. So, uh, don’t. Yeah. There will be a customer survey handed out at the end of the trip. Don’t groan! It’s not that bad, it’s just one question long. That question being: Are you still alive? If you can answer that question in any way, then yay! It was a successful trip. Thank you for choosing me, Trail Blazer, as your guide. Recommend me to your friends and your next trip through the Storm will get a five percent discount!”

Blaze walked over to Calumn, who was already beginning to fasten the rope around himself. “Five percent discount?” he asked.

Blaze shrugged. “That or surcharge. I can never keep those two straight. Probably why I flunked out of business school.”

Calumn couldn’t help but laugh. And with Blaze’s levity dispelling the looming menace of the Storm they prepared for the journey.

***

"Argh! Why does this have to be so lame?" Rainbow Dash cried, throwing the thick tome down and flopping backwards onto the red couch with exaggerated finality. The sun streamed through the window of her room, the dust motes in the air swirling like sparks from a fire as they were disturbed by Dash’s show of disgust.

"Problems?" Applejack asked. She was lying on the bed, looking at her friend over the top of her own book, which was propped up in front of her on the bed by one of the overstuffed pillows these guest rooms were furnished with. "Another word givin' you trouble?"

"No," Dash said, her voice brimming with petulant exasperation. "It's just so... boring! I thought learning to read would mean adventure stories and stuff, but all I've been reading are these stupid old law books!"

Applejack shrugged. "You're a high-falutin’ noble now, Rainbow Dash. You got a lot of catchin' up to do if you want to do it right."

Dash snorted and rolled to her side. "Yeah, right. Like that's going to happen."

Applejack shook her head. "Don't sell yourself short, sugarcube. Once you get the hang of it, I'm sure you'll do just dandy."

"Thanks, I guess," Dash said. "But I meant the whole thing."

"I think the King was pretty clear on that," Applejack said just there was a short knock on the door, it was opening before either of them could answer.

"You heard Star, AJ," Dash said, ignoring what she assumed would be another servant with yet another stack of books. "I'm probably not going to get to keep the title at all."

"Dont' be so sure of that," Star Fall said, walking into the room with Astrid close behind. She looked around at the piles of books that had been left haphazardly around Dash's chamber. Most of them hadn’t even been opened, and of those that had been several were left splayed out and face-down in a way that was surely no good for their bindings. The sight made Star Fall cringe, but she ignored it, focusing instead on her friends.

"Star!" Dash said, leaping in the air to hover over to her. "Where've you been? I haven't been able to get ahold of you for, like, days."

"I know, and I'm sorry," Star Fall said, her wings drooping at the thought of leaving her friends the lurch for so long. "I've been really busy getting everything ready."

"I've seen the invitations," Applejack said, not getting up from her own place on the bed. "You know, sugarcube, this weddin's happenin' real soon after you got to meet your groom."

"The King's insistence," Star Fall said, shrugging. "Not that I'm too worried about that."

"Really? How is Prince Stature?" Applejack asked. There was more to the question than mere curiosity, a fact revealed in the probing look in the farmer's eyes that Star Fall didn't miss.

"He's..." she shook her head, unsure of how to answer, but feeling that an answer was needed. "He's handsome, friendly, kind, smart, powerful, and absolutely smitten with me."

"But you’re not so smitten with him," Applejack said, seeing the truth behind the evasion.

Star Fall shrugged again, trying to think of a way to word her feelings on the matter. "I like him. I don't... I like him. And I'm pretty sure I could be happy with him." She nodded smartly after that, content with it.

"Well, okay," Applejack said. "So long as you're happy."

Dash frowned at the exchange. "I still don't like this whole arranged marriage thing. It's... uh... Astrid, what's a good swear word for thinking something is stupid?"

"Bullshit," Astrid provided without hesitation.

"Yeah, bullshit," Dash said, smiling a bit as she committed the word to her unnaturally prodigious vocabulary.

Star Fall didn't bother responding to that, instead going back to the comment she had walked in on. "I've been talking to the nobility," she said, taking a seat on the floor since all the available chair space was occupied by books, and she didn't want to upset whatever filing system –or lack thereof– they were using. Astrid leaned up against the wall behind her, looking casual and deadly. "I think I can convince them to let you keep your title."

"That's, uh..." Dash looked around at all the books, settling back onto the one clear space on the couch. "Great?"

"I thought convincin' them noble unicorns to lay off her'd be harder than keepin' an ornery squirrel from stealin' the birdseed," Applejack said. "How'd you manage it?"

"I just exercised some authority," Star Fall said, unable to keep a pleased smile from her face. "I made a few promises, cut a few deals."

"Threatened a few assholes," Astrid added, snickering.

"Yes, thank you, Astrid," Star Fall said, rolling her eyes. "And a few threats. But I managed it. It'll be made official later today, at the council meeting."

"Threats?" Applejack asked, frowning. "Won't that make you some enemies?"

Star Fall shook her head. "Not in this case. This actually turned a few nobles from enemies into allies."

"How so?"

Astrid barked out a laugh. "Go ahead, Fall, explain it to them. You know you want to." Star Fall snapped an annoyed look to her guard. "Come on," Astrid said to that look. "You're in love with your own cleverness here. Just admit it and gloat before you explode."

"Well, now I really want to hear this," Dash said. "So spill, Star. What's the secret?"

"No secret, just politics," Star Fall said. "The King changed the succession so Regal and I will inherit the throne after him. That doesn't sit well with the nobles, who've been cultivating alliances and influence with every Royal they thought would be important since… well, since forever. Obviously, I wasn't on that list. So now they're off-balance. They don't know me, except that I'm a pegasus with unique magic who was first taken in by the Professor and now married to royalty. That makes me their worst nightmare, a wild card who they have no influence over and no experience with. They can’t predict what I'll do or how I'll change what Regal would do. It scares them and it would make them work against me almost by default.” Star Fall grinned, her wings fanning out behind her. “So I gave them something they could use as leverage on me, something that might, in a pinch, get me to agree to something they want that I wouldn't have otherwise." Star Fall paused, letting her smug smile do the talking for her.

Rainbow Dash and Applejack stared back at her. "So..." Dash prompted.

"What'd you give them?" Applejack asked.

"I... uh," Star Fall deflated a bit, which wasn't helped by Astrid's snickers. "You, Dash. I gave them you."

"Wait... what?" Dash asked, face twisted in incomprehension.

Applejack was frowning thoughtfully, though. "Hold on, now. I think I get it. You let them know that you're friends with Rainbow Dash, and that you'd be mighty appreciative if they saw clear to lettin' her stay a noble. Right?"

Star Fall nodded. "Yes. They know you’re important to me now, Dash, and that makes them feel more secure, like they have some leverage on me if they need it. They know I’ll protect you, and that they can put pressure on you to put pressure on me. That will make them feel safer with me now, so they won’t fight against me instinctively. That means I can use the power and authority of the Crown more easily. Hell, they might be more willing to work with me than they would one of the Royals, so long as they get something out of it."

"So... wait," Dash said, holding out a hoof. "You want them to let me keep this knighthood, so that they feel better about you being a princess?"

"Yes,” Star Fall said, but continued quickly. “That’s not everything, though. Your title is much more important than just a political playing piece. It's something new, a sign that the times are changing, that the old rules are falling away. It’s something that is going to give a new level of hope to the lower classes. Maybe even improve relations with the nightlands. A pegasus noble is incredibly important. The fact that it's my friend and I can use it to solidify my own position, well, that's just a bonus."

"You made yourself vulnerable to help a friend, and ended up making yourself stronger," Astrid said, an undeniable note of pride in her voice.

“So…” Dash looked around. “So I actually do have to learn all this stuff?”

They shared a chuckle at the pained terror on Dash’s face. “At least the basics,” Star Fall said.

“What are the basics?”

Star Fall’s brow furrowed and her ears twitched back and forth as she thought about it. “Let’s see… You’ve got a big parcel of land, so property management law is a good start. Don’t go in depth, just whether you’ll be expected to keep your fields cultivated or if you can just let it all stay uninhabited. You’ll need to create an account with the treasury so that you can request funds… Actually, yeah. Do that first. Then submit a proposal to buy an estate and hire a seneschal.”

“A what?”

“A seneschal, that’s someone who runs your household for you. Get someone good and you can probably leave all the details of maintaining your title and property to them.”

“You mean I can hire someone else to read all this stuff for me?” Dash asked, her eyes practically glowing with excitement at the idea.

“Well, that’s not exactly how it works,” Star Fall said. “But, basically, yeah.”

“Done,” Dash said, slamming a hoof down on the cover of one of the books next to her. “Star, it’s been great but I have been inside too long. Catch you later!” And with that she became a rainbow blur that rushed through the door and down the hall before any of the others could say a word. The wind of her leaving flipped open books and ruffled pages throughout the room, and Applejack actually had to put a hoof to her hat to keep it in place.

“That girl,” Applejack said, rolling her eyes. “I swear gettin’ her to sit still and learn somethin’ is harder than pullin’ teeth.”

“She’s a doer, not a learner,” Astrid said.

“Yeah, well, if she wants to ‘do’ right, she’d better ‘learn’ well,” Applejack replied. “I was hopin’ you’d help her with this, Star. What with your experience and all.”

“Actually, I don’t have a lot of experience,” Star Fall said.

“You’re a noble, ain’t you?”

“I am, but adopted nobility,” Star Fall answered. “It’s not the same thing as being given a title and lands. Hell, the Professor doesn’t even have lands, so I’ve never really dealt with that side of it, even peripherally. She’s probably going to want to put those lands to use, and that means setting up farms and mines and houses and infrastructure and transport routes. It’s going to be a hard time convincing commoners to move out to the middle of nowhere and start a new village completely fresh, at least without some pretty big incentives. She could always buy serfs to do all that, but…”

Applejack’s eyes narrowed at the thought. “Yeah. That ain’t happenin’.”

“Didn’t think so. The point is, there’s a lot that she’ll have to figure out that I’ve never had to deal with. And, honestly, I’d love to help but I am just too busy managing my own new title to do much. Especially with the wedding only a few days away.”

Applejack nodded. “I understand, sugarcube. We’ve all got a lot on our plates, and I’m thinkin’ you’ve got more than the rest of us.”

Star Fall let out an exasperated sigh. “It certainly feels like it. And that’s a problem. I should be able to spend more time with you, I should be here to help Dash learn what she’s got to do for her new nobility. But I can’t, and that’s really not good. Dash, and you, too, you’re both important, and I mean that as more than being my friend. Even if half the people don’t believe it, you’re heroes from the past come again. That’s got a lot of imaginations roaring about what can be done with you.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“War,” Astrid said, her bright eyes staring into Applejack’s. “A pegasus with Dash’s powers can be an engine of destruction, given the right motivation. You’re basically a living tank. I’ve seen how the unicorns react to Rarity, too, and that kind of power, and the fear it causes, can win battles all by itself.”

“But we’re not soldiers,” Applejack said. “And Rarity’s gone south after Cash.”

“And that’s a fact we are not spreading around,” Astrid said. “There’s war coming. It’s been heating up for a long time now, and we can all feel the pot finally beginning to boil. There’s a lot of push to put you three on the front lines, leading the glorious fucking charge to victory. If they knew we had practically handed the most powerful unicorn in the world over to our enemies, they would flip their shit.”

Applejack shook her head. “I don’t like the sounds of that.”

“Neither do I,” Star Fall said. “And I am doing everything I can to stop all of it from happening. Right now, it’s about all I can do to keep it all from touching you and Dash. At least until you’re ready to deal with it.”

“Well, I appreciate that, Star,” Applejack said. “But I don’t know if I’ll ever be ready for any of this. I ain’t one to shy from a fight, but I don’t know if this is a fight I should be in. If you catch my meanin’.”

“I do,” Star Fall said, getting up. “I’ve got to go. The council is about to meet, and that’s going to be the moment of truth. Whether Dash keeps her title, whether we get even closer to war with the Republics, it’s all going to be played out there. Wish me luck.”

“Good luck,” Applejack dutifully said. “Though I think you’ll do fine without it. You’ve got a good head, Star Fall. And a great heart.”

“Thanks. I’ll try to see you two again before the wedding, but it might be, uh, rushed. Sorry.”

Applejack waved that off. “Don’t you worry none. Just do what you got to and let us sort ourselves out.”

Star Fall smiled gratefully, and with Astrid following close behind, she left.

***

It was more difficult than many would expect to be in two places at once. Beyond the normal issues of creating a second body and inhabiting both simultaneously, there were a lot of misconceptions about how it worked. For one, when people imagined it, if they ever did, they often assumed that each body would have its own mind. For another, they assumed it was just a matter of splitting attention or concentration. Simply a more complicated form of multitasking, in other words. The reality of it was utterly different. It was seeing two images at once, hearing two conversations at once, moving two bodies at once. It took long years of practice to even be able to walk without tripping everywhere.

Years of practice that Twinkle Shine had, fortunately, put in. It also helped that she and the Nightmare were naturally used to relinquishing control over their bodies to the other. The real trick there was in both relinquishing and maintaining control at once. This was easy for her, but hard for Umbra, and, unfortunately, it showed.

"Are you alright, Professor?" the Queen asked, frowning down at her.

It took Twinkle Shine a moment to realize she had been asked a question, and another to force a response past her uncooperative tongue. "Concerned, Your Majesty," she said, ducking her head to hide the unfocused stare of her eyes. "Gamma's maneuvered my student into something here, and I can't help but feel worried that it might end with her hurt."

The Queen nodded in quiet agreement and the two continued down the palace corridor. They were on their way to a meeting of the King with all his chief advisors, an occasion officially known as a Crown Summit. It was there that Twinkle Shine would present her plan to trap Nightmare Umbra, and there she would face opposition from her own beloved student.

It was a very underhoofed tactic from Gamma, setting Star Fall against her, but perfectly in line with the spymaster's usual modus operandi. The Professor found she couldn't blame Gamma for doing it. She had good reason to oppose Twinkle Shine's plan, and it was perfectly reasonable of her to use any and every advantage she could in putting a stop to it. She was, after all, entirely correct about its chances of working.

Far away, flying above the clouds in the light of the afternoon sun, the Destroyer searched the land below for something civilization had long forgotten. The wind in her wings made Twinkle Shine's shoulders twitch, the cold biting in places she didn't actually have. It would be much worse once Umbra landed and started her work, and so they had agreed that the Nightmare was not to do anything until Council meeting was over.

"I'm sorry, Twinkle," the Queen said, leaning down and speaking quietly so her words wouldn't carry to their Griffin escort. "I know how hard you worked to protect her from all of this. If I could have done more for you, I would have."

"I know, Aqua," Twinkle Shine replied, this time without having to muscle her way past Umbra's unconscious grasping for control. "I wish you could have done more. I wish I could have done more, but..."

"But it is as it is." The Queen nodded. "It seems all of our efforts over the years have come to naught. Still, she’s taken to her situation quite well. The moves she's been making: taking control of the Secret Service, wrangling concessions in the Stile Islands from my lord husband, I hear she's been talking to the nobles, and has somehow gotten in their good graces."

"Yes," Twinkle Shine said, frowning. It was true, her student was making a lot of headway in areas she'd thought impossible. It was a testament to the skill and strength of her protegee, but it also smacked of doing too much too fast. She'd made gains that weren't possible without big promises or harsh bullying, and the Professor was afraid the debts her student was racking up would come due far too soon.

"If I may be honest, Twinkle?"

"Please, Aqua, I would want nothing less from you," she replied.

"I hope your student surpasses her teacher today."

That would have brought her up short, but Umbra kept her legs moving without pause and her face squarely ahead. "I... see," she managed to reply. "You agree with Gamma, then?"

"I can't be sure I agree with anything that mare says or does," the Queen said, shaking her head sadly. "No, I say this for myself and my lord husband. What you are proposing, it's meddling in the divine. There are stories of ponies who have attempted such things in the past, and I think you know how they all ended."

"I know," Twinkle Shine said. She had, after all, been the inspiration for several of those stories, in one form or another. "But I don't see any other option than to try. She's here, Aqua. The Shadowed Alicorn, the Destroyer. She's here, and this time she means to finish what she started eight hundred years ago. If we do nothing we will only invite that end."

“Celestia did not abandon us before. I do not think she will let us face the Destroyer alone this time either,” the Queen said, straightening. “Have faith, Professor.”

“I will try, Your Majesty,” Twinkle Shine said, making the effort to take full control of her body as they came to the place of the Summit, the Red Chamber. Their Griffin guards joined others already stationed at the doors, settling into attentive, ready postures. Twinkle Shine gave them barely a thought as she preceded the Queen into the room.

The Red Chamber was one of several solariums in the Court, and it got its name from the predominantly red marble that made up its floor and walls. A radiant sunburst design on the floor pointed out where each advisor was to stand, dividing the room into eight neat wedges. It was the traditional place for a Crown Summit, chosen originally because the thick walls made eavesdropping all but impossible, and also for its several doors so that the Crown’s advisors could come and go by different routes if they happened to hate each other. Which was an unfortunately common situation.

They were the last to arrive. The Queen crossed the floor and took her place next to her husband, the both of them flanked by the highest-ranking among the Griffins. Twinkle Shine made her own way along the outside of the room until she came to her own position at the King’s right. The positioning was actually important, in a way. While the advisors were all technically of equal status, there was still a kind of hierarchy to them, one illustrated by where they stood in relation to the King. If the sunburst was a compass rose with the King at north, Twinkle Shine’s own position would be north-west. She was his chief advisor, her word came last and carried the greatest weight.

At the west position was the General of the Armies, and across from him at the east position was his counterpart, the Admiral of the Navies. As the heads of their respective branches of the military, they often agreed on policy, and could be counted on to support each other. At the south-west position was the Crown Exchequer, responsible for the economic policies of the Kingdom. It was a position not well loved or respected by many, since dealing with money and the vagaries of supply and demand were often seen as suspiciously republican pursuits. The south position was taken up by the representative of the nobility. Their place opposite the King was no accident, but most nobles saw it as an insult rather than the reminder that it was: that they were subordinate to the Crown. The south-east position was taken by the Crown’s Justice, the pony responsible for keeping the nobles in line and making sure they were administering the laws of the Kingdom properly.

Finally, the north-east position was taken by the Master of the Crown’s Intelligence. That would normally be Gamma, but on this day Star Fall stood in her place. Standing behind her were Astrid as well as Gamma’s secretary, Therese, both eying the gathered ponies in their own way. Star Fall gave the Professor a look that was tangled with many different emotions, but managed to keep it from being more than a pained glance before her features returned to a professional neutrality. Twinkle Shine couldn’t help but see it as a mask of false bravado. Star Fall was in over her head, and she didn’t even know how deep it would get.

“Professor,” the King said with a tilt of his head. “Now that we’re all here, I call this meeting to order.” At those words the guards swung the doors shut all around the room, each closing with a solid boom that rattled the windows that made up the ceiling. “We have only a few points of discussion today, the first of which is an introduction. I believe all of you know our soon to be daughter-in-law, the Princess Fallen Star.”

“Your Highness,” came the acknowledging murmurs from around the room. Even the noble managed to say it without choking on his tongue.

“Fallen Star has been appointed representative to this council by Agent Gamma,” the King continued. “She has also taken control of the Secret Service in our spymaster’s absence. As such, it is her right and her privilege to open our discussions with a report from her spies. Princess?”

Star Fall stepped forward. She held her wings high, her neck stiff and her legs straight. She was naked, as befit her new station, and her coat practically glowed in the sunlight, the crimson lines of the Glyph she was finally able to show off burning like fire on her hips. She didn’t look scared, or overwhelmed. She looked confident, strong. She looked regal. That realization took Twinkle Shine’s breath away. She had never seen her student like this before, not really.

“Focus,” Umbra chided from half a continent away, forcing the Professor’s lungs to fill and eyes to blink.

“Reports from the Republics indicate an ongoing upheaval in their Senate,” Star Fall said, not even a hint of hesitation or trepidation at the company she found herself in marring her voice. “What was started by one Senator has ballooned into a full-blown power struggle. A lot of them, the usual robber-baron sorts, are seeing an opportunity to do away with one of the checks on their power, and are attacking the Republics Intelligence Agency directly. The Moderates are opposing them, but both factions are courting assistance from the Hawks, who will support any side willing to give them the votes to go to war.”

“How is the RIA responding?" the General asked.

"With remarkable restraint," Star Fall answered. "Best case scenario right now is that the moderates win without the RIA interfering or assistance from the Hawks, and everything goes back to status quo."

"What's the worst case?" the King asked.

"For us? Any resolution with the Hawks coming out on top. That would mean war immediately and a government completely uninterested in diplomacy."

"What do you mean 'for us'?" the Exchequer asked. There wasn't any deference or respect in his voice, an unspoken challenge to Star Fall's place there.

"I mean that is the possibility that has the most immediate impact on the Kingdom," Star Fall responded, her own tone not wavering in the slightest in response to the Exchequer’s challenge. "The general worst case is if the RIA decides to eliminate their opponents in the Senate. That would mean a shadow-coup. Changelings taking the place of Senators, the entire government quietly and decisively becoming a puppet for the Directors of the RIA."

"Could that not be to our advantage?" the Exchequer asked, the question carrying subtle barbs.

"In the short term, yes," Star Fall said. "The RIA would be much less likely to go to war. In the long term? No. Anyone who would seize power like that once will not be content to control only their own borders."

The Exchequer stepped back, nodding in acquiescence with a new bit of respect in his stance. Whatever test he had set for her, Star Fall had passed.

"Beyond the Republics, the Zebra nations are beginning a conflict of their own. Border skirmishes have been reported between most neighboring states, though as near as we can tell casualties are low. I believe they're jockeying for position, readying for another round of unification talks."

"Savages playing at diplomacy," the noble sneered.

"Many of our subjects are Zebra," the King said. "Would you call them savage too?"

"Of course not, Your Majesty," the noble said with a deferential bow. "The Kingdom is, after all, a civilizing influence on them."

The King let out a derisive snort, but did not reply. Twinkle Shine decided that it would be appropriate for her to speak instead. "The Zebra nations are not savages, my lord. They are divided and contentious, true, but those traits come from traditions that date back to before the Schism. Do not underestimate them should they stand united. And they will unite if Equestria looks like it will pose a threat to them."

"As the Professor says." Star Fall inclined her head at her mentor. "The Zebra nations are a periphery issue now, but they can evolve into a real threat very quickly."

There was a moment of silence at that, broken by the Queen clearing her throat. "So," she said. "Is that all from the Secret Service?"

Star Fall nodded. "That's the priority information. Our military reports have already been delivered to the General and the Admiral, which indicate no change in the buildup of forces in the Stile Islands. Additionally, our search for Max Cash has been fruitless."

"Thank you, Princess," the King said, and Star Fall stepped back. "Admiral, General, the floor is yours."

"The situation remains unchanged," the Admiral said. "The Republicans are building up forces faster than we are, and the window of opportunity is shrinking. We either strike in the next month or we cede the Islands."

"A month," the King mused, looking at Star Fall for a moment. "Perhaps we can use the turmoil in the Senate to stall their progress?"

"I'll see what the Service can do, Your Majesty," Star Fall said with a bow.

"Husband, diplomacy may be our best avenue there," the Queen said. "Offer aid to the moderates, perhaps lift the sanctions on the crystal trade for those who will work with us."

The King made a sour face. "I am loath to part with any of our crystal resources. Every shard we trade to them is a shard that they can turn against us."

"Not if that shard ensures they won't turn against us," the Professor pointed out. "I advise diplomacy and patience, Your Majesty."

He grunted. "I will consider it. Enough talk of the coming war. The nobility have signalled that they object to our appointment of Rainbow Dash to the peerage. We will hear that objection now."

"Actually," the noble said, with an apologetic bow that didn't hide the sly smile he shot Star Fall. "The nobility would like to withdraw that objection."

The King frowned. Twinkle Shine quirked an eyebrow. She had known that her student was advocating on Rainbow Dash's behalf, but the look in the noble's eye was a smug one. This was some scheme, and he felt he was getting the better end of it. "If you withdraw your objection now, I will not allow you to raise it again," the King warned.

The noble looked to Star Fall, who kept her face carefully neutral, though Twinkle Shine could tell by the way her legs and wings stiffened that she was worried. "The nobility understands and accepts, Your Majesty."

"Very well," the King said, clearly puzzled at the noble's choice. Not that he didn't have reason to be. Twinkle Shine was curious as to how her student has persuaded the notoriously hard-headed nobility to allow Rainbow Dash her title. "Then we come to the most important business. Professor, if you would?"

Twinkle Shine stepped forward. She had to make an effort not to stare at her student. She wished she could just explain it all to Star Fall, she was sure that her protegee’s keen mind would see the sense in it, would realize that it was the only real way their broken world could move forward. But she couldn't do that. There were secrets to be kept, and the full was far more dangerous than even her present ignorance.

"We all know of the Shadowed Alicorn's return," she began, looking around the circle and ensuring that she had the full attention of every pony there. "I have received word that early this morning thaumographs registered a massive power. The wavelength and sheer size of that power mean that it can only come from her. That power has maintained a steady increase in intensity throughout the day. As of one and a half hours ago it surpassed our estimates of the strength of every Magic Talent unicorn in the Kingdom. Combined." There was a soft gasp at this, though she didn't see which pony it came from. "Her magic is creating a diffusion effect so we cannot tell exactly where she is, except that it's not close to any of the major cities. If she does do anything with that power, such as she did during her fight with Rainbow Dash, then I suspect any unicorn within a thousand miles will be able to pinpoint her. If they remain conscious through the feedback, that is."

"What is she up to?" the King wondered aloud.

"Exploiting Your Madness," the Nightmare growled, though Twinkle Shine only shook her head.

"I can't speculate on that," she said. "What I can say is that whatever she's doing, it will only be disastrous for the Kingdom. As dangerous as a war with the Republics will be. If we focus only on them we are missing the real threat. We must prepare for her."

"The Destroyer has shown that even weakened she has no difficulty wiping out armies," the General pointed out. "How do you suggest we prepare?"

"I recently visited the Temple of Luna," Twinkle Shine said. "There I researched stories of an ancient, evil spirit known as Nightmare Moon. A spirit that was defeated by Twilight Sparkle and her friends a thousand years ago."

"I don't see how millennium-old myths help us against an angry Goddess who is here, now," the noble said.

"Fool," Umbra snorted, dropping into a dive that sent Twinkle Shine's heart thudding and her stomach flip-flopping.

Twinkle Shine swallowed her discomfort and kept her composure as she answered the noble. "With Rainbow Dash's return we have learned a lot about those times that had been lost. For one, it turns out that this Nightmare Moon was also an Alicorn."

That set the noble on his heels, as well as widening the eyes of the half of her audience that didn't already know that. "So she can be defeated," the Admiral said.

"She can," Twinkle Shine confirmed. Just not the way I'm about to give you, she silently added. "Rainbow Dash said they used artifacts called the Elements of Harmony, artifacts which are currently being pursued." There was an uncomfortable shuffling from Star Fall, probably her holding back from saying something about Cash. Twinkle Shine silently thanked her student for not speaking up, this situation was delicate enough without dragging the mad stallion into it. "However, I found something in the legends, an alternate method. Not to destroy or defeat the Nightmare, but to bind her."

"Bind her?" the General asked, giving voice to the skepticism she saw in most of their eyes. "Bind a Goddess?"

"It can be done," Twinkle Shine assured them. "Not easily, to be sure. Not cheaply, either. It requires something called the 'Chains of Tartarus'."

"More artifacts?" Star Fall asked, though she sounded more genuinely curious than dismissive or belligerent.

"In this case, no," the Professor replied. "The 'Chains of Tartarus' can be literal chains, but important aspect of them is the substance used to make them. Specifically, what we call non-terminal mana-absorbing super-conductive crystal."

"Mana-absorbing," Star Fall said, her face scrunching up as she thought about it. "Anti-magic crystals?"

"Exactly," the Professor said. "And even then, only the most resilient, highest-tolerance crystals will do."

"And the Destroyer is weak to these crystals?" the King asked, leaning forward in eager anticipation.

"Not specifically, but they can be used to drain off her power, to make her weak. Theoretically, they can make her weak enough that she could be held in one place indefinitely."

"How indefinitely?" the Admiral asked.

"She is immortal," Twinkle Shine said. "Nothing I know of can change that." The Nightmare landed hard, and Twinkle Shine couldn't help but flex her own knees in an unconscious attempt to absorb some of the impact. It made her look like she had nearly fallen for a moment, but she recovered quickly and kept speaking, hoping no one asked her about it. "If no other solution is found, indefinitely would have to be forever, if we wanted to survive. If we do manage to trap her and she gets out, I doubt she'll let us get a second chance."

"How much of this 'Chain' will you need to make it work?" the King asked.

Twinkle Shine sighed. "That is where this plan becomes costly. A lot of it. I've taken an inventory of how much of the specific crystal we have in stock, and... well, it's not enough. Enough to slow her, perhaps, but not to hold her in place."

"How long will it take to mine more?"

"Sadly, this is not the kind of crystal that we can easily mine in the north. This is... well, it was a kind of weapon created during the Schism. I think, perhaps, the ponies back then knew of these same legends and were trying to create a weapon against Umbra themselves, only to have it all come to an end too soon. We have some of it available, I even have a length of chain made from these crystals, a kind of proof-of-concept. But the majority of this crystal, the amount we need can only be found in the Republics."

The King hung his head. "And thus out of our reach."

"No, Your Majesty, not entirely," Twinkle Shine said. "Umbra is a threat to both us and the Republics. Hell, she's a threat to the whole world! This is the only way to stop her. Especially if she regains her true power as she has promised. This is why peace with the Republics is our only option. And not only them, but with the Zebra nations as well. Only together will we be able to contain her. Only together will we be able to ensure that there is a world left for us."

"If I could be assured of the Republicans seeing it the same way, I would agree with you," the King said. "But as your daughter has just finished telling us, they are in the midst of an upheaval that will likely see them start their inevitable war with us. We cannot trust them with a project like this."

"I know," Twinkle Shine said. "There is... there is another way we can use the Chain we have. We can't lock the Destroyer down with it, but we might be able to... direct her anger, for a time."

Star Fall's eyes widened. "What are you saying, Professor?" she asked, shocked disbelief in her voice. "Are you saying we intentionally set the Shadowed Alicorn on our enemies?"

"That is exactly what I'm saying," Twinkle Shine said, and let out a silent, internal cry as she saw a piece of respect die in her student's eyes.

"Steady," the Nightmare said. "Do Not Allow Sentiment To Outweigh Purpose."

The Professor took a steadying breath and continued. "We can't stop her, we can't control her, but if we aim her at them and present the solution, they will have no choice but to capitulate. We can hammer out the terms of their surrender after we contain Umbra."

"Professor... what you're suggesting," the Queen shook her head. "Millions will die. And it will be on our heads."

"I will do what must be done," Twinkle Shine said. "If we do this, I will take all responsibility. But we must do this."

"Professor!" Star Fall shouted, and hers was only the loudest voice that called out.

"Enough!" the King roared. Silence fell. Star Fall looked at Twinkle Shine like she'd been betrayed, tears welling. The Queen refused to look at her, staring at the floor instead. The others wore various expressions of shock and fear. The King, though, he was grinning with a hungry edge. She'd known he would be enamored of her plan, his madness for Alicorns betraying any better judgement he might have had. "The Professor has spoken. We find her plan... yes, we find it to our liking. But even a mind as great as hers can miss things. I will hear from my advisors."

Star Fall took a moment to compose herself, but it was clear that her earlier composure had been shattered. She stepped forward. "Your Majesty, this is... this is an abomination," she said. Twinkle Shine couldn't hide a shiver at those words. "Rainbow Dash, Astrid and I beat her before. Even if she gets stronger, that shows that she can be defeated by normal people working together. There has to be an alternative, a way that doesn't require us to become just like her. Because make no mistake, that's what will happen. If we unleash the Destroyer on our enemies, then we will be the Destroyers. And there will not be a hole in Tartarus deep enough for our black souls." She stepped back, and Astrid stepped to her side, laying a comforting wing over the pegasus. It was a breach of decorum, and it made her look weak, but for the moment Twinkle Shine was just glad her student had a friend to stand with her.

The Admiral looked to the General, who shook his head. "Your Majesty, the military cannot condone this plan. It places too great a risk in a force we do not understand and are not sure we can control."

The Justice just shook his head, abstaining from saying anything. He was rattled, sure enough, but he was a pony with Administering The Law as his Talent, she knew he wouldn't be able to side with her.

The noble was next. He looked from the King to Star Fall to the Professor and then back again. "Your Majesty... the nobility will have to agree with the Lady Fallen Star. We are contemplating sin here."

The Exchequer took his turn. "From what I hear, we don't have a good chance against the Republics in open warfare. Better than against the Destroyer, but in the long run both will wipe us out given the opportunity. I say if we get the chance to turn her against them, we take it. Better to be devils today and build heaven tomorrow, than to be angels now and let the world go to hell while we keep our halos."

The King nodded. He took a long, silent minute to contemplate what they had said, but Twinkle Shine could see the mad glee behind his eyes. She had him. Finally he stepped to the center of the circle. "This is our decision. We are not a monster. We do not wish the suffering that comes with the Destroyer on any one, not even our most hated enemy. However, we cannot ignore that this might be the only chance there is to save everyone from her. Thus, we will prepare for the worst while searching for the best. Professor, you have our authority to gather the remnants of this Chain of Tartarus and forge it into the weapon we need. But we shall not use it until and unless all avenues of cooperation with the nightlands have failed. Princess Fallen Star, you will work with our Queen to influence the Republics towards peace and conciliation. You have our authority to offer them what you see fit from the treasures of our Kingdom. General, Admiral, we have promised the Princess that we would hold our military buildup, and we will keep to that promise. Instead, we would like you to put your forces at her direction. She is fulfilling plans left by Agent Gamma to counter yet another threat to our Kingdom, and she needs as many forces as you can spare without weakening our position at the Stile Islands. If all our efforts fail... then the Professor will enact her plan."

The meeting was adjourned after that. Star Fall clearly wanted to talk to the Professor afterwards, but Twinkle Shine made her excuses and fled back to her estate. There she locked the doors, set the wards to keep out absolutely everyone, and huddled on her bed, giving control fully to Umbra.

"Finally," the Nightmare snarled, and without further hesitation she began her work. Ash fell from her body in drifting flakes. It billowed out from her in a cloud of grey-white that blanketed the land for a mile in every direction. Once it covered the whole area, tendrils of ash began to dig their way into the soil, growing and branching like deathly roots, searching for the long-forgotten remnants of a near-millenium-old battlefield.

She found them. A few at first, but then more and more as her seeking roots touched the deep graves of the fallen. She found them, and she filled them with herself. She poured into them the memories and power of the thousands of souls she had taken across her millennium of activity. It took a great share of her strength, but if power was a currency then she had far too much to ever fully spend.

She burned her magic into them, and she felt each of them become a part of her. Distinct, separate, but driven by her power and her purpose.

It took time. Days passed as she cast her great spell, taking care that it was not something that could be traced by the Kingdom. The Professor rose and went about her activities, but the Nightmare was too engrossed in her work to influence her now. Finally, she was ready.

She opened her eyes and stared into a twilight made eerie by the pale deadness of the ash-covered world around her, then spoke one word:

“Rise.”

***

"Two stallions, loitering by the door," Hard Boiled said as he leaned against the alley wall and tried not to wince as the felt of his hat rubbed against his horn. He didn't like hats for exactly that reason, but it was one of the best ways to hide the telltale glow of his magic, so he lived with the discomfort. The brim was low over his eyes from the angle it had to sit on his head, but that worked to his advantage too, making him even harder to recognize from a distance. "Add those to the ones in the apartments across the street and the three watching the block, and there's got to be fifteen people watching the place. I’m not seeing a lot of coordination so they’re not all working together, either. So it's not just Cash." He turned to Traduce, who waited in the alley wearing the body of a pale brown earth pony mare. "You were right, something else is going on here."

She nodded in grim agreement. "Only something big would cause all my contacts to go dark like this." She shook the dark expression from her face and flashed him a weary smile. "Well, I guess your apartment isn't an option, then. You know, I never really realized how much being stuck in one shape sucked until I had to sneak you into the country."

"Sorry for being such an inconvenience."

"I know how you can make it up to me," she said, her smile changing to a sly grin that left no question as to what she meant.

He ignored the flirtation, stepping back into the alley. "So the apartment's out. We can't stay in a hotel without grabbing more money, which we can't do without putting a target on ourselves for anyone watching."

"If it wasn’t a toss-up on who would get to us first, I'd be tempted to do it anyway." Traduce said. "It's not all bad, though. I once masqueraded as a vagrant for six months. I can find us some no-questions-asked shelter and food easily enough."

HB shook his head. He had a better idea. "I need information. My place was a long shot to begin with, but if they weren't keeping a tight watch here it would mean we had a better chance of getting into the SIU offices. Now that we know how many eyes they have here, I know I’ve got no chance of getting in there."

"So you've got a plan," she said. It wasn't a question. She was still eating his pain, giving him the freedom to use his magic as needed. It let her feel the direction of his thoughts, even if she couldn't read them outright.

He nodded anyway. "How long until Straff gets the messages you've been sending him?"

"It's hard to say. The molehunt is going to make any line of communication suspect. I'd like to say he's already got them, but that might be wishful thinking. Really, we won't know until he finds us."

HB grunted in acknowledgement. "Let's hope it's sooner rather than later. We might not have much time to prevent Cash from getting to Birchfield. Come on, we're heading to the suburbs."

The journey took them longer than HB liked, a necessity of having to navigate the sprawling streets of Orion City by hoof. Already exhausted by the journey up from the jungles, the long walk wore on them. When they finally got to their destination, HB was too tired to muster up much of a response to what they found.

"Nice place," Traduce said, looking at the house they'd come to.

It was a nice place. A pretty two-story house with a wide yard and a landscaped garden. A radio antenna stuck up from the roof. A normal enough sight, but to HB's magic it looked subtly wrong. He couldn't tell how, not without getting closer, but it was one of the two important details that stuck out to him. The other was that the place was far too big and far too nice to be affordable on a bachelor detective's salary.

"Can you get us in?" he asked Traduce.

"Please," she said, her look of mock-affront making HB’s lips twitch in a halfhearted attempt at a smile. It was a measure of her own fatigue that she simply walked up to the door rather than sashaying. A half-minute later and the front door clicked open. They went into the house to find a sparsely furnished living space that managed to convey with its smooth lines and solid palette of shiny black and white that everything in it had been selected for how much it cost rather than any utility.

HB collapsed into a plush leather chair, sighing as his aching hooves were given some respite. He wondered if Traduce was masking the hurts of his body like she was reducing the severity of his headaches. He dismissed that thought a moment later, unwilling to contemplate the implications of that idea.

Traduce didn't rest, instead doing a sweep of the house. She came back to him a short while later, a frown creasing her forehead. "This place is new," she said. "The wiring was done to the most recent building codes, which means in the past three years. Kitchen’s stocked, but only with quick-fix stuff. Nice set of utensils, none of which look like they’ve seen much use. A lot of takeout bags in the fridge, though. Whoever lives here eats out more often than in.”

“Figured,” HB said. “What’s the time?”

“Seven thirty,” Traduce said. “Who are we waiting for?”

“I’m surprised you don’t know,” HB said, not moving as she stepped up to the window and looked out at the quiet street.

“Why would you think that I would know?”

“Because I thought you spy-types liked to be thorough,” he replied. “Shouldn’t be long now. Just tell me when he gets home then make yourself scarce.”

He could practically feel the look she gave him. Part irritation, part lust. All dangerous. He wished he knew what made him so enticing to her, but it seemed even his magic wasn’t good enough to get to the truth of a mare’s heart.

He let the thought go, settling into a light doze that only dulled the edge of his exhaustion. Time passed quickly, and soon Traduce was shaking him awake, her touch light but insistent. “He’s here.”

“Stay out of the way,” HB said, blinking his eyes clear. “If I need help, you’ll know it.”

“Are you sure?” she asked, giving him an intent stare.

“Trust me,” he said. She held his gaze for a moment longer before nodding and fading into the shadows of the darkened house just as the sounds of a key in the front door reached them. HB held still as that door opened and the owner of the house walked in. The stallion stepped confidently and blindly into his home, but halfway to the kitchen some instinct must have warned him that all was not well. He froze, his head snapping to where HB sat, watching him. “Hello, Barry,” HB said, inclining his head to his partner.

“Lieutenant?” Barry said, confusion ruling his features for a long moment. Then his brain caught up with the situation, and HB could see his face shift through each stage of the realization of just what a meeting like this meant. He didn’t even need his magic to tell what the junior detective was thinking.

Barry tensed, but unicorn magic is faster than earth pony muscle, and before he could act Hard Boiled had his gun out, cocked and aimed. “Don’t,” HB said. Barry swallowed hard, his eyes focused on the yawning barrel of the pistol. “Take a seat, Barry.” HB gestured at one of the other chairs in the living room, making sure to keep his gun pointed squarely at the other stallion. Barry obliged, slowly making his way to the chair and sitting down.

“I didn’t know you were back,” Barry said, still watching the gun. His voice was steady, admirably so in the circumstances. “I’m guessing you didn’t find what you were looking for?”

“No, I found it,” HB said. “And a lot of trouble besides.” He sighed, deciding that he was too tired to beat around the bush. “Barry, you’ve got two chances to come clean with me. If you take the first, then I’ll be inclined to think you’re not a bad cop, that you just made a few mistakes. We all make mistakes, Barry. Mistakes can be forgiven, the damage repaired. Take the second –and if you don’t take the first you will take the second– and that inclination reverses. Do you understand my meaning?”

Barry nodded slowly. “Yes sir, I think I do.”

“Good. Now. How long have you been passing on information about me?” HB’s magic burned to life in his mind, focusing on Barry, picking his every twitch and breath apart to discover if he would tell the truth or resort to a lie.

“I –” Barry began, but HB cut him off.

“This is that first chance, Barry,” he warned. “Think damn carefully about what you say next.”

Barry swallowed hard again, sweat glistening on his coat. He knew what HB could do, knew how impossible it was to lie to him. He wanted to lie, wanted it badly, but he knew how futile it would be, how dangerous. Those two thoughts warred within him until, in the end, the rational course won out and he slumped in defeat. “Years,” Barry said. “Since I was promoted to detective.”

HB let out his own held breath. “Years,” he repeated. “You’ve been on the take for years.”

“I’ve been spying on you for years,” Barry said. “I’ve been taking bribes since… well, since I was a beat cop. The usual stuff, you know? Look the other way one time, forget to log something into evidence. Just… just stuff that every cop does.”

“Not every cop,” HB growled.

“Yeah. I guess not every cop,” Barry said, sighing and wiping a foreleg across his brow to clear some of the sweat. “I busted my ass to get off the beat, you know. Worked myself like a sunland slave just to make the grade. Nobody thought I could do it. Didn’t think I was good enough.” Barry snorted in disgust. “I showed them, though. I made it, no tricks, no cheating. I earned my place on the SIU, believe me.”

“I do,” HB said, and he could see that Barry had desperately needed that acknowledgment.

“Thank you.” Barry shook himself, taking a deep breath before continuing. “Right after I got promoted, these ponies came to visit me. I don’t know who they were, they never gave names and I never saw them again. They knew what I’d done as a beat cop, the bribes I’d taken. Damn it, they practically had an itemised list! They had evidence, too. Photos, times, places. They said that if I didn’t play ball with them they’d give the list to Captain Rivers. I’d lose my job, go to jail. Then they offered me money, lots of it, and all I’d have to do is keep them informed about the investigations the SIU did.”

“Carrot and stick,” Traduce said, stepping out of the shadows like a ghost. Barry’s eyes shot open and the only thing that stopped him from bolting was the continued steady aim of HB’s gun. “Looks to me like you took the carrot.”

“Barry, Traduce. Traduce, Barry,” Hard Boiled said, giving Traduce a flat look.

She returned the look with a coy shrug. “I was getting bored watching,” she said, then turned back to Barry. “So you’re the leak.”

“Not the leak, only a leak,” HB corrected. “You weren’t spying on me specifically, right?”

Barry shook his head. “No, the whole SIU.”

“Why the distinction?” Traduce asked.

“Because it changes how pissed off I am,” HB said. “Barry, do you know who you were spying for?” Barry hung his head and gave a small nod. “Who?”

He looked back up at them, despair and shame clear in his eyes. “The Kingdom,” he said, his voice breaking on the admission. “I’m a Luna-damned sunland spy.”

“A what?” Traduce snarled, taking an aggressive step towards Barry.

HB held out a hoof to stop her. “Take it easy.”

“Easy?” she snapped, fangs flashing as her pony form burned away to reveal her true self. Barry yelped, throwing himself back into the chair, as if he could burrow away from the angry Changeling. “I should drain this traitorous coward dry for this, and you tell me to take it easy?”

“It would have been better if he’d been spying for Cash?”

“Yes!” Traduce hissed, then backed off. “Cash is a psychotic criminal, but at least he’s a Republican.”

Hard Boiled sighed, pulling the hat off his head so he could rub at the growing hair there. Traduce’s anger had lessened some of her concentration on him, which meant a return of his headache. He accepted it as the price of her displeasure, reminding himself not to grow too dependant on her. In truth, he was just as angry as her that Barry was a sunland spy, but for different reasons and with a different target. He had been hoping that Barry had been the leak to Cash. He could have learned more about what Cash's plans were in that case. As it was, this was just another dead end for his investigation. “Barry, how much of the James Bay murder case have you passed on to the sunlands? And how do you do it?”

“Everything,” he said. “As soon as I got my hooves on it, I was copying it and sending it along. The antenna on my roof has a crystal in it, it transmits what I give them to somewhere else and money gets deposited in my account. I never... haven't seen any of them since I agreed to spy for them. Sometimes I get messages, instructions, but never in person.”

“Damn,” HB said. “That means that Cash’s informant could be anywhere along the chain.”

“There might not be a mole in the RIA at all,” Traduce said.

“Might not,” he stressed. “Nothing’s for certain.”

“And never will be now, damn.”

“Barry,” HB said, shaking his head. “I don’t even know what to do with you.”

“She’s not going to eat me?” Barry asked, the gun having been forgotten with the revelation of Traduce.

“Still weighing that option,” Traduce snarled.

“No,” HB said, looking at Traduce and trying to silently impress on her the finality of that decision. She knew what he was feeling, of course, and she demurred instantly, stepping back into a dark corner of the room. “I need to know what’s going on at the office. What have you learned about the case in the past few weeks?”

“Not… not much,” Barry said, tearing his eyes away from Traduce and back to Hard Boiled. “That name, Cash, it’s come up. Max Cash is a big financial backer for James Bay, word is he is the real owner for every company Bay signed his name to. He’s also involved in some big time shady stuff.”

“I know,” HB said. “Skip Cash, unless you’ve got him as a suspect.”

“No. I've kept digging like you asked, but the investigation's pretty much closed. We’re pretty sure that sunland pegasus did it.”

“Sunland pegasus? The one Flash and Forrest ran into?”

Barry nodded. “You haven’t heard the news?” he asked, relaxing a bit as the conversation kept away from the topic of his indiscretions.

“I’ve been kind of busy.”

“It’s all over the place. There was some kind of big announcement in the sunlands, some new princess getting married. But they also showed off these three mares who were supposed to be ancient heroes or something, an earth pony, a unicorn and a pegasus. There were pictures of them doing these crazy, impossible things and Forrest and Flash both swear that the pegasus is the one who kicked the crap out of them."

HB grunted at that. It shed more light on another piece of the puzzle, the impossible mare. Unfortunately it didn't tell him how that piece fit with the rest. "So the Captain passed it on to the RIA, right?"

Barry shook his head, which surprised Hard Boiled. "The Captain's keeping that under wraps, he doesn't want to draw attention from the suits. It's gotten real political at headquarters, there's Senate aides vetting everything right now. Word is that there's some kind of scandal being covered up."

"Scandal?" HB shook his head, it didn't sound right to him, his magic pinging the statement as not so much a lie as blatant rumor and misinformation. "Barry, I need to get in touch with Captain Rivers, and you are going to help me with that."

Barry brightened at that, seeing a chance at redemption, or at least to weasel his way out of paying for his crimes. "Yeah, I can do that, Lieutenant!"

"Good, now we'll need to get you..." Hard Boiled trailed off, watching a long black car pull up to the house. "Traduce, we've got company."

Traduce flashed into her earth pony guise and stepped over to the window. A moment later she was grinning at him. "It's Straff."

"Stay still and quiet, Barry," HB warned. "There's no getting away from this, and trying is only going to make it worse." Barry slumped in on himself, surrendering to the inevitable.

Traduce let Straff in, and he greeted her with a simple "Traduce," and a nod. He walked into the living room and took in the scene with a dispassionate eye. The pale unicorn was looking almost ghostly in the half-light of the fading day. His eyes stood out from the spectre of his face with cold blue intensity. There were shadows under those eyes, and a hard set to his jaw that told of a great deal of stress and not enough sleep. HB could relate. "Lieutenant," Straff said. "I trust you have a reason for holding your partner at gunpoint."

"He's a sunland spy," Traduce said. Straff took the news with a quirked eyebrow that quickly smoothed back to a neutral expression. "We were hoping he was Cash's leak, but if he is, it isn't directly."

"Unfortunate," Straff said. His gaze roamed over Barry for a quiet minute before dismissing him utterly and returning his attention to Traduce and Hard Boiled. "Your message said you had found Cash's target."

"One of them," HB said. He and Traduce told Straff the entire story, from their encounter with Cash's assassin in Hoofprint through HB breaking through the concealing magic on the statue to their rush to get back to Orion City and secure the statue in Senator Birchfield's possession.

Straff listened through it all without interruption. When they were finished he stood digesting the information for a long moment before speaking. "Birchfield has started a campaign against the Agency," he said, looking at HB. There was no accusation in his tone, but Hard Boiled's magic told him that Straff was blaming him for this. "The Senate is fracturing along faction lines, and if we do not step very carefully the RIA will not survive."

"They can't destroy the Agency," Traduce said. "The Constitution--"

"Can be amended," Straff said, cutting her off. "A two-thirds majority is all they need. And with this sunland stunt riling up the hawk factions, the Senators who would like to see us eliminated might be able to get that majority."

"These sunland 'heroes'?" HB asked.

"Yes."

"What's the story behind that?"

Straff shook his head. "I have no idea. Yet. I expect that I will be hearing from one of our agents on the matter soon. For the moment all we know is whatever propaganda has made it from the Solar Capital to the Republics."

HB sighed. His horn ached at the thought of the impossible mare showing up as a sunland hero. He knew it was important, knew that it tied into everything else somehow, but without more information all he had was that magic-provided hunch. "Birchfield. We need to protect him from Cash. At the very least we need to keep that statue out of his hooves. The Senator said people would go to war over it."

"Birchfield would, certainly," Straff said. "The RIA cannot move against him, not even to 'help'. It would trigger a worst-case scenario for us."

"What about the police?"

Straff nodded slowly. "Acting to protect a public figure? Yes, that will work. I cannot, however, offer any Agency assistance."

"I understand."

"Traduce?" Straff looked over to the Changeling.

She shook her head. "I have to stay with him to keep him functional." HB winced at that, the consequences of using so much magic recently would lay him out for days without her around.

"I see," Straff looked like he was going to say more, but another pony came in through the front door and whispered a short message into his ear. HB's magic made him an excellent lip-reader, so he was able to get the phrase 'Calumn in Willow Heights' before Straff moved to block his line of sight. He knew that Willow Heights was a suburb of Orion City, not too far from this one, but the rest of it didn't mean much to him. "I'll be there shortly," Straff told the pony, who nodded and left without another word. Straff seemed pensive, and the little tells that HB was picking up on also said that he was worried. "Can he be trusted?" he asked, pointing his horn at Barry.

"I want immunity," Barry said, and all eyes turned to him with identical incredulous looks. He shivered under those angry glares and steeled his resolve. HB almost interrupted him, but decided to let it play out. "I can help, but I want immunity."

"Detective," Straff said, walking slowly to where Barry sat, his horn igniting to cast his face in the harsh magnesium flare of his magic. "Even if I had the authority to offer you immunity from prosecution, which I do not, I would refuse to do so. But since you are so willing to aid us, I am willing to offer this: leniency. When this affair is over you will be judged by how much, and how readily, you cooperated with this operation. Do well and I will ensure that your stay in prison is a relatively pleasant one at a minimum security facility. We will even keep your name and crime from appearing in the papers. Do badly, or balk at any time, and that deal is off. You go into the deepest, darkest hole we can find. And if you are very, very lucky, we forget about you. This is your only option, do you understand?"

Barry was nodding hard enough to send droplets of sweat spraying through the air. "I'll help," he said, stuttering over every syllable. "I promise, I'll help."

"Good," Straff said, then turned smartly and strode out of the house. "Be swift, Lieutenant," he said as he was leaving. "I fear events are already beginning to outpace us."

Barry breathed in heaving gulps as Straff got back in his car and drove away. Hard Boiled sympathised. Straff had used the same tactic that HB had, but the threat it was somehow far worse when made in the harsh white of Straff's magic instead of the copper glow of HB's. "You'll be fine, Barry," he assured him, putting the gun away and leaning towards the other detective. "Look at me.” Barry complied slowly. “You’re going to be fine.”

“I can’t go to jail,” Barry said, voice barely above a whisper.

“We’ll work something out,” HB said. “But you have to keep your head in the game. I need to talk to the Captain and I need to convince him that Senator Birchfield’s life is in danger. And I can’t be seen doing it or everything could go to hell. You said there’s suits all over, and probably others watching that you don’t even know about. Do you think you can get him out of the building and to somewhere I can meet without tipping any of them off?”

Barry shifted in his chair, but nodded. “Okay… okay. I think I can do that.”

“Good,” HB said, leaning back again. He ached from exhaustion, and the stress of this entire encounter had only added to it all. Yet there was a lot to do before he could find some rest. “Now, let’s go over your plan. I need to know every detail, what you plan to say, do, everything. We have to be certain that there’s no way Max Cash will find out what we’re doing. Because if he’s forewarned and gets to Birchfield first, then Orion city is gonna be a warzone.”

***

Calumn stared at the house, his pulse thudding in his ears. “Buddy, are you sure you want to do this?” Blaze asked, standing beside him.

Calumn shook his head. Motion behind one of the curtains caught his attention, and he watched the shadow of a mare trot across the window. “I have to,” he replied.

The passage through the Storm had been hard, but compared to being chased by an enormous undead bear, it had practically been a cakewalk. Blaze’s expert guidance and Spike’s solid anchoring prevented the Storm from separating and confusing them. They had been worried about Rarity; if she had used any magic at all it could have activated the worst dangers of the Everstorm. Fortunately she hadn’t needed to, and they had made it through to the nightlands a little frazzled, but completely unharmed.

Now that they were here they faced new challenges. Any notion of stealthing their way through the Republics was made laughable by the presence of Spike. Calumn had been considering plans to steal or rent a truck and have him hide in the back, but for some reason Gamma had been perfectly fine with letting him be out in the open. Actually, she insisted on it. So, with discovery and capture by the RIA inevitable, Calumn had made his own insistence that they come here directly.

Now he stood in front of the house of Strongheart’s mother, where he was faced with one of the most difficult tasks he had ever known.

“I don’t have a lot of time,” he reminded himself. It was enough to push him into motion. He walked up to the door, pausing as he considered what to do. He could knock, but this had been his house for two years, and knocking like a stranger didn't feel right. He tried the handle and found it unlocked.

The smell of the house was the first thing that got to him, that distinct scent that spoke of love and caring and home. He hadn't realized just how much he had missed it. He took a deep breath of that scent and stepped inside, closing the door behind him. He could hear noises from the kitchen, dinner being cooked.

"Hello?" Strongheart's mother called out. "Is someone there?" She stepped out of the kitchen and caught sight of him, freezing in place.

"We need to talk," Calumn said.

His words broke her paralysis. "Strongheart!" she cried, rushing to him and enfolding him in a crushing hug. "I was so worried! They wouldn't tell me anything about you and you never wrote! Why didn't you write?"

"I couldn't, I'm sorry," he said. He wanted to hug her back, wanted to tell her everything would be alright, but he couldn't. It was hard enough already. "We need to talk."

"Oh, we can talk later," she said. "Just let me hug you."

"No," he said, pushing her away.

She looked at him as if he had slapped her. "What? Why? Strongheart, what's wrong?"

"I'm sorry," he said again, shaking his head. "But I can't leave you like this."

"Like this? Strongheart, what do you mean? You just got home, why would you leave again so soon?"

"It's hurting you," he said, ignoring her questions. "You don't notice it, but what I’ve done, it's keeping the wound open and raw, not letting it heal. Eventually it will start to fester."

"Wound?" Her eyes tinged green as the magical commands he had implanted stopped her from putting the pieces together. "Strongheart, stop this. I don't know what you're talking about and it's scaring me."

He sighed. There was no use trying to discuss it with her. His own magic prevented her from understanding. He drew her close again and put his forehead to hers, reaching into her mind with his magic and finding the places where his influence was warping her. Then, carefully, he stripped that magic away. Layer upon layer of subconscious suggestions and obfuscations were rooted out and removed.

"No," she moaned as the magic preventing her from remembering the true fate of her son vanished. "No, please. I don't want to know, I don't want to know!"

"I'm sorry," he said again, holding tight as she started to struggle against him. "I'm so sorry. I know it hurts." He kept going, taking every last vestige of Changeling influence from her mind. Then he relaxed his grip and let her slump to the ground, tears beginning to well in her eyes.

"Why?" she gasped out. "Why did you do this to me?"

"Because it wasn't right," Calumn said. "It was hurting you, and it was cruel. You're a good mother, and Strongheart loved you just as much as you love him. He wouldn't have have wanted to see you hurt, and I owe it to both of you not to leave you like that."

"Make me forget!" she pleaded, pawing at his legs. "Please make me forget!"

"No," Calumn said. "I'm sorry, but I won't do that. I'm not your son, and I never could be." Green fire burst around him, burning away Strongheart's form and leaving Calumn as himself. She recoiled from him, instinctive fear and revulsion in her eyes. Calumn winced at that, feeling a part of his heart break at that look. "Remember," he said. "Remember Strongheart, and think about what he would want for you. Would he want you to live a fantasy, making his life meaningless by refusing to acknowledge his death? Or would he want you to live in reality, acknowledging the sacrifice he made and moving on with your life?"

She looked up at him, and he knew she was hearing his words, knew that she knew he was right. But it was too soon, she was too raw. She let out a wail and scrambled away from him, rushing up the stairs and to her room. She slammed the door behind her, but she needn't have, he wasn't following.

Calumn sighed again, resisting the urge to kick at the wall, instead he stood staring at his own hooves for a long time. He had loved her like she had been his real mother. Had fallen so far into his role as Strongheart that he hadn't even realized how genuine his feelings had become. But he was different now, changed by Max Cash, changed further and more completely by his own inner struggles. He knew that it hadn't been fair to leave her like he had. He was sure of that. Now, he just had to keep reminding himself of that.

Calumn turned and walked from the house he had called home for the last time.

Straff waited for him in the street. RIA forces were sweeping through the neighbourhood in full combat gear and with guns drawn. Blaze was already surrounded by three ponies. He grinned happily and chatted with them, much to their confusion, and gave Calumn a wave as he spotted the Changeling. Calumn returned that wave with a nod and walked to Straff.

"Calumn," Straff said as he came close. He noted the obvious fatigue that Straff was displaying and wondered at the cause. "I would very much like to ask what you think you're doing."

"I had to let her go, sir," he said.

"You had a duty to inform me of your findings as soon as you returned."

Calumn shrugged. "Yes. But this was more important."

Straff's eyes narrowed at that. Nothing was more important than duty to a Changeling, or nothing should have been. "You've been compromised."

Calumn nodded. There was no point in trying to hide it. "Cash got to me. He can... he has power, like nothing you've ever seen before."

"Should I be treating you as an enemy?"

"No," Calumn said. "I don't think I can ever be what I was, but I'm not ever going to be an enemy of the Republics."

"What about him?" Straff asked, indicating Blaze.

"He's nobody's enemy. Trust me on that." Calumn looked beyond Straff, to where a group of Agency troops were escorting Gamma, Spike, Rarity and Melody to them. Spike was looking less than pleased about the whole situation, and Rarity was picking up on that, warily watching. Calumn was grateful she wasn't the type to start lashing out, with the kind of power she had she was very capable of killing every soldier here with their own uniform. Melody was extremely twitchy, and flinched every time one of the soldiers looked her way. Calumn just had to hope that she wouldn’t cause a scene, but he could feel the intense clash of her emotions and knew it would be a close thing.

Gamma was the one he was really worrying about, though. He knew that she had some kind of plan, but she had always been vague on the specifics. Other than that she was ‘surrendering’, though he doubted the spymaster would ever truly surrender. She tugged at her scarf with her magic, settling it so it covered more of the scar that ringed her neck. That action, and the way she was staring right at Straff, told Calumn that she was worried.

"I think the one you really should be asking that question is her," Calumn said, tilting his head towards Gamma as they came to a stop.

Straff turned. Calumn couldn't see his face from this angle, but the sudden bunched tension in his shoulders told him everything he needed to know. These two knew each other, and not just by reputation, there was history here. He maneuvered to the side so he could get a better view of everyone, and found Straff and Gamma locked in a stare that showed something that surprised Calumn.

They had the same eyes. Not just in their serious intensity, but in the depth of blue they shared. Eyes that almost seemed to glow in the half-light of dusk.

Gamma spoke first. "It's been a long time."

"Twenty years," Straff replied. Calumn noted anger in the Director’s tone, and his emotional senses caught a flash of deeply personal hurt as well. "You've come up in the world."

"Don't be fooled," she said. "I'm not here looking for forgiveness or redemption. I have not gone soft. I'm still the mare who betrayed you."

"And I'm still the stallion who strung you up for it," Straff said, the anger in his voice hardening it to a lashing snap. He spent a moment in silence, composing himself. When he spoke again, it was with a calm, measured tone. "And advancing age has, if anything, only made me more bitter and cynical. I was never in any danger of being fooled by you again. Why are you here?"

"I am surrendering myself to your custody."

"Yes. Clearly." Straff's dry delivery was untouched by the tension that still had his muscles rigid. "Why are you here?"

"Because you need my help. Max Cash is much more dangerous than you can imagine, and we have reason to believe that something he wants is here, in the nightlands."

"Max Cash."

"He must be stopped."

"Well! All this staring and low voices are delightfully dramatic, but since I can only understand every other word, I'm afraid it's all lost on me," Rarity said in Solar. Straff and Gamma broke their stare to look at her. Rarity was undaunted, stepping forward, a move that caused the surrounding troopers to level their guns at her. She noted the weapons with a raised eyebrow and a cool disdain, then continued speaking. "If someone would introduce me, I would like to know why these, ah, gentleponies are pointing guns at us."

Straff blinked at her for a moment, taking a closer look. Then his eyes jerked wide and he looked back to Gamma. "Is this...?"

"Yes," Gamma replied, a small smile breaking her careful neutrality. "And this is Master Spike, Lord of Dragons."

Straff frowned. "Heroes from the past," he said, his tone skeptical but his eyes calculating.

"I'm terribly sorry, but I believe I'm being talked about, and it is quite rude to speak of a lady as if she isn't present when she is standing right there," Rarity said, flipping her mane and giving Straff a look of practiced condescension.

Straff turned to face her fully, giving her an exaggerated bow. "My apologies, great lady. I am Straff, Director of the Republics Intelligence Agency, and for the moment, your captor.”

"Captor!" Rarity cried, gasping. "Why, what law have we broken that would have you treat us so?"

"Rarity," Spike said. "Director Straff has just been informed of who we are. I'm sure he's calculating exactly how many people he's got here and whether they are enough to hold us if we didn't want it."

"I would think they'd do a fairly good job of that," Rarity said, glaring at the nearest soldier and his gun. "They are armed and we are not, after all."

"Hm, true. Then why don’t we take their guns away?" Spike said with a grin that showed off just how sharp his teeth were.

"Well, if I must," Rarity said with exaggerated resignation. Then her horn lit up, and every soldier in the street found their weapons floating up into the air. Straps were loosened and buckles undone, and they were disarmed simultaneously and within moments, far too quickly for the shocked Agency troops to react. Not just their guns, either, but knives, sidearms and batons were similarly removed, along with the belts they were attached to. In the end the horrified soldiers could only watch as their entire arsenal arranged themselves into a trio of concentric circles above Rarity's head. Circles that began to rotate, two in one direction, with the one between them moving the opposite.

It was undoubtedly the most powerful demonstration of magic that any of them had ever seen, and Rarity wasn't even winded. She smiled at the reaction, the dropped jaws and bulging eyes. With a whooping laugh she leaned over and gave Spike's neck a quick nuzzle. The Dragon, for his part, looked on with reptilian satisfaction.

Calumn stared at them rather than the casual display of power. This smacked of something rehearsed, especially with their dialogue beforehand. The two of them must have come up with this little show during the trip, probably working out the details in one of their frequent Old Equestrian conversations. Yet she hadn't practiced, hadn't even hinted that she was preparing something like this. He was suddenly acutely aware of the monstrous power he had been travelling with, and it made him feel like the bottom had dropped out of his stomach.

"It's all true," Straff said, his own voice showing clear awe. He tore his eyes from the blue-glowing weapons and looked at Gamma.

"Yes," she said. "And my surrender still stands. So, this is what is going to happen–”

“Shut up!” Straff snapped. Gamma blinked at him, taken aback. “It has always been your greatest weakness that you have to be the smartest one in the room, and worse yet that you have to make sure everyone else knows it! I had thought they would have beaten that particular habit out of you years ago, but clearly the standards at the Secret Service do not measure up to those of the RIA. So, no, you will not be dictating the terms of your surrender to me.”

He turned to Rarity and Spike. “Great lady, Master Dragon, I assure you that neither of you are under arrest. You are free to go whenever you wish. This mare, however, is an enemy of my nation, and I cannot allow her to walk free within it. I’m afraid that if you fight me on that, you will be declaring yourselves enemies as well.” He let that sink in for a moment before continuing. “However, I invite you both to accompany me back to our headquarters where we can discuss your reasons for being in the Republics in a more comfortable setting.”

Spike and Rarity shared a look before the Dragon ducked his head. “That sounds like a good plan to me.”

“Excellent,” Straff said. “Would you be so kind as to return my allies their weapons?”

Rarity nodded graciously. “So long as they promise to point them somewhere else.”

The guns began floating back down. In a further, and to Calumn even more impressive, display of her abilities, Rarity somehow managed to remember which particular weapon belonged to which soldier, and was able to re-equip them in just as much time as it took to disarm them.

“Do not treat the Dragon and white unicorn as hostile,” Straff called out. “Show them the utmost respect!” The instructions were practically unnecessary, as fear and awe already dominated the emotions of the Agency troops. “Bring the vans around, we’re heading back.”

“Stay close, Melody,” Rarity said, and the twitchy pegasus obliged by stepping in not quite close enough to touch her.

“You will not offer any resistance,” Straff said to Gamma as soldiers rushed to complete his orders. “You will not speak to anyone except myself unless you are making a minor request, such as for water or use of the facilities. Even then you will be watched at all times and you will not complain. Is that understood?”

“Perfectly,” Gamma replied.

Straff merely frowned in response, then turned to Calumn. “And you are coming with me. Compromised or not, I think I can still trust you. Is that accurate, Calumn?”

“It is,” Calumn said, watching as a trio of black vans pulled up and the group was hustled inside. He caught Blaze’s eye and nodded once, letting his friend know it was all going to be okay.

“Then I need to know everything,” Straff said. “Because if this is about Max Cash, then we don’t have a lot of time, and your information could prevent a disaster.”

“It can do more than that,” Calumn said, his doubled voice grim. “It could save the world.”

***

Charisma stood before seven mounds of earth, seven graves she had dug with her own hooves, and wondered how many more there would be before they finally left.

This was the particular horror of being stuck in the Horseshoe Valley. A creeping, slow agony that tightened her muscles, making both motion and stillness uncomfortable. It was more than the ennui of the deep country, though that certainly played a part. In a moment of pique she had likened it to being locked in a small room with two thousand mosquitoes, no matter how she flailed or twisted there was another one whining past her ears every second.

That’s what they were, the residents of Cash’s hometown, mosquitoes. Flitting about, unaware and uncaring of the aggravation they brought, every interaction sucking a little more life from her. Leaving only an itch that insisted it be scratched, straining her control.

It wouldn’t have been so bad in a larger city, like one of the full Republics. There, the millions of people would be overwhelming. Their sheer numbers would numb her Talent, allow her to let them fade into the background, safely ignored. Here, though, there were only a hooffull of people. Three thousand at most. Here, it was entirely possible for her to kill all of them.

It would have been better if they weren’t so brutally friendly, if they didn’t stop to talk to her at every opportunity. But they could see she wasn’t happy, and something in their natures demanded that they try their best to cheer her up. If they only knew what it took to make her happy, they wouldn’t want to be within miles of her.

It would have been easier to bear if she knew when she was leaving. In her years working for Cash they had rarely stayed in one place for more than a week. He was always moving, he always had somewhere else to be. More than that, he always had work for her: a little intimidation here, fetching a specific person there, a quiet assassination somewhere else. Consistently moving on before the weight of her own compulsions began to wear on her. This inaction was unnatural for him, and devastating for her.

It was almost as bad as being back in the Court of the Sun, waiting for a war that was always imminent and inevitable, but never realized. Almost.

Charisma looked down from the hill, out over the town. It wasn’t much to look at, a few houses and side streets clustered around the intersection of the two roads that held all the shops and stores that the valley had to offer. At one corner of the intersection was the building that served as both library and town hall for the small community. If this had been the sunlands, there would have been a prominent church somewhere close, but the Republics had never been as religious as the Kingdom was, so the best she could find was a small shrine to Luna on a hill outside of town. The rest of the buildings along each road sold the usual staples: groceries, clothing and tools. All of them were painted in splashes of bright pastel color, mimicking the coats of the ponies who frequented them.

The only blight on the cheery facade of Horseshoe Valley was the ugly green tents that were set up in the fields just beyond the edge of town. Those makeshift barracks held the sizable mercenary force that Cash employed. They had been filtering into the Valley since he and Charisma had gotten there, five or ten at a time. By now there were over two hundred of them, all keeping their weapons clean and ready to move out the moment their employer gave the word. Considering how long it was taking for that word to come, there had been surprisingly few incidents of the soldiers harassing the locals.

She wished she could take credit for the discipline of the troops, but in truth she had been avoiding them. In the endless isolation of the Valley, they had become just another bunch of mosquitoes to fray at her nerves.

The most recent grave was occupied by one of those mercenary soldiers. He hadn't known who she was, hadn't bothered to find out. He had just seen a pretty mare and, mistaking her for one of the locals, decided to ply her with his dubious charms.

It was a mistake he had paid for. It had taken the edge off, allowed her one good scratch, but her Talent did not rest, and she knew that her head would again be pounding with its demands far too soon.

She noticed the intruder coming up on her, but didn’t react, allowing the other pony to think they’d gotten the drop on her. The quiet rustling of wings and the careful hooffalls were stealthy enough, but still noticeable against the quiet backdrop of the valley. Charisma even had a good idea of who her visitor was, but all doubt was dispelled with her first words.

“I could have killed you five times by now,” the other mare said.

Charisma turned her head, regarding the assassin with studied indifference. “Lyssa. You look like crap.”

She sneered at Charisma, obviously having to fight the impulse to attack. Charisma almost smiled at that. She was battling a similar impulse, and clearly doing so with much more grace than Lyssa could ever manage. She had also been honest with her assessment of the other mare’s appearance. Lyssa looked like she had seen some hard travel. Sweat stained the combat jumpsuit she wore and darkened her coat from tan to brown, her wings were splayed out from her sides in a manner that clearly showed how fatigued they were from hard flying. Her blond mane was in similar disarray, slicked back from her face by sweat and held in place by a dusty pair of flight goggles. Charisma would have ditched the jumpsuit in her place–it would only cause unnecessary drag and heat buildup–but Lyssa had always been overly fond of her toys.

“And look at what you’ve been doing,” Lyssa said, looking past Charisma at the graves. She tsked and shook her head. “Feeding the habit, I see. I wonder if Cash knows you’re offing his childhood buddies.”

Charisma sighed. “If he does know, he doesn’t care,” she said. It was pointless to rise to Lyssa’s bait. Max had made it clear that she wasn’t allowed to kill the other pegasus, and engaging with her only made that directive harder to follow. “Why are you here, Lyssa? I thought you were supposed to be following some cop.”

Her eyes narrowed. “I did follow him. Now he’s back home and I need to report to Cash.”

“Well, then, let’s not keep Max waiting,” Charisma said, and took off for the Cash family home.

Lyssa caught up with her quickly, and Charisma didn’t hide a small smirk at the effort on the mare’s face. She had flown hard to get here, and her pride wouldn’t let her fall behind Charisma, no matter how sore her wings were. It was a petty thing, but satisfying all the same.

There were others at the house. Not soldiers, but the people indispensable for running a massive criminal empire. Accountants, thugs, smugglers, and lawyers. Charisma had always made it her business to avoid those types. Their sheer attitudes and pecking-order games reminded her too much of palace politics, and that made it terribly difficult to resist the demands of her Talent.

She landed by the front door and walked in without giving any of those others so much as a look. She could feel their eyes on her, though, wary, fearful. These people, at least, knew who she was. A glance at Lyssa showed that the assassin had noted the same thing, and the tight anger in her stride betrayed the depth of her envy.

In a small way, Charisma pitied the mare. She wanted so much, but refused to understand the nature of the thing she desired.

They found Cash in his office. The room was full of books, paintings, statuettes and other things that Cash had collected from across the world. That much of the statuary had been sculpted by Spike only reminded her that the Dragon was very likely out for their blood. Just one more dangerous enemy to add to the list.

Cash himself sat behind his heavy, expensive desk with his head bent down over a large pad of paper. A stick of charcoal was held in his magic and he was furiously drawing out the lines and curves of a complex maze. Several sheets of discarded paper displayed similar labyrinths. “Just a moment,” Cash said as they entered. “Almost got this one down.” The two mares waited patiently as he completed his work. With a finishing flourish he set the pad down and dropped the charcoal stick atop it. The maze he had drawn was strange, with distorted perspectives that made it seem three dimensional. Charisma had seen Cash do similar things in the past, usually when he was bored. James Bay had once told her it was something he had done compulsively as a child, though it had become more and more infrequent as time went on.

“Lyssa!” Cash cried, his eyes lighting up. “You’re back! Did he find it?”

Lyssa shrugged. “He found something, Mister Cash. I’m not sure what it was, but he was acting like it was a big deal.”

“Not sure,” Cash tapped his hoof against his chin. “Here, look at this.” His magic opened his saddlebag and drew out the book he was always fawning over. He set it carefully on the desk and pointed at the picture on the front. “Recognize any of these?” He asked, then indicated the pink butterfly. “Say, this one for instance?”

Lyssa frowned, looking closer. “I… yeah, I think so. I don’t know where from…”

“How about this?” Cash’s magic reached out and pulled one of the statuettes from its place on a shelf. The figure was well done, a life-like representation of a pegasus mare with a long, flowing mane and a benevolent expression. She looked soft to Charisma, but there was something in her that spoke of steel beneath that softness.

“Hey!” Lyssa said. “I know that! There was a statue just like that! And it had this necklace on it, with a gem just like this.” She pointed back to the book, to the symbol Cash had indicated. “Why didn’t I remember that?”

“Oh, girls. I just got chills,” Cash said, looking at the both of them with a wild grin. “Tell me everything.”

Lyssa did. It didn’t take very long. The majority of the tale focused on keeping control of the local muscle she had hired in Hoofprint, and Cash sped her through those bits to focus entirely on her pursuit of the detective, and their confrontation at the strange garden in the jungle. “And he did something with the statue,” she said, bringing the story to a close. “I don’t know what, some magic thing. Then the Changeling could see it too, but I… couldn’t? I guess? I mean, it was there but I didn’t remember it being there until you showed me that little statue.”

“Yes, nice, fine,” Cash said, waving her quiet. He had fetched a chart showing the jungle and had made her mark down where the garden was. He stared at that mark now, his expression vicious and sly. “Oh, Fluttershy, you eluded me for so long.”

“Fluttershy?” Lyssa mouthed. It was a measure of her confusion that she actually looked to Charisma for an explanation. The enforcer could only shrug, she didn’t know the name either.

“Whelp!” Cash jerked away from the map suddenly. “We’re done here. Time to pack up and head out. Charisma, gather the troops, give ‘em a rousing speech, and point them at Orion City.”

“I don’t do speeches,” Charisma said.

“And I don’t do karaoke, but we all have to make sacrifices sometimes.”

Charisma snorted at that, but Lyssa spoke up. “We’re attacking Orion City?”

Cash chuckled. “Not so much Orion City as the mansion of one Senator Alan Birchfield. He’s got something I want, so we’re going to get it.”

“We’re assaulting a Senator?” Lyssa laughed. “That sounds like fun!”

“Fun or fury,” Cash said, giving Lyssa a look that sent shivers through Charisma’s wings. “Either works.” He opened his saddlebags again, slipping his book back into them. “Lyssa, you’ve done a great job. All I ever asked for. I’ve been thinking about how to reward you for a while now, and I’ve got just the thing.” He drew a cookie from his bags and floated it over to her. He locked eyes with her, and Charisma saw the assassin go rigid, Cash’s strange stare holding her in place. “It’s delicious,” he said, and Charisma thought she detected a strange energy suffusing his voice. She went cold as she realized he was using Deceit on Lyssa, just as he had used it on her weeks ago, after her fight with Rainbow Dash. “You deserve it.”

“Thank you, Mister Cash,” Lyssa said, accepting the cookie and shaking a little as Cash broke his gaze away.

“Time’s wasting,” he said, ushering the two of them out of his office. He shut the door behind them and for a moment they heard his wild laughter through the thick door, before it abruptly ended.

Charisma looked at Lyssa. She was immensely pleased with herself, and she held up the cookie she had been given like it was some kind of trophy. “Well, well. Look at what I’ve got,” she said, then gave a look of mock-surprise to Charisma. “Wait, didn’t you get one?”

“No,” Charisma said. “I don’t want one. And neither should you.”

Lyssa made a noise of disgust, sneering at her. “You jealous bitch.” Charisma closed her eyes and stopped herself from responding. “No, look at me when I’m talking to you!” Lyssa demanded, putting a hoof on her and shoving. Charisma obliged, opening her eyes to stare at the assassin. Strike for her throat, her Talent hissed, kick to break her foreknees and lock her wings with yours to prevent retaliation. Hold her mouth shut to speed suffocation. She almost let her Talent have its way, but held back. “You’ve had it good for a while, but your act is getting old. You got this big, scary reputation, but what have you ever done for it? Huh? What have you ever done to deserve it?”

“More than you need to know,” Charisma replied.

“Right,” she said, rolling her eyes. “I just tracked a unicorn and a Changeling through the jungles and came back with everything Cash wanted. I’m getting sent on the dangerous missions, the really important ones. Last I heard he had you playing babysitter to one of his gambling buddies. Face it, he doesn’t trust you anymore.” Lyssa was in Charisma’s face now, practically spitting on her. “And still people treat you like you’re Luna’s gift to warriors.” She sneered again, pushing Charisma up against the wall. “But I know the truth: you’re just a tired, pathetic little serial killer who lucked into a reputation as a badass. I’ve been training pretty hard, you know, between doing actual missions. I bet I could take you.”

“Don’t,” Charisma snapped, and for a moment she wasn’t sure what she was warning the other pegasus about.

“Or what?”

“Don’t. Eat. The cookie,” Charisma said.

That brought Lyssa up short. “What?”

“Don’t eat it,” Charisma said. “Just… just trust me on this. What you want from Cash? It isn’t real. And even if it were, he is not going to give it to you. This is the last chance you are ever going to have to get out, to go find some… meaning in your life. But if you eat that cookie, I guarantee you are never going to get the chance to prove that you’re better than me.”

Lyssa backed up, looking from the cookie to Charisma and back again. “You know, I don’t think I have to prove anything. I know I’m better than you. And I deserve this.” Then, with deliberate, mocking slowness she stuffed the cookie in her mouth and chewed it. “So delicious,” she moaned through the mouthful of crumbs before she swallowed it down.

Charisma hung her head. “Dammit, Lyssa. I was trying to help you.”

“Help me? Right,” Lyssa scoffed. “You’re just trying to help yourself. Well, news flash, there’s no help for you. Cash knows that I’m better than you. Give me a year and I’ll have your job. Maybe I’ll take pity on you, keep you on as one of the grunts so I can watch you… watch you…” Lyssa trailed off, a confused expression coming over her face. “What?”

“I warned you,” Charisma said, shaking her head. “Too late now. Whatever he puts in those things, it’s fast-acting stuff.”

“Fast acting?” Lyssa staggered. “What did you… do to me?”

“You trusted Cash,” Charisma said with a small sigh. “That’s always the mistake everyone makes. And it always ends the same way.”

“I… no… I’m…” she dropped to the floor, gasping for breath as her wings and legs shook and foam bubbled out of her mouth.

Charisma watched the mare suffer. End her now, her Talent insisted, apparently unwilling to let Lyssa die on her own time. She saw no reason not to, and so she gave in. She placed a hoof on the assassin’s throat and with one sharp stomp, broke her neck cleanly. Lyssa collapsed completely, the light gone from her eyes. With no one to see, Charisma didn’t bother to hide the pleasant shudders that went through her.

Some time later Cash opened his door and stepped into the hallway. He was light on his hooves, almost dancing. “My oh my, what a wonderful day!” he sing-songed. “Plenty of suns– Charisma!” He stopped as soon as he spotted her. “I thought I told you to give a speech.” She gave him a hard look before nodding her head at the body on the ground. “Oh, right. Well, she’s just having a little nap and then…” He looked closer at the corpse, and his happy tone was gone, replaced by anger, something she had almost never heard from him. “Charisma, is it just me, or is Lyssa dead?”

“You poisoned her,” she said, confused and worried by his reaction. “I just sped along the process.”

“You sped…” he looked up at her and his eyes were filled with a mad fury that made her flinch back. “Do you have any idea what you’ve done?” His voice was clipped and tightly controlled. “The poison wasn’t going to kill her, Charisma. Just knock her out for a few hours so that we could be long gone by the time she woke up feeling sick, betrayed and very, very pissed off.”

“I–” He didn’t let her finish the thought.

“Do you know how hard it is to find someone like her?” he said, stepping towards her. She took a step back, bumping into the wall. “Someone whose buttons are so easy to push? Someone you can count on to hate everything at just the right time? Someone connected? Do you know how hard it’s going to be to find a replacement in the time we have?” His tone suddenly switched to a furious, fake joviality. “Are you volunteering? How’s the anger management issues, Charisma? Feelin’ the old rage at the world stirring up?”

She steadied herself and stood her ground as he advanced on her again, her Talent screaming death in her brain. “You didn’t tell me, Max. How could I know?”

He stopped, looking to the body. “How could you know? You shouldn’t have had to,” he said, and the fury was gone from his voice, leaving it cold and empty. “This has really put a dent in my plan, Charisma. We’re going after Anger. I need someone angry. Not just a little angry, really angry. Murderously angry. And for best possible results, they have to be angry at me.”

“There’s got to be other options.”

“Oh, there are,” Cash said, sighing. “The problem is, other than you, those options aren’t working for me. The flip side of Anger is Laughter. Tell me, do you think Blaze is going to show up?” Charisma’s body went very still, in contrast to her heart which was suddenly pounding. “Wouldn’t that be wonderful?” His voice hadn’t changed, but she could still feel the layers of threat and promise in it hitting her like a choking force, locking her breath in her throat. Then he dropped his gaze, shaking his head. “Too much to hope for,” he muttered. He looked at his saddlebag, she couldn’t see the expression on his face, but by the set of his legs he was angry, and barely holding it in. “And no time to do it my way. Well, it’s in the hooves of fate, now.” He sounded almost disgusted when he said that, and Charisma was at a complete loss as to how to interpret it. Then he turned back to her, and a wild grin twisted his face, making it seem like an ill-fitting mask. “I guess a little surprise in life never hurt anyone. Except, you know.” He jerked his head at the corpse. “Come on, the sooner we get started, the sooner we’re back in the big city!”

With that he trotted past her, whistling the same jaunty tune that he had left his office with. But his steps were heavy and the tight set of his body put the lie to his forced joviality. Charisma spent another moment looking at Lyssa’s body, then shook her head and followed her employer out of the house.

Chapter 27: Fallen Star

While the ultimate purpose of an Inverted Element remains identical to its Active counterpart, the method by which it accomplishes that purpose is in opposition to what is seen in the Active phase. This creates a sometimes counterintuitive effect whereby a result is achieved via actions that would normally prevent such a result. The logic of Inversion becomes apparent only when we understand that opposite methods can result in the same outcome so long as we have a clear idea of what that outcome is. Which is to say that in studying Inversion I was forced to reverse my own standard methodology, and instead work backwards from effects to determine causes.

Difficult as that was, I made significant progress once I abandoned conventional experimental thinking. Eliminating my bias towards superficial, emotional aspects (which ponies are naturally inclined to value) was an even greater hurdle, but one that was particularly essential. What I discovered is that the basic, mechanical difference between Active and Inverted Elements is something surprisingly simple, and might best be termed as a matter of directionality. That is, the focus of the Element shifting from internal to external, or vice-versa.

Take, for instance, the Element of Loyalty and its Inversion, Betrayal. It is an easy trap to fall into to question the logic of Betrayal fulfilling the binding purpose of the Element. The act of betrayal is, after all, a breaking of bonds, is it not? This, however, is a byproduct of our biased perspectives when attempting to apprehend the mechanics of the Elements. With the Elements, Betrayal still binds, it is the direction of the binding that differs from its Active counterpart. Loyalty works inwards, taking outside entities and binding them within a group. This creates friendships and societies. Betrayal works outwards, taking inside entities and binding them outside the group. This creates traitors and outcasts.

The other Elements follow a similar pattern, with one exception. Kindness regulates inward, while Cruelty regulates outwards. Laughter energizes outward, while Anger energizes inward. Generosity distributes outward, while Greed distributes inward. Honesty connects inward, while Deceit connects outward.

To conceptualize it in a more accessible way, one might imagine the aspects that the Elements were named after. For example, a joyfully laughing pony will motivate others to sing and dance and laugh, while an angry pony only motivates themselves, their negativity draining the energy from those around them. Alternatively, an honest pony will allow others to connect with their innermost self, wearing their heart on their sleeve as it were, while a deceitful one will connect to others without showing any of their own true nature.

Magic is, again, the odd one out. In both its Active and Inverted states, it operates in both directions. It does not, however, do both simultaneously. Whether this is a rule the Element itself must obey or merely a limitation of its Bearer, I cannot say.

The question that arises from this knowledge is then: what is Inversion to the Element of Magic? Magic does not alter its directionality, but it still undergoes Inversion. Why? Or, rather, what else is changing during Inversion that I have not even thought to look for?

With all that I have already discovered, I find myself questioning if I really want to know.

-From the sixth section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Twenty-Seven: Fallen Star

Star Fall stared into the mirror and barely recognized herself. The royal beauticians had done their work with the excellence that they were famed for, and so the mare who stared back at her from inside the glass bore as much resemblance to her self-image as Astrid bore to a chicken. Her feathers were immaculately preened, oiled so that they shone with an iridescent finish. Her coat had been brushed and scrubbed until it practically glowed; she didn't think she'd ever been this pure a shade of white before. Her mane flowed in bouncy locks that held an upward curl at the ends, and her tail had more volume than she had thought possible. The beauticians had done an incredible job taking advantage of her naturally red hair to weave ribbons of color through it that did a better job imitating a fire than any dye job she had ever attempted on her own.

Those were all important, but they were merely the frame around the true portrait. The makeup they had applied to her was subtle, but astoundingly effective. Her eyes were the first thing she noticed. They stood out, their blue impossibly bright. Those eyes said so many things. When she held them wide they spoke of innocence, of purity, but with just a slight narrowing they transformed into eyes that knew power, eyes that commanded respect and attention.

Her lips were full and red, forming a mouth that could smile with dazzling joy or be set in a firm, serious line. She hadn't tried pouting yet, she didn't know if she wanted to see what that made her look like. Her ears, too, had been paid ample attention, and the makeup and careful brushing made it harder to tell how she was feeling. She would practically have to lay them flat to show boredom or sadness. Yet they displayed attentiveness and strength easily.

Her Glyph, too, had received some attention. The lines and curves of the magic circle that had defined so much of who and what she was glittered with an application of expensive crystal dust. Each of the seven points had a gem affixed to it, showing a different color starting with the red of her magic at the uppermost point and going through each of the main colors of the spectrum. She could feel those gems with her magic, and by exerting a small effort of will she could make sparks of light flash between them, displaying her Glyph to even greater effect.

She was a masterpiece of makeup and grooming, and it made her feel uncomfortable, awkward and alien. She wished Rarity were here. She hadn't known the unicorn for more than a couple weeks, but somehow she felt that Rarity would have known just the right thing to say to put her at ease with all the pampering and the makeup.

Worse than the shine of the glamour, though, were the things it couldn’t cover up. The stress and scramble of the past month had left her fifteen pounds lighter than she had been when Rainbow Dash had first fallen out of the sky. That lost fat had not been replaced with muscle, merely burned to keep her moving from one crisis to the next. It had left her lean and hard. She could see it in the mirror, even through the makeup and the artful fluffing of her coat. The hollowness of her eyes was covered, but her cheekbones stood out, as did her hips, though that was hidden somewhat with her wings closed.

She looked in the mirror, seeing past all the amazing work the beauticians had done, and found herself dwelling on one thought: Why do I look so tired?

That thought was interrupted by the arrival of her friends. "Woo-wee! Well, ain't you a pretty sight," Applejack said as she and Rainbow Dash entered the antechamber that Star Fall was waiting in until it was time to walk down the aisle. They were both dressed in the outfits Rarity had made them for the audience with the King those weeks ago. They looked good, and a comfortable good, unlike Star Fall's own stunning-but-exhausted.

"Yeah, Star, you look great!" Dash added. She looked around the room with mild curiosity. The tools that had been used to prepare Star Fall for her wedding were scattered like chaff, but the ponies who had used them were gone. Only Astrid, herself preened to shining perfection and struggling to maintain her rough military edge despite it, kept Star Fall company. "Where is everybody? I thought you'd have, like, a gazillion servants or something here."

"Had," Astrid grumbled. "They were done and getting bored, so I kicked them out before they could start painting me up the same way they got Fall."

Applejack chuckled. "You’re lookin’ good, too, Astrid."

"Great," Astrid deadpanned. "How's the seats?"

"Fillin' up," Applejack replied.

"Yeah, there's a ton of unicorns," Dash said. "But also, like, a whole section of Zebras in these crazy costumes!"

"The delegates from the Zebra nations," Star Fall said. "You probably also saw the Republics’ ambassador. She usually arrives early."

"I dunno. What's she look like?"

"Earth pony," Astrid said. "Blonde mane, wears a lot of silver, probably surrounded by ponies in dark suits."

"Oh yeah, we saw her," Dash said.

"She was givin' us a lot of mean looks," Applejack said. "Real unfriendly-like."

"She doesn't like surprises," Star Fall said. "And you two are a doozy." She sighed and glanced at herself in the mirror again before looking away. “Almost everyone else should be nobility, not that there wasn’t a push to let community leaders in.”

“I’m just surprised they aren’t televising the whole thing,” Astrid said with a snort. “Nobody wants to miss the wedding of the century, they might as well treat this like the circus act it is. Come right in! See the crown prince marry one of the –gasp!– lesser races!”

"Be nice, Astrid," Star Fall said. "And shouldn't you be practicing?"

Astrid’s eyes narrowed. "Keep talking about that, Fall. I'm pretty sure I saw some green dye around here somewhere."

"Don't mind her," Star Fall told Dash and Applejack, a genuine smile touching her lips. "She's just nervous about singing."

"I’m sure you’ll do just dandy,” Applejack said to Astrid before turning back to Star Fall. “And how are you, sugarcube?" she asked. "If I were you I'd be as nervous as a groundhog at a fun-fair."

"Thats... about how I feel, yeah," Star Fall said, shrugging. "Not about getting married itself, but… well what comes after."

“I’m assumin’ you don’t mean the weddin’ night,” Applejack said with a dry sincerity that was not in the least suggestive, but made Star Fall blush all the same.

“No. That’s… not a worry of mine,” she said. “I mean once it’s all official, irrevocable. I’ll be next in line to be Queen of the Solar Kingdom. The responsibilities, the politics, the scrutiny… I’ve been able to deal with it for the past few weeks, but how long can I hold out?”

“Hey, Star, you’ll do great,” Dash said, grinning that confident, cocky grin of hers. It lifted Star Fall’s spirits just by being there. “And if you need help, you’ve got us. Right, guys?”

“All the way, Fall,” Astrid said. “Right to the end.”

“Eyup,” Applejack said. “It’s what friends are for.”

"I just wish we could be up there with you today,” Dash said. “Are you sure you don't get bridesmaids?"

Star Fall shook her head. "Royal wedding tradition, and not one I can subvert easily. We ‘stand before Celestia exposed, with none to hide us from her glory or judgement’. Same sort of stuff they use to justify why I’m not allowed to wear dresses anymore."

“Well, we don’t got the best seat in the house,” Applejack said. “But if you look for us, we’ll be there, cheerin’ you on.”

“Thanks,” Star Fall said. “I do feel better knowing you’re here. Like it’s not going to be some horrible disaster.”

"Come on, Star,” Dash said. “It’s gonna be fine! You think the King or the Professor’s gonna let anything go wrong? Not a chance."

"Dash is right on that," Astrid said. "Face it, Fall, you'd actually have to try to screw this up. All the running the country crap will happen when it happens. Today, all you gotta do is just stand in your place and say your lines and be the prettiest little pony you can be."

Star Fall chuckled. "It really will be that easy, won't it?"

Astrid snorted. "Trust me, Fall, whether you want it or not, this day is going to be perfect."

"Be careful when you say that, Astrid," Twinkle Shine said, sweeping into the room. "I'm sure it’s been said before, and didn't go so well for them."

"Yeah, but they weren't getting married to royalty," Astrid said.

The Professor stopped, a subtle, amused smile playing at her lips. "No. I suppose they were not." She turned to her student, and her smile grew in size and warmth. "Ah, my little Fallen Star, you look lovely." Star Fall started at the affectation, she had rarely heard the Professor use that name for her. It reminded her of her mother, and that reminded her of her own decision to exile her parents. She shook the thought away, hanging on to the positive feelings her friends had generated.

"Hey, Professor," Dash said. "How's it going?"

"Busily," Twinkle Shine replied. "Enough so that I haven't had any time to work on a way to return you and Applejack and Rarity to your own era, I'm sorry."

"That's..." Dash looked to Applejack, a private communication passing between them, volumes of meaning in the space of a shared glance.

"We're mighty thankful for the thought, Professor," Applejack said, ducking her head. "We know you'll do your best if and when you get the chance."

"How's it looking out there?" Star Fall asked.

"Hurried," Twinkle Shine said, sighing. "Royal weddings are not supposed to be done on such short notice. I've been trying to put out fires before they spread, but it's almost as if the world is trying to anger me. Did you know that the seating chart put Lord Haymane next to Lady Summerfrost at the reception?"

Star Fall winced. "Ouch. No I didn’t. With the bad blood between them they wouldn't get through half the dinner before that blood was spread all over the table; not a good start."

"And of course, neither of them were willing to be moved,” the Professor said, laughing.

"Of course," Star Fall agreed, rolling her eyes.

"Anyway, that's why I'm running late," the Professor said, coming forward and giving Star Fall a delicate nuzzle that did not mess up her careful grooming. "All fires contained, all details seen to. We’re almost ready to begin.” She looked to the other ponies. “Applejack, Rainbow Dash, you should be taking your seat before an opportunistic noble decides that the assigned seating plan doesn’t apply to them. I've signalled that we're ready, so they’ll be closing the doors soon."

"Alright. Take care, sugarcube," Applejack said, nodding to Star Fall.

"Remember, be yourself," Dash said. "We'll be right there to back you up."

Twinkle Shine looked to Astrid as they were leaving. "I believe you have your own position to go to."

Astrid sighed. "This is gonna suck."

"Not for me," Star Fall said, grinning at her friend as Astrid followed Dash and Applejack out of the room, closing the door behind her and giving her and her mentor some privacy.

There was a silence that stretched between them. Twinkle Shine examined her student with a wistful, almost sad look on her face. Star Fall looked back, trying to keep her turmoil from her expression. She loved the Professor, dearly, but her plan to direct Umbra at the nightlands was the worst sort of evil. Star Fall was having trouble reconciling the mare that had spent the last decade teaching her with the one who was even now planning genocide by unleashing the Destroyer on the nightlands. It complicated things between them, so much so that now they were alone she found herself at a complete loss for words.

“I…” the Professor began, then paused, looking off into the distance for a second before collecting herself and continuing. “I tried so hard to protect you from this.”

“I know,” Star Fall replied. “But you couldn’t. The King demanded it, and… and in the end, I chose it.”

“Star Fall, I know you’re disappointed–”

“Damn right I’m disappointed!” Star Fall snapped, shocked at the anger in her own voice. She took a breath, stretching out and re-folding her wings to work out some of the tension before speaking again. “I don’t want to talk about that,” she said. “Not now. Not today.”

“Okay,” Twinkle Shine said, nodding slowly. “I’m proud of you. I want you to know that. You have truly become a wonderful mare, my most faithful student.”

“I… I’m proud too. Proud to have been your student.” She ventured a small smile, finding that she didn’t have to force it. “You’ve taught me so much. More than magic and history and math. You taught me about life. About friendship and doing my best, and doing what’s right, and how to carry responsibilities even when they are so heavy.” She paused, realizing that she was skirting close to the very topic she had said she didn’t want to discuss. “I’m here because of what you taught me, Professor. And I want you to know that no matter what, I will always, always cherish my time as your student. If I’m a good princess, if I’m a good pony, it’s because you taught me how.”

Twinkle Shine’s eyes sparkled with tears as she reached out. Star Fall met that embrace and fell into it completely. They were locked in a tight hug for a moment, then the Professor gave a small yelp and jumped back, holding a hoof to her chest.

“Professor?” Star Fall asked.

Twinkle Shine stared at her, frowning. “I just… got a shock. That’s all.” She peered closer at Star Fall’s neck. “Are you wearing the necklace I gave you?”

Star Fall reached up and nudged the little golden amulet. It was almost perfectly hidden by the careful grooming of her coat, but their embrace had mussed her enough to reveal it. “Yes. It protected me before by reminding me of all the people who love and care for me. I’m about to be naked in front of a thousand judgemental nobles. I figured I could use the support.”

“Oh. The enchantment must… Well, that’s…” Twinkle Shine still held her hoof to her chest, and she lifted it away to reveal a dark smudge on her golden coat. “Well. I’m glad it can still be of use.”

“Are you okay?” Star Fall asked.

“Perfectly fine,” the Professor said. “Just a little shock, that’s all. The enchantments on the necklace were just reacting to my magic. That’s all.”

“Okay,” Star Fall said, a small frown quickly disappearing as she shrugged the odd incident off. “So. They can’t start until I get there. I guess we shouldn’t keep them waiting any longer.”

“No,” the Professor said, though she was still frowning down at the singed, ashen spot on her coat. She brushed the last of the smudge away and looked up to smile at Star Fall. “We shouldn’t. Come now, it’s time to walk you down the aisle.”

***

The cathedral was as old as the Court of the Sun, built at the same time and for the same reason: to put on full display the power and majesty of the growing Solar Kingdom. Being made to impress, it was built with all the spacious grandeur that the young kingdom could afford. It was shaped as a tiered semi-circle, ten columns of pews radiating out from the altar, the central two the longest and the others becoming progressively shorter. Columns like the trunks of mighty trees spread arched branches that held up domed windows depicting scenes from Celestia’s long rule, and the altar was backed by a huge statue of the Alicorn. Hidden spotlights shone on the statue, making it glow even on the gloomiest of days or the darkest of nights.

Star Fall watched that statue as she began the long, slow walk up the aisle. It was easier than looking at the faces of all the ponies staring at her as she made her way to the altar. It was one of Spike’s creations, the benevolent eyes and soft smile on its face practically a trademark of his depictions of the Goddess. Where other artists often chose to show her as stern and noble, or the ever-popular Sun in Her Fury aspect, he had always depicted her as a gentle mare. Majestic and sublime, yes, but also distinctly equine and almost vulnerable. When Spike showed her, she was a deity concerned more with love than with power.

A fanfare announced her entrance, one that ended quickly, only to be replaced by Astrid’s voice over the speakers. She sang, and Star Fall smiled. Griffins weren’t known for their dulcet voices, and Astrid had a particular talent in that regard. She compensated for her tin ear by singing with an enthusiasm that was one part shame to nine parts bravado. It made any song she cared to belt out a challenge, daring the listener to complain.

“Did you have to insist on her singing?” Twinkle Shine leaned in and asked, wincing as Astrid hit another cracking high note with pitch-perfect imprecision. “This isn’t a terribly dignified start for you.”

“It’s a message, Professor,” Star Fall replied. She needed that bravado now. She would not be seen as some weak girl thrust into a place far above her natural position.

“Of course it is,” her mentor said. “I just wish you had chosen a different one.”

Star Fall just smirked and returned her attention to Celestia’s warm gaze. She let her mind wander, taking her thoughts where it would. She had never questioned her faith before, not really. She had never taken advantage of her friendship with Spike to ask all the questions that another would have. She had been far too focused on her studies to even consider the theological possibilities of knowing someone who had been practically raised by her deity. Now, she wished he were here as questions filled her idle mind.

She’d seen the Goddesses, witnessed their nature and vast spirits at work. Yet the experience, combined with all she had learned, cast into doubt everything she had taken for granted about them. For one, the Elements of Harmony played a far greater role in the rule of Celestia than she had ever imagined. Even with Twilight Sparkle hiding them, how could knowledge of such important artifacts become so thoroughly lost? Worse than that, Luna was Nightmare Moon. That meant the Goddesses could turn malign. Celestia Nova had always been taught as an imposter, a pretender, but what if it was something else? What if that had been another lie? If Nightmare Moon was Luna, then Celestia Nova could have been Celestia herself.

If that was true, then what of Nightmare Umbra? Surely the Destroyer hadn’t come completely out of nowhere.

She couldn’t continue down that line of thought, as she had reached the altar. She genuflected to Celestia’s icon, careful to keep her wings held high and steady. Then she took her position at the left hoof of the Goddess and looked across the altar at her groom. This was it.

Regal Stature gave her a wan smile, and Star Fall took heart in the fact that he looked even more nervous than her. She hoped she wasn’t showing as much of her anxiety as he was, though. He’d have to learn to conceal his emotions better if he was going to be King. She supposed that, as the fourth child, he had never really thought he’d needed to before.

Standing behind their son were the King and Queen. Their wings touched over Regal’s head, a living arch to show their blessing for his union and ascension. Behind them, sitting in the first row of plush-cushioned pews, were his siblings, who for their part actually looked pleased to see their youngest brother standing before the assembled nobles. That either spoke of how well they could fake their emotions or how well loved Regal was. Star Fall chose, for the moment, to believe the latter.

Beyond them sat the extended Royal families: uncles, aunts, cousins, and other representatives from each of the bloodlines that comprised the Royals. This wedding represented the first in centuries, perhaps since the founding of the Kingdom, that one of them had married outside of those lines. If she bore a Royal foal, it would inject some desperately needed new blood into the dangerously narrow Royal gene pool. That alone, she supposed, accounted for how few of them seemed openly hostile when they looked at her. Many were even regarding Star Fall with open curiosity, as if trying to figure out why the mare marrying into their family was missing her horn. Others were guarded, but their mere presence showed that they were willing to accept this union. She saw no clearly happy faces, but she couldn’t have expected much.

Regal opened his mouth to say something, but quickly closed it again, shaking his head. She leaned over to him. “It’s okay,” she whispered. His ears twitched at the sound of her voice. “I’m nervous too. We’ll get through this together, alright?” He relaxed a bit, and nodded his thanks.

At that moment the high priest, flanked by a pair of robed acolytes, stepped up behind the altar. He stood under the benevolent gaze of Celestia’s statue and lit his horn with a warm, yellow glow, signalling the start of the ceremony. Astrid’s song came to a warbling end, and the faithful were called to attention.

***

The ceremony was taking forever. Dash squirmed in her seat, shifting her wings in a vain attempt to find a position they could hold comfortably as the priest began yet another round of call and response chanting. “Aw, man,” she griped, keeping her voice low enough that only Applejack sitting next to her would be able to hear. “Come on! If Princess Celestia hasn’t heard you guys by now, she’s not gonna!”

Applejack jerked, blinking her eyes and looking around worriedly. “I’m payin’ attention,” she said, loud enough that she got a dirty look from a unicorn in the seat in front of them. She caught her bearings and leaned in towards Dash. “Have we gotten to the part with the vows yet?” she asked at a lower volume.

“I wish,” Dash groaned. “What ever happened to just saying ‘I do’ and getting on with it?”

“Now, Rainbow Dash,” Applejack began with a chiding tone, but paused and looked to the priest, who showed no sign of stopping, before speaking again. “That’s a good point.” She sighed. “I’ve been at weddin’s for half a dozen cousins, and ain’t none of them been this bad.”

“Do you think it’d be okay if I slip out for, like, half an hour?” Dash asked.

“I think it’d be noticed, sugarcube.”

Dash slumped in her seat, barely resisting the urge to fiddle with her outfit. It was almost painful being forced to hold still for this long without anything interesting to focus on. Applejack seemed to have perfected the art of sleeping with her eyes open, so she could at least get away from the boredom. Dash had no such escape, and if something didn’t change soon she was going to start gnawing her own wings off.

A shadow passed over the crowd and Dash looked up to see that the great windows were being covered by a thick mist. A wave of murmurs went through the gathered ponies and even the priest paused in his droning. They watched as the fog rolled over the whole of the cathedral, blocking out all of the sunlight that had been shining in just moments before.

Dash was not a mare to let a chance like this pass her by. She shot to her hooves immediately, catching the attention of the entire congregation. “Don’t worry, guys. I got this,” she announced, quickly taking off the costume barding and laying it on her seat.

“What’re you doin’?” Applejack asked.

“Hey, this is Star’s day, right?” Dash said. “I’m just making sure no bad weather spoils all the…” she shot a glance at the priest, who was frowning at her breach of etiquette. “Fun. I’ll be back when I’ve kicked this fog back in line.”

Applejack snorted. “Enjoy it, sugarcube.”

Dash flashed a grin before taking off and zipping down the aisle to the door. Manes were ruffled and clothes blown by the wake of her passage, but she didn’t care about the stir she caused. She needed to get out and work her wings, and it looked like this was her lucky day. She landed by the doors, eyeing the Griffins that stood to either side. “Hey, guys,” she said, trying not to shrink under their glares. “I’m gonna clean up outside, alright?”

One of them looked to the other, a big red Griffin who stared down at Dash for a long moment before shrugging. “She’s the hero. If she says she can do it, I figure she can. Go ahead, the guards outside will let you back in when you’re done.” Dash thanked him as he pulled the great door open just enough for her to slip out.

Outside, the world was reduced to a dark gray soup. She took a deep breath, tasting the heavy concentration of moisture in the air. Something about it made her uneasy, creating a sick feeling of subtle recognition in her gut, but she couldn’t put her hoof on exactly what it meant. She pushed her way forward, the fog resisting her pegasus magic enough that it was like shoving her way through a pool of molasses. She tried kicking a path for herself, but the clouds just filled in any area she cleared almost as soon as she had cleared it.

“Well, this is… weird,” she said, and found that her voice had a strangely dead quality to her own ears. Like she was in a soundproof room. She cocked her ears and listened, but found that she couldn’t hear anything. No sounds of traffic, or of the throng of ponies that had been waiting outside the cathedral for their first sight of the new royal couple. She could barely hear her own breathing. The fog was so thick it swallowed the noise of the city completely. “Okay, whoever made this fog is really overdoing it.” She trailed off as the truth of her own words hit her.

Someone had made this fog. Icy bands seemed to constrict her chest as her train of thought continued. Someone had made the fog, but that was impossible. The only ones capable of working the weather in this time were herself and…

Her wings snapped out and she sucked in an involuntary gasp as her heart began to pound. A surge of terror and adrenaline roared through her. She clamped down on the rising panic, forcing her breath to come in short, controlled bursts as she channelled the fear, letting it focus her attention.

She strained her ears again, listening through the deadening mist for something, anything. A wisp of mist brushed against her, pushed by the wind of something passing close. In the fog, whatever it was could have been close enough to reach out and touch, but she had seen and heard nothing. She focused on the mist, on the little billows and eddies that told her finely-honed weather senses where others were moving through it. She waited for a minute, then another, and finally she felt the passage of another large body near her. She leapt on it, forcing her way through the resisting fog with a growl of effort.

She rammed into the side of another pony, sending them both falling in an awkward tumble. She recovered first, grabbing the other pony and rolling to sit on top of them and prevent them from scrambling away and getting lost in the mist again. When she got a good look at who she had caught, her heart skipped a beat.

The pony had no eyes, only black, empty pits that swirled with tiny flecks of grey ash. Its body was solid, but had a strange, springy give to it that made her hooves feel like they were sinking into sand when she pressed them down. It had no mane, no coat, only a thin, shifting coating of ashen dust. It snarled up at her, revealing teeth that were gleaming white and far, far too long and sharp.

Dash scrambled back, and the ghoul twisted to its hooves in a sinuous motion that had it moving in ways a pony should not have been able to. She braced for an attack, but instead the dead pony simply stared at her for a long moment, empty sockets not making her doubt for a moment that it could see her perfectly. Then it turned and rushed off into the mist.

“No way,” Dash said, shaking her head and forcing herself to move. “Not now, come on, not now!” She felt more than saw the mist thinning ahead of her and pushed harder, finally breaking through the fog and seeing what was on the other side. Light and noise hit her like a wall after the silent darkness of the fog, nearly stunning her.

The city was a warzone. A chorus of a thousand screams were audible over the deep thunder of explosions and staccato pops of gunfire. The crowd that had gathered was in a rioting panic, scattering along every available avenue as ashen ponies chased them with flashing jaws and stomping hooves. Soldiers and police tried to herd the stampede into some kind of organization, but their efforts only made them targets for the attackers. Close by, Griffins screeched as they slashed at advancing ranks of ghouls. Their claws tore through grey flesh with ease, only for the wounds to heal instantly, knitting closed like flowing water. As she watched, a group of the eyeless ponies overwhelmed one of the Griffin warriors, hauling him to the ground and attacking with hooves and teeth.

Dash acted without thought or hesitation, rushing forward and slamming into the mass of ash ponies with all the force she could muster. The ghouls were scattered, their bodies flying end over end from her hit. Dash didn’t wait to see how they landed, she grabbed the downed Griffin and shot into the air with him, leaving a shimmering trail in her wake. She arced high and came down to land on the roof of one of the skyscrapers surrounding the Court of the Sun, letting the stunned Griffin fall to the roof as soon as she landed.

“No, no, no,” Dash said, turning to the edge of the roof and looking down on the battle. There was too much to take in, more than even her incredible observation skills could analyze at once. The cathedral was surrounded by a thick shell of mist, its manufactured nature even more clear from the outside, and she watched a Griffin uselessly beating against the barrier. It appeared that Dash’s pegasus magic was the only reason she had been able to get through at all, though the ghouls seemed to be able to move in and out of it with little problem. She looked to the open streets and saw small groups of Griffins and pony soldiers fighting vicious, but losing battles against indestructible ash ponies. Soldiers fired their weapons or threw grenades, doing more damage to each other and the people they were supposed to be protecting than to their enemy. An island of resistance had formed around the entrance to the palace grounds, where soldiers were creating a barricade out of vehicles, but it was the only one she could see.

A look to the sky showed her that there was a legion of ashen pegasi up there as well, circling the Court of the Sun and clashing with Kingdom air forces. She looked back to the streets and confirmed that most of the ghouls on the ground were earth ponies, though she did spot one or two unicorns among them, who were thankfully not using any magic.

“You!” She turned at the sound to find the Griffin she had rescued getting to his feet. “What is the situation?”

“Uh, crazy!?” Dash said, practically shouting. “You know more about it than I do, buddy!”

He winced, clutching at his side where blood was darkening his fur. “I meant inside the cathedral. The Royals… are they safe?”

“I don’t know about safe,” Dash said. “But they’ve got no idea what’s going on. Last I saw they were still going ahead with the wedding like everything was just hunky-dory!”

“We have to get to them,” he said, wincing as he limped to the edge next to her. “Get them to safety.”

“I don’t think that’s an option,” Dash said, fear freezing her blood. She pointed to the sky and the figure gliding down from the clouds. A huge pony, wings and horn declaring her divinity as much as the crushing pall her appearance placed on the battlefield. Light blazed from her eyes, and wherever her gaze fell, despair overcame the defenders. Umbra looked upon her forces as they inexorably beat back the soldiers of the Solar Kingdom, and at her unspoken command they fell back, giving the defenders a moment’s peace to realize how little that moment would buy them.

“None Are Safe,” the Nightmare said. Her voice reached everywhere simultaneously, buildings shaking with its power. It was a whisper that could not be ignored, a promise that could not be denied. “Not Kings. Not Slaves. Not The Greatest Of Lords, And Not The Least Of Foals. To Know My Power Is To Know Your End.”

The Griffin collapsed next to Dash, his eyes too wide and his breath too shallow. “Celestia save us,” he begged, his voice shaking with terror.

“I Am Not Here For You… Today,” Umbra continued, landing in the street before the cathedral. “Run, And Live.”

As if her offer had lifted a paralysis, a great cry went up from the ponies and they began running again. Soldiers broke and ran. Police joined the herds they had been directing. The Griffins, to their credit, held their ground, but Umbra’s fear was infecting them just as much as it had the others, and their movements had the edge of panic to them. Umbra’s forces harried the departing people, hurrying them on, but were soon turning their eyeless attention to those who were not fleeing. Umbra watched the exodus with impassive fury before turning towards the shrouded cathedral and walking towards the fog.

“Oh, no you don’t!” Dash cried, leaping from the roof and streaking towards the Nightmare. She knew she couldn’t beat Umbra, but she was determined to keep her from getting to the defenceless ponies trapped in the cathedral. She almost made it, but ten feet from Umbra she was intercepted, a pegasus ghoul slamming into her and knocking her into a rolling crash along the street. She tumbled end over end, but managed to flip herself onto her hooves and skid to a stop, glaring at the dark Alicorn as a dozen ash pegasi dropped to the ground between them. She met Umbra’s gaze. “Alright,” she said. “You want me? Right? You want to find out who made me or whatever! Well, here I am! Now’s your chance!”

“You Are No Longer Relevant, Rainbow Dash,” the Nightmare said. Dash felt the bottom drop out of her stomach at the dismissal. She had been terrified of Umbra coming for her, but the thought of her going for someone else was so much worse.

“I thought you didn’t believe me about who I am,” she said, trying to think of some way to delay Umbra.

“Your Identity Has Been Confirmed,” Umbra said. “And Thus Is No Longer A Concern. Fight Me And Die, Or Flee And Survive. It Does Not Matter. You Cannot Stop Me.”

“Yeah, well, we’ll see about that.” Dash flared her wings, but the moment she started moving the ash pegasi attacked, forcing her to dodge and block their flurry of kicks and bites.

“No,” Umbra said, dissolving into a cloud of ashes that merged with the unnatural fog. “We Will Not.” Dash could only watch in agonizing frustration as the Destroyer went for her friends.

***

“I swear, before the gathered court and before the light of Celestia’s day,” Star Fall began. Her breath was unsteady and her feathers shook as she made the vow, but her voice did not tremble or falter, and of that she was proud. “I shall be your comfort, your hope and your counsel. As the sun always rises without fail, so shall I be for you. Constant and bright, a beacon so that you may rule with clarity and wisdom. From now until the Goddesses return to Equestria, I will be yours, if you will be mine.”

They were such simple vows to be the focus of such an elaborate ceremony. Yet, they were perhaps all that was left of the original Royal marriages that had come after the Schism. They were the heart of the event, and thus the most untouched by centuries of successive elaboration. She glanced away from her groom, her eyes first finding the Professor, whose face was tight with worry. Star Fall couldn’t blame her; it was far too late to back out now, and what would come next would be a challenge like none she had ever faced before.

She looked past the Professor, seeing Applejack in the crowd, leaning forward and smiling in a reassuring way. She wished that Dash would hurry up and clear the fog away like she had promised. The mist covering the sun could be seen as a bad omen, a sentiment she did not want to have to deal with. Even more, she wished Dash hadn’t left. She was missing, as she would say, the ‘best part’.

Regal swallowed heavily and she turned her gaze back to him. He opened his mouth twice before he managed to find his voice. “I sw-swear,” he began, “before the gat–”

The cathedral went dark. Star Fall jumped at the sudden loss of light, and from the sounds of surprise and fear she heard, she wasn’t the only one. Still, in a room full of unicorns no darkness could last long. A thin, multi-hued light filled the cathedral as a thousand horns lit with magic, casting kaleidoscopic shadows that twisted and whirled as the gathered unicorns looked this way and that, seeking an explanation. Star Fall felt the urge to rush about and find out what was happening, but she stood fast and took calming breaths. She was a princess now, and it was the duty of others to do the rushing.

“The power’s out!” a voice called, though Star Fall could not see from where.

“Eyes open, Fall,” Astrid said, alighting next to her. “This feels like a prelude to an attack.”

“Who would be attacking our wedding?” Regal asked, and Star Fall could see the confusion and anger in his eyes.

Star Fall and Astrid shared a look, communicating their shared fears in a glance. “Regal, if anything starts, stay back,” Star Fall said.

There was a muffled boom and ponies began shrieking as the decorative torch sconces set into the pillars burst into flame. Not normal flame, though. This was a black, cold flame that devoured the horn-light and leeched color from the world. Star Fall’s breath caught in her throat. She had seen this fire before.

“What in Celestia’s name?” one of the acolytes asked, reaching a hoof towards the black fire.

“No!” Star Fall shouted at him, but it was too late. His hoof was touched by the Ashfire, barely more than a lick, but it was enough. His coat ignited and he began screaming. Star Fall started towards him, but Astrid grabbed her wing and held her back, her claws painfully tight. The acolyte’s screams became desperate, tea-kettle-high shrieks as he desperately tried to smother the flames that spread over him. His horn burned with magic, covering his body with an aura of power, but that only made the fire spread faster. All motion in the cathedral was stilled as they watched the pony’s final moments. The fire spread over his body and burned inward with shocking speed. It consumed him. Utterly. When it was done, all that remained was a pile of grey ashes.

The cathedral might have erupted into panic then, had the ashes not immediately begun to move. They shifted and swirled in place for a moment, then began streaming down the central aisle, past the terrified guests. Tendrils of Ashfire joined the parade of ashes, twining about it like serpents. Even the Professor seemed dumbstruck by the sight of it, her gaze glassy as her eyes dully followed the progress of the acolyte’s remains.

When the ashes and fire had reached the entrance to the cathedral they swirled up, becoming a whirlwind of black and grey that soon took a shape. Star Fall knew what to expect, knew what she would be facing, but even so she felt her stomach flip and her knees grow weak as that shape became clear. The Nightmare emerged from the darkness like a ghost, casting her own luminance that filled the cathedral and corroded the magical light cast by the other ponies until only her own monochromatic glory could be seen.

Umbra stood in silence for a long moment, surveying the terror-stricken faces of the assembled nobility. Then she grinned, revealing gleaming, sharp canines that were stained with a hint of red –the only color visible in the harsh light she cast– and it was like a dam had burst. A thousand ponies screamed as one, scrambling over each other to get away from the Destroyer. Dozens were trampled, alliances and enmities were forgotten in the panic. Black fires rose up to block the exits, causing the crush of ponies to become even more unbearable as those in front began shoving against the ones behind them, lest they touch those deadly flames.

Star Fall didn’t shy back or try to run. She had Astrid’s steady presence at her side and the sure knowledge that this was a fight she had won once before, and could do so again. She faced the Shadowed Alicorn squarely and spread her wings in defiant challenge. They weren’t the only ones. In the audience, Applejack stood in front of a group of fillies and colts, her immovable form preventing them from being overrun by the older nobles. The Professor narrowed her eyes, a small, eager smile playing at her lips. Griffins rushed to the altar, creating a screen of bodies between the Royals and the Nightmare. Star Fall spotted Astrid’s friend Roan front and center, clutching one of the ceremonial halberds in his claws. She even saw the King step up beside her, his eyes wide but unafraid as he looked upon the Destroyer.

“Silence,” Umbra said, her terrible voice settling like a yoke on the shoulders of everyone present, stilling them and driving more than a few to their knees. “To Call Yourselves Noble Is Laughable,” she continued, taking long, slow steps down the central aisle. Nobles scrambled to get out of her way, leaving a wide space clear around her. “You Claim To Worship Celestia, Yet When I Look Into Your Precious, Little, Sun-Loving Faces, I Do Not See Ponies She Would Be Proud Of. Just Look At You Now: You Trample Those Weaker Underhoof In The Hope Of Buying Yourself Another Breath Of Life.” Umbra smirked, looking at one cowering pony in particular, who shrank away with a miserable squeak. “Craven Beasts, That Hope Is As Empty As Your Hearts.”

She passed by Applejack, not even giving the ancient hero a glance. Star Fall frowned at that. She had expected the Nightmare to home in on Applejack instantly, attacking her as she had Dash those many weeks ago. “Eight Hundred Years Have I Waited, Marshalling My Power. Eight Hundred Years Have I Given You To Do The Same. When I Emerged From My Silence I Expected To See Armies Arrayed Against Me! Heroes And Sages Aiding Great Leaders In Battle Against The Only Foe That Will Ever Matter For You. A Worthy Challenge To My Dominion. What Have I Found? The Petty Rulers Of A Broken World, Sitting In Pretty Rows Celebrating The Union Of A Blushing Filly And A Pampered Fop Who You Expect To Be Your Sovereign. Are You Such Fools That You Thought Me Gone Forever? Were You Not Informed Of My Return? Did You Not See The Signs?”

“We saw!” the Professor called out, catching the Nightmare’s attention. “And we are not afraid! You have been beaten before, and you will be again!”

“Beaten? No. At My Weakest I Fought Three Of Your Best, And They Did Not Impress. The Student Who Thinks Herself A Princess? Her Magic Could Not Match Mine. The Soldier Who Forsakes Duty? Her Fury Was But The Wind, Its Might Spent On Empty Bluster. The Hero A Thousand Years From Home? She Was The Only One Who Could Challenge Me, And Even She Fell To My Power."

Star Fall’s frown deepened at those words, though most of the rest of the audience cringed. Umbra’s words didn’t sit right. Umbra hadn't thought Dash was telling the truth about herself before. Had denied it completely. Finding out the truth about Dash had ostensibly been the reason she had attacked them. As she had told Astrid after that fight: Umbra didn't lie, she was too powerful to have to. Yet, here she was, accepting Rainbow Dash as the ancient hero she claimed to be. What had changed? And, even further, why all the posturing? What need did a Goddess have to boast like this?

Unless, of course, she wasn't nearly as powerful as she was trying to make them believe she was.

"Rainbow Dash got back up!" Star Fall called out, taking the attention of the room. "Astrid, Dash and I were all knocked down, but we stood back up. We stood together! You have power, Umbra, but we have power too! We have the strength of our unity, of a thousand people standing together!"

Umbra's eyes narrowed, their glow brightening until they were a pair of lidded suns, burning with cold fury. "So Be It. If A Thousand Stand Together, Then Together A Thousand Will Fall."

The entire cathedral shook as if in an earthquake. Chandeliers swayed drunkenly about and windows rattled as ponies crouched down to keep their footing on the lurching, bucking floor. Star Fall dropped her spread wings low, using them to keep her balance in ways the gathered unicorns couldn't. She noted with a distant interest that the Griffins were doing much the same as her, but the Royals were stumbling just like their wingless cousins.

Light pierced the darkness of the cathedral, and Star Fall looked up to see the fog clearing from the great skylights, letting the sun shine in. The stained glass windows did not make it easy to see what was going on in the air above and around them, but she could still catch glimpses in the clearer panes. Pegasi and Griffins wheeled and dodged between explosive blasts of anti-air weapons. Ponies attacking ponies, ponies attacking Griffins, and, shockingly, winning. It was hard to make out, especially so in the sudden dazzle of the sunlight, but Star Fall could still see that some of those pegasi wore the uniforms of Kingdom Soldiers, while the greater number by far wore no clothing, and were the same shade of ashen grey as the Nightmare that threatened them all.

A prismatic blur streaked across the sky and towards the window, moving so fast that Star Fall had barely registered its presence before it had arrived. Glass shattered as Dash made her entrance, making some of the cowering nobles let out renewed shrieks. Showing an aerial agility that was shocking even to Star Fall, the ancient pegasus turned her dive into a spin, becoming a whirling rainbow tornado that caught every shard of falling glass and launched them towards Umbra with incredible precision.

The Nightmare did not flinch as the glass embedded itself in her body, some pieces punching straight through her to shatter on the floor. Wormy tendrils of black blood forced the embedded glass out and sealed her wounds shut. Her regeneration was so fast that Dash had not even touched down before most of her injuries were gone, far quicker than it had been during their last encounter.

Dash alighted next to Star Fall, keeping her own balance on the strangely shifting floor with a casual ease that made Star Fall question if Dash even consciously noticed that things were moving. "Sorry I'm late, Star," Dash said. "I couldn't get in as long as that fog was in the way."

"You're here now," Star Fall said, giving her friend a grim smile. "That's good enough."

"What's the situation outside?" Astrid asked, crouched low as the room continued to shake.

"Not good," Dash said. "There's these, uh, nightmare ponies. They're attacking all the soldiers and Griffins out there. I had to take on a dozen just to get in here, and they do not go down easy. Or, uh, at all."

"We need to get these people out of here," Star Fall said, looking at the nearest exit, and the Ashfire that blocked it. "Maybe I can put that out, give a chance to evacuate if she can be kept distracted."

Dash frowned. "Uh, not a good plan, Star."

"Why not?"

Dash blinked at her in confusion. "You mean you don't feel it?"

"Feel?" Star Fall shook her head.

"You got too much oil on your feathers, Star," Dash said. "Trust me, evacuation? Not an option."

Star Fall closed her eyes and focused on her other senses. She did feel like the shimmering oil on her wings was acting like a blanket, dulling her senses. She paid attention to what she was feeling in her wings, and her eyes popped open in shock. She was feeling an air pressure change; one that was usually caused by a sudden increase in altitude. "Oh, no."

"Yes," Umbra said, her words like a signal that stilled the shudders of the cathedral. "There Is No Escape. There Is No Victory. There Is Only Me." Her horn flared and the great statue of Celestia was blown backwards, ripping through the wall and the huge stained-glass windows of the back of the cathedral and falling into the thousand feet of open air between the cathedral and the ground. "And Death."

"Celestia save us!" cried one noble in the terror-struck crowd.

"She Will Not," Umbra assured them, staring balefully at the Professor.

"Then I will!" Dash declared, stepping forward.

"And so will I," Astrid snarled, stepping up next to Dash.

"So will we all!" Roan called, and the Griffins echoed his sentiment with a unified shriek. Astrid grinned at the support.

"Looks like y'all are outnumbered," Applejack said, straightening her hat and smirking at the Nightmare. "I bet you're regrettin' leavin' your army outside, huh?"

Umbra looked from Dash to Applejack, then back again, and Star Fall thought she caught a moment of worry on her otherwise impassive features. Then rage twisted her expression, eyes burning with unholy radiance. "They Are Not Here For Them." She gestured with her horn at the nobles before spearing Applejack with a hateful stare. "They Are Here For You."

Then, in a flash of dark power, Applejack was catapaulted from her place. She smashed through the window with the speed of a bullet, continuing in a tumbling arc over the battlefield of the Solar Capital. There was a moment of stunned silence as they processed what had just happened, and Umbra turned her attention to Dash. "Save Her, And Abandon Them. Or Save Them, And Lose Her. Choose."

Dash's eyes were wide and stricken, her mouth open as if caught needing to say something, but lacking the words to express whatever it was that was driving her to cry out. Star Fall could understand Dash's dilemma, but to her there was no contest. The world needed its heroes, now more than ever. "Go!" she cried, her words a command as much as they were a plea. Dash did not waste a moment, and with a streak of rainbow light and a gust of wind she was gone. Umbra's gaze tracked slowly back to the Professor, but Star Fall was not about to let her control this situation any more. "Attack!" she roared, and her forces answered her call.

***

Applejack tumbled end over end through the air. The cathedral, held up in an aura of black power, grew smaller and smaller with every rotation while the massive city spread out below her only came closer. She tried to make sense of the spinning world, to bring it all into some kind of stable focus, but the ground had literally been swept out from under her hooves, and she could find no purchase for her body or her thoughts.

One thought managed to make it through the dizzy confusion, a memory of watching a friend fall, just as she was now. That friend had been saved by another, and Applejack knew that her own hope of salvation lay with the same pony. Come on, Rainbow Dash, she thought, squeezing her eyes tightly shut to keep from having to see the wildly spinning world. I believe in you. She spread her legs wide, feeling her tumbling fall stabilize somewhat. You'd never let me fall. She relaxed her tense body, taking a deep breath as she felt the cold wind whipping past her. "So hurry up and catch me already!"

There was a crack like thunder through the air, accompanied by a momentary pressure that pushed the breath from her lungs. Then she felt warm forelegs wrap around her torso and her fall was arrested. "Heh, sorry AJ," Dash said in her ear. "Had to slow down to catch you."

Applejack smiled at that boastful apology, opening her eyes to look up at her grinning saviour. "No worries, sugarcube. And thanks for savin' me."

"It's what I do," Dash replied. Then she looked beyond Applejack and her features hardened. "This is bad."

She looked down at the city street they were gliding over. There was fighting everywhere. Pockets of soldiers struggled against grey ponies who bled ashes when injured and didn't stay hurt long. Applejack looked into the sky and found the cathedral, which floated unnaturally in the afternoon sky. More fighting was taking place around it, but from here it was clear the skies were dominated by ashen pegasi. What few Kingdom forces there were around the cathedral were desperately trying to clear the way for a few small parties of Royals to make their way down to the safety of the palace.

"Let me down," Applejack said.

"But Star needs our help!" Dash cried.

"And y'all are gonna give it to her," Applejack assured her. "But gettin' through that mess will be hard enough on your own. I'll just slow you down."

"You won't!" Dash protested, but her confidence withered as Applejack gave her a hard look. "Okay, fine. Those nightmare ponies are pretty damn tough. But we need you against Umbra, AJ. Really."

Applejack sighed. "I don't know what you expect me to do. I'm a farmer, not a soldier."

"And I'm a weatherpony," Dash said, giving Applejack a reassuring squeeze. "And we've both saved the world a couple times."

Applejack nodded at that, it was true after all. "I know we gotta do somethin', but I just ain't sure what to do about Nightmare Umbra. What you told me about her... I don't know how bein' strong and tough will help." Dash was silent at that, and Applejack supposed she was thinking about how little being fast meant as well. "Look, sugarcube, I'm better with my hooves on the ground anyway. Let me see if I can help against the bad guys down here while you get back to Star Fall. If you can coax Umbra down to my level, well, then I've got more options to work with."

Dash frowned, but gave one slow nod. "Alright, but..."

"If y'all need me, you'll know where to find me," Applejack said. "Tell you what, these, uh, these nightmare ponies don't look so tough to me. I bet I can take out more than you before you make it back to Star Fall."

"You want to challenge me? Now? Like this?"

"Well, if y'all don't mind givin' up the Iron Pony crown..."

Dash's incredulousness morphed into a cocky grin, a new light gleaming in her eyes. "I just wanted to make sure you knew what you were getting into!" she said, and laughed. "You're on! Kick some ass, AJ!" And with that she let Applejack go.

"You too, sugarcube," Applejack replied, not watching her friend depart in a rainbow streak. She fell again, but this time the distance was barely two stories up, and she wasn't spinning like a flipped coin. She hit the ground in a roll, coming up to her hooves and skidding to a stop facing a group of ashen ponies.

They were menacing a trio of soldiers who were backed up against the caged front of a store. Televisions in windows behind them showed silent news reports of the battle that raged throughout the city, scenes of panic and violence. Terrified salesponies and civilians sheltering within cowered behind displays and counters, watching the fate of those protecting them. The soldiers looked to Applejack with some confusion, but the ghouls were expressionless with their empty, black eye sockets and sharp-toothed snarls as they turned to the newcomer.

"Get away from them!" Applejack called out. "Or I ain't gonna go easy on you." The ash ponies seemed to hesitate for a bare moment before all of them lunged at her as a group. "Thank you kindly," Applejack said, putting her head down and running into the attacking monsters.

A hoof hit her shoulder hard, but it might as well have been a gentle poke for all she felt it. She spun and lashed out with a well-placed kick. Her hoof sank into the creature's ashen body like she was kicking sand, but she did feel it connect with something solid before the ash pony was thrown back.

"Run!" one of the soldiers called out. "They can't be hurt!"

Applejack weathered another pair of blows before reaching out and hooking a foreleg around the neck of an attacker. She swung herself onto the ash pony's back, riding it with expert ease as it began to buck and thrash to throw her off. She squeezed with her strangling foreleg. The ash pony didn't need to breathe, but she wasn't trying to choke it. Her leg sunk into the ash until it was almost completely through, then she felt it come up against something that did not yield as easily. With a yell she dragged up and back, twisting hard on the pony's head until it came completely off.

The ash pony practically disintegrated, becoming a whirling cloud of choking ashes. Applejack galloped away, still clutching the dismembered head of the creature. She looked behind her to see the cloud flowing after her, followed closely by the remaining ash ponies. "Well, they don't like that," she mused, coming to a stop and setting the head down on the street. It snapped at her, but she pulled her hoof up and out of the way of its flashing teeth. "I wonder how much they're gonna like this!"

She brought her hoof down on the head, smashing down hard enough that she cracked the pavement beneath. The skull of the creature shattered from the blow, exploding in a burst of black power that blew Applejack's mane about. The billowing cloud that was the creature's body immediately lost its unnatural animation, drifting to the ground as normal ashes. The other ash ponies paused for a moment, regarding Applejack with their empty eyes.

"Well, I guess this means y'all aren't as invulnerable as your mistress, don't it?" She stretched out her legs, working each of them in turn until they gave a satisfying pop and she felt the rush of ready strength fill them. "Suits me. Who's first?"

They charged her, and Applejack met them with a confident smile and a whoop of excitement. She dodged the first one to attack her, stepping past it so that she was facing the next one squarely. When the one in front of her swiped at her face, Applejack ducked low, putting all her weight on her forehooves, and kicked out behind her. Her aim was true, striking the first ash pony's skull hard enough to reduce it to powder. She didn't pause as the explosion of magic rolled over her, instead doing a half-somersault forward and kicking her other leg up into the jaw of the ash pony that had struck at her, shearing that one's face completely off.

One of them got a kick into her flank, and she rolled with the blow, coming to her hooves with two of them on either side of her, dangerously close. They snapped at her with their sharp teeth, one of them managing to score a shallow gash on her neck before she pulled back. She reared up on her hind legs and grabbed both ash ponies, smashing their heads together with strength only an earth pony could wield. Shards of bone pelted her just before the twin explosions of magic cleared them away.

Applejack spun to face her final opponent, who struck out recklessly, uncaring of the fate of its allies. She let the hit land, grabbing the ash pony’s foreleg in her own and pulling it close so that she could land a vicious uppercut that tore the head from the creature's body, sending it spinning up into the air. Applejack let go of the body as it disintegrated, tracking the movement of the falling skull. She stomped on the ground, cracking the pavement into rubble beneath her. She pulled up a hoof-sized chunk of the street and frowned as she continued to watch the arc of the ash pony's head. Then, in a well-practiced motion she tossed the rock so that it hung in the air, spun and kicked the hunk of pavement. The rock sailed across the street, partially breaking up from the force of her kick, but enough of it stayed together that when it intersected with the skull, the ghoul’s head exploded like an overripe melon.

Applejack nodded in satisfaction at the final blast of released magic, then turned to the soldiers. "How are y'all doin'? Anyone hurt?"

There were three of them, all earth ponies, two stallions and a mare. All of them wore the uniforms of Kingdom soldiers, and they all were staring at her with open mouths and wide eyes. "That was... incredible!" the taller of the stallions managed to say.

"You... you're her!" the mare said, the awe in her face turning to something more like reverence. "The hero from the past... it's true!"

"Well, that's, uh, about right," Applejack said, suddenly uncomfortable with the way the mare was looking at her. "But not important right now. If none of y'all's hurt, then there's a whole lot more of these nightmare ponies to deal with, and I can't take them all on by myself." She scanned their faces, and found that the awe and reverence was joined by hope and courage. "If we're gonna beat these things, I'm gonna need you workin' with me. Are y'all willin' to give me a helpin' hoof?"

"I'm with you," the reverent mare said, and her words were echoed by the other two immediately.

"Alright. Good." Applejack looked up the street and spotted another group of ash ponies who were heading their way. "They got skeletons under that ash. I figure it's the only part of them that's real. The way to get rid of them is by breakin' their skulls. Think you can do that?"

The soldiers looked to each other. "Close quarters combat?" the tall one asked.

"Guns were fucking useless," the shorter stallion said. "But I don't like the idea of letting them get their hooves on me."

"A little teamwork goes a long way," Applejack reminded them.

"The hero is right," the mare said. "Working together, we can take them out. One at a time, at least."

"Then I'll make sure y'all don't get too many at once," Applejack said. "And, by the way, my name's Applejack."

"Private Roseleaf," the mare said.

"Lewis," the tall, dark-maned stallion said.

"I'm Corporal Swing," the shorter stallion said. "It's a pleasure to work with you, ma'am."

"Just Applejack," she said, watching as the approaching ash ponies broke into a gallop. "And I'm happy to meet y'all, too. Now what's say we teach these varmints a lesson about not attackin' innocent ponies?" The soldiers cheered. Knowing they had her back, Applejack rushed out to meet the enemy.

***

A dozen Griffins leapt from their positions, attacking the Nightmare with claws and weapons that could not hope to hurt her for long. They didn't need to. They were not foolish in their tactics, coordinating their attack with the brutal efficiency that was the hallmark of Griffin combat. Umbra let the first few blows land without so much as a flinch, but the warriors did not stay long, striking and withdrawing just as another of their number was attacking from another angle. Their large bodies soared through the cathedral with such power and grace that Star Fall could almost believe they had practiced for just such an eventuality.

She couldn’t afford to watch, though. As strong as the Griffins were, they were only a delaying tactic, and she needed to be ready when that tactic inevitably failed. "Get the Royals out!" she snapped at the remaining Griffins. They were already on it, ushering their charges towards the hole Umbra had created by destroying Celestia's statue.

"That means you, too, Fall," Astrid said, her eyes locked on the fight between Umbra and the Griffins. The Shadowed Alicorn stood in place and took whatever hits they scored, only replying with a few devastating blows that inevitably took a combatant out of the fight. Bones shattered under her hooves and Griffins burned at the touch of her horn. The elite warriors were not the only ones fighting, though. There were others stepping up, nobles and house guards charging in to fill the widening gaps in the Griffins’ offense. Star Fall was heartened to see the courage of her fellow ponies, but she knew that their morale could not hold out against the Destroyer, no matter how defiant they were now.

The first of the Royals left the cathedral. Their Griffin escorts were immediately set upon by ashen pegasi, but it looked like they would at least make it away from Umbra's immediate influence. Star Fall didn’t watch after the first group was away, too busy doing some quick calculations in her head. She had known it from the outset, but she still cursed when she came to the definite answer that even if every Griffin was carrying two passengers at once, there was no way they could ferry all the flightless ponies to the ground and fight off the airborne attackers before Umbra simply killed them all.

Her stomach flip-flopped with sick fear as she realized that the most logical thing to do was abandon the Nobles. To fly away and fight another day. No matter what happened, Umbra could always just drop the cathedral. Even if by some miracle she lost the fight, she would still win. Thousands would die, and there was nothing Star Fall could do to stop her. Not even Rarity's amazing power would be enough. They were doomed.

But she wasn’t going leave them. No matter that some of these nobles wouldn’t hesitate to abandon her if their positions were reversed. She thought of Rainbow Dash, standing under the crushing weight of Umbra’s will, giving her the strength to do the same. Would Rainbow Dash leave these ponies to die? The answer was clear, and thus so was Star Fall’s decision.

"No," she said. "We can’t leave. We're the only ones that have fought her and won, Astrid, we’re going to stay until we can't be here any longer. Until everyone here is safe."

She looked at Regal and the King, still inexplicably at her side instead of being the first to be rescued. She could see in the King's stern stance and ready wings that he was not going to abandon this fight either. Regal, too, had the look of someone who would stubbornly refuse to leave, no matter how smart or important it was that he survive. As she looked at them, a thought occurred to her, one that gave her a glimmer of hope.

"Spell sheets!" she called out. "I requested there be a few available."

"None in the cathedral, Princess," the high priest said, dropping his head. "I'm sorry, I thought they would be used to show off your... your magic. I forbade them."

"What?!" Star Fall growled.

"Professor Twinkle Shine allowed it! I thought..."

"No, not important," Star Fall tore her mind away from her anger. If this worked there would be time enough for that later. "I need something to draw with!"

"Ink?" Regal asked.

"No, something magically conductive," Star Fall replied, shaking her head and wincing as she realized her only likely option. "Like blood."

"Star Fall, no," Twinkle Shine said. "Save yourself. You are too important to this nation, to this world. I will deal with the Destroyer."

"Professor..." Star Fall began to protest, but the words died in her throat as she saw her mentor draw out a length of crystal chain. Each link was as black as obsidian, but had a strange, liquid texture to it that seemed to flow in dark currents as the light hit it. The Chains of Tartarus.

Umbra's attention was immediately drawn to the golden unicorn. Her wings swept out at her sides, creating a gust of wind powerful enough to send all her assailants tumbling end over end across the length of cathedral to crash against the walls or the mass of clustered ponies. "You know these, don't you?" the Professor said, hefting the chain before her, clasping it in her magic and twisting the links into the shape of a circle before her, a circle that began to distort the air within it, bending light like a lens.

"You Do Not Understand What You Seek To Use Against Me," Umbra said, Ashfire licking down her legs and spreading into a circle of death around her.

"I understand that you fear it," the Professor said, narrowing her eyes as her horn began to pulse brightly with golden light. "I understand that you are threatening the ponies I love. I understand that you hold innocents hostage to feed your pride and arrogance. I understand that you presume yourself untouchable! I do not care what I have to do to bring you low! Return to whatever hole you crawled out of, Nightmare! You will find no victory here!"

"Your Chain Is Incomplete," the Destroyer said. "The Fragment You Hold Cannot Contain My Power."

"And your power hasn't fully returned," the Professor said, a wild, hopeful look in her eyes. "Otherwise you would have destroyed me by now. I'm willing to test my fragment against your power. How willing are you to do the same?"

Umbra's eyes went wide with rage and her horn burned with dark fire. "Fool!" she roared, sending forth a blast of power that screamed through the air towards the Professor. Star Fall felt a cry rising in her throat, but Twinkle Shine moved the circled Chain and caught the Destroyer's power with it. The Alicorn's energy splashed against the distorted air and swirled into a vortex that drained into the links of the dark chain.

"Was that really the best you can do?" the Professor asked, her grin mocking the Nightmare as she stepped to the side of the altar the Royals had recently evacuated, away from both the nobles and Star Fall.

"Insolent Foal!" Umbra screamed. "I Am Immortal! I Am Inevitability Itself! You Can No More Defeat Me Than You Can Stop The Hands Of Time From Turning!"

"Maybe not," the Professor said, and her smile dropped away, to be replaced with a cold, grim anger that Star Fall had never seen on her mentor before. "But your crimes against this world are great, and unforgivable. It's about time someone punished you for them." She brandished the Chain of Tartarus and spoke in a voice that reverberated through the air with power, the Old Equestrian words flowing with the cadence of a chant: "I rebuke you, spirit of darkness! I repel you, scion of evil!" The distortion within the circled Chain stretched, twisting into a lashing whip of strange power that reached out to Umbra, attempting to wrap around her neck. The Nightmare reared, avoiding the noose and batting it away, sending a burst of solid magic back at the Professor, who deflected it again with the power of the Chain. "With these words I deny you! With these Chains I bind you!”

"Incredible!" the King said, watching the battle with awestruck wonder.

Star Fall had to admit that it was an incredible sight, and under better circumstances she would have loved to sit and watch the titanic forces vying against each other. As much as she wanted to sit back and cheer for her mentor, though, she had more pressing concerns at the moment. "Astrid, I need blood, and it can't be mine."

"Do you really think that's necessary, Fall? I mean, the Professor's kicking ass!"

"It doesn't matter if she wins or not!" Star Fall hissed. "It might even be worse if she does. Think about it! All that's holding us up right now is Umbra's will. If that breaks or she decides it's better used elsewhere..." she didn't have to complete the thought, she could see that Astrid understood.

"You can stop that?" Astrid asked. Star Fall knew she wasn’t asking for reassurance, she was looking for an honest estimation of their chances.

"I don't know," Star Fall admitted. "It's... it's a long shot, but it's the only thing I can think of."

"Use mine," Regal said. "I... I don't know how to help here. I'm not strong enough to carry anyone to the ground, and I was never taught any combat spells. If I can be useful by giving blood, I will. Gladly."

"No," Star Fall said, and she could see his face fall at her denial of his sacrifice. "I need you for this, and you have to be as strong as you can be."

"Then use mine," the King said.

Star Fall hesitated. "Your Majesty..." she began, but was interrupted as he reached up and slashed his fetlock open on the sharp tip of his horn.

He held his injured leg out to her, turning his attention back to the magical battle. "Well?" he prompted. "Get to it!"

"Yes, Your Majesty," Star Fall said, wasting no more time. She dipped her hoof into the dripping blood and began to draw a large circle. "Astrid," she said as she worked. "I need you to keep everyone else organized. Keep them away from me and what I'm doing, okay? Any messups on this spell and... and..."

"I get it, Fall," Astrid said. "What if the immortal bitch decides to interfere?"

Star Fall paused for a moment as she considered that possibility. "Then there's nothing we can do about it. Let's just hope the Professor can keep her full attention."

"Pretty thin hope, Fall," Astrid said, dropping into a ready stance.

Star Fall absorbed herself in the creation of her spell. She could hear the sounds of battle in the background, but she refused to look up, no matter how much the shrieks and gasps of the crowd made her want to. She had to walk the frustrating line between making sure the spell was done right, and making sure the spell was done quickly, and she could only hope that she wasn’t making a mistake in her design. Mistakes here would not only kill her, but everyone else in the cathedral.

Focused as she was, she still noticed when Roan came up to them. "Your Majesty," he said, saluting. "I have news."

"My wife? My children?" the King asked.

"Within the palace," Roan said. "Only the three of you remain." The King nodded at that, his wings relaxing a bit in relief. "The fighting is fierce, though. Umbra's forces aren't living creatures, they do not die without great force, and they show no signs of tiring. Lady Dash is fighting to get back here, but they’re paying her special attention, dedicating a battalion to keep her back. So far we have managed to open a passage to the palace, but it will not last. There is a limited window to get you out of here."

The King looked down at the designs Star Fall was scrawling with his blood and worked his leg to keep it flowing. "The Princess has a plan," he said, raising his voice so that it carried to the nobles pressed against the walls not far away. "I have placed the future of my kingdom in her hooves. It seems only appropriate that I do the same with my life."

Roan looked like he was about to argue, but then looked at Star Fall, his sharp, predator's eyes piercing her like they could see beneath her skin and into her very heart. She did not ignore his stare, but did not stop her work either. Something seemed to connect with the big Griffin and he looked away from her towards Astrid, who gazed back with a confident, almost smug air. "As you say, your Majesty," Roan said, saluting first the King, then Star Fall. "The Griffins await your command."

***

The Student Is Attempting Something, Umbra’s thoughts rumbled in Twinkle Shine’s head. She spared a glance for Star Fall, keeping it short so that she could continue to focus on the spectacular battle she was having with the Nightmare.

“That’s a levitation matrix,” she whispered, careful to keep her lips from moving too much and revealing that she was speaking.

She Believes She Can Overcome My Power? Umbra’s thought was tinged with disbelief.

“Alone, no,” the Professor said, lashing at Umbra with the Chains again, a split-second too slow to catch her. “I suppose, if she got every unicorn in the cathedral to add their power to the spell, it might be enough. Clever of her.”

Then She Cannot Be Allowed To Continue.

“Don’t hurt her!” Twinkle Shine hissed. The desperation she sent to Umbra with those words made the Nightmare flinch for a moment, and the entire cathedral shuddered in response.

I Will Merely Remove Her From The Stage, Umbra’s mental voice growled, and Twinkle Shine knew she had acquiesced and would not hurt her student. She relaxed a bit at that. Umbra’s power did not often lend itself to subtlety, but Star Fall’s amulet should protect her from mere rough handling.

“Astrid will try to protect her.”

I Will Direct My Power Appropriately. Then with their unspoken agreement, they shifted their act to give Umbra an opening to keep Star Fall from ruining everything.

***

A flash of harsh power sent ripples through the stone of the cathedral, and a thousand voices cried out as the building dropped a few feet. "Fall," Astrid said, a note of suppressed panic tainting the otherwise stoic calm of her voice. "Please tell me you're almost done."

"Just about!" Star Fall said, digging her hoof into the King's open wound once more. He winced at the pain, but did not cry out. Star Fall was so engrossed with finishing her spell that she didn't even notice that the Nightmare's focus had shifted away from her duel with the Professor until it was too late.

"Your Efforts Are Wasted," Umbra snarled, and sent a lash of ashen magic at her. The power tore a furrow in the marble tiles of the cathedral floor, sending chips of stone spraying like the wake from a fast boat. Star Fall had only a moment to register what was happening, and even pegasus reflexes were not fast enough to let her dodge the attack.

Griffin reflexes, honed by a lifetime of bodyguard training, were, however, enough to save her. Both Astrid and Roan were in front of her in a blur of dark bodies and dyed feathers. The magic hit Roan first, off-center, throwing him back and to the side. The force of the hit was such that when he clipped a pillar half his body simply crumpled into a boneless ruin. Astrid was similarly thrown, but the spell struck her more directly, and she was tossed back and through the gaping hole behind the altar rather than into something solid.

Star Fall felt the magic as a push that lifted her off her hooves, but the force of the spell had been spent on the two Griffins, so she dropped back only a few feet from where she had been standing. She knew that if Roan hadn't interposed himself she would have been flung out of the cathedral like Astrid had been. She refused to look at where the big Griffin had fallen. There was no time for shock or sadness. She had to finish her spell. She jumped forward and swiped her hoof along the floor, completing one of the last sigils.

"Star Fall, no!" she heard the Professor scream. She looked up to see that Umbra had the magical distortion of the Chain of Tartarus wrapped around two of her legs, a disadvantage she was at because she had chosen instead to eliminate Star Fall. A wave of Ashfire flowed along the channel cut by Umbra's previous spell. The deadly magic streaked towards her and left her with very few choices. If she dodged, it would consume her nearly finished spell, ruining her work. If she stayed, she might protect the spell, but it could instead consume her as it had the poor acolyte earlier.

Yet, she had survived it once before. Without knowing it, without any conscious effort on her part, she had shrugged off Umbra's most feared power. Max Cash had told her that there were ways a Magic Talent could defeat Ashfire, but he hadn't told her what those were or how he had learned of them. All she knew was that it was possible, and her Talent was the thing that made it so.

She closed her eyes and touched the amulet that nestled at her throat. She would trust in her Talent. She would trust that she could survive the Ashfire again.

She braced herself for the fire, but it never touched her. Instead, a cold silence descended on the cathedral. Star Fall opened her eyes to find that, once again, someone had stepped in to shield her from doom. This time, however, it was not a Griffin pledged to protect her with their life.

The King shuddered as the tongues of black flame began to consume him. He was facing her, his wings outstretched, and so she could clearly see the agony in his eyes as his hindquarters disintegrated under the onslaught. Time seemed to slow as she looked into those eyes. The battle between Umbra and Twinkle Shine had paused, the Professor gaping at her dying King with an unfathomable expression, like loss and shock and deep panic all at once. The distorted magic of the Chains faded, freeing Umbra, but even the Nightmare was focused on the scene.

"Why?" Star Fall asked. "I could have..."

"You are... more... important," he wheezed out, his voice cracking in his agony. He reached out for her, but his rear legs were barely more than charred bone, and he collapsed. She knelt down in front of him, afraid to touch him as the fire made its unstoppable advance through his flesh. His eyes kindled with an internal light, and Star Fall saw the universe of stars and light that was the Deep Power within them. "The Goddesses," he whispered, and she got as close as she dared to hear his last words. "My vision... I saw... You must... live." Ashfire covered him completely, now, only the light of the Deep Power showing through the darkness. "Twilight... Sparkle... will be… reborn… through… you..."

Then the light went out, and all that was left of the King of the mighty Solar Kingdom became a stream of ashes which flew back to the Shadowed Alicorn, joining with the Nightmare. Star Fall touched her forehead to the bloody floor where her sovereign had died. "I will. I promise. I will bring her back."

***

This Is Unacceptable! Umbra screamed in her thoughts.

She couldn’t reply. Could barely think. She was too focused on the King, dying in front of her eyes. With him went all her hopes. Centuries of planning and waiting. Of manipulating governments and creating history from the shadows.

“No,” she said, the denial weak, her spirit close to breaking.

I Will Not Abandon The Plan So Easily! Umbra roared. His Son Will Do Just As Well As He. Continue. Twinkle Shine didn’t react. Continue! The Nightmare threw a blast of power at her, then reached into her mind and forced her limbs into motion, barely deflecting the deadly attack.

“Star Fall,” the Professor whispered, tears filling her eyes as she took control of her body back and tried vainly to recapture the rhythm of her false battle with Umbra. “I’m so sorry.”

***

"No." The voice was the Professor's, but the emotion filling that soft-spoken word was one Star Fall had never thought to hear from her mentor. She sounded defeated, broken. Umbra took that moment to lash out, a burst of power that the Professor only barely deflected, stumbling back and nearly falling, as if her legs had lost all coordination. She focused on the Nightmare again, but it was clear now that she was going to lose.

Still, the renewal of the fight broke a kind of paralysis that had been holding the onlookers. A cry of anger rose from the gathered nobles, joined by a shrieking, berserker war cry from the Griffins. Spells flashed into Umbra's sides, nudges of telekinesis or tiny flung objects. Some precious little actual combat magic was thrown in as well. Griffins took to the air, circling the Nightmare and flashing down once again in coordinated strikes, talons raking her and coming away with wriggling worms of vile blood wetting them. A warrior went down next to the Nightmare, his limbs twisting into horrifying angles as the invading blood ruined him from the inside. He still snapped at Umbra with his hooked beak, attacking with his last breath as she stomped on his head and ended his struggles.

Star Fall pushed herself up. She took a deep breath, then with the last of the blood the King had gifted her, she finished her spell. She ignored the fighting, blocking out the angry cries that were increasingly becoming desperate. She refused to look as another Griffin was killed, and then a brave, stupid noble who tried to attack the Nightmare physically.

She turned to Regal, who was staring at the place his father died. Tears dripped down his cheeks, falling from him in little crystal droplets. She didn't have time to allow him grief. "Regal!" she snapped. He jerked, blinking several times in quick succession as he looked at her. "I need you to send me into the Deep Power."

"What?" He shook his head, trying to clear it. "I don't understand. My father–"

"Is dead," she said, and his ears fell flat at the cold bluntness of her words. "I need your help now."

"I..." He shuddered. "I can't."

"Yes, you can," Star Fall said, letting her voice soften. She reached out for him, and when he flinched away she lunged in and caught him in an embrace. She buried her face in his neck, wrapping her wings around him. "I'm sorry, Regal," she said. "I'm so sorry, but he died to make sure this happened. You need to do what you did before, and you need to do it now."

"I don't know if I can," he whispered to her, agony and indecision wrenching the words from him. “I’m not… not like him, or you. I can’t just…” He trailed off, shaking. “I’m not supposed to be king yet.”

"I believe in you," she said, tightening her hug. "He believed in you." She looked to the priest who still stood nearby, gaping at the ongoing battle. "What's left?" He blinked at her in incomprehension. "To the ceremony. How much is left?"

"It's... the Prince must say his vow, and then I seal it," the priest said.

"I’m not marrying you because your father wanted me to,” Star Fall said to Regal. “I had a choice. Part of that choice was made because I saw something in you, something that told me you could become a great king. I believe in what I saw, and I know your father did too. I believe in you. Say the words, Regal. Mean them."

He took a shuddering breath, and then began. His voice was weak at first, but gained strength as he spoke the vow that would bind them together in one purpose. “I swear... before the gath... the gathered court and before the light of Celestia’s day. I swear that I shall be worthy of your comfort, that I will fulfill your hopes and heed your counsel. As the sun rules the sky, so shall I rule this land, banishing the darkness and bringing warmth and life to my Kingdom. I shall set my path by your constant beacon so that my sight will ever be clear, and my power measured with wisdom. From now until the Goddesses return to Equestria, if you will be mine, then I will be yours.”

Star Fall looked expectantly to the priest, who cleared his throat and did his best to keep his voice from shaking as he spoke, his eyes locked on the losing fight not a hundred feet away. "Then by Celestia's light, you are wed. You may... you may kiss..."

Star Fall pulled back and held Regal's face with her wings. "This will not be for nothing," she promised him.

Pain still ruled him, but he struggled to speak again, trying to force out one last thing that he had wanted to say before the world went wrong. "I... I lo–" She cut him off by pressing her lips to his. His eyes flared bright with the Deep Power, and Star Fall felt her sense of self melting away, lost to the swirl of light and darkness that drowned her even as it filled her with new life.

***

“This is bullshit!” Dash snarled, hoping she was using the profanity correctly. She hovered high above the city, staring at the legion of ash pegasi that barred her way back to the floating cathedral. There were easily over a hundred of them, and –lucky her– they were all dedicated to stopping her progress.

She juked to the left and ten of the creatures rushed off in that direction. Dash reversed herself immediately, her wings pumping hard and fast as she shot to the right. More of them moved to intercept her there and she changed course again, going up this time. When a bunch of them ascended to match her, she instead shot down towards the center of their formation. They were fast, though, and clever enough that the holes left in their blockade weren’t big enough for even a pony as fast as Dash to break through.

Still, she tried. She pushed herself to supersonic, then came to a sudden halt, then started forward again, chasing her own shockwave. The sonic boom hit the ash pegasi in front of her, breaking parts of their bodies into puffs of grey. She grit her teeth and blasted through, only to be tackled out of her charge by one of the ghouls. It bit at her, but she twisted and scrambled away from it, only losing a few feathers and a hundred feet of altitude. But the damage was done and her attempt had failed.

She soared away from them, looking over her shoulder to see if they followed, but while they tracked her movements they did not pursue. Which was the most frustrating thing about them. She was faster than they were, stronger and more agile, but there were too many of them. She could evade a dozen of them at once, but the thirteenth would manage the interception. She could dazzle groups of them with bursts of light and thunder, but there were always enough of them unaffected that they could block her. Yet they weren't interested in taking her out, and every time she tried to thin their numbers by baiting a few off so she could lose them in the streets or take them out, they refused.

Which wasn’t to say she didn’t have to deal with being attacked. No, this group of nightmare ponies were only interested in blocking her, but every other group saw her as fair game.

One such group was winging towards her now. She could evade them easily enough, but every time she did that she ended up farther away from the cathedral. So instead she turned to face the newcomers and rocketed in their direction.

They set themselves to fight her, but she wasn’t going to give them the chance. She put on a burst of acceleration, a ribbon of rainbow light trailing her charge as she broke the sound barrier again. She hit one of the nightmare ponies head on, unafraid of the crash. She’d found out quickly that while the ashen pegasi had skeletons inside them, their bodies were essentially dust. This one exploded as she passed through it, bits of rib and leg flinging through the air. The nightmare pony wasn’t destroyed, but the shockwave of Dash’s supersonic flight scattered the rest of the ash and made it take longer to reform itself.

The three remaining ghouls barely reacted to the explosion. Instead they turned to follow Dash, moving with a uniform, deadly efficiency. She dove towards the streets, and they followed close on her tail.

She could’ve poured on the speed and left them far behind, but she was frustrated and angry, and they presented the perfect targets to vent some of that anger on. So she kept her speed down, just enough to stay ahead of them as she evened out to skim the rooftops of the Solar Capital. She zig-zagged across the streets, keeping her general direction towards the palace. The nightmare ponies followed, showing a level of agility that would have been respectable even for a pony of her own time.

Respectable was not, however, anywhere near her level. Dash braked hard, performing a backwards somersault in midair that landed her on the back of one of her pursuers. She kicked off immediately, letting physics do its thing and sending the ghoul crashing into a roof, the skidding impact shredding it to cloud-form. The maneuver also put Dash behind the other two attackers.

They tried to turn on her, but she was far too fast for that. She hit one hard, tearing through its yielding body and ripping one of its wings clean off. It spiralled down, crashing into a building wall before vanishing into an alleyway. Dash turned her attention to the last one. It circled towards her, and she let it come. Alone they weren’t any match for her, not that it seemed to stop them from trying. She barely considered how she would take this one out, already thinking ahead to her next attempt to reach the cathedral.

It turned out that she didn’t even need to fight, as a shrieking Griffin fell out of the sky and hit the ash pony with a slashing fury. It didn’t last long, discorporating into ash that drifted down towards the street as it slowly reformed.

“Astrid!” Dash called to the new arrival, circling above.

“Sorry for the kill-steal, Dash,” Astrid said, flapping up to her. “You rescue AJ?”

“Yeah, she’s on the ground doing her thing,” Dash replied. “What’s going on? Did Star get out of there?”

Astrid shook her head. “She’s doing some crazy magic thing to save everyone in the cathedral. I got tossed out by big, gray and scary. Now I can’t get back in.”

“Yeah, they’re screening,” Dash said, looking up at the ghouls who were waiting to intercept them. “And there’s too many! I can’t get past them!”

“Fuck!” Astrid snapped. “Well, I’m not going to be much help. I can barely take two of these things on at once, and they don’t exactly stay dead when I kill them.”

Dash repeated Astrid’s profanity, filling the word with all her frustrations. “We can’t stop trying,” she said. “We gotta help Star.”

“Yeah,” Astrid scanned the skies, golden raptor eyes darting between pockets of fighting. “I think we can get some help, but it’ll take some quid pro quo.”

“What?”

Astrid pointed. “If we take out the baddies going after our guys, then we can get those guys to help us break through to Fall.” Dash nodded as she thought about it. “It’s a numbers game, right? There’s too many of them for you or me to take on ourselves, so we get an actual force together. Enough of us to counter enough of them for you to make it through.”

“Yeah!” Dash crowed, flying a quick barrel roll around Astrid. “That’s a great idea! It’s gotta work!”

“It damn well better,” Astrid said, glancing up at the floating cathedral. “Hang on, Fall. We’re on our way.”

***

Applejack was a juggernaut. She crashed through groups of ghouls like a cannonball, crushing heads with every opportunity and knocking ash ponies aside like toys. She bled from dozens of shallow wounds that stained her orange coat a dark red, and her clothing had long ago been torn to shreds that she had stripped off. Still, the wounds did nothing to slow her down, and each new wound she received only made her focus for one deadly instant on the one who had hurt her. In her wake followed a sizeable force of soldiers, falling upon the scattered ghouls and working in groups to dispatch them.

Together they were a wave of hope that flowed through the streets, making their way towards the great open center of the city where the fighting was heaviest and the cathedral still floated far above. Group after group of ash ponies were destroyed by them, and with each team of soldiers they rescued their numbers and spirits grew. Applejack spotted their destination ahead of them, and let out a great cry. "There it is, folks! Let's get runnin'! Yee-haw!"

The soldiers repeated her cry, the sound a roar that buoyed Applejack along as she set herself into a steady, ground-eating canter. For all her outward confidence, she was worried. A look up to the sky showed her that Rainbow Dash was still fighting to get into the cathedral, rainbow trails criss-crossing as she fought a legion of nightmare pegasi to even get close. She didn't doubt that her friend would succeed, but every minute it took her was another minute that everyone in the cathedral was trapped with Nightmare Umbra.

A herd of ghouls blocked her path to the Court of the Sun, their eyeless faces tracking her charge with eerie synchronicity. There were hundreds of them, possibly thousands. Too many for her to fight head-on, even with the backup she had gained. Fortunately, a head-on fight wasn't her plan. She had found that the ash ponies always focused on her in preference to any other target, and that suited her just fine. It certainly made things easier for the ponies who were following her into combat.

She hit the front lines of the ash ponies with her head down. She didn't even bother to target any of them, just barrelled through with the weight of the world set into her bones. Even clipping a ghoul sent it hurtling through the air to crash into buildings or its fellows and scattering the lot of them. Applejack didn't bother to see what happened to them after, her sights set on her goal: the line of overturned military transports and sandbags that had been holding the ash ponies away from the palace since the fighting began.

A cry went up from those behind the makeshift barrier, a cry answered by Applejack's own forces. She slowed her charge as she came up to the barricade and turned her attention to clearing out a place for the soldiers following her to come through. Roseleaf was the first to come to her side, the earth pony soldier gripping a steel-cored baton in her teeth and swatting away any ghoul that got too close. The remains of her squad weren't far behind, and Corporal Swing began shouting up at the barricade as soon as he was close enough to be heard.

"We need an entrance!"

"If we open a hole, they'll get through!" came the near-panicked reply.

"We'll hold them off!" Swing replied.

"They'll overwhelm you!"

"No they won't!" Swing looked over at Applejack, who gave him a quick glance before going back to stomping ash ponies to powder. "We've got a hero on our side!"

The ponies behind the barricade went silent, and Applejack decided that now would be a good time to show off. It might make the difference between being let into shelter and being caught up against a wall with a thousand nightmare ponies surrounding them. They could scramble over the barricade if necessary, but doing that would leave both them and the defending ponies open to attack from the ghouls. She slammed her forehooves into the ground, breaking through the pavement to touch the soil beneath. She drew in a deep breath, calling to the earth. It responded with a slow, eager warmth that travelled up her legs and filled her with a calm sense of purpose. A ghoul attacked her while she was gathering her focus, but when it bit her it found that her flesh had become as solid as granite. Teeth shattered, but the creature did not feel pain and lashed out with its hooves, to no avail.

"Get ready!" she called out, then charged into the horde. She didn't want to go too far, but she didn't want to be too close either, so she picked a spot fifty paces from the barricade, where the ghouls were gathered close, and went for it. They struck out at her as she ran, clipping her with hooves and sharp teeth. At first she barely felt the blows, but she was concentrating the power she had drawn up into one hoof, and so the protection it had afforded her faded with every step until she was back to her everyday toughness. Which, apparently, was still leagues better than the best body armor of the Kingdom army, a fact which tugged at a persistent, nagging worry that had festered in the back of her thoughts since Harrenhorn.

This was not the time or place to explore that worry, though, so she set it aside and focused entirely on her objective. She shoved her way through the press of ghouls, accepting the hits they landed on her without retaliating. Finally, she reached the spot she was aiming for, all the strength she had called up concentrated in her right forehoof. It felt as if she had stuck that hoof into a fire, like it was about to split apart from some great internal pressure. Which was, essentially, true.

She leapt up, a dozen ash ponies leaping with her, kicking her with hooves and slashing with their snapping teeth. She wound up for a wild haymaker of a punch, then came down with the swing. Her hoof hit the ground with a sound like a mountain shattering, and the world bent beneath her. A ripple of shattered pavement rolled out from the point of impact, followed immediately by the earth erupting under the hooves of the nightmare ponies.

Some were destroyed immediately, their skulls crushed by debris or overpressure. Others were simply tossed high into the air, flung dozens of feet by the explosion. Applejack rode out the blast, then kept her head down as bits of broken street and earth rained down. When that was over she stood at the center of a ten-foot wide crater, with the ground cracked and torn for twenty feet beyond that. She shook herself off, tapped her hoof on the revealed bare earth to shed some of the leftover energy, and trotted back to the stunned ponies at the barricade.

They watched her with open awe, making her miss a step as she recognized more of them with the same look that Roseleaf had. She reminded herself that there were still more important things to take care of and gestured to the watching ponies at the barricade. "Open up! I'll keep them back for you!"

There was a squeal of metal against pavement and one of the vehicles that made up the barricade shifted to open a passage wide enough for two ponies to squeeze through at once. Immediately Applejack's forces began funneling inside.

The nightmare ponies were not mindless beasts, as much as they acted it sometimes, and they understood an opportunity when they saw it. They rushed the retreating lines of soldiers, striking with the suicidal tenacity of creatures that were not truly alive and so could not really die. The soldiers, as brave and strong as they were, would have been overwhelmed if Applejack had not been there. She rushed from place to place, barely stopping long enough to stomp a ghoul down or buck its head to shrapnel.

The pace was brutal, and it left little time for her to catch her breath. She knew that even her stamina would hit its limit, and soon if she didn't get the chance to sit down and take a drink of water. Still, she wasn't about to stop if it meant the ponies she was protecting would be left in danger. So she fought on, feeling her limbs grow a little heavier with every passing minute, her pace get a little slower, her breath coming a little harsher.

Fortunately, she had enough in her to see the job done. Soon it was just her, Roseleaf and a couple other soldiers holding the area around the open path through the barricade. Sweat stung at her many wounds, and her hooves felt like lead as she lifted them to smash down another ghoul. "Go through!" she told Roseleaf, reaching out to shove the other mare toward the path. "Get them to close it up!"

"But you!" Roseleaf protested.

"I'll get myself over!" Applejack replied, trying not to pant and reveal just how tired she was getting. "Just get movin'!"

She obeyed, followed closely by the last few soldiers as Applejack took up a position right in front of the path, blocking it. She set her hooves wide and bent her knees, rallying her remaining strength to resist the coming tide.

They hit her like a rockslide, and it was all she could do to weather it. There was no chance to lash out with killing strikes, no opportunity to aim at all. Applejack was reduced to shoving and flailing, relying on her earth pony strength to be effective. They hit her and they bit her, and she was expecting that, but they also, frustratingly, ignored her. Ash ponies climbed over their fellows, climbed over her, to get into the passage that was slowly closing behind her. She had to rear up to throw those ghouls away from the passage, and that compromised her balance. They went for her legs and it wasn't long before she went down, and they were all over her.

She curled up, protecting her face and belly as much as she could as they swarmed over her. The passage had been closed, however, and so the ponies behind it could fend off any ghoul that tried to climb over. She had done her job.

For a moment, that felt like enough. But then she heard Roseleaf screaming her name in desperation, and she knew she had one more pony to save: herself.

She dug deep into her reserves and surged to her hooves, throwing a group of ash ponies away. There were a dozen more ready to take their place, but she didn't give them the chance. She prided herself on being one of Ponyville's best athletes, and if rodeos were anything to go by she was one of the best in Equestria. Not blue-ribbon, maybe, but close enough. One of her athletic accomplishments just happened to be the high jump, and she put those skills to work here.

She leapt straight up, easily clearing the reaching hooves of the ash ponies. She wasn't good enough to leap completely over the barricade, but that didn't matter. She slammed her forehooves into the metal roof of the vehicle, deforming the thick armor enough to get purchase. Then, with a yell of effort, she threw herself higher. She rose up past the top of the barricade, tumbling slowly as she flew over the makeshift wall and into the courtyard beyond.

She landed on all four hooves, her knees barely flexing as they absorbed the impact. She spent a moment just taking a series of deep breaths and letting the tension out of her muscles before she reached up, adjusted her hat, and looked around at the soldiers she had saved. They were all staring at her. "Everybody here?" she asked. There was a dull nod from one of the soldiers, none of them said a word. She gave them what she hoped was a reassuring smile. "Well, alright. Good work everybody. Now, if y'all don't mind, I'm gonna sit for a spell. Mind seein' if you can rustle me up a glass of water? I'm mighty parched."

She suited actions to words, dropping her rump to the ground and letting out a tired sigh. As if that had broken some kind of spell, the soldiers suddenly erupted into wild cheers. The euphoria was palpable, and while Applejack knew she would never be comfortable with the adulation in their eyes, she allowed herself a smile. She had saved lives. Directly and demonstrably. Saving the whole world with Twilight and her friends had been different: more abstract, less visceral. This? This was what being a hero really was.

She missed her home and her family so terribly it felt like the pain would rip her in half some nights. But whatever had taken her from her life and thrown her into this strange and frightening future had also allowed her to be here and save the lives of these ponies. For the first time, she was glad for it. For the first time since she had woken up buried, she felt like she was where she was supposed to be.

***

Entering the Deep Power was just like the first time Regal had sent her there, and yet again it was entirely different. It was at once both a wholly new and comfortably familiar experience that made her gasp with wonder as the darkness passed and the light filled her mind. A billion galaxies of living stars hurtled through her sight, blending into a path of radiance that was shimmering music under her hooves. She hit that path at a gallop, ignoring the impossible splendor about her to focus on rushing towards the churning duality at the center of the Deep Power.

Celestia and Luna, revealed in their ultimate glory, still danced in their eternal cycle. Star Fall felt the pressure of their presence, and with that came an understanding of her own insignificance in comparison. Even if she were to exert her full will and power on them, she would amount to less than a breath of air in a hurricane wind. Their attention would turn to Equestria when they willed it, and not before. She would find no help from them.

Fortunately, she was not looking for their help. In truth she hadn't needed the King's final words to tell her what her ultimate goal would be. Twilight Sparkle had awoken for her before, if only for a moment and in a strangely personal way. Perhaps this time she could persuade the most powerful Magic Talent who ever lived to return to her world and save it from the darkness that was threatening it.

Twilight Sparkle was as Star Fall had last seen her, suspended between the dual vortices of the Goddesses. Her wings were still wrapped around her, a representation, perhaps, of the barrier between herself and the living world. She had opened that barrier for Star Fall before, she would have to do so again.

Star Fall streaked like a comet across the infinity of light and power, reaching her destination to hang suspended before the ultimate expression of magical Talent. "Twilight Sparkle!" she called out. She hadn't thought of what to say, hadn't had time to think it through. All she knew was that without help they were all doomed, and this was the only help powerful enough to make a difference. "Equestria needs you! Please! Nightmare Umbra's going to kill everyone, and we can't fight her alone!"

There was a reaction, though not as much of one as she had been hoping for. Twilight's head rose a fraction, her eyes opening just enough to let a slice of blinding light emerge. Star Fall felt power in that sliver of a gaze. It poured forth like heat from a furnace, surrounding her and seeping into her with a rush of energy. Star Fall shivered at the infusion of magic, a mere side-effect of catching the edge of Twilight’s attention. That level of power was on a completely different level from Umbra, and the thought of bringing that strength into a world as unstable as it was struck Star Fall as more than a little frightening. Yet, for them to survive, it had to be done. So as Twilight's wings opened and the ascended pony reached for her, she willed herself to fall into the offered embrace, accepting whatever came from her decision.

"This Is Not Your Place!" The voice, so alien in this place, sent a chill through Star Fall. That chill turned to freezing pain as she felt herself yanked away from Twilight Sparkle, thrown through the universe of lights until she could stop her tumble with an act of will. She looked back towards Twilight to find Umbra barring her path. The Destroyer was ghostly in the eternal lights of the Deep Power, her entire body taking on the same monochrome translucence as her mane. Star Fall was struck with the certain knowledge that the Nightmare did not belong here, that she was even more foreign to the Deep Power than Star Fall herself. "I Will Not Allow You To Wake Them." A swirl of ashes spun around her, blackening the light of the Deep Power like soot on a light bulb. Like a corruption that spread a little more with every heartbeat.

"I won't give up," Star Fall said. She looked beyond Umbra and saw Twilight, her forelegs still outstretched and her barely-open eyes turned towards Star Fall. All she had to do was get to her, and she could still make her plan work. The only problem was that she would have to get past Umbra first, and the Nightmare had already shown that she could throw Star Fall around with ease.

"Your Defeat Is Inevitable," the Nightmare snarled. "Your Surrender Is Merely Acceptance Of That Fact." Star Fall let her talk, focusing instead upon the Deep Power. She could feel this place, could sense the magic in it. It was different than the magic she could feel in the physical world, more primal, more real, if she had to put a word to the sensation. With the bleed-off power from Twilight, she felt like she had gained enough strength to manipulate the energies of this place. It was not enough to match the Nightmare directly, but perhaps it would be enough to distract her for the instant that Star Fall would need. She drew out her magic, and it flowed out of her and danced around her in a whirl of crimson sparkles. She almost stopped at that, amazed at how easy it was to use her Talent here. The power formed lines and sigils as soon as she thought of them, the spells becoming reality without the lengthy process they required in reality. She could have sat all day and watched her magic form the complex, beautiful patterns of spell after spell, but Umbra was watching. She focused, shutting out her wonder and her curiosity; she couldn’t afford to waste the time. She knew that she could use her magic without drawing out a design first, and that was enough. Thousands depended on her, and she would not fail them.

She launched herself at Twilight. Her magic flared, motes of energy aligning into a spinning, seven-pointed circle of power. She bent the power to her design and sent a beam of energy slicing towards Umbra. The Nightmare, as usual, didn't even bother to avoid it. Instead of letting it hit her, though, she smacked it aside with a flare of dark power. That vile magic then immediately roared out to cut Star Fall off in her charge. The attack had been a feint, though, and Star Fall twisted in mid-flight, shooting off in a new direction. The change in direction was easy: her hooves found purchase wherever she wished them to and her wings caught at the airless air of the Deep Power like sails. She flew with more ease and power than she had ever known in Equestria, a pegasus unbound.

As fast and as free as she was, she could not avoid her enemy. Where she went, Umbra followed. The Nightmare’s movements were much more like they were in the material world than Star Fall's now-unfettered potential, but while the pegasus was by far the more maneuverable, the Nightmare still outclassed her in sheer power. As if to prove that point, she sent out a pulse of energy that shook the billion galaxies, shattering the radiant path and turning the currents of the Deep Power into a crashing roil.

Star Fall cried out as the whole universe shuddered from Umbra's rage. She twisted her magic into a new design, stabilizing the area around her and willing herself a solid place to stand as she evaluated the damage done. As soon as she had done that some subtle sense told her to dodge, and she did not question it. A moment after she moved, Umbra came screaming through the place she had stood, the Nightmare using a burst of acceleration that left a path of stars guttering like embers in her wake.

Star Fall rolled away, coming to a stop facing the Nightmare. She flared her wings and brought forth a pair of spell sigils that shot forth hundreds of crimson threads, each finding an anchor point wherever Star Fall willed them to. She also created a third spell design beneath her hooves, one that began rotating at incredible speed. She fed power into that third spell, filling it until it outshone the radiance all around her.

Umbra regarded the spell-strings for a moment, then dismissed them and leapt towards Star Fall again. The strings that touched her body were consumed with black fire, snapping. Star Fall watched the approach of the Nightmare, counting silently as each string was broken. When the last string broke she stomped down on the spell beneath her hooves, activating it. The broken ends of her strings shot out, passing all around Umbra without touching her and anchoring themselves to the spinning third spell. That was when the true nature of her trap was revealed. The magic she had poured into that third spell blazed along the strings, turning them from minor strands of connecting magic into deadly beams of power. Umbra stopped, finding herself surrounded by a version of the same combat spell Star Fall had injured her with in their first encounter. Stopping wasn’t enough, though, the spinning of the third spell also caused the energized strings to twist together, collapsing into a single rope of magic straight through the Nightmare.

Umbra was carved into dozens of spectral pieces. Pieces that simply flowed back together as Star Fall's spell spent itself and dissipated. "Pointless," Umbra said as she continued her approach unfazed.

"Oh, hell," Star Fall cursed under her breath. She looked to Twilight, still watching her but not moving to help. She looked back to Umbra. Cleverness and spell-work weren't going to save her here. Umbra was too powerful, too invincible. If she was going to get to Twilight, she would have to stop thinking like herself. "What would Rainbow Dash do?" she asked herself. Then, just like that, a possibility became clear.

"Hey! Umbra!" she called out.

The Nightmare paused, her eyes narrowing. "Your False Confidence Does Not Fool Me, Fallen Star. You Are Beaten, There Is No Hope To Overcome Me, And You Are Too Intelligent To Deceive Yourself."

"Made you look," Star Fall said, and threw all her magic into a formless burst of light and sound. The resultant explosion rocked Umbra back, and Star Fall saw her chance. She shot a tight arc around the Nightmare, her wings actually brushing Umbra's side. Their eyes met for a moment at that touch, and Star Fall drew strength from the surprise she saw there. Then she was past and putting all her power into her flight.

Distance was confusing in the Deep Power, but she still had the sense of moving at incredible speed. Faster than she had ever moved before, as fast as sound, as fast as lightning. For a moment she understood how Dash felt when she flew. The speed, the freedom, it was intoxicating. No wonder Dash never wanted to slow down.

Then the cold vise of Umbra's power crashed into her, and Star Fall was brought to a wrenching halt a few agonizing inches from touching Twilight's outstretched hoof.

"No," Umbra said, both far away and dangerously close.

"Yes!" Star Fall hissed, reaching deep into herself and bringing out as much magic as she could, leaving nothing behind. She slid forward with taunting slowness, her focused will and power enough to loosen Umbra's hold only a little.

"She Will Not Wake!" the Nightmare roared, redoubling her hold.

"She doesn't have to," Star Fall growled. She gave up on trying to escape Umbra's power. She looked into the light of Twilight's eyes and willed her voice to reach the sleeping pony. "Just help me save them. Please, Twilight. Please help me!"

It was only a tiny motion, but there didn't have to be much. Twilight stretched her hoof a little farther, and touched Star Fall. Power poured into her, as much as she had been given when Twilight had kissed her forehead. More. She gasped and twitched from the sheer amount of energy burning through her. Distantly, she could tell that her physical body was reacting as well.

"No!" Umbra screamed. "This Is Not Acceptable!"

Star Fall was yanked away from Twilight, but it didn't matter. She had what she needed. “Regal! Bring me back!” she shouted, but she could barely feel him and knew he wasn’t responding. She tried to pull away from the Deep Power herself, to sever her connection to Regal and return to her body. After a moment of blind effort she realized with a jolt that she couldn't break away, and she knew the reason why.

Umbra loomed above her, spears of Ashfire polluting the Deep Power and solidifying to sharp points aimed at Star Fall's heart. Her power held Star Fall, making escape back to her body impossible. "I Will Not Allow You To Jeopardize My Purpose, And You Have Done Far Too Much Damage Already." She almost sounded sad as she said it. "You Must Die." Star Fall curled up, though she knew there was nothing that could protect her as those spears fell.

The Deep Power exploded with magenta light, and the spears of Ashfire shattered against a barrier that surrounded Star Fall. She saw Twilight reaching out for her again, her eyes now half-open and her horn flaring.

"It Is Not Time!" Umbra shrieked, her own power flaring in response to Twilight’s intervention. It swirled out from her, gathering into a vast cloud of destruction that loomed like an enormous storm that whipped the currents of the Deep Power into a roaring frenzy. "This Is The Only Way!"

The Deep Power bucked and whirled as the two powers clashed. Star Fall screamed, her voice lost in the cacophony of opposing, alien powers.

"Enough!"

The voice –deep, commanding and most certainly male– silenced the shuddering of the Deep Power in an instant. Umbra's Ashfire magic vanished, and her eyes went wide in shocked confusion. Twilight's protection vanished as well, and Star Fall looked over to find her once more curled up between Celestia and Luna, asleep to all appearances.

The stillness lasted only another moment, then a great force rent the Deep Power in two. It was like the universe itself had been cut by some impossible blade, the break clean and sharply defined with Star Fall on one side and Umbra on the other. A new force moved through the lights, repairing the damage their battle had wrought. It slowly became visible in its actions, a sinuous shape, with long claws that were at once powerful and delicate in their work. Star Fall could barely comprehend what she was seeing, and before she could start to make sense of any of it, the unknown power took hold of her and roughly ejected her from the Deep Power.

***

They were falling.

That was the first thought Star Fall had on regaining consciousness, and it immediately dominated all other concerns. Somehow, whatever force had wrenched her and Umbra from the Deep Power had also ended the Nightmare's telekinetic spell on the cathedral. Or perhaps the shock of the ejection had caused her to drop it herself. The why didn't matter. All that was important was that the cathedral was no longer being suspended in the air, and it would not take long for it to hit the ground with all the lethal consequences that entailed.

The screaming of the nobles filled the air, drowning out the screaming of the air itself as it rushed by the windows and doors and gaping holes in the cathedral walls. She felt light, her stomach threatening to empty even as her instincts demanded she spread her wings and stop her fall. That would have been a mistake, of course, as the forms of several griffins on the cathedral ceiling attested. Flight was still possible, but with the air currents coming in from outside, anything other than careful, focused movement was inviting disaster.

Standing with preternatural stillness amidst the falling, rocking cathedral, Umbra opened her burning eyes. There was anger there, as always, but also shock and a measure of fear as well. She turned her gaze not to Star Fall, but to the Professor, who stared back at the Nightmare with a strangely parallel expression.

Star Fall's eyes turned away from the two of them. She still felt the power Twilight Sparkle had given her, raging within like a hurricane, pushing beyond the bounds of her control. She had expected that, had counted on it. She pushed herself away from Regal, who was just regaining his senses after being cut off from the Deep Power so suddenly. Stumbling on the rolling floor, she made her way to the edge of the spell sigil she had scribed with the dead king's blood.

"As above, so below!" Her breath came out as a mist of crimson light, sparking at the focus she invested in her words. "As within, so without!" She touched the blood sigil, pouring all the power Twilight had given her into it. The magic rushed out of her with the purpose she had given it, crashing through her body in a way that was both intensely painful and an exquisite release. Her wings opened and she threw her head back. "Fly!" she cried out, her voice resonant with power. "Make it fly!"

Radiant crimson fire exploded from her spell, washing over the ground, climbing up the columns, coating the windows, lighting everything with the translucent aura of her magic. Ponies screamed anew as it rushed over them, but it was not meant for them, and did not touch them. Instead it took hold in the stones and steel of the cathedral, surrounding it and bolstering them. There was a moment where the weight of the entire building seemed to come down on her back and Star Fall gasped at the immensity of it. Then her magic won the fight against gravity and the mass of the cathedral, and the deadly fall slowed to a gentle descent.

Star Fall grit her teeth as she held the spell together. The power she had been given would not last forever, but if she timed it right, it would last long enough to set the cathedral down without endangering the people inside.

"I knew you could do it," Regal said, coming up next to her. "What happened in there? It was all so confusing."

"I'm not sure," Star Fall said through her clenched teeth. "We'll talk about it later, okay? I've solved one problem, but the source is still right here."

"Indeed," Umbra said, her voice a whisper that cut through the continuing noise as clearly as if it had been said in a silent room. "Your Efforts Are In Vain, Fallen Star. You Think You Have Saved This Edifice To Ponykind's Arrogance, But I Am The Destroyer, And All Things Will Still Fall To My Will."

"Not today!" the Professor cried, raising the Chains of Tartarus again. "Star Fall, you did it! When we touch down get out of here and leave her to me!"

"Professor!"

"No arguments!" Twinkle Shine snapped. "I... we can't lose you too."

Star Fall was about to reply when Regal touched her shoulder, catching her attention. "She's right," he said. She wanted to argue, but she was too rational to not see the sense in it. She was a Princess now, and with the King dead she would soon be Queen. Add that to the King's prophecy about her, and they really couldn't afford to lose her. She had refused to leave until the people were safe, but with that accomplished she really couldn’t justify remaining. Yet she still hesitated.

"She Will Still Die," the Nightmare said, black fire flaring around her horn. "All You Have Done Is Delay The Inevitable For Another Day. And You, Twinkle Shine, Shall Not Even Last That Long. You Cannot Win This Fight."

"We'll see about that," the Professor growled, and then the whole cathedral bucked as it hit the ground.

The people were thrown about by the impact, those that had regained their hooves during the float down once more tossed to the floor. That floor broke apart in great cracks, the remaining windows shattering in heavy shards, most of which thankfully fell outward and not in towards the sprawled nobles. The great columns shifted and cracked, but the ceiling held up. It was all over in less than a minute.

The moment the building had settled the Professor raised her voice, augmenting it with a spell that could let her words reach the farthest seats during a lecture. "Everybody out! The doors should be clear now! Move!"

They didn't need to be told twice.

Star Fall galloped away from Umbra, towards the hole in the cathedral's wall that now showed a view of the Court of the Sun. Ashen ponies fought with uniformed soldiers outside, a contingent of Kingdom forces battling their way to the fallen cathedral and the survivors now rushing out of it. Regal followed her, and he was so eager to leave the broken church that he did not even notice when she stopped at the threshold, looking back at the renewed battle of wills between her mentor and the dark Goddess.

She knew she should leave. It only made sense, and it was what the Professor wanted. But she also knew that Twinkle Shine had been thrown by the King's death. Enough that she had lost her edge over Umbra before. It would be easy, too easy, for the Nightmare to capitalize on that weakness, to say nothing of how her efforts so far had to be tiring her. Umbra hadn't lied: alone, this was a fight that the Professor would not win.

Star Fall could not accept that. Not even if it endangered her own life, not for all the people who would need her now that she was a princess. She had sent her parents away, had seen Astrid flung out to an unknown fate. She had watched the King burn to death. She had lost too much already. She would not lose Twinkle Shine too.

She turned and stepped back into the church, focusing on her magic. There was still quite a bit of strength left in her, though the whole of Twilight's borrowed power had been spent in landing the cathedral. The Nightmare could be hurt, could be driven away. She had done it before. She only wished her friends were by her side. Together, she was sure, they could take on anything.

"Fall!" a shrieking voice called out to her, and Star Fall flushed with warm joy at the sound. Astrid dropped out of the sky, stumbling a bit in her landing, but still managing to rush to Star Fall without falling. "That was fucking awesome!" She grabbed Star Fall in a tight embrace, one the pegasus returned with fervor. It lasted only a moment before Astrid let go, turning to face the Nightmare and setting herself in a ready stance. Her eyes narrowed and her tone hardened. "What happened?"

"The King's dead," Star Fall said, and Astrid jerked at that revelation, her talons curling into fists. "And... Roan." Astrid's head dipped. "He got hit with the same thing you did, but he..."

"I had a feeling... It doesn't matter," Astrid said, hot anger straining her voice. "He died protecting you, his Princess. He died a Griffin's death. We can cry like hatchlings later, right now we've got a bitch-goddess to deal with."

"I've got an idea," Star Fall said, and was about to explain it when she was interrupted by another arrival.

Applejack fell into the cathedral, rolling over and over as she wrestled with a pair of ash ponies. They worked in eerie tandem, biting and kicking and not leaving an opening unexploited. It didn't matter, though. They were up against Applejack in a contest of strength and stamina, which was no contest at all. Applejack pinned one, ignoring the attacks of the other, and crushed its head with a well-placed stomp, eliciting an explosion of dark power. Then she turned on the other and caught it in a crushing bear hug. The creature began discorporating into an ashen cloud, but Applejack did not let it get very far. She snapped her head forward, striking a headbutt so powerful that it stove the ghoul's skull right in, destroying it utterly.

"Pardon for the wait, Star Fall," Applejack said, dusting herself off and straightening her hat. She was bloody and ragged, but she moved without pain and Star Fall could see a new sparkle in her green eyes. "Had some trouble gettin' back. Saw your groom on the way in, by the by. Made sure he got a good escort back to the castle."

"Thank you," Star Fall said, smiling.

"The plan?" Astrid prompted, watching the battle between Twinkle Shine and Umbra as it intensified, the two combatants apparently so focused on each other that they were ignoring everything else.

"We need to coordinate or this is going to end badly," Star Fall said. "Astrid, find a weapon, not a gun. Something long and with an edge, there should be something around."

"On it, Fall."

"Applejack, when I give the signal I need you to charge her head on. Dodge any black fire that comes your way and don't stop to fight, but make sure you take out her forelegs on the way by. I'll be hitting her with a blinding magic blast, which is about all I can do without my spell-sheets. Hopefully that will be enough to give us our shot. Once she's down, Astrid, that's when you hit her with the weapon. Cut off her horn, her head if you can, whatever is your best target, just hit her. Then drop the weapon, you do not want her blood getting into you. It won't kill her, but the point is to give the Professor an opening. If she wins this fight, so do we. Remember! Do not let the black fire touch you! If there's no way to do your task without getting hit, then abort. Got it?"

"Ready when you are, sugarcube," Applejack said, settling into a runner's crouch.

"Set!" Astrid said, hefting a ceremonial halberd. It wasn't a weapon made for fighting by any stretch, but it had an edge and was heavy enough to do damage, so it would do for the one strike it was needed for.

"Good! On my signal!" Star Fall drew her magic together, focusing it in her rear hooves as she turned away from Umbra. Once again she silently thanked Dash for that one lesson in weather-working. It had saved her life with Charisma, and now it could very well save her mentor's. "One... two... Go!" She kicked her legs out, releasing the magic she had gathered in them directly at Umbra.

The flash of light was bright enough that it overpowered the sun for a blinding moment. When the glare cleared, Applejack and Astrid were on the move. The earth pony rushed along the broken, uneven floor with as much ease as if it had been level ground. Astrid arced through the air, her halberd already beginning its swing. Applejack reached Umbra, head down and aimed squarely for the Nightmare's knees, and suddenly came to an absolute stop. Astrid's falling blade touched the back of Umbra's neck, and both it and the Griffin came to a dead halt.

Umbra turned her head from Twinkle Shine, regarding Star Fall with a harsh disdain that sent chills down her spine. "Pathetic."

A burst of telekinetic power expanded from Umbra's horn, blowing Astrid back against a still-intact wall and crushing Applejack to the floor. The Chains of Tartarus protected the Professor, but Star Fall could only stare in impotent shock as the wave of magic slapped into her, sending her sprawling back. The force wasn't simply a quick blast, either, and Star Fall found herself held to the floor as if nailed there.

"You Have Interfered With My Purpose," Umbra hissed, dragging Star Fall into the air and splaying her out painfully. "I Will Not Allow This To Happen Again."

"No!" the Professor cried out through clenched teeth, her horn bursting with new light as she redoubled her efforts.

The Nightmare staggered under the renewed assault, but increased her own clashing magic to compensate. "Burn, Fallen Star. Burn And Become One With Me." Ashfire roared from Umbra's horn, flowing across the space between them.

I can survive this. Star Fall's frantic thoughts turned to her first fight with Umbra, how she had been hit with Ashfire then and came out barely singed. How did I do it? She couldn't remember. How!? The black flames hit her, striking her chest squarely. She screamed as she felt the fire bite deeper than her coat and skin. Screamed until there was nothing left in her lungs to scream with. The Ashfire burned inside her, sending tendrils of agony through her veins. It grabbed at her magic, eating it like a ravenous beast, growing stronger and hotter as it fed on her power. Instinctively, she pulled her magic away from the consuming flames, and immediately felt the pain recede as the Ashfire was left without its fuel. That's it! Star Fall could have laughed, because even as she realized the trick to beating Ashfire, she knew that it wouldn't be enough. Umbra would not let her escape death so easily.

She also noticed something else. The necklace that the Professor had given her was sparking and flashing at the touch of the Ashfire, but was not being consumed. Somehow, the Professor had created something that was resistant, if not outright immune, to Umbra's magic. The realization gave her a new idea, but one that she had to survive long enough to put into play. She couldn't free herself, so she raised her eyes to the sun in the sky and prayed.

Her prayers were answered with a rainbow streak that fell through the smashed ceiling window and landed with bone-shattering force on the Nightmare's back. Umbra's concentration was broken as she crumpled to the ground, releasing Star Fall and the others from her magical grasp. Astrid and Applejack wasted no time in scrambling away from the Nightmare and back to the missing wall. Star Fall simply fell, her body feeling cold and weak from her efforts to resist the Ashfire. She didn't hit the ground, though, because in a flash of prismatic light Dash was there to catch her.

"Hey, Star," Dash said, giving her a weary smile.

"Just had to... make a dramatic... entrance, huh?" Star Fall gasped out, smiling back as best she could. Her chest was a mess of burned flesh, but she couldn’t feel any pain from it. She could only hope that the damage was superficial.

"Heh, you know me," Dash said. Now that she could get a better look at her, Star Fall could see her friend was in rough shape. Her coat didn't show blood as well as Applejack's did, but it didn't completely mask it either. More telling were the missing and ragged feathers in Dash's wings, testament to fierce, sustained combat. She set Star Fall down just outside the cathedral, glaring back inside at Umbra. "I wish I'd gotten here earlier."

"You got here just in time," Star Fall said. Inside, Twinkle Shine finally had the advantage. A loop of twisted space circled Umbra's neck, dragging the Alicorn's head down. As if realizing that she was now losing the battle, the Nightmare spread her wings and took off, crashing through the crumbling cathedral wall. The battered cathedral finally collapsing in the wake of her departure. Star Fall would have worried, but the Professor had seen what her opponent was doing, and was already rushing to the exit. They all galloped away from the church as it finally gave up the fight to gravity and fell in on itself, sending up a plume of dust and smoke that rolled over the square.

"No way!" Dash cried out. "You are not getting away like that!" She was gone from Star Fall's side in an instant, her ethereal trail lighting up the dust that was choking the living ponies within. Dash whirled around cloud, flying with the supernatural speed she was famous for, creating a whirlwind that sucked up the billowing dust and funnelled it into a neat pile next to the fallen church. The impossible feat took her barely ten seconds.

With her cover gone, Umbra stood revealed, hovering above the street, still held by the distortion of the Chains. Twinkle Shine raised the crystal links above her head, calling forth even more power from her already blazing horn. Star Fall was amazed at the strength the Professor was displaying; she knew that her mentor was the strongest Magic Talent in the Kingdom, but she had never imagined this. It was something she would have expected from Rarity, perhaps, but not a modern unicorn. All around she could see the similarly amazed faces of the nobles who were watching, kept from running to the palace by the horde of ghouls that the Kingdom soldiers were still fighting to keep at bay.

"I banish you from this land!" the Professor intoned, the Old Equestrian words ringing clearly all the way to the Court of the Sun. "Take your darkness and trouble us no more!

"This Is Not Your Salvation," Umbra growled. "I Grow Stronger. Soon, This Binding Will Not Be Able To Hold Me."

"It will hold long enough," Twinkle Shine replied, just loud enough for Star Fall to hear.

"Arrogant Foal!" Umbra roared. The sudden volume was like a mighty blow, shaking the ground. "Learn The Price Of Chaining A Goddess!" Umbra abandoned her defence, letting the magic of the Chains wrap around her completely, but turning her freed magic into a counterstroke that would annihilate the Professor in turn.

Star Fall had only a moment to act. She remembered the amulet on her burned chest, sparking and resisting Umbra's magic. She didn't know how much it could do against this, but every little bit would help. She tore the amulet from her neck, flinging it at her mentor. It wasn't a perfect throw, but it was good enough. The chain caught on the Professor’s horn, the amulet spinning around to settle on her head. The amulet sparked again, reacting with Twinkle Shine's magic. The Professor flinched back with a surprised yelp.

And so did Umbra.

Star Fall froze in shock as the Nightmare twitched and slapped at her head in a perfect mirror of the Professor. The magics both of them were employing fell away, forgotten. Finally, Twinkle Shine pulled the amulet from her head, throwing it to the ground. She looked up at Star Fall with incredulous disbelief, and then at Umbra, whose expression of shock was quickly morphing into utter rage.

Star Fall stared at her mentor. A pit had opened up beneath her, and she felt like she was falling deep into the earth, her wings paralyzed at her sides and her magic far away. The amulet had burned the Professor, as it had earlier, but far worse this time. It had practically melted a deep rent in Twinkle Shine's head, a wound that revealed what was missing from within. A wound that bled ashes.

A cry went up from the people watching the confrontation. The sharper eyed ones had seen the same thing Star Fall had, and come to the same conclusions

"Star Fall," the Professor said, heartbreak in her eyes as she reached out to her student. "I–"

"No!" Star Fall snapped, shying back. "How? Why?" She fell to the ground, staring with wide, unblinking eyes as she felt her entire world fall apart. “No…”

"I'm sorry," Twinkle Shine said.

"What have you done with the Professor?" Dash screamed, slamming into the unicorn in a rainbow blur, knocking her to the ground.

"I'm sorry," Twinkle Shine said again, still staring at Star Fall.

"Where is she?" Dash demanded, striking out at the Professor, her blow making more ashes pour from the wound in Twinkle Shine’s head, a dark imitation of gushing blood. "What did you do to her?"

"She Is Twinkle Shine," Umbra growled. "And She Is Me." Star Fall felt her gaze drift to the Nightmare. A vast distance seemed to separate her from what was happening. The Destroyer glared back at her with disgust. "Sentiment. I Warned Against Such Weakness."

"So she was always..." Astrid said, shaking with horror. "This was all an act? Part of your plan?"

"A Plan That Has Failed."

"I'm so sorry, please," Twinkle Shine reached to Star Fall, her outstretched limb stomped down hard by Dash. "Please, I never wanted you to be hurt!"

"Enough Of This," Umbra said, dropping to the ground. She looked to the Professor as if Dash was not standing over the false unicorn, ready to attack at a moment's notice. "Subterfuge Has Failed. The Time For Action Has Come. Or Shall I Obliterate This City And Start The Plan Anew In The Remains Of A Shattered Kingdom?"

"No!" the Professor cried. "No. It's... it's not necessary. There is still a way."

Umbra's eyes narrowed. "That Is A Dangerous Path To Contemplate."

Twinkle Shine slapped a hoof on the ground in frustration. "It's all I have left!"

"My Purpose..."

"Will be fulfilled!"

"There Is Much That Can Go Wrong."

"So much already has," the Professor replied. "The risk now is in not taking advantage of it."

"Anybody else feel like they're only hearin' every other sentence of this conversation?" Applejack asked, keeping her distance from the Nightmare.

"Agreed," Umbra said. "Step Aside, Rainbow Dash."

"Why would I do anything you say?" Dash demanded, glaring defiantly at the Nightmare.

"Because I Have Agreed To Leave You And The Rest Of This City Alive," Umbra replied. "A Leniency Granted Only By The Persuasive Grace Of The Pony You Have Struck Down. Stand Aside, Rainbow Dash, As I Reclaim What Is Mine."

"Do it," Star Fall said, finally finding her voice.

"But Star!"

"Let her go, Dash," Star Fall said, surprised at how calm she sounded. She got up, looking at Umbra because she couldn't bear to see her mentor. "We're done."

Rainbow Dash looked like she was about to object again, but shook her head and stepped away from Twinkle Shine. There was a pulse of subtle magic that sent icy fingers along Star Fall's wings, and the Professor simply collapsed into a cloud of grey ashes that whirled in place for a moment before flowing into Umbra like a river joining the sea. In moments there was nothing left of Professor Twinkle Shine save the forgotten links of the Chain of Tartarus.

Star Fall regarded those discarded crystal links, wondering how much of what the Professor had ever told her was true. "Beware, Fallen Star," Umbra said, and Star Fall forced herself to look at the Nightmare. "The Revelations Of This Day Will Endanger You." The Nightmare blinked, and suddenly her eyes weren't their usual burning orbs, but the dark blue of her mentor. "I'm sorry, Star Fall, you have to run. Find Gamma and Spike. They'll take care of you." Another blink and the Nightmare was back. "This Is Not Finished," she said, looking to the ponies watching behind the walls of the Court of the Sun. "My Purpose Will Be Fulfilled. Prepare Yourselves. Prepare... For War."

The Nightmare leapt into the sky, and with the screams of a thousand damned souls her army followed her. The ash ponies fell apart, their incorporeal bodies flowing after their mistress in a great storm of ash and bone, shrieking death and horror as it fled across the horizon.

Star Fall watched it go. Then, with careful and deliberate motions, she sat down, put her head in her hooves, and wept.

***

"It will be okay," Regal assured her.

Star Fall forced a smile. "No it won't," she said. "Umbra was right, this is going to destroy my credibility with, well, everyone."

"Not with me," he assured her. "And I'm going to be King. That's got to count for something!"

Star Fall nodded at that and leaned in to give him a kiss on his cheek. It seemed like something he needed.

They stood within the military transport, its crystal engines already glowing with the power to make it fly. Bandages were wrapped around her chest and barrel, but the doctor who had examined her wound had told her that she had, miraculously, sustained little lasting harm from her brush with Ashfire. She was inclined to believe that her survival was less miracle and more another bit of theatre from her former mentor.

The moon was rising outside, the long, terrible day finally at an end. The streets were empty, the city still locked down, but that wouldn't last long. This was her only chance to escape what was coming. Astrid stood nearby, as did Regal's Griffin escort. Other than that, the ship had only a skeleton crew. Enough to get Star Fall to the Everfree Verge quickly, but no more.

"I'm Twinkle Shine's student, and Twinkle Shine is the Shadowed Alicorn," she said. The thought of the Professor’s duplicity hadn't gotten any easier, and the words still felt foreign on her tongue. She had to face it, though, had to embrace the truth behind her mentor's lie. It was the only way she would ever move beyond it. "Everything I've done, every promise or deal I've made, especially recently, they're all suspect. Was it really me, they'll ask, or was it Umbra using me as her pawn? Worse, what if I was a willing collaborator."

"You weren't!"

Star Fall shook her head. "Can they know that? I'm a pegasus with unicorn magic who was adopted into nobility and married the crown prince, for Celestia's sake! How hard is it to imagine that all that was because of Umbra's influence? Because of her power? I'm trained to think of all the possibilities, Regal, especially how people can influence and manipulate each other, and even I'm not sure I wasn't being used."

"But why run?" he asked. "Won't that just confirm everything they think?"

Star Fall shrugged. "For some, yes. Hell, maybe for most. But I don't matter. Not anymore."

"Don't say that."

She smiled again, brushing a lock of his messy hair from his face with her wing. "I meant that I'm not leaving for me. I'm leaving because it makes you look better. If I stayed it might make some believe my innocence, but it would make more people question your judgement. You'd have to put me on trial and execute me to get them to believe you aren't being manipulated by me."

"I would never!"

"And that's why I have to go," Star Fall sighed. "You would never. And because of that you would be dragged down with me."

He hung his head. "I know."

"Look, I'm not going to stop," Star Fall said, putting a hoof under his chin and raising his gaze back to hers. "I'm not done. Not by a longshot. Umbra's still out there, still working to fulfill her 'purpose', whatever it is. And there's Max Cash and the Elements of Harmony as well. I'm not going to stop fighting against them. I'm not going to stop making the world a better, safer place."

He smiled at that. "I know you won't give up."

"And there's more." She had debated whether to tell him this part, but ultimately decided he deserved to know. "Your father, before he died, he gave me a prophecy. Something he had learned from the Deep Power." Regal's ears perked up at that, and he leaned forward as she whispered the dying words of the King in his ear. When he pulled back there was a new light in his eyes, a flash of his family's divine heritage confirming for him the truth of what she said. "So, you see, there's still at least one great thing that I'm meant to do."

"If... when you do it, there won't be a pony alive who would think that you’re Umbra's puppet," Regal said.

She shrugged. "We'll see. Now, I have to get going, and you have to go to your mother. She's... you'll need each other, now. More than ever before."

He nodded, sobering at the reminder of what his family had lost and the new responsibilities that would soon become his. "Stay safe, Star Fall," he said, nuzzling her awkwardly before turning and practically running from the ship, his guards close behind.

"You too, Regal," she said to his retreating form. The ramp started to retract, but she kept watching, and so she didn't miss the two ponies who rushed onto the transport at the last minute. "Dash! Applejack!" she said, a more genuine smile tugging at her lips and her wings widening with surprised joy. "You don't have to come with me."

"Nuts to that, sugarcube," Applejack said. She had been washed and had her multitude of wounds looked after, which translated to several bandages wrapped around her body and a certain stiffness in her movements.

"Yeah, there's no way we're letting you go off on your own!" Dash said. Astrid cleared her throat loudly and Dash smirked at her. "Okay, the two of you go off on your own." Dash’s own injuries had been less extensive than Applejack’s, and so she was adorned with only a couple gauze wrappings around the worst of her scrapes.

"You two are heroes... Again," Star Fall said. "The guards are all talking about how you two took on Umbra's army practically single-hoofed."

"Now, that's just untrue," Applejack said. "There were a whole mess of other ponies doin' their best too."

"Yeah, and for me I guess Astrid helped," Dash said.

"Thanks, Dash," Astrid deadpanned.

"No prob," Dash replied.

"True or not, that's what they're saying," Star Fall said. "You could stay here. The Kingdom could really use some heroes. Especially now.”

“Ain’t my place,” Applejack said. “And you could use the friends, Star.”

“Yeah!” Dash said, hovering over and throwing a foreleg around Star Fall’s shoulders. “After what happened today, what kind of friend would I be if I just stuck around here? You need us, Star, so we’re going wherever you go.”

Star Fall smiled, blinking the film of tears from her eyes. “It’s not going to be easy. I’m heading after Max Cash.”

“All the more reason to come along, then,” Applejack said. “I’d like to get my hooves on that no-good, child-killin’ bastard as much as anyone.”

“Alright, then.” Star Fall took a slow breath. Something about the two ponies joining them made her feel stronger, surer of herself and what she had to do. “Let’s get going.”

“Strap in.” Astrid pointed towards the harnesses that lined the walls. “They’re gonna punch it to max speed as soon as we’re at altitude.” They got themselves secured, then Astrid raised her head and called out in the piercing shriek that only a Griffin could achieve. “Start it up!”

The hum of magical power accompanied a shudder in the floor as the transport lifted off from the courtyard. Star Fall wished that the transport had windows at this level, something that would let her watch the Court and the city fall away beneath her as she left it for the foreign lands behind the Everstorm. Five times before she had left for the same purpose, and as much as she wanted to believe this time was the same, she knew it wasn’t. Nothing would be the same again.

That thought made her laugh, which caused Rainbow Dash to look at her with an expression that was both puzzled and excited. That only made her laugh again. Of course nothing would be the same. That life, that world, had ended the moment Rainbow Dash fell out of the sky.

“What?” Dash asked, her voice raised to be heard over the increasing rumble of the transport’s engines. “What’s the look for?”

“I was just thinking,” Star Fall replied. “That it was worth it.”

Dash cocked her head to the side. “What was worth it?”

“Meeting you.” Star Fall blinked tears away before they formed. There would be no crying now, not until it was all over and done with. “No matter how crazy it gets, Rainbow Dash, I’m glad to be your friend.” Dash didn’t reply, just smiled back at her, letting her know the sentiment was returned. Star Fall nodded in satisfaction, realizing that when she said the words, she meant them. “Whatever happens. It was worth it.”

Chapter 28: Laughter

Upon receiving their Element, all Bearers begin to experience the world in new ways. The change in perspective is partially due to the Intrinsic Understanding ability granted to them, as well as an increased synchronization with their Element’s purpose. This shift is not sudden, and not incongruous to the Bearer. Rather, it is subtle and seemingly natural. To an external observer, however, it can be quite obvious and sometimes jarring. The severity of this perspective shift will wax and wane depending on how much energy the Bearer is drawing from their Element, and thus will often come on in response to an emotional crisis. At the extreme this can become blinding to the Bearer, leading to erratic behaviour and irrational thinking.

All of my friends have gone through such an extreme at some point or another, though Applejack and myself seem to experience them most deeply. For myself, the manifestation is in a need for control, though I will often parse it in different terms. For Applejack, it was an intense desire to forge or deepen connections, especially with her family. Coupled with whatever emotional turmoil initiated the energy draw, our actions usually became counterproductive and occasionally dangerous to those around us.

For the most part, however, this was merely embarrassing. We would fall into this twisted perspective, cause some amount of havoc, then snap out of it, none the worse for our experience.

It is when a Proxy Bearer experiences this phenomenon that things become more serious. The shift in perspective comes with an increase in power and a sense of absolute certainty. Worse, whereas a True Bearer uses their Element mostly as unconscious reflex, a Proxy must intentionally draw on their Element, allowing them to enter this state practically at will. The combination has a high potential to become addictive.

Though Princess Celestia has related stories about the Bearers in the first Royal Sisters period that fit the criteria for such an addiction, thankfully this did not become an issue with the modern Proxy Bearers. Though, in retrospect, there were a few incidents that could have led down this dangerous path, were it not for the presence of myself and my friends.

-From the fifth section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Twenty-Eight: Laughter

Nightmare Umbra dove into the Everstorm, shrieking her rage into the uncaring winds. The power that fueled the eternal tempest–her power, ultimately–folded around her like a leaden blanket, dragging her from the tortured skies down to the broken earth. Her army was left behind, flowing in a massed cloud of ash and bone the long way around. They could not travel through the Everstorm, its forbidding might denying even her minions passage.

She did not like coming here, but it was for entirely different reasons than those of most ponies. It wasn’t the terrifying visions, the constant attacks on life and sanity, or the vast supernatural defenses it arrayed against intruders. She cared nothing for those, and they could not harm her in any case. No, what made the Everstorm so unpleasant wasn’t the Storm itself, but the thought of the one who had created it.

Lightning struck at her, made of both magic and electricity, engineered to strip away the power of flight. She did not resist, folding her great wings and letting the gravity of the world take her. She plummeted to the ground like a meteor of ash and shadows, and struck with the deadly force of a bomb. The impact shattered her body, but such agonies were paltry compared to the will that drove her. She stood from her self-made crater even before her legs had healed and stumbled her way towards the whirling clouds that surrounded the center of the Storm.

Stepping into the Eye was like being born again. Magic, as pure as sunlight and abundant as the ocean, surged in with every breath she took. She basked in it for a long moment before pushing away from the edge of the Storm and striding with slow purpose deeper into the Eye. Ponyville rose around her like the ghost of a concrete forest. Ancient buildings stood untouched by centuries, but not intact. No, they had been half-ruined by the armies that clashed here before the Storm split Equestria. Umbra stared at the devastation with an unflinching gaze, the city a brutal reminder of the cost of failure.

She took her time, immune to the dangers that would hurry a lesser pony. She chose a meandering route to her destination, passing places that had once been landmarks. Revisiting memories not her own. Long ago, these places had stood as touchstones in the lives of the ponies who had lived, played, and died in the town of Ponyville. Then, as the town became a city, they had been crowded by new construction and forgotten by new generations. They became crumbling edifices kept around only for historical value, and finally mere plaques speaking of what had once stood there.

She stopped by one such plaque, commemorating the acres of hilly ground that had once been Sweet Apple Acres. It had been overcome by an expanding need for real estate, the land sold and turned into a commercial district. Deeper into the city, Umbra noted that there was nothing left of the Carousel Boutique at all. Ponies had been more interested in preserving Rarity’s much larger and grander operation in Canterlot. Sugarcube Corner remained, but it had been remodeled time and time again until only its street facade resembled the original shape, and that only barely.

Umbra stopped by the ancient storefront, taking in the still-bright paint and the chalkboard sign advertising the daily sale. An ephemeral memory of taste and texture whispered through her vast, shadowed mind. A memory of something sweet and light, made with joy and served in friendship. She let the memory fade. It was part of her, but it was not truly hers; she had no need to dwell on it. Instead, she turned her attention to the rest of the building. It had been spared from most of the destruction. A few windows even still had glass. She stared into one of those intact windows, her eyes scanning sullenly over what she saw there.

“It won’t get any easier,” Twinkle Shine said, her voice quietly sighing from the reflection.

“Ease Is Irrelevant,” Umbra growled back.

“Then why delay?”

Umbra turned away from the glass, continuing her walk. “To Fail Here Would Only Further Erode My Purpose. I Am… Afraid.”

Twinkle Shine made a purely-mental noise of surprise. That statement had been uncharacteristically candid of the Nightmare. “I’m sorry,” she said, speaking from reflections in shards of glass and metal that Umbra passed. “That can’t be easy.”

“I Require No Sympathy,” she snarled back. Umbra paused for a moment, shaking her head. When she started walking again the hard anger had mellowed some in her voice. “I Was Meant To Be Feared, Not To Fear For Myself. Somehow, Centuries As A Mere Pony Have Damaged Me.”

“No. Don’t try to blame me,” Twinkle Shine said, an angry frown crossing her reflected features. “I kept to my own business. I didn’t interfere!”

“Gamma.”

Twinkle Shine paused, taken aback. “Once,” she said, cautiously.

“The First,” Umbra whispered in rebuke. “Then Many Times Over. The Student.” Twinkle Shine was silent. No denial was possible. “Taking Her In Was A Mistake. I Allowed It To Forestall The Madness Of The King, And Fell Victim To A Different Madness Because Of It. I Was Infected With Sentiment. Now I Am Afflicted With Fear.”

There was a long pause before Twinkle Shine spoke again. “Taking Star Fall in was the best thing I’ve done since I was made.” She spoke the words as a challenge to the Nightmare.

For once Umbra did not rise to the bait. “Of Course It Was,” she said. Then, keeping her eyes from any reflective surfaces, she picked up her pace and trotted towards the center of the city.

She passed by city hall with barely a glance. The grand structure echoed the form it had taken in Ponyville’s past, but done in steel and crystal. Most of it was a shattered ruin now, but the bones of the great building still reared high above the tops of the surrounding structures. Her destination came in sight soon after, and though it was not a building on the same scale as the others she had passed, it still held a place of great pride among the towers of the city.

The Golden Oak Library. A tree grown with care and magic to become a match for the original building that had borne the name. It took a careful eye and a lot of experience to see that it was not the same tree Twilight Sparkle had lived in for the first few, pivotal years in Ponyville. With the amount the city had changed since those early days, even the fact that it was half a mile from where the original had stood wasn’t too much of a giveaway.

Umbra walked up to the tree and laid a hoof on it. She could feel the life sleeping beneath the thick bark, the slow, seasonal heartbeat of the living wood. Alive, but as much in stasis as the rest of the city. Leaving the tree for the moment, she walked around it to the small park beyond the library’s front door. There her true target stood.

The statue was exquisite in its detail. Vibrantly colored and so realistic it was easy to imagine it coming to life. Twilight Sparkle, in her youth. A unicorn just beginning to find her destiny in the magical land of Equestria. The Element of Magic gleamed on her brow. Such a simple, unassuming thing. It was hard to believe it was capable of so much evil.

Umbra circled the statue, coming around to stand face-to-face with it. She gazed into the upturned, hopeful eyes of the statue and stilled. She stood, unmoving, for a long time. She was so still that an observer might have been mistaken into thinking she was the statue, so cold and dead she seemed.

Finally, she drew a slow breath and spoke. “I Despise This Place,” she said. The anger in her voice was that of poorly banked coals, calm for now but eager to explode into a roaring inferno. “This Sick Monument To A Past That Lost Its Relevance Before It Lost Its Princess. I Would Wipe It Away, If I Could. Perhaps I Will Yet Get The Chance.”

She stepped forward, her muzzle coming within an inch of the statue’s. “I Loathe This Entire World. Filled With Cowards And Fools. Ruled By The Pathetic Wills Of Ponies Who Cannot See Beyond Their Own Petty Wants. A Kingdom Of Friendship? They Will Never Achieve Such A Thing. All They Are Destined For Is To Be Ruled By The Strongest Hoof, Or Ground To Dust Beneath Mine.”

She reached out, touching the stone face with her forehoof. “I Hate Their Weakness. As I Hate My Own. I Hate Having Waited For Eight Hundred Years, Only To Have The Plan Undone By One Little Pegasus Who I Allowed To Get Too Close. I Hate That I Am Bound By A Purpose That May Never Come To Be. I Hate That I Am Driven By The Lives I Hold Within Me. I Will Drown The World With Flame To See My Destiny Fulfilled, And I Will Hate The Ashes That Are Left In My Wake.”

She came even closer, whispering in the statue’s ear. “But Most Of All, Dwarfing Every Other Together, I Hate You.” Her eyes blazed with insane rage, but she pulled away. She swept past the uncaring statue and to the library.

She unlocked the door with ease and walked inside. It had been turned into a museum, a place that celebrated Twilight’s life and deeds. She sneered at the welcoming banners and large portrait of the once-princess of Equestria, passing by without a second look. She stepped around the shelves of books that would have been a priceless treasure trove of knowledge in the outside world. They could burn for all the Nightmare cared. She had them all memorized in any case. She walked up the stairs, past ancient photographs and mementos that had not been seen in eight centuries. Finally, she walked up to a bedroom alcove. It looked perfectly cozy, clean and tidy, the bed crisp as if it had been made just that morning. Just the thing for a too-humble librarian.

Umbra settled herself on the bed, curling up as she was much too large to lay full out in it, and caught her reflection in a mirror hanging on the wall.

“Why leave it?” Twinkle Shine asked.

“It Will Require Witnesses To Be Believed,” Umbra replied. “I Know How The Student Thinks. They Will Come. I Will Wait For Them Here.”

“It could be a long wait,” Twinkle Shine said, but didn’t argue. “If… when Star Fall does come…”

“The Student Will Have Her Explanation,” Umbra promised. Twinkle Shine nodded in relief, then faded away, leaving Umbra to her dark thoughts without mentioning the conversation with the statue. Umbra did not have to guess why. It was one of the many things they shared. Twinkle Shine hated Twilight Sparkle every bit as much as Umbra did.

***

Senator Alan Birchfield’s mansion was on the long side of a T-intersection of two streets. Not major streets, but important enough that shutting down this area would create hell for commuters throughout Orion City. Hoof traffic was steady, though not as crowded as it got closer to the city’s core. The neighborhood was an old one, and not as upscale as the mansion itself. This created a strange effect where the elegant, if massive, house was surrounded by four and five story apartments. Back alleys and side streets created a maze between those apartments for blocks in every direction. Not an ideal situation, but they could work with it.

“Are you sure he’ll go for it?” Captain Rivers asked, looking out the front window of the car at Senator Birchfield’s mansion. “He hasn’t exactly been playing nice with the unit since you spoke to him last time.”

Hard Boiled nodded. “He’ll go for it.” He flashed the other stallion a confident smile. “I’ve got his number, Ger. He’ll play ball.”

“I hope you’re right,” the Captain sighed. “Well, this is your plan, so it’s your show. The future of the Special Investigations Unit is in your hooves, HB.”

Hard Boiled spent a long beat looking at the front door of Birchfield’s mansion, waiting for his magic to show him if there was anything new to see. As soon as it came back with a negative, he spoke: “Let’s go.”

The Captain clicked on the radio. “All units, all units, we are a go. Repeat: we are go!”

Hard Boiled was already out of the car and moving towards the mansion before the Captain was done with the message. He let a burst of magic flash from his horn, a pulse of truth lighting up the world in his eyes. He spotted Traduce immediately, disguised as a gawking civilian. He didn’t think she’d have any trouble slipping through the perimeter the police were about to put up around the Senator’s mansion. Two other ponies highlighted themselves with darting eyes and tense stances that picked them out as having a more-than-civilian interest in the sound of sirens and the sudden appearance of a phalanx of Orion City’s finest. He couldn’t be sure if they were spies or merely nervous criminals, but he wouldn’t take the chance. He pointed a hoof at each of them as he walked, and squads moved to secure them immediately.

The Captain caught up to him as he was halfway down the walkway leading to Birchfield’s front door. HB was surprised at how quickly his superior had agreed to this plan, but as the Captain had reminded him: they knew each other, and he knew that there was no way HB would ask for something like this unless it was absolutely necessary.

He’d kept Barry as far from the action as he dared, leaving him to be part of the coordination efforts rather than bringing him inside. Traduce had given a grim promise that if he tried to run she would do something terrible to him, and Barry believed her. Hell, HB believed her, too. There was nothing she hated worse than a sunland spy, and the only thing keeping him from her wrath was staying in HB’s good graces. That should have been enough to keep him loyal, but again HB was taking no chances. Barry would stay close enough to grab if it became necessary, but far enough to be out of the loop for the important things that could be said inside.

The door was opening even as they walked up to it. Birchfield’s uptight unicorn butler glared imperiously at the pair of cops with the temerity to invade his employer’s home. “I assume you have a warrant for this…” He paused, turning his horn up at the cops clearing the street and spreading out around the property. “...intrusion?”

“Don’t need one,” HB said. He pushed past the butler, ignoring his outraged protest, and stepped into the grand foyer. It was exactly as he remembered it: high, glass-domed ceiling, art adorning walls and short column-shelves, and a central feature of plants and statuary. It all screamed money and privilege, and that almost distracted from the object given pride of place. A statue of an earth pony mare, done in some pink-hued stone. Now that he was looking at it properly he could see the exquisite detail of it, the life-like illusion of vitality, like a mare caught mid-laugh and frozen in time. A golden necklace with a blue gem in the shape of a balloon sparkled at the statue’s throat. It only confirmed what HB had already guessed deep in the jungles of the south.

“What is going on here?” Birchfield demanded, limping into the foyer with his ears laid flat and his wings held partly open. The disheveled state of his mane and beard suggested that their arrival had woken him, which suited the detective just fine.

The Captain looked to Hard Boiled, and he tore his attention away from the statue to face the Senator. The startled look on Birchfield’s face as he realized what Hard Boiled had been looking at was not lost on the detective. “Senator, there has been a threat made against your life.”

“What?” Birchfield blinked in surprise, gaze flicking between HB and the statue for a moment. Then he narrowed his eyes and glared at the police still coming in. “And you think that gives you the right to barge in here? To my home?”

“Yes, sir. It does,” the Captain replied. His tone was politic, his manner professional, but HB’s magic picked out the secret joy in tweaking the nose of one of the powerful. “In the case of a credible threat to an elected representative, the Orion City Police are empowered to take whatever steps are necessary to protect that figure. Part four, section ‘C’, subsection 2-b of the Orion Republic charter.”

Birchfield sneered at that. “Come, now. If Senators got this kind of response to a mere death threat, we’d never get any work done! What is this really about?”

“The threat is real, Senator,” HB said. “And I think you know that.” He looked pointedly at the statue. “All of them were lost, you said. Well, I guess not that lost.” Birchfield’s eyes tracked to the statue, then back to Hard Boiled. He could see the understanding in the old pegasus’ eyes, but decided to make it clear in case the Senator wanted to drag this out. “Yes, I can see it just fine. And I’m sure I’m not the only one. We spoke about him, last time I was here.”

“Max Cash,” the Senator said, eyes widening as his wings sagged. “You think he’s coming here? For that?”

“I’d stake my career on it.”

Birchfield stood in silence for a long moment, then gave HB a hard look. “You just have, Lieutenant. Very well. I’ll instruct my staff to give you anything you need.”

“Thank you for your cooperation, sir,” the Captain said. “Hopefully this will just be a precaution, and you can be back to your business as soon as possible.”

Birchfield barked out a laugh. “I just hope it is enough, Captain. Max Cash is not known for half-measures.”

***

There was neither clock nor window nor any other device that could be used to tell time in the soundproofed interrogation room, yet Calumn could still feel every minute tick by with agonizing slowness as he watched the battle of wills and wits taking shape between the room’s other two occupants. He flicked his gaze between Gamma and Straff, becoming more and more uncomfortable as their mutual and complex history turned the air in the small room into an emotional miasma. They sat on either side of the table in nearly identical poses of controlled rigidity, their eyes locked on each other’s, barely blinking. Calumn sat on the short side of the table in his Strongheart form, between the two of them.

Ostensibly, he was here for lie detection and emotional analysis. In reality, his presence didn’t make much sense at all. He’d admitted that he was compromised, had stated his intentions to quit the RIA to Straff. Even if the pale unicorn somehow still trusted him, he should have been locked in his own personal interrogation cell, or at least kept with the others that had come through the Storm. Even if Straff didn’t want what was being discussed to be heard out of a select circle, surely Traduce would have served just as well as he could. Though now that he thought of it, he hadn’t seen Straff’s right-hoof Changeling at all since he’d been brought in.

“This still seems too fanciful,” Straff said, repeating a sentiment he’d expressed a dozen times before.

“Fanciful or not,” Gamma replied, again almost from rote. “Those are the facts as I know them.”

“Magic necklaces and resurrected heroes.” Straff’s tone was cold and even, but displayed the clear depth of his cynical disbelief.

“Rainbow Dash reported the same to me,” Calumn spoke up. “And she, at least, honestly believes herself to be an ancient hero.”

“I am aware,” Straff replied without looking away from his opposite number. Calumn had been thoroughly debriefed already, so Straff knew the full extent of his story. Rainbow Dash had also figured prominently in the discussion, Calumn had also taken special care to ensure that the Director understood the severity of Cash’s unnatural powers of persuasion. “But as this ‘Rainbow Dash’ is an admitted agent of the Kingdom’s Secret Service, anything she says is suspect.”

“I was in her head, sir,” Calumn said, remembering the explosive, immense power that had filled the pegasus. “If anyone’s the real deal, she’s it.”

“You saw what Rarity is capable of,” Gamma put in. “You even admitted the truth then. Will you now doubt your own eyes?”

“When it comes to you, Gamma, I would doubt Luna Herself.”

Gamma kept at him. “Do you doubt Max Cash is a threat?”

“Not even for a moment.”

She leaned forward. “Then do not doubt that I believe the same. My presence here, of my own will, is a testament to how much I think he needs to be stopped.”

Straff was quiet for a long time, in which neither he nor Gamma so much as twitched. Finally, he sighed, letting his rigid posture relax a fraction. “That is precisely my fear. That nothing in what you have presented is false, and that Cash truly does represent a threat dire enough to have you turn yourself over to me. That would make him far, far more dangerous than I had ever imagined.” He flashed her a hard look. “However, that fear does not blind me to the possibility that you are using the very real threat of Cash to force me into rash action that will leave the Republics vulnerable to some other scheme you have waiting in the wings.”

Gamma tilted her head in acknowledgment. “It is possible.”

“It’s likely!” Straff countered. “I trained you to think that way. A spymaster should never act unless it accomplishes more than one purpose. Wheels within wheels. So tell me how I should see it, Gamma. You’ve come now, of all times, offering to help. But you’ve brought along a living weapon and a sunland Dragon Lord. Right into the heart of my operation! What if this is all a ruse to get them into the right position?”

“Master Spike is neutral,” Gamma cut in. “That is well known.”

“His ties to the Kingdom and the Royal family are also well known.”

“He just lives there.”

“Please!” Calumn cried out, slapping a hoof on the table. The two looked at him with identical hard, blue stares. He weathered it. “Agent Gamma, Director Straff, sir. Arguing over theories and semantics isn’t going to help. The fact is that Cash is a threat. To both our nations. You both clearly recognize this, and I know it on a very, very personal level. I do not know your history, but this… squabbling is getting us nowhere!”

Both unicorns shared a glance, then simultaneously relaxed. “You’re right, Straff,” Gamma said. “I’m trying to do more than one thing here. None of those things are suborning your nation. Above all, the first and greatest priority is ending Cash’s threat. If I can’t do that here, then I can see us having maybe one more shot.”

“What are your other goals?”

Gamma shook her head. “In short? Preventing the war. What did you mean ‘now of all times’?”

“You are not asking the questions here, Gamma,” Straff said, a cold warning in his tone.

She ignored it. “This is relevant. What did you mean?”

Straff betrayed nothing of his thoughts. Only Calumn’s Changeling senses allowed him to feel the spike of self-directed annoyance from the Director. “The Senate is in an uproar, the RIA has to step carefully or we face being dissolved.”

Gamma frowned. “No. That’s true, but something else is going on as well. Your statement was in reference to my offer to help. Thus it relates to Cash. What’s going on?”

Straff was silent for an extended beat before responding. “Very well. One of my assets has uncovered what we believe is Cash’s next target.”

“A statue,” Gamma said. It wasn’t a question. Straff gave her a silent glare, which was all the confirmation Gamma needed. “The statue will have a necklace. That necklace is one of the Elements of Harmony. He cannot be allowed to take possession of it.”

“Of that, I am well aware,” Straff replied.

“Then you know you need to send every possible agent to secure that Element.”

Another long pause from Straff. “Yes. That would be a preferred solution.”

“Except you can’t,” Gamma said. Again, it was not a question. “Because of your problems with the Senate.”

Straff let out a very slight sigh. “It’s worse than you think. The Senator who initiated that stupidity is also the one in possession of the statue.”

Gamma’s eyes narrowed slightly at that. “But you aren’t leaving it completely unguarded.”

“I have put the Orion City Police in a position to protect the statue.”

“They won’t be enough.”

“If what you’re saying about the power of these Elements is true, I’m not sure what would be.”

“Not just that. Charisma.”

“I’m aware of the capabilities of your former pet psychopath.”

“No. You aren’t,” Gamma said, and Straff’s eyes narrowed as he got her point. “She was spotted several weeks ago when she was still in the Kingdom. She was flying at supersonic speeds and carrying another pony, likely Cash.”

“What?” It was a measure of Straff’s shock that he allowed his surprise to show so clearly. “How?”

“I don’t know,” Gamma said. “Not for certain. I believe the Elements are involved there too, but that is as much due to lack of information on their capabilities as it is knowledge of their power.”

“If she is able to do that much…”

“Yes. No force fielded by the Orion City police will be adequate.”

“The RIA cannot step in without risking disbandment. Even if I try to make a unilateral move regardless, the other directors will block me. I don’t have enough votes on my side to order an intervention of the scale necessary.”

“Democracy is such a burden, isn’t it?” Gamma asked with a level tone and a quirked eyebrow.

Straff gave her a pointed look, which she returned with a steady gaze. “This is information that would have been useful to have earlier.”

“To what end? Your hooves are just as tied now as they would be if I told you two days ago. I’ve been trying to impart the truth that the real threat is Cash and the Elements he carries. If I’d told you about Charisma earlier, I ran the risk of you focusing on the threat from her to the exclusion of everything else.” She leaned forward. “Now, surely you are seeing the same opportunity that I am.”

He snorted. “I do not think it’s as much an ‘opportunity’ as you seem to believe, but yes, I am aware of the rather convenient timing.”

“I did not know of your discoveries until you told me of them right now,” Gamma said. “If there is contrivance here, it is not by my design. Regardless, my team is here, it is powerful and not tied to the RIA. Allowed to assist the police, they could very well tip the balance in our favor.”

Straff made a rough noise of agreement. “With one exception.” He poked a hoof at her. “You are not going anywhere.”

Gamma sighed. “You can trust the others about as much as you trust me. You take no additional risks by allowing me to coordinate them.”

“Of course I do,” Straff scoffed. “Simply having you here, alone, in this room and still breathing is a risk. I have no illusions about your capabilities, Gamma. I’m not putting you anywhere you can get a message to your agents, no matter how remote the possibility. The others? Their power is impressive, yes, but they’re hardly spies. If I let them into the field I can trust that they won’t be playing a dozen different games at once.”

Gamma tsked. “Then I suppose you’re going yourself? You’ll need someone who can coordinate, who will be able to act with understanding, decisiveness and speed.”

“I’ll be sending Calumn,” Straff said.

“Sir?” Calumn asked. “If the RIA can’t interfere, then my being there will be just as bad as you going yourself.”

Straff gave him a thin smile. “Hardly. You’re a rogue, Calumn. Officially. You were disavowed the moment you were dragged into the open in the sunlands. Which, by the way, was sloppy work and beneath what I know to be your capabilities. Further, your actions here have just reinforced your status with the rest of the RIA. If you had come in quietly, then perhaps I could have massaged it away, given you another chance. As it is, you were seen openly and in your true form destroying your cover identity while also escorting an enemy of the state. Ponies will talk, and for something like this, so will Changelings. As far as the RIA is concerned, you are blacklisted, and quite possibly destined to be hunted down and sacrificed to a hive. For the moment, this puts you in a unique position. Of all the assets I have, your official unreliability means, ironically, you’re the only one I can rely on.”

Calumn swallowed hard. He knew all of that was true, but had kept himself from dwelling on it. “Cash has got to me before.”

“Then ensure that it doesn’t happen again,” Straff said, and that was that. “If you perform up to your former standards, I will ensure that you are either exonerated or given the chance to escape. That should be plentiful motivation to do this right. The local who is running the police side of things is Lieutenant Hard Boiled. He’s been working for me, investigating Cash. Traduce is with him. They won’t be expecting you, but integrating with them shouldn’t be an issue. I’ll have a dossier on him and the other major players sent to the conference room. Go there and tell the others to get ready. The sooner they get out there, the better I’ll feel about this. And you,” he turned back to Gamma. “You are going to tell me everything else you’ve been leaving for a ‘more opportune moment’.”

***

Calumn left for the conference room several minutes later, feeling drained. Straff had filled him in on what had been discovered while he’d been in the sunlands. Specifically, the locations of the two statues. It was strange, he almost felt as if he was ahead of Max Cash for once.

Agency guards bracketed the door, and there were a half dozen others standing along the hallway. As tired as he was, he still managed to recognize two fellow Changelings among those guards. It wasn’t any flaw in their physical disguises that gave them away, rather, it was the looks they shot him. The accusing glances that sent little spikes of disgust and rage through the emotional makeup of the hallway. They knew that he’d been compromised, or at least they’d heard enough to come to that conclusion. A part of him felt like he should cringe away from those looks.

He didn’t. They didn’t understand. They probably never would. That wasn’t their fault, and he wasn’t ashamed of what he had learned about himself on the other side of the Storm. So he kept his head high and didn’t return the glances he caught as he made his way to the conference room where the rest of his companions were having a late dinner.

“... and then the fish said: ‘you got great legs, lady’!” Blaze’s cheerful voice drifted out the moment Calumn opened the door. The green stallion was seated near the middle of the long, oval table, a messy assortment of take-out boxes scattered around him.

“How perfectly dreadful!” Rarity said. She sat across from Blaze, shaking her head while Spike chortled next to her. Their own meals looked picked clean, and neatly so.

“I thought it was funny,” the Dragon said, then noticed the door opening. “Strongheart! Come on in. Your buddy was just telling us a joke.”

“One of my sister’s favourites when we were kids,” Blaze said.

“The one with the vain mare and the avocado?” Calumn asked, though the punchline was unmistakeable. “Good choice. I’ve got some news, if you’re all interested?”

“Absolutely!” Rarity said, practically climbing onto the table in her excitement. She wasn’t the only one who perked up at those words. Spike focused his reptilian attention on Calumn, and even Melody pulled herself out of her black introspection to sit up straighter and pay attention. Blaze just smiled at him, utterly unfazed by their confinement and boredom. “Two days of sitting around with so little to do in this drab place, and I am at my utmost limit! Why, I’m almost ready to start ripping up the carpets to make a dreadful, if well-tailored, vest for Spike.”

“A vest?” Spike asked.

“It would draw attention to your arms, darling,” Rarity said. “And arms like yours deserve to be shown off!”

Calumn did not miss the sense of pleased pride that rolled off of the Dragon at the compliment. Spike even looked down at one of his arms and flexed. Calumn had to admit that it was, indeed, impressive, but in his experience Dragons were rarely anything but. “Sorry about that. We just, well, we couldn’t have you wandering around the city. It wouldn’t be good for anyone.”

“I understand that, Strongheart,” Rarity said. “But, please, you were saying you had news?”

“Director Straff has reviewed everyone’s testimony, and has decided that, at the very least, this is not all some elaborate sunland scheme.”

“So he’ll help us find Cash?” Spike asked, and at this Melody fully woke up, dragging the full intensity of her awareness into the conversation.

“Yes,” Calumn said, feeling the mood of the room both intensify and focus. “More importantly, we know where a statue is.”

“It was found?” Spike’s eager question held several layers of importance. Calumn was getting to know Spike well enough only to tease the deeper meaning from a few of the emotions he was sensing. “Which one?”

“All of them,” Calumn said, watching the eager glee unfold on Spike’s face. “According to Rainbow Dash, Twilight Sparkle’s is in the Everstorm, and thus out of reach. The other two are here, in the nightlands. From the descriptions, it looks like Fluttershy’s statue is far to the south, in the middle of the jungles. Pinkie Pie’s, however, is right here in Orion City.”

There was a gasp from Rarity. “We have to go to her! Immediately!”

Calumn held up a hoof at her, hoping she wouldn’t bowl right over him. “We will, but there’s also bad news. Cash knows about Pinkie’s statue too. He might also know about Fluttershy’s, but we’re not sure about that one.”

“All the more reason to get moving,” Spike growled.

“Director Straff is getting the transport ready now,” Calumn assured him. “But first you need to understand the situation. There are a lot of police already on the scene, waiting to see if Cash will show up. None of them are going to be too keen on letting a group of unknowns like us just stroll in and do what we want. Add to that the fact that most of them don’t speak Solar and Rarity doesn’t speak Lunar and we’ll have to be careful in how we do this.”

“I don’t speak Lunar either,” Melody said. Her voice was quiet, but determined. Calumn could feel her chaotic emotions beginning to bend all in one direction: murder. She was determined to kill Cash, and he knew that she would ignore any order that seemed to take her farther from that goal, which meant she was a liability to bring along. However, he couldn’t see how he could leave her behind without confining her, which wouldn’t sit well with Rarity. He would just have to keep a close eye on her and hope for the best.

“Alright, so we have two who don’t speak the language, one of whom had her picture in the paper as one of the heroes of the Solar Kingdom.”

“The paper? Oh! How did I look?” Rarity asked, brightening at the prospect.

“I haven’t seen it,” Calumn said. “I just know that the news is all over the Republics. We don’t have the time to work up a proper disguise–”

“Give me some cloth, a needle and thread, and I could do a cloak with a hood in a few minutes,” Rarity offered. “It won’t be terribly pretty, but it will keep me incognito from a casual glance.”

“You’ll still stand out,” Calumn said, but nodded. “But not as much as being recognized would. I’ll get you set up. Spike, there’s nothing that will work for you, but you’re not likely to be seen as anything other than a Dragon. Rare, but not riot-worthy. The rest of us should be fine without anything.”

“Am I coming too?” Blaze asked.

“Yes, you’re the one who knows Charisma and Cash the best out of all of us. You could provide some insight on what to expect from them.”

Blaze frowned at that. “I’m not so good at fighting, buddy. I don’t think I’ll be much help there.”

“She still loves you, right?” Blaze gave a half-shrug. “Close enough at least that she might hesitate to kill you outright. That hesitation might be what we need to survive this.”

“What’s up, buddy?” Blaze asked. “I know how badass Charisma is, but you’re talking like we won’t have a ton of cops with us.”

“We… Gamma said that they caught her carrying another pony at over mach one.”

Spike and Melody’s eyes went wide, the latter gasping and curling protectively around her doll. Blaze just gave Calumn a small frown. Rarity looked at the grim expressions and raised a hoof. “I’m sorry, darlings, but I’m not seeing why that’s so shocking.”

“It’s not possible, Rarity,” Spike said. “Not anymore.”

“Oh,” she closed her eyes for a moment as she understood. “Of course. But what does it mean if she can do that?”

“It means she’s been given an Element,” Spike replied. “And if we’re very lucky just being faster and stronger is all she’s figured out how to do with it.”

“What else could we expect to see?”

He shrugged. “It depends on which Element she’s been given. He’s got Loyalty, Generosity and Honesty. I don’t see any of those being a strong part of Charisma’s personality, though.”

“She could do Generosity alright,” Blaze said. Everyone else looked at him and he shrugged. “It’s about how she sees the world. She could maybe be Loyalty, I guess. Honesty? Nah, I can’t see that one. But I’d peg her as Generosity for sure.”

“Okay… Well, that would be… better,” Spike said, slowly. “I know Generosity.”

“Good, then you are in charge of confronting her if and when she appears,” Calumn said. “Blaze, Melody, I’ll need you both with me at the command center.”

“I need to get Cash,” Melody whispered.

“You’ll get your shot,” Calumn said, not sure yet if it was a lie. “But everyone has to work with me on this. Director Straff is only letting this happen because I can coordinate all of you with the police. There’s a lot more riding on this than just whether we get Cash or not. If this goes badly, it could cause serious consequences.”

“Strongheart, believe me,” Spike said. “If Cash gets all the Elements, none of those consequences are going to matter.”

“I believe you, Spike,” Calumn said, then in a flash of green fire he shed Strongheart’s form, eliciting gasps from both Rarity and Melody. They’d seen his true form before, but this was their first glimpse of the actual transformation. Melody flinched back, a natural reaction for a sunlander, but in Rarity’s eyes he saw a gleam of inspiration. He smiled at that. “And for the record, my real name is Calumn.”

***

Charisma stared at the newspaper in dumbfounded shock. There, with a headline screaming about a new sunland super-soldier, was a huge, full-color picture of Rainbow Dash. A blue coat and a multi-colored mane didn’t in any way disguise the mare that had fought so well from Charisma’s eyes. In the picture Dash was hovering in the air, looking very pleased with herself while Lady Fallen Star and the Solar King looked on in awe. The image stirred Charisma's heart to beat faster, sending a pulse of whispered expectation through her. "Well, well, well," she said, her lips slowly spreading into a wicked grin. "What have you been up to, hot stuff?"

She almost took the paper. The temptation was strong, but she had nowhere to put it, and with the strong likelihood of having to make a rapid escape from the city, she didn't think she could take it with her in any case. So she reluctantly tore her eyes away from the image of the mare that haunted her dreams, quietly sure they would meet again in the flesh before it was all over.

She turned to Cash, who was chatting with the street vendor he was buying food from. The smile on Cash's face was as worrying as the easy, quick patter he was using to charm the foolish mare who was wrapping their meals in waxy, checkered paper. He'd been quiet, unusually so, for the majority of their journey to Orion City. She'd never known him to sulk before, but she supposed his plans had never been so badly disrupted before either. Lyssa's death had upset him, and that was such a new experience that she found herself carefully re-examining all her expectations of his behaviour.

He’d always had an unpredictable streak, but he'd also always been in control. Every surprising move would later be revealed as carefully calculated, every apparently random choice made with a glib remark and a wild laugh would inevitably turn out to be another step in his plans. It was part of what had convinced her to follow him: when he had made his promises to her, she knew he would have a way to fulfill them.

Now, though, things had changed. He'd admitted it himself in Precious Corners. His plan, so long in the making, was falling apart around his ears, and all he could do was try to ride the avalanche and pull victory from the chaos. She didn't know if even he knew how it was all going to play out anymore. She certainly didn’t.

It didn't seem to bother him. In fact, the only thing that did seem to bother him was Charisma killing a pony he was specifically trying to kill himself. No, not even that. It wasn't that Charisma had killed Lyssa that had angered him, it was something else. Something connected to the murder, but not directly. She knew him well enough to see that, but nowhere near well enough to figure out exactly what it could be.

She was still trying to make sense of what he had said when he'd found Lyssa dead; speaking of 'fate' with such venom in his voice. She couldn't understand it, and her lack of understanding only made it harder to figure out what Cash would do next. All she knew was that he was going after the Elements, and that he would do anything to get them.

A memory of a crimson teardrop changing into a lightning bolt crossed her mind. The sensation of speed and power. A spark of something deeper, like a door she had never even known was there being opened.

Her breath caught, lungs suddenly seizing. She held back the impulse as she rushed to a nearby alley, barely making it in time before the coughing fit took her. Blood spattered the wall she leaned against, her body shaking with every new wracking cough. Her wings flapped in helpless distress as she gagged and heaved until her breakfast joined the blood. It was over soon enough, and she spent a minute breathing slowly, making sure that she could take full breaths without falling into another fit.

"You okay?" a voice asked. She looked over to see a trio of dirty, unkempt ponies shying back from her. One of them clutched a ragged blanket around herself and was shivering slightly as if the day weren't warm. A stallion stared at her with dead eyes, and her Talent hissed violence into her brain at his gaze. The last one, a zebra mare whose stripes were barely visible due to how dirty her coat was, spoke to her again. "You need help?"

"Leave," Charisma growled at the homeless ponies.

"Hey, we don't–"

"Leave!" she screamed, her wings flaring as she fought the need to kill them.

Something about her must have warned them that she was dangerous, or perhaps they were just so used to being beaten down that they didn't consider resisting. Either way, they scattered, rushing down the alley and out of sight in moments. Charisma leaned her head against the wall, taking deep, gulping breaths.

The sound of hoofsteps made her look up towards the mouth of the alley. Cash was there, chewing casually on his sandwich as he watched her with mild, amused interest. "So," he began, licking a daisy petal off his lips before continuing. "I'm guessing you don't want lunch anymore?"

Charisma rolled her eyes. "This is all your fault, you know."

"A lot of things are my fault," he said. "Care to narrow it down?"

"Your damn magic healing," she snarled. "It's going wrong."

He smiled, superior and condescending. "If a certain someone hadn't gotten herself blasted into a wall, she wouldn't have needed the healing in the first place." He chuckled, the sound disconcertingly familiar, like a parent would chuckle at the antics of a young child. "No, Charisma, this time the blame is squarely in your court. Careful how you play with it, because it's stickier than you expect."

"What?"

"Come on," he jerked his head towards the street. "As much as I love hanging out in alleys with you, we have a Senator to kill."

She pushed herself away from the wall, finding her legs strong enough to carry her to her employer without shaking. When the fits came, they hit hard, but she always recovered quickly. "So he's the one you need to kill?"

He laughed. "Not in the strictest sense, no. He's not connected. I just kinda want to. I still don't know who the right person is."

"How are you so sure the 'right person' will even show up?"

"They will," he said, and the conviction in his voice was so casual and so absolute that she couldn't help but believe him. "I'll just have to keep my eyes open for them." He laughed at that, as if it had been a joke.

They walked through the city, passing the blissfully unaware citizens who scurried about their tasks. Dozens of eyes looked out of the nooks and crannies of the city, the destitute and the forgotten filling the alleys while those who could still afford to moved along the bright streets.

Charisma hated the Republics cities. It wasn't the size of them that bothered her. She had been born in the Solar Capital, which rivalled a Republic in size. No, her issue with them was that they were uniformly dirty, crowded, and littered with impoverished and broken ponies who could disappear without being missed. They made things so hard, and try as she might she had never learned the Republican knack for ignoring them even when they were right in front of their eyes. Their sheer numbers helped dull the edge of her need, but it wasn’t enough. Nothing was ever enough.

They were out on a sort of reconnoitering mission. Charisma had wanted to see their target for herself, to get a feel for what would be needed to assault and hold the area. She had also been unwilling to leave Cash alone in the company of the mercenaries he’d hired. She didn’t trust him not to do something dangerous to them.

When they rounded a corner and got their first look at Senator Birchfield’s mansion, they stopped dead.

“Well,” Cash said, clicking his tongue. “That’s annoying.”

Charisma made a quiet noise of agreement as she looked towards the police barricade that closed off the streets leading to Senator Birchfield’s mansion. Her Talent whispered a massacre into the back of her brain, and she could see no other way to get past the perimeter the cops had set up. “Your distraction plan won’t work.”

“No,” Cash said, then shrugged. “Too bad. What’s your idea?” She gave him a sidelong look. “What? I didn’t hire you just for your winning personality.”

“I thought you had planned for this, Max.”

“I did,” he replied with an infuriatingly confident smile. “I hired an ex-special forces soldier to be my personal bodyguard.”

She looked back towards the mansion. “It’ll be bloody,” she said.

“Right up your alley, then.”

She snorted at that, but nodded. “I hope you realize that this will kill any kind of stealth. All the bribes in the world won’t stop them from hunting us down after we start a war in a Republic.”

“Ah, you sunlanders and your decisive government,” Max said, garnishing his words with a wistful chuckle. “Trust me, by the time they’re done with the committees and the debates and the bureaucratic minutia, when they actually manage to send anyone after me it’ll be too late.”

“If you say so, Max,” Charisma sighed, then turned away from the scene and trotted back through the side streets towards the plain, unmarked van that was their transport around the city. “I’ll need everybody we’ve brought for this one.”

“Don’t be wasteful,” Cash said, laughing at some private joke again as he got into the van before her. “We’ve got a lot of ground to cover before it’s all over.”

The ride back to their hideout was quick and painless. Charisma spent the time pondering angles of attack and necessary troop numbers. It was an exercise she hadn’t engaged in for years, and even then it had mostly been theoretical. When she had been part of the Kingdom’s military, she had never been in charge of a large force. Squads and training groups, yes, but never more than a dozen soldiers at a time. It was all her rank would allow for. No matter her proficiency in dealing death, a pegasus could not become an officer in the Kingdom. Her opinion was asked once or twice, but she had never been given the privilege of being the one to truly plan an operation.

She was usually a solo fighter, but she didn’t have to be. Her Talent incorporated all assets at her disposal into its urgings, giving her an instinctive understanding of combat at every level where blood would be spilled. Tactics, fields of fire, terrain usage, an entire battle plan came together like the pieces of a puzzle solving itself in her mind’s eye. It didn’t help with the bigger picture, the why’s of a fight, of course. Her Talent didn’t care why people died, only that they did.

There were a few glaring flaws in her planning, three specifically that she could see being dangerous. The first was that she hadn’t personally vetted the mercenaries. Their abilities and coordination were unknown quantities. At least she knew how to incorporate unknowns like their nebulous skill into a larger plan. It just required redundancies to be put in place. A bigger problem was that she had no clue how long Max expected this to take. A couple of hours, she thought they could handle. Four would be pushing it. However, so long as it was all finished before the army was called in, her plan would work. There was only one other major issue she could foresee, and it was one she couldn’t do much about herself.

“We need to keep the mercenaries from desertion,” she told Max before they arrived. “Once they know what we want them to do, no amount of money is going to keep them there.”

“Oh, I’ve got a fix for that!” Cash said, grinning. “There won’t be any desertion problems from my troops.”

“No,” Charisma said. A flash of crimson memory sent a shiver through her, making her coat feel as if it was standing on end. “I guess there won’t.”

The warehouse they were using as a base for their forces was large and nondescript. Charisma had seen dozens like it in her career with Max Cash, and they never failed to have some sort of dark secret of his hidden inside. She supposed that not every warehouse could be filled with contraband or illegal art or a small army, but every one Cash took her to invariably was.

Inside, the space was mostly taken up by the soldiers and their vehicles. They were at ease now, lounging around, playing games or cleaning weapons, the things that soldiers do when the violence is imminent but not quite there yet. In one cordoned-off section of the warehouse there was a table set up with various maps of the city splayed out on it. The leaders of the mercenary groups were poring over them, discussing their parts in Cash’s original plan.

He had thought to create havoc, sending teams of mercenaries to attack simultaneously in several places across the city. The idea had been to draw the attention of the police and ensure that no one would be able to investigate what was going on at Birchfield’s mansion until it was too late. The heavy police presence already there meant that plan was unusable.

“Hey, guys,” Cash said, sidling up to the table. “Good to see everyone taking this seriously. I’ve always felt a strong work ethic is key in the murder-for-hire business. If they catch you sleeping, you’re not gonna wake up, right?” There were a few polite chuckles at the joke, but Cash seemed to find it especially funny. He sobered quickly, giving the mercenary commanders an exaggeratedly pensive look. “Well, I told you when you signed on that we might have to play fast and loose with this one, and lo and behold, my prophecy is fulfilled. We’ve run into a snag. Not totally unexpected, but still much earlier than I would have liked. So! My associate Charisma here is gonna explain how things are gonna go a teensy bit different than what I’d told you to plan for. Charisma?”

She stepped up to the table and indicated the maps with their drawn-on plans of attack. “The distraction plan won’t work,” she said. As she spoke she met the eyes of each commander in turn, trying to get a feel for them while her Talent gleefully filled her in on how to best kill each of them before the others could react. “I’ve devised a new one.“ She quickly sketched out what she had come up with in the van.

Their reactions were predictably nonplussed. “That’s gonna put a lot of us right in the line of fire,” one of them pointed out, a gray unicorn stallion with a prominent scar permanently squinting one of his yellow eyes. He seemed to be the oldest and most experienced of the commanders.

“Yes,” she said. “It’s necessary.” She didn’t bother explaining further. If Cash did what she thought he was going to do, they wouldn’t need anything more than that. “After the initial surge it’s down to simple defend and delay tactics. Once the signal is given that the objective has been met, you switch to strike and fade and head to the rendezvous point.”

They looked to each other, and she could see them weighing whether the money they’d been paid and promised was worth the very likely sacrifice of many of their soldiers. “This is more hazard than the contract laid out,” the scarred unicorn said. “I think I speak for all of us when I say that without knowing what this is all for, we aren’t willing to take that risk.” There were nods of agreement all around.

“Max?” she said, turning to her employer. “You’re up.”

He grinned and jumped up on the table, startling everyone around it, Charisma included. “Ladies and gentlecolts!” he began, skipping across the table like it was a stage. Charisma wondered if it would be sturdy enough to hold him or if it would crash down in the middle of his speech. She wondered if that would even matter. “Your attention, if you please!” He certainly had that. Most of the mercenaries had stopped what they were doing to stare at their employer. “Hi. I’m Maxamillion Oswald Cash, I’m the one paying your salaries. I’d like to take this moment to talk to you about what you’re going to be helping me accomplish tonight. It’s been a long while getting here, I admit. There’s been a lot of sitting around doing nothing, waiting for an update, any update on when it will finally be time to get to the action. A lot of wondering if it’ll all be worth it when the day comes. Well, the day has come, and it’s time to answer that question.”

He paused for a moment, looking out over the crowd. When he continued he wasn’t smiling anymore and his voice came out in a measured, friendly cadance, like a priest of Celestia giving a sermon. “I’d like to tell you a bit of a story. I promise it won’t take long and there’ll be a point to it. You see, there was a time, when I was young, when I didn’t know where I was going. When I didn’t know what I really wanted, in that all-important big-picture sort of way. It started when I got a shock, one of those life-changing events that makes you question everything you thought you knew about yourself and the world you live in. I got so turned around, so confused, that for a while I thought there was something seriously wrong with me. I made some bad decisions, then. Really bad. I alienated a lot of people. My family, my friends. All gone, all because of me. It was about as low as I have ever been. So low, I thought there was no coming back from it. But you know what? It turned out I hadn’t lost everybody. There was one stallion, one friend, who stuck by me. Through the worst of the worst, when all hope was gone, he was still there. He reached out when no one else would and helped me get back to my hooves. My best friend. James Bay.

“Jim, well, he wasn’t what you’d call the sharpest pony. Not stupid, no, but he didn’t get nuance. If you wanted him to know something you had to come out and say it to his face. A nod and a wink were never good enough for him, and I guess that’s why he never got the message that I didn’t want friends anymore. All he knew was that I needed one.” Cash paused again, looking down in a moment of solemnity. Then he chuckled and his grin came back full force as he looked back at the mercenaries. “He’s dead now. But that big, stubborn pony showed me something incredibly important: loyalty. The kind of loyalty that can’t be bought or sold. That kind of loyalty requires something from both parties. So when you ask if it’s all going to be worth it? Well, if I want your loyalty, I’ll just have to show you what you’re fighting for.”

His horn lit and out of his saddlebag floated three golden necklaces with large central gems that were so brightly, solidly colored that they seemed to glow with a faint inner light: purple diamond, orange apple and crimson lightning bolt. Charisma’s eyes went to the red gem at once, and she found that she couldn't look away. It grew in her vision until the crimson light was all she could see. She remembered that gem in another shape, a teardrop like the ones that adorned her hips, and a sense of connection, of purpose so deep she could drown in it, filled her. She didn't even realize she was stepping onto the table and reaching for it until Cash's hoof touched her, gently pushing her back down to the floor.

"Uh-uh," he chided. "Not tonight."

"I..." she trailed off, not knowing what it was she wanted to say.

He stared at her for a long moment. His expression was almost entirely unreadable, but she thought she caught a flash of anger in his eyes. She wasn't sure if it was anger at her, or at something else, but it was gone as soon as it appeared. He replaced his blank look with his customary smile and set the Elements spinning in a circle above his head. "Maybe later," he said, giving her a sly wink.

He turned back to the assembled soldiers. “These are what it’s all about. They’re a matched set, and I’m after another one tonight. Now, I know what you’re thinking: ‘we’re risking life, limb and freedom over necklaces?’. Let me tell you, these are not necklaces. Yeah, sure, they look like it, but trust me, these babies are magic. Who wants a demonstration?” There was a chorus of affirmative noises from the crowd. He brought the Element of Loyalty down in front of him, touching it with a hoof. It flashed a bright red, little sparks of electricity beginning to flash from the gold. “Ooh, it’s feisty tonight!” Max whispered to Charisma while the mercenaries watched the Element pulse brighter and brighter. A wild look came into his eyes and Charisma flinched back from it, her Talent screaming at her to kill him before he used the power of Loyalty.

“Cool, right?” he said to the crowd. “Now, I know a lightshow isn’t going to impress everyone, but that was just to get your full attention. The real demonstration will happen in a moment. You see, this little thing is a relic from the old world, before the Schism. Hell, it’s even older than that, and I can assure you it’s lost none of its potency. This one necklace has all the power needed to conquer the entire world, and it belongs to me. I am the pony with the plan and the power, all I need are the people. If you are going to be those people, then all I want from you is one thing. The same thing Big Jim once showed me.” He flashed Charisma a sly wink. “Loyalty.”

The change in the crowd was instantaneous and palpable. Where before they were half-listening or watching the shining Element, now every eye was riveted to Cash. The mercenaries stood straighter, holding themselves to rigid attention like raw recruits just being taught how to salute. She saw a few begin to pant as if they had run a mile, their expressions going beyond professional or even devoted into a kind of worship. Charisma shuddered at the sight. She remembered Melody, and knew that these soldiers were unlikely to survive long.

"Do I have your loyalty?" Cash demanded.

“Yes sir!” came the thundering reply from the assembled soldiers.

“Well then,” Cash said with an evil smile. “Let’s get to it.”

***

Lieutenant Hard Boiled stared at the pink statue as Birchfield came into the entrance hall, flanked by a pair of Strength Talent sergeants. He didn’t look away as the Senator spotted him and began walking over. The statue itself was simple enough. Expertly crafted and unquestionably beautiful, but made of stone and mineral. The necklace it wore, however, was something else entirely. His Talent was Finding Truth, but the truth of that necklace was impossible to find. His magic kept telling him that it both was and was not really there, like it was illusion and reality both at once. Worse, it couldn’t agree on what shape the necklace actually was. A blue balloon, or a simple octagonal gem, or, strangely, a foot-wide stone sphere among a dozen other shapes that flickered across his awareness. Every one of them seemed just as true as every other, and the constant contradiction was mesmerizing.

He suspected it would also be a serious migraine were it not for the close proximity of Traduce, currently masquerading as one of the uniformed officers stationed around the hall. He was careful to avoid staring at her, not wanting to break her cover, but he couldn’t help catching her eye and nodding once to let her know he knew she was there, and was thankful for it.

Senator Birchfield stepped up next to HB. He had calmed considerably since that morning, but had still spent a considerable amount of time fuming about the invasion of his privacy. “You can see it,” he said. HB quirked an eyebrow at the lack of leading small-talk, but accepted the welcome thrust straight to the point with a simple nod. “How? No one else I’ve met has been able to keep their eyes on it for more than a few seconds. They barely acknowledge that it’s there.”

“There’s a spell protecting it,” HB replied.

“I know that much,” Birchfield snapped, though he kept his voice low. “I want to know how you can see it.”

HB shrugged, he didn’t see the point in refusing the old pegasus. “I found another one. It was protected like this one is, but I managed to break through the spell. I guess that broke this one as well.”

“You found one.” He sounded awestruck, almost reverent. “Which one?”

“Yellow pegasus,” HB said. “Three-butterfly Talent Glyph.”

“Kindness,” Birchfield breathed.

“Which one’s this?” HB asked, indicating the statue in front of them.

“Laughter,” Birchfield replied.

“Well, now that you know how I can see it. How can you?”

The Senator let out a deep sigh. “I wish I could tell you, Lieutenant. I found it in the ruins of Las Pegasus fifteen years ago.” Hard Boiled listened intently, openly running his magic to let the Senator know that he would catch any lie or omission in his story. “I was exploring the ruins as part of an expedition I was funding. It was standing in the buried remains of one of the city squares that we excavated, right out in the open. The diggers had cleared it off, but hadn’t taken it out like they had with the other artifacts. I didn’t know then what they had found, I just thought it was part of a larger statue that was still being unearthed. Eventually, though, I came to realize that none of them really saw it. They looked at it, but it didn’t register for them. I… I realized that it must be a find of great significance, and I had to have it for myself. I managed to convince others to help me move it, even if they didn’t quite realize what they were moving. I took it, and no one ever knew. It was never entered into the logs as part of the dig. Pictures were taken, but no one has ever even commented on the statue that was there.”

“You didn’t even know what it was?”

He shook his head. “I didn’t start researching the statues until after I had it. I learned how important they were, how unique. I bought the maquette just to get closer to having another one of the series. I had practically given up hope until you came to me asking after them. Max Cash! I don’t doubt that son of a bitch has some way to see them too. He knew too much twenty years ago, too.”

“Twenty years ago?”

The Senator barked a laugh and gave him a sidelong look. “Sorry, detective, that’s a national secret, and not one you can wheedle out of me.”

HB frowned. Birchfield wasn’t lying about the details of it being a national secret. Whatever had gone on then, it didn’t feel like it would be worth it to press, so he let the subject drop. “I’m absolutely sure Cash is coming for this statue. I don’t know why, though. Or why he hasn’t come before now.”

“You should have brought me in from the beginning, Lieutenant,” Birchfield said. “I could have helped you. We could have avoided a lot of… unpleasantness… with your backers.”

“I couldn’t then, Senator, and the only reason I’m here now is because you’re a target.” He gave the old pegasus a professional smile. “Honest cop, remember?” Birchfield harumphed at that and turned away.

A commotion at the front doors caught his attention. Instantly he was on alert, his telekinesis enveloping his gun to ensure a quick draw if needed. He walked over to the door, his magic picking out the tells of shock and nervousness from the officers there. “What’s going on?” he asked as he came up to the door, but the moment he could look out to the street he didn’t need to ask anymore.

A Dragon was coming up the walkway. Twice the size of a large stallion, purple scales tight over corded muscle that shifted with predatory grace as he moved, he was a terrifying sight all by himself. At his side walked a unicorn mare whose features were concealed beneath a dark cloak that his magic told him was likely made of ballistic cloth with a heavy plate lining. Behind them came three others. One was a pegasus mare whose darting eyes and twitching limbs screamed an almost psychotic readiness to attack. She wore a bag at her side, out of which peeked a unicorn doll. Beside her was a green earth pony with a pair of yellow streaks through his mane who was grinning like the proverbial village idiot at everything around him. The last one, bringing up the rear and talking to Captain Rivers as he went, was a Changeling in disguise.

HB blocked their way as they came to the door. The Dragon sat back on his two hind legs, rearing up to stare down imperiously at all around him. The mare, her face hidden in the shadow of her cowl, offered HB a polite smile and a nod. He was having trouble reading her, but he didn’t know if it was some sort of interference or simply the distracting presence of the Dragon.

“Where is she?” the Dragon asked, his voice nowhere near as booming or growling as HB had expected.

“What?” was all the reply HB could manage. He supposed that Traduce must have been eating some of his fear too, because he doubted he would be so coherent facing down a possibly angry Dragon under normal circumstances.

“The statue. Pinkie Pie. Laughter.”

It clicked for him then, and as realizations tumbled into place his dull fear relaxed. “Master Spike, I presume?” The Dragon nodded. “My name is Lieutenant Hard Boiled. Before I can let you in to see the statue, I need to know your intentions here.”

“My intentions?” Spike asked with a quirked eye ridge.

“My magic will allow me to detect any untruth or omission,” HB explained. “This is a sensitive situation, and I need to be absolutely sure of anyone I let inside.”

The Dragon smirked. “Nice. I’m here to stop Max Cash from getting his grubby murdering hooves on another Element of Harmony. And kill him, if I can.”

“Element of Harmony?” HB asked.

Spike shrugged. “Long story, don’t know if you’re allowed to know yet. If I can, I’ll tell you all about it.”

“I’ll hold you to that,” HB said, then turned his gaze to the hooded pony. She shrugged at him and looked up at Spike.

“She’s… uh, not local,” Spike said. “She’s with me. Same goals.”

“That’s…” HB looked past them to where Captain Rivers was giving him an ‘okay’ signal. “That’ll be fine. I assume the rest of you will say the same?”

“Nope!” the grinning green pony replied, while the pegasus mare looked at him with the same incomprehension as the unicorn had. “I’m mostly here in case my ex shows up. I’m not gonna kill anyone.”

“Your ex?”

“Yup!”

“Who’s your ex?”

“Charisma.”

The name meant nothing to the other cops around them, but Hard Boiled remembered her well from the dossier on Max Cash. “You dated that?”

“It was an experience in time and pain management.”

“I bet. Well, come with me, then.” He turned and walked back into the entry hall. The large room seemed smaller with the Dragon and his entourage crowded in, but there was more than enough space for all of them to gather around the statue. Birchfield’s eyes went as wide as saucers at the sight of the Dragon. HB quickly motioned to the other cops to keep him back, an act which earned the detective a furious glare from the Senator.

“Here she is,” Hard Boiled said, ignoring the commotion Birchfield was putting up. “Now, anyone care to explain exactly what this is all about?”

“Uh, am I missing something, buddy?” the green pony whispered to the Changeling. Of the five of them, only Spike and the mystery mare were seeing the statue.

“Oh, Spike, it’s wonderful!” the cloaked mare gushed. HB’s Solar was rusty at best, but he knew enough to understand, especially with his magic running. “Why, it’s so lifelike I can practically hear her laughing!”

Spike smiled with pride. “Thanks, Rarity. You should have seen yours.”

“Oh, Spike. If I ever want to know what it looked like, all I need to do is find a mirror.”

“What!?” Hard Boiled cried out, staring at the cloaked mare with renewed intensity. An impossible mare. The thought was like lightning, questions bursting like sparks from its strike.

Blaze let out an agonized hiss and leaned towards Rarity. “I think you’re busted.”

HB turned his gaze to the Changeling. He was more likely to get answers out of one of Straff’s minions. Especially with Traduce backing him. “You. I need a private word. The rest of you, do not go anywhere.” He stomped off, only waiting long enough to see if they were obeying his instructions before heading into the hallway and towards one of the many rooms. He caught Traduce’s eye and jerked his head, telling her to follow as well. She fell into step beside him as he marched into a plush study, the walls lined with leather-bound volumes and overstuffed chairs just begging to be sat in. He closed the heavy door once they were all inside, finding that it locked with a thick bolt, the kind too heavy for most unicorns to shift. Having secured their privacy, he turned and glared at the Changelings. “I want an explanation, and I want it now!”

Traduce shed her disguise and shrugged. “I honestly don’t know what’s going on either. Hello, Calumn. I heard you went rogue.” While she kept her doubled-over voice even, HB could practically feel the disdain in her address of the other Changeling.

Calumn flashed into his true form as well, wincing as he picked up on Traduce’s feelings as clearly as HB did. “Traduce. It’s good to see you again.”

“Pleasantries later,” HB snapped. “Explanations now. I do not care how much you’re supposed to keep secret, I need the whole story.”

“It’s long, and very complicated,” Calumn said. “The simple version is this: there’s a series of statues, made by Master Spike before the Schism. Each statue has a necklace on it which are part of a set of potent magical artifacts called the Elements of Harmony. Max Cash has been stealing these Elements, and each time he does the statue sort of… comes to life as the person it was modeled after. One of the companions of Twilight Sparkle, who was the founder of, well, a whole lot of magical schools and contributed to practically every other scientific discipline. To say nothing of her religious significance.”

“I know who Twilight Sparkle is,” Hard Boiled said. “You’re telling me statues are coming to life?”

Calumn shrugged. “I said it’s complicated. One of them, Rainbow Dash, woke up just outside of Orion City a few months ago. She was confronted by officers who attacked her, and fled.” Hard Boiled remembered the injuries on those two ponies. He didn’t think this ‘Rainbow Dash’ had fled so much as casually left. “Rarity, the mare in the cloak, is another one. Look, these Elements are incredibly powerful. World-ending powerful. Cash has three of the six, and that one out there will be the fourth if we don’t stop him.” He frowned. “Though I… I’m going to have to take your word that it’s actually there, because I can’t remember anything about it.”

There was no lie in what the Changeling had said. In fact, HB was sensing more honesty from him than he’d ever seen from Traduce. Even now, Traduce always seemed to be holding back or hiding something. This Calumn, even in his assumed form, seemed… comfortable with himself. He wasn’t lying about his identity so much as putting on a suit to project a certain image. Hard Boiled turned away, massaging at his head, which had begun to hurt a little with Traduce’s ire at Calumn. “Okay... Okay. This doesn’t change anything. Calumn, can you vouch for those people out there? Will they actually be able to help when the time comes and not get in the way?”

“Yes.” The utter confidence with which he said it had HB half-convinced on its own. “They’re dedicated to stopping him.”

“Even the green one?”

“Trail Blazer? Oh, yeah. He’s got different reasons and different skills, but he’s probably our best shot at subduing Charisma.” He was holding something back there, but HB didn’t press for the moment.

Hard Boiled sighed. This was too out of control for his liking, but he supposed everything about this case had been that way. “Why not? Alright, I’m gonna want to talk to these people, get a better feel for them. Spike said he might be able to tell me more about these Elements, and I want you to let him know that it’s okay to do that. Alright?” Calumn nodded. “You’re also gonna have to impress on them that I’m running this show, and when the shit hits the fan they’d better pull their weight.”

Calumn nodded, smiling enough to show his fangs. “You got it Lieutenant. You can count on us.”

***

"Honestly? I lied"

***

Applejack jerked awake, looking around in startled confusion. The first thing she saw was an immense wall of churning clouds and flashing lighting rising high into the sky, and while it was not a heartening sight, it did help her remember where she was. She sat up slowly, tearing her eyes away from the Everstorm and looking around the small camp they had set up near the base of the unnatural barrier. Star Fall and Astrid were engaged in an intense, hushed discussion on the other side of the fire while Rainbow Dash was standing by her side, reaching out a worried hoof.

“You ok, AJ?” Dash asked.

Applejack looked down at herself and found that she was tangled badly in her blanket. “Was I thrashin’?”

“Yeah. Me too,” Dash replied. She indicated her own disturbed bedding, which didn’t actually mean anything where Dash’s sleeping habits were concerned, but Applejack accepted it as honest evidence all the same. “You remember what you were dreaming about?”

Applejack shook her head. “Ain’t the first time this’s happened, neither. Happened every other night in the palace, accordin’ to the servants. Never know what it is that’s makin’ me twist in my sleep.”

“Star says I’ve been freaking out in my sleep since I got here,” Dash said. “You think this is happening to Rarity too?”

“Wouldn’t be surprised.” Applejack disentangled herself and began to stretch out her limbs. Cuts and bruises from the fighting in the Solar Capital still stung a bit, but otherwise she was back in top shape.

The transport had dropped them off in what Star Fall had called the ‘Everfree Verge’, just within the foothills of the mountains that had once held Canterlot. Taking stock of their exhaustion from the day’s events, they had collectively decided to spend a day resting before trying to brave the Storm. Applejack had done her part to put the camp together before letting exhaustion have its way, carrying her into what had been a long, dreamless sleep. Or so she remembered. As the sweat drying on her coat attested, the sleep hadn’t been as restful as it felt.

“What time is it?” she asked. The sky was filling with clouds, but she could still see patches of stars between them.

“Just after sundown,” Dash replied, then frowned. “Doesn’t this bug you, AJ? These nightmares we can’t remember?”

“‘Course it does,” Applejack grumbled, folding away her bedding and stowing it in her saddlebags as Dash haphazardly did the same. “But I don’t got the first idea what they mean or what to do about them. Do you?”

“What? No, I–”

“Then what’s the use in worryin’?” Applejack sighed and turned to look her friend in the eye. “There ain’t nothin’ about this whole darn adventure that don’t rub me wrong. If I spent all my time fussin’ over it, I’d never get another thing done. So until you get some idea of what it all means, or run into someone who does, you should focus on what does make sense in all this time-travel craziness. Helpin’ our friend.”

Dash bristled for a moment, then sagged. “I get what you’re saying, AJ. It just, you know, seems important. Like we shouldn’t ignore it or it’ll come back to bite us.”

“I’m not ignoring it, Rainbow, I’m just focusin’ on the job I got in front of me.”

“Yeah, okay,” Dash said, waving Applejack’s explanation away. She was clearly still upset, but Applejack knew that she’d have to work it out for herself.

“Hey, Star!” she called out, catching the attention of their two friends. “What’s the discussion about?”

“Fall thinks we should be heading through the Storm tonight,” Astrid said, clearly nonplussed by the idea.

“As soon as possible,” Star Fall said. “It looks like there’s going to be a storm –a normal storm– here in a few hours, so we won’t get any more rest than we’ve already had. Besides, the longer we wait here, the harder it’s going to be to catch up to Gamma on the other side.”

“That still the plan?” Applejack asked.

“If we’re going to catch Max Cash, finding her is the best bet on finding him,” Star Fall replied.

“Are y’all up to goin’ through, uh, that?” Applejack asked, pointing a hoof towards the Everstorm.

“Come on, AJ,” Dash said, giving her a playful shove. “You know Star’s a pro at this.”

“I know the past couple days have been hard on her,” Applejack said, returning the shove with a pointed and rueful look. “From what y’all have said, the Everstorm’ll jump on any weakness it can.”

“I can handle it,” Star Fall assured them. “Don’t worry about that.”

“No, what you’ve got to worry about is the pit-stop,” Astrid growled.

“Pit stop?” Dash asked.

“Dash, you remember going through the Eye, right?” Star Fall asked.

Rainbow Dash brightened. “Ponyville! Twilight’s statue! You want to see if we can get the Element of Magic!”

Applejack frowned. “Hold on a minute. Ain’t that just gonna be glued to the statue like Rarity’s Element was?”

Star Fall shrugged. “Maybe. The Eye is concentrated magic, it should have eroded any spells inside it to nothing by now. I think it’s encouraging that we could all see the statue fine the last time. If the obfuscation effect is gone, the adhering one might be as well. At the very least it’ll let me confirm if the Element of Magic is still there, that Cash hasn’t gotten to it already.”

“You’re ignoring the fact that the last time we went through the Eye it almost killed us, even with your spell protecting us,” Astrid pointed out.

“I’ve refined the dampening spell,” Star Fall said, frowning at her guardian. “It shouldn’t let as much of the Eye’s magic bleed through this time.”

“But will that be enough?” Astrid asked.

Star Fall looked down. “Not for long,” she grudgingly admitted. “But it should be more than enough time to get to the statue, see what we can do there, then get out. If we don’t dawdle. Or get distracted. Or–”

“We get it, Fall,” Astrid said. “We gotta do this at a run.” She sighed. “You just have to make life more interesting, don’t you?”

Star Fall smirked up at her. “Would you want it any other way?” Astrid snorted out a laugh, then set about disassembling their half of the camp.

Applejack and Rainbow Dash stood staring at the storm for a long moment. “So, Ponyville’s inside that thing?” Applejack asked.

“Right in the middle,” Dash replied. “Not, like, the Ponyville we came from, though. It’s a big city now. Tall buildings all over the place and everything. If it hadn’t been for the library, I wouldn’t have recognized it.”

“It don’t feel right,” Applejack said.

“Yeah, it’s pretty messed up weather.”

“It goes down too,” Applejack said, stomping a hoof into the dirt and feeling the rumble of tortured stone deep in the earth. “Far down. This was all the Princesses’ doin’?”

“I guess. Them and Umbra, yeah,” Dash said with a shrug.

“I never knew they had this kind of power.” Applejack shook her head. “Makes you wonder why they needed the Elements at all.”

“AJ,” Dash said, her voice gone dark and serious. “They needed them because they couldn’t win without them. Discord? Nightmare Moon? What they fought was stronger than they were, and the Elements were even stronger than that.”

And Max Cash has three of them. Applejack didn’t voice the thought, knowing that Dash was thinking exactly the same thing. So they just stood in silence, watching the shifting, flashing patterns of the eternal Storm until Astrid told them it was time to go.

Chapter 29: Hate

For a Harmony Event the Reassociation process occurs effectively instantaneously, co-extant with all other parts of the Event. For a Proxy Event, or a perspective internal to a full Harmony Event, it can be said to occur across the late stages of the Charging sequence through the early parts of the Reconstruction action. Since there is no perspective external to a Harmony Event for comparison, I will use the Proxy Event’s timing as the factual one.

The Reassociation process begins with the strengthening of the bond between Bearer and Element. As the precise nature of this bond is still very much a mystery, I can only speculate on what forces are involved, but the results are quite clear. The Bearer and Element are metaphysically drawn closer together, to the point where they begin to merge. During a Proxy Event the merge is only partial, and I believe it is the existence of True Bearers that prevents a complete joining between Proxy and Element. For a Proxy Event, the Reassociation process could be said to stop here. For a Harmony Event, the process is far, far more involved.

While in a Proxy Event this merging is primarily metaphysical, in the case of a Harmony Event the unification is total and bi-directional. That is, the Element becomes the Bearer and the Bearer becomes the Element, forming a singular, indivisible unit. This is a transformation of incredible import, and an utter necessity for the survival of the Bearer through what comes next.

The Elements then collapse into each other. They do not merge, as they had with their Bearers, the result instead being an Elemental gestalt that is directed entirely by the Element of Magic and its Bearer. This collapse is then echoed by the energy field created during the Charging sequence.

That energy field is generated, and thus propagated, across all dimensions. Space, time, magic, all that was, all that is, all that could be, every possible alternate universe, every conceivable future, all of existence is encapsulated within it. When the Elements implode their energy field, all of that goes with it. The only thing that can survive this process is something that does not share anything of the nature of our universe. A truly outside force. Thus all matter, all energy, all magic, everything is reduced to the Elements of Harmony, and the ponies wielding them.

I have done this a dozen times over.

Yet this is still not the worst of my sins.

-From the seventh section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Twenty-Nine: Hate

Rainbow Dash shivered as she ducked under a floating crystal that looked like an oversized dandelion seed. The air in this part of the Storm was full of them, in addition to the earth being turned to alabaster and a misty air suffused with a glow that was nearly blinding, but only in their peripheral vision. Star Fall’s magic was protecting them, but they had been warned not to touch anything anyway, and Dash was not about to test that prohibition. Every floating crystal gave off a strange feeling of static and cold, an eerie combination that reminded her of winter storms she’d crafted occasionally. Those could get dangerous, and these crystals had the same feeling. Violence a hair from exploding.

She pulled her mind away from the myriad dangers of the Everstorm and looked ahead. The clear area that marked the Eye was becoming more obvious. Barely a dozen paces away. She’d spotted it a ways back, but she knew from experience that the others would only be seeing it about now.

“There it is,” she said, preempting anyone else as she jumped ahead of the group.

“Don’t rush, Dash,” Star Fall said. “I can only protect you if you stay close.”

Dash didn’t reply. She let them catch up to her, opting to hover in place rather than walk. Her wings weren’t likely to get much of a workout for the next while, so every chance that came along to use them, she took. Soon enough they were up next to the Eye of the Everstorm, looking out at the ruined city.

“That’s Ponyville?” Applejack asked.

“Told you it was a big city,” Dash said.

“It looks–” Applejack said, starting forward. Dash and Astrid both snapped legs out to stop her. Applejack stopped and looked down at the blocking limbs before giving them a sheepish smile and a tip of her hat. “Sorry. Forgot about the whole ‘enough magic to drive you mad’ thing.”

“Hopefully, it won’t be a problem,” Star Fall said, pulling out the prepared spell-sheet from her bags. “Remember, the farther you get from me, the more you’ll be affected by the Eye.” She activated the spell with a muttered incantation, the sheet floating into the air before her and crawling with crimson symbols. Dash immediately felt a deep lethargy descend on her, her wings feeling like lead weights and her muscles complaining about being used so soon after fighting an army of ghouls. Applejack, who hadn’t been expecting it, staggered and nearly fell to her knees.

“Dang, Star, that’s some spell you’ve got there,” she commented as she forced herself back upright.

“Thanks,” Star Fall said. “Let’s go.”

They stepped into the Eye, and suddenly everything was better. Dash felt energy sing through her. It was a high, like pulling off the most complicated and dangerous trick she knew flawlessly for a crowd of awestruck Wonderbolts. She felt like she could run a dozen races back to back and win every one.

A look to Applejack told her that the earth pony was experiencing the same thing, walking tall with an unmistakable bounce in her step. “I feel like I could buck the whole south fields bare and still have enough left for an all-night hootenanny,” she said.

“Yeah? Well I feel like someone’s trying to slowly bore their way into my skull,” Astrid growled back. “Which, admittedly, is a huge improvement over the jackhammer to my eye-sockets of last time. Nice work, Fall.”

“Great,” Star Fall grumbled, clearly feeling her own pain. “Let’s stay focused. We’ve got a ways to go yet.”

They walked through the broken city in sullen silence. Dash had to keep reminding herself not to take off and fly, but it was a manageable desire. She was more interested in getting to the library. She wanted to make that connection with her old home. To see Twilight’s statue and know that it was possible that she’d even see her friend again.

Soon enough she caught sight of the tree. “There it is!” she cried out, her wings fluttering. “Come on, guys!”

“Dash!” Astrid snapped. “Take it easy, we’ll get there.”

She resisted the urge to snap back, instead practically dancing on the tips of her hooves with anticipation as they slowly approached the library.

It looked perfect, as if she hadn’t been away for a thousand years. She could almost believe the purple statue was her friend, standing out front and looking to the skies. The urge to rush forward almost overwhelmed her, but something caught her eye while she was examining the library-tree, and it made her stop dead in her tracks, all her enthusiasm draining out of her.

“What’s wrong?” Applejack asked.

“The window,” Dash said, pointing. “I saw…”

“What?”

“Umbra.”

All of them stopped, and there was a disturbing flicker in Star Fall’s magic. “What?” Astrid hissed. “Are you sure?”

Dash nodded. “It was her. She’s here. She’s in the library!”

As if cued by her words the door of the library opened, slowly swinging into the darkness of the interior. That darkness seemed to writhe and coil like tendrils of smoke as a figure emerged from the shadows one slow, purposeful step at a time. Her golden coat trailing streamers of flickering ash, Twinkle Shine stopped just outside the library’s entrance. She held her head low, her white mane falling over her eyes so that the purple stripe that ran through it hung over her left eye while her right stared through the part created by her horn.

Dash didn’t take her eyes of the deceptive Professor, but she heard Star Fall’s choked gasp and felt the ear-popping change in pressure as her dampening spell wavered.

“Keep it together, Fall,” Astrid said.

Star Fall made a small, desperate sound. Then she took a deep breath and her magic strengthened its hold. “I’m alright,” she said, though the lie was easy to see through.

Twinkle Shine stood quietly for a long moment before speaking. “You made it out of the Kingdom.” She nodded in slow satisfaction. “I knew you’d find a way. I’ve been waiting for you.”

“How did y’all know we’d come here?” Applejack asked. There wasn’t much animosity in her voice, merely a wary caution. Dash supposed that was expected, Applejack hadn’t really known the Professor, had barely even met her. The betrayal she felt was on behalf of a friend, not personal like it was for the rest of them. Dash knew her own anger would be nothing compared to what Star Fall was feeling.

Twinkle Shine twitched. Then tilted her head so that the part in her mane fell to the other eye, which blazed white and gold. “Of Course You Would Come,” the Nightmare said, her whispered voice carrying like a primal scream across the silent distance. Tongues of Ashfire danced along her horn with every word, and the shadows inside the library pulsed with her breath. “The Student Would Not Let An Opportunity So Great Pass By.”

“Umbra,” Star Fall said, and there was terror in her shaking voice. Dash glanced back and saw Astrid drape a protective wing over her charge while staring with cold fury at the Nightmare. Applejack simply looked determined, her muscles flexing as she prepared to act. “Or are you the Professor?” Star Fall’s voice gained strength as she spat the words out, anger beginning to outweigh fear. “I can’t believe she was just a pawn for you all this time, another ash-pony puppet. No, she was too different. She had compassion, she had her own emotions, and faults, and joy. I don’t see you having any of those things, Umbra. She had a life! All you are is death.”

“You Are Ignorant Of Many Things, Fallen Star.” The response came in a snarl that rolled across them like thunder. “I Am The Destroyer! I Am Nations Brought Low And Cities Made Ruin. I Am The Final Power, The Ultimate Darkness. I Am The Doom Of Ponykind, And Through Me All Things Will Become Ash. I Am Nightmare Umbra!”

Then the Nightmare tilted her head, shifting the part back to reveal the dark blue eye of Star Fall’s mentor. “I am Professor Twinkle Shine. Chief advisor to King Golden Scepter the Second of the Solar Kingdom. I’m not Umbra’s puppet. I have my own emotions and my own thoughts. But life? There is so much more to who and what I am than you have imagined. I am Twinkle Shine, but this is not my only name. Not my only life. I have been many, many ponies over the centuries.” Her entire body shifted, changing color, shape and occasionally even species with each name she said, becoming a new pony with each iteration. “Velvet Spring, Sunset Glow, Harsh Justice, Whisper Secret, Aura Wind. So many others.” Her body returned to that of the Professor. “Some you know, some you won’t.”

“Those names,” Star Fall said, sounding like someone had kicked her in the gut. “Sunset Glow, Aura Wind, they were Advisors to the Crown. Velvet Spring practically hoof-picked the first Royal Council! You… you’ve been manipulating the Kingdom since the beginning!”

“Even before that,” the Professor said. “I was the one who gave the Royals the spells to save the Griffins from extinction. I led them to the wealth that attracted skilled soldiers to their cause. I stepped in when they started to make foolish decisions and ensured that their line would not fall victim to rebellion or uprising. I even killed Overspear myself, when his madness threatened everything I had built.”

“And the Republics?” Star Fall demanded. “If I dug into their history, will I find you at the center of everything there too?”

“Sometimes,” Twinkle Shine replied. “Democracies are harder to work with. However, they’ve always been more driven by economics than anything else, so for the most part I just tried to put money in the right hooves.”

“Why?” The question was a quiet plea, Star Fall sounded almost sick as she said it. “Why any of this? Why create these nations, nurture them, then set them at each others throats? Is it all for Umbra? Were you just giving her something to feed on when she was strong enough? Who are you in all of this?”

Twinkle Shine sighed. “I don’t expect you to understand, Star Fall, but I want you to. There is a plan. A purpose, one that both myself and Umbra were created for. That purpose goes beyond building up the Kingdom and the Republics, and beyond tearing them down again, if I must. What I do, I do for Ponykind.”

“I don’t know if I can even start to believe you,” Star Fall said, shaking her head.

“You are my student,” Twinkle Shine said. “I care for you, I love you, like a daughter. No other pony in the last eight hundred years has come close to the place in my heart you have. Please, if you believe nothing else I say, believe that. I never wanted to hurt you. I only wanted you to be happy and safe. But I can see you suffering because of me, and I would do anything to make it not so.”

“Would you stop?” Star Fall asked. “Stop manipulating the world? Stop threatening it with Umbra? Would you stop killing so many people just for this… purpose?”

Twinkle Shine’s head drooped. “I… can’t.”

“Then you wouldn’t really do anything, now would you?” Star Fall snarled. “I guess you don’t care for me as much as you think.”

“If I could,” Twinkle Shine said, then sighed. “But you were right. I have compassion, Umbra does not. Even if we could be separated, you have no idea of the devastation she would wreak without me.” She brought her head up, and her flesh began to ripple as if a thousand snaking worms were crawling just under her coat. “I do care, my little Fallen Star. And because I care, I’m giving you this warning: do not interfere. Find someplace to hide, far from the Republics and the Kingdom. Far from what is coming. Don’t try to stop us.”

“You know I won’t do that,” Star Fall said.

“I know,” the Professor said, smiling as her body bulged and her skin began to split. “I raised you to be strong.” There was a sickening rip and a pair of ashen wings flared out from her back. “And you have grown up so–” her words cut off as her head exploded, bits of skull and bloody flesh igniting with black Ashfire as the face of the Nightmare emerged. Umbra reared up, tendrils of dark magic cleaning away the last remnants of Twinkle Shine, and when she brought her hooves down she stood at her full height, wreathed in an aura of ashes and hate.

Dash tensed, ready to move at the slightest sign that they needed to run. Star Fall, however, seemed to calm as the Destroyer obliterated the body of her former mentor, her eyes hardening with a determined gaze. “You wouldn’t have waited for me in the Eye of the Everstorm just to give me that message. Why are you here, Umbra?”

“To Put An End To A Threat,” the Nightmare replied.

“Not us,” Star Fall said, a statement more than a question.

“No.” She stepped forward with the slow inevitability of a glacier, coming up next to Twilight’s statue. “I Do Not Know How You Have Returned, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, But It Is Clear That Your Presence Is A Threat To My Purpose. However, Even With Three Of You, The Threat Is Minor. None Of You Have The Power To Stop Me, Alone Or Together. Your Only Hope Would Be To Revive Twilight Sparkle And Wield The Elements.”

“No,” Dash breathed, somehow knowing what would come next.

“So That, I Cannot Allow.” The Destroyer raised a dark hoof, aiming for the statue.

“No!” Rainbow Dash screamed, her wings a blur as she shot forward. She left the protection of Star Fall’s spell in an instant, and the full weight of the Everstorm’s magic burned into her. It didn’t stop her. Air roared under torturous pressure as she burst past the sound barrier, the thin protective shield of her magic narrowing to a sharp point as she neared rainboom speeds in a split second. She closed the distance between heartbeats, faster than an eyeblink.

She wasn’t fast enough.

Black magic enveloped her, locking her in Umbra’s absolute grip and bringing her to an instantaneous and agonizing halt. She hung in the air, her own sonic boom catching up to her, tossing her rainbow mane wildly and nearly bursting her eardrums. All she could do was stare in disbelief as the Nightmare sneered in triumph.

“Fool,” Umbra whispered, then smashed her hoof down on the statue.

It shattered under Umbra’s attack, the perfectly sculpted body exploding into shards of lavender stone and amethyst. The cracked and crumbling remains of Twilight’s head rolled to the ground, the Element of Magic all that held it together. Umbra dropped Dash next to the head, then unceremoniously stomped on it, crushing the crown into an unrecognizable lump and the magenta star gem into powder.

“Your Efforts Are Pointless,” Umbra hissed, leaning down so that Dash could smell the ashes on her breath. “Your Power Is Nothing Next To Mine! I–”

“Talk too much.” Applejack’s hooves slammed into Umbra’s side in a textbook-perfect double-hoofed buck. The Nightmare was lifted from the ground and flung back through the door of the library to crash inside. “Come on, sugarcube, ain’t nothin’ left for us here.”

“No! She just…” Dash trailed off as she turned to see Astrid and Star Fall huddled together on the ground a dozen paces from where they had been standing before. Both were bleeding from their nose and ears, and Astrid was eyeing Dash murderously with one bloodshot eye. Star Fall’s dampening spell was flashing and spitting sparks of crimson energy, the paper torn and fluttering. Star Fall herself looked like she was only barely conscious. “Star! I didn’t–”

“Save it!” Astrid screeched. “We gotta get out of here. Now, superpony!”

“We need to carry them, and together, so don’t go rushin’ ahead,” Applejack said, helping Dash to her hooves.

“You Have Not Escaped,” Umbra’s voice rumbled from all around them. “Heed Your Mentor’s Words, Fallen Star, And Hide While You Can. For In The End, There Will Be Nowhere To Run To.”

“Then we’ll just have to stop you before that!” Dash screamed back at her. She and Applejack galloped over to where Astrid and Star Fall were lying. Applejack took the heavier Griffin while Dash hoisted Star Fall up, using her wings to steady the dazed pegasus. Then, keeping a carefully matched pace, they raced out of Ponyville and the Everstorm’s Eye, feeling the furious gaze of the Destroyer follow them the entire way.

***

They were expecting trouble, and that anticipation always made the waiting harder. Even worse, they had no idea if or when Cash would make his move. Hard Boiled could feel the tension among the police rise throughout the day as they waited for something, anything to happen. He assured himself that it would, and soon. The equipment to get the statue moved was nearly there, another hour at most. Then it would be shipped to protected storage and basically disappear as it was shuffled between Republics by people who would be incapable of remembering it. Cash would never get another chance to get what he wanted. So it was either attack while the statue was at the mansion or wait until it was in transit, and HB’s money was on the mansion.

A long conversation with Spike had filled him in on the Elements, and all the outlandish things they were supposed to be capable of. Testing what the Dragon had told him about the nature of the statues and the secure way the necklaces were attached to them had been fairly easy. Even taking a jackhammer to the statue had proved pointless, though watching Senator Birchfield nearly faint had made it somewhat worth the effort. Getting other people to recognize the statue for what it was proved more difficult. Simply leading them to touch it as he had with Traduce yielded nothing but confusion. He figured that it was Traduce’s psychic connection to him that allowed him to shake the spell for her.

Which left the question of how Birchfield–and Cash, presumably–could see it just fine.

“The spell has a key,” Spike had said when HB asked. “A book. Harmony Theory. Contact with the book allows you to unlock the memories of the statues. Somehow, Cash has a copy of the book, and I guess the Senator must have seen it as well.”

Questioning the Senator about when he might have seen such a book only got him the ‘national security’ brushoff. HB suspected that refusal was as much Birchfield still being sore over not being allowed immediate access to Spike as it was the honest truth. Traduce and Calumn weren’t able to tell him what this secret was either. Whatever had happened, they weren’t privy to it.

The frustration with not knowing all the facts only made his mood more sour as the day progressed. That wasn’t even counting the whole new raft of questions Spike and Calumn’s explanations of the statues and their Elements brought up, nor the headaches and confusion that resulted from the unbelievable answers to those questions. So, as the sun sank below the buildings and the city lights began their nightly glare, he was left staring out a window in one of the mansion’s many rooms, feeling the weight of too many weeks with too little sleep drag at his eyelids.

He stared through the blinds at the preparations they had made. Police cars were parked lengthwise across the streets, lights spinning. They formed a flashing barricade against anything that sought to get anywhere near Birchfield’s mansion. Somehow their solid presence was not a comfort. In fact, they seemed to be inviting trouble. The cops standing around them certainly seemed to think so, checking their weapons over and over again and nervously scanning the streets beyond their makeshift walls. He rubbed a hoof over his short mane, eyes narrowed as they sought out the dark corners of the city streets. His magic was telling him that something wasn’t right, but it had too little information to pick it out for him yet. He’d just have to keep looking.

“Sir?” Barry’s voice behind him made HB jump. He should have noticed the earth pony coming, but he was clearly far more tired than he was willing to admit to himself. “You okay?”

“Fine, Barry,” HB replied, turning away from the window. “What do you have for me?”

“It’s quiet,” Barry said. “The uniforms are wondering if this was worth standing around all day for.”

HB snorted. “Stakeout blues. It’s all sitting around watching nothing while bored off your ass until something happens. Then sometimes you wish it hadn’t.”

Barry nodded in understanding. For all his glaring faults, he had actually earned his chops in the SIU. “You think we’ll see any action tonight?”

“I’m hoping we won’t,” HB said, then sighed. “But I know that’s bullshit. He’s coming. The only question is if we’re ready for him.”

“You’ve got close to forty uniforms, nine detectives, six sniper teams, two squads of SWAT guys set up and ready to go, and a fucking Dragon. You think he’s got anything that can take on all of that?”

“I think–” HB’s horn gave a warning pulse, and he turned to look out the window. “Barry, get the uniforms on alert.”

“Why? What happened?”

Hard Boiled narrowed his eyes, staring into the shadows that lurked outside of the pools of streetlight. He saw a pony, a stallion, standing in an alley and staring in the mansion’s direction. It wouldn’t have stuck out to him, except that the pony was strapped with a long-barrelled automatic rifle and wearing what looked disturbingly like military gear. The pony gestured, and the shadows flickered. Suddenly HB’s magic was telling him that there were a dozen more ponies in that alley.

“He’s here!”

To his credit, Barry reacted with a professional speed and calm. He pulled out his police radio, hitting the call button and snapping off clear, precise words. “All officers on alert! Suspects have been sighted.”

“Guns,” HB said.

“Be advised: suspects are armed and should be considered extremely dangerous. Deadly force has been authorized.” He looked up from the radio. “Any idea on numbers?”

HB shook his head, moving to the door. “At least ten that I see. Probably more hidden all over the place.” He was out the door and speeding up as Barry relayed that information through the radio. He came to the foyer at a near gallop. “Heads up, people!” he shouted. “We’ve got company.”

The reaction was immediate. Prayers were whispered, weapons were drawn, and every eye turned his way. He made a quick judgement on what to do with them. Calumn’s crew were bunched together, and he figured they should stay that way so they didn’t get in the way of the police when the shooting started. They were too valuable to leave inside, though, so he would put them where a Dragon would do the most good.

“Strongheart! I need you and your people front and center, right across the intersection. You, you and you.” He pointed at three officers, including Traduce in their number. “Stay here and protect the Senator. Get him to the cellar if they start breaching our lines. The rest of you, with me!” It would have been nice to leave some officers behind to guard the statue, but none of them could remember that it was there for more than a minute. He’d just have to hope Traduce could handle it.

Leaving the foyer behind, he rushed out into the street. Weapons were being brought to bear, cover being taken behind the police cars barricading the roads. A quick glance around showed the SWAT snipers getting ready to pick off anyone who looked like a leader. Captain Rivers trotted up to meet him as he pulled his revolver out and checked the chambers.

“You’re sure?” was all he asked.

HB nodded. “Spotted a group of them, using the alleys for cover. How’s our air support?” The Captain pointed up, and HB saw a trio of Flight Talent police circle by. “You ready for this, Ger?”

He snorted. “Just ‘cause I push pencils nowadays doesn’t mean I don’t remember how to handle myself in a fight, HB.”

Hard Boiled smiled. “Just like the old days, huh?”

The Captain pulled out his own gun, cocking it. “Just like.”

There was a moment of tense silence as they waited for Cash to make his move. Then there was a roar that sounded like a dozen crackling booms of thunder overtop each other, and all the lights went out, leaving only the flashing reds and blues of the cop cars to light the streets.

“What the hell?” the Captain growled. He pulled out his radio. “Captain Rivers to Headquarters! What just happened?” All he got back was the empty hiss of static. “Headquarters, respond!” Nothing. “Anyone on this channel, respond, I need eyes on whatever just took out the power!”

There was a moment of empty noise from the radio before it clicked and squealed as someone began to respond. The Captain relaxed at that, but something felt wrong to HB’s magic. “Hello? Hello, Captain Rivers, was it?” The voice that came from the radio was not one HB recognized. It sounded jovial, as if whoever was speaking was on the edge of a fit of giggles. There was something off about that voice, something his magic was picking up even through the usual radio distortion. It sounded wrong, in a way he couldn’t define. “I don’t think you’ll be getting anything out of Headquarters. I’m sure they’re in pieces knowing they missed your call.” There was a laugh. It was wild, and it squealed through the radio in a way that made HB and the Captain flinch. “If Lieutenant Hard Boiled is around, tell him we need to have a talk. Tell him it’ll probably include the words ‘loyalty’, ‘betrayal’, and the phrase ‘whatever you want most in the world served on a soda cracker’. Anyway, I don’t figure you as the surrendering sort, and I can’t have you calling for help, so I’ve taken over your airwaves in order to provide a soundtrack to tonight’s entertainment. DJ, if you please!”

The sounds of guitar and drums began streaming from the radio. The Captain cursed and began changing the frequency, but the same music played on every channel. “Damn it!” the Captain snarled, throwing the radio away. “How the hell did he manage this?”

HB remembered what Calumn had said about Cash, about how utterly amoral he seemed, and about the Elements and what they could do to a person. “We underestimated him.” He looked over the barricades and saw the shapes slipping out of the alleys, moving in coordinated teams that kept cover from the snipers as they rushed the police lines. “Here they come!”

Then the shooting started, and everything got a whole lot more confusing.

***

Rarity was having trouble keeping up her nonchalant appearance. She’d been dreading this since deciding to come south with Spike to confront the terrible pony named Max Cash. She knew Spike was out for blood, and she didn’t know exactly how to handle that. As a baby Dragon, he’d never expressed anger to the depths he did now when Cash’s name and deeds came up. While she had no doubt he meant it when he said he wanted to kill the criminal unicorn, she couldn’t reconcile that with the fun-loving little wyrmling she had once known and could still see in the mass of scales and muscle she travelled with now.

Worse than Spike’s murderous intentions, though, were the similar expectations these ponies seemed to have of her. She knew how to fight–martial arts are often excellent exercise and a fit mare is a beautiful mare–but she was no warrior, and certainly not a killer. Yet the looks that she’d gotten back at the RIA building had been awestruck, frightened. Not by her high-class attitude or impeccable fashion sense, but by the simple, brutish power of her magic.

She couldn’t live up to those expectations, she knew. Still, she was determined to do her part, and possibly save as many people as she could while she was at it. She just hoped she could save Spike from himself.

The lights going out set everyone’s hearts pounding, and the smell of fear from everyone around her stung her nose. Only the ones she had come through the Storm with seemed calm. Calumn was watching the road with a studied cool. Trail Blazer was grinning like an idiot and whispering something to Melody, who was ignoring him in favor of mimicking Calumn. Melody actually appeared more calm than she had in a quiet, locked room. She was barely checking that her doll was in its place more than once a minute, and Rarity did not know if that boded well for her or not.

Spike looked… eager. His claws flexed as they waited, leaving little trenches in the asphalt. She did not like that look on him.

“What’s going on?” she asked, indicating the way the cops were all chattering with each other. She had been learning Lunar piece by piece as they had come south, and then while waiting for the RIA to decide what to do with them, but she wasn’t quite up to deciphering the jargon-laden police chatter.

“He’s here,” Spike replied, his voice a soft growl. “Stay down. If you’re as tough as Dash is, I don’t think a bullet can kill you, even if they get a headshot, but they can still hurt you a lot.”

“I’m hardly up to Rainbow Dash’s standards in the physical punishment department,” Rarity said, drawing the hood of her hastily-made but still well-fitted cloak up over her head. “I’ll not be taking any chances.”

He nodded. “Good. And, Rarity?”

“Yes, Spike?”

“Don’t…” he trailed off, his expression pained. “It’s gonna get ugly. Don’t hate me, okay?”

“Never,” she vowed, quietly unsure that she would be able to keep to that promise.

A shout went out, and then the night was swarming with equine figures. Light and sound burst from all around her, gun fire and police lights strobing the night between red, blue and white. Bullets fell like rain on the police car barricade, ricochets and debris spraying the air. Impacts thudded against her cloak, each one feeling like Applejack had given her a kick. She dove to the ground to get out of the line of fire, laying her ears flat against the sound. Confusion ruled, clarity coming in flashing tableaus, everything else happening too fast for her to get a grip on the big picture.

She saw a dark-clad pony try to jump over the barricade, only to be brought down by Melody. She lost sight of them for a moment, but when a flash revealed them again, she saw that the pegasus mare was tearing into the attacker with her teeth, glistening strands of torn muscle and flesh already dangling from her mouth.

She saw Calumn with his twisted horn wreathed in green fire, staring into the eyes of one of the attacking ponies. The soldier stumbled once, then slumped to the ground, asleep.

She saw a police stallion falling backwards, eyes and mouth wide with surprise while blood spurted from a neat little hole in his chest.

She saw Spike shove his claws into a mare, then literally tear her in two. She felt the blood of that pony rain down around her, but was spared the sight of the mare’s remains being flung back into the attacking soldiers.

She saw Trail Blazer reach out to trip an attacker, only to have his attempt fail, a hoof slamming into his face the reward for his efforts.

She felt more than heard it as Spike roared loud enough to rattle the windows of every nearby building, then lit the night up with a plume of emerald fire that caught at least three unlucky ponies in its deadly arc.

She saw more police ponies fall. Some shot, others stabbed by attackers who were coming in a near-suicidal rush.

Spike was bleeding, a half dozen bullets having found him. His scales had blunted their impact, but not enough to prevent injury entirely. It only seemed to enrage him further, and his claws found another attacker, doing terrible wounds to their body.

“No,” she said, unable to hear her own voice over the cacophony. Tears stung at her eyes, and she blinked them away. She forced her body to uncurl, getting her hooves under her and pushing herself upright. “No! Stop! Enough of this!” Her horn burst to incandescent life, the steady blue glow reaching out to the very edge of her range. “I said stop!” Ponies paused to look at her, and she took the opportunity presented. She wasn’t Twilight, she couldn’t teleport the combatants to opposite sides of the city, couldn’t force them to put down their weapons. She was a seamstress, and her magic was most practiced when working with clothing. Which, fortunately for her, they were all wearing.

She couldn’t separate friend from foe, so she took hold of every piece of apparel she could, stretching her power to its utmost limits. Her horn burst into greater brilliance, layers of aura expanding around it, creeping down her body until she was a living, azure bonfire. She could feel every jacket, belt, boot and strap as if she were holding them in her hooves, more than she had ever tried manipulating at once before. There was far more material than when she had demonstrated her power with the RIA soldiers, and if she tried to do the same here it would overwhelm her. What she wanted didn’t require that level of fine manipulation, though, and she had faith this wouldn’t be too much for her.

With a cry of anger and monumental effort, she tightened her grip. Every clothed pony–civilian, police or attacker–for a mile in every direction slammed into the ground as one. The blue glow of her magic covered their clothing, holding them there as securely as if they had been nailed in place. The trapped ponies struggled, but even the Strength Talents among them found that they couldn’t do more than push ineffectually at their bindings. Pegasi fell out of the air, and she had enough presence of mind to slow their fall so that they weren’t more than bruised upon impact.

Rarity stood tall, and they looked on her like they were watching the rise of a new goddess.

Spike looked around them, his eyes wide and blinking in the glare of her magic. “Wow, Rarity,” he said, scratching at his head. “You’re really pulling out the stops.”

“Just doing my part, darling,” she said, the intended bright tone of her words ruined by being forced through gritted teeth. Maintaining this level of magic was straining her concentration and energy. She took a deep breath and called up her reserves of will. She would hold everyone in place as long as it was necessary. Which, come to think of it, she had no idea how long that would be. “Spike, dear? What… what do we do now?”

“We find Cash, and we end this,” Calumn said. Unclothed, he and Trail Blazer were both free to move without interference. He hopped over the barricading car and bent down to look one of the attacking ponies in the eye. Green fire flared in both of their eyes and the soldier relaxed, face going slack. “Where is Max Cash?” Calumn asked, clearly enough that Rarity understood it.

The soldier’s mouth worked silently for a moment, then his entire body began twitching. Rarity watched in horror as he began babbling nonsense that had even Calumn frowning in confusion. Then the soldier stopped. “He has my loyalty!” he shouted. Then he stuck his tongue out between his teeth and bit it off in three quick chomps.

Calumn recoiled, horror clear in his eyes. He turned in place, looking at the other soldiers held down around him. “He has my loyalty!” another screamed as Calumn’s eyes fell on him, the cry was taken up by others, and it went the same way. They bit their tongues off, staring mad defiance at the Changeling.

Calumn watched all of this with a helpless, stricken look on his face. Rarity looked away, and found herself staring at Trail Blazer, who paused in trying to help Melody out of her trapped saddlebags to look back at her. “I can find him,” Blaze said, giving her a bloody smile. “That’s my Talent.”

“Good,” Spike said, though underneath the brusque growl Rarity could hear worried uncertainty. The actions of the soldiers were as unnerving to him as they were to everyone else. “Where is he, Blaze?”

Trail Blazer stood for a moment, eyes closed and swaying. Rarity wanted to tell him to hurry it up, that she couldn’t keep this up forever, but she knew that sometimes a pony had to focus to use their Talent. With how scatterbrained Blaze normally was, any distraction right now could be disastrous. A moment later, Blaze frowned. “Huh,” he said. “That’s probably not good.”

“What is it?” Calumn asked, coming back over the barricade. “What’s wrong?”

“Well, I guess if we want to know where Cash is, all we gotta do is stand here,” Blaze said.

“What does that mean?” Rarity asked.

“Well, I’m thinking of where to go to find Cash, and the feeling I’m getting from my Talent says ‘wait here a minute’,” Blaze said with a shrug.

Calumn’s eyes went wide. “Spike! Take out as many soldiers as you can, right now!”

“Wait, no!” Rarity gasped, but it was too late. Spike’s fire lit up the night again, flowing over the helpless ponies Rarity herself was preventing from protecting themselves. Dozens burned, screaming. “Oh, Spike, why?” she cried out. Her control wavered, but she clamped down on it even as she wondered whether she should.

He looked at her, smoke still billowing from his jaws, and she could see the pain of disappointing her in his eyes. “I’m sorry, Rarity,” he said, and in his agony he sounded more like the young Dragon she remembered than ever.

“He’s corrupted them,” Melody said, free of her saddlebags but curling protectively over her doll. “Like he did me. Believe me, Rarity, death is a kindness.”

Rarity didn’t respond, just shaking her head at the unfairness of it all.

“Look out!” Blaze shouted, pointing to the street where a heavy van was barrelling down towards them at dangerous speed. Behind the windshield was the maniacally grinning face of a brown unicorn with violet eyes, his magic sheathing him in a protective counter to her enchantment. She had never seen him before, but she knew who this had to be: Max Cash himself. On he came, heedless of the remains of his own forces held immobile in the road.

Rarity reached out to the van, and found she was already holding down half a dozen ponies within. She tried to manipulate them into interfering with Cash, but the attempt strained her control beyond its limits and she only succeeded in giving herself a flash of headache and a painful shower of sparks from her horn.

Spike grabbed her and flung her out of the way just as the van hit the barricade, smashing through in a scream of twisted metal and broken glass. It was all Rarity could do to hold on to her magic as she tumbled to the ground. The van roared past, running over police as it sped up to the front doors of the mansion and crashed through.

Rarity rolled back to her hooves and caught her bearings. First she looked for Melody, knowing the mare wouldn’t have left her doll even to save herself from being run down. Fortunately, it looked like she had been just out of the path of destruction, and was safe. Calumn and Blaze were on their sides, alive and conscious, though it looked like they had taken a hit from the bursting barricade. Spike, however, was not doing as well. The Dragon was still upright, glaring at the path the van had taken, but a twisted fragment of a police car was sticking through his left rear leg. He tried to move, but roared in pain as his leg refused to follow his commands.

“I’ll get him!” Rarity cried, turning towards the mansion. Only, something caught her eye as she turned. A moving shape on a rooftop across the street. She looked up at that shape, curious, and saw a beautiful pink pegasus holding one of the SWAT sniper rifles, its barrel trained right on her. “Oh, dear,” Rarity managed before there was a flash from the weapon and something hit her harder than a Rainbow Dash stunt gone wrong.

The world went dark, and her magic winked out.

***

Charisma crept up behind the SWAT team, careful not to alert them to her presence. She wasn’t worried about taking out the two-pony sniper crew, she’d already killed two other teams and her Talent was listing off appropriate tactics to dispatch this one with ever-increasing creativity as she took her time. No, she was more concerned with alerting the other snipers stationed around the mansion to what she was doing. The tactical gear she was wearing was bullet resistant, but sniper rifles had a tendency to render such armor moot.

It came as an utter surprise when she was suddenly surrounded by a blue glow and flattened forcefully against the roof. She struggled, trying to move, her wings flapping uselessly. For a moment she thought that she was done for, but then she noticed that the snipers were similarly held in place. The spotter of the two had seen her, and was begging his armed buddy to turn the rifle on her. He, of course, was just as unable to comply with that request.

Charisma took a deep breath and forced herself to calm. The blue glow that surrounded all of them meant this was unicorn magic, though even Telekinetic Talents would have balked at holding three ponies like this.

“Think about it,” Charisma told herself, falling into the meditative training she’d learned fighting for the Solar Crown. “Every cage has a flaw. Find it.”

Take a dagger with your wing, her Talent demanded. Throw it at the stallion looking your way. Aim for the eye to penetrate his brain.

“Not helpful,” she snarled, then paused as a thought struck her. She maneuvered her head around to look down at herself, and flapped her wings. The realization that came made her grin. The incredible magic, powerful as it was, wasn’t holding her. It was holding her clothes.

She maneuvered her wing into pulling out one of her many daggers. The effort was agonizing, both in its slowness and how it pulled her wing into an awkward position. Finally, though, she managed to get the knife to her mouth. Then she bent her neck and began cutting away the ballistic fabric. She inevitably sliced herself as well, but not deeply and not badly.

As soon as he saw her do it, the spotter caught on to the idea as well. He took a little longer to get to his knife, but once he had it he was even more desperate in cutting himself free. So it became a race. She had the head start, but he was taking greater risks, slicing himself more deeply in order to beat her.

It was a race that he won, bursting out of the remains of his uniform. Then he made a mistake, grabbing at the sniper rifle and turning it on her instead of leaping on her with the knife in his mouth. In the time it took him to do that, she had freed her forelegs. She flipped the knife up and gave it an expert kick. It whirled end over end through the air and buried itself in the spotter’s eye just as he was turning the weapon on her. He quivered in place for a moment, mouth hanging open in confused shock, then he fell over on the sniper, stalling that pony’s own efforts at freeing himself.

Charisma gasped in pleasure at the sight, then wiggled free of her remaining outfit and plucked another knife from its sheath. She sauntered over to the sniper, savoring every step. “Sorry, boys,” she said, then reached down and slashed the sniper’s throat wide open. “Bad luck.”

She let the pleasant shivers wash over her for a moment before focusing on the situation again. She peeked over the edge of the roof, seeing that absolutely everyone in sight was being held down by the same blue glow. “Damn,” she whispered, wondering what kind of power a pony would have to possess to do something like this.

She shook it off and located the pony in question. It wasn’t hard; she was a literal beacon of power, glowing so brightly that Charisma had to squint to look directly at her. She picked up the fallen sniper rifle and checked it over for damage, slipping the trigger switch into her mouth.

There was the screech of tires, and she watched as one of Cash’s vans barrelled through the police barricade. She frowned at that, it had come from where Cash had been hiding, and she had a terrible suspicion that she knew exactly who was driving the vehicle. She had never known him to be so personally reckless before, but she was beginning to realize that she didn’t really know him at all. She snarled under her breath and hefted the rifle, using the scope to track the blue-glowing unicorn mare as she tumbled away from the crash. She stilled her breath as the mare stood up, taking careful aim at her head. The glare was almost too much to see through, so she wasn’t sure she had a good kill shot, but the light also made it almost impossible that she’d miss.

At the last second the mare seemed to sense her, looking right up at where Charisma stood. Shoot her, her Talent whispered, and she saw no reason not to. The rifle bucked and the unicorn was thrown backwards to the ground, the blue glow winking out from around her and every other pony in the area like a light had been switched off.

Charisma waited for the rush of pleasure, but it didn’t come. She frowned at that, but shook it off as she realized that with the paralyzing magic gone the other sniper teams would be getting up, and probably targeting her. Fortunately, she knew where they were set up, so she had the drop on them. She brought the rifle up and fired six more times, each shot accompanied by the usual flush of shivering joy flooding through her.

By the time she had taken care of the snipers, the fighting had resumed below. It was more subdued than before, a large number of combatants on both sides either dead or too injured to fight. More would fall before it was all over. The very thought made her pulse quicken and warm tingles rush through her body.

She spent a moment strapping on a pair of knives before she went back to observing the battle. She sighted with the rifle’s scope, scanning across the fractured police lines. Combat was degenerating into hoof-to-hoof fighting, which put her side at the advantage with their greater experience and training. Still, there were pockets of serious resistance that could still turn the tide. The most obvious one was the Dragon, Spike, a living flame thrower who tore apart anyone that came close and immolated those who didn’t. He was clearly injured, dragging one leg as he clawed his way across the mansion’s lawn to the downed super-unicorn. He crouched over her, touching her face with a tenderness that Charisma would have thought impossible from such brutal claws.

Now that she could see more of the mare, she looked terribly familiar. She reminded Charisma of the statue she’d seen in Spike’s cave. Same shape, same colors, though this one was clearly flesh and blood. Charisma spent a long moment examining the mare through the rifle’s scope, then turned her attention back to the Dragon. She knew that she’d need a very good shot to take him out, even with such a powerful weapon. She sighted in on his eye.

Her heart leapt into her throat. He was looking right at her. His mouth was open, emerald fire already roaring out of his throat and right at her. She fired, but her shot had been fouled and went wide. He didn’t even flinch as the bullet cracked by inches from his face. She dropped the rifle, wings flapping as she leapt from the rooftop. It exploded behind her, the heat scorching her tail and flinging her head over hooves through the air.

Her spin was only out of control for a moment before her dancer’s poise asserted itself and she turned it from a headlong tumble into a graceful spin. She angled her fall, arcing to drop directly on top of the Dragon, who was just recovering from using his fire. He twisted, smoking jaws gaping to snap at her. She grinned.

She landed with her hooves placed on the tips of Spike’s open snout. He tried to rear back, but pegasus speed beat Draconic reaction times. She took a knife in her teeth and drove it down into the softer tissues. The angle was wrong for her to shove the blade up into his brain, so she settled for nailing his tongue to the bottom of his mouth.

He roared in pain and she tumbled down his side. The debris sticking out of his leg was too good a target to pass up, so she kicked it as she went by, hearing his cry climb a couple registers. She rolled to a stop several paces from him. Do not let him catch you standing still, her Talent urged, and she let it guide her. She leapt to the side as he practically fell towards her, claws reaching out and tearing at the ground where she had been a moment before.

She danced around him, the thrill of it all singing in her heart. A cop tried to lunge at her, but he was slow and clumsy. She slashed his throat in passing without missing a step or taking her attention from the Dragon. “You know, I knew you’d be coming for us,” she said, waiting for the opening she knew would come. “I just didn’t expect you to show up here.” Spike growled, blood and smoke pouring in streams from between his lips as he watched her warily. “Oh, right, the tongue thing.” She laughed, eyes sharp in the flashing light as she examined him for weaknesses. One stood out immediately, but she kept looking for others. “I guess that cuts bantering options, doesn’t it?” The bullet holes in his scales looked like good entry points. She wouldn’t be able to penetrate her remaining knife far enough to kill, but she could incapacitate if she used it right.

“You shouldn’t have come,” she continued, letting her Talent guide her steps to get her into a better position. “You know who I am. You know what I do. Hell, you saw what Cash is capable of, personally. What did you expect was going to happen? Was it just Draconic pride?” She faked a lunge to one side, then shot directly at him. He took the bait, but was experienced enough not to leave himself open. His arms went up to counter any blow she could make, an exchange which would favor him and his stone-rending talons over her and her single combat knife. Still, he was off balance enough that he couldn’t react when she passed him by entirely and slid to a halt next to the prone white unicorn. She grinned at him and held her knife above the mare’s throat. “Or was it all for her?”

She saw the terror in his eyes. She flushed in triumph, knowing what that fear would drive him to do. He lunged for her, the move made far too awkward by his injured leg. Better for her, he couldn’t afford to injure the unicorn mare by falling on her with his deadly talons, limiting his angles. She pirouetted around his slashing claw, ducked inside his fumbling reach, and slammed her knife into one of the bullet wounds on his chest. The blade sank in right to the hilt, and she felt it thrum in time with the beating of his heart. He froze in shock, and she took the opportunity to rip the knife out and slide it into another wound in his back, near his spine. This one glanced off heavy bone, and she could feel the blade bending. Giving up on retrieving the weapon she flipped backwards, kicking the hilt to snap it off the blade, leaving the length of steel embedded in the Dragon’s back. He collapsed, wrapped protectively around the fallen unicorn. Alive, but out of the fight.

She rolled back to her hooves just in time to dodge a chitinous black hoof. She spun around, wings snapping out to distract her new opponent as she lashed out with her forehooves. She met nothing but air as the Changeling buzzed up and back, coming to land a good yard out of her reach. She paused for a moment, examining the insectile horror. “Well, I should have expected at least one of you to show up. So, you want to test the Kingdom’s best close-quarters training against yours?”

“I don’t think that will be necessary,” the Changeling said, his eyes lighting with a sick green glow.

Charisma wagged a hoof at him. “Bad idea. I’ve got Griffin countermeasure training.” He paused at that, uncertainty clouding his glowing gaze. “You try something up here,” she tapped her head, “and I’ll probably go berserk. No telling who I’ll kill, really, but you are absolutely going to be first on that list.”

She could see the indecision, though it looked like he still might try it anyway. She didn’t give him the opportunity. She launched herself at him, the edge of a hoof leading. He tried to dodge, but she anticipated the motion. She smashed into him, sending them both sprawling. A part of her training in the Kingdom had been specifically on how to disable Changelings, and she never forgot a lesson. Her hooves found the joins between plates of his chitin, and with a cry of effort she pried them apart. He screamed, doubled voice hitting two different pitches at once as she essentially tore a hunk of his skin off the muscle beneath.

Disabled by the pain, he put up only feeble resistance as she stomped down on his face again and again. Blood leaked from cracks that spiderwebbed out from the impacts. She let out a delighted laugh and dug her hooves into his neck, squeezing the airway shut as she gloried in the anticipation of another death at her hooves.

“Charisma.” The voice cut through the singing pleasure and stopped her cold. “Hey, uh, would you mind, um, not killing my buddy there?”

She spun, and there he was. His face was covered in blood both from a nasty-looking gash on his forehead and from his torn and bruised lips. Still, he smiled for her. Her breath caught and she let go of the broken Changeling. “Blaze,” she said.

“Yeah,” he said, his smile turning sheepish. “So I hear you killed, like, a whole town. That’s a new one for you.”

“What are you doing here?” she asked, shaking her head.

“I’m with them,” he indicated her fallen opponents. “They needed a ride through the Storm and, well, I kinda wanted to see you again.”

Her nostrils flared, trying to separate the scent of him from the blood and gunpowder smells of the battlefield. “You shouldn’t be here.”

“Yeah, I’m really no good at this stuff,” he said, chuckling. She shivered at the sound; she wanted to hear that laugh while she broke his bones. Ached for it. “But, look, no matter how good you are at it, you shouldn’t be here either. This is all just him getting crazier. He’s gonna kill you, Charisma. Not in a fight, but with a knife in the back.”

“One of these days,” she replied, stepping away from the Changeling and towards Trail Blazer.

It was his turn to shake his head, but his smile didn’t fade. “You don’t want to die. I know you, better than anyone. Better than yourself, maybe. You’re not suicidal.”

“No, I’m not,” she agreed, then laughed. It was a bitter, broken laugh. “I don’t want to die, Blaze. I want everyone else to die. I want to kill every pony, Dog, zebra, Griffin or Dragon in the whole wide world, and he’s promised me the chance to do it.” Her face fell. In her mind’s eye she saw her nightmare again, and the streak of rainbow light that offered her salvation. “Or the chance to die trying.”

“That’s kinda unlikely,” Blaze said, his smile turned sad.

“You haven’t seen what I have, Blaze,” Charisma said. “The power he’s gained, it’s incredible! I think… I think he can do anything, now. Soon, he’ll be unstoppable. Soon, I… I’ll get my chance.”

Blaze sighed. “You know, I can’t really let you do that. There’s this distinction I make, between extortion and robbery. For one, you give the person a chance. A chance to negotiate or refuse to do what you want, even if the consequences are pretty bad. For the other, you’re just taking what you want, never giving the other side that chance. What you do normally? The whole fighting thing? You give them a chance. I’ve seen you, you give chances to surrender or run away or never fight at all. What Cash has got you doing? What you say you want to do? That’s robbery, and it’s wrong. I like the people in this world a whole lot. All of them, even the jerks and the bullies and the radio DJs who won’t play my favourite song even when I request it, like, a hundred times a day. I’ve got friends, Charisma, and I can’t let you rob them of their lives. Not even… not even if I do love you in a weird, serious-therapy-needing sort of way.”

“Love?” she repeated. The word brought her up short. She couldn’t remember him ever telling her that before. She could barely remember anyone telling her that since she was a filly. Since the day she had earned her Glyph, and the last pony to say he loved her had become her first victim. She tried to shake the memory away, though it refused to go easily. She forced out a laugh. “Blaze, you wonderful stallion. I know you’re trying to distract me.”

“Is it working?” he asked with a wide grin.

“Hardly,” she replied, smirking back. “You can’t stop me, Blaze. You know you don’t have the strength.”

He chuckled. “Yeah, I’d just get my flank kicked through the nearest wall. But I still… uh, what’s up with that?” he asked, staring past her.

Charisma wouldn’t have looked normally, but there was a subtle change in the light, a shift in the atmosphere that told her he wasn’t trying some stupid bluff. She turned and looked towards where the fallen super-unicorn was sitting up and looking towards the mansion, her eyes burning with a pure white light. “What the he–” she never got to finish as Blaze barrelled into her side.

It was an inept attack, completely unable to do more than shove her a few yards back. Yet that was enough. She was so shocked that he had actually attacked her that she didn’t even realize where he was pushing her until it was too late and she had stumbled into Spike’s reach.

The claws felt like ice as they dug into her flank, tearing past muscle and grinding against bone. She stared into Blaze’s yellow eyes as he gave her an apologetic smile. “Can’t let you do it, Charisma,” he said, then jumped back out of her reach.

She twisted, pulling off the Dragon’s talons, tearing her flank even more but freeing herself to get away. Her wings flapped hard, trying to lift her away from the scaled mass of muscle and death. He reached for her with his claws again, but she dodged out of their way, only to find herself in the path of his lashing tail instead.

The flat of the spaded tail hit her with bone-shattering force, throwing her across the mansion’s yard and back into the street, rolling until she came up hard against the remains of the police barricade. She lay still for a long moment before sucking in a gasp of air that only made her entire side begin screaming in incredible pain. Still, it meant she was alive. She tested her good legs, trying to lift herself off the ground. She almost made it, but then a hideous cough wracked through her, splattering blood on the street. She collapsed into a heaving, coughing ball of pink agony. She knew that her only hope of survival now lay in whether or not Max Cash still needed her.

In the midst of her pain, all she wanted to do was laugh. Top marks, Blaze, she thought. He was always telling jokes and acting ridiculous, but somehow this struck her as the funniest thing he’d ever done.

***

Hard Boiled had never seen anything like this. He’d participated in raids before, some of which had gotten pretty damned ugly, but this was a small war. Captain Rivers had gotten hit by a lucky shot early on, and HB had to drag him to shelter with bullets whizzing all around them. He had been lucky so far, only a grazing wound that stung like a bastard, but wasn’t bleeding badly or impairing him in any way. He emptied his revolver into the attackers again and again, burning through his supply of bullets until he was down to just one chamber and a prayer.

Then the blue glow had enveloped everything and mashed everyone into the ground like the hoof of Luna coming down and declaring a time-out. He had no idea what it was, but he remembered Calumn talking about Rarity as some ancient hero reborn. Another impossible mare to add to the list, if she ever deigned to let him up again.

When the magical hold did end, it came with the shriek of broken metal and a van smashing through the front doors of the mansion. Knowing the confusion that must have been going on inside, HB wasted no time in pulling himself up and running to the breach.

He squeezed past the van, hearing voices from the other end. One of them was the same voice he’d heard coming from the radio before the chaos began.

“Hey, Alan,” Cash said, his voice incongruously friendly and jovial as the sounds of combat resumed outside. “It’s been a long time, huh?”

“You son of a bitch!” the Senator snarled back. “You’re not getting away with it this time! You’re going to hang for this!” Cash laughed and Hard Boiled edged around the side of the van, taking in the scene.

The officers HB had left with Birchfield were gathered next to the pink statue, using it and the rest of the artful decorations as cover. Their weapons were out and trained on six of Cash’s soldiers who stood arrayed in the middle of the foyer in front of the smashed van. Cash was just behind them, grinning at the Senator. The standoff wasn’t good odds for the cops, and HB’s magic was pointing out all the cues that they were ready to surrender. Except from Traduce, who was determined and furious.

“Hang?” Cash scoffed. “Me? I kinda doubt it. I’ve got about half the judiciary in my pocket. At the very least the appeals process will go on for a decade. Then we’d get into the blackmail, and the assassinations and the PR campaigns. It just sounds so exhausting, really. Hey, why don’t we skip all that, and instead I just take that pretty little necklace there and go on my merry way. I’ll even let you keep the statue.”

HB stepped out from behind the van and put his revolver to Cash’s head. “Why don’t you tell your boys to put their guns down?” He clicked the hammer back. “Slowly.”

The soldiers whirled to look at him, and he could see the madness in their eyes. He knew instantly that they would die for Max Cash, and knew that devotion was already eating them up from the inside. It was like looking at a victim of a flesh-eating plague, seeing the wounds, open and oozing, and knowing there was no help for them, that they were condemned to a slow, agonizing death. He felt his gorge rise at the sight, but swallowed it down and kept his composure. He pressed the revolver’s muzzle harder into Cash’s head.

For his part, Cash’s disturbing smile never wavered. HB’s magic was telling him nothing about the stallion that he couldn’t see with his unaided eyes. “Wow,” Cash said, and he almost sounded pleased. “This was unexpected. Hello, Lieutenant. How were the jungles? Hot? Sticky? Lots of insects, I’m guessing.”

“You should probably think about shutting up,” HB said. “You are under arrest. Anything you say here is admissible as evidence against you in court. Assuming you ever make it that far.”

“I’m only asking because I’m planning to head down that way next,” Cash continued as if Hard Boiled hadn’t said anything. “So I’m wondering how much bug spray I’ll really need. I’m hoping it’s not a lot. It makes my coat feel all greasy and, well, I don’t have to tell you how unpleasant that is.”

HB grit his teeth in annoyance. “You’re not going anywhere, you sick asshole. You have the right to legal representation during questioning as well as before the courts. You will be expected to pay for this representation, either out of your own pocket or through garnishment of any future earnings. If convicted, you will be required to work off any debt incurred during your trial before they get around to putting a rope around your neck. Do you understand what I’ve just told you?”

“It was pretty clear,” Cash said, unperturbed. “It’s just like they say it in the movies.”

“If you understood,” Hard Boiled growled. “Then why haven’t you told your soldiers to put their damn guns down!?”

“Whoa, take it easy there, Lieutenant,” Cash said with a chuckle. “You’ve got the power here, right? You’ve got your gun pressed to my head, after all.”

HB’s horn flared as his magic was hit with a lie so powerful it blew past Traduce’s protection and sent a spike of agony into his brain. His vision doubled, and he saw Cash both standing still with a gun to his head, and slipping to the side. Across the room, Traduce cried out and fell to the floor, green fire licking over her as her disguise melted away. HB could barely think through the pain, but he managed to pull the trigger. The bullet went through one image of Cash and grazed the other one. The one who had moved reacted in surprised pain, while the one who had stood still didn’t move at all.

The soldiers took this as their cue to act. Three opened fire on the cops, who began shooting back. One turned and smashed a hoof into HB’s face. It caught his horn, and the world vanished behind the blinding pain.

When he was able to think again, he found he was being tied up. He was still too feeble to fight back, and so could do nothing as his legs were secured and he was thrown next to Birchfield and Traduce by the stairs. The other officers, the ones who had fought, were dead. They had given better than they got, though, as four of the soldiers were also down, leaving only two to stand guard on Max Cash. Birchfield was unconscious, and his breathing ragged as he bled from a bullet wound in his side. He’d need a hospital before the night was out, or he wouldn’t survive. Traduce looked beat up, but not seriously injured. They’d strapped her down more securely than they had him, wary of her shapeshifting abilities. She was watching the scene with furious eyes as HB was set down next to her.

Cash was standing in the middle of the room, examining the bleeding trench in his back left by HB’s bullet. “That... wow, that was a close one,” he said, then launched into a loud, braying laugh that made HB wince. The laughter cut off suddenly and Cash strode over to where HB lay. “You almost saw through it, didn’t you?” He grinned and shook his head. “And you were using the Changeling to augment your magic, weren’t you?” He kicked at Traduce, who glared back at him with hate-filled green eyes. “That’s just, well… if we get the chance later, you have got to show me how that magic of yours works. I was a fan of yours before this, but, damn, I wasn’t giving you enough credit.”

Hard Boiled gave him a steady glare. “What now, Cash? I know how you get the necklaces. So, are you planning to kill us and take the Element?”

He shrugged. “Well, not you. She might work.” He grinned at Traduce, and something in that smile made her flinch back. “How about it, sweetie? You’re too tied up with him for me to tell if you’ve got all the qualifications, but if you’re mad enough at me we can give it a shot.” She said nothing, but didn’t drop her glare. “No? Yes? Nah, you don’t feel like the right one.” He paused, then let out a giggle. “‘Tied up with him’. Sorry, I swear that pun was completely unintentional.”

“There are others,” HB said. “They won’t take too long mopping up your thugs out there, and then it’s just going to be the three of you against every cop the OCPD can muster, as well as a Luna-damned Dragon! You think you can survive that?”

He sighed, giving HB a companionable nod. “Yeah, not really my original plan. Believe you me, I wanted this whole thing to have a lot more certainty to it. But then one thing led to another and my original plan was murdered. So now I’m running on blind faith and positive thinking.”

This was going nowhere. “They’re going to kill you,” Traduce said.

“Wanna bet?” he asked with a grin. “I mean that, wanna bet? I lost my last gambling buddies in a pair of fortunate digging incidents. I didn’t think I’d miss them until poker night rolled around and there was only Charisma to play with. Do you know what it’s like gambling with her? Boring. She barely even cheats!”

Traduce blinked up at him, completely unable to gauge his actions.

There was a cry from one of the soldiers, and they all turned their heads to watch as he was brought down from behind by Melody Drop. The dirty, frazzled pegasus mare had latched onto him with one foreleg across his throat. Her muscles stood out clearly as she brought her manic strength to bear. The other soldier turned towards her, and with a snarl of effort she brought the weapon of the soldier she was fighting to bear on the other one. Then she punched the soldier in the jaw, activating the trigger that sent a hail of bullets at her target. The second soldier fell in a spray of blood, and with a dry snap that could be heard across the foyer she broke the neck of the first one.

She let the body fall to the ground, panting for breath and staring at Cash with an expression of such hatred that HB didn’t need magic to see the murder in her eyes.

“Damn,” Cash said, shaking his head as he looked at his downed soldiers. “You guys really were not worth what I paid for you.”

“You,” Melody hissed, lips pulling back in an animalistic snarl.

“Me!” Cash replied with a bright grin. His words were in Solar, but HB’s magic was providing a good enough translation of their meaning that he could follow it clearly. “From Precious Corners, right?” He laughed. “Is everyone going to show up tonight?” He turned to Hard Boiled, his expression terrifyingly earnest. “Please tell me Rainbow Dash is around here somewhere.”

“You killed my master!” Melody shrieked. “You did this to me!”

“I didn’t kill anyone there,” Max protested, sounding genuinely offended. Then he smirked. “Except Bright Lantern. I absolutely killed him. Oh, and maybe I burned a bunch of people to death too, but I didn’t really confirm those ones, so they don’t count.” Melody screamed and launched herself into the air. “Okay! They count! They count!”

She dropped at him, her wings pumping to give speed to her fall. He tried to dodge to the side, but wasn’t fast enough, and her hoof struck him in the shoulder. His leg crumpled and he sprawled out on the ground as Melody tumbled to a halt. She was up in a flash, screaming as she pummeled him with her hooves. Cash tried to scramble away from her, but she kept up with him. His horn flared, creating magenta shields that warded off Melody’s blows but did nothing to slow her assault.

“So, I’m guessing High Fashion kicked the bucket, huh?” he wheezed, spitting blood between words.

“You killed him,” Melody growled, spinning around and bucking at a shield until it shattered.

Cash dragged himself back even farther, edging towards the statue garden at the center of the foyer. “Actually, I think you’ll find he killed himself.” He frowned, uncertainty crossing his face for the first time in the encounter. “Didn’t he?”

“You sent Charisma to kill him,” Melody spat. Tears were dropping from her eyes as she looked away from Cash, and HB tracked her gaze to where a small unicorn doll was tucked away in a corner of the room, well away from the violence. “You broke his mind and then had her break his neck! And you made me… you made me…” With a wail she returned to her wild attacks on Cash’s shields, each blow sending new cracks through his magic. HB was surprised they were standing up to the punishment at all; Cash had to be an incredibly strong Magic Talent to make shields that tough.

Cash had seen where her gaze had gone as well, though, and his face lit up with understanding. “Yes. Yes I did,” he chuckled.

“He’s lying!” HB called out, but he didn’t know enough Solar to make her understand.

“You know why?” Cash continued. Melody responded with a snarl and another kick at his shield. “‘Cause it was fun. So fun, in fact, that I think I’ll do it again.” He pushed himself up against the base of the pink statue and let his shield drop. Melody reared back to land a double-hoof blow against his prone form, but then she froze in place. Cash’s magic had reached across the room, grabbing hold of the doll and flinging it to hang between the two of them.

HB could see the terror in Melody. Her muscles were so rigid he worried that they might snap. Her eyes were wide, mad. He’d seen the same madness in Cash’s soldiers, but in her it had changed. It wasn’t something that would eat her alive, but it would still drive her to destroy herself. A lot of that madness was focused on the doll, on something it represented to her.

“Loyalty’s a powerful thing,” Cash said, grinning up at her. “There’s a reason I had to get it first. It can make you do things that you never would on your own, great and terrible things, just because you feel obligated, you feel bound, to someone else. You sunland ponies understand that better than we do in the Republics, I’m sure. But it’s got its weaknesses. For instance, what happens if the object of your loyalty, I don’t know, gets ripped in half?”

Cash’s magic twisted, and the doll tore. Fabric and fluff scattered out around them. Melody’s eyes went wide and stricken. Then blood rushed to them and she let out a scream of such primal agony and rage that Hard Boiled recoiled from the sound. “You!” she roared, the word mangled and barely comprehensible. She struck out, her hooves landing on Cash with meaty thuds. He curled up, forelegs covering his head. She struck out again and again, not placing her blows carefully or with any purpose, merely to hurt him as much as possible. “Kill you!” she screamed, over and over again. Blood flew as her hooves began breaking through flesh. Cash didn’t even try to strike back, reduced to flinching and shaking with every hit. Melody reared up for another smashing blow with all her weight behind it. “I hate you!”

Cash’s horn flared, wrapping Melody’s forehooves in magenta light. When she brought them down, they didn’t strike him, instead redirected to touch the blue gemstone that hung at the statue’s throat. The gem flashed, so quickly that HB wasn’t sure he had actually seen it. Melody gasped, her anger at Cash momentarily forgotten as some new sensation swept through her, a feeling that HB’s magic found wholly alien. So it was that she didn’t see when Cash shifted, then slammed his horn into her gut.

She twitched from the impact, looking down at him. Then her back exploded in a shower of blood and magenta light. She fell away to sprawl on the floor, panting and alive, but not for much longer.

Cash tried to get up, failed, then tried again. He managed to clamber to his hooves, but moved with the agonized care of someone whose body was not following directions. “I hadn’t even thought of you,” he said, spitting blood and staggering to her side. “Never considered that you would be an option. Honestly? I don’t even remember your name. But you know what? I knew someone was coming.” He reached for her, batting away her feeble attempt to ward him off. With slow, lurching steps he dragged her back towards the statue.

“You’ve done enough!” HB snarled. “She’s dead already, just take what you want and go!”

Cash gave him a hard stare, the smile and irreverent cheer gone from his face. “There’s a process to this, Lieutenant. And a price to pay.” He shoved Melody up against the base of the statue, where he had lay moments earlier. “It’s not enough that she die. She has to know why.” He slapped at Melody a few times, getting her eyes to focus on him even as she bled out of the gaping hole in her middle. “I knew someone would come. I knew it not because I had planned for you to be here, or because I’m somehow in control of these grand events. No, I knew it because I hadn’t planned for it. I knew it because I’m not in control. This isn’t my story. I’m not the hero, but neither am I the villain. I’m just like you, in fact. Just like them.” He waved to indicate both his dead soldiers and the trio of bound ponies. “I’m a puppet. I’m just another fucking plaything for the real villains. Freedom is a joke, and choice is an illusion. In the end there’s only a hoofful of ponies who can honestly say that they’ve ever actually had one, and most of them never even realized it. Me? I want to be one of them. I want myself to matter. But I can’t ever do that unless those same forces that are pulling the strings want to let me. I am at their mercy, just like every other sucker in the whole damn universe. You know how I feel about that?” He put his face very close to hers, his voice dropping to a hoarse whisper. “I hate it.”

Then he reared up in a mirror of how Melody had stood over him earlier and let out a cry of anger that resonated with Hard Boiled’s magic in a strange way, like he was speaking with many voices at once. “I hate it!” He brought his hooves down, smashing them into Melody’s chest. Her ribs broke, but worse was the shift in pressure that ended whatever stasis was keeping her first wound from killing her. She lurched, blood bubbling out of her mouth, then fell limp. Dead. Cash, his own energy spent, fell down next to her body, taking short, gasping breaths.

There was a subtle click, and the necklace fell from the statue, bouncing from the dead Melody to land in front of Cash. He let out a weak chuckle, reaching for it. HB reacted first, his telekinesis grabbing the necklace and dragging it across the floor. It felt strange. Slick, like his magic was sliding off of it. He couldn’t get a good grip, but it was enough to keep it from Cash’s grasp.

Then Cash’s magic reached out, and it became a tug-of-war between them. Cash was stronger by far, but he was beaten and exhausted. HB poured his concentration into his magic, but as much as he pulled, he couldn’t overcome Cash’s power. Then a flare of green fire joined the copper and magenta, and he was rewarded with the necklace sliding a few inches closer to him.

“Oh, you would make this difficult, wouldn’t you?” Cash groaned. “Don’t worry, I’ve got something for this.”

“I… can’t keep this up for long,” Traduce snarled, the glow of her magic already fading. “Don’t have… the energy.”

“Take it… from me,” HB growled through gritted teeth. She gave him a questioning look, but he shook his head. “We can’t let him have that necklace. Take it from me. As much as you can!”

He felt the connection between them open up. Her magic sent tendrils out from the place in his mind where his pain lived, seeking the truly nourishing emotions that he had kept sealed away from her influence. A part of him recoiled from the invasion, but he steeled his will, and forced his heart open to her.

They hadn’t known each other long, and his nature and hers were antithetical. That wasn’t fertile ground to build a relationship that could nourish a Changeling. Yet nearly every moment of the last month had been spent in her company, and they had shared so much in that time. He had let his defenses down with her, and he had seen her be more honest with him than he thought she ever had been before. In all honesty, he saw that her words to him in his apartment a month-long lifetime ago had been true: opposites did attract.

It wasn’t love, not yet, but it was something. It was friendship. It was enough.

Traduce’s magic flared back to its full light as she drank in his honest feelings for her. The necklace skittered along the ground, coming to rest right next to Hard Boiled. He rolled, dropping his weight on it and preventing Cash from trying to take it back. Traduce let out a cry of pained effort, and in a burst of green fire her limbs sprouted saw-edged chitin blades. She shook, twisting her legs to cut through the bindings, which snapped with a trio of whipcord cracks. HB almost expected her to go after Cash, but instead she grabbed hold of him and began dragging him into the hallway deeper into the mansion. He clutched the necklace tight as she pulled him, staring hard into the surprised eyes of Max Cash.

“Aw, come on, guys!” Cash called after them, slowly forcing himself upright. “Come back! Let’s talk about this!” Traduce shoved open the door to the study, then dragged Hard Boiled inside as Cash’s voice carried after them. “Pretty please? I’ve got cookies!”

Traduce slammed the heavy door shut and threw the bolt closed, blocking him out.

“Thank you,” HB said, squeezing the necklace tight.

“Thank you,” Traduce replied. HB could see the desire to kiss him in her eyes, but she abstained, instead rushing over and using her sharpened limbs to saw at his bindings. “That door won’t hold him off for long.”

Hard Boiled glanced around the room. “Window,” he said. “We run. He’ll never be able to find us out there.”

“You sure about that?” she asked as she broke the last strap and freed him.

He paused for a moment, letting his magic check his logic for flaws. Then he nodded. “Oh yeah. I’m sure.”

She grinned, helping him up to his hooves. “We did it.”

“We did it,” he said, with a determined nod. Then together they hefted one of the overstuffed chairs and threw it through a window.

***

Rarity had the worst headache she could ever remember having. Worse, her coat was covered in blood and it was going to take hours of scrubbing to get it back to its natural shine.

She leaned against Spike’s side, listening to the Dragon’s labored breathing and feeling the incredible heat of his body. He had passed out not long after she had regained consciousness, succumbing to his own terrible injuries. She wished she could do something for him, but she could barely focus her eyes, let alone even attempt to move or do something with her magic. So she lay there and waited for help to come.

The fighting noise had died down to a few sporadic cracks of gunfire. She couldn’t tell which side had won, but she supposed that her continued survival was a good sign. The only pony who seemed mobile was Trail Blazer, and he was busy getting Calumn to safety.

A commotion near the mansion made her look in that direction, the motion making the world swing wildly in her vision and her stomach lurch with sudden nausea. She saw a group of soldiers helping a limping unicorn stallion past the van lodged in the doors. He looked beat up, his brown coat and grey mane stained with blood. She remembered that stallion from somewhere, but she couldn’t quite put her hoof on it.

“Orders, sir?” one of the soldiers asked.

“How many do we have left?” the stallion asked.

The soldier hesitated before answering. “Not many, sir.”

The stallion chuckled. “Then I guess sending out search parties to find a Changeling and an obstinate police detective are out of the question?” The soldier nodded. “Oh, well. Where’s Charisma?”

“She’s badly injured, sir.”

“What, again?” The stallion shook his head incredulously. “That’s it. I’m instituting a three-strike policy for her, and that was strike number two. I assume she’s getting evacuated?”

“Yes, sir. What do you want us to do now?”

“I want you to– hold up a sec,” the stallion turned his purple eyes on Rarity. There was an intensity in them that sent a chill down to her core. “Is that Rarity?” Her guts tightened, and she tried to sink deeper into Spike’s side. “I wondered about that epic magic earlier, but this?” He let out a wild, braying laugh that devolved into a fit of coughing. When it had subsided he allowed himself a small chuckle instead. “You know Rainbow Dash is back too, right?”

“Max… Cash,” Rarity said, putting a name to the face.

“You know me!” he crowed, then coughed a few times before speaking again. “I mean, I know I’m famous in some circles, but, guys, the Rarity knows my name!” The soldiers looked at each other in confusion, unsure of how to respond to their employer’s words. “Aw, forget it, I bet none of you grunts follow fashion anyways. Look, Rarity, I’d love to stay and chat. You have no idea how much. But I’m gonna need a transfusion or something, and my right-hoof mare is gonna need another dose of the old healing touch. Just find me, alright? I’ve got something for you.” He gave her a wink that made her shiver, then directed his soldiers to carry him away from the battlefield.

Rarity watched them go, then spent a long time staring the way they went as sirens filled the night and more and more emergency response ponies made their way to the bloody mansion grounds. She didn’t resist as she was put on a stretcher and loaded into one of the ambulances. She merely requested in her broken Lunar to be sent to the same hospital as Spike. They assured her she would be, and she lay back and accepted their care.

In her mind, she kept going over what had happened. The events of the night horrified her, to depths that she suspected would become more apparent as her head injury healed. Yet it was the brief meeting with Max Cash that truly stuck out to her as the most terrible. There had been something in his eyes, in his voice, that triggered the worst sort of dread in her. It cut through the muddled thoughts of her concussion and struck right to the core of her being. She owed Rainbow Dash and Spike an apology, she hadn’t really understood the vehemence with which her friends had spoken about Cash before.

Now, though, she knew. Cash had to be stopped. No matter what.

Chapter 30: Resonance

The connection between the Elements and their Bearers, as well as between the Bearers themselves, is permanent once they have gone through a Harmony Event together. By permanent, I mean that it cannot be broken, removed, altered or lessened by any force in existence. Not even the Elements themselves can change this, the reasons for which will be made clear in a later section of this book.

This permanent bond is part of what makes it so easy to detect the connections between Bearers post-Event. These bonds emit a kind of resonance, a constant feedback loop of energy between the Bearers and the Elements. With the proper application of magic this resonance becomes clear for anypony who cares to look for it. It cannot be broken, but it can be, for lack of a better term, strummed.

Discovering this resonance has made positive identification of my friends much easier in cases of illusion magic or Changeling infiltration. I am also happy to say it works just as well with Proxy Bearers, including a slightly different quality to the resonance that distinguishes them from True Bearers.

There may be other effects that result from such literally unbreakable bonds, but thus far I have been unable to discern them.

-From the fifth section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Thirty: Resonance

The screaming clouds of the Everstorm fell away behind Star Fall, revealing a still forest, the leaves of the trees edged in the light of the pre-dawn glow. She stumbled as she walked into that almost dream-like scene, the transition between the Storm and the rest of the world–always disorienting–somehow worse than ever. The encounter with the Nightmare had hurt her, and she had a lot of thinking to do before she could put it behind her.

Her protective spell-sheet burst into flames as she lost control of the magic she was feeding into it. Her companions were, fortunately, already exiting the Storm, and the loss of her protection didn’t harm them. She heard them behind her, but couldn’t focus on their voices. She stood still for a long moment, trying to keep control of her breathing as a pit of hunger opened up within her. She needed food, and fast. Her vision doubled for a moment, forcing her to blink hard until it resolved into one image again. She tried to move, but she felt her knees begin to give way. She locked her legs out straight, keeping upright through stubborn force of will.

An orange face swam through the dizzying world to look her in the eye. “You okay there, sugarcube?” Star Fall shook her head, an ill-advised motion as it turned out. Everything tilted for a moment, and then Applejack’s hoof was on her shoulder, steadying her. “Come on, you need a good sit-down.”

“No,” Star Fall mumbled, attempting, and failing, to brush Applejack’s hoof away. Her ears swiveled as she heard the piercing sound of Astrid’s angry voice. “What’s happening? Why are they shouting?”

Applejack frowned. “‘Cause they’re both a pair of hotheads who can’t let a thing lie while their friend’s in trouble, that’s why.”

Star Fall turned and saw Astrid and Rainbow Dash facing each other just at the edge of the Storm. Both of them had their wings wide and aggressive. Dash had her forelegs bent low to the ground, as if ready to charge or take flight, and Astrid was reared back, her talons spread on the ground.

“And I still want to know what the hell were you thinking!” Astrid snarled, snapping her beak in fury.

“I told you!” Dash snapped back. “She was gonna kill Twilight! I couldn’t just stand there and watch it happen!”

“So you just decide to run at her like an idiot?” Astrid scoffed. “Yeah, why not go supersonic right next to normal people in a place that is actively trying to kill them? Sounds reasonable to me!”

“It was my friend, Astrid!”

“It was a fucking statue!” Astrid roared.

“So was I!”

Astrid opened her beak to respond, but after a moment just let out an angry huff and backed off. As soon as she did, Dash’s wings drooped and her pained eyes fell to the forest floor. “I’m sorry,” Dash said. “I didn’t think–”

“Yeah, I got that,” Astrid interrupted. “You have to be more careful! A stunt like that…” She paused to shake her head and growl. “It was like a grenade going off, Dash. Do you know what that does to people?”

“No, I don’t.” Dash folded her wings, turning away from Astrid. “Look, I know I screwed up, alright? I want to make it better. What do I do?”

“You use your fucking head next time!” Astrid snapped.

“Astrid!” Star Fall said. She stepped between the two, trying to use her wings to move her faster. That turned out to be another mistake, as the energy she used for the few feeble flaps she managed ate more deeply into her reserves of strength than she would have imagined. Still, she persevered. “Stop it, both of you. Astrid, Dash knows what she did wrong. You don’t need to keep attacking her over it. Not now. Dash, I know why you did it. I understand what you were feeling. But you should have known it wouldn’t work.” She took a deep breath, her thoughts beginning to fall apart at the edges. “There was nothing any of us could have done to prevent what Umbra did. It’s painfully obvious to me that every time we’ve fought her, she’s let us win.”

“But Star–” Dash began, but Star Fall cut her off.

“No. She’s playing with us.” Star Fall fought back the painful hunger and the soul-deep weariness to keep her train of thought going. “She’s using us as part of whatever her plan is.”

“How can you be sure?” Astrid asked.

“If it was just Umbra, I wouldn’t be. I’d still be thinking of her as a dark Goddess, ineffable in her designs. Now, though – Now I know that the Professor is in there too, and she’s not just some puppet of Umbra’s. She might be part of the Nightmare, but she’s still a pony at heart. A pony I know. She doesn’t do things without meaning. She could have destroyed that statue at any time, but she waited for us. She wanted us to see the statue destroyed.” A thought occurred to her, implications spinning off farther than her tired mind could follow. “No, not just the statue. The Element. She wanted us to know without a doubt that the Elements could not be used.”

“But why?” Applejack asked. Star Fall was surprised to find the earth pony at her side, still helping to keep her upright. She hadn’t even noticed Applejack moving with her. She looked pensive, her gaze turned inward. In any other pony Star Fall would have been worried about their exposure to the Eye and what it could do to someone’s mind. For Applejack and Rainbow Dash, however, she didn’t think it was an issue.

“I don’t know,” Star Fall replied. She tried to stand on her own, but her legs failed her. Applejack caught her again before she could fall, and this time let her slowly sink down to lie on the ground. There were shoots of grass sticking out of that ground in a few places, and Star Fall had to resist the urge to start chomping on them.

“Whoa! Star, are you alright?” Dash asked, eyes wide as she recognized her fellow pegasus’ exhaustion.

“Just tired,” Star Fall replied. “Gonna sit down for a bit.” She sucked in a deep breath and grabbed the thread of thought that had nearly gotten away from her. “Umbra. Maybe she wanted us to focus more on her and less on Cash. If we think he can’t get the full set of Elements, he becomes less of a threat.”

“We’re not going to do that,” Dash said.

“No,” Star Fall agreed. “In fact, I think he could be even more dangerous now that he can’t get whatever it is he wants. He’ll be like a cornered rat. He’ll bite.”

“Maybe it was about Twilight,” Applejack offered absently as she looked over Star Fall.

“I don’t think so,” Star Fall replied. “Umbra knows as well as I do that Twilight is alive in the Deep Power. If Cash had managed to get the Element of Magic from the statue, I don’t know what would happen. We still don’t know anything about how the three of you were brought back in the first place. It could have created a… a clone of Twilight Sparkle, or it could have summoned her from out of the Deep Power, or it could have done nothing at all. I can’t even guess. I can’t… think through all these maybes. Whatever could have happened, it doesn’t stop Twilight from coming back on her own. I think it was about the Element. We had to see it destroyed.”

“What if it wasn’t the real Element?” Dash asked.

Star Fall tried to give a tired shrug, but the motion was barely a twitch from her shoulders. “It could be. Spike seemed to think that all the statues had the actual Elements on them, Twilight’s included. It’s not impossible that Umbra switched the Element of Magic with a fake. I don’t think so, though. The Professor might have tried something like that, but I don’t think Umbra would go for a half-measure. I think that was all real.”

“Me too,” Applejack said. She gave an apologetic look to Rainbow Dash. “Sorry, sugarcube, but that seemed an awful lot like the real Element to me.”

“We… we need to keep going as we are. We need to assume that it wasn’t a fake,” Star Fall said. Her vision blurred again, and this time blinking didn’t help right the scene. “We need to decide if that changes our plans at all.”

“No fucking way it does,” Astrid said. “Umbra wants to play games with us? Fine. She’s on the list of shit to deal with right below Cash.”

“Yeah.” Dash nodded along with Astrid’s pronouncement. “He’s gotta go first.”

Applejack just shrugged, accepting whatever the rest of them decided. “Okay,” Star Fall said. “Okay. Good. We take out Cash, then worry about what the Nightmare is trying to do. Sounds great to me.” She lay her head on the ground, thoughts drifting apart. “Astrid.”

“You passing out on me, Fall?” Astrid asked.

“Screw you, Astrid,” she mumbled back. “Need food. Rest. Make sure…” She didn’t get the last of her sentence out before unconsciousness claimed her.

***

The first thing Charisma noticed was the steady machine beeping that was coming from somewhere close to her left ear. It invaded the calm blank of unconsciousness and forced her mind to surface. The second thing she noticed was the pleasant, numb blanket that covered her senses. She could tell that she was hurt, and badly, but the pain wasn’t reaching her. She’d experienced a similar sensation only infrequently, but enough to understand that she was drugged with some kind of opiate. Morphine, most likely.

Her body rocked, the motion jarring, sudden. She tried to analyze it, but her thoughts were slow. The movement did alert her to the fact that there was something reaching through her mouth and down her throat. A moment of panic made its way through the drugged haze, but she managed to quash it. She was breathing fine, there was no need to struggle yet. She could have opened her eyes, but they felt gummed up and resisted her first, feeble efforts. Instead she listened to the voices that were speaking, picking them out from the beeping of the machine and a background rumble that reminded her of a Republics highway.

“This really isn’t good enough.” That voice was Max Cash. He sounded mildly annoyed, which meant he was furious about something. “I need her on her hooves.”

“Mr. Cash, that’s just not possible.” She didn’t recognize this voice, but he spoke with a calm, arrogant authority that reminded her of Agent Gamma. “She’s lucky enough to be alive at all.”

“Come on, Doc, just give her a shot of the old magic touch,” Cash said. “You’re supposed to be good at that.”

“I am,” the doctor replied. “But whoever you got to work on her before wasn’t. In fact, their inexpert use of healing magic is already killing her. I can probably save her life, but it will take months of treatment and a decade of follow-up at least. As it is, she’s going to lose the leg no matter what I do. Worse, if I heal the rest of her back to peak condition, it will only accelerate the cancer.”

“You know, you’re saying a lot of words there, but I’m not hearing the important ones,” Cash said with an amiable chuckle.

“And what would those be?” the doctor asked, though from his tone he was reaching the end of his patience.

“‘Yes, Mr. Cash, I’ll heal her right up!’”

The doctor sighed. “I can’t do the impossible.”

There was a moment of silence before Cash spoke again. “Fortunately, Doc, I can.” She felt a touch on the side of her face. “Come on, Charisma. Rise and shine.” She didn’t want to respond. Her Talent sluggishly demanded that she bite the hoof touching her and try to rip open a vein or something. “I know you’re listening,” Cash said, pressing harder. “Wakey-wakey.” Finally, she forced her eyes open and glared at Cash as he leaned over her. “There we go!” He grinned at her, and she could see the puffy bruises and blood marring his coat. She’d never seen him hurt before. She’d imagined that it would make him more equine, less strange and monstrous. She’d been wrong, it just accentuated the incongruity of his smile and the evil gleam in his eyes.

She looked around, and found herself in what appeared to be the back of an ambulance. The doctor was a pastel-yellow unicorn stallion whose flank proclaimed his Healing Talent. A thick tube went from a whirring machine down her throat, and wires led from the beeping machine to sticky pads that were affixed to her body. She rocked again, and she finally placed the roaring sound as an engine working hard. They were on the move.

She lifted a hoof, an incredible chore for her numb body, and pawed at the air tube. Cash turned to the doctor. “She need that?”

“Not as long as she’s conscious,” the doctor replied. Then he reached over her and gently pulled the tube out.

Charisma coughed and sputtered as she became responsible for sucking in her own air again. When she’d got her breath back, she looked back to Cash. “How’d it go?” she asked in a hoarse whisper.

“Not good,” he said.

“You didn’t get it?”

He shook his head. “Nope. Got close, then pow! Got blindsided.” He chuckled again. “Never expected Detective Hard Boiled to get so cozy with a Changeling. Go figure, huh?”

“I’d expected you to be… more angry.”

“Oh, I’m pretty angry,” he said, then winked. “At myself. I was so preoccupied with part A of what I had to do, I didn’t really think as far as part B. But, hey, we’ve both screwed up recently. I figure if I can forgive you, then I can forgive myself as well.”

“You haven’t forgiven me,” she said. She wasn’t sure why she said it, but it felt true to her.

“Oh?” He shrugged. “Well, I guess that’s that then.” He glanced over her body. She couldn’t move her head to see, but she knew what kind of shape it had been in when she’d passed out. “The Doc here says you’re in a bad way.”

“I heard,” she replied.

“You gonna let him bring you down like that?”

She frowned at him. “Max. I know how hurt I am. There’s… no way to come back from this. That’s just… a fact.”

His smile widened into a manic rictus. “Except you don’t believe that.”

She paused, evaluating his words. It might have been the drugs, it might have been shock, or denial, but she really didn’t believe it. “No.”

He gave her a knowing nod. “No indeed. Now, Charisma, you’ve been giving me a lot of trouble lately. I am this close to just chucking you out the back of the truck and taking my chances. If you were any other mare, I’d have already done it. Do you know why I haven’t?”

“You… need me,” she said.

“I need you.” He gave her nose a light poke. “Exactly right.”

She swallowed hard. “You’re going to kill me,” she said, the words slipping out in drugged honesty. “For one of the Elements.”

His smile twitched, as if it was a half-second from turning into an ugly snarl. “Thought about it,” he said. “But even if I wanted to, it wouldn’t work. You see.” He bent low to whisper in her ear. “You’re not the cruelest pony I know.”

The words prompted a shiver from her. “Then… why?”

“Because I saw Rarity at Birchfield’s mansion,” Cash said. “Another of those ancient heroes you’ve probably never heard of.”

“The super-unicorn,” Charisma reasoned.

“She is super, isn’t she?” he said with a laugh. “If both her and Rainbow Dash are back, who knows how many of the others are too? They’ll be coming after me, and I can all but guarantee you they’ll be there when we make it to Fluttershy’s statue. I can’t do what I need to do and fight them off at the same time. So that’s where you come in.”

“You want me… to fight.”

“It’s what you’re good at,” he said, his horn lighting with a magenta glow that made her blink in the sudden glare. “I didn’t want to have to do this. In fact, it really makes the next part of my plan so much harder. But, hey, why do things the easy way when you can make it really, really complicated instead?” His saddlebag opened and a necklace floated out. The red lightning bolt caught her attention immediately, and held it fast. Her heart sped, the beeping of the machine accelerating with it, a quickening tempo that ran counter to the sensation of time slowing down as she reached for the necklace. “So what do you say?” Cash asked, floating the Element towards her. “Are you loyal enough to take on that responsibility?”

“Yes,” she said. With a subtle click, Cash fastened the Element around her neck. She took a deep breath, feeling the weight of the gem on her chest. It felt warm, and it sent an electric tingle through her body. She took another breath, feeling her thoughts clear as if she was coming out of a fog. The pain hit her like a club, but she snarled and bit down on a scream.

“What did you do?” the doctor asked, pushing Cash aside as he rushed to examine her.

“Probably screwed myself over,” Cash said, and sighed. “But at this point it’s all a crapshoot anyway, so why not?”

“The morphine’s being flushed out of her system!” the doctor said, his horn flashing with a sparkly blue light that matched his shocked eyes. “What?! Her… her tissues are regenerating! What is this?”

“A side benefit,” Cash said, waving a hoof as if the doctor’s question was inconsequential. “There’s a bunch of them. Which, by the way, Charisma, you’re going to have to learn to use real quick. We don’t have time to waste on the usual learn-at-your-own-pace stuff.”

“Got it,” Charisma hissed through clenched teeth.

“This is impossible!” the doctor cried, looking wildly between her and Cash.

“You might want to start the healing magic, Doc,” Cash said. “I think you’ll find that she can keep her leg, now.”

“I…” he trailed off, using his magic to do another scan of her body. “I… can’t believe it. Luna’s night comfort me, this can’t be happening.”

“Doc!” Cash said, a touch of annoyed urgency in his voice. “Trust me, you do not want me to make you start working.”

“But… without anaesthesia... “

She reached out and grabbed the doctor’s face between her forehooves. “Do it,” she growled.

“The pain is going to be–”

“Do it,” she repeated. Then she let him go and grabbed the discarded air tube, shoving it between her teeth and biting down. The doctor gave her a long, terrified look, then visibly focused himself and lit his horn with a brilliant magical glare.

“Hold her down,” he told Cash, who quickly created bands of restraining magic. “Here we go.”

***

Hard Boiled looked out from the ruined door of Senator Birchfield’s mansion and watched as the last truck filled with bodies rolled off down the street in the early morning light. Most of the bodies were those of Cash’s soldiers, and he said a quiet prayer of thanks to Luna for that small mercy. Still, there were far too many ponies in OCPD uniforms among the fallen. People he’d known and worked with for years, dead because one madpony wanted a necklace.

The van had been pulled out of the doorway hours ago, leaving a gaping hole through which he could see the disaster area outside. From this vantage Orion City looked shaken by the events of the night, but was recovering with speed. Streetlights flickered on and then dimmed as the power grid was slowly restored. New barriers of thick canvas blocked the street from those who tried to catch a glimpse of the scene of the massacre, of whom there were many. The sounds of traffic and the voices of thousands of people came from beyond those barriers, giving a backdrop of normalcy that helped to settle the stomach-tightening nerves left after combat.

He clamped his mouth shut and stifled a yawn as he turned away from the scene outside. There were half a dozen ponies standing about the foyer. One was Barry, who had managed to make it through the melee without so much as a scratch. Three others were the obligatory team of crime scene technicians, who were huddled together with their heads down as they discussed the evidence they had found, trying to piece together what had happened here. He didn’t know what they would eventually report to headquarters, but he was sure it wouldn’t bear more than a passing resemblance to the truth.

One of the reasons for that discrepancy was currently in her yellow earth pony shape, though wearing an OCPD uniform to blend in. She sauntered over to him like a satiated cat. The way she eyed him from snout to flank was just as predatory as ever, but now it was tempered by the honest connection they had formed. “You look exhausted,” she said as soon as she could without the others in the room hearing. “You need to get some sleep.”

“Tell me about it,” he said, rubbing at his eyes. “My head feels like I’ve got lead weights hanging off my horn. How about you? You’ve been running for as long as I have, you’ve got to be feeling it too.”

She gave him a small smirk. “Sleep deprivation training. I’ll be good for hours longer than you will.” She leaned in to whisper in his ear. “I’m worried about Cash making another grab for the necklace while you’re not on your game. I’m going to give you a boost.”

“What kind?”

“Just a jolt of excitement. Like drinking four cups of coffee or a shot of adrenaline.”

“How long will it last?”

She shrugged. “As long as I keep it going. It will make you tired faster, but you won’t feel it until you hit your limits. Straff’s on his way with an RIA security detail, once they take over here we can get you to a bed so you can sleep.”

He grunted in response, thinking about her offer. Finally, he shook his head. “I don’t think Cash will try anything. Not yet. Save it for when we really need it.”

“If you want,” Traduce said. “But if things get crazy, I might not get the chance.” HB accepted that with a slow nod.

Barry walked over to join them. His ears were twitching at every sound, his gaze jumping from point to point in nervous jerks. HB didn’t need his magic to see everything that crossed the traitorous detective’s mind as clear as day. “The, uh, the techs say they’re done,” he said. He stared at HB, carefully not looking at Traduce for more than a split-second glance. “Should we be sticking around? I mean, the Senator’s gonna get out of the hospital soon, and he’s gonna want his house back.”

“Not yet,” HB replied. “If Birchfield shows up, he’ll have to wait.”

“This is the same guy who was threatening to shut the SIU down ‘cause you didn’t talk to him,” Barry said. “I don’t think he’s gonna like that.”

“Tough luck for him,” HB said. He looked over Barry’s shoulder to the statue that still stood in the center of the foyer. “I’m verifying some testimony.”

Barry followed his gaze. He could see the statue now, everyone could. Hard Boiled didn’t know if that meant anything, and he was still very skeptical about what Calumn and Spike had told him about the origins of Rarity and her fellow impossible mares. Barry didn’t know about that, of course, but he knew that there was something off about the statue.

“Heads up,” Traduce said, pointing a hoof out the door. “Looks like the Director is early.”

When HB turned to look, he found that Straff was already picking his way along the broken and blood-stained walkway to the door. A small legion of dark-suited ponies fanned out behind him, taking charge by sheer weight of numbers. Barry backed off as the Director approached, swallowing heavily and trying to be unnoticeable. Straff’s intense blue eyes found the cringing detective anyways, lingering just long enough to remind Barry that Straff had not forgotten about him. Then those eyes turned on Hard Boiled, and the barest sketch of a smile found its way onto the Director’s pale lips. “You have the necklace?” Hard Boiled nodded. It was stashed in one of his pockets, its strange weight impossible to ignore. “Excellent work, Lieutenant. You will have to hold on to it until I find someplace I can trust to keep it safe. Rest assured that I will not leave you with such a burden for long. I also offer my most sincere congratulations. Your actions here have given us our first major victory against Max Cash.”

“This wasn’t a victory,” Hard Boiled replied, thinking of all the bodies that had so recently littered the street. “This was a fucking disaster.”

“On the contrary,” Director Straff said, exuding a cool composure that the detective could practically feel. Traduce gave a small sound, and through their link HB could feel her agreement with Straff. “You have the Element. Cash was foiled. Considering the forces he brought to bear here, that alone is worth celebration.”

“More than a dozen cops dead,” HB said with a restrained growl. “Twenty-three more seriously injured. That’s not even counting how many were hurt when they bombed headquarters and the power plant.” He shook his head. “I’m in no mood for celebration.”

“Neither am I, Detective,” Straff said. “Cash escaped, and still holds enough power to do irreparable damage to the Republics. However, we should not let the dire situation blind us to our victories.”

HB rounded on the pale unicorn. He knew what the Director had said was right, but he also knew that it was backed by a callousness that infuriated him. “Do the ponies who gave their lives for that victory mean nothing to you?” he demanded. “People died last night, Straff. A lot of them my colleagues. My friends. They are a whole lot more important than a fucking necklace!”

Straff quirked an eyebrow, but betrayed no other emotion. “In this case, Lieutenant, no, they are not. I think you know that. I’m sure you had the importance of the Elements explained to you.”

“I’ve had a lot of crap ‘explained’ to me. I don’t believe half of it. Not yet.”

Straff paused for a moment, and when he spoke again it was in a low tone that conveyed the barest slivers of actual sympathy. “I do understand how you feel, detective. I’ve lost friends in the line of duty too. Unlike your fellow police, however, the friends I’ve lost will never have a stone to mark their grave, or a funeral of weeping ponies to commemorate them. Also unlike me, you are an officer of the peace. Your job is to seek justice for wrongs and prevent anyone from suffering violence such as what happened here. The deaths of your fellow officers were not just, and because you led them to it you feel that their sacrifice was similarly unjustified.” HB let out a sigh, turning away from the Director, who continued in the same subdued tone. “My perspective is, by necessity, a wider one. I am concerned not with the safety of citizens as individuals, but with the welfare of the nation as a whole. To stop Cash from gaining another Element, I find the sacrifice of a hoofful of ponies to be a bargain of great value. Use your magic if you must, see the truth of what I am saying. Then trust me that your actions here were absolutely warranted. Grieve for their loss, Lieutenant, but don’t make the mistake of thinking their deaths were somehow wrong. They did their duty, let them keep their honor.”

HB said nothing, looking at the floor. “It’s just a damn necklace,” he growled. “The statue hasn’t even–” he stopped as his eyes tracked up to the empty space where the pink statue had just been standing. All that was left was the plinth it had stood on. “Where’s the statue?” he asked.

Traduce’s eyes widened with shock as she turned to follow his gaze. Her mouth dropped open and her brows drew down in confusion as she saw what he had. “It’s gone!”

“Nobody move!” Straff roared, bringing all eyes to him. “We have a visitor.”

HB turned back to Straff, and found himself staring into the brilliant blue eyes of a very pink pony. “Hi!” she squeaked in a voice that hit pitches that could be painful to sensitive ears. He jumped in surprise, as did Straff, Traduce and Barry. The mare had somehow gotten right in the middle of them without any of them noticing. “This looks like a construction site, and you look like a big grumpy pants, and that usually means you’re in charge, so can you tell me where I am, and how I got here, and who they are, and which way to Ponyville? Because, wow, I am so lost!”

He hadn’t understood a word of that. From the looks on Traduce and Straff’s faces, neither had they. He eased down from his shocked posture, his horn flickering to life as he called upon his magic to find the truth of what the mare was saying. “Could you, um, repeat all of that?” he asked.

“Oh! Oh! Oh!” the pony gasped, bouncing on the spot with her eyes growing as big as saucers. Each tiny leap was accompanied by a noise that was very similar to the sound a spring made in radio plays and comedy movies. “Are we playing a gibberish game? I love gibberish games!” She leaned close to HB, polishing a hoof on her coat and examining it with exaggerated casualness. “I have to warn you, though, I’m fluent in gibberese.” She leapt up, turning a reverse somersault in the air before coming down on her back hooves, her forelegs thrown wide. “Wibbleparf! Crabusnifular! Fantabirific! How am I doing?”

“Lieutenant, a translation?” Straff prompted, watching the pink mare with an expression halfway between confusion and concern.

“I think she’s… excited to meet us?” He shook his head. “It’s really confusing. Some of what she said there was like hitting a wall. There was no truth for my magic to find.”

“Traduce?”

The Changeling twitched. “I’m feeling excitement, happiness, mild confusion, and now she’s feeling… impressed? It’s like she’s on amphetamines, emotions jumping around faster than I can keep track of.”

The mare let out an appreciative whistle. “Wow. You guys are champs! It’s like you’re having a real conversation. I’m gonna have to step up my game.” She took in a deep breath, her body swelling up to more than twice its normal size. Then she stopped and let out a small giggle. “Oh, wait. Priorities, Pinkie!” With a ripple of muscle the air in her chest was forced into her head, which expanded like a balloon for a moment before deflating, her ears flapping as the air was forced out through them. The sound she made was the squealing, rubbery flatulence of a deflating balloon as well, only adding to the paralyzing horror Hard Boiled experienced as he watched. With her head back in its proper shape, she grinned widely at them. “I’d love to join in, but I really do need to know where I am. I’m supposed to be working the counter at Sugarcube Corner this morning, and my friends are gonna get worried if I’m not there to give them their morning dose of Pinkie Pie! Which is me! I’m Pinkie! Hi!”

Hard Boiled stared back at her with his mouth hanging open. His magic hadn’t picked out any sort of illusion or lie in what he had just seen. It was all real. The rest of the people in the room were in a similar state of shock. Straff looked like he’d just swallowed something that wriggled on the way down. Traduce had a hoof to her mouth, throat working as she swallowed back the rising bile. Barry was shaking like a leaf, his service pistol held in his mouth and pointed at the pink mare.

Hard Boiled shuddered, trying to throw off the disconcerting strangeness of the mare. Once he’d got his initial reactions under control, he found that his magic had at least given him something to work with. “Pinkie Pie,” he said, catching the attention of the others. “Her name is Pinkie Pie, and she doesn’t know where she is.”

“Wait, that was my name!” Pinkie said, bouncing again. She stopped, in mid-air, and took in a huge gasp. “You’re not playing gibberish at all! You’re speaking another language and it only sounds like gibberish!” She dropped back to the floor, her smile changed to a deeply contemplative expression. “I must be in another country! How much punch did I drink last night? I’ve never ended up in another country before. Usually I just wake up with a lampshade on my head.”

“What. The hell. Is she?” Barry mumbled around the grip of his pistol. Sweat glistened on his coat, and his breath was coming in short, terrified bursts.

“Keep it together, Barry,” HB said, but paid little attention to the other detective. “I think she’s figured out she’s not in her Equestria anymore. Director, we are going to need someone who speaks whatever language this is, and fast. I don’t think I’ll be able to keep up here, and while I might be able to understand her, I’ve got no way to make her understand us.”

Straff nodded. “That shouldn’t be an issue. If Spike and Rarity aren’t able to be discharged from the hospital, I can always bring in a linguist from the University. Either of those options will take time, however. We need to contain her until then.”

“I can help with that,” Traduce said, though HB could sense that she would prefer not volunteering. “With your permission, sir?” Straff tilted his head in assent and she stepped close to Pinkie Pie, reaching out with a hoof to touch the side of the strange mare’s head. Pinkie didn’t flinch or pull back from the contact, not seeming to mind it at all. “Don’t be frightened,” she said, using her tone to convey the message more than the words. “I won’t hurt you, okay?” She smiled, and Pinkie smiled back. “I just need to make a connection.” Traduce’s eyes lit with an eerie green glow.

“You seem nice,” Pinkie squeaked. “A little touchy, though. And I think there’s something really wrong with your eyes, like radioactive pink-eye wrong. You should think about getting that checked out.”

“Sleep,” Traduce intoned.

“Nap time!” Pinkie screamed out, making all of them jump, before falling flat on her face and beginning to snore.

Traduce staggered back. “She’s… her power… I don’t...” She fell to the floor, shaking. “I’ve never felt anything like that before. She was just… exploding with energy.” She shook her head. Then a frown crossed her face and she dragged her tongue across her teeth a few times. “And now everything tastes like cotton candy.”

“What was that?” HB demanded of no one in particular. “I know these… living statues, heroes from the past, whatever they are. I know they’re impossible mares, but there’s impossible and then there’s that.”

“I wish I knew, detective,” Straff said, shaking his head in stunned bewilderment. Then his expression sobered. “We need to contain this. So far what we’ve seen is going to be laughed off, but enough stories will be circulating that the wrong people will start asking questions.”

“Got it,” HB said.

Straff turned to the door, calling over one of his agents and having a short, quiet conversation with him. HB looked over to the crime scene ponies, who were staring at Pinkie with undisguised fear. “You three!” he called out to them. “None of this gets out, understand? This is national-security level stuff you’ve seen. I don’t want to hear any crazy stories going around headquarters tomorrow.” They all gave nods of varying honesty, but it was enough to satisfy him that they would at least wait a while before talking, so he jerked his head at the door to let them know they could leave.

He turned his attention back to Straff. The Director was frowning, and while the conversation was too quiet to hear, his magic picked up their lip movements easily. “Why wasn’t I informed of this earlier?” he was saying.

“Director Broker took charge of the situation, sir,” the agent replied. “He’s got a strike and containment team on the way already.”

“Damn it, why now of all times?” Straff snarled through gritted teeth. “We need to get ahead of this disaster. Gather a rapid response team, tell them I’ll be leading it personally. Also, I need Nemesis with us. Take every precaution with her. If she sees even the slightest weakness, she will exploit it.” The agent rushed off to carry out his orders, and Straff turned to HB. “Something has come up. You’ll get your translator soon, but I need to leave you in charge here. My people know to follow your orders.”

“What’s happened? Who’s Nemesis?” HB asked.

“‘Nemesis’ is a code-name for a dangerous individual who recently came into RIA custody,” Straff replied, a truth that didn’t tell him much of anything. “As to what has happened, well…” He looked down at the slumbering Pinkie Pie. “One way or another, you will know soon enough. Good luck, Lieutenant. Keep that one safe, she just might be one of the most important ponies in the world right now.” With that, he turned and left at a trot, shouting for a couple of agents to join him as he rushed to deal with whatever potential catastrophe had turned up.

HB walked over to Traduce and sat down next to her. She was taking slow breaths, but he could see the pulse jumping at her throat and the little twitches of nervous energy in her hooves and ears. “It never rains,” she said, giving him a wan smile.

He smiled back. “But it pours,” he finished the quote. “I ever tell you how much I hate this cloak and dagger crap?” She laughed at that, and he laughed with her.

“Aww, you two are so cute!”

The laughter froze in their throats, their eyes going to Pinkie Pie, who was watching them with her head cradled in her hooves and her back legs up and kicking in the air. Her blue eyes sparkled over a warm smile. Suddenly she shot upright, her entire body vibrating like someone was shaking her up and down. When the shaking stopped, her smile was replaced by a shocked expression.

“A doozy!” she said. “Oh-my-gosh-oh-my-gosh! It’s a doozy!” She vibrated again, the motion distinct in its abnormality. She reached out, gathering HB and Traduce up in forelegs that for a moment seemed like they had stretched out from more than a meter away to reach around them. “Guys! I’ve really got to find my friends! Something big is happening!”

There was a thunderous bang, and then a deafening silence. Pinkie jerked, then let Hard Boiled and Traduce go. HB looked over to see Barry, the barrel of his gun smoking from the shot, his eyes wild with fear. He then looked back to Pinkie, who was looking down at the neat little hole in her side that dribbled a line of blood that stained her pink coat.

“Ow,” she said. The quiet sound of hurt recognizable in any language.

“Barry! Drop the gun!” HB roared. Barry did so, but his eyes were still glued to Pinkie.

Hard Boiled looked back to Pinkie, and he could see the surprise and pain twisting her features. He could also see her confusion, and a sudden apprehension. She’d trusted them before, even if she didn’t know who they were. Now? Now she was likely reconsidering that trust. “He didn’t mean it,” HB said. He tried to convey the meaning in his body language, but knew that he was failing. “You’ll be okay, we’ll get you help.”

“Oh no,” Pinkie said, then suddenly went into another bout of shaking. This time when it stopped she went into a series of convulsive twitches. Hard Boiled’s magic insisted to him that each movement had some sort of meaning, but it couldn’t parse out what each was trying to say. When the twitches stopped, Pinkie’s expression had become one of definite fear. “Oh no!” she said again, then turned and ran.

There was nothing HB could do to stop her, and by the time he was moving after her, she had already disappeared into the depths of the mansion.

***

The bandage on Rarity’s head itched terribly, and was as unflattering as such things often were, but she was told that it was quite necessary, and would remain until the doctors decided she was well enough to have it off. She supposed it could be worse. A good hat would take care of the bandage should she need to be seen in public, and, of course, she could also be dead.

Others certainly hadn’t fared nearly as well.

Rarity walked into Spike’s room and tried not to cringe at what she saw. It wasn’t so much the terrible injuries the Dragon had taken that upset her as it was the gleam of his claws and the memory of him using them to tear ponies apart. She’d known that he’d become accustomed to violence. He’d hinted and referenced it obliquely, and outright told her that he’d lived a hard life with some terrible choices. She’d known all this in her head, but in her heart he’d still been the baby Dragon that had followed her around like a lovesick colt with his first crush. Now, though, she’d seen the horror firsthand, and, like him, she supposed that she had come through it transformed.

She took a steadying breath, then put on her best smile as she walked around to where he could see her. He was suspended belly-down in a kind of hammock, his limbs and head protruding through holes and held in their own little nets. His head rested on a pillow set on a pedestal that had a basket of rough-cut gemstones next to it. A few sparkling crumbs on the pillow showed her that they were at least feeding him properly. “Spikey-Wikey, darling, are you awake?”

He opened his eyes with drugged slowness, focusing lazily on her face. Then his lips stretched back into a wide, goofy grin that was only slightly ruined by the mouthful of viciously sharp teeth. “Rarity,” he slurred, and as he spoke she could see the titanium stitching where they had sewn up his mouth and tongue. “You came to see me.”

“Of course I came,” she said, laying a hoof on his shoulder. His body swayed gently at her touch, and she decided to rock him gently as they spoke. “As soon as they let me out of my own bed, there was nowhere else I wanted to be but by your side. I hear you protected me when I was… down. Such a brave, noble Dragon you’ve grown up to be!”

His smile faded. “I thought you were dead.” He sniffed, sending a puff of acrid smoke out of his nostrils. “She shot you in the head!”

“Yes, she did,” Rarity said, reaching up to touch the still-tender spot under the bandage where she’d been hit. The doctors had shown her an x-ray of her skull, in which she could clearly see the radiating lines of the fractures the bullet had caused. They’d told her she was lucky to be alive, that if it had been anything other than a glancing shot the bullet would have penetrated her brain and that would have been that. They’d also said she was healing at a phenomenal rate, a week of recovery in a night by their estimate. “I’m okay, though. Right as rain, in fact!”

“Shouldn’t have let you come,” he said, reaching out to touch her face. She held herself perfectly still as those killing claws caressed her with such a tender gentleness that she could hardly believe they’d taken the lives of at least half a dozen ponies only hours before. “Didn’t want you to see that. Now you hate me.”

“Nonsense,” she said, taking his claw and firmly pressing it against the side of her face. A part of her wanted to scream and run, but she shut it down. Spike was her friend. He’d done something terrible, true, but he’d done something very brave as well. She would not abandon him. That she still could not reconcile the violence with the bravery was her problem, not his. “Now listen to me, Spike. I do not hate you. I could never hate you.”

“But… I…”

“You did what you thought you had to do,” she said. “And nothing less. I am… not used to this time. This world is so different from the Equestria I knew, I doubt I ever will be. What happened was shocking. Terrifying, even. But you protected me, Spike. You stood over me and kept me safe from all that…” She paused, trying to think of the words that would comfort her friend, even if she didn’t fully believe them herself. She had to give him some comfort, she owed him that much. “You are my knight in purple armor, and my little Spikey-Wikey. How could I ever hate you?”

He relaxed at that, and so did she. The words had been true enough, she supposed, to count. She took his claw from her face and left it to hang at his side. Looking at it again, those claws didn’t seem so terrible. Still, she would never forget what they were capable of. He stared at her for a long moment without saying anything, then his eyes slid shut and he began to snore, little tongues of green flame snapping out with every breath.

She sat with him for a while, turning over the events she remembered in her head. The violence certainly stood out in her memory. The blood and the death. The smell of bodies burning and the stench of guts laid open. The sight of a beautiful mare pointing a long-barrelled gun at her. Yet for all the sick horror she felt at that, it was the smile on Max Cash’s face that stuck out most clearly. The manic grin as he drove the van towards them. The half-amused, half-mad smile as he had spoken to her. There was something behind that smile that sent shivers up her spine and turned her stomach more than all the death and fear of the battle combined.

So lost in thought was she that she didn’t notice the door opening until a voice spoke. “Miss Rarity?”

She perked up, looking to the door to find a pony she recognized from her time in the RIA building. “Yes?”

“There’s a situation ma'am. I need you to come with me immediately.”

He spoke in Lunar, but she found that her ability to speak and understand the language had taken quite a leap, and had no problems responding in kind. “What sort of situation?” she asked, frowning. “Is Spike in danger? Should he be moved?”

The agent shook his head. “No, ma’am. No danger here. But you’re needed at the mansion. I’ve been told to tell you that your friend has arrived.”

“Friend?” It took Rarity only a moment to realize who he meant. “Oh, Pinkie. I suppose she’s driving everyone up the wall?”

The agent hesitated, and she could practically see the wheels turn in his head as he tried to find a diplomatic way to give her bad news. She steeled herself for it, whatever it was. “Her arrival was… problematic. She’s currently hiding somewhere in the mansion, and so far we have had no luck in finding her.”

Rarity relaxed. “Oh, is that all?” She let out a nervous laugh and walked to the door. “Don’t feel bad, dear. You can’t find Pinkie when she doesn’t want to be found. I’m sure that once she sees a good friend, she’ll come right out.”

“It might be a little more than that, ma'am,” the agent said, and she could hear a hint of sheepishness in his tone. “She was also, um, shot. Before she disappeared.”

“Oh.” Rarity froze for a moment, then started herself moving again. “Well, then. This might require some special measures. Would you be so kind as to fetch a pen and some paper? I need to make a list.”

“A list?”

“Of supplies,” Rarity replied. “I hope you like cake, darling, because we’re about to throw a party.”

***

The decorations were sparse, but colorful. Rarity eyed the inexpert placement of the streamers fluttering above the empty doorway of the mansion, but decided to leave them be. She couldn’t expect the police and RIA agents to have her eye for aesthetic detail, and the imperfections might actually help in enticing Pinkie out from wherever she was hiding.

“The table’s ready,” Traduce said, coming up to Rarity’s side. A glance at the center of the foyer showed her that the table was indeed ready. It was a simple fold-up table, with a store-bought cake and a bowl of quickly-mixed punch ready to be passed out. Rarity nodded in satisfaction and turned back to the banner she was working on. Traduce tilted her head as she watched Rarity apply the final touches. “What’s that say?”

“Welcome to the future,” Rarity replied. It was in Old Equestrian, of course, and embellished with her usual flare for style: sparkling balloons and glittering hearts providing an accent of fun and joy to the simple text. “Do we have music?”

“I’ve got a radio set up,” Traduce replied. “Most stations are still broadcasting news about the attack last night, but there’s bound to be a few that are playing music.”

“That will do,” Rarity said, then magically lifted the banner up to hang across the foyer, affixing it in place with a few nails and some string.

“You are something else,” Traduce said, a note of wonder in her voice.

“Well, I do my best,” Rarity said with a coy smile. Then the smile faded as she understood the nature of Traduce’s comment. “Oh. You mean the magic.”

Traduce gave her a concerned look. “I didn’t mean to offend you.”

“No, no offense,” Rarity said with a dismissive wave of her hoof. “I’m just still not used to being appreciated for the wrong things.” She turned to the rest of the room and raised her voice to be heard. “Is everybody ready?”

There was a small commotion as the others in the room double-checked that they had everything Rarity had asked for in place. When it had died down Lieutenant Hard Boiled looked to her and nodded. “It’s all set to go. Are you sure that this is going to help?”

“Absolutely,” Rarity replied. “There is nothing in this world that Pinkie loves more than a good party.”

“Should I…” Barry spoke up. “Should I even be here?”

Rarity had to resist narrowing her eyes at him. When she had learned he was the one who had shot Pinkie, she had just about thrown him out in a huff, but after a careful reconsideration, she had decided to keep him around. “Yes. You have an apology to make.” Her tone brooked no objection, and he shrank back from her as if she had slapped him. She pulled her attention away from the earth pony detective and her anger towards him, turning instead towards the whole of the gathered people. “My friend is alone, scared, and hurt. She needs to see that you will welcome her, that you aren’t mean people. That you can be friends. I doubt it will take long, she’s not the shy type. When she shows up, do not be alarmed by what she does, no matter how… strange. If she offers you something, take it. If she tries to get you to do something, like dance or play a game, do it. You will not be in any danger. I promise you, her first concern will be whether or not you are having a good time. So… Let’s get this party started!”

The music was turned on, the punch was ladled out, and then they set about having the worst party Rarity had ever seen. They cast nervous glances at each other and the various entrances to the foyer, they congregated in small groups and chatted in hushed tones, they frowned or kept stoic. Except Barry, who was sweating and jumping like he expected to be banished or imprisoned at any second. Nowhere could anyone be said to be experiencing anything in the vicinity of ‘fun’.

Rarity stood by the table, sipped her punch, and sighed. She wasn’t exactly in a party mood, either. Her head ached and the pills the doctors had given her to help with that didn’t seem to be doing anything. She waited for several minutes, listening to the radio and deciding that she rather liked the music in this future. After ten minutes with still no Pinkie Pie, she began to get worried. It wasn’t like her friend to let a party be this dreary for this long.

She was just about to go and ask again if they were sure Pinkie was still in the building, when something grabbed her by her legs and hauled her bodily under the table. She let out a somewhat unladylike yelp that was muffled by a pink hoof shoved in her mouth. “Shhh,” Pinkie Pie said, peeking through the tablecloth that Rarity could have sworn wasn’t there a minute ago. She twitched constantly, little movements of her body, ears and tail keeping her in constant motion. She nodded once in satisfaction, then turned to her friend and gave her a tight hug. “Rarity,” she said in a whisper. “I am so glad to see you!”

“I feel the same, darling,” Rarity whispered back. They pulled apart, but there wasn’t enough room to maneuver under the table, so Rarity ended up uncomfortably hunched over with her horn knocking against one of the table legs. “There’s a lot I have to tell you. But first, it’s okay not to hide anymore. Those aren’t bad ponies out there.”

“Oh, I know that.”

“You do?”

“Of course!” Pinkie said with a bright smile, and even whispering her voice went into a high squeak as she said it.

Rarity paused at her friend’s matter-of-fact tone. She looked at Pinkie’s chest and saw the scabbed-over wound there. “Even though one of them shot you?”

“Pft, I’ve had worse,” Pinkie said, rolling her eyes. “He was just twitchy. Like me that one time I drank the barrel of liquid sugar because Gummy dared me to. Or Twilight when she thinks she’s going to fail a test. I think he was just having a bad day, and he should probably lay off the coffee. Which reminds me, I raided the kitchen and made myself a milkshake. Want one?” She held up a tall glass filled with a neapolitan mixture of semi-liquid ice-cream.

“Thank you, Pinkie, I’d be delighted,” Rarity said, taking the drink and setting it aside. “If you know they’re not bad ponies, why are you hiding?”

“I’m trying to keep them safe,” Pinkie said, peeking out of the tablecloth again.

“Safe? From what?”

“The doozy!” Pinkie managed to bounce even while crouched down under the table.

“The… doozy,” Rarity felt her headache surge. “Your Pinkie-Sense, I take it?” Pinkie nodded rapidly. “Like that one time when Twilight decided to just accept your, ah, Pinkie-ness?”

“Nope, not like that at all.”

Rarity didn’t know whether to be relieved or worried at that. “Well, that’s... good?”

“No, Rarity, this is worse!” Pinkie said, grabbing her by the shoulders and giving her a little shake. “Way, way, way worse! My Pinkie-Sense has been going crazy! Like all sorts of super-no-good things are going to happen to me and everypony around me. This doozy is bad, Rarity! I don’t want anypony else to get hurt, so I’ve been hiding and waiting for them to go away, but they won’t!”

Rarity thought about that for a moment. “Do you know what this, ah, ‘doozy’ is going to be?”

Pinkie shook her head. “No. A doozy is something I’d never in a million billion years think would happen. I don’t know what I think wouldn’t happen until it happens, and then I go ‘oh, wow, I didn’t think that would happen’, because if I thought it would happen then it wouldn’t be something I didn’t think would happen, and if it happened I wouldn’t be surprised and go ‘oh, wow, I didn’t think that would happen’, because I did think it would happen, so it wouldn’t be a doozy in the first place!”

“I… think I got that,” Rarity said. “And you’re sure it’s something bad?”

“All my Pinkie-Sense is saying yes. Something super-duper-terrible bad is going to happen!”

“Well, it’s commendable that you wanted to keep these ponies out of it, dear, but they are quite capable of handling anything that might happen.” Rarity moved to push aside the tablecloth. “They’re friends, Pinkie. And friends help friends through whatever comes. Even if it is super-duper-terrible.”

Pinkie gave her a miserable look. “I don’t want anypony to get hurt.”

“They won’t.” Rarity held out her hoof. “I promise. Now come on, the party is waiting for its guest of honor.” That was enough for Pinkie, and she took Rarity’s offer and came out from under the table. “Attention everyone!” Rarity called out. “We’ve found our missing guest. Please give a warm welcome to my good friend, Pinkie Pie!” There was a moment of dull silence before Traduce took the hint and began cheering and stomping, which was then taken up by the rest of the people in the foyer. Pinkie perked up at that, bouncing and waving. When the applause had died down, Rarity turned back to Pinkie. “Now, I have quite a few things to share with you about where we are and what’s been going on, and it’s going to take a while. So why don’t you cut the cake and we can get started?”

Pinkie was more than happy to oblige.

Some of the others felt that with Pinkie found, the party they hadn’t really been invested in was over. That, of course, was a mistake. Despite still worrying for their safety, and the constant twitches of her Pinkie-Sense, she simply couldn’t help herself; Pinkie Pie couldn’t stand to see a party where no one was having fun. Even though she knew nothing of the language or who these people were, Pinkie Pie was still able to work her particular brand of charm on them. Soon, with no one quite sure how it had happened, the party had turned from a torturous going-through-the-motions affair into the genuine article.

Rarity watched the change unfold with a certain sense of inner satisfaction. There was just something so right about seeing Pinkie do her thing. It soothed some of the places where this world had rubbed her raw.

Over the course of the party she managed to convey most of the situation to Pinkie, who took it all shockingly well. “Wow. The future,” Pinkie said during a lull in the dancing and games she was encouraging the others to participate in. “I mean. Wow! That’s a place I’d never thought I’d be. It’s always been the present before. Every time I tried to get to tomorrow, it was just today again.”

“That’s… one way of looking at it,” Rarity said. “But, Pinkie, I want to make sure you understand the rest of it.”

“I understand,” she chirped. “There’s a bad guy stealing the Elements and we’ve got to stop him. It seems pretty simple to me.”

“Yes. Well, I was thinking that this was the ‘doozy’ you’re so worried about.” Rarity looked out through the broken door to the still blocked-off street. “A lot of ponies were hurt here last night. More will be if this mad stallion isn’t stopped. Plus, here you are, a thousand years in the future. I doubt that’s something you thought would happen.”

“Oh, Rarity,” Pinkie said with a sad laugh. “That’s not the doozy. My Pinkie-Sense tells me about the future, not the past, and all that stuff has already happened already.”

“I see,” Rarity said. “Do you know how soon this ‘doozy’ will happen?”

“Soon,” Pinkie replied, and there was a quiet dread in her voice that made Rarity’s coat feel like it was standing on end. “Very soon.”

As she was saying that, Hard Boiled walked up to them. The detective was levitating a glass of punch at his side, and had the slightly bemused look of a pony who was enjoying himself and not quite sure why. “Miss Rarity, Miss Pie.” He nodded to each of them. “This has certainly helped to relieve some of the tension around here. I’d like to thank you for that.”

Rarity translated his words for Pinkie, who grinned. “Yay! I’m glad you’re not being so grumpy-pants anymore!”

HB gave a grunt of uncomfortable acknowledgement as he heard the translation, a hoof going to pull at the collar of his rumpled and dirty suit. “Well, it’s a hard time for any of us to smile,” he said, his lips pulling up into a dry smile of his own. “But you pulled it off.” He turned his gaze to Rarity after she had translated for Pinkie. “Has she spoken with Barry yet?”

“Yes. She completely forgave him for what he did, of course, but I fear he still holds some reservations.”

HB grunted again, this time in annoyance. “He’ll have to get over it. With the way Straff was talking, if your friend had been seriously hurt he might have been hanged for treason.”

Rarity stiffened at that, keeping her features carefully neutral. “I don’t think I’ll be letting Pinkie know that.”

He looked at Pinkie, who was bouncing in place and looking around for anyone not having a good time. “Yeah. I get that.” He ran a hoof through his short hair. “Look, there’s something I want to talk to you about. You know Cash got away last night, right?”

“I saw him leave,” Rarity said with a disdainful sniff. “He had the gall to talk to me, after what he’d done. He said he had something for me.” She shivered. “Repulsive stallion.”

“Yeah, well, he didn’t get what he came for.” HB said, reaching into a pocket and retrieving a golden necklace with a central gem in the shape of a blue balloon. The Element of Laughter. “I got it instead, and I thought that since these things belonged to you two first, you’d be a better choice to take care of it. Straff wants to find a safe place to hide it, but something in my gut tells me that’s not going to work.”

“Rarity,” Pinkie said in a small, terrified voice.

Rarity looked at her friend, and found that Pinkie’s eyes were wide and locked on the Element. “Yes, Pinkie dear, what is it?”

Pinkie Pie took a hissing, shallow breath. “Run,” she said. “Get everypony out of here and run!”

“What?” Rarity began, but Pinkie was already moving. She snatched the Element out of Hard Boiled’s grasp and stared at it, breath heaving in and out as her muscles strained against some compulsion only she could feel. There was a feeling of static that snapped through the air, and manes all around the room began to rise as light bulbs flared and burst in showers of sparks. “Out!” Rarity shouted at the top of her lungs. “Everybody! Get out! Now!” They moved, but they were surprised and confused. They didn’t move fast enough. Rarity’s horn burst into brilliant light as she reached for every clothed pony there and shoved them all in a rough tumble out the door.

She turned back to Pinkie just as a wind was rising, swirling around the foyer, tearing streamers from the wall and the banner from its fixture. The ground rumbled and bucked beneath her hooves as the gem inched closer to Pinkie’s neck. “Rarity!” Pinkie shouted over the howling wind and the bursting electronics. “You have to go too! I can’t hold it any longer!”

“No!” Rarity screamed, her mane whipping at her face. “I just got you back, I’m not leaving you!” Then she reached over and wrapped her friend in a hug just as the necklace snapped closed around Pinkie’s neck. Light and power exploded from the Element, filling the world around them with burning energy.

Then, together, they screamed.

***

Charisma’s eyes popped open. She tried to lurch up, but found she didn’t have the strength. She looked around in wild confusion, and spotted Max Cash standing at her bedside. His expression was as dark as she’d ever seen it. The doctor was nowhere in sight, and it didn’t feel like they were moving. She remembered the incredible pain as the doctor had worked on her. She must have passed out from it. Cash noticed she was awake, giving her a dark, inscrutable look. “Do you hear that?” he asked.

She nodded. It was like the strongest adrenaline high she had ever experienced, if it was somehow extracted from her memory and turned into a scream. It wasn’t just that, though. Somehow it felt like the years she had spent stagnating in the Palace. It reminded her of how she had felt after Blaze had left her. It made her remember the smug, self-satisfied smirk on the Lady Fallen Star’s face when she had unleashed her glowing chains on Charisma. There was rage in that sound, enough to drown the world in hatred. “What is it?” she asked. “Where is it coming from?”

“Where is a little tricky, but you’re only hearing it because of this.” He tapped the crimson tear-drop gem at her throat. “As to what, well, that’s phase two.” Cash sneered. “Happening out of schedule and on its own, without supervision.” He shook his head and clucked his tongue. “Can’t have that. Oh no. Cannot have that. So, here’s where you show me I made the right decision. I want you to make it stop.”

She frowned at that. “What?”

“Make it stop,” he repeated, gesturing vaguely over her. “Break whatever bond is trying to form. Make it back off for now, until I’m ready to take control of it.”

“How am I supposed to do that?”

He sighed and pulled a book from his saddlebag. The same one he always carried. He opened it to one of several bookmarked pages and read for a few seconds. “Alright, Charisma, we don’t have time to coddle you on this one, so here’s the quick and dirty method. Focus on the Element. Focus on the sound. Focus until you can’t hear anything else. When that happens you should be able to see the bonds between the Elements, and to their bearers. Find the one that’s forming right now and stop it. Don’t try anything else. Don’t think anything else. Just stop it.”

“Oh, is that all?” she snarked.

“Well, I only need you if you can do the work. That means if you fail, I’m going to take back my Element, and I’ll probably have to terminate your employment.” He grinned at her. “So there’s some incentive for you. By the by, you’ve got, oh, about forty seconds. Make them count.”

She stared at him incredulously for a moment, but he made a circling ‘get on with it’ gesture with his hoof, so she closed her eyes and concentrated. She listened to the sound, the scream. The longer she did, the more she could pick out two distinct voices. One was filled with impossible anger, but the other was something else. She listened harder, picking out the unique feel of the twinned voices. How they complimented each other, resonated.

Then the necklace grew hot at her throat, and suddenly she could see it. Like a supernova burning in her mind’s eye. Two mares, one she didn’t recognize with a frizzy mane, the other the same one who had performed such incredible magic the night before, the one Charisma had shot. The one she didn’t know had something glowing with blue light on her chest. A necklace, a cousin to the one Charisma herself wore.

“I see it,” she said, opening her eyes. She saw Cash, and the blue glow was within him as well. More than that, there were purple, orange, and red lights all twisting and twining together. They were spreading through his nerves like wildfire, eating him up inside. Hollowing him out. “You–”

“Focus, Charisma,” he chided. “You have one job to do right now. Do not get distracted.”

She obeyed, closing her eyes and returning to the image in her mind. She didn’t know what to do now. She could see what has happening, but she couldn’t affect it. There was too much power, too much distance. Her Talent was utterly silent, the situation too far removed from its purview. “Just do it,” she whispered to herself. She wore the Element of Loyalty, she’d seen what Cash could do with it, so she figured she could do the same. She focused on the blue necklace, narrowing her vision until it was all she saw. Her own necklace grew even hotter in response, and she welcomed it, trying to command it mentally as she would her limbs. “Betrayal,” she whispered, and suddenly it was over.

The shock of it sent her reeling. She lay, dazed and insensate, for a long time. Then, slowly, she regained her awareness of the world, and the first thing she heard was Cash’s wild, braying laughter. When she looked over to him, he was half collapsed against her bed, his body heaving in gales of mirth.

“What just happened?” she croaked out, her mouth suddenly very dry.

“A near miss,” Cash replied, chuckling. “And the first lesson in your education.”

“My education?”

“Oh, yes. Remember? You’ve got a lot to learn about your new fashion accessory.”

“Practice,” she said, recalling their conversation in Precious Corners.

“It makes perfect,” he said. “And as I keep saying: we don’t have a lot of time. So you start now.” He looked around and grabbed a small syringe from one of the medical supply bags. “Lesson two: make this thing stick to the ceiling.”

***

Rarity coughed. One moment she had been screaming in agony and terror, and the next she was lying on flat ground, holding Pinkie Pie close. She had no idea how much time had passed between the two states.

She raised her head and looked around. Smoke and steam rose from the molten ground that glowed all around them, but the little island she and Pinkie were on was cool enough. That island was a tiny hill at the bottom of the crater that had once been Senator Birchfield’s mansion. Sounds of concerned voices and sirens came from all around them, and Rarity could see ponies poking their heads over the raised lip of the crater. The Element of Laughter lay at their hooves, and Rarity wasted no time in picking it up with her magic and flinging it away from them. It sailed over the heads of the watching ponies, and she didn’t care where it ended up from there.

“Oh…” Rarity began, but had no way of continuing that captured exactly how she felt and was still within the bounds of ladylike decorum. Another look convinced her that this once it would not be out of place. “Oh horseapples!” she snapped out. “Ponyfeathers. Bucking tartarus! Celestia’s great golden–”

“Yup,” Pinkie said, her voice lazy and half-dazed. “That’s a doozy.”

“Indeed!” Rarity said, shaking her head. “All this destruction! I’m sorry for ever doubting you, Pinkie Pie.”

“Not that,” Pinkie said, poking a hoof at Rarity’s nose. “You were swearing!”

Rarity paused. “Your doozy… was me swearing?” Pinkie nodded. “Not your Element going insane and putting a hole in the city?”

“Rarity,” Pinkie said, her expression and voice filled with matter-of-fact sincerity. “I think we all saw that coming.”

Rarity couldn’t help the giggling laugh that escaped her. “I do hope nopony was hurt.”

“I don’t think so, Rarity,” Pinkie said, hugging her tighter. “Right at the end, my Pinkie-Sense stopped going all twitchy. I think you saved them all.”

Rarity smiled at that, returning the hug. “You do know I’ve sworn before, right, darling?”

“You?” Pinkie made a sound of disbelief. “Naaah. Pull the other leg, Rarity, it’s the gullible one.” That brought a full laugh out of her, one Pinkie joined in. So together they laughed until the rescue team reached them.

Chapter 31: A Good Thing

The difficulty of finding accurate records from before the first Royal Sisters period makes any sort of search for the origins of the Elements of Harmony a frustrating and ultimately fruitless endeavor. Due to the nature of Discord’s reign, even the memories of the Princesses are not reliable sources. At first I was tempted to rely on my own encounter with a vision of the Elements’ discovery, but even there I must admit that what I saw was filtered through my own thoughts and perceptions, and thus not entirely trustworthy.

As of this writing I have only found a hoofful of early accounts of the Elements out of a plethora that were clearly created well after the defeat of Discord, but claim to be older. Of these few, two mention the Tree of Harmony, while the rest only have the Elements as being carried by bearers. Several are origin stories, two of which were told to me by creatures who claimed to be the creators of the Elements. As I have stated previously, I find their accounts to be highly suspect. Of the two that mention the Tree, one is an origin story, and the other a traveller’s tale of a safe haven from the chaos, which might be what led the Princesses to the Elements in the first place.

The origin stories tend to share some traits in common. Generally, there are six ponies who are exemplars of their respective virtues. They are called on to fight some great evil, or their people suffer some great cataclysm, and afterward their spirits were transmuted or forged into gems. The details on exactly what made these six special tend to differ. One has these ponies becoming imbued with the power of a special rainbow. Another has them completing individual quests and becoming ‘blessed’ by some heavenly power. One particularly fanciful tale casts the ponies as warriors, and they become the Elements in order to seal away the remnants of a terrible dark spirit whose essence is bound eternally in the core of each Element.

There are outliers. One story has the Elements simply appearing one day. It goes on to say that four gods then fought over them, the fallout from their divine war becoming this story’s origin for Discord. Another says that the Elements predate the universe, and that they are actually responsible for creating it. To understand my response to that story, I suggest you read to the end of this book and then return to this part. I’m sure you will share my bemusement.

Regardless, none of these tales can be considered definitive, or even passingly accurate. I am, finally, left with only shreds of myth and speculation as my foundation for studying the Elements.

-From the first section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Thirty-One: A Good Thing

Calumn stared at the ceiling of his private hospital room, letting his mind wander as his eyes roved over the blank tiles. He ached, a dull but insistent pain that roamed through his head and torso in slow, crawling waves. It made him want to shift and squirm, to try and alleviate the sensation, but he couldn’t give in to the temptation. All the movement he allowed himself was in his eyes and the slow rise and fall of his breathing. He knew from experience that anything else resulted in the dull pain shifting immediately to incapacitating agony. There was a button at his side that was supposed to administer painkillers into his IV, but he’d long since discovered that someone had disconnected the mechanism. Likely one of his Changeling brothers making a point.

Charisma had done quite a bit of damage to him, far more than he had been expecting. He had figured if his mental-magic gambit failed she’d just kill him outright. A quick snap of the neck or a knife through the eye. It was her usual method of dispatching dangerous foes. Unlucky for him, she’d been in the mood for a bit of torture first.

He’d passed out before he saw the outcome of that battle, though from the attitudes of those who had debriefed him it hadn’t been a complete disaster. They’d refused to talk about whether he’d earned his way back into the RIA’s good graces, and Calumn supposed that it would depend on how much Straff still needed him. He was patient. He knew that they’d come for him eventually, and when they did he’d get to learn what his actions had earned him. So he held as still as he could and let the hours of boredom flow past him.

A low murmur of conversation outside his door caught his attention. There were a pair of his fellow Changelings standing in the hall outside. They were there as much to protect everyone else as they were to guard him. He was a Changeling who had abandoned his duty, and it wasn’t farfetched to imagine such a creature taking advantage of the people in the hospital, feeding off their emotions to empower himself.

He wasn’t doing that, of course. He had promised to be kind, had said his goodbye to Strongheart’s mother, and he wasn’t about to go back on all that now. It was only pain, something everyone had to experience at some point, and just physical pain at that. The mental anguish he’d experienced after Cash had broken him had been much, much worse.

When the door opened he was ready for several different possibilities. The most prominent in his mind was a squad of Changelings ready to take him to a hive, to be used as a sacrifice to quicken a new generation of his kind. A much more pleasant possibility would be Straff, coming to tell him he was free and clear, though that was less likely. There were gradients in-between, potential scenarios that he, having nothing better to do, had dwelt on at length. Seeing who actually entered, however, came as the most happy of surprises.

“Hey, buddy,” Blaze said, shutting the door behind him. “How are you doing?”

Calumn took a moment to steel himself before he spoke. “How do I look?” He kept the motion small, but the pain as his jaw moved still was a spike of agony that made his eyes water. He wouldn’t be making any speeches, but he decided it was manageable.

Blaze shrugged as he walked over to the bed. “Pretty bad. Like you were an egg, but not like a chicken egg. Like, a black egg with weird holes in you and stuff. Like that, and imagine someone was really hungry and found this egg and was all ‘I could eat this’ even though he’s got, like, no idea where the egg came from and I don’t really think you should be eating strange black eggs with holes in them and stuff because it could be poisonous or maybe a really bad attempt at an omelette like this one time I made breakfast in bed for my parents, but I was, like, six and they had no idea what I was doing so they were all panicking when the fire alarm went off and I think I passed out from smoke inhalation, but anyways, when I finally got around to serving breakfast it kinda looked like you do now.”

“... Wow.”

“Yeah, you probably want to avoid mirrors for the next week or two.”

“Got it,” Calumn said, clamping down hard on the urge to laugh. “How’d we do?”

“Well, we kinda-sorta won,” Blaze said. His eyes wandered to the IV and he started idly playing with some of the tubes and switches connecting the saline bags to the Changeling. Calumn didn’t think that was a wise idea, but also didn’t figure it would cause any more harm, so let it be. “Cash didn’t get what he was after, but he got away, and that’s made everybody kinda edgy. Oh, and another of Rainbow Dash’s friends showed up and blew up Senator Birchfield’s mansion.”

Calumn jerked up at that. “What?” he choked out, his voice rough with the pain his motion caused him.

“Yeah. I got no idea what happened there, but there was this big, huge light and now the mansion’s a crater.” Blaze paused for a moment, his eyes looking up and to his left, as if in intense thought. “And I think there was a party, too. Wasn’t invited to that one.”

“Wow,” Calumn said again.

“I know, right? I’m amazing at parties! Especially if they’re BYOB, bring your own balloons. I know this great place that sells these cheap knockoffs of licensed characters and politicians! At least five in every pack are guaranteed to pop with no warning at your event! Anyways, what I’m saying is that I’m not really in the loop here, I don’t know what’s going on, but I managed to convince the guys at the door that I was allowed to see you, so I thought I’d keep you company.” He absently twisted a tiny knob and suddenly blessed chemical relief flooded into Calumn’s body.

“Yeah,” Calumn said, letting out a shuddering breath. “I’d like that.”

Blaze sat at his bedside, talking about nothing and everything at once. He started with the events of the fight that Calumn had missed, a subject which naturally spawned a thousand rambling tangents. Calumn listened with half an ear, relaxing into the painkillers and letting his mind roam ahead. He wasn’t worried about his place. He knew he might still face punishment at the hooves of his species, but with Blaze there that didn’t seem like a real possibility, and he found he could ignore it without trouble. More, the friendship he shared with Blaze was a balm to his hurts, both metaphorically and literally. The energy he was gaining went into healing his injuries and the presence of his friend sparked a new direction and focus for his thoughts.

Slowly, ever so slowly, with a babble of patented Trail Blazer stream-of-consciousness forming a soothing white noise background, a plan began to take shape. It would be incredibly difficult and only good once, but with what he suspected of their enemies, it would take them entirely off-guard. He frowned as he looked at it from different angles, trying to decide if it was worth the risk. If it was even possible.

“What’s up, buddy?” Blaze asked, noticing the change in Calumn’s expression.

“Charisma,” Calumn said. “You attacked her, right?”

“Well, pushed her a bit,” Blaze said, his customary smile fading. “Spike did most of the ‘attacking’-attacking.”

“How much do you think that affected her feelings for you?”

“I’m not the kind of pony she holds grudges against.” Blaze tilted his head with an unspoken question.

“Do you trust me, Blaze?” Calumn asked, looking his friend in the eye. He could feel the answer before it was given.

“All the way,” Blaze replied with an honest grin. “Right to the end.”

Calumn shook his head. “I need to be clear on this. I need to know that if I asked you to put your life in my hooves, you would do it without a moment’s hesitation.”

Blaze’s smile fell away again, replaced with as close to a contemplative expression as Calumn had ever seen on him. “Are you?”

“Yeah… yeah I think I am.”

The grin returned, burning with joy. “I always trusted you, buddy. I’m glad you trust me enough to ask for something this big. Whatever you need me to do, I’m your stallion.”

Calumn smiled back and nodded. There was a serenity in him that was more than the painkillers, more than the steady flow of friendship he’d had for the past few hours. He felt strong, confident, buoyed by Trail Blazer’s rock-solid belief in him. “Thank you, Blaze. Thank you so much.”

“What’s a friend for?” Blaze said with a laugh. “So what do you need me to do?”

“It’s going to be hard, but I have an idea…”

***

Star Fall opened her eyes and made a small sound of distress, and Astrid was by her side instantly. “You back with us, Fall?” she asked, holding a cup of water up to the pegasus.

Star Fall realized that she was terribly thirsty, so she took the cup in her hooves and brought it to her lips. She barely stopped herself from guzzling it, a thought coming to her as if through a thick fog that it would be better to take it slow. So she forced herself to sip a few times before speaking. “What happened?”

“You collapsed just outside the Storm,” Astrid replied. Star Fall nodded, she had a vague memory of that happening. “I had Dash carry you back here and you’ve just been sleeping and eating like a zombie ever since.”

Across the room, Dash stood and gave a quick smile to Star Fall. “Remember this place, Star?”

Star Fall let her bleary gaze roam her surroundings. “The cabin,” she said. She had meant it to be an exclamation, but it had come out of her like a flat statement. “Where we brought you.” She was lying in the same bed Dash had occupied while she’d been recovering from the crash that had brought them together. It felt like a lifetime ago when they had last been here. So much had happened, she didn’t feel like the same pony who had rescued a strange mare just because she spoke a dead language.

“Yeah, looks like whoever owns this place still hasn’t been back,” Astrid said. She took the glass from Star Fall, who was surprised to find she had somehow drained it while she wasn’t paying attention. “Which suits me fine. I was worried that I’d have to get superpony here to cart you to Orion City and into a hospital.”

“I would have been recognized,” Star Fall said. Her mind was quickening, but she still felt a disconnect. It was like everything she thought and felt was coming from far away, and had very little to do with her. “They would have captured me.”

“But you’d be alive,” Astrid said. “And I could figure out how to rescue you later.”

Star Fall wanted to say something to that, but the desire wasn’t strong enough to outweigh the leaden apathy that hung around her like a yoke, so she just sadly shook her head. In fact, the only thing that she felt motivating her now was the empty pit that had replaced her stomach. “Do we have any food?”

“Knew you were going to ask, Fall,” Astrid said, pulling out a bouquet of wildflowers.

Star Fall grabbed the offered food and began munching down on them. A flash of surprise went through her at the explosive riot of taste and texture that burst across her tongue. She swallowed her mouthful of petals and felt the tingling sparks of energy that flashed from them on their way down her throat. “What the heck are these?” she asked, her voice rising above a monotone for the first time since she had awoken. “They’re amazing!”

“You can thank the orange wonder for that,” Astrid said.

“Yeah, when she heard you needed a lot of food after going through the Everstorm she started gathering some stuff for you,” Dash said, her wings wide with pride for her friend. “She said the local flowers were, uh, ‘sadder than a clown without a rodeo’. So she started doing the earth pony thing and farming them.”

“Farming?” Star Fall asked, frowning down at the bundle of flowers. “How long have I been here?”

“Just over a day,” Astrid said. “And it’s more like super-gardening. She set up a little plot of dirt and transplanted a bunch of flowers into it. Then she waters them and talks to them for a bit and somehow an hour later they’ve grown twice as big and–according to Dash here, and now you–taste like bacon-wrapped steak.”

“If this is what steak tastes like, I can see why you Griffins like it,” Star Fall said, taking another bite. The hunger after crossing the Everstorm had always been harsh, but she remembered how much worse it had been when they emerged this time. With every swallow that hunger receded, and as it went everything else seemed to come closer, the disconnect she was experiencing eroding quickly. In its place there was something else, something that was going to demand her attention, and soon.

“I hope it gets you moving, ‘cause we can’t afford to stay here a week like last time,” Astrid said. “We’ve gotta find Gamma, fast. Who knows how much she’s heard about what happened? About Umbra.”

And that was all it took. Umbra. The thought of the Nightmare Goddess inevitably led to another: Twinkle Shine. From there, all the protective distance was ripped away, and suddenly everything was so close it was crushing. Star Fall shuddered, putting the flowers down. “Dash, do you mind letting me and Astrid talk privately?”

A slight look of confusion crossed Dash’s face for an instant, but she smiled and nodded. “Sure, Star. I’ll be outside with Applejack if you need me.” She stepped in and gave Star Fall a quick nuzzle. “Glad to see you talking again. Eat up, it’s good stuff!” A moment later she was out the door and telling Applejack the good news of Star Fall’s recovery.

Astrid watched her go, then turned her raptor gaze on her charge. “You got something you want to say, Fall?” Star Fall responded with a choked sob. Astrid’s eyes went wide as her wings slumped. “Aw, shit. The Professor.” She sat down next to the bed and draped a wing across Star Fall’s shoulders. “I guess if it’s gotta hit you, now’s better than later.”

“Sh-she…” Star Fall began, hissing in a breath through clenched teeth. “I trusted her, Astrid! She was… I… I thought…” Tears burned in her eyes and she hunched over, letting them fall. Astrid didn’t move, just letting the weight of her wing bring what comfort it could. After a while, how long she couldn’t really say, Star Fall spoke again. “I have to get past this. I can’t be… When I saw her in the Storm I was so angry. I wanted to hurt her. I wanted to… She was talking to us, Astrid! How much could I have found out if I wasn’t trying to spite her?”

“I think you did pretty damn well,” Astrid said. “She got under your skin, but she’s always going to, Fall. She’s family.”

“No!” Star Fall spat out. “She doesn’t get to be family! Families care about each other!”

Astrid sighed. “Come on, Fall. Think about it. I won’t even try to guess how it works, but it looks like she’s got a say in what the Destroyer does. Umbra’s been treating you with kid gloves, and the Professor’s the reason for that. She still cares.”

“She doesn’t care!” Star Fall screamed, her hooves shaking. She wanted to lash out at Astrid, to scream in anger and pain, to take everything that was choking her from the inside and get it out. Magic sparked like electricity through the feathers of her wings, and Astrid jerked back at the sudden shock, yelping in surprise and pain.

Star Fall went still. It was like she had been plunged into icy water, all the building emotion purged in an instant at the sound of Astrid’s cry. She looked up at her guardian, horrified. Astrid stared back at her with wary shock. They held each other’s gaze for a long moment before Star Fall looked away. She slowly rubbed the tears from her eyes, feeling her heart pounding with adrenaline that had nowhere to go. She rearranged herself on the bed, sitting up straight, and took a long deep breath. She held it for a count of five then slowly let it out before drawing in another. She repeated the cycle over and over, minutes going by with her doing nothing but her slow, controlled breathing.

Finally, she let her rigid posture slump and looked over to Astrid again. “You’re right,” she said. “She does care. And so do I. And life would be so much easier if one of those things wasn’t true.”

“If she didn’t care, she’d have killed us off,” Astrid pointed out.

“Probably,” Star Fall agreed, nodding. “But I’d feel better about it.” She picked up the flowers and took another bite. She took her time chewing and swallowing, and Astrid didn’t say anything, giving her the space to think. “I’m not okay.”

“I get that,” Astrid said. She didn’t move to comfort Star Fall this time, but she did refill the forgotten glass with water and set it next to the bed. “Celestia’s honest truth? I’m not doing so hot myself.”

“Still want to see it all through to the end?”

“You’re damn right I do.”

Star Fall nodded silently. She took a few more bites before speaking again. “Is this what I’m going to be from now on? In control of myself one minute and a complete wreck the moment the Professor is brought up?”

Astrid shrugged. “I wish I could tell you, but I’m new to this whole grief thing too. I figure you’re just losing it now because it’s a pretty safe time to do it. We’re tough girls, Fall, we can take all the shit the world throws at us and more. So trust me, when you need to keep it together, you will.”

Star Fall absorbed this, finishing off the bouquet quietly. Her wings moved restlessly, opening and resettling as her thoughts roamed. Astrid sat calmly, watching her charge.

“We need a plan,” Star Fall said, her voice strong and certain. “We’ve got Umbra on one side playing some sort of game with the world, and we have no idea what the object of that game is. On the other side we’ve got Cash and whatever he’s gathering the Elements for, which, again, we have no clue about. That’s two fronts, but a Kingdom-Republics war can easily add a third. We can’t let that happen.”

“Hell no we can’t. It would screw our ability to get anything done about the first two,” Astrid said, snorting. “You’ve got an idea?”

“Maybe,” Star Fall replied. “The start of one, at least. Making it work will depend on a lot of factors that I don’t know yet.” She shook her head. “First thing is still first. We find Gamma. Then whether or not I can get the Republics to back off, we go after Cash. Things will get a whole lot easier if we can narrow the field down to just one opponent.”

“She’ll still be an immortal Goddess,” Astrid said.

“I didn’t say easy, just easier. Besides, we beat Cash and we’ll have the Elements of Harmony. With everything I’ve learned about them, even without the Element of Magic, I’m willing to bet we’ll be on a much more equal footing. Goddess or not.”

“You think we can make them work for us?”

“I think I really want to get my hooves on Harmony Theory,” Star Fall replied. “It’s the key to everything, I just kno–” She was cut off by a sudden shout from Dash outside, followed by the entire cabin shuddering as a gale-force blast of air hit it. Star Fall and Astrid shared a quick glance, their respective training already taking over and bringing them up to battle readiness. Star Fall dove out of the bed, grabbing a spell-sheet from her pack while Astrid flattened herself against the wall next to the window. Star Fall slid over to the other side of the window, staying low. A moment later she was drawing up combat spells, feeling out her barely-recovered magic to see how much she could safely accomplish. Then, with a quick nod to each other, they peered out the window, and saw what had happened.

“Well,” Astrid said, with the calm bemusement of a warrior born. “That’s it. We’re fucked.”

Star Fall watched the unfolding scene with a cold, stoic determination as her thoughts raced and her magic crackled to life within her. “The RIA’s here.”

***

Rainbow Dash left the cabin and walked over to the small garden Applejack had put together. It wasn’t much, certainly nothing compared to the carefully tended fields that had surrounded Ponyville in their time, but the flowers that grew there were larger, brighter and far more fragrant than anything else that was growing in the Everfree Verge. Applejack looked up from watering the plants as Dash approached, her hat pulled low to shade her eyes from the high sun.

“So, how’s she doin’?” Applejack asked.

“She’s awake,” Dash replied, coming to stand next to her friend. “Still really out of it, though. And it kinda looked like she was about to cry as I was leaving. Oh, hey! She liked the flowers.”

Applejack nodded in satisfaction. “It’s not a proper meal by a long sight, but it’ll get her back on her hooves.” She knelt down next to the garden, poking at the soil with a hoof. “I’ve been noticing somethin’ while I’ve been workin’. I wonder if you’ve seen the same thing up in the sky.”

“Noticing what?”

“Magic,” Applejack said. “After what y’all have told me about the Schism and magic goin’ away and everythin’, I expected all the plants to be, well, empty I suppose.” She touched a flower, leaning in to take a deep breath of its scent. “But they ain’t empty. They’ve got everythin’ inside them still. All I have to do is coax it out.”

Dash frowned, not sure of what to make of this information. “So what does this mean?”

Applejack shrugged. “Dunno. I’m just wonderin’ if there’s still magic in the clouds, too.”

“Well, duh,” Dash said. “They wouldn’t be clouds otherwise.” She paused, trying to imagine what Applejack was getting at. “I mean, there’s some magic in everything, right?”

Applejack nodded. “There was in our time, and I reckon it’s the same now. The question I’m askin’ is why? Star Fall said magic was drained from the world, right? So these flowers here ain’t been cared for proper in eight hundred years, and it shows, but they’ve still got as much in them as the flowers in our time did. Now, why is that?”

Dash gave her friend a helpless look. “Sorry, AJ. I’m the wrong pony to ask about that. Maybe you can talk to Star about it? She’d probably know.”

Applejack sighed. “I s’pose you’re right.” She went back to tending the plants, whispering encouragement to them and carefully patting the soil around their stalks.

Dash sat and watched her, letting her mind drift with the lazy boredom of a warm, sunny day and not much to do. She thought about what Applejack had said, but she still couldn’t figure out what the big deal was. She looked up at the clouds drifting by. They were still far too high and far too wispy, letting themselves be pushed around by the wind instead of waiting to be put somewhere useful. They still had magic in them, sure, but that didn’t make them suddenly start behaving like clouds were supposed to. She considered organizing them properly for a moment before deciding that it would draw attention that Star Fall and Astrid wouldn’t want.

“You just gonna sit there starin’ at the sky?” Applejack asked, pulling Dash out of her reverie.

“Nah, just thinking,” Dash said.

“Now there’s a sight,” Applejack said with a smile. “Care to give me a helpin’ hoof here? These little beauties are mighty thirsty, I’d appreciate it if you could draw some more water for them.”

“You got it,” Dash said with a mock salute. She grabbed the rusty bucket they had found and headed to the pump at the back of the cabin. It took a bit of effort to get the water flowing, but soon she was heading back to the garden with the handle of the full bucket between her teeth.

She didn’t know at first what it was that made her stop. It might have been a sound or something she caught out of the corner of her eye. Whatever it was, it made her freeze in place and set all her senses on high alert. Her ears twitched and swiveled as she listened to the wind sighing through the tall grass and trees that surrounded the cabin. A very soft noise came to her, a murmur of a voice that was not one of her companions. She turned her head slowly to look at the source of that voice. At first she only saw the swaying grass, but then, for just a moment, she spotted the bright iris of a pony’s eye looking back at her.

The bucket dropped from her grasp as her mouth opened wide to give a wordless shout of warning to Applejack. A puff of compressed air sent a small metal object hurtling at her from the grass. She reacted with the speed only a pegasus was capable of, twisting to the side and snapping a wing out to parry the missile. The impact stung her wing, the pain like stepping on a sharp rock, but was successful in deflecting the projectile away from her.

A dozen more hissing cracks gave her less than a second to respond as she was fired on from all directions. Time seemed to slow as she drew up her magic and called on her Talent for speed. To her accelerated perspective the missiles moved with the languid pace of a plump bumblebee, letting her get a clear look at them. The projectiles were darts that sported a very familiar barbed design. Her flank tingled with the memory of being hit by one of them. An experience that she did not wish to repeat.

In a blur of spinning blue and the flash of an ethereal spectrum, Rainbow Dash defended herself. A dozen darts streaked towards her, and a dozen darts were knocked away. Dash spun hard enough to create a cyclone that lifted the dirt around her into a funnel a hundred feet high, then slammed her hooves into the ground and the cyclone exploded outwards in all directions, flattening the tall grass all around the cabin and revealing two dozen people in strange camouflage gear that had made them nearly invisible.

“Dash?” Applejack called to her. She looked over to find her friend looking around in confusion, a silver dart sticking out of her neck. Dash didn’t know how long it would take the poison to affect the hardy farmer, but the fact that the dart had hit near a major artery didn’t bode well. “What in tarnation is goin’ on?”

“It’s an attack!” Dash said, crouching low. “Protect Astrid and Star!” With that she leapt into the air, a rainbow following in her wake as she arced over the stunned attackers and dropped onto the one who had first shot her.

He was an earth pony stallion–a fact she could only discern once she’d got in striking distance–and he reacted to her leap with calm professionalism, aiming his gun at her and biting down on the trigger. She rolled through the air, spiralling out of the dart’s path, and then she was on him. She slapped the weapon out of his mouth, striking hard enough that she took at least one tooth as well. He kicked out, but she dodged it with casual ease and responded with a backflip that sent both of her rear hooves cracking against his jaw. He was flipped over onto his back, where he lay moaning and insensate.

Dash didn’t glory in her victory, instead launching herself at the next closest attacker. This one took longer to shift his weapon towards her, and that was all the opening she needed. She punched at his gut, and he spit the dart gun out himself as he involuntarily emptied himself of everything he had eaten that day. By this time darts were coming at her, but she ducked behind her opponent. To their credit, his companions refused to fire on him.

Knowing that she would lose any sort of defensive fight against these numbers, she kicked her opponent’s legs out from under him. From her perspective he seemed to float in the air for a moment, surprise and pain warring for his features. She swept her wings forward and called up wind, focusing the blast of air tightly enough that it picked up her defeated enemy and flung him head over hooves into another attacker.

“Switch to live-fire!” someone called out. She didn’t understand the words, but the way all the attackers dropped their dart guns and threw the camouflage netting off the much more deadly weapons at their sides told her all she needed to know.

She took to the air in a prismatic streak, spiralling up before dropping back to the ground with sound-shattering speed. Her magic rippled around her at the edge of the supersonic threshold, sending needles of pain through her body as she dropped to skim barely a foot above the earth. Bullets came roaring her way, but she was going much too fast for them to lead her properly and all their shots fell far short.

She burst through a group of them, her rainbow trail describing a zigzag pattern as she bounced from opponent to opponent. She did little more than touch them, barely a shove as she changed direction to her next target, but each push came with a disproportionate share of the kinetic energy she’d built up. When she came out the other side of the group, she was flying at barely a hundred miles an hour. The attackers, however, found themselves flung helplessly through the air, falling back to earth with bone-breaking force.

Dash flapped her wings, pulling up for another run. As she ascended this time, however, a dozen pegasi detached themselves from their hiding spots in the trees and gave chase. She looked at them over her shoulder, gauging the skill of her new opponents. It was immediately apparent that none of them could come close to matching her speed or maneuverability. Like with Umbra’s ghouls, it would be their numbers and coordination that would be their advantage. Though as a bullet whizzed by dangerously close, Dash was reminded that their guns would also be a factor.

She looped through the air as they sought to corral her. She was a ribbon of light dancing between lines of tracer fire, sometimes avoiding death by a hairsbreadth. Every time that ribbon touched one of the circling black specks of the attackers, a pegasus fell to the ground.

She was careful not to hurt any of them so badly that they couldn’t slow their fall, but other than that Dash went to work with a brutal efficiency. She broke legs, tore guns from their mounts and pulled feathers, anything to disable an opponent. For all their training, for all their skill, the outcome was never in doubt. She was the whirlwind and they were but chaff before the storm.

When the last few broke off and began to fly away on their own, Dash paused to take a breather and see how the rest of the battle was going. Down on the ground, she spotted Applejack throwing a pony half again her size clear over the cabin. A moment later she was tackled by a pony and a Diamond Dog working together. She didn’t go down, but Dash could see the sluggish way she was reacting, the poison taking its toll.

Next to the cabin, Star Fall and Astrid were making a stand. A crimson bolt of lightning flashed out from the interior, catching an attacking pony and sending him convulsing to the ground. The attackers responded by throwing a grenade that spewed thick yellow smoke into the cabin. Then Astrid responded to that by chucking the grenade back out again with perfect aim, beaning it off the helmet of the one who had thrown it in the first place.

Dash chuckled at that, then scanned the surrounding area from her high vantage. She spotted the command area of their attackers immediately. A group of black trucks parked beyond the trees, where they wouldn’t have been seen or heard coming up. There were more people clustered around those trucks, but Dash figured she could handle them. What would be more difficult were the half dozen other trucks that were speeding their way from the mountains, kicking up a cloud of dirt and dust in their haste.

“Aw, man, not good,” Dash said, diving back towards the fight. She landed in front of the cabin window, sending a blast through to clear out the smoke that was still hanging inside. “Star! We’ve got a lot more incoming and AJ’s not doing so hot, what do we do?”

“I can hold out!” Applejack shouted as she wrestled with her pair of attackers. Dash looked over and spotted several more darts standing out clearly against her friend’s orange coat. Their attackers had clearly decided not to stop at one with her. “I’ve had colds worse than this!”

“How many more?” Star Fall asked from inside, keeping herself out of sight.

“Like, six trucks worth,” Dash replied.

“Celestia’s day!” Astrid squawked. “We can’t hold out against that, Fall.”

“Hey, I’m doing pretty good so far!” Dash said, ducking aside as a stream of bullets chewed up the side of the cabin where she’d been standing.

“Then you can get Fall out of here!” Astrid said. Star Fall made a noise of protest, and Astrid lowered her voice to talk to her charge, only Dash’s excellent senses allowing her to catch the words. “Look, if they’re sending this kind of force against us, they clearly know who you are. If I have a chance to keep you from getting captured, I have to take it.”

“I’m not leaving you or Applejack behind,” Star Fall said, quiet steel in her voice. “We do this together.”

“Fall…”

“No, Astrid. We do this together.”

“And how are you planning to make that happen?”

“I’ve got an idea, but you’re not going to like it–” A burst of gunfire cut off the rest of what Star Fall said, as well as Astrid’s response. Dash leapt towards the shooter, quickly disarming them and knocking them aside before returning to her place by the cabin. “Dash?” Star Fall called out from inside. “You still there?”

“Waiting for your plan, Star!” Dash replied.

“Alright, here we go!” Star Fall gave her plan in short bursts. Dash could easily see why it wasn’t something Astrid would like. She thought it sounded awesome, but it was a gamble, and it relied on Dash being careful and patient. “And remember: no etherealizing!”

“Got it, Star,” Dash said, then took off into the sky. She kept her speed down, though still fast enough to keep ahead of the few who decided to take shots at her as she ascended. Without her customary trail of rainbow light, she was soon lost amongst the blue of the sky, and the bullets stopped.

It took longer than she cared for to reach the first cloud, but once she was there she started to work immediately. As insubstantial as it was, the cloud still responded to her hooves as she touched it, firming and compressing to her gentle coaxing. She didn’t press the cloudstuff as tightly as she would have liked, still worried about leaving her friends on the ground for too long, and pushed the half-finished structure into a neighboring cloud. The two merged, her more substantial cloud falling to the center of the larger, looser cloud. Dash pushed herself into the stuff, her wings pumping as she forced both clouds down.

She descended with her burden and felt the clouds resist, the moisture in them trying to condense into rain as they fell. She kicked the larger cloud, a warning that she wouldn’t stand for that. It wisely chose to follow her directions.

As soon as she felt she was low enough she halted the descent of the clouds. She burrowed down to the first cloud, continuing her work at compressing it down to a useful size. Wisps of cloudstuff were trying to escape, draining away into the larger cloud like an over-full water balloon with a dozen pinpicks in it. Dash snarled in annoyance and plugged those holes, working furiously to mould the cloud to her will.

When she was done the cloud was a rough, dark oval twice her size, floating in a shaded void within the larger cloud. She hovered for a moment, catching her breath. The sounds of gunfire were gone, replaced by shouting voices. She wanted to peek out of her cloud and find out what was going on, but Star Fall’s plan had been explicit that she wasn’t supposed to show herself until called.

Instead she focused on the dark egg in front of her. “Alright,” she whispered to it, putting her hooves on the solid cloud and feeling the condensed potential within. “I know you’re not happy about getting squished down. Well, deal with it. My friends need help, and you’re going to give it to them. There won’t be much left of you when I’m done, but I promise you one thing:”

She took a deep breath, gathering her energy, then blew it out in a gentle stream into the cloud. Like blowing on the embers of a fire, the dark cloud lit up from within, arcs of electricity crawling across its surface as Dash aligned all of its potential towards one purpose: lightning.

She grinned as she felt the tingles of energy wash up her hooves, her face illuminated by the blue-white flashes of waiting power. “It’s going to be awesome.”

***

“You really think this is going to work?” Astrid asked.

“Better than the alternative,” Star Fall replied. She drew a few more curving lines on her spell-page before deciding it was done. She stamped a hoof on the page, throwing energy into the spell. There was a moment of painful feedback, the hallmark of a spell too hastily made, but it faded to be replaced by a burning feeling in her hoof, as if she had stepped in a fire. She grimaced at the sensation, but a few calming breaths and she had it wiped from her features. “Ready.”

“Alright, hope Dash is ready,” Astrid said, then hefted a makeshift white flag out the doorway–the door having long since been destroyed in the battle–and began waving it. The gunfire stopped in moments, changing to the shouting voices of the Republics Agents as they relayed news of the surrender.

They waited patiently, and a moment later a voice called out to them in passable Solar. “You will remove all weapons and exit the dwelling!”

“Here goes nothing,” Astrid said, before she stepped out of the cabin. “Celestia be merciful.”

Star Fall followed on her heels, her wings folded and her head held high. Outside, a half-dozen camouflaged members of an RIA strike team stood in a semi-circle, their weapons pointed squarely at Star Fall and Astrid. Off to the side, Applejack stood taking deep, panting breaths. It was a miracle she was still on her hooves with the number of tranquilizing darts she’d taken, but Star Fall had come to expect such miracles from her newest friends. She was more surprised to see that Applejack was otherwise uninjured. They’d apparently been avoiding shooting her with live ammo.

“You two okay?” Applejack asked. There was a tremor in her voice, like deep fatigue.

“We’re fine,” Star Fall replied in Old Equestrian. “There is a plan. Do what they tell you for now. Be ready to move when the time comes.” Applejack nodded and relaxed her posture, her head dipping and her eyes closing.

“Open your mouths and stick out your tongues!” The command came from a camouflaged unicorn, the same one who had told them to leave the cabin. They complied, showing the watching agents that they weren’t concealing any weapons. “Slowly drop to your knees. Slowly! Keep your wings closed and do not make any sudden movements!”

As soon as they had done as ordered, the agents swarmed over them. Cuffs were locked to their legs, hobbling them. Thick straps were looped over their wings, then winched to painful tightness that also made it hard to draw deep breaths. Applejack was similarly bound, though Star Fall doubted the thick metal restraints would pose any more impediment to the ancient pony than shackles made of tissue paper would.

The soldiers said nothing to them, and very little to each other, giving no clues as to what their orders were. Their professionalism was focused, however, and in ways that Star Fall expected. None of them were looking to where the real danger would come from. Star Fall couldn’t stop herself from glancing up at the sky, and was pleased to find that it took her a few moments of searching to spot the cloud that was hanging strangely low above their heads, resistant to the breeze that was pushing its fellows. Hopefully no one else would notice the incongruity.

A minute and a half after being shackled, she heard the sounds of engines and a quartet of heavy military trucks pulled into the field around the cabin. They pulled up a dozen feet from them, and more soldiers emerged, quickly going to their injured comrades. She watched those trucks carefully, trying to discern if there was anyone left in them.

One earth pony was not wearing camouflage or combat gear when he jumped from the cab of the lead truck. She recognized him from the frequent briefings she had attended on the RIA power structure.

“Director Broker,” she said, the words turned into a hiss by the tightness of the binding around her chest.

“Lady Fallen Star,” he replied, a triumphant smirk on his aquamarine features. “Or is it Princess, now? I heard you were supposed to be married a few days ago.”

Star Fall wondered for a moment how much information had managed to make it across the Storm already. Then she decided it didn’t matter. It would all come out sooner or later. “The wedding happened,” she said, returning his smirk with one of her own. “The reception left something to be desired, though.”

He nodded, though a small crease of a frown between his eyes betrayed some inner doubt or fear. She didn’t know enough yet to determine what it was he was thinking. “So, what is such august, if newly-minted, royalty doing this side of the Everstorm? Please tell me you’ve chosen my fair nation as a honeymoon spot! I’d be absolutely delighted to show you and your husband our world-class facilities.”

“Sadly, this trip is more professional and pressing in nature,” she said. “I don’t suppose anything I said would convince you to let us go, would it? Diplomatic privilege or anything like that?”

He shook his head. “Sorry, your highness, but you’re here illegally. Had you gone through the ports, with an official request to enter, well, I’d have no grounds to stop you. The fact that you chose to sneak in, with two top-level biological superweapons no less, tells me that whatever you’re here for, it’s not good for the Republics.”

“Biological superweapons?” Astrid wheezed, letting out a strained chuckle. “Dash is gonna love that one.”

“We’re still working out how to class them,” the Director said, stabbing a hoof at where Applejack lay. “I’m of the mind they should be outlawed by international treaty.”

“They’re heroes, Director, not weapons,” Star Fall said, narrowing her eyes at him. “Living pieces of Equestria’s united history.”

He snorted. “Of course they are. And I’m Luna’s favourite consort. I don’t know how you sun-heads engineered them, but save the ‘resurrected hero’ crap for your slaves.” Star Fall couldn’t suppress a laugh. His expression darkened immediately. “Something amusing to you?”

“It’s just… I can see why they gave you the Kingdom portfolio over Straff and Lilac,” she said, naming two other Directors that had been vying for the responsibility of spying on the Kingdom before Broker had gotten the job. “Competent enough to satisfy the doves, and just the right shades of willful ignorance and bigotry to make the war-hawks grin. The Senate must have really loved you.”

Another crease between his eyes, deeper this time. It took her a moment to remember the problems the RIA was having with the Senate and connect them with his sign of distress. Clearly Broker was worried about his job security. That might make her plan less likely to succeed, but she was committed now.

“Look, Director, you are laboring under a misapprehension.”

“Do tell, your highness.”

“You think you’ve captured us.” His eyes narrowed and she saw him tense up. Clearly competent enough to know that she wouldn’t use such bravado if she didn’t have an ace in the hole. “Undo these restraints, let us all go, and don’t follow. I swear, by Celestia’s light, we aren’t here to hurt the Republics. Far from it, what we’re going to do will help you just as much as it will us. Let us go, Director.”

“We missed something!” he called out to his soldiers in Lunar. “Find out where the fourth one went! You, you and you! Sweep the perimeter again! Do not trust anything! Shoot first, question later!” They jumped to obey, scattering all over the field as he turned back to Star Fall. “Counter offer. You tell me what you’ve got waiting right now, and I don’t shoot you in the head when whatever it is reveals itself.”

It was Star Fall’s turn for a triumphant smile. “You won’t shoot me, Director. I’m your prisoner, and my capture will make your career. If, on the other hoof, I end up dead while in your custody it’s going to cause an international incident the likes of which our two nations haven’t seen. And before the inevitable war breaks out, you are going to be thrown right in front of that train. If you’re lucky you’ll spend the rest of your days in a tiny, windowless cell where they throw people like you to forget about them. If you’re not lucky, well…” She gave a sidelong glance at Astrid. “I hear pony meat is delicious. Is that right, Astrid?”

Astrid gave a small shrug. “Eh, I prefer a good burger. Though, now that you mention it, I’ve never actually had it cooked before.” She eyed Broker with hungry eyes. “He looks like he’d make a nice spit-roast.”

Broker recoiled from Astrid, but regained his composure quickly. “Fine, I won’t shoot you.” He turned his gaze to the still form of Applejack. “I’ll shoot her.”

The smile fell from Star Fall’s face. “I’m done with this.” She stamped her burning hoof once, calling the spell she’d absorbed forth. She glared at one of the trucks and for a moment it was surrounded in a nimbus of crimson light, turning it into a beacon that would be easiest seen from above. The glow only lasted for a moment, though, as an instant later the day was shattered by a bolt of lightning as thick as a pony lancing down from on high to strike the marked truck.

Star Fall had been expecting it to catch fire, maybe have a tire or two pop, at best. What she saw in the glare of the strike was the tires literally exploding as the bolt of lightning burned through the vehicle and into the ground, acting more like some kind of laser than electricity. The truck was launched into the air, a melon-sized hole melted directly through its engine block, the multi-ton vehicle crashing into the truck next to it and knocking it onto its side. Thunder crashed against them, the sensation like being caught by a heavy wave, blowing manes and debris-studded camouflage netting into a whipping flurry as it passed. Star Fall’s ears ached as the sound faded, and she’d been ready for it.

The soldiers reacted by shouting in confusion and surprise, firing their guns uselessly up into the sky. Director Broker stood with his mouth hanging open before turning to stare at Star Fall. “What in Luna’s night was that?”

“The power of a hero,” Star Fall said. “That truck was empty, Director, but the six others on their way won’t be. How many lives are you willing to sacrifice before you understand that I was never going to be captured by you?”

The crease between his eyes again, transforming his expression of shock into one of confusion. “Six others?”

He doesn’t know, Star Fall realized, and that thought led to another: Who else would be coming for us?. The first answer that came into her head made her eyes go wide and her heart flutter with a cold dread. “Director, you have to let us out.” He just stared at her, and she could see the stubborn anger rising up behind his eyes. “Director!” she snapped, a frantic edge making her voice more shrill than she wanted. “You have to let us out, now!”

Astrid didn’t miss the change in her tone. “What’s wrong, Fall?”

“Those other trucks Dash saw, they could be from Cash.”

Astrid swore. More interesting was the reaction from Broker. His eyes widened and his breathing hesitated for just a moment as he heard Cash’s name. “How the hell could he know we’re here?” Astrid asked.

“Same way this guy did!” Star Fall jerked her head at Broker. “Director, those trucks will be here in moments, you have to let me go! If that’s Max Cash, everyone here is in danger!” He pursed his lips, and she could tell that while she was making him think, she wasn’t anywhere close to convincing him. She stamped her hoof and focused on the ground a dozen feet beyond the Director. Again, her target was painted red for a moment before the area was obliterated by fire from the heavens. Broker jumped, his ears finally going flat with fear. She called to him and once she had his attention again she locked eyes with him. “You are running out of time, Director, we all are.”

He held her gaze until one of his soldiers shouted from the edges of the field: “Contact! Six vehicles inbound!”

That got him moving. “Defensive positions! Help me unbind the prisoners!”

“Sir?” a close soldier asked.

“You heard me!” Broker snapped. He knelt down and began working at the straps holding down Star Fall’s wings as the soldier who’d spoken did the same for Astrid. “This had better not be a sunland trick.”

“Nothing I know about,” Star Fall replied. Her wings came free and she slowly flexed them to get the feeling back as he started unshackling her legs. Her rear legs were still bound by the time the new trucks pulled into the field. They had the same black color as the Director’s vehicles, stock-issue RIA transports. She didn’t trust those appearances.

She considered blowing a few of them up, but she knew that Dash would never forgive her for forcing her to kill. So instead she focused on the ground in the path of the lead truck, activating her spell with another hoof-stamp and letting another bolt of lightning split the world. The driver reacted predictably, jerking the vehicle to the side and slamming on the brakes. The other trucks followed suit, coming to a quick halt.

Even before they had stopped, though, there were soldiers pouring out of them. They wore dark body armor instead of the camouflage gear of Broker’s force, but it was, again, standard-issue RIA equipment. Star Fall wouldn’t put it beyond Cash to have access to this kind of personnel and gear, but she was beginning to wonder if there was something else going on here.

Broker was apparently thinking the same thing, frowning at the newcomers as he finished freeing Star Fall and rose to stand in front of her. A moment later a pony she recognized hopped down from one of the trucks. A pale off-white unicorn with a limp blond mane and intense blue eyes that reminded her of Gamma. “Straff?” he called out in confusion. “What by Luna’s starry mane are you doing here?”

“Preventing a disaster,” Straff replied. He said something to his forces, too low for Star Fall to catch, and they lowered their weapons. They didn’t put them away or let go of the triggers, leaving the implied threat plain to see, simply moved them so they weren’t actively pointing at anyone.

“Don’t you have your own problems, Straff?” Broker said, sneering. “Something about Senator Birchfield’s mansion becoming a warzone?”

“I think you’ll find that the Senator’s mansion has ceased to be a problem for anyone,” Straff said. His voice was dry, but Star Fall caught a whiff of irony from his words, and knew that he was laughing at some private joke that the rest of them weren’t privy to. He shifted his attention behind Broker, catching Star Fall’s gaze. “Apologies, your highness. I would have preferred to welcome you to the Republics under better circumstances, but Broker’s mission necessitated radio-silence, so I couldn’t warn him of your… special status.”

Star Fall couldn’t suppress a frown at that. She didn’t understand what was happening here, and that meant she had to be very careful. She and Astrid were free, but surrounded by RIA soldiers and facing a second, possibly hostile force of soldiers. Much more than they could handle or escape from. A quick glance at Applejack showed her still bound and lying down, eyes closed and breath slow and even. Star Fall couldn’t tell if the tranquilizer was working, but had to proceed assuming it was. While she still had Dash as a trump card, she couldn’t tell whether she should be using it or not. And so she chose to remain silent.

“You have no business being here,” Broker said. “Kingdom matters are my responsibility, Straff. Go back to chasing your white-collar criminals and tax evaders and I might forget to report this incident to the oversight committee.”

Straff gave his fellow Director a fleeting glance and a thin smile. “I’m afraid my duty to the Republics overrides my desire for a stable career, Broker.” He turned his attention back to Star Fall. “I assume the display earlier was the work of Rainbow Dash?” He didn’t wait for her reply, nodding to himself. “From the looks of things, you had to impress Director Broker here into giving you freedom.” He looked over to the broken and burning trucks. “I assure you, I will need no such convincing. I understand that you hold all the cards here, your highness. I will not attempt to detain you, but I believe it will be in your best interest to come with me willingly.”

“Why would I do that?” Star Fall asked. He sounded sincere, but that in no way made her trust him.

“I will guarantee your safety and freedom within the Republics,” Straff said. “As well as that of your companions. I will also ensure you have the tools to complete your mission.”

“What do you know about my mission?”

“I know Max Cash is a threat neither of our nations can afford to ignore any longer,” Straff said, then said something that sent her heart leaping into her throat: “Pinkie Pie has returned.”

“What!?” Applejack was on her hooves in an instant. The heavy manacles snapped as if they were twigs. “Pinkie’s back! But that means that no-good, rotten fruit-bat’s got Laughter, too!” Soldiers around her gaped at her casual display of strength, but she didn’t seem to notice, her eyes locked on Straff.

“The situation is… somewhat worse than that,” Straff said.

“What’s going on, Straff?” Broker asked, torn between anger and confusion. “Who is Pinkie Pie? What does this have to do with Max Cash? I haven’t heard anything of this in your reports!”

“That’s because I’ve been conducting a mole-hunt, Broker,” Straff said. “And, frankly, neither you nor anyone in your staff had a need to know. Suffice it to say that my investigation into Cash has discovered something that imperils the future of the Republics, if not the whole world. The incident at Senator Birchfield’s mansion was only a small part of what is going on, but it is indicative of the potential disaster awaiting us if we do not succeed. You are well out of your depth here. Step aside and I will allow you to take some of the credit when this all plays out.”

“I’ll have your job for this,” Broker snarled, but he sounded defeated.

“Only if I do not fail.” He shifted back to Star Fall again, dismissing Broker entirely. “You understand the importance of what I’ve said, Princess. Please come with me.”

“Why… why should I trust you?” Star Fall asked, her mind racing at the thought of Laughter’s capture by Cash.

“I was hoping to convince you myself,” he said. “But we are pressed for time, so I have brought along someone you might be more willing to listen to.” He turned to his soldiers. “Bring out Nemesis.”

Broker stiffened like someone had shot him, and Star Fall frowned. Her confusion lasted for only a moment, as Gamma emerged from the same truck Straff had ridden in. She swept her intense blue gaze over the gathered forces, pausing as she got to Star Fall and quirking her eyebrow quizzically. “While I am disappointed you were spotted entering the nightlands, Agent Fall,” she said, stepping towards them, “I am pleased with how you handled the situation once caught. I’m glad I chose you to take my place on the council. Though, while I have been without reliable news since I arrived here, I am still extremely worried at some of the reports I’ve been getting about the event of your nuptials.”

“Gamma.” Star Fall shook her head, trying to throw off her shock. “You’re working for the RIA?”

“Hardly,” Gamma said with a sniff. “However, the situation is such that co-operation is mandated. Come along, all of you.” She looked up into the sky. “That includes you, Agent Dash! There is much to discuss and not a lot of time to do it in.” She flashed a knowing smile towards Applejack. “And someone I’m sure that you will be anxious to see again.” She turned to step back into the truck. She paused just before she disappeared inside and looked back at them as Dash began to descend. “Well?”

“Yes ma’am!” Star Fall called, starting across the field to the trucks. Astrid and Applejack came up to join her and Broker’s forces did not make a move to stop them.

“You know you’re the boss of her now, right?” Astrid asked in a low voice as they walked. “You don’t have to jump when she says frog.”

Star Fall shrugged. “It’s nice to know that some things haven’t changed,” she said, letting a smile find its way onto her face. “And besides, why mess with a good thing?”

Chapter 32: That Which Binds

Overuse of the Elements has another possibly dangerous side-effect. The propensity for large concentrations of magic to warp bodies and minds is well established; one only has to look to the classical examples of Tirek growing to immense proportions or Sombra becoming a living shadow to see how the abuse of power can radically alter a pony’s form. The Elements share in this. Once a Bearer draws deeply enough on their Element, they undergo a strange transformation. This change is, in itself, extremely powerful and extends to both spiritual and physical realms. There are, however, a few differences from the mutations seen with other magics.

For one, unlike with powerful dark or light magic, it is not actually the power of the Elements that causes the change. Rather, the change is how the body alters itself to deal with the extreme amounts of power flowing through it. Essentially, the Elements don’t do it to us, we do it to ourselves.

Second, the Elements do facilitate this change, even if they are not the cause of it. In a manner I am still uncertain of, they allow the transformation to occur without the usual pain or stress to living tissue. This lack of trauma is especially notable in how easily a Bearer can then convert back into their original form, with negligible lasting effects.

Third, the resulting transformed state is highly individualized. Two different ponies harnessing an Element’s might can be altered to fit radically different forms, despite the power itself being identical both times. It seems that the form the Bearer takes is ultimately a reflection of their state of mind.

I first encountered this metamorphosis when the Element of Magic was stolen by another, Sunset Shimmer, who somehow gained Proxy status and attempted to wield it. The place we were in was inimical to most magic, however, and as a result she had to pull a great deal more energy through the Element than I had ever attempted before outside of a Harmony Event. The subsequent changes she underwent caused her to appear demonic: with crimson skin, leathery wings and hair like burning fire. Her power in this form was such that she was even able to transform others into similar shapes. In addition, the transformation seemed to come with a megalomaniacal loss of reason. I was fortunately able to stop her without any casualties, but her metamorphosis should have been a warning to me. A sign to look deeper.

Sadly, I did not. When my friends and I eventually hit that level of draw from the Elements, I didn’t even consider it similar to what had happened with Sunset Shimmer. The changes we underwent were so drastically different from hers that I simply did not see the connection. We took to our new forms with delight. We used them and the power they offered, and only later realized that we were drawing on the Elements to do so. In our ignorance, we even gave it a name.

We called it the Rainbow Power.

-From the fifth section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Thirty-Two: That Which Binds

“Stick this to the ceiling, he says,” Charisma muttered, brow furrowing as she concentrated yet again on her impossible task. “Like it’s going to be just so easy. I’d like to stick him on a fucking iron spike.” Charisma let out a snarl of rage and effort as she bent all her will towards the little plastic syringe that had so far resisted her every effort to use the supposed powers of the Element of Loyalty.

Before he’d left her to ‘practice’, Cash had spent some time explaining just what Loyalty could do: “Loyalty is a binding force,” he had told her. “It brings things together and holds them together. By the same token, it can also tear them apart. Think of it like having two magnets. Hold the magnets one way, and they’ll click together neat as you please. Flip one around, though, and they’ll push apart. Loyalty controls which way that magnet’s flipped. Now, in reality Loyalty doesn’t work that way at all, it’s actually about directionality and metagroupings and a lot of crap that won’t help you one bit. But I think the magnet thing will work for you because the metaphor extends to, well, just about everything.”

“Like ponies.”

“Like ponies,” he had agreed. “I tell a mercenary soldier to be loyal to me and, like that magnet, his will, his mind, will be stuck to me. Nothing he can do about it, I’m just suddenly the most important person in his life.”

“And then he dies.”

Cash had shrugged. “Ponies don’t really handle that level of focus very well, especially not for sustained periods. There should be a way to do it that won’t kill whoever you aim it at, but I haven’t figured it out. The reverse works the same way. Use Betrayal to make someone turn against, say, his government, and he won’t be able to be loyal to them ever again. The magnet’s been flipped, instead of sticking he gets repelled. The end result is the same, they can’t handle the strain, and they find some way to kill themselves.”

“Unless they’re ‘special’ somehow, like me and you,” Charisma had said, remembering their conversation in Precious Corners.

“Yes, but that’s not something you have to worry about. I don’t think manipulating ponies is going to be your strong suit.” He had let out a dark chuckle here, something that had sent an involuntary shudder through her wings. “No, focus on the physical for now. Binding and unbinding objects. You should be able to do all sorts of nifty cool things. Harmony Theory calls it ‘affixing relative positioning and large-scale entanglements’, but what it really means is sticking things together and breaking them apart. And don’t be too limited by that, either. Loyalty can control things like gravity and chemical bonds and the nuclear forces that power the sun.”

“That sounds like a lot of power for one little necklace.” In truth she didn’t think he was telling the half of it. When she had used Loyalty to shut down whatever Rarity and the other mare were doing, she had caught a sense of the power she’d been wielding. She couldn’t really understand it, couldn’t hold it in her head, but it had left her with the sense that what he was saying was only the tip of the iceberg.

“It is,” he had replied. “Which is why we start small. With you making this,” he patted the syringe, “stick to that,” he pointed his hoof at the ceiling. “I’ll leave you to it. Holler if you need anything!” And with that he had gone and left her to her frustration.

She sat on the bed, still stained with blood and sweat from her injury and subsequent healing, and stared at her target until her eyes felt like they would dry out and shrivel up. She tried everything she could think of, running through all the focus and meditation techniques she had learned in an attempt to control her Talent. They hadn’t worked for that purpose, and proved similarly useless here.

Still, she knew the power was there, hidden somewhere in the depths of the red gem at her chest. She could feel it in a way she couldn’t fully define. It was like the smell of a storm before the clouds rolled in, or like the moment before a fight: violence and energy straining to be unleashed. All it would take was the right trigger, and she knew that energy would be hers.

Finding that trigger was, however, turning out to be an exercise in frustration.

Coming to the limits of her patience, she struck out at the syringe, slapping it aside to clatter into some dark corner of the swaying truck. Then, for good measure, she pounded the spot on the bed where it had lain, screaming at the top of her lungs as she did. When that didn’t quell the roiling fury in her gut she branched out with her targets, slamming hooves against the frame of the bed and the metal walls of the truck.

The deep hoof-shaped dent she left in the wall made her pause, staring at the damage in a moment of shocked wonder. While it was sturdy vehicle, the ambulance wasn’t truly armored, but it wasn’t exactly thin-walled either. She should have broken her leg leaving a mark like that. She flexed her hoof for a moment, and there wasn’t so much as a twinge from it. A glance at the bed showed that she had done similar damage to its frame, bending the metal like taffy. She hadn’t even noticed how much force she was putting into the blows, and the realization that she possessed such effortless strength left her staring slack-jawed.

The ambulance shuddered as it slowed to a halt. She barely noted it, trying to gauge without moving exactly how much stronger she had to be to accomplish what she just had. She had to be on par with a Strength Talent earth pony, at least. Somewhere deep inside her a surge of bloody-minded glee threatened to overpower her anger.

Her thoughts were interrupted as the door opened and Max Cash heaved himself up into the truck. He took a long look at her, then at the state of the bed and the wall, before letting out a strangled giggle. “That is not going to buff out.”

“Sorry,” Charisma said, not even bothering to sound like she meant it. “I can’t do it, Max. It just isn’t working, no matter what I do. I’ve been trying for… how long?”

“A day, day and a half,” Cash replied, wiggling his hoof in uncertainty.

“Really?” Charisma had to pause to take a deep breath as she processed that. “A day and a half? I thought it was a few hours! How the hell have I been sitting here for a day and a fucking half! I haven’t even eaten anything!”

“Which reminds me, the doctor said you’d need to keep your energy up,” Cash said, opening up to one of the cabinets built into the side of the truck and pulling out a package of military-style rations that he tossed onto the bed in front of her. “You probably don’t need it as long as you’re wearing Loyalty, but better safe than starving.”

She looked at the rations for a moment, then knocked them to the side with a snarl. “I’m not hungry.”

His eyes widened at that, but his smile didn’t even twitch. “Let me guess: you’re having inadequacy issues?”

“A day and a half,” she muttered, shaking her head. “I’ve been trying that long and I’ve gotten nowhere. I can’t make a stupid syringe move. I can’t even get this thing to glow!” She touched the ruby pendant, feeling again the sense of power throbbing just below the surface.

“Yeah, that’s a problem,” Cash said. He sounded mildly interested, like she was complaining about the weather. “We’re kinda on a tight schedule.”

Kill him now, her Talent demanded, and she had a harder time than usual pushing the impulse away. “How did you do it?” she asked.

“Do what?” he asked, giving her a look that was so devoid of guile that she knew without a doubt he was toying with her.

Her ears folded back as her eyes narrowed at him. “How did you get the Element working?”

A slow smile warped his face, and there was something mad and deadly that danced behind his eyes. Her heart sped, a cold fear stealing over her. The inside of the truck was suddenly a strange place, as if she had lost all sense of size and distance. If she got up and walked to the door, she didn’t know if it would take two steps or two thousand. “You don’t want to use them like I do,” he said, and let out a bubbling giggle that echoed strangely, like many voices laughing at once. Charisma flinched away from that sound, shutting her eyes hard against the vertigo that threatened to send her tumbling to the floor.

When she opened her eyes again the truck had returned to its proper proportions. Cash was still smiling, but it had lost the disturbing otherworldly quality. For a moment she was still seized by a crawling fear that made her wings shudder, but she swallowed hard and took hold of herself. Rationalizing the whole thing as just another side-effect of her magical healing wasn’t entirely convincing, but it let her move on.

“Then how?” she asked. The anger was gone, but the memory of frustration was more than enough to heat her words. “I’ve tried every meditation and discipline exercise I know, and nothing has worked. I can’t figure it out, Max. Help me.”

He regarded her for a long moment, then walked over and hopped up to sit beside her on the bed. She tensed at his closeness, but didn’t shy away. “When I was a colt,” he began, not looking at her. “The school I went to wasn’t very large. Horseshoe Valley being a relatively small community, there weren’t enough children to support more than a few classes. So each class had a range of ages in it. Sometimes I’d end up sitting next to ponies four years my senior or junior.”

“I’ve been there, Max, I know how small it is,” Charisma said, hoping to speed him up.

He chuckled. “It’s grown a bit since then, actually. You never saw it before I started pouring money into the place.” He shook his head, his horn lighting as he magically drew a slender shard of crystal from his saddlebags. As he spoke he spun the crystal in front of him, letting the light of his magic glint off its facets in slow magenta flashes. “Big Jim was a couple years older, actually. You’d be surprised at the effort it took to keep him in school until I was ready to move on. He was never really as dumb as he assumed.”

Take the crystal and shove it into his open mouth, her Talent roared. Aim for the roof of the mouth to penetrate his brain. She shook the urge away, instead just giving him a nonplussed look. “I don’t need to hear about how you got James to flunk algebra, Max. There had better be a point to this story.”

“There will be,” he said, glancing sidelong at her. “Just listen.” She snorted, but nodded for him to continue. “As I was saying, there were all sorts of different ages in our classes. Sometimes a pony would have brothers or sisters in the class. One particular family had three colts, each only a year or two apart from each other. Not only were they brothers, but they all looked alike. Same colors, same physique, same attitudes, practically triplets despite the years between them. When they got their Glyphs it was even worse, since they all had the same Talent. Working Stone, written right on their hips just to confuse the rest of us even further. It only made sense, of course. The family worked in a quarry, and the boys were absolutely expected to take up the trade. Still, it would have been polite for them to have at least something to differentiate themselves.

“Now, I didn’t interact much with them. They were, frankly, bullies. Earth ponies from a proudly working-class family, they didn’t care much for an intellectual unicorn like myself. I confess I didn’t make much effort to change their minds on that count. I don’t think I even bothered to learn their names. To me, they were just interchangeable classmates, better ignored than acknowledged. That changed one day when our class was discussing Talents. We’d all got our Glyphs by that point, and the teacher was explaining to us how they were all unique. As applicable as that statement was to myself, I couldn’t help but notice how it didn’t make sense for those three. Their Talents were as identical as the rest of them, how could they be unique? I decided I’d see for myself if there really was a difference. If they really were unique.”

He took a deep breath, his smile turning wistful. “I couldn’t really just ask them to demonstrate for me, of course. So I followed them to the quarry one day, then chose a spot to hide and watched as they worked. It became obvious very quickly that I wouldn’t get any great insight by watching them go about their normal chores. Talents are best realized by innovation under pressure. Fortunately, an opportunity presented itself.

“Their beloved father suffered a terrible accident: an explosive he’d been setting to crack the stone went off early, and the results left him buried under tons of rock. The boys were distraught, panicked. They were the only ones close enough to help and their father’s voice from beneath the stone urged them to save him, that time was running out. That’s when I first saw proof that our teacher had been right, that our Talents really are unique. Each brother had a different idea of how to rescue their father. Each used their skill with stone, but in entirely unique ways. One proposed using picks to break up the rocks so they could be cleared away. Another insisted that they needed to drag over a crane to shift the boulders away whole. The third was sure that by digging into the ground they could open a path for their father to squeeze out. Three different solutions, each with an equal likelihood of working, from three otherwise identical ponies.”

He chuckled and stared at his spinning crystal. She waited for a long beat before realizing that his story was over. “So, did they manage to rescue him?” she asked, already sure of what the answer would be.

“What, their father?” He let out a dismissive titter. “Oh, he was dead the moment the explosive went off.”

“Of course he was.”

“The hard part was making sure all the rocks actually buried him,” Cash said, grinning. “It wouldn’t have worked nearly so well if they could see a part of him sticking out from the pile.”

She sighed. “So what was the point, Max? How does that help me?”

He hummed in mock consideration. “Oh, right. I did promise you a point, didn’t I?” Then, with blurring speed and a flash of magenta light, he buried the crystal point-first in her left hip, right in the middle of her Glyph.

She moved without thought, her reaction coming before she had even registered the pain. She slammed him into the wall, wings flashing out to pin his forelegs wide. Her own forehooves grasped his head, one settling on his throat while the other pressed at the base of his skull where it met his spine. He didn’t resist, didn’t so much as flare his horn, but his eyes glared at her with an insane intensity. It was that look, and the icy spike of fear that came with it, that allowed her to regain control of herself. She stopped herself from pulling his head free from the rest of his body, but it was a near thing, and they were left in a strained tableau of barely suppressed murder.

“We’re all… unique,” he choked out. She eased her grip on his throat. “We’ve all got something that makes us a special little snowflake, even when all else is equal. The Elements are the same way. The way one person uses them is going to be fundamentally different from how another does it. That difference isn’t in the Element, it’s in the pony. It comes from the part of them that is unique, that is special.” He pulled the crystal from her leg, floating it up between their faces. Blood covered half the slender crystal, falling from its point in thick drops. “What makes you special, Charisma?”

She watched a drop of blood form. Her blood. A little piece of death spilled into the world. It was so red. It hung on the cusp of surrendering to gravity’s pull, shaped like a teardrop. Like her Glyph. Like the amulet that hung around her neck. They were the same, she realized. Connected in so many ways. Bound.

The drop of blood fell from the crystal, and she caught it in the air. Her eyes widened as she stared at it, the perfect sphere of liquid held in place not by any force of magic or nature. Slowly, carefully, she took one hoof from Cash’s throat and touched the floating drop. It splashed against her hoof, sliding along its smooth surface easily. Then, when she took her hoof away, the blood dripped off to gather and once more hang in the air, defiant to gravity. No, not defiant. She could sense it, an almost intuitive understanding of what had happened that she was sure she could never put into words. The drop didn’t defy gravity, it was that gravity had changed for it. No longer a force that pulled it towards the earth, gravity was now a force that pulled the blood in that drop to that one place inside this truck. It was bound in place and, unless she decided to change that, it would remain there forever.

She staggered back, letting Cash fall. He slumped down, staring at her with a grin so wide it looked painful. She couldn’t spare more than a stray thought for him, though. Her mind was taken completely by a flood of new sensation. Loyalty blazed, tinting everything a bloody crimson, and in that light she saw the world anew.

In one sense, she didn’t see anything different, to her eyes nothing had changed. Yet she saw everything differently, a whole new range of senses opening up to her like a flower unfolding in the light of the sun. The scene hadn’t changed, but everything in it had taken on new and incredible meaning. She could see the pull of the earth most clearly, the bond that kept all things falling to the ground. She could see the bonds that kept a thing in its shape, could tell that there were deeper levels of bonds that, if she concentrated very hard, she was sure would reveal themselves to her. Every object was tied to every other by a billion strings, a universe of connection that she couldn’t even fathom. The Element revealed it all to her.

She looked down at the necklace, and she was almost blinded by how brightly it shone. The bond between her and the Element was strong, stronger than gravity, stronger than the strange forces that danced just outside of her conscious perception and held the universe together. That bond didn’t stop with her, however. She could see it extend beyond her, ultimately terminating far, far away. She could feel the other end of that bond, the beating heart of a living pony, the brilliant life of the mare that haunted her dreams: Rainbow Dash.

There was another bond from the necklace, this one strange and twisted. She didn’t understand what she was seeing when she looked at it; it was like a hall of mirrors, reflecting in on itself endlessly. What she did understand was that this bond connected the Element to Max Cash. She could feel him, much like she could feel Rainbow Dash.

She could also feel the other Elements at work in him, but only distantly. They chewed at the fabric of his being like maggots consuming a corpse. She was struck again at the sense that he was being hollowed out, that the stallion was merely a shell of who and what he had been. Stronger than ever, yes, but with every passing moment there was less substance to him.

She didn’t know what it meant, but she was sure he didn’t have much time left. She wondered what would happen to her when he was gone, then dismissed the thought. He had made his promises to her, and she knew that he would keep them. One way or another, it wouldn’t matter.

He was speaking to her. She nearly decided to ignore him, caught up in the awesome power of what she was sensing. She could feel her own loyalty to him, though, a bond that was surprising in its strength, even as she understood how tenuous a thing it was. So she reluctantly pulled her attention from the vision the Element had granted her and focused on him.

“... split off and probably drove off a cliff or something,” he was saying.

She shook her head. “What?”

He cocked his head to the side. “Back with us?”

She frowned. “I’m a little distracted, Max. Just back it up and say it again.”

He shrugged. “I was just telling you how we’re out of minions.”

“What do you mean ‘out of minions’?”

“Well, all the soldiers who got out of Orion City with us are either dead, or soon to be dead,” he replied. “We’ve been followed by RIA spooks pretty much the whole way, and they’ve been sacrificing themselves left and right to make sure I get where I’m going. Right now I’m down to you and the guy I left in the driver’s seat for this rig who, when I left him, was slowly chewing his own hooves down to nubs.” She flinched in disgust at that. Cash nodded sagely at her reaction. “Yup, when it comes time to get out and walk, he’s not going anywhere. Now, that’s the bad news. The good news is we’re about an hour and a half outside of Hoofprint. We’re close, Charisma. A day, maybe two, and Fluttershy will be mine.”

The last comment made her pause. There was something in his voice as he said it, some strange emotion she couldn’t quite place with him. “Fluttershy?” It was the second time she’d heard that name from him. She didn’t know what it meant.

“Is that what I said?” He laughed. “I meant Kindness. Anyway, you should get practicing. Once I get Kindness, phase one is over. I’m gonna need you ready to go once phase two begins.”

“And what is phase two?” she asked. “If I’m going to be a part of it, I need to know.”

“Oh, you’re going to love it,” he said, tittering as he pulled himself upright. “There’s gonna be blood and death and all the precious things that warm your psychotic little heart. But that’s for later. I want you focused on the here and now, Charisma. You’ve got a long way to go yet and I don’t want you daydreaming on me. So don’t worry your pretty head about it, you’ll know everything soon enough.”

She let out an annoyed grunt at that, but didn’t press him as he left the back of the truck and climbed back into the cab. They were underway again moments later. Charisma closed her eyes and fell back into the power of Loyalty.

The bed where she had lain broken and barely alive not so long ago was her first target. She found the part of it that bound it into a whole, then, with a glee that was almost childish in its intensity, she tightened those bonds. The bed collapsed into itself, crumpling like a wadded up piece of paper until it was a ball of steel, fabric and foam barely a foot across. She knew she could take it further, crushing those strange bonds until the whole reached some point of ultimate collapse, where bonds themselves were unnecessary. She didn’t, but the potential was certainly there.

She twisted her gaze to the machine that had kept her breathing. There were bonds throughout it as well. Instead of tightening them, she took hold and stretched them out, loosening the definition of the whole until the entire machine simply crumbled into its component parts. Bits of plastic, glass and circuitry scattered across the floor. These in turn became new targets for her growing abilities.

She attacked the debris with fervor, twisting and pulling at them without moving a muscle. It took more effort than she had imagined, and half of the time she tried nothing happened, but slowly she felt out the shape of her new power. She set pieces to orbiting her, attached more to each other in strange configurations, reduced one to dust and flattened another to the floor so hard it nearly broke through. She wondered if this was what unicorn telekinesis was like, and immediately knew it wasn’t. This was a power unique to the Elements. Unique to her Element. And she was barely scratching the surface of what it could do.

Finally she turned her sight back to the connection between herself and the Element, and to the pony at the far end of that bond. She breathed deep, calling an image of that mare to mind. It came to her so vivid that she felt like she could reach out and run a hoof through that prismatic mane. She grinned, feeling them drawing closer to each other, an inexorable pull that no amount of physical distance could lessen. Whatever else, they would meet again, and soon.

Perfect.

***

”Hey, hot stuff”

***

Rainbow Dash jerked up, held in her seat only by the steel pressure of strong orange hooves. She bucked against the restraint, wings snapping and battering the pony holding her down.

“Rainbow Dash, calm down!” Applejack snapped, catching her attention. Dash’s struggles paused as she realized who it was she was fighting against. “Take it easy now, sugarcube.”

“What… what’s going on?” Dash asked, eyes wide in confusion. “Where are we?” She looked around and found herself sitting on a bench in the back of a moving truck. For a moment she had a strange sensation of doubled vision, as if she were seeing two different places at once. In one there was debris scattered everywhere, as well as cabinets built into metal walls. The other was larger, the sides lined with hard benches and the canopy only thick canvas stretched over a steel skeleton. In that moment she couldn’t decide which was real, but a blink later there was only the one with the benches remaining.

Across from Dash, Gamma leaned towards Straff, who was sitting next to her. “Did you see?”

“Of course,” he replied, his brow furrowing in worried thought.

“We’re headed into the nightlands, remember?” Applejack said, easing her grip. “You nodded off a few hours ago. We were lettin’ you sleep, but you started flailin’ and screamin’. You darn near knocked the head off the pony next to you.” She indicated an earth pony soldier who was sitting on the floor near the rear gate of the truck, a bloody gash across his skull being seen to by another soldier. He stared back at Dash with a mixture of disbelief and fear.

“Hey, uh, sorry about that,” Dash said to the injured soldier. He looked to Straff, who translated the apology into Lunar. Then the soldier quickly nodded to Dash and very pointedly stopped staring at her.

“That’s not all,” Gamma said. “Tell her, Miss Applejack.”

“Tell me what?” Dash asked as Applejack frowned. “Come on, tell me what?”

“Your eyes, Dash,” Applejack said. “As you were wakin’ up they were glowin’. Like mine did before, back at Spike’s place.”

“I am very curious as to what that could mean,” Gamma said, leaning forward. “Tell us, Agent Dash, what were you dreaming about?”

Dash drew herself up and thought about it. The drive to Orion City was very long and very boring. Dash could have made the trip by herself in no time, but the trucks had to travel the long way across the mountain range separating the Everfree Verge from the rest of the nightlands. If the seating had been more comfortable, or if there had been more windows for her to watch the passing scenery it would have been better, but, sadly, neither of those things were available. Instead, she had been forced to sit on a hard bench as the trucks bounced and bumped over open ground and through rocky passes for hours.

More than once she contemplated just taking off to practice some tricks while the trucks made their mind-numbingly slow way to the city. A cold look from Gamma stopped her every time, the spymaster seeming to somehow know when Dash was at her wit’s end and needed a reminder of why she was sitting still. The end result was that her body was sore and her patience was thin, but she had eventually managed to ignore the jouncing of the truck and fall asleep.

A quick look around showed her that Star Fall and Astrid were both curled up closer to the cab of the truck. Star Fall had managed to sleep through Dash’s rough awakening, but a flash of gold beneath a cracked eyelid told her that Astrid was aware and watching. Dash wasn’t surprised that Star Fall was completely out–she was still tired from their trip through the Everstorm, and she’d spent the first few hours of the trip filling Gamma and Straff in on what had happened in the sunlands during her ill-fated wedding. News of the King’s death set off a round of rapid-fire conversation between the two spymasters, with Straff eventually heading up to the cab of the truck to speak on a radio in Lunar for half an hour. It was only when Star Fall got to the part about Twinkle Shine and Umbra being one and the same that Gamma’s composure cracked. It was only for a moment, but Dash had clearly seen a look of confusion and deeply personal hurt cross her face at the revelation.

None of that was visible now as Gamma’s gaze bored into Dash with an almost physical intensity.

“Charisma,” Dash replied finally. The memory of the enforcer’s words still echoed in her head. “I dreamed Charisma was wearing the Element of Loyalty. Using it for… something, I don’t know what.” Applejack gave her a surprised look at that, but before Dash could wonder about it, Straff and Gamma were talking.

“Is this a vision or just a dream?” Straff asked, his controlled voice unable to completely mask the worry that flashed in eyes that were almost a twin to Gamma’s.

“To my knowledge, Agent Dash does not know about my suspicions regarding Charisma’s enhanced abilities.”

“What else could you see?” Straff asked, directing the question at Dash.

“Uh, I don’t know?” she replied, shrugging. “There was this truck, it looked kinda like an ambulance, and all the stuff inside it was broken up or something. I think Cash might have been there? It’s all kinda… out of focus? I guess? I think she, um, I think she punched a dent in the wall.” She thought about it for a long moment, wracking her memory for details. It was all fading, though, drifting away from her like any other dream. Except for those last few words. They burned hot and bright in her thoughts. A threat, a promise, a plea. Somehow all three at once.

“What kind of wall?” Gamma asked, leaning forward intently.

“It was metal. Like, steel or something. Painted white.”

“Not impossible for her,” Straff said.

“But not likely, either,” Gamma added. “Added to the strength of Agent Dash’s reaction, I am inclined towards this being a vision.”

“Unfortunate,” Straff said, huffing in understated annoyance. “I was hoping her lack of superequine abilities at Senator Birchfield’s mansion meant you were wrong.”

“Perhaps after failing to acquire one of the Elements, Cash has decided to take his efforts to the next level.” Straff nodded slowly at that, and the two spymasters fell into a contemplative silence.

“How are you feelin’?” Applejack asked in a low voice, taking the now vacant seat next to Dash.

“Weirded out,” Dash replied. “What do you think, AJ? Was I having some kind of crazy vision?”

“I think none of us have remembered our dreams before this.”

That brought Dash up short. Her eyes went wide as she thought about it. “Yeah. You’re right. What does it mean?”

“I don’t know, sugarcube, but I think it’s just as important as us not rememberin’ has been.”

Dash had nothing to say to that, and so she resettled her wings and leaned up against her friend. Applejack leaned back, and so the two of them stayed, propping each other up as the truck rolled and bounced its way across the landscape towards the distant lights of Orion City.

***

Orion City seemed endless from what little could be seen from the sheltered back of the truck. Dash wanted nothing more than to take to the skies and see the whole thing from on high. She wondered if it would be like the Solar Capital, with its bright lights, flashing signs and incredibly tall buildings in a cluster that eventually levelled out to a vast sprawl of houses. She was denied the opportunity to find out, however, as the truck skirted the built up downtown sections and brought them to a squat, unassuming building on the fringes of the city. The local RIA headquarters, where their friends were already waiting for them.

The building was bustling with activity, but they were given no time to be curious about it all. The soldiers provided a living curtain between them and the operations of the headquarters, hustling them through the hallways before sending them through a pair of heavy doors into a room built like an amphitheatre. It reminded Dash of the Professor’s classroom, rows of tiered seats and desks leading down to a small stage with a podium and a screen that was pulled down to cover chalkboards.

There were a dozen others scattered about the room in small groups. Gamma and Straff immediately split off to join one of them, murmuring to each other in low voices. The rest of their attentions were immediately captured by a sharp gasp of delight.

“Dashie! Applejack!” A pink blur of happiness crossed the room, moving faster than even Dash’s eyes could follow, and slammed into them with a tackling hug that knocked them onto their backs. Pinkie Pie squealed in delight and dragged her friends close, squishing their heads tight to either side of her own. “I’m soooo glad you’re here!”

“We’re happy to see you too, Pinkie,” Applejack said, returning the hug and smiling.

“Yeah, we were missing you pretty bad.” Dash said. “Sorry you had to get caught up in all this, though.”

Pinkie pulled back from her crushing hug, her eyes wide with excitement and a luminous grin on her face. “Are you kidding? Why would I want to miss it? We’re having a super future adventure, and almost all my bestest-best friends are here!”

Dash’s ears drooped as she was caught between two warring desires. She wanted Pinkie to stay happy, but she also knew that with what they were facing it couldn’t last, and the sooner that balloon was burst, the better it would be. “It’s not… Pinkie, it’s not always… fun.”

Pinkie just laughed at that, the sound so familiar and so pure that the breath caught in Dash’s throat. “That’s why you have friends, silly! So the not-fun parts aren’t as bad. Like, look! Look! I got shot!” She shimmied upright and poked a hoof at the small round scar on her side. “I call him Frank, the winking bullet wound. Show ‘em, Frank!” With a rippling contortion of flesh, the scar winked at them. “See? With my friends here, that doesn’t hurt nearly as much!”

“I…” Dash started to speak, but immediately found she had no will for it. So she just shook her head and allowed a smile to warm her cheeks. “You got it, Pinkie.”

Pinkie flipped off of them and immediately turned to Star Fall, who was staring at the exuberant mare with wide eyes. “Oh! Oh!” Pinkie squeaked, bouncing in excitement. “I know you!”

“You… do?” Star Fall asked, wincing as Pinkie’s voice hit a painful pitch.

“You’re Fallen Star! Rarity told me all about you!” Pinkie replied, and then she was suddenly at Star Fall’s side, lifting up a wing and staring point-blank at her hip. One eye actually seemed to bulge out of its socket as she examined Star Fall’s cutie mark. “Yup! That’s a Magic cutie mark if I’ve ever seen one. And since Twilight’s Magic cutie mark is the only other one I’ve seen, I actually have seen one! So now I’ve seen two, and that means I’m double sure!” She cartwheeled away as Star Fall snapped her wing back to her side, eyes darting around in violent confusion. Astrid twitched violently, her eyes tracking Pinkie with an expression of confusion and a touch of fear.

“You… I… What?” Star Fall stammered.

Dash couldn’t help but laugh. “Don’t worry about it, Star. Pinkie Pie’s a lot to take in the first time.”

“Have you guys seen Spike?” Pinkie asked, rolling to a stop next to Applejack. “He got cute! Not that he wasn’t cute before, but that was in a chubby-wubby-huggable little Dragon way. Now he’s cute in a big-buff-hunky-warrior-lizard kind of way!”

Dash’s eyes went across the room, where the Dragon in question was sitting in an oversized wheelchair, one leg encased in a steel-bound cast and a dozen bandages wrapped across his body and limbs. He saw her looking and gave her a smile. Then he opened his mouth and stuck his tongue out at her. Dash was confused by the gesture until she saw the gleam of metal thread holding a hole in his tongue shut and her eyes went wide. He pulled his tongue back in and grinned before tilting his head up and showing her the second set of stitches on the underside of his jaw.

“Damn!” she said, not sure if she was more horrified or impressed by the sight. “What the heck happened to him?”

“Charisma happened,” a familiar voice cut in. The group turned to see Rarity striding towards them. Dash had to do a double take at what she saw. Rarity’s usual bouncy curls had been tied back into a single braid, and her makeup was a darker tint, accenting her eyes even more than usual. Her clothing was a variation on the combat gear the RIA soldiers wore, black and functional with only hints of the seamstress’ telltale flair to show that it wasn’t a stock uniform. She’d accessorized the outfit with a black beret that didn’t quite hide the angry scar that started just above her left eye. The result was like seeing a whole new Rarity. She was still beautiful, still graceful, but she seemed older and dangerous. “Applejack, Rainbow Dash, I’m so terribly glad to see you both, I don’t know how to express it.”

Applejack stared with open-mouthed awe at their friend. “Wow, Rarity. Why the new look?”

Rarity laughed, turning to the side to show off. “You like it? Very spy-chic, don’t you think?” Dash felt a part of her she hadn’t even been aware of relax at that. A moment of reflection let her realize that her relief was because even with the scar and the harder appearance, her friend hadn’t changed. As soon as she was done showing off her outfit, she turned to Star Fall and dropped into a practiced bow. “Your majesty. I’m sorry I had to miss your wedding.”

“You don’t have to bow for me, Rarity,” Star Fall said. “And please, you are a friend, just call me by my name.” Rarity smiled proudly at her as she straightened, as if she had expected nothing less. “As for the wedding, when you get the full story of what happened there, you might be glad you were on the other side of the Storm. First, though, what happened with Spike? Gamma and Straff did not say much.”

Rarity’s smile fell and her eyes took on a dark cast. “Max Cash assaulted the mansion where Pinkie’s statue was held. We… we had to fight.” A shadow passed over her face, an expression that Dash would never have understood before she’d had her own encounters with the brutality this world was capable of. Rarity took a deep breath, smoothing her features to a schooled neutrality. “We were doing fairly well until Charisma appeared. She… shot me.” She reached up and touched a hoof to the scar. “Spike got hurt protecting me when she tried to finish me off.”

“The more I hear about that mare, the more she sounds like a whole mess of trouble,” Applejack said, shaking her head.

“She sounds like a total super-meany-pants!” Pinkie concurred.

“You don’t know the half of it,” Dash said. “She’s crazy.”

“She is compelled to kill,” Star Fall added. “When she was part of the Kingdom military, she was in therapy to help control her Talent. I’ve read the transcripts of those sessions. They are very disturbing.”

“I don’t doubt that,” Rarity said, tugging her beret so it covered a little more of the scar. “Still, she’s only a minion. It’s her master we need to be worried about. I had the displeasure of a short conversation with Max Cash, and there is no doubt in my mind that he is the true threat we face.”

Dash shivered, remembering her own close encounter with the stallion. “He didn’t… did he do anything to you?”

Rarity gave her a questioning look as she replied. “Not as such, no. It was just that his very presence was dreadful. He said he had something for me, and the implication in that gives me chills even now. I think he meant Generosity, and after seeing the results of uniting Pinkie with Laughter–”

“I melted a hole in the city!” Pinkie chirped, though an element of sadness had tainted her otherwise happy demeanor.

“It wasn’t your fault, dear,” Rarity assured her. “It does, however, make one think, doesn’t it? If Pinkie’s Element reacted this way, what does that mean for the rest of us? What if Cash manages to force those pendants around our necks.”

“He won’t have to force you,” Pinkie said. All the humor was gone from her voice, her mane drooping along with her mood.

Dash understood. She remembered when Cash had pulled Loyalty out of his saddlebag all those weeks ago. The fear and desire that had warred within her. The pressure that had kept her eyes locked on the lightning-bolt gem, the undeniable, impossible need to wear the necklace again. “We’ll put them on ourselves,” she said.

They stood in contemplative silence for a long beat. Even Pinkie Pie allowed herself a moment of genuine stillness before she visibly collected herself and offered all of her friends a wide smile. “It’s okay,” she said. “We’ll beat him. It’s what we do, right girls?”

“Right,” Dash said, flexing her wings. “That chump is doomed!”

“Indeed, darling. Every Element he’s taken has only made his downfall more certain.”

“Eyup,” Applejack said with a determined nod.

As one they came together, wrapping forelegs around each other in an all-encompassing embrace. Star Fall and Astrid were about to step back before hooves reached out and drew them into the group hug. “You guys are part of the team, too,” Dash told them, grinning. Star Fall grinned back, and Astrid just accepted it with a shrug and a roll of her eyes. “Yeah,” Dash whispered to herself, combining it with a silent prayer to whoever was listening. “We got this.”

***

“Sir, I need to speak with you,” Calumn said, catching Straff’s attention. The Director’s eyebrow quirked as he took in the cloaked Changeling. Calumn’s wounds were healing, but his carapace was still cracked and broken. Changelings made ponies uncomfortable at the best of times, but the way he looked now would be downright horrifying. Straff’s reaction was characteristically understated, but that would not be the case for most ponies. To forestall any unnecessary hysterics he had borrowed Rarity’s ballistic cloak and wore it with the hood up.

“Excuse me, but I need to see to this,” Straff said.

Agent Gamma and Senator Birchfield looked at Calumn. Gamma took his injuries with a calm nod of respect. Birchfield flinched back hard, his wings giving one abortive flap as his body instinctively tried to flee. “Of course,” Gamma said. “Senator, let’s discuss the particulars of our agreement over there.” He gave a slow nod, staring at Calumn even as he was led a few rows of seats away.

“I’m quite frankly surprised that you’re up and moving,” Straff said. “From the looks of things you must be in considerable pain.”

“I’ve been better,” Calumn replied. “But you’d be surprised what a little friendship and a lot of morphine can do.”

Straff allowed himself a small smile at that. “I’m sure. If you’re here to ask if you’ve won yourself back into the good graces of the RIA, I’m afraid that is far down my list of priorities right now.”

“No, I’m not worried about that,” Calumn said, though he had to admit to himself that he was rather concerned. “I need authorization for something.”

Straff’s smile faded and a frown took its place. “I cannot allow you to feed on citizens to heal faster.”

“Not that,” Calumn said quickly, shaking his head hard enough that he felt the pain through the drugs. “I need authorization to use a Mirror Crystal and to perform a high-level bonding.” He braced for the response. A Mirror Crystal was one of the precious few remnants of pre-Schism Changeling civilization. It could augment a Changeling’s powers, temporarily boosting them as if they were fully fed on love. However, there were only three such crystals left, and they had finite uses before they were depleted. A high-level bonding was essentially mind control, the complete subjugation of another’s will. It was incredibly illegal. He was asking a lot for a Changeling who was still technically a rogue.

“You want to use a Mirror Crystal to thrall someone?” Calumn was thankful that Straff was a reasonable pony, and expected his subordinates to be reasonable as well. It meant he was letting Calumn explain himself instead of outright rejecting the request and refusing to hear any more.

“No, sir. I want to use it to defeat Max Cash.” Calumn sketched out his plan to Straff, who took it in with a calm thoughtfulness that boded well for Calumn’s chances.

When Calumn was finished, Straff spoke. His words were slow and carefully chosen, and Calumn knew that his answer would determine if Straff allowed his plan to proceed or not. “When you were lying there in your hospital bed, wondering whether the next person you saw would be the one who took you to die, did you think about escaping? Running away?”

Calumn couldn’t help cringing a little at the question. He didn’t even consider lying, though. Even if Straff didn’t catch it, that wasn’t the kind of person Calumn wanted to be. He pulled up his courage and kept eye contact with the unicorn spymaster. “I thought about it. I even figured out how to do it. Blaze had talked his way into my room, so I could have gotten him on board. I knew I could use him to get past the guards. Not through the door, of course, but he’s got a… strange talent for finding rappelling gear in the oddest of places. Apparently there was some in a storage closet that he somehow wandered into while looking for where they had Spike. He’s my friend, he would have agreed to anything I asked for. I could have been gone for hours before anyone noticed.”

Straff nodded slowly. “Which means you could be hours away by now, with the rest of us dealing with a crisis that leaves us no time to hunt for a missing Changeling. That’s the kind of head start that could get you to the Zebra Nations free and clear, beyond anyone’s ability to track you down. Yet here you are. That says a lot, Calumn.”

“Cash needs to be stopped.” It was all the explanation he thought it needed.

Straff’s lips thinned to a grim line. “Of course.”

“It’s a gamble,” Calumn said. “But it’s the best chance I have to get close. Whatever we end up sending after Cash, Blaze and I need to be part of it.”

“Very well. I’ll authorize the Mirror Crystal and the bond.” Calumn sagged with relief. “Make it work, Calumn. And do not miss the opportunity when you have it.”

“Yes sir.”

Straff pointed his horn across the room where Detective Hard Boiled’s copper gaze was watching their exchange, Traduce at his side. “Talk to her. She might have something to help with the pain.”

“Yes sir,” Calumn said again, and Straff walked down to where Agent Gamma and Birchfield waited. He let out a wheezing sigh and waved Traduce over. He’d like to think the hard part was over, but he knew that this was just the first hurdle. Convincing Straff was difficult, yes, but he knew all too well how hard it was to fool Max Cash.

He could only pray to Luna that his gamble paid off.

***

Hard Boiled watched as the princess from another nation and the heroes from another time met, and decided to have a group hug. It wasn’t what he’d been expecting, but on reflection he decided that with Pinkie Pie there it couldn’t have turned out any other way.

While a part of him was wary of the imposing presence of the Griffin, or wondering about the new princess he had never heard of before, only one of them really held his attention: the blue pegasus with the rainbow mane. Rainbow Dash, or, as he’d been calling her in his head, the impossible mare. He hadn’t believed Officers Flash and Forrest, but he’d seen enough now that, looking at her with his own eyes, he had no trouble with the thought that she could break the sound barrier as casually as he walked across a room.

He wrenched his gaze away before he was caught staring, and ran a tired hoof through his short mane. His body still felt like his hooves were made of lead, and there was a persistent ache sitting just behind his eyes that Traduce wasn’t able to do anything about. On the upside, he’d actually managed to get some sleep, and he’d be in much worse shape if it wasn’t for those few hours of stolen peace. On the downside, he’d woken to find the world was already moving on, and he’d have to play catch up.

The destruction of Senator Birchfield’s mansion while he was ostensibly in charge had probably taken his career with it. The papers were screaming about the ‘terrorist attack’ in the heart of Orion City, and his name had come up. Even if he wasn’t ultimately blamed for it, the story would spread and become political poison. He didn’t know how to feel about that yet. He’d never had big ambitions, but a larger office and a heftier paycheck were on everyone’s wish list. He figured he was just too burned out by everything else to work up the energy to care at this point. When it was all over, he’d have time to figure out where to go from here.

He smirked as a thought crossed his mind. If nothing else, there were always ponies who would pay for a private detective with his skills. The idea had a certain undeniable appeal.

Traduce had been there when he woke, of course. She claimed that she had slept while he did, but somehow she’d had time to make him breakfast, collect messages for him, and contact the RIA so that she knew to bring him to this meeting. He knew she had to be eating more than just his pain to keep up her level of energy, but he didn’t ask about it. They’d come to a good place in their relationship, and he didn’t want to go spoiling things so soon.

She seemed to sense that his thoughts were on her, and looked up from the conversation she was having with a cloaked figure that HB belatedly recognized as Calumn. She said a few words to the other Changeling, then trotted over to stand beside him. “I caught that,” she said.

“Caught what?”

“That suspicious look you just gave me,” she replied. “Even if I hadn’t seen it, I can feel when your emotions shift in my direction. You think I did something wrong, but you don’t want to ask me about it.”

HB grunted at that. “Must be nice, knowing when someone’s thinking about you.”

She gave him a smile just dripping with sarcastic irony. “Says the pony who knows every secret with a glance.” He tipped his horn in acknowledgment. “If it’s bothering you, ask me.”

“You’re too… awake,” he said. “And don’t give me that line about sleep deprivation training. There are limits to that sort of stuff, and you’ve gone way beyond them. That means you’ve been feeding on someone.”

“Is that all?” she asked, letting out a small laugh. “I have been taking in some of your feelings for me, that’s true.” She not-so-subtly brushed her flank against his. “But only what you’re giving me yourself. The real secret is her.” She nodded at Pinkie Pie, who was gesturing wildly while talking in rapid-fire Old Equestrian while her friends watched with grins on their faces. “They’re all strong, but she’s just pouring out enthusiasm and joy, I don’t even have to try to tap into it. Feeding from her is like drinking from a firehose, all I have to do is open wide and hope I don’t burst. I was just telling Calumn to give it a try. He needs all the power he can get to heal from what Charisma did to him.”

HB relaxed a little at this. He didn’t know that absorbing any of Pinkie Pie’s emotional energy was … healthy, but it certainly explained Traduce’s ability to be chipper. He surveyed the room, taking in everyone gathered there. “So we’ve got a group of heroes from the past, a princess, a Griffin, a Dragon, a Storm Guide, a pair of Changelings, a Senator, an RIA Director and whoever that is he and Birchfield are talking to, and a detective. All in one room. Why do I get the feeling this is all one big joke that I’m not going to get?”

“That’s probably Pinkie again,” Traduce said with a snicker. “And the mare Director Straff is talking to is Agent Gamma, the head of the Solar Secret Service.”

HB let out an impressed whistle. “We’re really consorting with the enemy here. Wonder how it’ll play out on the Senate floor?”

“With luck, not at all,” Traduce replied. A moment later Straff and Gamma broke off from talking to the Senator and headed towards the podium. “Looks like we’re about to get started. Let’s grab some seats.”

HB followed her, letting her choose a spot three rows back from the podium. The seats were hard and uncomfortable, which came as a small surprise to him. He’d always imagined the RIA would spring for quality furniture. They were the first to sit, but everyone got the message quickly enough, and took their own places.

“Thank you all for coming,” Straff began. His horn lit with a magnesium-white flare and the room lights dimmed while a projector started, the screen behind the stage filling with an image of the RIA logo. “Before we begin I would like to offer formal greetings on behalf of the Republics Senate to her Highness Princess Fallen Star of the Solar Kingdom, as well as her entourage. While your entry into our country was illegal, Senator Birchfield has agreed to waive any charges on his authority. Please do not fear that you are being held hostage; you are free to go at any time.”

Star Fall stood from her seat and made an elegant and clearly rehearsed nod of her head. HB didn’t need his magic to see the implications there. It was an acknowledgement built on hierarchies, from one pony to someone far below their station. It pricked at Hard Boiled’s deep-seated Republican values, but he took a slow breath and forced himself not to react. The Kingdom was practically a different world, it wouldn’t be fair to hold her to nightland standards of civility. “Thank you Senator, Director. Considering the purpose of my visit, however, I don’t think I’ll be going anywhere.”

“Thank you, your highness,” Straff said as Star Fall sat back down.

“Secondly, we do not all share a common language. The Princess has offered to translate into Old Equestrian for those who need it, I ask that everyone make allowances for her to make such translations, and that you be patient while she relays any comments or questions that arise.”

There was a murmur of assent, and then Straff’s horn lit again and the image on the screen changed to the grinning face of Max Cash. “The purpose of this meeting is to decide on how to confront and neutralize Maximillian Oswald Cash,” Straff began. “Everyone in this room has been involved one way or another in his schemes, and has a stake in his defeat. My own involvement started twenty years ago, when I began tracking his movements and trying to uncover grounds to have him arrested and put away for good. In this, I have failed. Now it may be too late.

“We all know the basics: his criminal empire is vast and extremely well-funded, his interests strange and varied, and his closest associates among the most dangerous people on the face of the planet. As he presents a threat to both the United Lunar Republics and the Solar Kingdom, his capture is now a joint operation between the Republics Intelligence Agency and the Solar Kingdom’s Secret Service. The first of its kind in history. I don’t think anyone in this room has any doubt that Cash warrants it.” There was a grim silence as he surveyed the room and found no objection. “Agent Gamma, if you will?”

Gamma stepped up to the podium as Straff withdrew. “Despite both our best efforts, neither the Secret Service nor the RIA have ever been able to uncover Cash’s plans. The events of the past few months has changed that.”

The image changed to a colored drawing of five golden necklaces and a crown, each with a helpful label putting a name to them. The central feature of each piece of jewellery was a gem, each a different shape and color. HB recognized the blue balloon and pink butterfly immediately. He recalled the static snap of energy as Pinkie Pie had taken it from his grasp, and the terrible light that had consumed Birchfield’s mansion. He wouldn’t have believed a simple necklace could be that powerful only a week before. The thought of five more of them sent a cold shiver down his spine.

“These are the Elements of Harmony,” Gamma continued. “Six artifacts of immeasurable power from before the Schism, each with its own character. Twilight Sparkle decided that they were too dangerous to be used, and so devised a way to keep them safely out of the wrong hooves. They were locked onto statues crafted by Master Spike, and enchanted to be practically invisible. However, that invisibility could be overridden by a book Twilight wrote called Harmony Theory. Somehow Max Cash came by a copy of this book, and has been systematically hunting down and acquiring the Elements. He so far has three of them in his possession, and only narrowly missed gaining a fourth.

“Each Element he gains provides him with unknown, but inarguably dangerous powers.” Straff changed the image again, this time to a picture of a half-burned pony in dark military fatigues. He was being strapped down to a bed, struggling wildly. The photo had captured the moment where he had spit something bloody at one of the ponies restraining him. HB stared for a moment before realizing with a shock that it was the soldier’s own tongue. One of the ancient heroes gasped in dismay. “This is an aftereffect of their use. Specifically, the results of using the Element of Loyalty to forcibly convert someone to Cash’s service. This, and the other abilities the Elements give him, render Cash all but untouchable. Any normal force sent after him will likely end up in a similar state to this unfortunate stallion.”

There was another moment of silence as the spymaster let her words sink in. “However, his releasing of the Elements has also had another effect. With every one he takes, the statue that housed it somehow comes to life as the former bearer it depicted.” Straff took her cue and changed the image to a picture of Applejack, Rarity and Rainbow Dash from when the Solar King had revealed them to the world. “These resurrected heroes have all the power of a pre-schism pony, and I believe they also retain a connection to their Element. When Cash turned the Element of Loyalty against Rainbow Dash, it did not convert her, instead causing a kind of seizure. From discussions with Master Spike, I believe this seizure was the result of feedback between Element and Bearer; in this case, between Agent Dash and Loyalty. This opens up several possibilities for combating Cash, beginning with the conjecture that the other resurrected heroes would be wholly immune to such influence without the feedback effect, unless attacked by their own Element. That is an opening that can be exploited. Similarly, there is the possibility that the heroes may usurp control of the Elements from Cash entirely. Though with the… extreme reaction that occurred when Pinkie Pie donned the Element of Laughter, I believe we should not attempt this unless safeguards can be put in place to prevent another such incident. Regardless, this gives us options. Finding a way to combat the Elements is of utmost importance because with the destruction of Twilight Sparkle’s statue in the Everstorm, only one remains: Fluttershy and the Element of Kindness.”

“This last statue was discovered recently by Lieutenant Hard Boiled,” Straff said, stepping up and shifting the picture to a map where the rough location of Fluttershy’s statue had been marked. “It is deep in the southern jungles, and that is where we believe Cash will be heading. It has been just over forty-eight hours since Max Cash assaulted the mansion of Senator Birchfield, which means he is likely only a day or two away from gaining the last available Element of Harmony.”

“We have to go after him!” Rainbow Dash cried, jumping up with wide wings. She was speaking in Solar, and without his magic HB had to wait for the translation, but her meaning was clear long before her words were.

“I’m afraid that’s not feasible,” Straff said. “Reports say he’s moving nonstop to the south. Every asset we’ve attempted to stop him with has been attacked by his fanatics. By this point he’s in Hoofprint and probably started down the river. Even our fastest transports won’t make it there before he’s had a couple days to do whatever he wants. No, the best option is to plan for when he comes back up this way.”

“We can’t let him get his hooves on Fluttershy!” Dash insisted.

“Agent Dash!” This was from Gamma. HB turned on his magic to follow the conversation better, knowing this part of the exchange might not get translated at all. Information flooded in, mostly from the others in the room, but more than he expected from Agent Gamma. She was presenting a cool demeanor, but with his magic he could pick out the little tells of anxiety. She was worried, and not about what they were talking about here. There was something else that was occupying the back of her mind, something that was having a deep emotional impact that she was struggling to contain. He filed that observation away for later, deciding to talk to Straff about it. “While I understand your concern for your friend, it is simply not possible. You may be fast enough to reach them in time, but the rest of us are not. If you’re considering going alone, let me remind you that Charisma may be able to match you physically now. Remember how you fared against her last time. Think about how it would play out if she were up to your level.”

Dash flinched back, looking torn. Then her jaw tightened and her eyes narrowed and HB saw the gleam of iron determination flare in their depths. “I can take others with me.” HB’s magic found no subterfuge in her reaction. She meant it.

Applejack’s eyes went wide and she laid a hoof on her friend’s shoulder. “Whoa, now, sugarcube. There’s a lot of folks here, you can’t carry ‘em all.”

Dash’s wings slumped a bit, then sprang back up. “Well, yeah, not everybody. But, um, I could do a few. Like, seven? Eight?” HB frowned at that. It sounded like a statement of insane bravado, but she didn’t believe it was an exaggeration. Her only hesitation came from not being sure exactly how many ponies she could take. How strong was she?

“I assume you’re not talking about carrying seven people on your back,” Gamma said. “How do you propose to do it?”

“We use a chariot,” Dash replied.

“A chariot?”

“Yeah, we used to pull big loads through the sky all the time back in Ponyville. Hell, even Fluttershy could pull a wagon around when she wanted to, and she’s the weakest flier I know!”

“But Dash, this ain’t some amble over to Froggy Bottom Bog, this is more than a thousand miles of hard flyin’. You’re fast, alright, but you ain’t got the stamina for that kind of race.”

“I can do it,” Dash insisted.

“I must agree with Applejack, darling, this may be too much, even for you, Rarity added.

“No, guys, I can do this.” Dash turned to the Princess. “Star, you can do a levitation spell, right? Something to make the chariot lighter?”

Star Fall’s brow furrowed in thought. “I can, but I’d need to be constantly feeding energy into the spell or it would stop.”

“So you come along. And Astrid too,” Dash hastily added as the Griffin gave her a warning glare. “That’s two.”

“I suppose this is happening, then,” Gamma said, quirking her eyebrow. She turned to address the rest of the room, switching back to Lunar. “Agent Dash says she can get a team to Kindness before Cash gets there. There are no guarantees you will make it on time, and even when you arrive you will have to contend with Cash, Charisma, and any others they’ve paid or coerced into fighting for them. That said, any chance to stop him is worth taking. Who would like to volunteer?”

“I’ll go,” Calumn said. He looked pointedly at Straff. “I’ve come up against both of them before, and I think I have a way to at least slow them down.”

“Granted,” Straff said with a curt nod.

“I’ll go too,” Trail Blazer said, though HB could tell it was with prompting from Calumn. “Charisma doesn’t want to kill me all that much, and that’s oodles more than I can say for anybody else in this room. Plus, I’ve always wanted to see the jungles. I wanna swing on some vines like they do in the movies.”

HB was almost surprised to find his hoof in the air. “I’ll go. I can see through that illusion trick Cash has. I might be the only one who can.”

“That means I’m in as well,” Traduce said.

“Then I’ll be the seventh,” Applejack said.

“Pinkie and I should be going as well,” Rarity said. “Especially if Miss Gamma is right about us being immune to the Elements.”

“You were shot in the head two days ago, Rarity,” Applejack said, giving her friend a nonplussed look. “Y’all ain’t healthy enough for a decent fight yet.” Rarity tsked in annoyance, tugging her beret over her scar. “That goes double for you, Spike! Don’t think I didn’t see you raisin’ your claw there!” Spike sheepishly put his arm down. “Look, Rarity. Pinkie’s still findin’ her hooves in this new world, and no matter how it goes it’s gonna get nastier than… well, it’s gonna get nasty. We got our seven, and already I think it’s too much for Rainbow Dash to be pullin’ all by her lonesome.”

“We just got back together! You can’t think splitting us up so soon is the right thing to do!”

“I…” Applejack hung her head. “I know it ain’t right. But the only other option we got is waitin’ until it’s too late.”

“Then wait! We’re stronger together! That’s what our friendship has always been about. That’s what brought us to the Elements of Harmony in the first place. Wait, and we’ll find a way to stop him together!”

“I didn’t let you wake up alone, Rarity,” Dash said. “I won’t let that happen to Fluttershy either.”

Rarity huffed in protest, slumping in her seat and glaring at the ground, but she didn’t continue the argument.

“Is that settled?” Gamma asked.

Dash looked to Rarity, who refused to meet her gaze, but still gave a stiff nod. “Yeah, we’re good.”

“Then we should act without delay,” Straff said. “While those who volunteered head south to cut Cash off from the last Element, the rest of us should be putting our heads together to figure out a way to stop him if they fail. We know that Cash is ultimately going to head back north, to the remains of the Crystal Empire. There, he will have the capacity to project the power he’s gained across Equestria, and perhaps the entire world. I do not have to tell you how bad this would be. To that end, we will stop him before he crosses the Storm. I cannot emphasize enough how important this is. Max Cash must be stopped, and if possible the Elements of Harmony need to be brought under our control.” He paused, and Hard Boiled could see the aggressive worry gnawing at his composure. It mirrored Gamma’s hidden state of mind in many ways, but it was fed not from some personal hurt, but by a kind of existential horror that HB’s magic couldn’t parse. “Because Cash is not the only threat we will have to face.”

The projected image changed again. This was a picture of a vast thunderhead over the ocean, flashes of lighting flickering through it. The image changed to a blown-up view of the same cloud. Standing atop the thunderhead was a single figure, wings stretched wide against the wind, horn glowing with a black aura that was palpable even though this grainy image. “She’s coming,” Straff said, and HB felt as if his blood was freezing in his veins. He recognized the mare in the image immediately. There was no pony alive who wouldn’t.

The Gray Mare. The Destroyer. Nightmare Umbra.

***

“So, what do you think?” Cash asked, stepping up next to Charisma at the bow of the boat they had hired to take them down the river.

She tilted her head to him, looking towards the four thuggish ponies at the back of the boat with the corner of her eye. The smiles they were sending her way were as pleasant as a grease fire. “I think they’re going to try to kill us.” They probably thought they were being sneaky, but their intent might as well have been broadcast with a flashing neon sign for how easily she saw it.

She knew how she would do it. Get them far enough from civilization that their bodies would never be found, then a few moments of swift violence. She’d target herself first, because if you want to keep your crime quiet you always target the ones who can fly away first. Then she’d hit Cash with everything she had. If these would-be murderers were smart, that’s the way they would do it, too.

The very fact that they were going to try it showed that they were not that smart at all.

“What, these fine, upstanding citizens?” Cash snickered. “I would never have imagined. No, I was referring to your new toy. Getting the hang of it yet?”

Charisma sighed, of course Cash wasn’t interested in the people who wanted them dead. He never was. “Three times out of five I can get it to do what I want,” she said, reaching a hoof up to touch the teardrop ruby at her chest. A thought occurred to her. “Do you think I can zap these guys like what you did with the soldiers? We could use the cannon fodder.”

“I don’t know,” he replied with an infuriating smile that said he actually knew very well. “Can you?”

She paused for a moment, thinking about it, trying to commune with the Element. The answer that came to her was too complex to be a product of her own imagination. She was bound by the physical, it was her focus, her Talent. Her mind was not malleable enough to allow her to mold another’s. “No,” she said with a frown. He’d been right when he had told her as much earlier. “Can you?”

Cash let out a short bark of a laugh. “Not as long as you’re wearing it. I can trick them with Deceit or appeal to their greed, though. Probably won’t get the same results, but close enough for criminal work. I might do that. Or…” He drew the word out, his head tilting and his eyes rolling to her. “You could get in some more practice. Something more in your milieu.”

Charisma caught his meaning. “You want me to kill them with the Element of Loyalty?”

He shrugged. “Or with your hooves. I don’t care how, so long as you use the Element somewhere in the mayhem. Just, you know, don’t break the boat? We kinda need it.”

“You know I could just carry you,” Charisma pointed out. “I’m strong enough now.”

He sucked in a hissing breath. “I don’t know about you, but the last time we did that? Yeah, not so comfy. If it’s all the same to you, I’m going to go with the boat on this one.”

“Whatever you want, Max,” she said. “Now, am I killing these guys or what?”

“I think we should let them make the first move. Give them the chance to do what they were paid for.” Cash grinned. “And then you can kill them.”

“What if they live up to their end of the deal?”

He shrugged. “I don’t see how that changes anything.”

She sucked in a short breath as her heart skipped a beat. “Damn it, Max. Why do we always have to draw it out like this?”

“Drama, of course!”

“Of course,” she repeated, sighing.

She turned away from him and stared out at the passing river, falling into the strange altered perception that Loyalty allowed her. She looked at the water and could see how it was bound to the ocean and to the clouds and to the blood that pumped through her veins. She wondered what would happen if she started breaking those bonds. Would the river flow backwards? Would the clouds burst into one great gush of rain? Would she dessicate like a corpse left in the desert?

“Screw drama,” she snarled, whipping around to face the thugs. They grinned at her, running lascivious eyes over her flanks. Attack the largest one first her Talent urged. Kick him into the water. Take to the air, gain speed, then drop on the one at the wheel as he turns to look. Snap his neck cleanly, leave him draped over the wheel. Attack both remaining thugs simultaneously. Use wings to distract and hooves to strike. Aim for throats or knees to disable. Once one is disabled, focus on the other until dead, then kill the last one. “A good plan,” she murmured to herself. “But how about instead I do this?” She focused on one of them, and then she made the water betray his body.

The result was instantaneous and spectacular. It was like the stallion had been some overfilled water balloon that had been popped. The aft of the boat was splattered with so much red that the blinking eyes of the other thugs stood out in incredible contrast. Despite the breeze from the speed they were going, she even felt a few drops spatter her. The shockingly thin body of the stallion she had killed crumpled to the deck, the red moisture that had just evacuated it actually spreading away so as not to touch the corpse.

She laughed. It was as pure and unfettered a laugh as she could remember having since Trail Blazer had left her.

Next to her, Cash sighed. “Fine, but I’m not driving with the seat all wet like that. You made the mess, you get to sit in it.”

“What the hell?” one of the thugs cried out, his voice made high and quavering by fear. She decided he was next. She launched herself forward, grinning as a frisson of joy went through her. All three remaining thugs flinched back, which was more of an opening than she ever needed. She crouched, her hooves sliding on the wet deck, and hit her chosen target low, lifting up and flinging him over the side of the boat before he had a chance to react. Still seeing the bonds of water, she then did to him the reverse of what she had done to the first stallion.

She didn’t pause to watch, but as she turned away she could see tendrils of water reaching up from the river to the doomed pony, finding any opening it could to force its way inside him. The other two were staring in open-mouthed shock at her, and she could see in their eyes how fear was now ruling their minds, paralyzing them. She laughed again, reaching out and wrapping a foreleg around each of their necks. Then, with just a simple squeeze, she crushed the life out of them.

Her body sang with delight. She was practically dancing as she threw the corpses overboard. The one she had dessicated didn’t even make a splash, the water parting for it and closing after without touching the dry flesh. She looked back to Cash, who was regarding her with the expression of someone tolerating the antics of another. “A little messy, but good on you for making it work. Now, if you’d like to take the wheel before we crash into the riverbank, I’d appreciate it.”

Charisma smirked at him, ignoring the demands of her Talent to destroy him. Then she bound the blood and gore to the river so that it flowed overboard and left the boat cleaner than it had been when she’d got on. Cash’s eyebrows went up at that, and he made an appreciative sound before turning back to watch the passing riverside. She slid herself into the pilot’s seat and set to steering as the last of the shivering tingles of happiness filtered through her. They were almost there.

Chapter 33: Betrayal

That being said, Inversion should not be thought of as ‘simply’ a reversal of polarity. Like all things with the Elements, it becomes more complex the deeper you look beneath the surface, with no sign of ever stopping. There is, for lack of a better term, nuance to Inversion. Just as the Element changes form for the bearer, the Inversion changes as well. When Fluttershy experienced Inversion the first time, she became callous and mean-spirited. However, another time it occurred, several years later, the Inversion manifested as much more subtle controlling and conniving behaviour; in this case turned to carefully manipulating her friends against each other. Both could be labelled as cruelty, but they were otherwise utterly different.

This is to say nothing of how Inversions affect the behaviour of Proxy Bearers.

As I have said many times already, this may be a bias of our perceptions. However, in this case I believe it is not quite that simple. Rather, I think the differences arise from the changes to the way the Bearer understands and uses their Element. Returning to the example of Fluttershy, when she first Inverted it was under the influence of Discord. At the time we had only used the Elements once, and knew practically nothing of their many facets and powers. Thus her shallow understanding of Kindness translated into a shallow form of Cruelty. However, at the other time I mentioned Fluttershy was a seasoned Bearer, having used the Elements several times. She was also beginning to explore the Activated and Passive Abilities of her Element. This greater awareness of Kindness then translated into a more complex Cruelty.

This seems to hold true for all the Elements, save one. Rainbow Dash’s Betrayal took on an increasingly global scope, while Applejack’s Deceit was soon frighteningly persuasive, and Rarity’s Greed focused on horrific targets. The less said about Pinkie Pie’s Anger, the better. Once more the odd one out is Magic. While my understanding of the Elements has deepened along with that of my friend’s, perhaps even more so, my Inversion remains as it always was. I become melancholy and sullen, but no other change is observable.

A more interesting observation, actually, is that as my friends became more familiar with their Elements, their Inversions became more frequent as well. Usually in response to some stress in the pony’s daily life, rather than forced by some greater entity like the first time. In fact, I have observed these phenomena enough to suggest that Inversion might not be something forced by circumstance on the Element at all.

I think it’s a choice.

-From the sixth section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Thirty-Three: Betrayal

The construction of a chariot –more of a carriage, but Dash insisted on calling it a chariot– was done with a surprising amount of speed and ingenuity. A short planning session among the RIA mechanics, with input from Rainbow Dash and Star Fall, was all it took before the garage started looking like a kicked anthill. A half-dozen cars and vans were quickly cannibalized. Roofs, hoods and door panels of various colors were welded together like a mad jigsaw puzzle to build something that could hold seven ponies in relative comfort at high altitude and extreme speed.

Astrid looked at the nearly completed vehicle and knew that ‘relative’ was the word to focus on. Everything that could be sacrificed to save weight was discarded, leaving a spartan interior that promised a very hard ride indeed. There were no seats, no belts, no cushions. Only a railing running along either wall equipped with simple loops of rope to secure the occupants. Turbulence would toss the unprepared around like dolls. Astrid shuddered at the thought of Dash doing any of her trademark maneuvers while towing it. Still, it was ‘relatively’ more comfortable than a face-full of wind at near-transonic speeds.

With nothing better to do, several of those who would be going on this mad little mission were loitering about the garage, watching the mechanics do their work. Star Fall was off in a corner designing the spells that would keep them from weighing Dash down too much. Rainbow Dash herself was deep in a conversation with a chatty pony named Trail Blazer, who Astrid recognized from their first trip through the Everstorm with Dash. Despite the sizeable language barrier, Pinkie Pie had somehow contrived to engage a group of RIA spooks in a game of hopscotch. The rest were either getting food or rest, as they pleased.

Then there was Rarity, who had been giving Astrid nervous looks for the better part of an hour. That she had something to say was obvious, and Astrid was just contemplating going over and asking her what the fuss was about when Rarity finally started moving. “It’s astoundingly grotesque, isn’t it?” Rarity said as she stepped up beside the Griffin.

Astrid spared the unicorn a wry glance. “I’m more worried about whether it will work than how it looks. If those welds fail at top speed… well, I’m not sure even Dash could save us all.”

A wistful smile played at Rarity’s lips. “Oh, don’t underestimate Rainbow Dash. She has made something of a habit of performing seemingly impossible feats.” Astrid chuckled in quiet agreement, but her laughter stopped as she saw the change in Rarity’s expression. Her smile faded and her ears drooped, her eyes closing for a long moment. Whatever she wanted to say, she was finally ready to say it. “Astrid, I have to tell you something. It isn’t a good time, I know, but I don’t know when we shall have another chance.”

Astrid’s eyes narrowed into a frown, she couldn’t think of anything the pony could tell her that would provoke a reaction like this. “Go on.”

“It’s…” Rarity stopped, shaking her head. “It’s about Melody.”

“Melody?” Astrid’s frown deepened. “What about… her…”

The answer was clear enough. She didn’t need Rarity to say anything more. Still, Rarity’s horn lit up and a small unicorn doll was levitated out in front of her. It had been torn in half and sewn back together again, but it was still recognizable. “I’m sorry, Astrid,” Rarity said, dropping the doll into Astrid’s open claw. “It was… She followed us here, and then Cash attacked–”

“I get it,” Astrid cut her off, her voice soft. “She was supposed to be back in the capital, getting some fucking help.” She squeezed the doll tight for a furious moment, then relaxed with a sad sigh. “It’s my own fault for not checking up on her. Too damn busy being Captain of the Princess’ guard.” She held the doll out to Rarity. “Keep it for me, will ya? I’ve got no time for mushy feelings right now.”

“Of course,” Rarity said, taking the doll back and tucking it away. “I am sorry, Astrid. Is there anything I can do?”

“You can remember her,” Astrid said, staring resolutely at the nearly-complete chariot. “There’ll be a lot of mourning to do when this is all over, but it’s gotta be over first.”

“I wish I were coming with you.”

“So do I,” Astrid said. “I’d take you in a heartbeat, head injury or not, if it meant one of those Changelings didn’t get to go.”

“I admit to having limited contact with Traduce, but I spent some time with Calumn, and he seems perfectly capable. And quite sweet, actually.”

Astrid snorted. “Oh, they seem sweet all right. Then before you know it you’re stealing state secrets and selling your children for them, and all the while they’re slurping down your emotions like a milkshake.”

“That seems rather harsh.”

“That’s what they do. That’s what they are. With two of them on the team I’m gonna be looking over my shoulder every step of the way.” Astrid let out a long sigh. “However, they’re dedicated to their missions. I’ll give them that. So long as Director Straff isn’t planning to screw us, they should behave.”

“Dash trusts Calumn, too.”

“Yeah, but that’s the thing about you superponies,” Astrid said with a shake of her head. “You’re all hopelessly naive.”

Rarity looked at her for a long moment before turning away. “We should hope that isn’t true, Astrid,” she said as she started walking away. “For everyone’s sake.”

Astrid didn’t watch her go, but she heard every word. “From your lips to Celestia’s ears,” she said, quietly adding a prayer of her own. Even if the Changelings were perfectly trustworthy, they were still going to need every edge they could get.

***

Star Fall concentrated, carefully measuring the angles with a protractor before drawing an intersecting line through the spell she was constructing. Then she measured all the angles again to ensure she’d gotten the correct degree of incidence. This was an entirely new spell, though the principles were familiar, and any mistake could be deadly. Even a single line like this one, if out of place, could have catastrophic consequences. If the angle was off, the forces would be unbalanced and the chariot would list to the side in flight, potentially dragging Dash off course or causing her too much strain.

Satisfied, Star Fall leaned back and stretched out. The motion tugged at the harness she wore: belted straps criss-crossing her body with clips and pouches dangling from them. It was something that had been made for her when she had first been sent to the nightlands, but she’d never had much use for it. Now, though, she was glad she brought it.

A noise of rubber on concrete alerted her that she had company, and Star Fall looked up as Spike wheeled himself over to her. She smiled at him, though she felt like wincing at the sight of him all bandaged and beaten. She had never seen him injured before. Even after the fight in his lair that had destroyed his storage room, he had looked battered, but not really hurt. It was a grim reminder that even a creature as ancient and powerful as he could be brought down by Charisma and her master.

“I came to see if you needed any help,” he said. “I may not be able to come with you, but I still know how to draw a spell.”

“Thank you,” Star Fall said. “But I already have all the spells I can think of.” She gestured to a pile of small, waterproof scroll pouches that could attach to her harness. “I’ve got combat spells, healing spells, containment spells. I even have a copy of my magic dampening spell, since it worked fairly well against Cash last time.”

He nodded, though he couldn’t keep a touch of disappointment from his face at the lack of things he could help with. “What about the chariot? You’re making a spell to help Dash tow it, right?”

“I’m nearly done,” she admitted. “But I wouldn’t mind you checking my work!” she hastened to add.

That did seem to brighten his mood. “I’m wondering how you plan to keep it in the air. I’m certain you didn’t think you could actually levitate the chariot.”

Star Fall snorted. “Of course not. Look.” She shimmied to the side, letting him see the nearly completed spell-sheets she had painstakingly drawn.

He eyed the arcane designs, humming and nodding as he saw the shape of the spell. “Airflow control. Interesting. What’s the basic purpose?”

“Rainbow Dash will supply the thrust, this spell will generate lift,” she explained. “It changes the way the air flows around the chariot. Like giving it wings, but without the weight.”

“Excellent idea.” She smiled at the praise. “I’m seeing mixed variables and constants here. I assume the spell isn’t meant to be static?”

“Not entirely. There are static elements, like the basic lift-generation, and there are variable ones, like the degree of lift generation.”

“Ha! So you’re going to control the lift directly? Another smart move. I was just thinking that Dash has a tendency to, you know, go really fast. A static spell could easily generate too much lift, and then you’re just slowing her down again. What’s your control medium? You can’t use illusory controls, not for the hours this trip’s going to take.”

“I thought of that,” Star Fall said, then gave her wings a couple flaps. “The spell is controlled with these. It’s based on pegasus magic, something I’ve got a lot of experience regulating already. It’s gonna take a lot of concentration to maintain, but it’s low energy so I should be able to keep it up for, well, as long as it takes. I hope.”

“Okay. I see the haptic additions, now,” Spike said. “You’ll feel the wind as if you were outside. You’ll have to keep in sync with Dash throughout the flight.”

“That’s why there’s a window on the front of the chariot,” Star Fall said, smiling. “I’ve got this, Spike.”

He nodded, gazing at her with the pride only a Dragon was capable of. “You put this spell together in a night. You were always something special, Star Fall. It’s not just any student of mine who could do that.”

And just like that, all the joy she felt in pleasing her old teacher was gone. “Student,” she repeated, and then her face fell. “Spike...” she began, trailing off as her ears twitched and her wings moved restlessly. A horrible thought had suddenly crossed her mind. Something that had been nagging at her for days. Something she hadn’t let herself truly think of until this moment.

“What’s up, Star?” he asked, frowning at her behaviour.

“How long have you known Twinkle Shine?”

“The Professor? A while.” There was no hint of hesitation or worry in his reply, but something about it still seemed off to her.

She shook her head. “No, I need exact years.”

“I don’t know… since she first started formal studies in magic,” Spike said, his eyes tracking up as he thought about it. He still sounded nothing but casually sincere.

Yet Star Fall knew a dodge when she heard one. She took a deep, steadying breath, then looked up right into his eyes and waited for him to meet her gaze before she spoke again. “Did you know she was Umbra?”

He stared at her for a long moment, and she silently willed him to tell her something, anything, other than what she saw behind those eyes. She knew he wouldn’t, though. She could see his answer forming long before he opened his mouth. The guilt that seeped through the cracks of his discipline. “Yes,” he said, though his voice was only a whisper.

The confirmation of her suspicions hit her like a blow. Her eyes prickled with tears that she refused to shed and her throat felt like it was swelling shut. “How long?” Star Fall asked, whispering as well since if she spoke louder she was afraid it would become a scream.

“Since the beginning.”

She knew she should be thinking of questions to ask him. She knew that she should be putting her emotions away and focusing on gaining every scrap of information she could. She needed to understand her mentor, as well as the creature her mentor was a part of, and Spike might have all the answers. At that moment, though, it was all she could do to hold back a flood of tears that she feared would drown her. “You knew… She killed so many people...”

His eyes fell to the floor for a moment before rising back to meet hers again. “I know. So have I.”

She tried to take a steadying breath, but failed. “Couldn’t you have done something? Warned us? Stopped her?” The look he gave her was answer enough. “No, of course not. Can’t go against Umbra, not unless you want a mountain dropped on you.”

“She’s not what you think.”

“I don’t know what to think!” Star Fall snarled. She tried again to take a deep breath, and it came hissing through clenched teeth. “I don’t know… but you do.”

“Yes.”

Star Fall shuddered, her wings fluttering in agonized expression before settling again. “I can’t do this now. Not with Cash so close. I need time to breathe. Time to think.”

“I’ll be here,” he said, rolling back. “I’ll tell you whatever you want to know.”

“Good,” she said, staring at her nearly finished spell. “Good. I… Will I be able to forgive you?” She wiped at her face, blinking rapidly to clear her eyes. “When I’ve heard it all, will I be able to forgive you for not telling me?”

He paused, his features sad and resigned. “Me? I think so. What I’ve done wasn’t wrong or right, just… necessary. No, I’m not the one I’m worried you won’t forgive.”

“I think Twinkle Shine’s lost any right to that,” Star Fall said.

“She’s not the one I’m talking about.”

By the time Star Fall registered what he’d said, Spike was already gone.

***

“...So then I walked through the door and said ‘hey, does anybody wanna buy a housecoat?’”

Rainbow Dash snickered. “While it was on fire?”

Trail Blazer shrugged. “What else could I do? I really needed that drink. Anyway, that was when Charisma found me. She storms in super-angry with me because of how the whole duck pond thing got her chased by a horde of hungry waterfowl. Now, we’d only been dating for, like, a few months at this point, so I might have made a comment about how sexy she looked with her dress all wet and sticking. You know? Like how it can really show off a mare’s–”

“Skip it,” Dash interrupted. “Back to Charisma.”

“Okay. So she wasn’t really happy with the compliment. Or maybe it was all about the ducks? Anyway, I think she broke a chair over my head? I’m kinda fuzzy on the details here, but I can tell you that one thing led to another and I ended up in bed with her. Which, I guess there was some fun times, but it’s all kind of blurry until sometime about two in the morning when I came to with all my legs dislocated and Charisma nestled up next to me and poking me with a very sharp knife.” Dash couldn’t suppress a shudder. Blaze’s voice kept a bubbly, light-hearted tone throughout, and that alone made her gorge rise.

“So I looked over to her and said ‘So, was it good for me, too?’ And she laughed and started making these little cuts and watching the blood dribble out. I told her we’d better order nachos so we can tell the maids that it’s just a salsa stain, and also I really wanted some nachos. Something about cheese and peppers was sounding real good at the time. Anyway, she laughed again and then she got this look on her face. Like she was listening for something that wasn’t there. I didn’t really get it at the time, but I figured out that was her ‘existential crisis’ face. So she got really quiet for a bit and I was gonna say something but she punched me in the throat. Not hard, just a little love-tap, only enough to make it tough to breathe for a few minutes. I took that as a hint that she wanted me to be quiet and let her have her moment. Eventually she started talking.” Blaze paused. Dash still didn’t have a good grasp of his moods, but it seemed to her that his ever-present smile had turned slightly sad.

“What did she say?”

“Oh, you know, the usual stuff we all look back on. Her childhood, her family, how she loved dancing, how she got her Glyph by killing her brother, where she went to school. You know, nostalgia stuff. She also told me how she was trained by the Kingdom.” Blaze tilted his head towards where Gamma, Straff and an older pegasus Dash recognized from the briefing were talking. “Gamma was a big part of that. She’s the reason Charisma ended up in the military and not the proud owner of her very own padded cell. And, I mean, good on her for giving a filly a chance, but this’d all be a lot less painful if she hadn’t.”

“Yeah,” Dash agreed, nodding along. She hadn’t missed the part about Charisma killing her brother, but she decided to let Blaze tell the story at his own pace.

“It wasn’t about what she said as much as what she didn’t say, you know? I picked up a lot of below-the-surface stuff, and I was listening really closely because the threat of grievous bodily harm always seems to sharpen my attention. Anyway, the gist of it is she wants to kill everyone.” Blaze sighed. “She came out and actually said it right before I, uh, pushed her into an angry Dragon. She thinks she’d be doing the world a favor, and she thinks it’s what she was made for. It’s hard to wrap your head around. Like ramming a car into a tree, you just end up breaking around the idea. It’s like, to her, we’re all just begging to die. Like everybody in the whole world is constantly asking her to take out the trash, but she doesn’t want to because there’s a whole lot of it, and it’s really messy and smelly and it gets everywhere and it’ll just stain all her clothes and get in her mane and maybe she’s got a date or something and doesn’t want to have to take a shower and doesn’t have anything else to wear, and she kinda wants to impress the guy she’s going out with, which, you know she really doesn’t have to because he’s kind of a goof and is only after some of that sweet, sweet, horrible physical abuse anyway, but they just won’t stop asking and asking and asking and asking until she gives up and takes out a bag, but that’s just one bag and the pile is big, like, really big. Only, let’s be clear here, the trash is people, and they don’t just go to the curb, oh no. Unless that’s in their will. Which is, I guess, their prerogative, but kinda weird. I always said my remains should be shot out of a cannon into a vat of marmalade which will then be smeared over several politicians who I do not like. You know, like a normal person.”

Dash absorbed Blaze’s breathless ramblings, pulling the important stuff out of all the irrelevancies. “She’s crazy.”

“She thinks she’s crazy,” Blaze corrected her. “I don’t think she is.”

“She kills people, Blaze.”

“That’s what she does,” he agreed. “And you fly fast. How would you feel if you were told ever since you were a little filly that you weren’t allowed to? That it was wrong.”

Dash opened her mouth to reply, but then slowly closed it again, saying nothing. She wanted to argue with Blaze, to protest how that wasn’t a fair comparison. Only, the more she thought about it, the more it resonated with her. Something clicked into place, and she felt she understood the other pegasus better. There were still many questions left, but a part of the picture had revealed itself. “But why Loyalty?” she finally managed to ask. “I mean… what makes her able to use that Element?”

Blaze shrugged. “Dunno. I pegged her for Generosity myself. She’s pretty loyal to Cash, I guess, but I don’t think it’s real loyalty. She doesn’t like him, you know? As a person, I mean. It’s pretty complicated.”

“She likes you, though, right?”

“Well, we did date.”

“Do you think you could talk her down? If I could, I don’t know, hold her still long enough, could you get through to her?”

Blaze shook his head. “Not a chance. On the plus side, though, she doesn’t think I’m a threat and she’s not going to kill me right off the bat.”

“So you might be able to get a surprise attack on her?”

“Nope. Played that card already, she’ll be watching for it this time. What I can do is distract her. I’m good at that.”

“Yeah, maybe,” Dash said, but she didn’t think it was a good idea.

“Hey, I gotta go. Calumn’s giving me the old ‘come-hither’ look of irritated impatience,” Blaze said.

“Yeah, alright,” Dash said. “I’ll see you at takeoff.” He flashed her a grin and trotted off to follow his Changeling friend out of the garage. Dash stood in frustrated silence, thinking about what she had learned.

She was going to have to fight Charisma, the absolute certainty of it coming from somewhere deep inside that she didn’t understand, but knew not to question. She needed every edge in that fight she could get, and she’d been hoping that Blaze could provide something decisive. It was now clear that he wouldn’t be able to do that, and while what he’d told her was important, it wasn’t what she needed.

“Agent Dash.”

Dash’s head whipped around, her wings twitching partway open with surprise. She’d been so absorbed in her own thoughts she hadn’t noticed anyone coming up to her. “Whoa! Gamma. I, uh, what’s up?”

The spymaster quirked an eyebrow. “Agent Dash, I trust what you learned about Charisma was enlightening.”

“Yeah, I… how did you know what we were talking about? Were you doing some magical eavesdropping thing?”

A small smile twitched the corners of Gamma’s lips upwards. “Hardly. I spent several long days travelling with that stallion, and the only time he ever looked remotely serious was when he was speaking of his former lover or her master. Thus it wasn’t difficult to tell from his expression what he was speaking of here.”

Dash folded her wings. “Yeah, okay, I get that. He told me you are kinda responsible for the way Charisma is.”

“Straight to the point, I see.” Gamma gave her a single, slow nod. “Yes. Some of the blame for Charisma can be laid at my hooves. I took a dangerous, disturbed filly and turned her into an extremely dangerous, disturbed mare. I did not, however, make her choose to join Cash. Nor am I responsible for all the deaths she has caused since.”

“I didn’t say you were,” Dash said, head drooping a bit. “I just… want to understand her. I’m gonna have to fight her. I know that. And I want to know what makes a pony go so… bad!”

Gamma stepped closer to Dash, her voice dropping low and intimate, just above a whisper. “When she was still part of the Kingdom military I tried very hard to keep her from any conflict. Most importantly because her expertise as a trainer was of greater utility than any number of kills in the field. But also because the filly I first met very much did not want to kill anyone.” She was silent for a moment, her expression unreadable. “Her desires, however, have little sway. She kills because she’s compelled to. I helped train that compulsion into a powerful weapon.”

“Yeah, thanks for that.”

“My point is that she did not ‘go bad’. She was shaped by her world much as we all are. The fact that this shaping has gone awry from its intended purpose should not be used to condemn her.”

“You still want her dead,” Dash said, accusation in her voice and eyes.

Gamma didn’t flinch from that charge. “Of course I want her dead. She is a traitor to the Kingdom and a threat to us all. The fact that I sympathize with her, the fact that I am genuinely sorry she ended up this way, means nothing in the face of that threat.”

“I can’t do that!” Dash growled at her through clenched teeth. “I can’t just decide that someone needs to die. If she’s not just evil, if there’s an actual pony underneath all that crazy, how am I supposed to… to kill her?”

“She’s killed others. Many others.”

“That doesn’t mean I have to.”

“Do you recall that I asked you once if you would kill?” Dash reluctantly nodded. “I gave you a hypothetical situation with no way out but deadly force. You said then that there would be another way, one that you would have to find in the moment. Your answer was naive, and I think you’ve grown enough to see that. You and Applejack are the only ones who have a chance against her, and eventually it will come down to a confrontation where someone is going to die. You will have the chance to make that person her, and if you fail in that task, it most assuredly will be someone else. I don’t want to have to bury Star Fall because of your qualms with getting blood on your hooves.”

“That’s not fair!” The moment the words were out of her mouth, Dash hated herself for saying them.

“Life rarely is.” Gamma took a step back. “I am putting my faith in you, Rainbow Dash. You are a good pony, but I warned you that your history and abilities would make these choices inevitable. I believe –I know– that when the time comes you will make the right choice.” She let those words sink in. “Now, that’s all I can say on this subject. I have someone here who desperately wants to meet you, Agent Dash. Would you be willing to speak with him for a few minutes?”

Dash didn’t want to talk to anyone, but there was an edge to Gamma’s voice as she asked that told her this request was important somehow. So she swallowed her frustration, took a deep breath, and settled her wings. “Sure. Whatever. Who is it?”

“May I present the honorable Senator Alan Birchfield,” Gamma said, waving over the older pegasus. “Senator, this is Dame Rainbow Dash.”

“Uh, hey,” Dash said, unsure of how to properly address a Senator.

“Lady Rainbow Dash,” Birchfield said, his eyes wide and starstruck. His Solar was accented, but easily understandable.

“Just ‘Dash’ is fine.”

“I’ll leave you two to talk,” Gamma said, withdrawing.

Dash and Birchfield shared an uncomfortable silence for a long moment before Dash decided to break the ice. “So, uh, I heard about your place from Rarity and Pinkie Pie. Sorry about that.”

“I had a statue of you,” he said.

Dash blinked at the apparent non-sequitur. “Nah, man, I think you had Pinkie Pie.”

He smiled, shaking his head. “No, a small statue. One made to show what the real one would look like. I kept it in a place of honor in my… home.” His eyes squeezed shut for a moment in a pained wince, but he shook it off and continued speaking. “I had Laughter, yes, but I always wanted Loyalty. I always wanted you.” He stepped back and took her in, his wings opening slightly and his eyes going wide with wonder. “A pegasus of the old way. That little statue of you was an inspiration to me. It let me dream of walking on the clouds and crafting rainbows. When I looked at it, it was as if for a moment I could feel the power of the storm, or the glory of the unfettered sky.”

“Uh, glad I could help?”

He chuckled. “You did.” Then he squared his jaw and his eyes started to shine with determined tears. “But now you’re standing here, in the flesh, and I… I must beg of you, Rainbow Dash. Show me… show me what we pegasi were meant for. Truly meant for.”

Dash was taken aback, she had no idea how to respond to such a plea. “I, uh, okay, dude. When this is all over, I’ll put on an airshow or something.”

“No,” he said, stepping close again and laying a hoof on her shoulder. Her eyes flicked from his face to his hoof and back again, but she didn’t pull away. “Before I became a politician, I was a soldier. I served my country through a half-dozen conflicts in the Zebra nations and beyond, and I made good friends with the striped people. They remember the histories better there than we do here, and they taught me about the pegasi of old. Long before the Schism, before the Goddesses took up their crowns, we were warriors. I know that you still are. That is what I want you to show me: a true warrior-pegasus unleashed!”

“Aw, for… look, buddy.” She shook his hoof off and poked her own at Birchfield’s chest. “That’s not what I’m here for, alright? I’m not some super-warrior or whatever. I’m just an athlete and a weatherpony in a really weird situation. I’m doing what I gotta do, and, yeah, it might get rough, but I’m not going to head out looking to take somebody’s head off. You want me to show you what pegasi in my time could do? I can hook you up with some of the coolest air routines you’ve ever seen or put together a storm that’ll really knock your socks off. That stuff you’re talking about? That’s not me. That’s not us, and it hasn’t been for a long, long time.”

His mouth fell open, taken aback by her vehemence. For a moment she thought he would be angry, but then he let out a laugh and a wide smile overtook his features. “Alright, alright. You would know better than I. Then, when you come back, I would be delighted for you to put on an airshow.”

“Awesome. You set the venue, and I’ll be there and bring my ‘A’ game.”

“I’ll be looking forward to it,” he replied, then excused himself to go speak with Gamma again.

Dash was left alone after that, allowed to ponder on the choice Gamma insisted she would have to make. She wanted to fly, she always thought better when airborne. However, she needed to keep herself rested for the coming flight. Applejack hadn’t been wrong in telling her that she didn’t have the endurance for something like this. Short bursts of extreme speed, that’s what she was made for. Hours of dragging several times her own body weight at a run was more Applejack’s thing. It would be easier if she was going slower, she could fly at Star Fall or Astrid’s pace for days, but that wasn’t an option. She only hoped Star Fall’s spell would be enough to let her go the distance.

Eventually, the chariot was finished, and those going on the mission were summoned. They wheeled the jigsaw-like creation outside, onto the road that they had cleared to give Dash the runway to takeoff with. Soon everyone was gathered in the morning light, gear strapped tightly to their bodies, determined looks on their faces. Dash was the only one who wasn’t wearing any saddlebags or other equipment, since it would have interfered with the harness that connected her to the chariot.

Pinkie Pie gave them all big hugs. Rarity and Spike gave them their best wishes. Gamma just gave Dash a steady look that communicated once again her confidence in Dash making the ‘right’ choice. Finally, Straff gave them a cursory inspection before addressing them. “No speeches,” he said. “You all know what to do. You all know what’s at stake. Good luck, and may the will of the Goddesses of both day and night go with you.”

Before they could pile into the tight confines of the carriage, Dash pulled Star Fall aside. “Hey,” she said, speaking in Old Equestrian to keep the conversation somewhat private. “You don’t look so good. What’s up?”

She shook her head. “Nothing we can deal with right now. When we get back, I have to talk to Spike. He knows more than he’s told us.”

“About what?”

“Umbra, the Professor. Everything, maybe.” She took a steadying breath. “Finding out hit me hard.”

“Does Astrid know?”

Star Fall shook her head. “Not yet, and I won’t get the chance to tell her on the trip.”

“You’re still okay to do this, though. Right?” Dash didn’t want to call off the mission for any reason, but if Star Fall wasn’t up for it, she would have little choice.

“Yeah,” Star Fall confirmed, forcing what was supposed to be a confident smile onto her face. “I’m good to go.”

Dash gave Star Fall a hug, then let the other mare board the chariot. Soon everyone was inside, and the telltale crimson glow of Star Fall’s magic surrounded it. Dash was strapped into her harness. It was a far more complicated than anything that would have been used in her own time, with straps and buckles that cinched tight to keep her and the chariot securely connected. It seemed to her like some pretty serious over-engineering, but she didn’t complain. As soon as the straps were all secure the RIA agents rushed clear. She couldn’t help a laugh at the extreme caution they were displaying, but she figured they had no idea what to expect.

As soon as her way was clear, she set out. The first pull on the chariot was the hardest, her hooves scraping against the pavement as she strained to get the bulk of metal and seven ponies moving. Move it did, though, and within a few seconds she was trotting along and gaining speed with every step. Her wings unfurled, caressing the wind. Her magic flowed out with her reaching feathers, thickening the air and granting her the traction she’d need. Then, with one mighty downstroke, her hooves left the ground and she shot forward.

She kept low at first, focusing on accelerating. She was pleased to find that the chariot was already feeling lighter, Star Fall’s spell working just as expected. Finally, as she was running out of road, she tilted upwards, pulling the chariot into the sky. She didn’t shoot straight up, as she might have on her own. Instead she curved her flight gently, describing a wide spiral through the air that still had the whole of Orion City sprawling beneath her.

She circled a few more times as she got to an appropriate altitude, letting those inside the carriage get as settled as they could. Then she turned south and began a slow acceleration to around three hundred miles an hour, which was near the upper limit of what the mechanics said the chariot could handle. Even at those speeds she was looking at a journey of over five hours. A spike of anxiety went through her at that thought. It seemed far too long a time.

She didn’t want to think about it. So she set herself into a determined rhythm, speeding up until she could feel the straps and bars of her harness creak in protest, and fixed her eyes on the southern horizon.

Rainbow Dash flew. The weight of the chariot was a brutal yoke, dragging on her with every flap of her wings. Yet she wanted to go faster. She needed to go faster. The knot of anxiety growing into a gnawing worry in her gut that was slowly clawing its way further up her throat with every league she covered, fed by a horrible certainty that she was going to be too late.

And so she flew. Beyond the time when she should have stopped to eat. Beyond the point where her body should have been exhausted from dragging the weight of seven ponies and a metal carriage across half a continent. The harness straps cut into her as she rode the edge of what the chariot was capable of withstanding, but she didn’t slow. The land passed by beneath her at a deceptively rapid crawl, but she barely saw it. Vast plains, massive cities and towering mountains were met with equal indifference. Her gaze was fixed solely to the south.

She couldn’t have said how long it had been since she started. Not that she cared. It wouldn’t matter how long she had flown so long as she showed up in time. A distant part of her mind knew that her endurance had never been up to a non-stop trip like this, but paradoxically, her energy only grew with every mile closer she got to her goal. By the time she spotted the deeper green of the jungle rolling over the horizon, it was all she could do to keep from shouting with joy and putting on a burst of speed that would take her through the sound barrier and put her at their destination in minutes. Of course, it would also have likely killed everyone in the chariot, so she managed to keep herself in check.

“What’s up with me today?” she asked herself, the words dragged away by the wind before they reached her ears. She didn’t spend time contemplating the question, the small worry drowned out by the fear of failure that was already firmly entrenched in her thoughts.

She peered ahead, watching as the endless jungle swallowed all the land beneath her. “Come on, come on,” she urged, keen pegasus eyes scanning for the place that had been described to her. “Where are you?”

Minutes and miles flowed past her, each one adding to the anxiety and energy that were working together to twist her insides. Her eyes darted from place to place, their movements growing ever more frantic. Then, with a surge of mixed elation and terror, she spotted it: a large clearing, full of flowers and statues, centered on a marble building that certainly looked pegasus-built –the pillared entrance was a dead giveaway.

“Gotcha!” Dash crowed, angling her flight towards the clearing. She started her descent, hoping that Star Fall and the rest inside the chariot would realize what was happening and get ready to spring into action. She grinned as her wide view of the world narrowed and the air warmed and thickened around her. “I’m gonna make it,” she said.

Then a brilliant pink light flashed from the temple and everything went wrong.

***

Within the chariot the noise was incredible, the wind howling by like an army of demons baying for blood. If that wasn’t enough the carriage was constantly making groaning, scraping noises that made them all consider with gnawing trepidation the hasty welds that held the vehicle together. Needless to say, conversation was all but nonexistent. The close proximity of seven bodies made the air warm and stifling, while the wind outside quickly chilled the bare metal of the chariot so that the occupants were caught uncomfortably between two extremes. The only light came from the window at the front of the carriage and the eerie glow of Star Fall’s spell-sheets, and even that was often blocked by Star Fall’s own wings as she carefully guided the spell that kept them in the air. The effect was like being shut into a coffin flying through the screaming depths of hell.

Astrid and Applejack, up at the front with Star Fall, at least had the option of peeking out the window. If either of them were uncomfortable in the close confines, neither showed it. Trail Blazer had made a fair go of being his usual chipper self, but no one else was having it, and he soon went quiet. Calumn seemed to fold in on himself, curling up on the cold floor wrapped in his cloak and saying something to himself that was impossible to hear over all the other noise. For Hard Boiled and Traduce, stuck at the very back, there was little to do but stand idly and count the interminable minutes.

HB would have liked to be able to rest, but, as was typical, that wasn’t in the cards. He ran his telekinesis over all his equipment, ensuring that his sidearm was clear in its holster, that his ballistic jacket was settled properly, that he had his hoofcuffs and stun baton ready. Once assured that everything was in its place, he went back to standing quietly, only to start up the sweep again after his thoughts wandered too close to the thing that had been terrifying him since the briefing.

Hours passed this way, until eventually Traduce reached out and touched his face, startling him out of another cycle of checking his gear. “You’re worried,” she said, leaning close to put her mouth right next to his ear. Even then she still had to talk loudly to be heard. “And not about confronting Cash, I can feel it.”

HB let out a slow breath. “The Gray Mare,” he said, closing his eyes and seeing again the image of the Alicorn atop a cloud of ash. “Heading to the Stile Islands. You know what that means.”

Traduce nodded, her expression grim. “Nothing we can do about that. We have to focus on the mission we’re on.”

He rolled his eyes. “Good luck with that. How long have we been on this thing already?”

She shrugged. “It will take as long as it takes. Will you be ready to confront Cash when we get there?”

It was his turn to nod. “I’m ready for him now. As long as you keep the pain away, he won’t be able to stop me this time.” He shook his head. “Is it just me, or does this all feel like the end of the world?”

“What do you mean?”

His voice was getting rough from having to yell everything, but he wanted her to understand his fears, so he pressed on. “Think about it. The Destroyer, these resurrected heroes, the Elements of Harmony. Hell, Cash and Charisma with superpowers! Don’t tell me this isn’t all leading up to something huge!”

She leaned her head against his. “I know. But we’re doing all we can.”

“Are we? Shouldn’t we be warning the public? Getting the story out to every newspaper and radio station in the nightlands?”

“That would cause a panic.”

“It would let people know. The world could be destroyed tomorrow by a psychotic unicorn or a wrathful Goddess, and they wouldn’t ever know what killed them. It just… doesn’t sit well with me.”

“It’s not our job to worry about that stuff,” Traduce insisted. “Straff, Gamma, they’ve got their eye on a picture bigger than either of us can see. When it’s time to let people know, they will.”

“You got a lot more faith in the people in command than I do,” HB said, shaking his head.

“I have to,” she said. “My whole species depends on those people being as smart and as wise as we need them to be. We can’t do anything about Umbra. What we can do is make sure that if the end comes, it isn’t the psychotic unicorn that makes it happen.”

He had no reply to that. They stood there for a time, her resting her head against his. The contact was strangely soothing, and he wondered if she was using her power to influence him. Knowing that the suspicion would hurt her, he nevertheless flicked on his truth-detecting magic to check.

Immediately his magic was screaming warnings at him. Not from Traduce, but from the front of the carriage. He started, pushing away from Traduce. He caught the sad, rejected expression as he did, but he didn’t have time to soothe her feelings. He shoved Blaze to the side, squeezing between him and Calumn to reach the three at the front.

“What the hell?” Astrid squawked in Solar, but she wasn’t who he was after. He grabbed Applejack by the shoulder. He tried to spin her around, only to find that she might as well have been a part of the chariot for all he could move her. Still, she reacted to his touch, turning her face to him. The people behind him gasped and Astrid let out a sound of sudden fear. “Oh fuck me, not again.”

“What’s goin’ on?” Applejack asked, confused.

“Yeah, what’s going on?” Star Fall echoed, not looking away from the window.

“It’s Applejack,” Astrid replied. “Her eyes are glowing.”

Then Applejack collapsed, and the whole chariot went into free-fall.

***

Charisma followed Cash into the temple. The strange fallen garden all around it gave the entire place a surreal edge, like she was walking through a dream. The various weathered animal statues didn’t help that feeling, only making her feel as if there were eyes on her. The temple itself was just as bad. A long, open space leading to another garden that practically glowed in the light coming from the open skylight. The statue of a yellow pegasus mare stood at the center of that garden, surrounded by smaller statues of woodland critters who seemed to be caught in a frozen moment of play around her hooves as she smiled gracefully down at them. It wore a necklace with a pink gem in the shape of a butterfly, something Charisma recognized from Cash’s book. That statue was lifelike enough that she half expected it to start moving at any moment.

“There you are,” Cash said in a rapturous whisper. Charisma was about to say something before she realized that he was talking to the statue, of all things. Or perhaps it was the Element around the statue’s neck. Either way, the tone of his voice sent a disturbed shiver through her wings. “This has been a long time in coming, my dear.”

She could hardly look at him anymore. The Elements were a churning vortex inside the thin walls of his skin. She wondered what would happen when that last barrier began to erode through. It had progressed so far that her Talent wasn’t even demanding his death as loudly as usual, there was barely enough left of him to kill.

“So, we’re here,” she said. “Now what? You need to kill someone to get the Element, right? You said it wasn’t me, so who?”

“Well, the thing is, I wasn’t being entirely honest with you there.” He turned to face her, his smile wild and triumphant.

She narrowed her eyes at him. “So you are planning on killing me?” She snorted. It wouldn’t surprise her, which told her that she was probably wrong. “You might want to wait until after the betrayal to tell me all about it, Max.”

“Please, I’ve never lied to you, Charisma,” he said. “But I haven’t told you everything, either.” He turned back to the statue, trotting up to it. “I needed to kill someone for the other Elements, yes. Not because I couldn’t get the necklaces off on my own, but because I needed a shock absorber. After a thousand years of inactivity, there was going to be one hell of a kick when these babies woke up again. I needed the sacrifices to bleed off that energy so that I could take possession without them causing my brain to pop like a ripe zit.”

“So they would have all died anyway?”

“Oh, no. The brain-explosion thing is only likely if you’re trying to wield more than one. Which, well, yeah.” He waved a hoof at his saddlebag, where the other Elements were stored.

“And this one’s different somehow?”

“So very different.” He giggled, twisting to drape himself along the statue’s back, lying on it like a divan. “Imagine drinking from a straw, only sometimes you go for a sip and it erupts like a geyser. You never know when it’s gonna happen, so you have to be very careful in taking that drink. Fluttershy here has the Element of Kindness, which regulates all the others. It keeps that straw from turning into a water cannon. I can slip this lovely little gem right off and barely feel a twinge.”

“So why don’t you?” She still stood near the door. She could feel the connection between her Element and the one on the statue. There was a strange resonance there that reminded her of what she had felt when stopping the Element of Laughter. She didn’t know what would happen if she got too close, and she didn’t really want to find out.

He grinned at her. “All in good time. First, I thought we’d discuss the next phase.”

“Really? You’re delaying?” She looked up at the ceiling, growling in incredulous frustration. “Weren’t you the one who told me you expected every one of our surviving enemies to show up here and now? Look, we’re good right now. Why not just grab the thing and we be long gone before any of them show up?”

He gave her a wide-eyed look of faux shock. “But that would ruin the plan. If I’m not here, how do I give them their Elements?”

She had to take a moment to fully process what he had said. “What!?”

“I have to admit, I didn’t expect to be this spoiled for choice,” Cash continued, rolling so that he was on his back, his head hanging off the statue’s side. “I knew there was you, of course. I imagined you’d be getting this little number.” He tapped the statue’s necklace. “Loyalty was –ha!– not a good look for you. But, well, when Umbra calls, you take whoever works.”

“You’re giving them the Elements?” Charisma sputtered. “What… Why?”

“It’s called a Harmony Event,” Cash said, as if that meant anything to her. “And unless you’re a god, you need five other ponies bearing Elements to make it work. I am many things, Charisma, but I am not a god.” He grinned again. “Yet.”

Charisma’s heart skipped a beat. “You’re going to make yourself a god?”

He waved a hoof noncommittally in the air. “It’s an option. That’s the problem when you have too many choices, it’s so hard to settle on one. It doesn’t matter. What does matter is that once everyone’s properly accessorized, we need to go and collect the Element of Laughter and a bearer for that.”

“Are you just expecting them to follow like nice little sheep?” Charisma stamped a hoof, cracking a tile. “They’re coming here to kill us, Max!”

“That’s where you’ll come in,” he said. “Loyalty is a funny thing. They don’t actually have to like you to follow you.” He flashed her a knowing look. “Right?”

“I can’t do that, remember?” she snarled.

“I think you’ll find it much easier to work on other Bearers,” Cash said, rolling off the statue and back to the ground. “You’ve done it already, after all. From your hospital bed, no less!”

“But that was…” she trailed off, unable to shake the feeling that he was right.

“That was everything I needed it to be. Just like you always have been.” The smile he sent her way this time was vicious enough that her wings spread in alarm. “You know, I think you deserve a treat. We’re heading north anyway, why don’t we visit the folks, huh? I know you haven’t seen your parents since you were a filly. Now’s a great time to catch up.”

“No,” Charisma hissed. “We are not discussing that. Ever.”

“Oh, come on,” he teased. “I’m sure they have a lot to say to you. And you have so much to tell them! Maybe you can tell them about your boyfriend. Or the money you’ve been making working for me. Or! How about you tell them how many people you’ve killed. I’m sure they’d be fascinated to know their daughter’s got the highest single-pony body count since, well, ever!”

“Max, stop.” Her heart was thudding in her chest. She didn’t understand why he was doing this. He’d always backed off before when she refused to talk about her family.

“If I was them, I’d be terribly proud that my little girl had such a wonderful Talent. You know, I think they could even use a demonstration. You’ve still got one brother left, right? Or maybe a more… personal demonstration is in order?”

“Max!” she shrieked.

“You know, there’s something I’ve always wanted to ask,” he continued, undeterred. “How did it feel? When you killed your brother?”

Her entire body went rigid, wings splayed and quivering with the sudden cold fury that lashed through her.

“I’ve seen you when you kill people, and, well, there’s just this look in your eyes that reminds me of other mares in, ah, personal moments. Now, I could be wrong. I’ve never really had an interest in that sort of thing, but I’ve given it the old college try once or twice. Lyssa –you remember Lyssa, right? Pegasus, brown, about half my age, way too eager to please, you crushed her throat once? Yeah, she got that same look as I was saying some, in retrospect, very unlikely things about her prospects for promotion. I’m also pretty sure her seducing me for career advancement was pretty blatant sexual harassment, but, hey, it’s what got her going.” His grin set her coat standing on end as he turned it on her. “And we all know what gets you going, don’t we, Charisma?”

“Drop it, Max. Please,” she didn’t know why she was pleading with him. She knew it never worked. “I don’t know what you’re trying to do, but… but just stop.”

“No, really, I’m curious. You were, what? Twelve? Thirteen?”

“Ten,” she said in a whisper.

He laughed. “Ten! You really were an early bloomer! So, standing over the broken, bloody body of your beloved older brother, did you feel the same thrill you get now? Or did that come later?”

“Shut up.”

“Was it the second person you killed where it kicked in? Or, hey! How about the third? They always say the third time’s the charm, after all!”

“Shut! Up!”

“No, I bet it was the brother. I can only imagine what kind of experience that was, to find your Talent and your kink all at once! I saw the photos, you know, and Luna’s night it’s astounding how much damage a ten year old filly can do to a body. To do that to someone you must have been really into it. You had to love it.” He let out a giggle that scraped the last shred of control from her frayed nerves. “More than you loved him, at least.”

She launched herself forward, crossing the temple in an instant to slam into him and ram him into the ground at the hooves of the statue. Her rage and her Talent demanded that she end him, but still she held off. “Why?” she snarled through clenched teeth. “Why are you goading me? I don’t want to kill you, but you’re making it very hard.”

“Come on, Charisma,” he said with a chuckle. “Can’t a guy just be cruel for Cruelty’s sake?” She pushed away from him, stumbling back as her heart raced and her Talent screamed at her to finish it. He clambered up, his slow laughter filling the fallen temple with strange echoes that sounded like a chorus of different voices at once. She tried to back off, but the ground had become twisted and strange, and she only succeeded in falling to her rump. The world was bubbling and stretching around her, like it had in the ambulance. Time and distance seemed to fold in on themselves, and he was at the center of it all. Her eyes went to the statue, and she could see a faint glow coming from the butterfly gem at its throat. “And here we go,” he said, then reached out to claim the Element of Cruelty.

An explosion of pink light and roaring thunder rocked the cracked stone walls. The world snapped back to normal as Cash was thrown across the temple and into the far wall next to the door hard enough to loosen the bricks and leave an indent. He fell to the ground, bloody spittle spraying from his mouth as he fought a choking, wheezing battle to draw breath.

Charisma sat there for a stunned moment. He had been using her again. It was something she was used to, and yet he had never done anything like that before. Her anger still raged but it was a wildfire with nothing to burn. She didn’t know how she could ever follow him again after what he’d said. Yet she knew that she would. She would get up, say something angry and snarky, and he would laugh. She knew he would find some way past whatever had gone wrong here, he always did. Then he would go on blithely continuing to treat her like his personal assassin. Which she was. The worst part was that what he had said was so brutally true. If he brought her to her family, if he told her to kill them, she would. And she would enjoy it.

She thought on that as Cash slowly climbed to his hooves. Distantly a part of her noted that Rainbow Dash was near, and her mind drifted to that strangely personal sense of the other mare. She looked towards the door to the temple, her eyes fixed on the northern sky.

Cash roared with an anger that she had never heard from him before. He barrelled past Charisma, his forehooves flailing at the statue. The light pulsed again, and once more he was thrown across the length of the Temple. “You bitch!” he screamed as he dragged himself up from the floor again. “You lying, traitorous, bunny-cuddling bitch!”

She could feel Dash somewhere close by. She dove into that connection, allowing the Element of Loyalty to show her the true depth of their bond. For a moment it was like she could feel two hearts beating in her chest, like she could feel a phantom wind in her wings and a strange weight dragging behind her. Thoughts that weren’t hers flitted through her head. Names and faces. Some she knew, some she didn’t: Astrid, Star Fall, Hard Boiled, Traduce, Applejack, Calumn, Blaze. She felt an involuntary shudder as she discovered that Dash was bringing her sometime-lover along. Rainbow Dash’s thoughts stuttered as she registered the spike of complex lust that Charisma had just felt.

With a start, she realized that the connection between them was two-way. As she was hearing Dash’s thoughts, so too was the other mare hearing hers. She recoiled from that, letting the sense of the bond fade, though it refused to disappear. Yet she stayed immersed in the Element as Cash once more attempted to wrest the necklace from the statue, and was once more violently rebuffed. It was her loyalties that had allowed him to hurt her. Her bond with her family, as well as her bond to him.

“Charisma!” he snapped, getting her attention. “Get up and help me here! You’re pretty mean, maybe it’ll like you better!”

She delved into the Element, desperately seeking any way to break the bonds that threatened to destroy her. In her rising desperation she found a place in the Element that she had only touched strongly once before, when she had broken whatever had been happening with the Element of Laughter. She’d brushed it since, when she broke bonds, but never went as deeply as that first time. Not knowing what else to do, she dove into that place, willing it to help her.

It was like a switch being flipped. The fear, the anger, the uncertainty, all of it was gone. She could still feel Rainbow Dash as if they shared a body, but it didn’t bother her anymore. In fact, she kind of liked it. It sent a frisson of delightful anticipation through her. Dimly, she thought she could see the color washing out of her mane and coat, leaving her dark and gray. A second glance showed nothing different, so she dismissed it and rose to her hooves. She turned to Cash with a wide grin spreading across her face. “No,” she said.

He paused in his efforts, blinking at her in surprise. “No? Um… no what?”

“No, I’m not going to do what you want,” she said. “I’m done with you. With everyone. Done with the Kingdom, done with missions and orders and all the things that hold me back. I’m amazed I ever thought I needed you at all.”

He stared at her slack-jawed for a moment before his smile returned. It wasn’t as wide or as wild as it had been, though, now it was a look of resignation more than anything else. “Well, looks like somebody found out how to Invert her Element. So, what are you gonna do now?”

“Oh, Max,” she said, laughing and stepping up to him to lay a hoof on his cheek. “Whatever I want.” She shoved hard enough to take him right off his hooves and slammed his head into the ground. She laughed at the dazed look on his face. “Things aren’t going so well for you, are they? I wonder, did you ever even have a plan?”

He spat blood and sneered at her. “Of course I did. I still do.”

“So how’s it going? This plan of yours?”

His lips trembled with fury, his ears laid flat. “It’s a minor setback. I just need something more to make it work. I just have to wait for it. It’s like destiny, it’ll come. I will have that Element.”

“Right. Destiny. Like how you could just slip it off? What a joke.” She picked him up, standing on her rear legs to hold him high in the air. “I guess someone really does have to die, huh?” She spun, throwing him into the wall hard enough to shake dust down from the ceiling. She was on him before he was halfway to the floor, slamming him right back into the stone. “Maybe that’s why you really needed me here. Someone you could goad into killing you. As if that couldn’t have been literally anyone who’s met you for more than five minutes. If that’s what you wanted, then top marks, Max! You finally pushed me into it.” She shook her head. “So what’s the new plan, Max? What happens when you die? Do I get all the Elements and try the whole ‘ascend to godhood’ thing?”

“Please,” he scoffed. “You wouldn’t know the first thing of what to do with the Elements. You’d probably just give them to the Kingdom and beg the King to let you kill republicans for him again. No. It doesn’t matter what you do here, I’m going to get the Elements.”

“Oh, so you’re just expecting to not be dead after I kill you. Is that it?”

He held her gaze for a moment before looking away, and she saw a flash of something she had never expected from him: doubt. “Something like that.”

She laughed and tossed him to the ground. “You really are crazy.” She threw her head back and let out a sound that was half-laugh and half-scream, filled with joy and frustration. The cry vibrated through the air, making the dust she had loosened dance in the light. “After all this time, all the things I’ve done for you–”

“Don’t pretend you didn’t enjoy doing them!”

She kicked him in the stomach, and he curled up, coughing and wheezing. “After everything… and you’re just another nutcase.”

“At least,” he choked out, looking up at her with one wild eye, “I’m in good company.”

She kicked him again, then placed a hoof on his left shoulder, feeling around for the right pressure point. “You made me promises, Max.” She pressed down, and Max Cash let out a high-pitched shriek of pain. He tried to shake her hoof off, but she was too experienced at this to be thrown off easily. “It’s time for you to pay up.” She pressed down hard, holding him in place with the strength of one hoof as he writhed in agony.

She let him squirm in terrible pain for a long minute before easing off and allowing him to catch his breath. “You have it!” he screamed out as soon as he could. She paused, letting off the pressure entirely. He curled up, breath coming in irregular hitches, entire body shaking. With the pain she knew she had just inflicted, it took her a moment to realize that he was laughing.

She took a cautious step back from him. “What do you mean, ‘I have it’?”

He shoved himself to a sitting position, leaning back against the wall. Despite the residual pain he still had to be feeling, a wide, manic grin was plastered on his face. “I promised you a chance to fulfill your Talent,” he said, chuckling. “A chance to share your gift with the entire world.”

“You did.”

“Well, you have it!” He let out a wild, braying laugh that made her wince. He lifted a shaking hoof to point at the gem hanging from her neck. “You think a few parlor tricks and creative murder are all it can do? You have no idea what kind of power you wield now.” He leaned up towards her, and she could feel the emptiness in him again. The Elements were nearly done in their work, he was barely more than a shell. “Think about it, Charisma. Think about all you can do, then stop thinking so small. You want to kill the world? Then do it!”

She took another step back. Her anger fled, leaving in its place a warm certainty that he was right, and a cold confusion as to what that meant. “I…”

“What are you afraid of?” he pressed, crawling closer to her even as she retreated from the hollow madness in his gaze. “It’s what you were promised. What you wanted more than anything.”

“I never thought…”

“Oh ye of little faith.” He laughed again. “I fulfill my promises. Always. I gave you the power you wanted. All I need you to do is hold up your end.”

She looked to the statue. The butterfly gleamed in the sunlight. “You can’t get it,” she said.

“I will,” he said. “That’s inevitable. Granted, I don’t know how anymore. But trust me, it will happen.”

She snorted. “And you think it’ll matter once I’ve killed the world?”

“Charisma,” he said slowly. “It’s the only thing that’s ever mattered.”

She smirked at him. “We’ll see about that. Have a good time throwing yourself against a wall, Max. It’s been… fun.” With that she turned away, strutting out of the temple with a light step.

She stood in the sun and took a deep breath. The air seemed clearer, the sticky humidity barely felt. She looked out over the jungle and with help from the Element of Loyalty she spotted her quarry hovering over the trees. She may have broken her bonds to her family and to Cash, but the connection to Rainbow Dash was stronger than ever. That was good, she had unfinished business with the mare. “Ready or not,” she sing-songed. “Here I come.”

***

The next thing Rainbow Dash knew, she was falling towards the jungle canopy, the chariot spinning end over end and taking her with it. She tried to use her wings, but for a terrifying moment they wouldn’t respond. Then, with a stuttering flutter she regained control of her limbs and began flapping like crazy. The harness restricted her movements, and the spinning of the chariot was disorienting, but it wasn’t like she hadn’t been in a situation like this before. She’d tried doing tricks while pulling weights before, and sometimes they went wrong. Granted, she’d never tried it with such a large and heavy weight full of her friends, but the principles were the same.

She angled her wings, focusing on stopping the spin before she tried to halt the descent. It took several dizzying seconds, but she managed it. However, by the time she’d levelled the chariot out the jungle was terrifyingly close. Her wings went into overdrive, each flap creating enormous thrust to counter the downward momentum. Star Fall’s spell had winked out when she lost concentration inside, which only made the strain on Dash harder, but she was still riding the wave of mysterious energy, so she was able to handle it.

It was a testament to Rainbow Dash’s strength as a flier that she was able to bring the chariot to a halt while still nearly a thousand feet above the trees. She held it there, extending her magic to buoy the whole vehicle up on the strength of her wings alone. She took several deep breaths, wiped the sweat from her brow, then looked over her shoulder to the carriage’s window. “Hey! Everybody alright in there?”

A moment later the sliding door on the side of the chariot opened and Applejack leaned out. “Dash! Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m good,” Dash replied. “What about you guys?”

“A mite tossed around,” Applejack said. “Nothin’ broken, though. What the heck happened? They said my eyes were glowin’, and I plum fell down just before everythin’ started spinnin’.”

A cold realization hit Dash. “This has happened before… I think we’re too late. I saw a flash of light from the place where Fluttershy’s statue is supposed to be. We’ve been weak like this before, when Cash got Honesty and Generosity.”

“Darn it! We were almost there!” Applejack took off her hat and slapped it against her leg in anger. “Hold on a minute,” she said, then ducked back into the chariot.

Dash huffed out a breath. She looked back to the temple in the distance, and saw another burst of light from it. That made her frown. If Cash had the Element, why was it still flashing like that?

“Dash!” Applejack said, swinging back out of the door. “Star says we should get there right quick. If we can catch him off guard, we can still stop him here.”

“Hey, AJ,” Dash said, a hope blooming in her chest. “I just saw another flash from the temple. I don’t think Cash actually has the Element yet! We might still have a chance!”

“That’s great, Dash! Here, let me talk to the others for a moment,” Applejack went back in.

“Yeah. Okay, I guess I’ll just wait here, then. You know, I’m just holding you all up. Not like it’s hard or anything,” Dash groused. It truly wasn’t as hard as she’d been expecting, but she felt like complaining anyway. She wanted to be in on the discussion, but even her keen ears weren’t hearing more than muffled conversation from inside the chariot. As she was thinking about them, a sense of being right next to someone else suddenly overtook her. It was like she could feel another heart beating right along with hers, and a surge of excitement that had a deep, sexual edge to it washed through her. She started, almost losing the rhythm of her wings that kept the chariot aloft. The strangeness faded quickly, but she already knew what it was: Charisma and the Element of Loyalty. She didn’t understand it, but somehow they were connected.

She shook the lingering sense of the murderous pegasus away, focusing instead on keeping her wings going. She wished that her friends would hurry up and tell her what they were taking so long to discuss, but it was a long, uncomfortable few minutes before Applejack appeared again.

“Alright, we got a plan,” she said as Star Fall’s spell started up again, surrounding the chariot in her crimson aura. “We want you to set us down at the edge of the clearin’, then get up high and be on the lookout for Charisma. We’re gonna head to the Temple and Star’ll use some spell or other to try to tie them up long enough for the rest of us to get in. You see her spell go off, you come runnin’ right in. There’s no tellin’ how long we have before Charisma gets a shot at one of us.”

“Got it. Get your head back inside, we’re–”

She never got out the rest of her sentence, as suddenly the sense of Charisma that had settled into the back of her mind suddenly jumped forward again. Her head whipped around and she watched as a streak of pink and red launched itself from the entrance to the temple. It described a high arc whose apex was lost in the sun before coming back down right at them with blurring speed. Dash tried to shift her wings to forward motion, but the chariot was too heavy to respond quickly, and it had only just started moving by the time Charisma struck.

“Aww horseapples,” was all Applejack managed to utter in the moment before the pink streak hit them, and once more Rainbow Dash was spinning through the air in an uncontrolled fall.

***

Charisma smashed into them like a meteor. The supports connecting pegasus to carriage snapped instantly, sending the chariot spinning away in one direction while Dash went hurtling in another. Applejack was thrown off by the impact, crying out in fear as she fell to the jungle below.

Within the chariot, Star Fall screamed as her wings were wrenched by the sudden feedback from her spell and her body was thrown against the chariot wall. “Fall!” Astrid cried, then roared with effort as she forced herself across the small cabin, wrapped her forelegs around her charge, and took off with a mighty leap that sent them both out the open door.

“Follow them!” HB snarled, pushing against the spin and reaching the door.

“You can’t fly!” Traduce hissed back.

“You either catch me or you don’t!” HB replied. “We’re dead for sure if we stay in here!” With that he threw himself from the chariot. Traduce was a half second behind, green fire already changing her into pegasus form.

Blaze took hold of Calumn. “Wait for it…” Calumn said, holding a hoof up to stall Blaze. The dizzying g-forces only got worse, and with every rotation the green jungle was getting ever closer. Still, Blaze waited, his gaze fixed firmly on his friend. “Now!” Calumn said, and both of them leapt from the chariot at the same time. They hit the upper reaches of the canopy and disappeared.

The chariot crashed down, smashing through a thick tree trunk and promptly disintegrating into a dozen fragments of warped, broken metal.

***

High above, Astrid held Star Fall tight, her wings straining as she regained control of their tumbling plummet. “Fall!” she cried, frantically looking over her friend for injuries. “You okay?”

Star Fall hissed in a pained breath. “My wings,” she said, the limbs in question hanging limp from her sides. “Spell feedback… Dislocated… I think. Hurts like a bastard.”

“I bet. I’ll take a look when we get a moment.”

“Dash, the others, did you see where they went?”

Astrid glanced around her. “Looks like detective blue butt got caught by his insect girlfriend. They’re dropping fast, so I guess she’s not strong enough to hold him up. No idea what happened to the mouth and the cape. I’m betting they’re fine, though. Dash? Applejack? No clue, sorry.”

Star Fall snorted. “Not too worried about those two. Charisma?”

Astrid shook her head. “No sign of her.”

“She’s around. We need to get under cover.”

“Don’t have to tell me twice.” Astrid folded her wings half-closed and dove for the canopy.

They touched down in a wide hollow surrounded by massive tree roots. The ground was relatively flat and dry, but carpeted with twigs and leaves that had a springy give under their hooves. Star Fall lay down and let Astrid look at her wings, trying not to cry out.

“Yeah, this one’s out of its socket,” Astrid said, lifting Star Fall’s left wing gingerly. “You need something to bite down on?”

Star Fall shook her head, her eyes squeezed tightly shut. “I’ll be fine. Do it.”

“Okay. On three. One–” She slammed her claw into the joint, popping the wing back into place. Star Fall let out a high-pitched squeak, but managed to clamp down on anything louder.

“How did I know you were going to do that?” she said, forcing a chuckle. “What about the other one?”

Astrid gave the right wing a close look. “It’s still in place. Can you move it?” The wing gave a half-hearted wiggle. “That’s good. Just pulled the muscle. No flying for a while, though.”

“Damn.” Star Fall pushed herself upright. With an effort that had her ears laid flat and her knees shaking she folded her wings against her side, then relaxed as they held their place without further effort or pain. “We need to find the others. Do you remember where you saw them fall?”

“Yeah, no guarantee they stayed there, though.”

Star Fall nodded. “It’s a place to start looking, at least. We’ll have to be quick, and we’ll have to make sure we aren’t spotted by Charisma.”

“Too late for that.”

They stiffened, then looked up in unison to see Charisma herself lounging casually atop one of the huge roots. “Fall, run!” Astrid screeched, flaring her wings and leaping at Charisma with all the grace and ferocity her kind were uniquely capable of.

Charisma went from supine to combat-ready in an eyeblink, her movements so fast she seemed to blur in Astrid’s eyes. Laughing, she jumped to meet Astrid’s leap, trailing a streak of pink and red in the air. The Griffin led with her claws, talons gleaming wickedly sharp, but Charisma’s grin just widened. She contorted her body, almost curling into a ball as she came on. A flutter of her wings reversed her forward momentum at the last moment, letting her hover tantalizingly just out of Astrid’s reach. Then her rear hooves kicked out, each intercepting a claw and smashing them out to the sides. One talon even shattered as it met a hoof head-on and proved to be the weaker. Even as Astrid’s eyes were widening, Charisma reached in, taking the Griffin’s head between her forehooves and twisting.

It was only years of experience and exceptionally honed instinct that saved Astrid’s life. She hadn’t even consciously registered what her opponent was doing before she was spinning in the direction Charisma was pulling. Instead of having her neck broken, she was sent whirling off to crash into the underbrush. She wasted no time in scrambling back to the hollow, but Charisma wasn’t slowing down, either.

Star Fall had turned to run, but only made it a few steps before Charisma was on her. The enforcer hit Star Fall’s rear right leg as it was extended behind her, and it snapped like a dry twig. Star Fall collapsed, letting out a scream of shock and pain. Astrid swooped down, slashing at Charisma, but she leapt into a backflip to avoid it, floating down to land with a dancer’s poise a few paces away.

Astrid stood over Star Fall, setting herself in a wide, protective stance. Memories of her last fight with Charisma flashed through her head. She’d fared poorly then, and with the gleam of the Element of Loyalty impossible to miss she knew that this time she had no chance at all. Still, she was prepared to go down fighting. Maybe it would buy enough time for Dash or Applejack to find them. It wasn’t a strong hope, but it was all she could get.

Charisma, fortunately, seemed inclined to taunt them instead of finishing them both in an unstoppable blur of violence and death. “You’re a little far from home, my Lady,” she said, her voice pitched to perfectly emulate the warm tones of a palace servant. The vicious smirk on her face, however, was one of open contempt. “Oh, my apologies, I meant your Highness!” She dipped into a practiced bow, her eyes never leaving the two. “You certainly are moving up in the world. Though, honestly, I prefer you crawling in the dirt.” She started circling them, slow steps made so lightly they barely disturbed the carpet of leaves. Astrid was forced to follow her movements, carefully maintaining her guard for all the good it would do. “He knew you were coming,” Charisma continued. “Max. Somehow he knew you would all be here for his glorious moment.” She snickered. “Well, he was half right, at least.”

Star Fall glared at Charisma with hate and pain. Her coat was already covered with sweat and her breath coming in ragged gasps. Astrid didn’t look back at her charge, not daring to take her eyes off the deadly pegasus. “Fall, I could really use some magical backup right now,” she said as quietly as she could. The twitch of Charisma’s ear, and the way her smile widened ever so slightly told Astrid that her words hadn’t been quiet enough.

“Can’t… focus…” Star Fall managed to growl out in response.

“Fuck.” Astrid watched Charisma, unsure of why they weren’t dead yet. It wouldn’t have been hard for her. So why wasn’t she attacking? She thought she had an answer, and she hoped it was the right one. “So, what’s it gonna be, killer?” she asked. “You want a rematch, we’re right here.”

“A rematch,” Charisma repeated, laughing. “Why would I want something like that?”

“Because last time we tangled, Fall here punted your skinny pink ass like a hoofball.”

Charisma’s smile faded a bit, but didn’t vanish entirely. “You know, you’re right about that.”

“Astrid… not… helping…” Star Fall said, the apprehension in her voice clear through the pain.

“Don’t worry, Fall, I know her secret.” She flashed a raptor’s grin at Charisma. “If she wanted us dead, we’d be corpses by now. I think she’s got orders to keep us alive.”

Charisma’s eyes went wide and Astrid’s hope surged. Then the enforcer threw her head back and laughed. Astrid catapulted herself forward in that moment of inattention, talons leading. Charisma’s response was a casual punch that blew past Astrid’s guard and struck her squarely on the chest, knocking the air out of her and halting her charge before her claws even came close to drawing blood. She hung on Charisma’s hoof, the pegasus holding her much heavier body up without any apparent effort. Charisma drew Astrid in close, her wings snapping out to knock the Griffin’s slashing claws away. She spun the warrior around as if she were no more than a child, wrapping a foreleg around her throat and forcing her head back painfully.

“You’re right again,” Charisma said. She spoke quietly next to Astrid’s ear, but her voice was rich and warm and delighted, as if seconds away from bursting into song. “He wants you alive for some reason that he won’t explain and will probably boil down to you being both special on some cosmic level and easy to manipulate. It’s just your bad luck that I chose today to tender my resignation.” She laughed again. “Such an odd phrase, don’t you think? It’s so very republican. Only they would take something as profound as betraying your master and make it sound banal, as if it were no more than handing over a bill of sale.”

“You–!”

Charisma squeezed, cutting off Astrid’s air. “Did I say you could talk?”

“Charisma!” Star Fall screamed out. Charisma’s answering glare was full of hot rage, but Star Fall didn’t flinch back from the death she saw there. The sight of Astrid flailing helplessly as she suffocated was far worse. “Let her go!”

Surprisingly, Charisma threw Astrid down, letting her roll away and back to Star Fall’s side. “Why of course, Your Highness. Why your every desire is my joy to fulfill!” She swept into another elaborate bow, her eyes flashing with unhidden ire even as her mouth curved back into a wicked smirk.

“Enough!” Star Fall snapped. She wasn’t going into shock from her broken leg, thankfully, but that also meant that she was feeling every minute like fiery pokers shoved into her flesh. She was focusing through the pain, but she would need a few moments longer before she could reliably charge one of her pre-scribed spell sheets. “I’m not responsible for your treatment in the Kingdom. And quite frankly I couldn’t care less about your petty resentments against the ruling class.”

“Is it petty to want to do what you were made for?” Charisma asked. “Every pony comes into this world with a purpose, their destiny stamped on their hips for all to see. My Talent is no less magical than yours. No less a gift from Celestia. But unlike you, Princess, nobody wants me to use it!” Charisma’s wings flared, but quickly drooped to the ground as her expression changed from cruel to wistful. “But that’s not going to be a problem for much longer. Max gave me everything I need. I’ve just got one… one more thing to do, and it’ll all be over. For everyone.”

Both Astrid and Star Fall flinched back at that pronouncement. “You can’t,” Star Fall said. “It’s not possible.” But she didn’t know. The powers of the Elements were still too vague, not even Spike knew the full extent of what they were capable of.

Charisma looked down to the Element. “Is it? We’ll find out. One way or another.” When she looked up again the cruel grin was back in place. “Until then, though, I need you for something.”

“Why do I have the feeling I don’t want to know what that is,” Astrid breathed, readying herself for another futile attack.

“Oh, don’t worry,” Charisma said with a chuckle. “I really only need one of you. Now, which of you do you think can scream the loudest? I need to make sure Rainbow Dash hears it.”

Astrid’s eyes narrowed. “By Celestia I swear I will wipe that smile from your face.”

Charisma laughed again. “Oh you poor Griffin, didn’t you know? We’re in the nightlands now, and you’re swearing by the wrong sister.” Her eyes narrowed with intense focus and the teardrop gem at her chest flashed with ruby brilliance. “I think Luna deserves an apology. Why don’t you give it to her in person?”

Astrid was about to snarl something back when her eyes went wide. Something had changed, something terribly important. A moment later her feet left the ground, though she hadn’t started flying. She scrabbled for purchase, but the loose leaves and twigs offered her nothing. She flapped her wings wildly, but that only made it worse. She was falling. Straight up.

“Astrid!” Star Fall cried, reaching for her friend, too late. Astrid vanished past the canopy, screeching in rage and fear. Star Fall lay still for a quiet moment, her heart throbbing in her chest as she slowly turned to look back at Charisma.

“You know,” the pegasus enforcer said as she took a lazy step forward. “I first learned to torture as a way to control my Talent. Gamma thought that learning to hurt someone without killing them would help me ignore the… need.” She paused for a moment, gaze turning inward. Star Fall had only begun to reach for a spell-sheet before Charisma was moving again. “It didn’t work, of course. Nothing does. Still, it does make for a good life skill to have.” She stood above Star Fall, her right forehoof raised and hovering just above the break in Star Fall’s leg.

Star Fall’s mind raced, trying to think of something, anything, that would buy her more time. “It doesn’t have to be like this, Charisma,” she babbled out, trying desperately to free one of her spell-sheets without the enforcer noticing. “If you’ve broken from Cash we can make a deal, get you immunity for what you’ve done! Help bring him down and… and…” She wracked her brain for something to offer that was realistic enough not to be laughed off immediately. Her hoof caught on one of her spells, pulling it slowly from its protective sleeve.

“Hmm, no.” Charisma’s hoof dropped and every thought fled Star Fall’s mind, replaced by a grinding agony that shot fire up her spine. Her wings flailed uselessly, only adding to the pain as their own injuries were aggravated by the motion. She kicked out at her tormentor, her attempts met with stoic immobility, as if she were kicking a statue. A scream ripped itself from her throat, filling her ears with the sound of her own anguish.

It seemed to go on forever, and when it ended she collapsed to her side and heaved in gulping breaths, sweating and shuddering as if she had just run a marathon. She retched up a splatter of stinking bile, barely able to pull her head away from the mess. Tears filled her eyes as she looked up at Charisma, who was staring into the jungle with her ears swivelling. “Come on, hot stuff, I know you’re out there.” She waited for another few seconds before looking back down to Star Fall. Then she leaned in close and lapped at the tears that fell from Star Fall’s eyes. “I guess you’re just not screaming loud enough. Maybe you’ll put more effort into it if I break a few more of your legs. What do you think?” Unable to speak, Star Fall frantically thrashed her head from side to side, but she knew from the dark smile on Charisma’s face that it was futile. “No? You want me to get a little more creative? Alright then.”

Charisma pulled out Star Fall’s left foreleg, holding it to the ground with ease as the scholarly pegasus renewed her struggles. She placed the edge of her hoof at the joint between Star Fall’s hoof and leg, then slowly pressed down. Star Fall could do nothing but scream again, the pain secondary to the horrifying knowledge that she was about to watch herself lose a hoof, and that there was nothing she could do to stop it.

***

Dash opened her eyes to find a world turned upside down. It took her a long, confused moment to realize that it wasn’t the world that was flipped over, it was her. She looked up at her body to find it tangled in thick vines that hung from the branches of one of the enormous jungle trees. A fading pain in her head told her she had gone face-first into the tree before falling into her current position. Her thoughts slowly brought themselves back together, and she was experienced enough with the post-faceplant recovery period not to try to rush it or panic.

“Charisma,” she said aloud, remembering the pink and red streak of light slamming into her. The other mare had been fast, but not so much that Dash wouldn’t be able to dodge. Something had held her back, something that was very important and on the tip of her tongue.

“The chariot!” Dash cried, everything coming back to her at once. Her heart sped to a pounding rush as she realized that her friends were in danger. She struggled with the vines, but they resisted her strength by simply giving her no leverage to work with. Growling in frustration, she slowed down and focused on disentangling herself. It only took a minute, but it felt like an eternity.

Once she was free she shot up through the trees, bursting into the sunlight in a fountain of trailing rainbows. She shaded her eyes with a hoof as she scanned the canopy, looking for any sign of her lost companions. The ruins weren’t too far away, flashes of pink light periodically strobing from within the temple. She ignored it, though every flash sent a small flutter of anxiety through her guts. Closer by she spotted a gap in the canopy where several branches had been smashed through. She took off for that point, diving into the jungle and discovering the wreckage of the chariot lying in crumpled pieces at the base of a tree.

She stopped to hover over the crash site, worried eyes looking for any signs of life. In a way it was good that the chariot had been so thin-walled, the way it was smashed made it easy to tell that there had been no one inside it when it hit. Unfortunately, if her friends had bailed out before the crash it left her back at square one when it came to finding them.

“Okay, okay, calm down,” she told herself, alighting next to the wreckage. “Just stop and think. Think! They can’t be far. They’d want to stay low because of Charisma. So where are they going?” The answer was plain. “The ruins!”

She rocketed into the trees, dodging branches and vines with the famous precision that had allowed her to navigate the notoriously difficult Ghastly Gorge back in her own time. She kept her speed down enough that she wouldn’t leave a telltale streak of rainbows behind her, though. It would do no good to find her friends just to lead Charisma right to them.

Her eyes scanned the jungle as she took a zig-zagging path through it, picking out any hint of color that could be a friend. Unfortunately there were plenty of colorful birds and other creatures that called the jungle home, and every single one she encountered made her pause for a moment, costing precious seconds where absolutely anything could be happening to her companions. When she burst out into the clearing where the ruins were, it took only a few seconds to determine that her friends weren’t there, and so she plunged back into the jungle.

It took several trips and a half dozen agonizing minutes, but finally she saw a copper flash. She was moving towards it in an instant, her wings pumping as she zoomed towards the source of the light. She burst out of the foliage, dragging enough air to rattle the trees and kick up a small storm of leaves and twigs. Four voices cried out in surprise, and Dash had to dodge as Hard Boiled fired his pistol at her.

“Hey!” she cried out. “It’s me, guys! Stop shooting!”

“Damn it!” HB swore, pointing his gun at the ground. “Are you trying to get yourself killed? Don’t just jump out at people like that!” She didn’t understand the words, but his tone was clear enough. It was his horn-light that she had seen, the aura of his telekinesis holding his weapon.

“He says it’s good to see you, Dash,” Trail Blazer said, grinning up at her. Beside him, Calumn just gave Dash a small smile from under his cloak. They were looking more beat up than HB and Traduce, their clothes covered with dirt and a little dried blood staining the fur around Blaze’s nose.

“Did you see Astrid and the Princess?” Traduce asked. She had taken on the yellow earth pony form that Dash had first seen her in back in Orion City and didn’t look too injured, but there was a tremble in her withers that Dash’s keen eyes caught. She recognized bad muscle strain when she saw it, and guessed she had tried carrying someone from the crashing chariot.

“No. I was looking, but I haven’t seen anybody but you guys. What happened to Applejack?”

“She got knocked into the jungle, I don’t know where,” Traduce replied.

Dash worried at her lip for a moment before nodding. “She’ll be fine. Look, the ruins are over that way.” She pointed a hoof. “I’ll keep looking for the others, but you have to get there. Something’s going down, and I think Cash is really close to getting Kindness.”

“What about Charisma?” Blaze asked.

“I’ll deal with her,” Dash promised. “I’m just worried abo–” Her voice failed her, as did her wings, and she fell sprawling on the jungle floor.

“Dash!” Calumn cried out, and they all rushed to her side.

“Her eyes are glowing,” HB said, brows drawing down in a worried frown. “Just like Applejack’s. What the hell is going on here?”

“Dash, are you ok?” Blaze asked.

“They’re in trouble!” Dash said, rising to a sitting position so fast she nearly headbutted Blaze. The weakness passed as quickly as it had come on, and in its place was new energy and a terrible certainty. “Star and Astrid! They’re hurt! Charisma found them!”

“How does she know this?” Hard Boiled asked, though it was obvious he didn’t expect an answer.

“I gotta go save them,” Dash said, flapping her wings to rise once more into the air.

“Someone should go with her,” Blaze said, earning confused looks from the others. “You know, if Star and Astrid are hurt, then someone should, like, take care of them, right? Get them out of the way so Dash can do her fighty-punchy thing with Charisma?”

“That’s… not a bad idea,” Dash said.

She was so worried about her friends, Dash missed the subtle flick Blaze gave Calumn with his tail. The Changeling startled for a moment, then spoke up. “I’ll go.”

A scream sounded from somewhere deeper in the jungle, the sound filled with incredible pain. Dash’s heart pounded faster. “That was Star,” she said. “I gotta go, now. Calumn, can you make your own way there?”

“I can find you,” he replied, flashing his fangs.

That was all Dash needed. In the next instant she was gone, a streak of rainbow light slashing through the jungle with enough speed that the pressure of her passing dug furrows in the dirt. Another scream sounded, closer and more urgent, and she honed in on the cry. She roared into the hollow at over a hundred miles an hour. She barely had time to register the scene before her: Charisma standing over a prone Star Fall, who had blood spurting from the ragged stump of her foreleg.

Dash flipped in the air, bringing her rear legs up to smash into Charisma with a brutal flying kick that sent the enforcer careening back to crash into the side of a massive root. Her wings flaring wide to bring her to an instant stop, Rainbow Dash dropped in front of Star Fall. The other pegasus was breathing in harsh, whinnying gasps as she clutched her maimed leg close, twisting and twitching with pain. But when she looked at Dash there was strength in her eyes, and she managed to force a savage smile onto her trembling lips. “Took you… long enough.”

“Oh no, Star, I’m so sorry,” Dash whispered, staring in horror at the bloody stump.

“Don’t be... sorry,” Star Fall said, her eyes tracking to where Charisma was picking herself up off the ground. “Be... angry!”

Dash turned away from her fallen friend and towards the one who had hurt her. “You,” she snarled. Her eyes narrowed in righteous fury and she pawed at the ground with one forehoof, muscles tensing. “Don’t you ever…” she began in a hoarse whisper before trailing off. She stared at her enemy, feeling a burning resolve fill her. At Charisma’s chest, a changed Element of Loyalty pulsed its ruby light in time with the flames that spread through Dash’s veins. “Don’t you ever lay another hoof on my friends!”

Charisma met her gaze for a long moment, then grinned. “Hey, hot stuff,” she said, a joyful lilt in her voice. “It’s about time we saw who’d really win, don’t you think?”

“You’re going down!” Dash snapped out, crouching low and ready.

Charisma flared her wings and set herself in a ready stance of her own. “Give me your best shot.”

Dash didn’t wait. She launched herself at her opponent, wings blurring and her hoof winding up for a powerful, crushing blow. She moved so quickly that she created a vacuum in her wake, the air collapsing in on the sudden void with a sound like thunder and creating a vortex that swirled with the colors of her ethereal trail. A part of her recognized that a punch like this could kill the other pony, and recoiled from the act. The rest of her, with the visceral image of Star Fall’s severed hoof front and center, didn’t have a problem with it. She knew she couldn’t hold back this time, couldn’t afford to play the hero. She bore down on her target with all the fury her heart could muster, intent on ending it now, with the first strike… and hesitated.

In that moment of indecision, Charisma dodged. Her body swayed away from the strike so that Dash’s hoof actually brushed the pink coat of her muzzle before sailing past and crashing into the root. The wood exploded at the contact, the entire tree shuddering as the huge root seemed to detonate like a grenade.

There was a moment where time slowed to a crawl, as Rainbow Dash was passing by Charisma. They stared into each other’s eyes, faces so close their noses nearly touched. Dash’s eyes were wide with surprise and rage. Charisma’s were hot and eager, a wickedly gleeful grin showing her teeth. Woodchips from the destroyed root hung in the air, spinning flechettes that floated their lazy way past in the slow-motion instant of recognition between the two ponies.

Then the moment was over, and they were moving in a screaming blur of speed and light.

Charisma reached for Dash, who twisted to bring all her hooves to bear on the enforcer and moved to block. The reach had been a feint, though, and as Dash blocked she found her left foreleg trapped. Charisma swung out, aiming for Dash’s head. The move almost blindsided Dash, but she managed to bring up her free foreleg to catch the attack. There was a moment of intense tension as they tested their strength against each other, and found themselves evenly matched.

Then Charisma’s head snapped forward, aiming to smash in Dash’s nose. Reacting with incredible speed that still very nearly wasn’t enough, Dash turned her head and caught the blow on her cheek instead. The force of it rattled her teeth, but failed to stun her. She brought her rear legs up, aiming a vicious kick at Charisma’s midsection, but the enforcer let go of the hoof she had captured, while keeping up the tension on their two crossed limbs. The sudden change in leverage swung her body out of the way, causing Dash to miss with her kick.

Now both airborne, their wings worked furiously to keep them stable and add strength to their attacks. The blows came one after another, lightning quick strikes met with equally fast counters. To Star Fall, watching from the ground, they appeared as brilliant streaks of light that careened all over the hollow. Wherever they touched a solid surface, it exploded in a shower of dirt and debris or reduced wood to flinders. The air was filled with the concussive reports of their blows, the wind from their wings roaring with the force of a hurricane into the jungle around them.

Finally, they broke apart. Dash came to rest protectively in front of Star Fall, while Charisma stopped atop one of the few still-intact roots, staring down at them. They were both breathing heavily, but neither seemed terribly winded yet.

“How are you doing?” Dash asked Star Fall in a quiet voice.

“Bleeding out,” Star Fall replied. “I can’t get blood on my spell-sheets before I activate them or it’ll ruin the pattern, so that option’s out. I need a tourniquet, but I don’t think I can tie one myself.”

“Calumn’s on his way,” Dash assured her. “He’ll get to you in time.”

“That’s… good,” Star Fall replied, pushing down her innate fear of the Changeling.

“I’m not doing well here, Star,” Dash admitted. “I’m gonna… do you remember what I did back in the Eye?”

Star Fall nodded slowly. “Do whatever it takes.”

“Yes, please do whatever it takes,” Charisma called from her perch. Dash glared at her. She knew from the way her ribs ached and her right hind leg had gone numb that the enforcer had gotten the better of their exchange. Charisma clearly knew it too. She laughed, leaning forward with eager intensity. “Where was all of this at the sunlands dig?” she crowed in delight. “If you had been pulling these moves back then, I wouldn’t have won that fight. Celestia’s light, I’d have been crushed!”

“I didn’t know what you were back then,” Dash replied. “I didn’t understand how… evil you and Cash are.”

“Evil?” Charisma chuckled and shook her head. “Cash, I’ll give you. If anyone deserves that title, it’s him. Me, though? I’m not evil, hot stuff. And I’m not good, either. I’m just the best.”

“You’re still crazy.”

“I’m still better than you,” Charisma snapped back. Then she let a cruel smirk slip onto her face. “But now I’m just as strong and just as tough. Face it, you’re no match for me anymore.”

“Yeah, you’re strong,” Dash said settling herself not into a fighting crouch, but the ready stance she used before a race. “Yeah, you’re tough. But you know what?”

She snapped forward, powerful wings throwing her through the sound barrier so suddenly that the twigs and leaves on the ground ignited with her passage. Even with all that sudden acceleration, Charisma was ready for a charge, limbs moving to counter the punch she knew was coming.

Only, it wasn’t a charge.

Dash stopped in midair, then juked to the right and shot forward again, each move creating new sonic booms that stripped bark from trees and shook the ground like an earthquake. Tough as she was, the successive concussions disoriented Charisma just enough that she didn’t realize that Dash was right next to her until she spoke.

“I’m still faster.”

Dash hit Charisma with all her fury. The enforcer was thrown through the air from the force of the blow. She struggled to orient herself, but in a flash of rainbow light Dash was ahead of her. She hit Charisma again, this time kicking her up into the air. Once more Dash rushed after her opponent, overtaking her and executing a brutal double-hoofed slam, spiking Charisma into the ground hard enough to leave a small crater. With a scream that held all of her wrath, Rainbow Dash shot downward to ram the prone Charisma with supersonic force.

At the very last moment she realized she couldn’t do it. When her hoof impacted, it was into the ground right next to Charisma’s head.

Charisma let out a wheezing laugh. “Still a hero.”

“You’re not worth it,” Dash replied. Then she laid into the other pegasus with a flurry of punches, culminating in a powerful jab to her stomach. Blood exploded from the enforcer’s mouth, her eyes wide with shocked surprise. She reached for Dash, but her limb lost strength halfway through the motion. She collapsed, motionless save for the shallow rise and fall of her breath.

Dash watched her for a long moment to ensure she wasn’t faking, then rushed out of the crater to Star Fall’s side. There was blood dripping from Star Fall’s ears, nose and eyes, and she trembled like she was freezing, but she was conscious and she looked up to Dash with a question in her eyes.

“I got her,” Dash said. Star Fall wasn’t able to hear her, but she understood. She gave Dash a wan smile before her eyes rolled back and she passed out. “Hey, Star,” Dash said in alarm, kneeling next to her. “Don’t go out on me, here! Keep it together, alright?” She didn’t know what to do. Her friend could be dying right in front of her, and she had no idea how to deal with it.

Fortunately, salvation chose that moment to appear. “Whoa, did you guys have a bomb-fight?” Calumn said, coming into the remains of the hollow. He spotted Star Fall and his eyes went wide. “Uh-oh, she’s not looking good.” He rushed over to them, skidding to a stop and quickly setting about examining the injured pegasus.

“Can you help her?” Dash asked.

“Well, she’s breathing, which is good,” he replied. “She’s also got a strong heartbeat, which is extra good. I’m gonna need to tie off this leg, though. Can you get me a length of her harness, preferably one with a useable buckle?” Dash wasted no time in snapping one of the harness straps off and giving it to him. “Cool. Now, this is probably gonna hurt a lot, so it’s a good thing she’s in la-la land right now.” He looped the fabric around the injured leg and cinched it tight. Even unconscious, Star Fall winced.

“Okay, what now?”

Calumn looked over to her. “Now she needs to get to a hospital. Pronto. If you bring her hoof, they might even be able to reattach it. The longer it goes, though, the less likely that gets.”

“I can do that,” Dash said, already plotting out how fast she could fly with a passenger without hurting Star Fall further.

“That’s good, ‘cause, um… is it just me, or is it getting really red out here?”

A cold fear stole up Dash’s spine as she realized that he was right, the hollow had become bathed in a ruby glow. A glow that seemed to pulse and swirl in time with her own heart. She turned to the crater, and saw Charisma floating above it. Her wings were spread, unmoving. Her injuries dripped with blood that painted lines of crimson through her fur, spreading like veins along her body. A cold, almost melancholy look had replaced the vicious smile, but there was still a sense of satisfaction in it. Worst of all were her eyes, which shone with a brilliant internal light.

Dash could feel the Element of Loyalty, the power flowing through her as if she had stuck her hoof in an electrical socket. It felt good. It felt dangerous. Worst of all, it told her that her battle with Charisma wasn’t over, it was just beginning.

“Looks like we’re one-one,” Charisma said. Her hair flew upwards in an invisible air current, and as they watched her mane and tail almost doubled in length, the swirls of purple, blue and red gaining greater definition. She stretched her neck, letting out a sigh of pleasure as a wave of change rolled over her body. Her wings lengthened, the trailing feathers turning a stark black with a slash of blood-red cutting through them. With a quartet of sharp cracks, her hooves shattered, transforming into long, wicked dragon-like claws. Her flanks boiled as her cutie mark erupted, little crimson teardrops appearing in a pattern around it, as well as along her legs and around her eyes. She opened her mouth to let out a cry of release that revealed a mouth full of sharp fangs. Finally, the light in her eyes faded, and Rainbow Dash saw a horrible understanding and clarity reflected in them. Charisma flashed her a small, almost friendly smile.

“Time for the tie breaker.”

Chapter 34: A Weighty Choice

The Reconstruction action is the mechanism by which the will of the Bearer of the Element of Magic is realized during a Harmony Event. In a Proxy Event this takes the form of a localized alteration of reality. That is, the standard limits to what magic is capable of are suspended, and the power generated during the Charging sequence is expended to create virtually any effect the Magic Bearer wishes. It should be noted that ‘localized’ in this case can refer to anything up to and including the local stellar cluster. Comparatively, this area of effect is miniscule.

… For a true Harmony Event, of course, the area of effect consists of all things that are, were or could possibly be. The Reassociation process has collapsed the totality of existence into the Elements, and it is then up to the Bearer of Magic to rebuild that existence to their liking.

It is up to me.

The sheer terrifying scale of the task boggles the mind. Yet I have done this multiple times. Since any memory of events internal to a Harmony Event is at the very least highly suspect, there is no way to know how I accomplished it. I can only surmise that merging with the Element of Magic somehow gave me the capability to return the universe to its original state. Or perhaps that is a vain hope, and every time we have used the Elements I have created a wholly different reality, bent by the prism of my limited consciousness, and we do not notice because I have chosen for us not to notice.

Regardless of which is true, the implications are sickening. I have, in that moment, the power to prevent every war, every plague, every injury or misdeed that has ever befallen anyone in the history of the universe. Yet I do not. Am I simply attempting to return to a world similar to the one I destroyed, with all its history and character intact? Did I allow those evils for some greater reason? Or worst yet, did I create these evils, because some part of me wanted them?

… I cannot sleep for contemplating these questions, and others like them. The power I held was nearly limitless, the responsibility equally so. Even under the best case scenario, when we have used the Elements before it has been akin to burning down my house then rebuilding it exactly as it was, save for a single page turned on a book I was reading. This is as gross a misuse of power as I have ever imagined, and I have been hailed as a hero many times over for it.

That ‘nearly’ in ‘nearly limitless’ is an important modifier, however. The ability of the Elements to change the universe is not complete. There is, in fact, one thing that the Elements of Harmony cannot alter: the Elements themselves.

Herein lies either our salvation, or our damnation. Which it might be will certainly lie in the final discovery I have made about the Magic of Harmony.

-From the seventh section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Thirty-Four: A Weighty Choice

Rainbow Dash fled through the jungle, and Charisma followed. The chase was only just begun, and already Dash could see she was losing. She weaved a burning rainbow trail through the trees at eye-watering speeds, but every sudden juke and fake-out she tried only let Charisma’s black and red etherealization scar more of that prismatic streak.

Dash worked her wings furiously as her magic twisted the air to her will, bending and compressing it to give her the lift she needed to throw herself at reckless speed through the living obstacle course. So great was the press of the air streaming around her wings that as the tip of one feather brushed against a gnarled trunk it scored a deep slash in the bark. An instant later that slash was joined by ten more as Charisma used the tree to springboard herself after Dash’s swerving form.

Dash banked sharply around a tree as large around as a house, circling around it in the hopes of coming up behind Charisma and catching her off guard. The enforcer had somehow anticipated that, however, and as Dash rounded the wide trunk she was met with a slashing claw that took a nick out of her ear and narrowly missed slicing open an eye. Dash’s wings folded with a thought, and she kicked out at the tree, throwing her in a new direction before her wings snapped open again and she took off on her new course. Charisma was left with only a few strands of prismatic mane and a tuft of blue fur, but she just laughed and leapt after Dash once more.

At full speed, Dash knew she would leave her opponent in the dust. She was the fastest pegasus alive, and she wasn’t going to give up that title just because some upstart had grown claws. Unfortunately, that speed just wasn’t possible beneath the shadowy umbrella of the jungle canopy. She could only barely avoid flying headfirst into trees or tangling vines as it was, any faster and she risked everything coming to a crashing halt.

The tight spaces should have been affecting Charisma even more, as it prevented her from using her new, larger wings. It was doing that, but the restriction didn’t seem to matter. She was having no trouble keeping up, bounding from trunk to trunk in lightning-quick leaps that made the air squeal with her passage. Worse, every attempt Dash made to put something in the way of those leaps failed. Anything less resilient than the massive jungle trees themselves she simply slashed through as they got in her way, vicious claws parting tough vine and heavy branch as if they were tissue paper.

With acceleration suicidal and clever maneuvering simply not enough, the only other option was going above the canopy, into the open sky. Dash knew she’d be forced to do that eventually, but she wanted to get as far from Star Fall and the others as possible first. There would be no telling how far or how fast their battle would take them once they had room to really let loose, and Dash wanted to minimize the chance that they’d come upon her friends again. She knew what Charisma would do to them, and she couldn’t let that happen.

Even then, going high above the trees wasn’t going to answer to the fundamental problem. The best Dash could do was outrun her opponent, and that wasn’t going to be enough. Escape was impossible.

Dash could feel the enforcer just behind her, an awareness that was visceral and terrifying in its absolute certainty. Along with that certainty was the knowledge that Charisma shared the same awareness, that there was no hiding from each other. She could fly to the ends of the earth, and Charisma would be just behind her.

That left fighting, but Charisma’s transformation had changed the rules of that particular game. She didn’t think it would go as well as the last time. Her mind raced as fast as her wings, searching for a solution that would keep her and everyone else alive.

She sped towards a pair of massive trees grown so close together there was barely any clearance between them. With a daring shout she folded her wings and squeezed her body into as narrow a shape as possible. The trunks scraped at her back and belly as she dove through, her wings unfolding the instant she was clear to throw her farther into the dark jungle.

Behind her, Charisma slammed into the trees and let out a laugh that was beautiful in its sheer, abandoned delight. Then the Element around her neck flared, and the trees leapt away from her. More, every tree within a mile was violently ejected from the earth, betrayed by the soil that had nurtured them to such great size.

Dash dodged through the sudden gauntlet of roots and raining dirt that surrounded her. There was a moment of poised stillness as the trees reached the apex of their short-lived flight, a breath before chaos. Then they all started toppling down to the earth that would never again allow any part of them to enter it.

Dash went into overdrive, her face locked in a strained rictus of effort as she twisted and turned. She flew through the collapsing rainforest with a speed and precision that made a run through the Ghastly Gorge look like a Sunday stroll in the park.

It wasn’t only falling trees she had to contend with, either. Every time she saw an opportunity to fly clear of the madness she was met with Charisma’s grinning face and flashing claws, forcing her to turn back to the increasingly tight maze of trees. She dove and darted, moving dangerously fast. A heartbeat away from disaster.

Then she was through, shooting up into the air and above the rumbling destruction. Adrenaline and exhilaration pounded through her veins like molten sunlight, making her entire body tingle. The narrow escape, the incredible danger of the chase, all of it combined with the sheer joy of pushing herself to her limits. There was a small, insistent voice in the back of her head that urged her to go faster, fly harder, to burst the bonds of the possible and show Charisma she was messing with a living legend.

She looked down to see Charisma standing on a falling tree, grinning up at her. For a moment, even in the light of the afternoon sun, the enforcer seemed to be drained of color. Pink, blue, red and purple all faded to a washed-out grey that was so familiar it made Dash’s heart leap into her throat. A blink later and Charisma was back to her brightly-colored glory.

“Alright, fine. Time to get serious,” Dash said, turning her eyes to the sky. Clearly heading through the jungle wasn’t a workable option anymore. She just had to hope she’d made it far enough.

“You can’t run forever, Hot Stuff,” Charisma said, and the words were as clear as if they were right next to each other. She could practically feel the enforcer’s breath on her ear. “You’re gonna have to stop and fight me sometime.”

“You want to make that happen?” Dash’s eyes locked on to a shape in the distance, and she smiled as an idea came to her. “Then catch me if you can.” With a flap of her wings she was soaring heavenward, and with a gleeful shout, Charisma followed.

***

Star Fall let out a shuddering groan as consciousness returned. Her body throbbed, her nose and eyes stung, every sense was coated with a dripping slather of pain that made it all but impossible to bring those sensations into any sort of coherence. From her ears, all she got was a persistent, high-pitched whine that drowned out even the sounds coming from her own throat. She spent a long moment in whimpering self-pity before she marshalled her will and pried her eyes open. The effort was staggering in how much it took out of her, and even then the world was a smudged blur of green, brown and black. She had to blink several times before it began to resolve into proper shapes.

She looked around, trying to find a flash of the telltale prismatic mane of Rainbow Dash. Even with her vision still fuzzy, though, she could tell that the ancient pegasus was nowhere to be found. Instead the black shape of a cloaked Changeling loomed above her.

She reacted with instinctual panic, trying to jerk away. The agony that answered her call to motion nearly plunged her back into unconsciousness before the accompanying adrenaline rush buoyed her up. The Changeling reacted, hunching over her and saying something that she couldn’t hear and didn’t have the mental capacity to lip-read yet. Realizing that struggling was useless, she gave up on running. Instead, closing her eyes and panting for breath from her momentary exertion, she began the task of forcing her thoughts to order.

She was alive, which was a definite positive, and something to hold on to as she went forward. She recalled the last few minutes before unconsciousness, which unfortunately included the beating Charisma had delivered. She let out another involuntary whimper at the image of her hoof being removed, then carefully and deliberately pushed those memories aside.

She reminded herself that the fact that she was remembering anything so clearly was good. It indicated she hadn’t received any head trauma this time. That clear thinking, combined with the fact that she was in terrible pain, was also good: it meant she wasn’t in shock. Not being in shock meant she hadn’t lost too much blood, which meant someone, possibly the Changeling, had done some basic treatment for her impromptu amputation.

The fact that Rainbow Dash was nowhere to be seen could indicate that she’d gone for help. Or it could indicate that something dangerous had arisen that required her to take care of. The best case scenario was that once Star Fall had been seen to Dash had left to help deal with Cash. Regardless of which option was true, Star Fall wasn’t going to lie here waiting. No matter how good an idea it was or how much she wanted to.

She opened her eyes again, surveying the destruction around the hollow. She catalogued everything she could see, putting a list together in her mind of all that she would need. Once she was satisfied she turned to the Changeling, spending a moment to recall his name. “Calumn,” she said, though the words still didn’t make it through the ringing in her ears. The Changeling gave her a fanged grin and said something. She ignored it, instead focusing on making her words as clear as she could. “On my right shoulder, there’s a long pouch. Open it and take out the paper inside.”

He asked a question she couldn’t be bothered to figure out, but did as she asked. There was a surprising amount of pain from him just opening the pouch and extracting the spell-sheet, enough to distract her from what she was doing for a moment. When she came back to herself he was holding the rolled up paper out to her and saying something. “Unroll it,” she said. “Lay it out flat just beneath my head.” He frowned, but again moved without hesitation to fulfill her request.

He had to move her head to get the sheet under it, but this didn’t hurt nearly as badly as his moving her leg had. She rested for a moment atop the paper, taking in the smell of the sheet and ink. It reminded her of easier times, when she had spent long hours with the Professor drawing on sheets just like this one. Learning how to shape magic with symbols and will. There was a twist in her chest at the thought of Twinkle Shine, but the blessing of her situation was that her issues with her mentor just did not rate on a scale of her priorities right then.

She gathered her power and drove it into the spell-sheet. “As above, so below,” she whispered, using the mantra to focus through the pain. “As within, so without.” Crimson light engulfed her, washing away her sight for a long minute. When she lifted her head again, her vision was clear and her ears flicked as the myriad sounds of the jungle became audible.

“Whoa. That’s really nifty,” Calumn said as she looked to him. “Are you doing ok now? I mean, you don’t look as pale. Well, you’re white, so you always look pale, but I mean...” He trailed off, his mouth working soundlessly for a moment before he gave her a small, awkward smile. “You look a bit better, is what I mean.”

“Healing spell,” she said, then reached down and grasped the paper in her teeth, flipping it over to her back so it was bathing her aching wings in soothing energy. “I came prepared.”

“How much, uh... how much will it heal?”

“Not much,” she said. “I’m going to need a splint for my leg. There’s some pieces of wood broken off in the fight that will do, and the vines look sturdy enough to serve. I need you to grab them for me while I fix up what I can.”

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” he asked. “And, um, not to be a party-pooper or anything, but if you keep healing yourself like that you’re probably gonna lose any chance of getting your hoof put back.”

She looked down at the stump. The tourniquet had stanched the blood flow, but it wasn’t going to hold if she started moving around too much. She dragged the spell sheet over and started sealing the ragged end of her leg. “We’re a long way from a hospital,” she said, partly for him and mostly for herself. “Odds are the hoof’s gone no matter what, and leaving the wound open is just asking for infection. If Rainbow Dash were here, it’d be a different story. But, well…” She looked to Calumn. “What happened after I passed out? Where did she go?”

“Well, right after I showed up and helped Dash stop you from bleeding out, it got kinda weird.” He described Charisma’s transformation, talking as he gathered the wood and vines she directed him to. “She said something about a tie-breaker, and then Dash just took off into the trees. Charisma didn’t even look at us, she just went right after her.”

“Another time, this would all be incredibly fascinating,” Star Fall said with a sigh. “I’d be just giddy at the prospect of telling my mentor all about it.” She looked at the pile of wood he had brought, picking out the most sturdy looking lengths. “Too bad that’ll never happen now.”

“Aw, why not? I mean, assuming we all make it out alive.”

“Assuming we live?” Star Fall couldn’t help but chuckle darkly. “Then she’s still an evil Goddess and I’m still a Princess of a nation she’s been manipulating for centuries. I don’t think that we’re going to be having any friendly chats.”

“Well, you never know,” Calumn said, testing the vines he gathered to see if they’d hold. “Are you ready for this leg thing? ‘Cause, well, it’s gonna hurt. Like, a lot. A whole lot.”

“I’ve had broken legs before,” Star Fall assured him. “I know what to expect.”

“Really?” he asked, blinking in surprise.

“Secret Service training isn’t all fun and games,” she said. “When I did the Maul, I broke two legs and a wing. I was laid up for months afterwards. Astrid said… Astrid…”

“Where is the big bird, by the way? I thought she’d stick to you like peanut butter on the roof of a Diamond Dog’s mouth.”

Star Fall blinked away a tear. “She’s gone,” she said, hoping it wasn’t true. “It doesn’t matter. With Dash dealing with Charisma, our priority is Max Cash. Give me a stick to bite down on, then set the leg.”

“Are you–”

“Do it.”

He brushed off a fallen branch and offered it to her. She bit down on it, focusing on the gritty taste of damp earth. When Calumn jerked her leg straight she bit down so hard she had a momentary fear of cracking her teeth, but the branch held and muffled her screams. Fresh sweat slicked her coat and dripped from her mane into her eyes. She pawed at the earth with her uninjured foreleg, expending all of her will on not jerking and thrashing as the pain was demanding of her. After a subjective eternity the agony faded to a manageable dull ache and she spit the branch out.

“There we go,” he said. “Should be good for hobbling on.”

She looked down her body and saw her leg jutting out stiffly, wrapped in vine and braced with broken wood. It was clearly swollen, and an ugly discoloration was showing through her coat, but when she put a bit of experimental pressure on it she didn’t collapse. “You’re pretty good at this.”

“Well, I did a year of med school.”

“What?”

“Uh, Changeling thing, don’t worry about it,” he said with a lopsided smile.

She checked her stump, and found that it was sealed enough that she wasn’t going to bleed out from it. She slowly undid the tourniquet, letting blood back into the limb in a rush of prickling pins-and-needles and a phantom pain in her missing hoof that was thankfully drowned out by the plethora of other agonies her body was reporting.

“Alright, I’m ready,” she said. “Help me up, we have to move quickly.”

“Yeah, about that,” Calumn said, kneeling next to her so she could put her maimed leg over his shoulders. “I can tell from that ‘I’m gonna be a hero’ look you’ve got on your face that you want to go after the big bad evil guy, but I really don’t think that’s, like, a good idea.”

“Dash is going to lead Charisma far away from us or anyone that could be hurt by her,” Star Fall said. “That gives us a window of opportunity to go after him where she won’t interfere. We can’t waste it.”

“Yeah, I get that. But what are you even planning to do? Limp up to him and bleed on him until he gives up?”

“It doesn’t matter. The others will need us,” Star Fall replied, rising to her two good legs. The splinted leg was awkward, but she could still put enough weight on it to stabilize herself if needed. With Calumn’s help she should be able to keep up a decent pace. “Cash is a Magic Talent. A powerful one. Augmented by the Elements, who knows what he’s capable of. I may not be up to much hoof-to-hoof combat, but I have all my spellsheets prepared, and my will to stop him has never been stronger.”

“Okay, just… don’t kill yourself trying to kill him, alright?” Calumn said as they began limping out of the hollow.

“I’ll do what I have to,” Star Fall replied. Then she was struck by a bleak thought. “Of course, this might all be moot. If Dash can’t stop Charisma, we’re all dead anyway.”

Calumn smiled. “Yeah, there’s always a bright side.”

***

Hard Boiled, Traduce and Trail Blazer came out of the jungle into the fallen gardens, chased by the distant rumbling sounds of detonations and destruction. It was like hearing thunder on a clear day. Or, Hard Boiled mused, like being next door to a war zone. Either way, it boded nothing but ill for all of them.

Traduce immediately sighted on the temple at the center of the wide clearing, setting off for it at a brisk trot. HB had to kick into a short gallop to catch up with her and hold her back. She gave him a questioning look, her thoughts reaching out to him through their tentative symbiosis. He tilted his horn towards the jungle. “Someone’s coming.”

A moment later a familiar orange face poked through the vines and leaves. “Well, ain’t you all a sight for sore eyes!” Applejack pushed her way through, taking a moment to brush some dirt and twigs from her flanks with her hat before walking up to them. “I was worried you’d gotten hurt in that crash.”

“We made it out fine,” Traduce said, HB’s magic allowing him to follow the Solar conversation. “Have you seen Princess Fallen Star or her guardian?”

“Star and Astrid? No, can’t say that I have. Figured we’d all be headin’ for the place with Fluttershy’s statue, so that’s what I’ve been makin’ for.”

“A good choice,” Traduce said with a nod. “Rainbow Dash went off after them with Calumn. The Princess was in trouble… screaming.”

Applejack’s eyes darkened under a heavy frown. “I thought I heard somethin’. Hoped it was just some kinda jungle critter. I hope they’re okay.”

“Yeah, me too,” Blaze said. “But right now I’m kinda wondering whether we’re gonna be okay. Because we just split the party, guys. That’s, like, number one on the list of things not to do. And it’s not giving me a tingly confidence-like feeling that the party mage is in the other half, along with our two best fighters. No offense to the orange lady who can crush me with her eyebrow muscles, but I’ve seen Dash fight before, and, well, a Griffin’s a Griffin.”

Applejack’s frown eased up a bit. “None taken,” she replied. “But I’ve got a few tricks under my hat, don’t you worry.”

“I hate to admit it, but he’s got a good point,” Hard Boiled said, with Traduce providing a quick translation for Applejack. “We can’t wait until the others get here, if they ever will, but we can’t go in without a plan.” As if to underscore the urgency of their task, a blast of pink light exploded from the temple, sending ripples through the flowers of the clearing.

“Cash’s spellcasting is our largest concern,” Traduce said. “He has the capability to do practically anything, but he’ll still be limited. The best plan is to attack from multiple directions, and up close. The less time he has to get off a spell, the better. Detective Hard Boiled and I will come from the sides. Applejack, we’ll need you rushing him head-on. Blaze…” She trailed off as she contemplated the Storm Guide.

“Not really a fighty-type,” Blaze said with a sheepish grin. “I’ll do my best, but, uh, you might not want to count on me.”

“Try to stay out of the way, then,” Traduce continued. “And if you get the chance to distract him, take it.”

They trotted up to the temple, moving cautiously past the eroded statues and wild gardens. The noise coming from within was a babbling stream of low, one-sided conversation, interrupted occasionally by an angry shout that was invariably followed by a flash of pink light. HB kept an eye on Applejack, noting with some worry how each burst of pink light made her eyes glow and her step falter for a second. She was supposed to have physical strength on par with Rarity’s magical power, and they were going to need her at her best in there.

Traduce was first to the temple. She pressed herself against the wall right next to the doorway, gesturing the others to come close beside her. HB stepped up next to her and drew his gun, careful to keep the copper light of his magic from shining into the temple and giving them away. The others crowded in behind them, with Blaze the furthest away and glancing every few seconds back towards the jungle.

“Somethin’ ain’t right,” Applejack said, shivering as another blast of pink light erupted from within the temple. She frowned and stared at the wall as if she could see right through it. “I know there ain’t none of what’s been happenin’ that could be called ‘right’, but this feels worse. Feels like… well, I can’t put my hoof on it.” She gave her head a shake and looked to HB and Traduce. “One thing I can say is that I’d bet my best applecart what’s goin’ on in there ain’t part of Cash’s plans.”

“What’s he saying?” Blaze asked.

Traduce closed her eyes and listened, but she needn’t have bothered. HB’s magic was picking the otherwise indistinct words out just fine. “‘Come on now, I’m asking nice,’” HB said, relaying Cash’s words, though not the soft, cajoling tone they were said with. “‘It’s just for a little while. You don’t even have to stay with me. I’ll find you someone nice and quiet. Someone who’ll take good care of you and likes soft things and bunnies, and not even in the killing and eating sort of way.’” HB shuddered, there was something in Cash’s voice that made those words taste foul on his tongue as he repeated them.

Traduce peeked around the corner. “There’s no one else there with him. He’s talking to the statue.”

“Does it still have the necklace?” HB asked. Traduce nodded. “Then we still have time. Traduce, tell Applejack that we’ll need her to–” He cut off as Traduce put a hoof up to stop him. He stilled and realized that Cash’s voice had gone quiet.

There was a long moment of silence, and then a dark chuckle came from inside. “You’re a little early,” Cash called out to them. “But that’s just because we’re experiencing technical difficulties. Why don’t you all come in and take a seat, and we can try to get this show started.”

HB’s eyes narrowed and he cocked his gun. Traduce gave him a slow nod and looked to Applejack “We’re going to go in. You need to be front and center. There isn’t any cover inside, and he might have a gun, so be careful. You might be immune to bullets, but it’s not something I want to chance.” Applejack nodded in understanding. “Blaze, stay out of sight.”

“Roger that!” Blaze replied with a sloppy salute.

“Hello!” Cash called, drawing the word out. “Olly-olly-oxen-free! Come on, don’t be afraid! I just want to talk!”

“Go!” Traduce said, and pounced through the doorway.

HB followed, slower and far less nimble, but only a split-second behind. He dodged to the left of the doorway, knowing that Traduce had taken the right, levelling his gun down the length of the temple to aim at the unicorn at its far end. Cash was grinning, his teeth gleaming with blood and spit. His horn was limned with a magenta glow, but if he was holding something it wasn’t visible. Behind him, the Kindness statue was hidden behind a soft pink light.

“Why, if it isn’t the lovely couple!” Cash crowed. “I was hoping you’d show up. I need to ask about… Laughter…” He trailed off, his eyes going wide as Applejack strode into the temple. “First Rainbow Dash, then Rarity, now Applejack, in the flesh! Did any of you ever actually die?” He let out a delighted laugh. “No, don’t tell me. I want it to be a surprise!”

“Move away from the statue, Cash,” HB snarled out, slowly walking deeper into the temple. Out of his peripheral vision he saw Traduce following his lead. He couldn’t see what Applejack was doing, and he didn’t want to take his eyes off Cash even for an instant to check. He only hoped she stuck to the plan for fighting the dangerous unicorn, closing distance before the spells started flying.

“Come on, Lieutenant, don’t be like that,” Cash chided. “We were getting along so well last time, after all.”

HB shook his head. “I’m going to kill you, you sick bastard.”

Cash smirked. “So I’ve gone from arrest to kill! I guess that means I’m moving up in the world.” His eyes narrowed to a sly, almost intimate expression. “Say, how would you like to move up in the world?”

Hard Boiled frowned in momentary confusion. Cash couldn’t be trying to bribe him, it was absurd. “What?”

“Well, Charisma and I had a talk, and while a lot of hurtful things were said I think the real takeaway from the whole thing was that we can agree that godhood is on the table.”

“Godhood?” Traduce sounded as incredulous as HB felt. “You’re joking.”

Cash held up a hoof, giving them a wide-eyed innocent look. “Luna’s honest truth. It’s been done before. Tell them, Applejack. Tell them how Twilight Sparkle got her wings.” HB almost broke line of sight to Cash, but managed to stop his head turning. Applejack, for her part, didn’t understand enough Lunar to respond. Cash stared at her expectantly for a few quiet moments, allowing HB and Traduce to get a few crucial steps closer, before giving up on having her play into his game. “No? Not gonna say? Well, okay. It’s the truth people. The Elements of Harmony can make you a god. Not a figurative or metaphorical one, either. I’m talking legit mightier-than-thou smite-the-unbelievers deity. Put down the guns and I can sign you up for the new pantheon. What do you say to that?”

“Go to hell,” Hard Boiled said, then pulled the trigger.

Cash’s horn flared, and his magic caught the bullet inches from his face. He didn’t even flinch.

Cash rolled his eyes at the detective. “Well, I suppose that brings to a close the open and honest negotiation portion of the fight.” Traduce opened fire, and HB followed her lead, sending bullets at Cash as fast as he could pull the trigger. Even before he’d emptied his revolver, he knew it was no good. Cash’s magic caught every bullet shot at him as if they had been pebbles thrown by a child.

“Luna’s night!” Traduce breathed in awestruck fear. Hard Boiled silently echoed her. He knew Cash was powerful, had seen what he’d done fighting Melody, but this was a feat up there with what Rarity had displayed at Birchfield’s mansion. Still, he snapped open the cylinder of his revolver and reloaded, praying for an opportunity to get beyond Cash’s guard.

“You know, this would be a lot easier if Charisma hadn’t taken off,” Cash said, dropping the bullets to the ground in a jingling rain. “Loyalty is so hard to use right, but so damn effective when it works. Ah, well. I guess we’ll just have to work with what we’ve got. Maybe one of you will even have the answer to my little problem.” His lips pulled back in a manic, teeth-baring grin. “See this necklace behind me? You want it.” Suddenly HB’s discipline meant nothing. His eyes tracked to the statue’s neck, and he couldn’t have dragged them away if he wanted to… which he didn’t. “That’s right.” Cash’s chuckle echoed strangely, reverberating as if a half dozen distorted voices were laughing at once. HB would have taken note of the strangeness, but all his attention was on the necklace. His heart beat faster at the sight of it, his ears were tall and pointed right at it, his nostrils flaring as if he could take in its scent from eight paces away. “It’s an Element, the most important thing in the world. You want it. So go get it!”

HB lunged towards the necklace, only to be brought up short as a pair of green hooves wrapped around him and held him back. He snarled, twisting to see who had stopped him and found Blaze staring at him with wide-eyed fear. “Don’t do it, man,” Blaze said, his forelegs shaking as he strained to keep the detective still. Hard Boiled brought his gun up, putting the barrel squarely between Blaze’s eyes.

“Stop!” Applejack cried out. There was a strange feeling that washed over Hard Boiled, like he was suddenly disconnected from himself. His struggles slowed and his magic eased off the gun’s trigger as he looked to the earth pony. She was holding Traduce hard against the wall with one hoof and staring at Cash with an angry frown. “Remember why we came here! Y’all don’t care about the Elements, you care about stopping him!”

The moment the words were out, he realized they were the truth. He relaxed, and Blaze let him go. His legs trembled as he remembered the powerful need for the necklace that had overtaken him. In that moment, nothing else had mattered. He would have killed Blaze to get to it, would have killed Traduce as well if she got in his way. “Thank you,” he said to Applejack. She glanced at him and gave him a quick nod that said she understood the sentiment, even if she didn’t know the words. Applejack let Traduce off the wall with a similarly polite tip of her hat. The Changeling didn’t look quite as shaken as he felt, but he supposed she just hid it better.

Cash just watched the exchange with an expression of bemused interest. “Did you just… Wow.” He shook his head “I did not think you could do that.”

“No more tricks, Cash,” Traduce growled. “It’s over.”

Cash stomped a hoof. Not in anger, but as if in realization. “That’s what I forgot! You’d think if I was going to make the job offer I’d remember to mention the side-benefits!” He giggled, looking to HB. “Though, if you’re going to reject the ‘let’s become gods’ spiel, I guess it wouldn’t have made a difference. But hey, the offer’s still open. Maybe a demonstration will change your mind.” His horn flared, magenta light pulsing out from it in a physical wave of force. “Let’s find out.”

The magic slammed into Hard Boiled, throwing him back into Blaze and sending both stallions tumbling down the length of the temple. HB pushed away from Blaze and rolled, bleeding off as much of the momentum as he could, but he still slammed up hard against the wall beside the door. The breath was knocked out of him, and he was forced to spend precious seconds getting it back. He scrambled to his hooves as fast as he could, leaving Blaze hissing in pain on the floor.

Across the temple, Cash and Applejack were in a standoff. He stared at her, eyes incredibly wide in a look of manic concentration, his horn a beacon of roaring power. Her head was down as she weathered his assault, her hat practically flattened as wave after wave of coruscating magenta light slammed into the earth pony. The battering force broke as it hit her, sweeping along the lines of her body and blowing hair to scatter into sparkling sheets of wild magic behind her. It reminded HB of a meteor entering the atmosphere.

Cash laughed. A high, braying sound that set Hard Boiled’s teeth on edge. “All this could be yours for one low, low price!”

A flash of green caught HB’s attention, and he looked over to find Traduce in her true form, crooked horn limned with Changeling magic as she finished reloading her pistol. She looked back at him, and though no words could be heard through the screaming crackle of Cash’s magic, each knew what was in the other’s mind. HB checked to ensure his gun was fully loaded, then levitated it up to a ready position and gave Traduce a single nod.

As one, they darted forward. They looped wide around Applejack’s unyielding form and rushed at Cash from either side. Magic flared out from the unicorn, a burst of raw telekinesis that could not be evaded. HB took the hit, rolling with it and coming up running for Cash again. A grim satisfaction rose in him as he saw Applejack slowly moving forward against Cash’s bombarding magic. He didn’t need to hit the crimelord, all he needed was to distract him enough for the earth pony to get in one good hit.

As Applejack advanced, Cash retreated. Each step back was fought for, with Hard Boiled and Traduce harrying him from the sides, keeping him from focusing all his might on holding back the strongest pony in the world. Then Cash’s hindquarters came up against a bubble of pink light, and he could retreat no farther. Cash’s horn flared with renewed effort, the magenta glare so bright as to be blinding. Still, Applejack came on, pushing through the power in her path with a slow, inexorable pace.

Hard Boiled couldn’t tell what was happening anymore; the tempest of power was too much for his eyes. The detective flared his own magic, using his truth-finding spell to guide him as he rushed at Cash once again. This time no wave of telekinetic force knocked him back, no wall of power kept him at bay. Every ounce of Cash’s concentration was dedicated to preventing him from being crushed between an immovable object and an unstoppable force. The tidal forces around them were incredible, easily enough to rip a normal pony to shreds. HB slid to a stop right at the very edge of where he could safely exist, raising his gun toward a target he couldn’t see. Bullets would go off course in the maelstrom Cash had created, fired blindly it could just as easily hit Applejack or Traduce, but HB wasn’t afraid. His horn screamed with wretched agony as he forced more power into his truth magic than he ever had before. All of his power, all of his will focused on creating a momentary burst of knowledge, a flash of inspiration, a moment of pure understanding to answer just one question: where to aim.

The gun moved into position. Hard Boiled pulled the trigger. The noise of the shot was lost in the roar of power, but the silence that followed was almost deafening. Cash’s magic went dark, wisps of magenta flowing across the temple like a breaking wave, soon fading to nothing. Applejack’s head came up, blinking in surprise at the sudden loss of pressure. Cash looked down, staring at the smoking hole in his chest. “Huh,” Cash said, his tone one of dull surprise. “Would you look at that.”

Applejack slammed into Cash, throwing him to the ground and straddling him. He tried to struggle, but she handled his squirming with expert ease. The moment his horn showed a flicker of light she slapped it, making the unicorn wince and shutting down whatever spell he was about to try. ”None of that,” she admonished. “You’re caught fair and square, so simmer down and listen here. Your friend out there is causin’ a whole heap of trouble, so you’re gonna call her back and get her to surrender. Then you two are gonna face justice for what y’all have been doin’. Play nice, and I’ll guarantee you make it safe and sound to the proper authorities, and that you have a chance to speak in your own defence, for whatever good it’ll do.”

“And if I don’t?” Cash asked in Solar, sounding amused.

“Then I don’t.”

HB wanted to shout at Applejack. He wanted to warn her that Cash was playing her, that he was still sure he was in control. He wanted to, but he was paralyzed. He had looked into the hole his bullet had made, the shot that should have hit Cash’s heart and snuffed him out for good. Now he couldn’t look anywhere else. That small, dark wound that spat a few measly drops of half-congealed blood onto the tiles consumed all but the edges of his focus. He couldn’t look away because in the harsh truth of HB’s magic, it wasn’t just a hole. It was a window, and it looked out on something so vast and terrible that all his mind could do was scream at the sight of it.

“Well, when you put it that way, I’ll agree to your terms. On one condition.” HB could see Cash’s mad grin, but Applejack couldn’t.

Traduce noted HB’s strained posture, and he could feel a probing from her through their bond. The touch of her mind on his gave him the leverage he needed to break free of the terrible, impossible truth that froze his mind. Yet he was slow in coming back to himself. Far too slow.

“I ain’t doin’ anythin’ that might let you get free,” Applejack replied.

“Oh, no. Nothing like that,” Cash said with a friendly chuckle. “As you said, I’m caught fair and square. All I have is one tiny personal request for you. You don’t even have to move to do it.”

Applejack’s eyes narrowed in suspicion. HB wanted to shout at her that she wasn’t nearly suspicious enough. “Alright, what is it?”

From across the Temple, Blaze let out a strangled cry. “No! Don’t let him talk!”

“Lie to me.”

Applejack went rigid, her eyes shining for an instant with a brilliant white light. Then she toppled sideways off of Cash, her body shivering and jerking spasmodically.

“Hah! Off button!” Cash crowed, getting up and bringing his horn back to full burning life. Traduce opened fire, but her bullets were once again caught uselessly. Cash turned to look at her, smirking. “You, I don’t need.” A flare of magic and Traduce’s bullets were flung back at her. She cried out as she was hit in several places, spiderweb cracks and spurts of Changeling blood marring her glossy carapace. She dropped to the floor with a wet thud, and Cash laughed.

Hard Boiled roared, charging Cash on numb legs. Cash lashed out, not with magic, but with his hoof. It was a casual swat, contemptuous, but HB couldn’t begin to dodge it. It hit Hard Boiled’s horn, and the horn bent at a nearly ninety degree angle halfway down its length.

Cash sucked in a horrified breath, one hoof going protectively to his own horn. “Yeesh. Ouch. Uh, sorry about that, detective.”

Hard Boiled stared at the thing he had dreaded since he was a foal. He’d used too much magic, used it too freely. He hadn’t kept up his telekinesis, and this was the result. His horn had become soft. He only had a moment to understand this before all the pain in the world rushed up and tore any semblance of conscious thought away.

***

Rarity sat on a wide ledge around the roof of the RIA building and stared towards the south. Melody’s doll was propped in a similar pose beside her, a quiet reminder of the danger her friends faced. The bright sun shone down on her, making her wish for a parasol, but while the RIA had umbrellas for the rain they were all so garishly utilitarian she couldn’t bring herself to use one for shade. So she sat in the sun and let her thoughts wander.

For a long time she did nothing but watch the blue skies and the drifting clouds. Then she slowly reached up and removed her beret, touching at the healing scar underneath. It barely hurt anymore, soon it might be all but invisible.

“Drat it all,” she quietly fumed. “I should be there with you.”

The sighing of a gentle wind was all the response she got.

“I wish…” she began, but didn’t know how to finish. She wished for so much. She wished she had been more insistent she join her friends. She wished Spike were up here to talk with, but he’d been locked in a room with Director Straff and Agent Gamma since Dash and the others had left. She wished she could be designing dresses, or playing with her sister, or relaxing in a park, or even getting snubbed by the Canterlot elite, anything except sitting where she was now, thinking the things she was. She wished she were home.

Pink hooves appeared from below to grasp the ledge. “Hey, Rarity!” Pinkie said, popping her head up from beneath the ledge. “How’s it hangin’?” She grinned in the way she always did when she thought she had made a particularly clever pun.

Rarity, who had been expecting an intrusion of this sort for the last hour, smiled as well as she could. “Precariously, I imagine,” she replied. “Why don’t you come up here and join me?”

“Okay!” Pinkie squeaked, flipping herself over to sprawl with her back on the ledge, her poofy hair hanging off the edge and bouncing a little in the breeze. “You were looking super-thoughtful, but I didn’t know if you wanted somepony to talk to or not.”

Rarity looked back towards the south. “I don’t know if I’m fit for company, Pinkie dear, but I could use a good friend.”

“That’s what I am!” Pinkie declared, punching a hoof at the sky. “So tell auntie Pinkie what’s bothering you, and I’ll do my best to turn that frown upside-down!”

“Am I really frowning so much?” Rarity asked, putting a hoof to her forehead again, this time feeling for wrinkles.

“Not from where I’m lookin’, sister!” Pinkie said, grinning.

It took a moment for Rarity to understand the humor there, but when she got it she smiled. “You are a delight, Pinkie Pie. But I’d rather not dwell on my problems. Tell me, how are you finding this new world we’ve gotten ourselves stuck in?”

“Oh! Oh! I’ve been learning how to talk like a future-person!” Pinkie said, squirming with excitement. “Just ten minutes ago I learned ‘where the hell did she come from!’ and ‘Goddess what is wrong with her neck?’, which I think is another way of saying ‘hello’, and ‘the bathroom is over there’, though they were wrong about the bathroom. It’s okay, I found it anyway!”

“That… isn’t entirely accurate,” Rarity said, choosing, as always, to believe her friend was joking rather than taking her words at face value. “I’m sorry I haven’t been spending much time getting you acquainted with the, ah, times.”

“Oh, don’t worry about it, Rarity. Everypony has been super-duper helpful, when they’re not running away shouting new words for me to learn. Did you know they’ve got six whole rooms filled with filing cabinets here? And that ponies get really touchy when I play hide-and-seek in them? I mean, those files were really dusty so obviously nopony was reading them, even though they had the big, fancy red stamps all over them, which is what I’d put on something I really want to read.”

“Big red stamps?”

“Yeah! Hey, maybe you can tell me what they mean, they spell out ‘T-O-P-S-E–”

“Okay, Pinkie,” Rarity interrupted, laughing. “I suppose I can understand the reaction of our gracious hosts. Perhaps it’s best if you stay away from the files with those stamps, just for their sake.”

“Well, if you think so,” Pinkie said. “What does the stamp mean?”

“Well, it’s…” Rarity spent a long moment judging how to answer that. “Suffice it to say reading those is something like reading somepony’s personal diary. Except that pony is a government.”

“Oh,” Pinkie’s eyes went wide. “Riiiight. Maybe you could tell them that I’m sorry? And that I couldn’t read anything anyway, so they don’t have to put me in their secret village prison for people who know too much?”

“I’m sure they understand, dear,” Rarity said, sighing. “And I’m sure you’re not in trouble for it. Just try to… well, do remember that we’re staying in a building full of spies, will you?”

“You got it,” Pinkie said, then relaxed back, her eyes going to the same horizon Rarity’s were drawn to.

They stayed like that for a long few minutes, and Rarity assumed her friend’s thoughts had gone to the same dark place as her own. There were precious few other explanations for seeing Pinkie Pie sit still for so long. “They’ll be alright,” she said, not convinced of it but willing to pretend it was true.

“I know,” Pinkie said, smiling. “Applejack is the most reliable pony in all of Equestria, and Dashie is the most awesome! They’ll take care of those evil jerks, and then they’ll come back and we’ll throw a big ‘welcome back Applejack and Rainbow Dash and those other ponies who I don’t know that well but I’m sure are super-duper anyway’ party! And all our friends will be there! Like Spike, and, um… The ones we’ve met here I guess, since everypony else is a little too dead to attend.” Her smile faded a bit. “Was she a friend?” she asked suddenly, gaze sliding to the doll at Rarity’s side. “The pony who owned that?”

“She could have been,” Rarity replied, still staring south.

“I’m sorry.”

“I am too.”

Pinkie tapped her forehooves together, her brow crinkling a bit as if she wanted to say something but didn’t know how. “When I go to sleep, I keep getting shaky leg, floppy hoof, twitchy eye. Which is Pinkie-Sense for ‘I’m about to have a bad dream’.”

“You can tell when you’re going to have nightmares?” Rarity asked, surprised in spite of herself. “That mustn’t be pleasant.”

“It’s really-really rare,” Pinkie said. “Except since I woke up here, it’s been every night. Usually I can remember my dreams, even if they’re super-not-nice and scary. So when I wake up I can think about being afraid of having all my friends abandon me because I threw a bad party, or being eaten by a giant monster cupcake I baked to life in defiance of the laws of gods and ponies, and it’s all so silly I can laugh at it. But these aren’t like that. I can’t remember these dreams, I don’t even feel bad when I wake up. I keep thinking and thinking and thinking about them, but…” She shrugged. “I don’t get much. Only, I think that doll is in them. And I think its owner is, too. She’s a pegasus, right?”

“Yes, she was. Have I… has someone told you–”

“And she was really, really, really angry.” Pinkie’s hair streamed in a sudden gust, tangled curls unravelling to be pulled almost ruler-straight by the wind. “She hated him.”

Rarity blinked, and Pinkie’s hair was back to normal, but her expression was still somber. “Pinkie… I… I’ve been having nightmares too. Dreams that I can’t remember on waking.”

“I think they’re important, Rarity.”

“I think so too, dear.”

“I also think the reason I can remember bits of them, is because I put on my Element,” Pinkie said. She sprang up, landing with each hoof half on the ledge, held in place by her own enthusiasm. “I think when we get all the Elements together, and figure out how to stop blowing up mansions with them, we’ll be able to remember the bad dreams. And then we can laugh at them together!”

“Yes,” Rarity said, though she had to suppress a shiver at the memory of Pinkie wreathed in the light of her Element. “That would be nice.”

“Oh, by the way, there’s something weird going on with the Element of Laughter, and since I’m not allowed anywhere near it, Spike sent me to find you so that you could take a look at it!”

Rarity blinked in surprise. “And you waited so long to tell me this… why?”

Pinkie waved her hoof dismissively. “We needed some ‘us’ time. Besides, I already know exactly what’s going on with the Element.”

“Do you? What could it be?”

“What else? It’s Dashie!” Pinkie said, bouncing into a backflip. “I bet she’s doing something super-stupendously awesome. Like getting her Element back from that mean meany-pants Max Cash!”

“I hope so, Pinkie,” Rarity said, casting a last look to the southern horizon before she got up and walked towards the stairwell door. “I hope so.”

***

Dash flew a wide corkscrew pattern as she ascended, spanning miles with each rotation. As she flew, she watched Charisma’s pursuit with a careful eye, getting a handle on how her opponent flew. Her survival, everyone’s survival, now depended on whether she could outmatch the enforcer in the air.

Charisma was incredibly strong. That fact was immediately obvious from the way the air thrummed with each beat of Charisma’s wings, whose larger size had clearly come with a commensurate boost to her pegasus magic. Even from a wide distance Dash could feel Charisma pulling at the air, creating clashing depressions and high pressure zones that affected the skies for miles all around.

That said, the way she used her power was violent and inefficient. Her wings clawed at the air, ripping it back to throw herself forward. Charisma also seemed to have no understanding of airflow, or using her magic to cut through headwind, or a dozen other ways to make flying easier. As a result she was expending several times the energy Dash was, and not moving any faster for her efforts. She was only able to keep up with Dash due to the immense strength she put behind each thrust.

It screamed inexperience, and not just compared to an athlete like Dash. She was making mistakes that were drilled out of most pegasi in their first month of flight school. She clearly had no idea how to fly at high speeds and altitudes, and was trying to compensate by just flying harder.

Under normal circumstances, Dash would have said it was no contest. Even if Charisma could match the speedster’s acceleration and maneuverability with those huge wings, exhaustion would cripple her long before Dash started to slow. However, the fact that Dash had already flown for hours hauling a carriage full of people and she wasn’t tired didn’t bode well for that plan.

It reminded her uncomfortably of her first encounter with Nightmare Umbra. Once again, she was up against an opponent who was an inferior flyer, but that somehow didn’t amount to the advantage it should be.

Still, satisfied she had the measure of her enemy, Dash turned her attention away from Charisma and began levelling off. Her eyes darted across the blue horizon, lighting for a moment on her target before something in her peripheral vision caught at her attention. She turned her head to focus on a distant, dark speck. It was many miles away and nearly lost against the afternoon sun, but keen pegasus eyes were able to make out the tiny, flailing shape of a Griffin.

“Astrid,” Dash breathed, frowning. Her friend was much higher than she would have normally flown, and clearly struggling, but Dash couldn’t tell why. Regardless, she couldn’t help right then. She pushed Astrid to the back of her mind, focusing again on what was ahead of her.

She felt Charisma come level with her, picking up speed now that she didn’t have to fight gravity. That didn’t worry Dash. In fact, she was counting on her opponent getting closer before she sprung her trap.

That trap loomed dead ahead, growing with every passing moment from a distant gray smear to a towering thunderhead. Dash could practically smell the potential of the cloud as she approached. It was full of furious energy, wild and untamed. In its natural course that fury would be spent in a torrential downpour and random blasts of lightning, just one of many storms that swept across the jungle every day. Dash, however, had other plans for it.

She hit the cloud with Charisma a hundred feet behind her. It was thicker than most of the other wispy clouds that she had dealt with since awakening in the future, but still not nearly up to weather team standards. She cut through it with barely a twitch.

Charisma, however, impacted the storm as if she were diving into a pool of sticky cotton candy. The thunderhead interacted with the cloudwalking magic she had never before possessed, and she slowed to a near stop. She snarled in frustration and slashed with her claws, but with no idea how to direct her magic she failed to disperse the vapor from her path. All she managed to do was make the storm swirl around her, wrapping her limbs in the semi-solid vapor and slowing her even more.

As the enforcer struggled, Dash was at work. She dove through the swirls and eddies of the storm, finding the points of greatest potential. She bent those points to her will, with a breath of pegasus magic, a touch of encouragement and, when necessary, a swift kick. It was crude, fast work, but it got the job done.

The first lightning bolt flashed at Charisma, and she let out a cry as the electricity jolted painfully through her. Once it had passed, she was left steaming and stung, but otherwise unhurt. With a growl she renewed her efforts to close on Dash, only to have a trio of new bolts strike her in rapid succession.

While Charisma was dealing with a suddenly hostile lightning storm, Dash went high into the cloud, reaching the top levels. She swept across the roof of the thunderhead, just shy of breaking its surface. Her wide-stretched wings gathered a glittering trail of large ice crystals in her wake, pulling them along behind her like a fluttering cape. Through the strange connection they shared she could feel Charisma recovering from the lightning attacks. More, she could tell that the mad enforcer was rapidly learning how to deal with the clouds encumbering her.

Dash came to a halt in the middle of the cloud. Her wings gathered the air and swept down, throwing a heavy downdraft at Charisma. The powerful gust knocked her spinning for a moment, though with a dancer’s poise she was able to right herself in moments without any loss of concentration. However, that downdraft was followed a moment later by the storm of hail Dash had gathered. Charisma’s cry of surprise and anger as she was pelted with chunks of ice the size of plums could be heard even over the thunder that cracked all around them.

Dash didn’t wait to see how well her attack was working. She knew it wouldn’t be enough to defeat Charisma, but it had only ever been meant to keep her opponent off-balance for the next bit. She took a deep breath, centering herself, and then began to fly in a tight circle. She had to close her eyes against the rain that slashed at her face, wishing she had brought goggles for once. She sped up, becoming a rainbow blur in the center of a storm, a blur that was dragging more and more of that storm along with every revolution.

When the clouds started thinning around Charisma, she still had her forelegs up to protect her eyes from the pelting ice, so she didn’t notice it at first. When she finally did see that the clouds were being dragged somewhere, she didn’t understand what was happening. That confusion didn’t last long, however, because it soon became clear that the entire storm was being swallowed by an enormous, color-streaked whirlwind. Charisma stared slack-jawed at the colossal tornado for just a moment, but it was a moment too long. By the time she realized she had to escape, it was too late. She flapped her wings frantically, but just as Dash had anticipated, her poor technique only made things worse. With a scream she was sucked into the vortex to be tossed and tumbled within like a rag doll.

Dash exited her tornado easily, giving it a kick to send it scuttling away across the jungle. It wasn’t a permanent solution, but it would keep Charisma occupied for long enough to see to her friend.

Dash broke the sound barrier as she zipped over to where she had seen Astrid, the miles between them vanishing in an eyeblink. What she saw when she got close made her frown in confusion. The Griffin guardian was flying upside down, flapping like crazy just to keep herself steady. It looked awkward, ungainly and even made Dash a little queasy to watch.

“What the heck’s going on, Astrid?” Dash asked, pulling up next to the Griffin.

“It’s like I’m upside down when I’m not,” Astrid said between panting breaths. “I can feel gravity pulling me down, but when I stop flapping I just keep falling up!” Her wings stopped their frantic work for a moment and she fell a dozen feet upwards. “See?”

“Damn,” Dash replied, eyes wide. She rushed up and grabbed her friend. With Astrid nearly twice her size, Dash found that she had to struggle. She was more than strong enough, but her wings had evolved to pull weight up, not push it down. Astrid took the help with a grateful sigh, letting her wings rest. “This is crazy. Did Charisma do this to you?”

Astrid rolled her eyes. “No, I decided to say ‘fuck gravity’ all on my own. Of course it was Charisma. Why didn’t anyone tell me she could do this?”

“Nobody knew?” Dash said with a shrug. “I’m really starting to believe all the Elements of Harmony hype, though, because she just threw a forest at me. I mean, like, picked up all the trees at once and dropped them on my head.”

“Now that’s some real Celestia-damned superpowers bullshit. What did you do back?”

“Stuck her in a tornado.”

“Fuckin’ A.” Astrid grinned, then her expression soured as she looked down towards the jungle. “Fall. Is she alright?” Dash hesitated, and Astrid’s eyes narrowed. “Tell me you saved her from that psycho bitch.”

“I saved her,” Dash said. “But… she’s hurt, Astrid. Bad. I had to leave her down there with Calumn.”

“The bug?” Astrid snarled. “Oh, just perfect. Leave the damned princess while injured and vulnerable with a creature known for emotional manipulation and mind control.”

“He’s not a bad guy,” Dash protested, then paused as she thought it through. “Though, he did, kinda, sorta, mind control me for a bit.”

Astrid gave her a flat, nonplussed look. “Right. Now, before he kinda, sorta, mind controls Fall, how about using that superpony strength and getting me the fuck down?”

“Sure. Going down!” Dash took a moment to get a better grip on Astrid, then with a powerful sweep of her wings she sent them both zooming towards the forest.

Dash felt the change coming well before anything happened. There was a surge of electric tingles through her body, like she’d decided to lick a lightning cloud, and her sense of Charisma suddenly leapt to new levels. It was as if the other mare were standing right at her shoulder, close enough to rub flanks. Then there was a flash of light from just beyond the horizon, bright enough to momentarily outshine the sun. Dash knew in that moment that her whirlwind was gone.

“Crap, crap, crap!” She spurred her wings faster, but there was an oncoming ripple in the air that made her hair stand on end. The jungle came closer with an incredible speed that was rendered into agonizing slowness by the way the shockwave from the detonated storm was rushing at them. With barely moments to spare and a few hundred feet left to go, Dash hurled Astrid into the relative safety of the trees, prompting a screech of surprise that was quickly lost in the apocalyptic roar as the blast overtook them.

It hit Dash like a brick wall, tossing her end over end. Her ears rang with the overwhelming sound of it, and her lungs couldn’t draw in breath as the pressure change felt like it was squeezing her guts out. She fought through the crushing sensations, her wings a blur as she battled the shockwave and sought her way through it. A moment later, she was through the blast and into calmer air. Counter currents tugged at her wings, but she stilled them with a breath. A look down confirmed that Astrid was alright. The trees had blunted the worst of the shockwave long before it had gotten to her.

Dash let out a sigh of relief, but the feeling was short lived. Out of the center of the destruction flew Charisma, rushing not towards Dash, but towards the north-western horizon. Dash was confused for a moment, watching the enforcer go, but then with a crawling horror she remembered the city she had seen on her way south. Charisma was going for civilians.

“No!” Dash yelled, a choking panic making her heart leap in her chest. She looked down to where Astrid was clinging to the top branches of a tree. “She’s going for the city!” she called down. “I have to get her away from there! Go find Star and the others! They’ll need you!” Astrid just gave a solemn nod in response, and a moment later Dash was burning a rainbow trail towards Hoofprint.

She tried to angle herself to intercept Charisma’s flight, but it had taken her too long to get moving. Even at top speed she wouldn’t make it in time. She watched the city come into view, spreading itself across the river mouth in an urban sprawl that housed more innocent lives than she could count. She saw Charisma’s black and red streak fly over most of it before arcing down to land in a maze of buildings close to the docks.

She slowed down as she approached the city, remembering that her own sonic boom could hurt the fragile citizens if she wasn’t careful. Charisma had landed in what looked like a long open marketplace. Thousands upon thousands of ponies packed the wide street, a river of life ignorant of the mistress of death that had fallen into their midst.

The enforcer was easy enough to spot. She’d come down in a square, where the crowds were thickest but also where there were open areas around performers and musicians making coin by entertaining the shoppers. Charisma was in the middle of one of these performance circles, a crowd of curious people of all sorts gathering close and pointing to the fading ethereal trail she had left upon her arrival. They saw her huge wings, saw the strange way her Glyph was shifting like a heat mirage, and how her incredibly long mane seemed to float on an unfelt wind. That didn’t scare them, they simply pointed their hooves and laughed in delight at the spectacle. They didn’t see her claws. They didn’t understand that this performance could be their last.

Charisma looked up, locked eyes with Dash, and dropped into a graceful bow. The crowd stomped and cheered, edging closer to see what she would do. Dash cried out a warning, diving to save them.

Charisma’s talons tore through the first pony’s neck with no resistance. It was done so quickly that by the time the smile fell from the stallion’s face as he realized something was wrong, three others were already dead. Charisma whirled through the crowd in a dance of flashing claws, loosing ribbons of blood that described elegant arcs, framing her actions but never touching her.

Dash flew in to tackle her, but she rolled over a pony’s back, putting him in Dash’s way. Dash pulled up short, getting a surprised look from the living obstruction. A look that only worsened a moment later as Charisma’s talons laid his throat open to the bone. Dash could only stare in horror as the pony collapsed. Charisma was already gone, slipping through a crowd that was only just beginning to realize what was happening.

Dash went after her again, staying above the teeming people. For all the advantage Dash’s speed gave her, she couldn’t match Charisma’s ability to move through the crowd like a ghost. She tried to head Charisma off, tried to prevent her from killing any more than she had. It was futile. There were too many ponies, too many targets. When Dash dropped down and shoved one mare away from Charisma’s claws, the enforcer just continued the arc and buried them in the ribs of a Zebra, vanishing before Dash could grab her. When Dash leapt over the heads of ponies and tried to stomp down on her elusive foe, Charisma had already slipped away with the flow of the crowd, leaving blood and terror in her wake.

By the time the screaming started in earnest, a dozen were dead or dying. Voices cried out, screaming things in Lunar that Dash couldn’t spare the time to puzzle out. Their cries were taken up by others, and in moments the whole square had erupted into panic. More fell in the ensuing chaos, some cut down by Charisma, others trampled as the people stampeded in their panicked efforts to escape the packed market.

Dash couldn’t let this go on. She shot up a dozen feet, tracking Charisma both with her eyes and the strange sense that linked them. “Hey!” she shouted. Her words were lost in the roar of the frightened crowd, but Charisma stopped all the same, turning to regard Dash with a cool, amused smile. “I thought you were after me, huh? Well, I’m right here!” She threw her forelegs wide, willing Charisma to take the bait. “Come and get me!”

“What, and go on another little chase across the scenery?” Charisma sneered. The crowd surged around her, but she was an unmoving rock in the gushing river of colorful fur. “I don’t think so. I don’t want you running, Hot Stuff, I want you fighting!”

“Then fight me!” Dash pleaded. “Leave these people out of it!”

Charisma gave a small shake of her head. “You know what? For the first time ever I can honestly say I don’t give two shits whether any of these Lunatics live or die. I’ve taken out two score of them so far, and I don’t feel a damned thing.” She looked to the ground, but Dash didn’t make the mistake of thinking that meant she’d let her guard down. “A childhood wish finally come true, I guess. I don’t care about any of them anymore.”

“Then why kill them?”

“For you!” Her head came up, and her eyes were shining with a ruby light. “You, Rainbow Dash, you are everything!” She brought a claw up to touch the Element that burned on her chest. Dash shuddered, a terrible desire sinking into the pit of her stomach. “We are bound together. I think we always have been. I know you feel it too. The more I draw from this, the closer I get to you. The more I know you. And I know you won’t face me if you can help it. You’re afraid. Afraid of me, and afraid of yourself. You’ll run forever to keep from confronting that fear.”

“I’m not afraid,” Dash said, but she didn’t need Applejack to tell her she was lying.

Charisma scoffed. “You’re terrified. But it’s okay. I know how to help you get beyond your fear.” She grinned, revealing her mouth full of sharp, killing teeth. “Because I’ve known since our first fight that you’re a hero. A hero who won’t let anyone die if she can stop it. Hell, you didn’t even kill me when you had the chance. I ‘wasn’t worth it’, remember? Well…” She reached out, catching a passing pony with her claws. Dash lurched forward, but there was nothing she could do. There was a snap as Charisma broke the pony’s neck, hurling the body into the crowd. The ponies who had seen what she’d done tried to back away, but they were forced closer by the press of crowd trying to get clear of where the body had landed. Charisma glared up at Dash, a triumphant grin on her face. “Am I worth it now?”

Dash felt cold. She felt sick. Her hooves shook with the need to do something, but her spirit recoiled at the knowledge of what that something would have to be. There had to be another option. There was always another way. Yet… “You’re not going to stop, will you?” she asked in a hoarse whisper.

“Not unless you stop me,” Charisma replied. “So come on, Hot Stuff, show me that heroic spirit!” Light flared from the Element of Loyalty, bursting out from Charisma for a dozen yards. Everywhere that light touched, people died. They didn’t bleed or struggle, they simply stopped where they were and fell to the ground, utterly gone.

A scream ripped from Dash’s throat. A roar of many layers and emotions, a cry of pain and fear that overcame the crowd, stretching through the marketplace and into the city beyond. Beyond the surface of pain and terror, the scream was filled with anger, the hot kind of rage that burned fast and furious and left nothing in its wake but white ashes. The light coming from the Element shattered under the force of that cry, falling to fragments that broke into drifting motes of ruby power.

There was a moment of stunned silence as the scream ended. Dash panted for breath high above, and Charisma stood in her circle of death below, contemplating the bodies around her with an almost bored detachment. “Please…” Dash said, tears dripping from her eyes. “Please, I’ll fight you. Just leave them out of it.”

Charisma gave her a cold look. “No. You need incentive to fight your best, and they’re it.”

“But–”

“You will fight me head on, with everything you have! Every chance I get, every time you try to lead me away or pull your punches, more will die. If I kill this whole city, I’ll just move on to the next one. And then the next one, and the next one!”

Dash let out a strangled cry of rage and anguish, and shot in a rainbow streak directly at Charisma. The enforcer laughed, and met Dash’s hooves with her own claws. The force of the impact sent them both rolling over the fallen bodies, kicking and slashing at each other. Their whole bodies were weapons, strikes coming from any angle, blocked by any free limb. Charisma’s claws slashed shallow cuts in Dash’s legs and side. Dash’s hooves battered Charisma’s wings and chest.

Dash snaked her forelegs around Charisma, hissing as she received a deep jab to her side in return. With a mighty heave of her wings she brought them both into the air. The flight wasn’t long, she only wanted to get the height to rocket back to earth as fast as she could, slamming Charisma into the ground hard enough to shatter the stones in the street. The enforcer sunk her talons into Dash’s flesh and rolled with the impact, dragging the other pegasus with her and speeding their roll before coming up to her hooves and turning it into a rapid spin.

Dash tried to pull away, but Charisma’s grip was too good. She kicked out, but Charisma flapped her wings and added speed to the whirl. Then with a gleeful shout she released Dash. The ancient pegasus rocketed away at nearly transonic speeds, far faster than the spin should have sent her. Before she had even gotten her bearings, she smashed into the side of one of the steel and glass skyscrapers that were so prevalent in the future. She crashed through three floors and out the other side of the building, tumbling through the air.

Dash shook off the hit and righted herself, coming to a halt. She was shocked to discover that she was practically uninjured by the throw. She looked through the hole she had made in the building, and knew that no matter how tough she was supposed to be, she should be feeling that a lot more than she was. In fact, about the only things that seemed to hurt at all were the cuts Charisma’s claws had given her.

“The Element,” she murmured, sure that it was responsible. For some reason, the Element of Loyalty was helping both sides in this fight. Something in that thought caught at her, some half-formed realization that was just beginning to coalesce.

She didn’t have time for it, though. Every moment she spent thinking was another moment Charisma could be killing innocents. So she grit her teeth and shot right back through the hole she’d made, straight for Charisma’s smirking face with a hoof leading.

And so they fought. The air bent and roared to Dash’s will, creating clouds from the moist coastal air so that she could hurl lashes of lightning and thunder at Charisma. The enforcer dodged and spun around the attacks with swift grace, countering with sudden, deadly charges that forced Dash to be constantly moving. Light flared from Loyalty’s teardrop gem as Charisma used its power seemingly at random, ripping up the streets, throwing cars into the sky or crushing houses in on themselves. Sometimes she used the effects as a distraction or an attack in themselves, but mostly she seemed to be doing it for fun.

Each of them got in their hits, and every hit that landed was like a detonation, throwing the combatants apart and shaking windows. They spun around each other, their battle roaming the skies across the city. Charisma was singed and bruised, tumbled in hurricane force winds and soaked in stinging bursts of rain that were quickly frozen into an icy sheen on her wings before melting away. Dash was bloody. Fast enough to dodge the worst of the strikes that hit her, she was still left bleeding from dozens of shallow wounds.

Dash blasted Charisma with another gust of wind, throwing her down to crash into the street below. Instead of following it up with a lightning blast or rushing in to pummel her, however, Dash paused a moment to catch her breath. She didn’t let her gaze wander far from her opponent, but she still took in the scene around them. The city was a disaster zone. Fires had broken out in several places, and Dash couldn’t tell if it was from Charisma using the Element or her own stray lightning bolts.

The screams of frightened and angry ponies reached her ears, and though the streets below were mostly empty, she knew a crowd of innocents was only a few blocks away. They could keep going back and forth like this for hours, and there would still be innocents only a few blocks away. So long as that was the case, she was forced to play Charisma’s game, and it was a game she was destined to lose.

“The Element,” she whispered to herself again, and this time the understanding that had been growing in her made itself known. “I have to get the Element away from her.” It was the only way this was going to end without anyone else dying. The idea terrified her, the very sight of the crimson teardrop gem sent gut-wrenching feelings of desire and fear warring through her. Every time she closed with Charisma she had been careful not to touch the necklace, too afraid of what would happen. Now she realized that it didn’t matter. She needed to get the Element away from Charisma. It was the only way.

With a scream of defiance, Dash dove. She made no attempt to feint or get clever with her attack. Cleverness would only give Charisma time to counter her. No, all she needed now was what she was best at: speed. She dove in, a rainbow comet coming down faster than sound. Charisma slipped to the side, bringing her claws up. They were a deterrent, forcing Dash to keep from hitting her head on. Normally, it would have worked, but this time Dash was beyond caring if she got hurt in the exchange. She slammed into Charisma with pulverizing force, and in return those claws speared into her body, tearing into her right shoulder, slashing through muscle and bone and splattering Dash’s blood to the ground.

White agony screamed through Dash’s nerves, blinding in its intensity. But pain was not something foreign to Rainbow Dash. In many ways, it was an old friend. The pain of constant training was the price demanded for her strength, her speed, and she had paid it gladly. Torn muscles and broken limbs were the stairs she climbed to glory. So when the icy anguish of talons shredding her leg to uselessness hit her mind, it only served to focus her on what she came to do.

She drew the other mare close, wrapping her wings around them both in a brutal embrace to keep Charisma from escaping. Claws raked at her belly and rear legs, tearing out strips of bloody flesh, but she ignored them. Then with her good leg she reached in and grasped the Element of Loyalty.

Rainbow Dash screamed, and Charisma screamed along with her.

A wave of ruby power ripped out from the two of them. Buildings tore from their foundations to tip and whirl around the two mares as if they had become a new center of gravity. Objects of every size joined them, shuddering and spinning in their unstable orbits. Some broke apart, falling into myriad pieces. Others crashed into each other, fusing together into new wholes. Bonds both great and small formed and dissolved and tightened and released in chaotic spasms, all in time to the rippling waves of horrifying, otherworldly power.

In the center of the maelstrom, poised somewhere between terror and ecstasy, Dash reached into the Element, and found Charisma waiting for her. The light of the Element was shining into their souls, binding them to it and to each other. They were so close now that Dash could look into the other mare’s thoughts. Charisma’s whole being was laid bare to her, and she knew that the reverse was also true.

Like this, she could see the gray veil that had fallen over Charisma, leaching her of color. She was so utterly alone. She had denied her bonds to the world, and with them all of the things that had given her identity, all that had made her uniquely her. What was left was a mere sketch of a mare, going through the motions of life without the desire to live. Even the weight of her Talent was mostly gone, though its constant, maddening pressure had molded her into a creature that couldn’t stop killing even when she no longer felt the need to. All she had left, the one bond she couldn’t sever, was with Dash herself.

So, in that desperate loneliness, it was to Dash that Charisma was clinging. Like a life preserver thrown to a drowning pony. And the harder she held to Dash, the closer the Element drew them. It was only a matter of time before they were crushed together, and Dash couldn’t fathom what would happen then.

Dash sought out the place in the Element that had broken Charisma’s bonds. She used the enforcer’s memories to guide her, though the way felt terribly familiar. She found it with ease, and as she touched the power there it responded with gleeful eagerness. As soon as she felt that rush of power, Dash knew with a cold, ironclad certainty that there was something wrong with the Element. That if she put it on –and something in her wanted to very, very badly– she would likely end up like Charisma. Broken and alone.

It only took a small effort of will, more akin to flexing a wing than manipulating an awesome cosmic power, for Rainbow Dash to restore to Charisma every bond she had broken. Then, fighting her own traitorous desires the entire way, she released the Element and threw herself away from the other mare.

The power that had flowed from them ceased instantly. Debris of every size and shape crashed to earth in a cataclysmic rain. Dash could only hope that no one had been foolish enough to be close to the two battling pegasi when the Element had gone off.

She hit the ground in a roll, coming up to her hooves and noting with some surprise that her injuries were gone. The Element had healed everything Charisma had done to her. A look over to the enforcer showed that it had done the same for her. Charisma sat in the center of devastation, staring up to the sky in shock.

Jump on her while she’s distracted, a strange, insistent voice seemed to say in Dash’s mind. It was accompanied with an image of her doing just that, a vision so clear that she could see her own snarling face reflected in Charisma’s imagined eyes. Use rear legs to lock her wings and wrap forelegs around her head. Twist sharply until her spine snaps. Dash shook her head, trying to shed the ugly thought. It had felt so natural, so right, that her legs had tensed in preparation for carrying the action out. Yet she knew that it had come from Charisma. She and Dash were still bound tightly together, their minds so close they were practically sharing thoughts. The idea of her taking on even a part of Charisma’s Talent sent a sick wave of fear rolling through Dash.

That realization struck the enforcer at the same time it had come to Dash, and their eyes found each other’s, both gazes full of terrible knowledge. “No,” Charisma said, the denial wrought with heavy despair. Then with a wail she launched herself skyward, crashing through the sound barrier and streaking a black and red trail into the fading afternoon.

Without a moment’s hesitation, Rainbow Dash followed.

***

To say the situation was grim would be a tragic understatement. Applejack was down, her limbs still shaking from the aftereffects of what looked like a massive seizure. Hard Boiled was curled up on the floor, either unconscious or wishing he was. Traduce was a mess, though still alive enough to whimper. He was the only one left, and since even in the best circumstances Trail Blazer was as useful in a fight as a plastic sandwich to a starving Zebra, it was fair to say he was absolutely screwed.

“Yick,” Max Cash said in Solar, looking down at HB. “I’m gonna have nightmares about that one… Or, I would, you know, if I slept anymore.” He paused. “To be clear, Blaze, to unicorns this is like having your–”

“I get it,” he squeaked out. “Yup. No need for superfluous description. I’ve seen the whole picture already, no need for the previews.”

Cash smirked. “Oh, but those are the best part.” He chuckled. “Take a seat, Blaze. I don’t have a present for you yet, but we’ll work that out in a bit. I promise.”

He didn’t sit, instead slowly walking closer. His eyes darting about his fallen comrades as he tried to think of some way he could help. A way that wouldn’t get him bounced repeatedly off the walls like a green pinball, that is. He spotted both guns lying by their fallen owners, but the distinct lack of death stemming from the small black hole in Cash’s chest made him think that the weapons wouldn’t be of much use. That was assuming he could even get to one and get a shot off before Cash picked him up and folded him like origami.

Cash ignored him, sing-songing a happy “Ap-ple-jack!” and kneeling down next to the mare who glared up at him with baleful green eyes, too weak to move a hoof. “I’m guessing Solar is your language of choice these days. Makes sense, I suppose, but I honestly would have pegged you more as a staunch Republican girl. The ‘hard work’ thing all the stories give you really plays well south of the Storm.” Cash suddenly looked up from the mare. “Back me up here, Blaze. We Nightlanders are all over that ‘fruits of your labors’ stuff.”

He replied with a blank look. “I thought labor was a mare thing, honestly. Like, with foals and stuff? I don’t remember fruit being part of it, except, uh, in the metaphorical sense. Or that one time in Leo City.”

Cash grinned, then turned his attention back to Applejack. “Anyway, believe it or not, I had Rainbow Dash in a similar situation not too long ago. She was trying this whole disguise thing at the time. Almost fooled me, what with her still being alive a hilarious impossibility. I saw through it, though, and oh the shivers! Then wouldn’t you know it? I completely forgot what I had to say! It’s something about meeting a famous pony like her. The star-power just dazzles, you know? I couldn’t tell if I wanted her to join me or give me an autograph!” He laughed, and telekinetically pulled out a leather-bound book from his saddlebags. He flipped it open to a bookmarked page and scanned the words within for a moment, nodding in satisfaction. “After that little debacle I made sure to read up. I have the whole section memorized, now, but it’s always good to check, just in case. Plus I am just blown away by seeing you here. Tell me, is Twilight going to make an appearance? I hope so, I’ve got something I’ve been dying to say to her.”

“Varmint,” came Applejack’s wheezing reply.

“Whoa, chills,” Cash said, his grin widening. “I can excuse any attitude when it comes with an accent like that.” He leaned in close, his voice dropping to nearly a whisper. “I’ve got something for you.” His saddlebag opened again, and a necklace floated out. A golden band with a central gem in the shape of an orange apple.

Applejack let out a sudden shriek of fear. “No!” she cried out, feebly twitching away from the Element.

“No? But it’s your Element. It’s been waiting for you for a thousand years.” Cash brought the necklace closer.

“No it ain’t!” Applejack was struggling to push herself away from Cash, but her eye was locked on the Element, and there was raw desire in that stare. “You done somethin’ to it!”

Cash let out a dark chuckle. “Oh, Applejack, I haven’t done a thing to it, though it’s done quite a bit to me. I’m afraid it’s still every inch the Element you bore.”

“No! No! You’re lyin’! You’re a lyin’, dirty varmint and I ain’t listenin’ to you no more!” Even as she said this she managed to get one hoof off the ground, but instead of pushing Cash away it reached out for the Element.

“Heh, more mixed signals.” Cash looked across the temple at the only other conscious male, giving a conspiratorial wink. “Mares, right?” He turned back to Applejack. “Sorry, but that’s the honest truth. Though…” His mouth twisted in a wicked smile. “If all the truth does is make your heart ache...” Applejack stiffened, her visible eye going wide and unfocused. “Sometimes a li–”

The entire temple rattled as a crack of thunder loud enough to leave their ears ringing struck it. Wind gusted through the skylight and doorway, whipping manes about and sending the pages of Cash’s book fluttering fiercely. A moment later, it had passed. Cash frowned towards the skylight. “Dammit, Charisma! Keep it down! Now I’ve got to s–!”

Whatever he was about to say was cut off by a beam of destructive crimson magic that lanced across the temple and drilled into Cash’s side. It burned through his clothes and seared the coat and flesh underneath, filling the temple with the sickening smell of cooking meat. The Element of Honesty clattered to the ground as he reared back, hissing in pain and lighting his horn to fend off the attacking magic. “Oh, for the love of Luna and all her stars! You couldn’t have waited one measly minute?” Another blast crashed into his hasty shield, sending him skidding across the floor.

“Blaze! Get her away from him!” Star Fall commanded. She stood framed in the temple doorway with one leg thrown over the pony at her side, Calumn’s cracked features barely visible underneath his hood. That leg ended in a dismaying, bloody stump. A trio of spellsheets, glowing crimson with spider-walking sigils, floated in front of her. Heeding her command, he wasted no time in dashing to Applejack and dragging her away from Cash. He also took the opportunity to kick the Element of Honesty across the room to the doorway, keeping it from Cash’s easy reach.

“Princess! Great to see you again!” Cash cheerfully called out, though he winced as he walked back to the center of the temple, the motion pulling at his burn. “Gosh, you look awful. Did you run into Charisma? I made her promise not to kill you, but, well, she gets a little carried away sometimes.”

Star Fall’s glare darkened. “You’re just as responsible for what she’s done.”

Cash shrugged. “Probably, but, hey, why don’t we–”

A bolt of crimson light surged from Star Fall’s spellsheets. Cash caught the magic with his own, but his eyes widened in surprise at the strength of the attack. Star Fall kept up the pressure, limping forward and glaring at her opponent. “Shut up,” she growled, then two more beams of combat magic lanced at Cash. His counter magic caught hers, and the temple was filled with warring strobes of crimson and magenta as the two Magic Talents battled back and forth.

“Blaze.” The name pulled his attention from the spell duel. He leaned down to Applejack. “Help me up,” she said, raising a wobbly hoof to him.

“You sure you can stand?”

She shook her head. “Gettin’ stronger, but still weak as a foal. Don’t matter. Gotta get between them. Star’s hurt, she ain’t up for this kinda fight.”

He obliged, dragging her to a standing position, which she managed to hold without collapsing. Even in that short time, he could see that Star Fall was beginning to lose. Her rays of crimson magic were becoming smaller and dimmer, while Cash’s counters were just as vibrant as ever.

Applejack lurched in between them, cutting off a riposte from Cash that could have bowled Star Fall over. She set her stance wide and her head low, glaring at Cash. “We’ve seen how this goes. You can’t stop me alone, you sure as shootin’ can’t stop me and her both at the same time. And you ain’t trickin’ me again. This time when I take you down, I’ll put your lights out.”

“What trick?” Cash replied, backing up a step. “I just asked you to give me one little lie. If that’s a trick, I’d hate to see how you react to people asking you the time of day.”

“Wasn’t plannin’ on bein’ gentle already,” Applejack growled. A knee gave a little wobble as she shifted her weight, but she didn’t fall. “But go ahead, keep on yammerin’, I’m just gonna take a few teeth more’n I have to.”

“Please,” Cash scoffed. “You’re in no shape to do any of that. But this little lull in the flashy proceedings is nice. Gives us time to get our heads on straight. To think about things. Like, for instance…” He looked past Applejack and raised his voice. “Princess! How would you like to not be a cripple? Hey? Yeah? I’m sure once the war starts up amputations will be all the rage, but for now it’s kind of a fashion faux-pas, don’t you think? Well, I’ve got a solution to the problem! No messing around with reconstructive surgery, no garish prosthetics, just your old hoof back, good as new! Plus, and hear me out here, you might become a god.”

There was a pause as Star Fall blinked at him. Then she snorted and shook her head. “AJ, move, I’m going to blast him again.”

“Whoa!” Cash cried out, holding a hoof out to forestall her. “That’s kind of a violent response to an offer of deification. I’ve got miracles for sale, here! At least think it through before you start shooting!”

“I’ve thought about it,” Star Fall replied. “You’re a liar and a madpony.”

Applejack took a slow step forward, and Cash switched his focus back to her. “You know, Applejack. I can just shut you down again.”

“Might be,” the ancient pony replied, then tipped her hat low over her eyes and laid her ears back, pawing at the tiles. “But I figure if you could, you’d have done it by now.”

“The Element is all the way over here,” the hooded pony at Star Fall’s side said, then to emphasize that he stepped firmly on the necklace. “I’m not sure, but I’m gonna put my money on them getting to you before you can get to it.”

“Well, damn,” Cash said, then let out a high-pitched giggle. The world seemed to lurch as that sound echoed around the room, overlapping itself like a chorus of voices all laughing together. “You’re right, Honesty’s too far away to reach in time.” He giggled again, this time the sound was normal, albeit unhinged. “But he’s not. Trail Blazer! Come on down!”

“What?” was the only word he got out before a magenta glow surrounded him and he was yanked from his place and dragged across the short distance to Cash, where he fell on his rump once the magic vanished. Cash’s foreleg was around his neck in a flash, stronger than any unicorn had a right to be. A long, thin shard of crystal poked against his throat, drawing a bead of blood on its tip.

“Blaze!” his three conscious companions cried out near simultaneously. “Cash, let him go!” Star Fall commanded, her tone one of absolute authority, as if disobedience was unthinkable. He could imagine any citizen of the Solar Kingdom jumping to attention at the sound of a voice like that, could see them scrambling to obey its every whim.

Cash, unfortunately, was a Republican. They tended to respond to such orders in a different way. He laughed. “Hot damn she’s feisty,” Cash said, then dropped his voice to a conspiratorial low, pitching his comments to his prisoner. “You know, I had her in my bed once.” Cash chuckled, flashing a leering wink. “True story.”

“Cash!” Star Fall called out again, her spellsheets flaring in warning.

Cash rolled his eyes at her. “No,” he said, pushing the point of the crystal in deeper. “I’m not just going to let him go. And unless you want to see how far I can get his blood to spray, I suggest not trying to make me.”

“If you’re going for distance, you’re holding him all wrong,” a new voice cut in.

“Astrid!” Star Fall cried out in gleeful relief as her guardian dropped in through the skylight above the temple’s garden. The Griffin was, for some reason, clutching a weather-worn shape that looked like one of the statues from outside. Then she dropped it and, bizarrely, fell up to land on the ceiling, where she stood as if it were the ground.

“Okay… what?” Cash asked the room.

“Sorry it took so long, Fall,” Astrid said, wincing as she took in her charge’s state. “Had to get some help from Dash.”

“How’s she doin’?” Applejack asked.

“Charisma’s attacking Hoofprint,” Astrid replied. “Dash went after her. Can’t tell you much more than that.”

“She’ll be fine,” Star Fall assured Applejack.

“Shit, Fall, you look terrible,” Astrid said.

“We’ll talk about it later,” Star Fall replied. “Right now, we’ve got him to take care of.”

“Yeah, you’ve got me to take care of,” Cash said, indignant. “And, by the way, hostage situation, remember?”

“Yeah, about that,” Astrid said, giving Cash a raptor’s grin. “I just met this guy yesterday, and we’re not exactly friends, so I’m not really going to care if I have to go through him to get to you.”

“You might not care,” Cash said, then tilted his horn at Applejack. “But she will.” Applejack set her lips in a grim line, but she didn’t argue. “Besides, the whole thing is moot. I’m not dying today.” He looked between them, meeting each of their gazes in turn. As he spoke his voice, at first calm and measured, became louder and more uneven, until he was spitting his words and snarling with every breath. “I mean it. I’m not. You might think you’ve got me cornered, or whatever, but I have come too far, gone too deep. At this point my victory is inevitable. It’s going to happen. Whether it happens with you guys at my side or not, well… well it doesn’t matter. Hell, even giving you the choice of joining me or not doesn’t matter. We’re all just playing out our roles. All just following our scripts like good little puppets. Dangling from our strings. Waiting to be cut out and put away or lifted up beyond the stage. This has been a long time coming. Since the beginning of the world. Maybe longer. Pieces have been put in place over the course of millennia, and the ones that put them there are not going to let you just sweep it all away because you’ve got some stupid notion of making a difference. No. I’m not going to die, and I’m not going to be captured! I’m getting Kindness and I’m walking out of here with my own set of Bearers! Sure, Fluttershy’s being stubborn, but that’s just another part of the fucking plan! I’ve just got to push harder!”

Cash let out a wild laugh and squeezed, cutting into airflow just enough to make it hard to draw breath. “So Charisma was a bust. So what? She wasn’t who I wanted for Loyalty anyway. But maybe I can still get some use out of the pink psycho! How about it, Blaze? I still have the Element of Greed, why don’t I convince your friends here that you’re the tastiest treat they’ve ever laid eyes on, huh?” The others recoiled, and Cash just laughed harder. “They’ll do it, too. They’ll want to. All I have to do is keep little miss hayseed from opening her mouth and it’s an all-you-can-eat Blaze buffet! Yeah! A little bit of cannibalism, a touch of bloody artistry, and I leave your mangled corpse out for my fluffy pink bodyguard to find when she’s had her fun with the good citizens of Hoofprint! Okay, so she’s a little Inverted right now, but that won’t last. She’ll come around, and when she sees what’s left of you she is going to break!”

He whipped his head around to stare at the source of the pink glow. “How’s that, huh? Cruel enough for you? Or do you want me to make her eat him herself?!”

In the cold silence that followed, Cash’s prisoner spoke. “Buddy,“ he choked out, sucking in a rough breath. Across the temple, the hooded pony’s ears perked up. “Now.” The face beneath the hood split into a wide fanged grin, and the cloak was thrown wide to reveal that on a chain around his neck he wore the broken remnants of a black crown upon which was affixed a small blue-green gemstone. A Mirror Crystal. The gem suddenly blazed with green fire, and Cash’s eyes went wide as he looked from the gem to the pony in his grasp, whose own eyes were lit with an answering flame that revealed the true Changeling. “Sleep.”

Cash sagged. Magic Talents could shake off Changeling magic, even when it was enhanced by a Mirror Crystal, but it still affected them for a split second. That second was all that Calumn needed. Trail Blazer’s form, constructed with painstaking care before they had left the RIA, burned away as he reached up to slide Cash’s horn through one of the holes in his leg. Then he curled forward, yanking his foreleg down to wrench Cash’s neck and flip him over Calumn’s shoulder in a perfectly executed takedown throw. The unicorn crashed hard to the floor, his breath leaving him in a rush, his head at Calumn’s feet. The stunned look on Cash’s face lasted only a moment before Calumn brought the leg still hooked on Cash’s horn up, while simultaneously slamming his other leg down. He drew on the Mirror Crystal hard, empowering his body to momentarily equal the might of a Strength Talent earth pony. Cash’s horn began to light up, but with Calumn’s sleep spell still making his thoughts slow, he couldn’t get a shield up in time. Calumn’s hoof landed hard, and between the opposing forces Calumn had created, Cash’s horn was shattered.

The scream Cash let out did not sound equine. A chorus of voices screamed with him, each hitting a different note of pain and anger. Ears were laid flat, but the sound seemed to sink into the skin, setting their bones buzzing with it. It lasted for far too long, well beyond the point where Cash’s lungs should have had no air left in them. Eventually, though, it did end. Cash was left staring in dazed shock at the Changeling, smoking pieces of his broken horn scattered about him. Calumn backed off, and Applejack was on him in an instant, holding him down and pressing his face into the floor. Calumn took the opportunity to reach into Cash’s saddlebag, pulling out the Element of Generosity and flinging it across the temple, out of Cash’s reach.

“It’s over,” Calumn told the defeated stallion as the necklace clattered to a stop. “Your magic is broken, the Elements are too far away, and there’s no way you’re overpowering Applejack. You’re done.”

“Nice work, bug boy,” Astrid said, her tone one of grudging respect. “I never twigged that you two had switched places. Now let’s kill him and get out of this dump.”

“We ain’t killin’ nobody,” Applejack snapped out, tilting her head up to glare at Astrid from under her hat.

“AJ, he’s gotta go.”

“Absolutely,” Star Fall said. Her body was shaking with the effort of remaining upright, but her eyes were hard with determination and her voice didn’t waver one bit. “Even leaving Cash alive long enough for this discussion is a terrible idea.” Her spellsheets sparked with renewed energy.

“Don’t you do it, Star!” Applejack said, rounding on the pegasus. “We ain’t killers!”

“Shit, did we forget to have ‘the talk’ with this one?” Astrid snarled. “We are killers, AJ. Star, me, the insects, we’ve all killed before, and for a lot less reason than this asshole’s given us. Hell, I know for a fact that Dash would agree with me here, this guy has to die.”

“Well, I don’t,” Applejack said, raising her chin in a stance of stubborn defiance. “And I ain’t gonna let you just murder someone in front of me!”

“Then leave,” Astrid snarled.

“No.” The word had left Calumn’s lips before he knew he was going to say it. All eyes went to him. He took in the emotions that were directed his way from each of those looks: Fear from Star Fall, mixed with pain and a bone-deep weariness. Fury from Astrid, but a fury that masked frustration and a sickening sense of helplessness. Hope from Applejack, an open and honest hope that came with the intensity of a spotlight. Curiosity from Blaze, along with friendship and trust. He latched onto that trust, held it close as he looked down at the prone Cash. “He deserves to die. For all that he’s done… he deserves it. But that doesn’t mean we have to kill him. That doesn’t mean we have the right to kill him. Not now, when he’s helpless at our hooves. For all we know… maybe there’s enough equinity in him to save. Maybe under his insanity there is still a soul in pain. A pony with a diseased mind who deserves nothing more than pity. I don’t know, but I won’t just end him because it’s convenient. I’ll take him back to the Republics, and he will stand trial. Then he’ll be put somewhere where he can be watched and cared for until the day comes that his mind is well and he can understand what it is he’s done, and what he’s coerced others into doing.”

“You have got to be fucking kidding me,” Astrid said.

“Calumn,” Star Fall began, her tone reasonable but with a barely controlled undercurrent of panic. “That’s a mistake. You know how dangerous he is. It’s not his magic that made him that dangerous, it’s his mind. You might have good intentions, but he’ll take advantage of those intentions and use them to escape. Then he’ll kill you and who knows how many others.”

“Plus, it’s stupid,” Astrid said. “Even if he doesn’t use your retarded attempt at mercy to escape, the moment you get him back in Republics territory your own people will take him out in a field and put a couple rounds in the back of his head. He’s never seeing trial.”

“I won’t let that happen,” Applejack said. “I don’t know much about this time, but I know what’s right. Killin’ ponies for any reason, that ain’t right.”

“Princess, think of the knowledge he holds,” Calumn said. “He could tell us how to use the Elements to fight the Destroyer.”

“I’ll never trust any information that came from him,” Star Fall replied.

“Blaze?” Calumn looked to his friend, who shrugged.

“I’m staying out of this one, buddy. I trust you, but I’ve got a lot of anecdotal evidence for the ‘kill him now’ side.”

“I can’t believe this!” Astrid shrieked, smashing a clenched claw into the ceiling. “Why did we bring any of you along if you were just going to pull this bullshit?”

“Astrid, if it came down to him or us, I would have snapped his neck in a heartbeat,” Calumn said. “But it didn’t. We stopped him. That’s what we came here to do. Now… now we have the responsibility to make the moral choice. The right choice.”

“I never thought I’d hear that from a Changeling,” Star Fall said, shaking her head in weary exasperation.

Calumn allowed himself a small smile. “I’m not your average Changeling.”

“Do you really believe it?” Max Cash spoke up. Calumn slowly looked down at him, wary of tricks. “Do you really believe even someone like me can be… reformed? Can change?”

Calumn looked to Applejack first, then shrugged. “I don’t know,” he replied honestly. “There’s no way for you to ever make amends for what you’ve done, for the lives you’ve ruined. But I… I believe that anyone can change for the better, and that everyone deserves a chance to make that change happen. Even someone like you.”

Cash closed his eyes, taking a long, slow breath. “How…” His mouth stretched into a wicked grin. “Kind.”

That smile was all the warning they got before Cash moved. He twisted in Applejack’s grip. She was still weaker than she should have been, and he toppled her with a yelp. Cash lashed out with one leg and hit Calumn square on, sending him reeling backwards. Calumn stumbled over a small statue of a rabbit, falling through the bubble of pink light as if it were merely air. He flailed wildly, and caught himself on a pony-sized statue he hadn’t even noticed was there. He looked up into the beatific stone gaze of a beautiful pegasus mare, momentarily captivated. Then a tide of energy went through his body, like he’d just taken a big drink of pure-hearted unconditional love. He looked to the source of the wondrous sensation and found that in grasping the statue he had placed a hoof on a necklace around the statue’s neck, right on a pink gem in the shape of a butterfly. He pulled away, and with a soft sound of metal over stone, the necklace came away in his grasp, its soft pink glow pulsing outwards and filling him with a sense of profound peace.

Then Cash let out a wild laugh that shattered the momentary serenity. Calumn looked past the glowing necklace to see the madpony still splayed out on his back, staring at him with feverish eyes and a smile so wide it threatened to split his lips. Something in those eyes cut straight into Calumn, something utterly indescribable that went beyond magic or his natural emotional senses. In an instant the glow from the necklace vanished, and it tumbled from Calumn’s hoof to the ground. He couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe. He was locked in place by that gaze. He knew in that moment that Cash was going to kill him, and wouldn’t even have to lift a hoof or use one spark of magic to do it.

Then Astrid leapt from the ceiling with all the predatory grace her kind were famous for. Her claws slid deep into Cash’s chest, and she clenched them tight around his ribs. She fell upwards, carrying him with her, and began tearing into him. The Griffin was almost frantic in her efforts. She raked at him with her back paws, nails as sharp as razors tearing at his belly, cutting the straps of his saddlebags so they fell to the floor accompanied by a rain of torn flesh and blood clotted nearly black. With a final avian scream she slid her free claw into the wound she had opened in his belly, reaching up into his chest. He became very still, staring wide-eyed into her unforgiving gaze. “You’ve done a lot to deserve it,” she snarled. “But this one’s for Melody.” Then she tore out his heart and crushed it in front of him.

Cash stared in shock for a moment, then went limp in Astrid’s grasp. Below, Applejack scrambled out of the way of the falling gore before taking her hat off and putting it to her chest, swallowing hard but refusing to look away. With a flick of her wrist, Astrid threw the body to the ground. It hit with a dull thud. Calumn took a deep breath, and found that he was shaking. Anger, disbelief and horror warred within him, each also contending with a deep, quiet but insistent longing for the necklace that lay at his hooves. It called to him, and the implications of that call terrified him.

Astrid turned her baleful glare on Applejack and Calumn. “Anyone going to fucking object now?!” Astrid screamed at them.

Calumn had no answer. He just stood there, trembling and staring at the body until he felt a foreleg go over his shoulders. “Hey, buddy,” Blaze said, drawing his attention away from the corpse and his own internal struggle. “I don’t think he really wanted to be saved, you know?”

“I… yeah,” Calumn replied with a slow, shaky nod. Blaze was still wearing his face, but with an effort of will that helped clear his head, he reached through the Mirror Crystal and ended the illusion spell he’d cast on his friend. As he looked into Trail Blazer’s yellow eyes, seeing the steady friendship in their depths, he found the strength to draw himself up and still his fears. He turned his gaze to the Griffin on the ceiling. “Astrid… thank you. You saved my life.”

“Damn straight,” Astrid snorted.

“Ain’t right,” Applejack said, shaking her head. When she looked up at Astrid, though, there was no accusation in her eyes. Calumn could read her emotions like she was an open book, and it was clear she understood the necessity of what had happened, even if she refused to agree with it. When she looked back at Cash’s body, her eyes widened in a spike of confusion and shock. “What in the world?”

Calumn felt his whole body tighten in fear. In his mind he saw a vivid image of Cash rising to mock them all for presuming he needed a heart to live. “What is it?” Star Fall asked from where Blaze had left her sitting near the entrance.

“His cutie mark,” Applejack replied, her voice full of confusion. Calumn’s Old Equestrian was only good enough to pass as an academic if he needed to, but he thought she was talking about Cash’s Talent Glyph. Cash’s Glyph wasn’t a mystery, though, and it wasn’t exactly strange. True, it was an Abstract Glyph, just like most of the ponies in this room, and thus up for some interpretation, but otherwise fairly standard: a magenta and white starburst containing five smaller white stars.

“What’s wrong with it?” Star Fall asked.

“It’s just…” Applejack trailed off, shaking her head. “Sorry, just a little spooked, it’s probably nothin’.”

“Don’t do that,” Star Fall said. “Don’t assume anything. What did you see?”

“It ain’t nothin’ big,” Applejack began. “But, well, it’s just that it looks an awful lot like–”

“Applejack?” A new voice cut her off. Calumn turned to find himself looking into the most beautiful cyan eyes he had ever seen. The statue had become a mare, a yellow pegasus with a long pink mane. That mare was staring around herself with wide, terrified eyes. When those fell on the corpse of Max Cash she let out a squeak, pulling back and almost seeming to collapse in on herself in fright. “Applejack, what’s going on? Where am I? What happened to that poor pony?”

“Get her away from the Element!” Star Fall cried out, trying to rush forward, but tumbling to the ground as her legs finally gave in.

“Fluttershy, darlin’, you need to come over here, alright?” Applejack called to her friend.

“But…”

Applejack put one hoof on the body and shoved it so that it rolled across the floor until it smacked up against the wall, settling into a sprawled face-down pose. “Don’t mind that none, you hear? I’ll explain everythin’ to you, but we’ll do it outside, alright?”

“Al–alright,” she said, and stepped daintily around the stained floor. With a little coaxing from Applejack she was soon out of the temple.

“Are the others alive? I can’t tell from here,” Star Fall asked them.

Calumn took a deep breath, then focused on his emotional senses, tasting the feelings of everyone in the room. There was a lot of pain, but ultimately that was a good thing. “They are,” he replied, relived. “Hurt, but alive.”

“Blaze, I need you to bring them outside. We’ll need the light to treat their injuries.”

“Can do!” Blaze said, saluting and then skipping off to begin dragging Hard Boiled outside.

“Calumn, I need you to get Cash’s bags for me.”

Calumn paused a moment, looking down at the Element he had so briefly held. It still called to him, but somehow Fluttershy’s arrival had dulled that siren song, making it far more bearable.

“Calumn?”

“Right,” he said, shaking off the lingering feeling that he should put the necklace on. “What about the Elements?”

“We can’t put them in grabbing distance of their bearers,” Star Fall said. “Don’t take any chances.” She paused to catch her breath as Blaze came back in to carefully lift Traduce onto his back and walk her out. Calumn could sense the crushing weariness that was settling on the princess now that the danger had passed. Combined with the pain of her injuries, it was astounding that she was thinking clearly enough to give instructions at all. Once she’d marshalled her strength she spoke again. “Forget the bags. Leave everything. All I want is a book. Leatherbound. If you can read Old Equestrian it’s titled ‘Harmony Theory’.”

He remembered the book Cash had looked through just before Star Fall had arrived and saved Applejack from… something. “I know it,” he said. He took one last look at the Element, then put it out of his mind and got moving.

***

The Element of Laughter pulsed with a brilliant blue light. Each of those pulses sent out a palpable wave of magical force that rattled the windows of the observation room. They had put the Element in a vault at first, but as soon as it had started reacting they had moved it to one of the interrogation rooms in the building. It was the closest thing they had to a secure area where they could observe the artifact and not be in the same room as it. From what Rarity was seeing, the only security the setup provided was for their feelings. The power of the Element reached through the walls as easily as it did the air.

“Well that’s… unsettling,” she said, the light of her horn guttering like a candle in the wind. “Spike, dear, do you…?”

“I feel it,” he replied. His eyes were narrowed as he looked through the observation window. He appeared relaxed in his wheelchair, but his jaw muscles were taut with stress, and the tip of his tail kept slashing back and forth in little motions. “I’m amazed you didn’t until you got down here.”

“Every thaumometer brought into the vicinity has failed,” Director Straff said. He and Agent Gamma stood side by side next to Spike at the window. Their already-similar eyes set in identical looks of controlled calm. “Needles buried in the red. However, at just about ten meters from the Element all readings revert to normal. This is not equipment error, and our best minds have yet to come up with a reasonable explanation.”

Rarity gave him a blank, level look. It was Gamma who answered her silent question. “It’s generating an enormous amount of power, but that power is vanishing and we don’t know why.”

“Ah.” Rarity regarded the glowing pendant. It had a particular beauty like this, shining with an internal light, that it didn’t possess when it appeared as just a regular gem. It had looked the same around Pinkie’s neck, but the power it was releasing now wasn’t the unstoppable torrent that had poured forth to consume the Senator’s mansion. No, she could tell that this power had a purpose. “It must be going somewhere.”

“Indeed, but we’ve found nothing to indicate where it’s going or how it’s getting there,” Straff replied. “It isn’t creating any kind of spell pattern or transforming into other types of energy. It’s not grounding out or circulating or getting any weaker. It’s radiating for a certain distance, and then it simply… stops.”

“What about teleportation?”

“Teleportation?” Gamma repeated, quirking an eyebrow as she looked to Spike. “Is that possible?”

The Dragon nodded slowly, tapping his claws on the arms of his chair. “Maybe. I don’t think it’s teleporting, though. It might be hundreds of years since I last saw Twilight, but I still remember what teleportation spells feel like. But that doesn’t mean something similar isn’t going on. If it’s following an extradimensional conduit, for instance…” His eyes narrowed. “Rarity, where do you think it’s going?”

Rarity blinked in shock at the question. “Well, I have no earthly idea. Why would you ask me?”

“Because I think you might know,” he said. There was something in his eyes, some glimmer of emotion that made her take a half-step back from him. “Not consciously,” he added quickly at her reaction, flashing her a reassuring smile. “But I know for sure that Applejack and Rainbow Dash are still connected to their Elements, so it makes sense you are to yours. I held Generosity for a few years, I know some of the tricks you can do with it. One of those tricks might give us some information here.”

Rarity’s eyes went from him to the other two ponies in the room. They were both looking at her like she was some bacteria under a microscope, studying her intently. “Well, I… I’ll help in any way that I can, of course, but I don’t see how I can use my Element when it’s so far away.”

“The Elements are weird,” Spike said. “Sometimes distance doesn’t matter.”

Straff cleared his throat. “Master Spike, what exactly are you proposing to do?”

“Being an Element Bearer allows you to see things in different ways,” Spike replied. “It’s like a sixth sense. Twilight called it a ‘Passive Ability’ of the Elements. It’s something Bearers do automatically, without even noticing. If they concentrate on it, though, they can control it, see things they wouldn’t be able to otherwise.”

“And you think I can do this?” Rarity asked.

“I know you can,” he said with a confident nod.

“Will this be dangerous in any way?” Straff asked.

Spike shook his head. “No, it’s basically like unfocusing your eyes to see patterns in an otherwise random collection of shapes and colors. There’s no danger at all.” He paused, and his eyes shifted away from everyone as a thought occurred to him. “Well, there shouldn’t be any danger.”

Absolutely no one in the room was happy with that statement. “That is most definitely not reassuring,” Gamma dryly stated.

“There was this one time with Rainbow Dash,” Spike admitted, “but it was a one-off thing. As long as Rarity’s not physically holding her Element, it should be fine.”

“Since you so recently stated that ‘sometimes distance doesn’t matter’, this does not fill me with any degree of reassurance,” Gamma said. “However, our options in this matter are limited. Any information is better than our present ignorance.”

“Agreed,” Straff said. “Great lady, if you would please attempt what Master Spike is suggesting, the RIA would be grateful.”

“What… what do I have to do?” Rarity asked.

Spike took a deep breath and lay a comforting claw on her shoulder. “Look at it,” he said, tilting his head towards the window. Rarity obliged, staring into the pulsing blue glow of the Element of Laughter. “Don’t try to pick out details or think too hard about it, just let yourself look at it. Remember, you’re not trying to see the Element itself, you’re looking for the energy it’s creating. Think of it like finding inspiration for a new dress. Look past the surface and see the true essence beneath. Feel it.”

“I’ll try,” she said. She stared into the light, trying to see past it, but she couldn’t quite bring herself to stop focusing on the balloon-shaped gem. She could certainly feel the energy it was giving off, though. It would be a chore to ignore it. It was all around her, beating through the walls and wiggling its way into her cells. It flitted through space, everywhere at once. It was inside her. “Spike!” she cried out as she began to feel her heart beat in time to the glowing pulses of the Element.

“It’s okay,” Spike said, stroking her mane reassuringly. “You’re safe with me, alright? You’re safe.” Rarity’s panicked breaths slowed. “What are you seeing?”

“It’s… it’s in me, Spike,” she replied.

“The energy’s going into you?”

“No, it’s coming from me.” She squirmed in place. “It’s coming from me and it’s coming from you too, but not nearly as much. And there’s… Pinkie.”

“Pinkie Pie? She was supposed to keep away from this room,” Straff said, just a hint of annoyance and alarm in his voice.

“No, she’s far enough,” Rarity said. She could have pointed directly to her friend if she wanted to, and given an exact distance, too. “But… but she’s also right here. The magic… the energy from the Element is coming from her, just like it’s coming from me. We’re… giving it? No, that’s not right. It’s being taken from us.”

“How do you know this?” Gamma asked.

“I… I just do,” Rarity replied with a shake of her head. “Spike, how do I know these things?”

“That’s normal, don’t worry about it,” Spike said. “Rarity, try to look for where it’s going. If it’s being taken from you, then it’s being taken to somewhere. The power is flowing. Look for that flow, see where it's going.”

“I…” Her eyes went wide, and suddenly she could see the whole of it. She saw the flow, like a mighty blue river, pouring from the Element of Laughter. Smaller streams from herself and Spike wound around it, guiding it. Another power held it all together, and in a ruby flash of recognition she understood that it was Rainbow Dash. Or was it the Element of Loyalty? They were mixed up in her mind, it was hard to tease them apart. The steady presence of Applejack and Honesty kept the floodgates open, and over everything was the soft, pink glow that could only be Fluttershy’s Kindness, the grease that kept this machine from seizing.

“I can feel them, Spike,” she said, gasping in an awe-filled breath. “Our friends, I can see them, and… oh no.”

“What’s wrong?”

“They’re in danger! Dash is fighting some twisted thing that stole her power. Applejack… it’s like something’s wounded her dearly, but she doesn’t feel it. And Fluttershy… she’s here, Spike! She’s alive, but she’s so confused!”

“Are they where the power is going to?” Gamma asked.

Rarity shook her head. “No. No, they’re sources of it, like me.”

“Then, Lady Rarity, I suggest you keep looking for the destination,” Straff said.

She felt herself nod, but sensation was distant. She was consumed by the river of power, following it along its course. There was an Element missing, she knew. That Element should be the most important of all, without which this whole thing shouldn't be possible. Yet the river hadn’t formed without purpose. The flow of power had direction, intent. There was a will at work here, a mind. She rode the power, searching for that mind. She saw its end point, swirling in a vortex around something she could only think of as a dark egg. An egg whose shell was cracked. From within, in the place where the shell had begun breaking open, something terrible stared back at her, and spoke one word:

Rarity

She only had time for a single small, frightened gasp before her eyes rolled back and she fainted dead away.

***

Charisma rose above the towers of the city, above the tallest mountains, above the highest clouds, above everything bound to the world, to the place where all was still and silent. There she hung without effort above the curving earth, bathed in Celestia’s light. There she waited for Rainbow Dash, and the end to all things.

The cold had cut at Charisma’s wings as she ascended, the thin air making it feel like she was suffocating. No matter how much she breathed there was never enough air getting into her lungs. For a long moment she had thought it was just in her head, but then she realized that it was because she had gone so high, higher than she had ever imagined possible. Once she knew what the problem was, it wasn’t a problem anymore. A flash of ruby light from the Element of Loyalty, and suddenly all the air Charisma needed was bound to her, dragged along in a gusting stream that buoyed her wings and filled her lungs.

Dash was below her, somewhere, catching up. Perhaps being more cautious in her ascent, perhaps simply knowing she didn’t need to hurry. The Element was working for the other mare as much as it was for Charisma, neither of them needed to fear the vacuum. Neither could run from the other. Either way, she would be there soon.

Charisma remembered the screams and the blood in the city below. She remembered the feast of death she had gorged herself on, the carnage she had enacted. She should have been shivering with delight at the thought, but instead all she felt was sick. It was all wrong. She’d killed so many, so easily, and it had been… fun. The kind of fun she’d had when she’d indulged Blaze once and went bowling with him. She hadn’t cared for the game, though she’d been good at it, it had meant nothing more to her than a pleasant way to pass the time.

Killing wasn’t fun. No, each kill was a glorious thing. An experience in pleasure. A sinful delight that she couldn’t help but savor and crave again and again. She cared about each kill, they mattered to her. Each life taken was another face gone from her nightmares. Each death another part of the world made right.

“I thought, once,” she said, knowing that Rainbow Dash would hear every word. “That if it just didn’t feel so good, I wouldn’t do it so much. I told myself that I was addicted to the rush, and if that was gone I’d stop.”

The mare in her memory hadn’t cared. The lives hadn’t mattered. They were just fodder, there to draw Rainbow Dash in and force her to fight. It hadn’t been her. And yet, it was her. She’d used the Element to do that to herself. Then Rainbow Dash had changed her back. She didn’t know which was better.

“But it doesn’t matter how good it feels, does it? It’s what I do. It’s what I am. What I’ve always been.” She raised her claws up to her face, admiring the gleaming razor sharpness of them. They weren’t Griffin claws or Dragon claws, they were something wholly unique to her. As delicate as a scalpel, as brutal as a chainsaw. “What kind of filly gets a Talent for killing if she isn’t already…” She choked back something that might have been a sob or a laugh. “A monster.”

She looked to the black sky, stars shining like jewels against a dark curtain. Celestia’s sun, brighter than ever, shone with a pure white radiance. She turned to that light, the blinding intensity of it searing at her eyes. She didn’t care. The Element shielded her from the full brunt of it, just as it gave her the strength to be up here, beyond the breathing skin of the earth. When she glanced below, it seemed like half the world was laid out. A map with no names. She could see the Everstorm slicing across the continent, a blight on a world that otherwise seemed perfect. As perfect as the mare who followed her even to these impossible heights.

“It’s beautiful,” she whispered. She hung in space, gazing down on the earth and waited for her perfect enemy to arrive.

When Rainbow Dash came even with her, they spent a long moment simply staring at one another. They could each feel the other mare’s thoughts as if they were her own. Neither of them needed to speak to be understood by the other, but the words still felt important.

“You don’t have to be a monster,” Dash said. “I know… I can tell you don’t like what you just did.”

“That’s just the problem,” Charisma replied, shaking her head. “I didn’t like it. But if I did it now, I would. I would love it. You gave that back to me. Do you understand? Oh, Hot Stuff, when you undid what I’d done to myself, you didn’t stop me from being crazy, you brought the crazy back.”

“I know.” Dash turned her head to the side, struggling with warring feelings of anger and her own need to be a hero. “But it doesn’t have to be that way.”

“It always has been, it always will be.”

Dash flashed across the distance separating them, one hoof going out and slapping Charisma across the face. She didn’t stop it, even though she could have. She just took the blow and looked back at the other pegasus with a calm, blank expression. They were so close their noses nearly touched, their eyes boring into each other’s. “You…” Dash began, then let out an angry snarl as the words stalled in her throat. She grit her teeth and started again. “I can help you,” she managed to growl out. “Give up. Come back down and take off the Element. We can… I don’t know, we can figure something out, okay? Some way to stop it. Stop the killing, the need for it.”

“Maybe that could have worked. A long time ago, when I was still a filly. Before the Secret Service, before the army. Before they took my Talent and trained me to use it… and showed me how much I loved using it.” Charisma allowed a sultry smile to soften her lips. “If I gave it up, I know I’d miss it.”

“Charisma, if you don’t, I have to stop you,” Dash said.

“I know,” Charisma replied, soaking in Dash’s palpable determination. “And I know you don’t want to. Because you know to stop me, you’ll have to kill me.” She laughed. “And I know that no matter how much you don’t want to kill me, you’ll have no problem killing Max Cash. I’d be insulted if I didn’t understand the impulse intimately.” Her claws snapped up and grasped Dash’s face between them. Dash’s eyes went wide with fear for a moment, then she relaxed as she realized Charisma had no intention of hurting her. “The difference between you and me, Hot Stuff, is that when you get the chance, I know you’ll take it.” She tried to laugh again, but it came out a wretched sob. “Just like I knew, somehow, from that first moment we fought, that it would come to this. You were my equal and opposite, in every way that counts. I still don’t know who’s going to win... Even with all this power, all my skill… I don’t know who’ll win.”

“We don’t have to find out.”

“Yes we do.” Charisma took a steadying breath. She released Dash and looked past the other pegasus to the world far, far below. “It’s time to end this.” Her Talent whispered into the back of her mind. It wasn’t demanding she kill Dash, though. No, it had something new to say: Fly it whispered. Fly faster than ever before. Break beyond what is possible, and pass through all barriers transformed. Touch the spectrum, and use that power to crack the world in two.

She shuddered at the thought. An end to nightmares, an end to life and death. A perfect undoing. The anticipation filled her with a thrill that made her insides clench. A word, plucked from Dash’s mind, seemed to sum up everything perfectly: “Rainboom.”

Dash stiffened as the word resonated between them, her own Talent setting off fireworks of desire. “A race,” Charisma said, and Dash’s wings fluttered in helpless excitement. “One last contest. Winner-take-all. I’m going to gather all the power I can from the Element and hit the entire world with it the moment I touch ground. The only way to stop me from doing that is to kill me before then. If you get cute and try to wrestle me or take the Element, I’ll fight you, and still unleash the power when I hit. I think you know that trying to knock me unconscious isn’t going to work either. It’s deathblows or nothing.” Dash’s lips pressed into a grim line as she realized the truth of what Charisma was saying. “So if you win, I die. If I win, everyone dies.” She smiled at Dash. “On your marks, Hot Stuff.”

“Charisma, no,” Dash said, desperate to avoid what she knew was inevitable. “I don’t want to have to kill you.”

Charisma laughed. The underlying boast was clear: Dash didn’t lose races. “Get set.”

“Come on, you don’t want to kill everybody!” Dash cried. “What about Blaze? Don’t you love him?”

Charisma paused at that. She recalled Blaze telling her that he loved her. It had been a distraction then, something to keep her from paying attention as she was set up for an attack. Yet Blaze was not good at faking sincerity, so it also held the ring of truth. So, impossible as it seemed, he loved her. But did she love him?

She tried to shrug off the question. She told herself it didn’t matter. Even if she did care about him, it didn’t change anything. It worked well enough to put it to the back of her mind, but not to force it away entirely.

She took a deep breath, clearing her mind and taking one last look at the astonishing vista only the two of them and the Goddesses were privy to. She closed her eyes and soaked in the sunlight, sending a silent prayer to Celestia to watch her one last time.

“Go.”

Dash lunged for her, but she was already moving, falling. The Element on her chest burst into magnificent light, and power surged through her limbs as she rocketed downward faster than ever before. She directed all her power into the dive, focusing the incredible energies of the Element into one final push. She passed the sound barrier with barely a flinch, and kept going. Air screamed around her, rent by her passage. She drank deep of Loyalty’s endless well, and it felt like fire scorching along her nerves. The burning strength seared muscle and ignited feathers. She could feel it consuming her, but she didn’t care. It wouldn’t stop her, only Dash could do that now.

And Dash was right behind her, accelerating just a hair faster than Charisma herself, slowly closing the distance between them. The air grew thick in front of Charisma and little bolts of electricity began to play around her. That barrier of air stretched around her, and for a moment she felt as if it would reject her, throwing her back. She reached into Dash’s mind and found what she had to do. She pressed one hoof forward into the barrier in front of her, throwing fear and the very idea of failure aside. Dash cried out behind her, the sound lost to their descent but clear through their Elemental bond. She put on a burst of renewed speed, almost overtaking Charisma, their poses identical.

Then the barrier broke, and Charisma passed through her own magic, exiting the other side as something new, something incredible, something awesome. Behind her an explosion of light thundered out from the place where she had overcome all limits. It shared the colors of her Element-enhanced body, a black and red infection that spread across the sky, obscuring the sun and making the land dark as night. It was a grim harbinger of her intentions for the world. Yet she knew that behind her bloody mark, Dash had left a rainbow of shimmering color at nearly the same moment.

She was going faster now. Faster than ever. A living bullet shooting towards the heart of the earth.

She aimed to strike the ground at the temple where she had left her employer. If everyone was going to die, she figured Max Cash should go first. It was only fair. The ground rushed closer at incredible speed, and yet seemed to arrive in languid slowness. She felt as if she could have contemplated every cloud, every tree, every blade of grass. Time had ceased for her, it only moved forward because she willed it. With her colors staining the skies like this, she felt as if she could do anything.

She looked down, picking out the figures scattered around the temple. Dash’s friends. They were looking up at her, terror stark in every face. Except for one. Her rose eyes met familiar lemon-yellow, and she saw nothing in them but acceptance. Trail Blazer stared up at her from the garden in front of the temple. He couldn’t have seen her as anything other than a red streak quickly growing larger, yet she could see in those eyes that he recognized her.

Then he smiled, and her question was answered.

In that moment her flight stalled, and Dash hit her. The strike came right between her wings, a direct hit with all the force Rainbow Dash could muster. Charisma knew that Dash was in the same state as her, capable of anything. What she had chosen to do was crush Charisma’s spine.

Her lower body went numb. Her wings went limp. She laughed. Top marks, Hot Stuff, she thought to the other mare. Well done.

Dash wrapped Charisma in a tight embrace as they fell the last distance to the ground, slowing them and shielding the broken mare from the impact, playing the hero even now. They hit the ground together, a pair of rainbow comets coming down at speeds nothing could survive. Because of Dash’s efforts, both of them did.

It wouldn’t be for long, though. Charisma couldn’t feel the injury anymore, but she knew that she’d been right: only a deathblow could stop her. The power was still in her, burning her out, but she didn’t release it. It was over, she would die soon. Dash had won.

Charisma lay in soft dirt. A shallow crater, her second of the day, rose up around her, but didn’t block the sight of her Rainboom rippling through the sky, or Blaze rushing up to them. Beside her, Dash was shedding quiet tears. “I’m sorry,” she whispered in agonized guilt.

“Dash! Charisma!” Blaze cried, leaping into the pit they had created and kneeling next to them. She looked into his eyes and saw how much he cared for her. She tried to say something, but there was no air in her lungs. He leaned in close to hear what she was saying.

Tear his throat out, her Talent demanded. She was too weak and distracted to resist and before she knew it her teeth were on his neck. She paused, a hairsbreadth away from ripping open an artery. She could practically taste the hot blood that would shower down on her, the thought accompanied by a wave of warm tingles that overcame even the numbness of her broken body. Dash tensed next to her, but could do nothing to stop her.

“It’s okay,” Blaze said softly. She could hear the smile in his voice. “If you have to, it’s okay.” Slowly, agonizingly, she unclenched her jaw and released him. He pulled back and regarded her with a puzzled frown. “Not that I’m not grateful for sparing my life or anything, but, um, why?”

She took a breath, amazed she still could. “Because I love you.” Blaze’s mouth dropped open in shock, then melted into a goofy grin. The power of the Element surged in her, and if she had been capable of it she would have writhed in the strangely ecstatic pain it gave her. She coughed, blood splattering from her mouth. That blood instantly began to boil and dissolve into motes of ruby light. “I wish it could have been different.”

“I wish I hadn’t eaten the whole cake at my tenth birthday party, on account of the food poisoning and angry party guests,” Blaze said, then he leaned down and kissed her. “But I still remember how sweet it was.”

“Blaze, get the Element off of her,” Dash said. “I can’t… I can’t touch it.”

He reached down, tugging at the necklace, but it wouldn’t come off. Charisma cried out as the power surged again. Her wings burst into flame, somehow not harming Dash at all but scorching Blaze. She was burning, blood boiling in her veins, mind afire with ruby light. She was bound so tightly to the power of the Element she was becoming that power. Blaze looked at her, not stopping his efforts, but she saw that the smile was gone from his face.

She couldn’t let that happen. “Keep smiling, Blaze,” she said, forcing a grin of her own through the sensation of the Element consuming her. “Whatever happens… wherever you go… just keep laughing and smiling. No matter what.” Then, with her last bit of will, she let the Element go. It came loose in Blaze’s grip, and he quickly stood and threw it into the temple.

The power didn’t stop its progress, but its fury had changed. Her body stopped burning, and with a sigh of release the transformation she had undergone reversed itself. She let out a short laugh as she gazed at her hooves, surprised at how much she had missed them. Then she coughed up another lungful of blood. Her head fell back, she no longer had the strength to hold it up. A moment later she was staring up into the faces of Rainbow Dash and Trail Blazer as they knelt at her side.

She laughed in her thoughts, her body no longer able to. They looked so different, but so similar at the same time. Dash’s features were twisted with guilt and sadness. She was triumphant, but couldn’t take pride in what she’d done. Blaze was taking her final request to heart, and smiling with all the joy and kindness he was uniquely capable of. Grinning with his pain, as he always had. They both cared so much.

It was as good an image as any to go out on, and far more than she had ever expected. Good luck, she thought to the both of them, knowing Dash could still hear her. You’re going to need it. Then she closed her eyes, and with one final laugh at how it had all ended she cast herself into the ruby power of the Element of Loyalty, and was gone.

***

Charisma’s body burst into brilliant red flames. Dash pulled Blaze away and he went, though reluctantly. The fire lasted only a few moments, and when it was done there was nothing left of the mare Dash had killed. She held on to Blaze for a long moment before he put a hoof on her and gently pushed her away. “I’m okay,” he told her. His eyes were wet but no tears fell as he smiled.

Dash nodded, wanting to say something but knowing it wasn’t needed. Instead, she turned to check on the rest of her companions. She was instantly brought up short by the eyes of a friend she had hoped never to see again.

Fluttershy stared at her, tears streaming down her face. “It’s okay,” Applejack said in Old Equestrian, standing next to her. “She was a bad mare. Real bad. I know it don’t look good, but just try to understand.”

“I don’t understand!” Fluttershy said. “I saw what she did! She… you… Dash, why?”

“She… I…” Dash stammered, unable to find any words that could explain her actions to the kindest, most sensitive pony she’d ever known.

“Fluttershy, look at me,” Applejack demanded in her sternest voice. It took a long moment, but Fluttershy complied. “It’s gonna take some time to explain what’s goin’ on, so for now I think we should leave Rainbow Dash alone. It was hard to watch what she did, yes, but think about how she must be feelin’, since she’s the one that done it!

“O-okay,” Fluttershy said, ducking her head and hiding her eyes behind her mane. “I didn’t think of that… but–”

“No buts now,” Applejack said, taking her by the hoof and leading her away. “Come with me now, and I’ll get you all caught up.”

“I… I’m sorry,” Dash said as she watched them walk away, and knew it would never be enough. She didn’t even know who she was saying it for; Fluttershy wouldn’t understand the words and no one else needed to hear them.

Blaze stepped up next to her and shook his head. “Don’t be. She deserved a lot worse, and she knew it.”

“That doesn’t make it better,” Dash said.

He laid a comforting hoof on her shoulder. “Yeah, it does. She wouldn’t have felt anything but happy if you’d died instead, and I think we both owe it to her to return the favor.”

“Blaze, I can’t,” Dash said, brushing his hoof off. “I just… I can’t, alright?”

“Alright,” he said. “You do you. But don’t let it eat you up, okay?”

“I’ll try.”

“Cool beans. By the way, that thing you girls did to the sky?” He pointed a hoof and Dash looked up at the still roiling effects of the double Rainboom. Charisma’s rippling red and black was just beginning to clear away, revealing a sky rapidly darkening to night and the fading colors of Dash’s own Rainboom. “Totally awesome.”

Dash allowed a small smile at that and trotted off to check on the others. She spotted Star Fall and Astrid a little distance away. The pegasus princess was lying curled up beside a statue of what was probably a bear, which Astrid had wedged herself beneath. She had a book open in front of her, but her eyes were closed and her sides rose and fell with the rhythmic breath of sleep. Astrid gave her a little wave, looking extremely pleased with herself.

A little way beyond them Calumn was tending to the still forms of the blue detective and the other Changeling. Neither of them looked as beat up as Star Fall, but at least she was clearly alive. She was about to go over when Applejack approached her, leaving Fluttershy beside one of the flower beds.

“Fluttershy’s gonna be fine,” she said, her tone as comforting as she could make it. “Once she know’s what’s been goin’ on, she’ll forgive you.”

“Yeah,” Dash replied, though her tone made it clear she didn’t believe it. “How did she get here, AJ? Who died?”

“Cash.”

Dash’s eyes widened in surprise. “Really? Just him?”

“Well, most everyone’s beat six ways from Sunday, but he tried somethin’ when he should've just given up, and Astrid pulled his heart out for it.”

“She didn’t eat it, did she?”

Applejack made a small retching sound. “No, why would you think she’d do somethin’ disgustin’ like that?”

“No reason,” Dash replied, remembering their escape from Cash’s dig site, so long ago. “Where is he? Inside?” She pointed a wing at the temple.

“Right where we left him,” Applejack said. When Dash started for the temple she called out in alarm. “Hold on there, Rainbow Dash! Where do you think you’re goin’?”

“I gotta see him, AJ,” Dash replied. “I gotta know he’s dead.”

“The Elements are in there, Dash,” Applejack said, shaking her head. “I saw Blaze chuck Loyalty in there too. We don’t want to be nowhere near them.”

“I’ll be careful,” Dash said. She meant it, too. If she saw a hint of ruby she was backtracking right out. Still, she needed to know Cash was dead. No matter what anyone else told her they saw, she knew Cash would not die easy. So being told wasn’t enough. She’d read enough Daring Do books to know that you always made sure you checked the body yourself.

She walked into the temple slowly, keeping an eye out for Loyalty so that she didn’t get too close. She could see the aftermath of the battle in scorch marks and wet patches. A splash of clearly non-pony blood on the wall showed where Traduce had gone down. A splatter of gore in front of a small garden, surrounded by cracked stone and the remnants of magical blasts, marked where Cash had made his stand. She spotted his body a moment later, slouched bonelessly against the wall as if he had sat down and fallen asleep. A ragged hole in his stomach made bile rise in Dash’s throat.

She walked closer, still not seeing Loyalty anywhere. She didn’t want to touch the dead pony, but in a way she knew she would have to. She remembered another time and another place when, swallowed by confusion and darkness, she had put her hooves to a similar wound on another stallion. In a way, this would be coming full circle. She hoped this would provide a measure of closure; that had been where her life had started going wrong, this would be the point when it got back on track.

She stopped a bare pace away from the body, her attention caught by something nestled in the corpse’s side, under his limp hoof. A glint of gold. Dash frowned, taking a look around the room and confirming where the other three Elements were. There was no way her Element could have ended up in that position just from Blaze throwing it. The only other explanation…

Dash jerked back, eyes going from the hidden Element to Cash’s eyes, which were open and trained on her. The moment her gaze met his, her limbs froze. She was locked in place, terror and panic pounding through her body and racing in her ears.

Cash grinned. “Betrayal,” he intoned.

***

”I’m betraying you”

***

Dash fell over, body shaking in painful seizure. She tried to call out, but her voice was lost to her, she tried to crawl to the door, but she couldn’t summon the coordination to do more than flop around. Fear clawed at her, screaming for her to do something, anything. But it was too late, she was caught.

When her shudders ended, she lay on the floor taking gasping breaths. She was too weak to move, too weak to even cry out, as the undead creature that was Max Cash slowly got up, revealing the Element of Loyalty, a ruby lightning bolt once more. Instantly, Dash’s attention was riveted to the necklace. Even the rising horror of Cash wasn’t enough to pull her eyes away.

Cash coughed, spitting out a mouthful of bile and blood. “Well,” he said, “here we are again.”

“No,” Dash managed to choke out. “You were gutted! You have to be dead!”

“Yeah, getting your heart ripped out hurts a lot more than you might imagine. If the poets are right, then it makes me kind of glad I’ve never been in a relationship.” He wagged a hoof as if in chastisement. “And before you say anything, no Lyssa doesn’t count. She was just using me for a promotion.” Dash didn’t even know where to begin to respond to that, so she stayed silent, struggling against the weakness that held her down. “Though,” Cash continued, stretching and twisting his torn body, “I gotta say I feel a whole lot better now. It doesn’t feel like I’ve lost a heart so much as… made some room.” He grinned and began to stalk towards Dash’s prone form, the Element of Loyalty held out in one hoof.

“Get… get away from me!”

“Oh, Rainbow Dash,” he said, chuckling. “We were here not too long ago, weren’t we? This would have all been so much easier if… well, mea culpa on that one. I wasn’t prepared and everything went to pot. Don’t worry! I’ve been doing my research. Now, listen closely. This is important.” He knelt down next to her, so close she should have been able to feel his breath on her ear, but his words made no wind. “A weighty choice is yours to make, the right selection or a big mistake. If the wrong choice you choose to pursue, then you will lose all that you value. You’re going to be wearing this Element. That’s not up for discussion. But when you put it on you can do it as yourself, that is, with your current self in the driver’s seat, or I can Invert you, and instead you can become the opposite of who you think you are. Friends to enemies, enemies to friends.”

“What? No…”

“Oh, yes. Now, you might be thinking: how bad can that be? You’re not Charisma, after all, viciousness and cruelty are unnatural to you. Well, think of it this way, what will happen when you, Rainbow Dash, suddenly decide to betray everything you believe in? I wonder, will anyone be safe?”

“You wouldn’t be,” Dash growled out, but she knew the threat was hollow.

Cash laughed. “Yesterday, I would have agreed with you. Today, I had my heart pulled out, so I’m feeling a touch invincible. I hold the reins, Rainbow Dash. I’ll be directing the ride. What I’m offering you is a chance to do some steering yourself. I’ll even throw this in: I won’t hurt your friends. None of them, not even the Griffin that killed me. I won’t make you or anyone else do it, either. I won’t stop you if you want to, of course, but I won’t ask for it. All you have to do is give your loyalty to me. Bind yourself and the other Element Bearers to me.” His grin was so wide it seemed to extend beyond the bounds of his face. “Or don’t, and who knows what might happen.” Dash shivered.

“Think fast.”

Chapter 35: Waking the Apocalypse

Author's Note

Harmony Theory recap:
Part 1 (Prologue - Chapter 14)
Part 2a (Chapters 15-25)
Part 2b (Chapters 26-34)

Chapter 35: Waking the Apocalypse

The first instance of an Element’s Activated power I ever encountered was perhaps the most important day of my life. This was not when I found the Elements, nor was it when I gained my wings. These are important events, surely, but they could not have happened without a single incident that served as the genesis for the events that would lead me to both places.

Like many ponies, the most important day in my life was the day I got my cutie mark. The same day each of my best friends gained their own cutie marks. On that day Rainbow Dash performed the Sonic Rainboom, a feat so unheard of as to be mere legend. That explosion of light, sound and magic played an integral role in each of us finding our Talents, and thus bound all of us together, entwining our fates.

The absolute imperative of that moment was driven home to me by my protege Starlight Glimmer many years ago, when she tapped into the Elements to power a time-travel spell that allowed her to prevent the Sonic Rainboom from happening. The ensuing succession of catastrophically broken timelines I encountered showed without a doubt that our world only exists because of Dash’s actions. And it is because of the Elements that it happened.

No doubt the timing of this incident is surprising. Yes, I am saying that the Sonic Rainboom is an Activated ability of the Element of Loyalty, at least as Dash and other Bearers can perform it. Furthermore, I am saying that Rainbow Dash called upon this power years before she’d even heard of the Elements, let alone borne one long enough to use its powers.

How is this possible? The answer is actually fairly straightforward. The Elements transcend time and space, and as part of a Harmony Event they bond with their bearers in a way that also transcends time and space. This astonishing fact shall be explored more in a later section, but for now suffice it to say that Rainbow Dash always has been and always will be a bearer of her Element. We all have. We all are. We all will be.

Which begs the inevitable, paradoxical question: did we choose to take up the Elements because we were already connected to them, or were we already connected to them because we chose to take up the Elements? This ‘chicken-or-egg’ circularity is not helpful, of course, but it points towards the true question that plagues me: did we ever even have a choice? Or have our destinies always been controlled by the ineffable desires of the Elements, if indeed they have desires at all? There is an answer, I am sure, but it lies beyond conventional understanding in the moment of a Harmony Event.

-From the fourth section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Thirty-Five: Waking The Apocalypse

Nightmare Umbra stood high above the surface on a platform of ashes and fire, and watched the wave of sound and color devour the world. It came from the south, rolling over everything and anything it encountered in its ever-expanding circle. It appeared as a rippling wall of black and red to the ponies no doubt panicking from the mere sight of it. She could see beyond that facade, though, her immortal eyes picking out the shimmering rainbow that was the true force of the shockwave.

It hit the Everstorm before it reached her and, impossibly, blew through the Storm like it wasn’t there. A moment later and Umbra was chagrined at her own shocked reaction. Of course the Everstorm didn’t stop it. Nothing in the universe could stand up to the power of the Elements of Harmony. The whole length of the eternal barrier lit up with prismatic light, and then the wavefront was moving on, swallowing the Kingdom as it had the Republics. Her body writhed with swarming worms just beneath the surface of her skin, testament to her agitation.

What has she done? Twinkle Shine’s voice called out in her mind, barely a whisper amongst a million screams, but heard clearly all the same.

“Rainbow Dash Has Woken The Apocalypse,” Umbra replied, unaccustomed fear making her voice shake. She mastered herself, smothering the terror with a surge of black rage and cold hate. “Thus Begins The End Of All Things.” Then she lifted her wings and steeled her will as the sonic rainboom crashed through her.

She spun and tumbled, her horn blazing with black fire as she fought to hold her cloud of ash and bone together. The energy of the rainboom crackled in her bones, flooding her veins with light and lightning. Somewhere, deep inside, she felt the part of her she hated most respond to the power with a joyous shout. She muffled that cry even as she gave voice to one of her own: a scream of defiance and rage backed with the force of her dark magic. Her power cascaded through the rainboom, wrenching her and her army free from its grip.

She floated amongst the drifting ashes of her army, silently recovering from the effort it had taken to escape. She took stock of her forces, and found that her efforts had been effective in shielding the bulk of them. Even so, she had lost a fifth of the ghouls she had left the Solar Capital with, their ashes streaming back to rejoin with her now that they lacked an anchor. It wasn’t a devastating loss, but it still stung, and it would slow her march to dominance.

No matter. She would make do. She commanded her army to organize itself again, and soon she was once more riding a cloud towards the Stile Islands. There could be no more delays. It was time to strike.

The archipelago spread out before her, dominated by a range of mountains that cradled idyllic valleys and deep forests. From her vantage point she could see the bases of both the Kingdom and Republics forces, as well as all their navy and troop deployments. She smiled, cold and cruel. The fools were still arrayed to fight each other! She had ensured they knew she was coming, made it clear what her destination would be. Yet each ignored their true enemy to snarl and shake their spears at the other. It wasn’t unexpected, merely disappointing.

Her cloud began spreading out as it neared the islands. Tendrils of ash speared towards the ships of both sides, with thicker columns moving for the heavily protected bases. She spread her wings and moved for the largest of the islands, and the no-pony’s-land between the two sides.

She was nearly there when the first signs of resistance came, the hesitation likely a result of confusion from the passing of the rainboom. Anti-air fire exploded all around her, sending flesh-rending flak through her body. She grinned at the sensation, her tissues knitting back together so fast that pieces of shrapnel were still moving through her as the wounds they created closed behind them.

“Pathetic,” she said, her voice carrying clearly to the crews manning the guns. She let them continue firing for half a minute, soaking up the damage and picking out all the most accurate crews. Then she reared back and let out a scream that scoured the exposed face of the mountains like a thousand years of erosion. Behind the stunning force of her cry she sent Ashfire. It struck in lances of obsidian force, enveloping the ten best of the AA guns and turning them into pillars of black immolation.

People died. Some were too slow in abandoning their post. Some foolishly tried to put out the black flames, and got too close. Some were just unlucky. She felt each death as they became a part of her, their ashes flowing across land and sky to join her body, their voices adding to the chorus within her.

The anti-air guns fell silent. She sneered.

A roar preceded a trio of heavy, reptilian bodies falling on her from above. Dragons, from the Republics according to their armor. Bigger than Griffins, stronger and tougher than all but the most Talented of ponies, but far rarer and more precious than the gemstones they ate, Dragons were rarely put into combat unless their power could make a difference. They wouldn’t make that difference here, of course, but she was pleased they were making the effort.

These Dragons were winged, and they had used that advantage to get above her while she was dealing with the AA guns. They hit with practiced precision, one landing directly on her while the other two let loose jets of Dragonfire on her wings. Her feathers melted under the magical heat, bones exploding as her marrow boiled. The claws of the Dragon that hit her severed her spine in three places, with one actually cleaving through her skull and shearing half her head away.

She did not fall. She didn’t even dip in the air from the added weight. She twisted her head completely around to look into the eyes of the brave Dragon. Terror filled those eyes as the damage he’d done vanished in heartbeats. She could have struck out at him then, sliced him in half with a laser or bathed him in Ashfire. She didn’t, though. She didn’t have to do anything. Her blood was on his claws, and he was too busy staring at her rapidly regenerating face to wipe it off.

He jerked and let out a basso scream of agony as her blood found its way through his thick scales and began twisting and tearing its way through him. He fell to the side, plummeting the remaining distance to the ground and impacting with a hard crunch. The pain of her infestation was so great he did not even notice how the fall had broken one of his wings. With increasing desperation he snapped at his legs, trying to gnaw off his limbs before the tendrils of her blood reached his torso.

She turned her gaze away from the fallen Dragon, looking instead to his circling companions who were watching her with wide, fearful eyes. “You Cannot Win,” she whispered to them. “I Am The Tide Of War Itself. But Come, Let Us See If The Courage Of Dragons Has Survived You Becoming Coddled Slaves Of The Ponies.”

Anger burned in their eyes, but her ears caught the crackle of a Republics radio speaking in their ears. With a roar of frustration, both Dragons peeled away and began flying towards their base, swooping low to scoop up their fallen, writhing comrade as they went. She supposed they could save his life if they moved fast enough. Ashfire gathered along her horn to ensure they wouldn’t make it.

Let them go, Twinkle Shine urged. Umbra paused, considering it. She had no particular need to destroy them immediately, but she had no reason to let them live through an encounter with her either. Casually dismissing the threat Dragons pose will set the right tone. Besides, look at how they’re scrambling to get distance. They know they could be killed with ease, and they’re wondering why they haven’t been blasted out of the sky yet. These Dragons won’t be telling heroic stories about how they escaped the great Nightmare Umbra, they’ll be whispering in fear about how they hit as hard as they could and it did nothing.

Umbra stared after the fleeing Dragons for a moment, then turned away. Twinkle Shine’s arguments were sound. She would let them live, for now.

She drifted to the earth, and the moment her hoof touched ground she let loose a blast of magic that tore the dirt up for half a mile in every direction. Soldiers were tossed into the air, trenches collapsed and bunker walls cracked and fell. She waited five minutes, unmoving. The pause allowed the few bravest souls to take their shots at her while the rest fled or saw to the injured. Once she was convinced they’d recovered from the shock of her arrival, she lit her horn and sent a pillar of Ashfire high enough that it could be seen anywhere on the islands.

The Rainboom had blown every cloud to wisps, but the moisture wasn’t gone, just scattered. She took command of the water and air with an effort of her immortal will, and at her direction a storm began to form. Ashsprites bled from her pillar of dark power, scuttling into the newly formed clouds and strengthening them even further with a twisted version of old pegasus magic. They would ensure her storm only grew even as she turned her attention to other things. Namely, the gathered militaries of two great nations.

Celestia, Luna, please let it work this time, Twinkle Shine sent out her silent prayer.

Nightmare Umbra had no prayers to offer. The Alicorns would not answer her, and the one being she would deign to call god was the one she wished to destroy most of all.

“It Is Time,” she said, sending her voice to every corner of the islands, inside the fortified bunkers and on the bridges of the ships. In the sky, beneath the swirling clouds, her image appeared, glaring into the terror-filled hearts of every creature that could see it. ““For Long Now You Have Stared At Each Other Over The Barrels Of Your Guns. For Long Now You Have Waited In Torturous Anticipation For The War You All Knew Was Inevitable. In Your Hearts You Wished For It To Begin At Last. Rejoice, For I Have Come To Answer Those Secret Prayers.

“Are You Prepared? Have You Said Goodbye To Your Families? Have You Made Your Peace With The Distant Sun And Uncaring Moon? I Think Not, For I Hear Your Cries For Deliverance Even Now. Plead As You Will, You Shall Receive No Answer From Them, And No Mercy From Me.

“Now Let Loose Your War-Cries, For War Has Found You! A War Like None Of You Have Ever Imagined. A War To End Your Pathetic Races And Bring The World To Its Rightful Dominion. Cry Out In Joy. Cry Out In Fear. Cry Out In Pain. All Your Screams Will Be A Hymn To My Glory, And They Will Resound Eternal Within Me.

“I Am Nightmare Umbra! I Am The Destroyer Of Worlds! At Long Last, I Shall Finish What I Began So Many Centuries Ago! At Long Last I Shall Crush The Nations Of The World Beneath My Hooves! At Long Last I Shall End The Legacy Of Celestia And Luna! At Long Last… It Is Time.”

The pillar of Ashfire burst with an ear-splitting roar of thunder. In that moment her cloud of ash touched down in every place it had been aimed at, and from it her legions sprang forth. The air was filled with the sound of explosions, gunfire, and screaming. In the center of it all Nightmare Umbra stood. She didn’t join in the fighting. No, that would be counter-productive. She merely had to be present and visible, a symbol and an anchor for the fear and anger of both sides. Unable to stop herself, she glanced towards the south, to where the rainboom had originated. It might be her time, finally, but she knew it wouldn’t last.

The Elements were fully in play now, and everyone’s time might be about to run out.

***

Star Fall did not wake so much as slowly come to the realization that she was already awake. Gaining lucidity was like trying to catch a firefly. It tantalized her with its light, and darted away as soon as she flung herself close. Still, catch that elusive lightning bug she did, as the chemical numbness keeping her unaware lost its grip on her brain. Her final journey to consciousness was aided by a jarring, constant beeping and the whirrs and ticks of medical machinery at work. The first thing she took note of was how her mouth felt like it was stuffed with cotton. The sensation was so incongruous to her otherwise pleasant emptiness that it kickstarted her mind into trying to identify the source of the disparity.

The answer, when it came, was simple and comforting. She was in the fading grip of a powerful opiate, and from the hospital sounds around her she could surmise that this opiate was medically administered morphine. On the one hoof, this was a good thing. A hospital meant she was in the care of professionals, and that she could be reasonably certain whatever injuries she’d sustained weren’t going to kill her. On the other hoof… on the other hoof… oh dear.

She wrenched her eyes open, her heart struggling against the drugs to match the sudden panic in her thoughts. The white room blurred around her, but she didn’t try to focus on it. Instead all her attention was on her left foreleg. It lay on top of the blankets, swaddled in bandages that did nothing to disguise how it ended far sooner than it should have.

Her head fell back on her pillow, and she embraced the medicated feeling of disconnection from her body. She needed that distance, it kept her from screaming until her lungs gave out.

“Hey, Fall,” Astrid said from somewhere close by. “You’re awake again.”

Star Fall looked around her bed, but she couldn’t see her friend anywhere. Her eyes swept back and forth across the room several times before a ludicrous thought struck her, and she looked straight up. Someone had installed a mounting up there instead of the standard drop ceiling and then bolted a mattress to it. There, lounging on the ceiling, was her protector. Astrid gave her a little wave, and Star Fall let out a strangled giggle. “Is this real or is this the drugs?” she husked out.

“First time you’ve been coherent enough to ask that question,” Astrid said. “I’ll take that as a good sign. It’s real. You want some water?”

“Goddess, yes,” Star Fall replied. Astrid maneuvered herself to ground level using a series of handlebars attached to the walls. She got a cup and a straw, filled it with cold water and offered it to Star Fall. A few sips later, the dry mouth feeling was beginning to abate and she felt more able to think through the fog in her brain. One thought rose above the others and made itself known with a desperate urgency that demanded immediate action. “Hey, Astrid?” The Griffin looked to her attentively. “How do you go to the washroom if you’re upside-down?”

Astrid snickered. “Not telling, Fall. But it is indescribably awkward.”

Star Fall lay back and nodded, accepting this answer in all its wisdom. It took some time, and another glass of water, before her mind was ordered enough to ask a question that wasn’t going to be embarrassing. “How long?”

“Five days,” Astrid replied. “You haven’t been out the whole time, but you haven’t really been all there, you know? Between the pain and the drugs and the fever.” She set the water down on a small table next to the bed, then let herself drop back up to the ceiling mattress. “You had a nasty infection. Apparently it had started before you used healing magic, and the magic just made it worse. You got through it, but it was rough going for a while there.”

Star Fall absorbed that news with a flare of annoyance. Half the point of using her healing spellsheet had been to prevent just such an infection. “We’re still in the nightlands?”

“Yeah, the RIA’s being nice to us. Got this whole wing of the hospital sealed off and swarming with agents whose first priority is to protect you. A team of doctors and nurses on call twenty-four seven, too.”

“That sounds like… a lot.”

“Some shit’s gone down since you’ve been out, Fall.” Astrid’s eyes narrowed. “What’s the last thing you remember?”

Star Fall took a deep breath and concentrated on her memory. There were flashes of what she assumed was her time under fever. Confused and disjointed images and sounds. Emotions without context, mostly fear. She moved past those, filing them away to be analyzed and brought to coherence at a later date. Instead she searched for her last clear memory, which was of lying in a garden reading a book. “We were in the jungle, outside of the place where we killed Cash,” she said. “Something was wrong with the sky, I don’t know what.”

“That was Rainbow Dash,” Astrid said. “She and Charisma had a big old super-fight. Dash won, the asskicker is dead. We all celebrated.” The look in her eye said there was definitely more to say, but that she also did not want to say it.

Star Fall wasn’t going to let that stand. “Spit it out.”

“Fall–”

“Something went wrong,” Star Fall interrupted her. “More than a stupid infection. Tell me.”

“Cash…” She clattered her beak, a myriad of emotions crossing her face before she settled on a cold, professional rage. “He’s not dead.”

“You pulled his heart out of his chest,” Star Fall said, recalling the scene with a joyful clarity. “How could he not be dead?”

“Good question. I say we ask Dash, when and if we ever catch up to her.”

“Explain, Astrid. Give me the sequence of events.”

Astrid sighed. “Dash won her fight with Charisma, but she was spooked by something. Maybe having to kill for the first time, you know how that is. Anyway, she went in to check Cash’s body, and five minutes later she walks out wearing that fucking necklace, and he’s right beside her.”

“Celestia’s light,” Star Fall whispered. “He turned her. Like… like he tried to do before, only this time he succeeded. He must have tricked us somehow, made us think he was dead. An illusion? A transformation spell of some kind? Maybe… maybe some kind of hidden life magic? I mean, it’s just myth and fantasy, but it’s not like it’d be the first legend to show up as real recently.”

Astrid shook her head. “He still looked pretty bad. Had his guts practically hanging out. Whatever he did, I think we can rule out illusion. He gave me a nasty look, too, the kind I’d give to someone who killed me, but I didn’t stick around to find out what he wanted to say. I grabbed you and dropped off the face of the earth.”

Star Fall gave her friend a smile of thanks. “The others?”

“Yeah, bad news and good news there. The good news is, nobody’s dead and everybody who needed a doctor is just a couple doors down the hall. They all made it out. Turns out Cash wasn’t all that interested in revenge.”

“What’s the bad news?”

“The bad news is that whatever Cash did to get Dash on his side, he did it to the other superponies too. Applejack and the new girl, Fluttershy, left with him, wearing shiny new jewelry.”

It was fortunate that Star Fall still had a lot of morphine in her system, otherwise she was sure the impact of this revelation would be severely detrimental to her health. Instead, she was able to take in the information and formulate the best possible response. “Oh fuck, that’s not good.”

“Yeah, no shit.”

Another thought occurred to Star Fall. “The book. Astrid, when you grabbed me, did you get the book too?”

Astrid snorted. “Who do you think I am, Fall.” She pointed one talon down at the bedside table. It took Star Fall a long few seconds to recognize the leather-bound volume that rested beside her half-finished water glass. “Of course I grabbed the book.”

Star Fall lurched over, taking hold of the book and dragging it onto the bed with her, spilling her water on the floor in the process. “Harmony Theory,” she read out loud. “Thank Celestia. Astrid, this is the key to everything, I just know it.”

“Yeah, now we just have to live long enough for you to use it,” Astrid said with a sigh.

Star Fall paused in the process of opening the book to look for an index. “That sounds like there’s more bad news.”

“Nothing much, just the end of the world,” Astrid said with a wry, mirthless smile. “Umbra attacked the Stile Islands.”

Star Fall tensed, a surge of complex pain and anger overwhelming the chemical calm. She suddenly felt nauseous, and didn’t have the control to hold it back. She flopped over the side of the bed, and it was only Astrid’s superb reflexes that managed to get a garbage can under her before she vomited up a stomach full of bile and acid. She hung her head for a long few minutes, retching twice more as the room spun around her. Finally, when her head and stomach had settled back into the floating disconnectedness of a morphine buzz, she took a deep breath and looked to her guardian. “That’s a hell of a thing to tell a sick girl.”

“Yeah, well I didn’t want you to get blindsided with it later,” Astrid replied with a half-hearted shrug. “There’s more, but I’ll let Gamma explain all that crap when she inevitably shows up to browbeat us for failing our mission.”

Star Fall took another deep breath, mentally fumbling through the exercises that would help her still-fuzzy thoughts return to full capacity. It was frustrating trying to regain control of herself, every time she thought she was making progress it slipped away again. “Astrid, I need you to get the doctors. I want them to stop giving me painkillers.”

“That’s not a good idea, Fall.”

“I need to think clearly, Astrid. I’ve got a book I need to read that was written by a pony infamous for hiding important information in rambling tangents and dropping high-level math on her readers out of nowhere. I need to be able to remember things. The drugs are distracting.”

“They take you off meds and you’re going to be plenty distracted,” Astrid said. “I hear phantom limb is a real bitch.”

“Huh.” Star Fall contemplated that for a moment, then bobbed her head in acquiescence. “Good point. Still, I need to be on something that won’t make me sleepy or stupid.”

“I’ll talk to them.”

“Thank you. And could you get me some more water?” Her recently emptied stomach gave a low growl. “Oh! And some food? And note paper? And colored pens and highlighters if they have them!”

Astrid smiled at her. “Only for you, Fall.” She climbed down again, then hooked her claws into a quartet of heavy weights and made her slow, plodding way out the door.

Star Fall lay back and looked at the book next to her. Then she flipped open the cover. Her thoughts were still fuzzy and she didn’t know how much she’d retain, but she had to get started. She had a lot of reading to do.

***

The doctors, it turned out, had already been weaning her off of the morphine, and were happy to accelerate the process once she made her wishes known. They did, however, warn her in no uncertain terms that she had suffered serious trauma, and shouldn’t be contemplating getting out of bed for at least another week. She took this advice under consideration and politely declined. She didn’t have time for convalescence; she needed to be out saving the world!

She spent some time contemplating her body while she could still feel the weightless distance of morphine in every motion. She was hurt, yes, and badly so. Even with her limited medical knowledge she knew she would need weeks before she was up to any sort of strenuous activity, and even then there would be months of adapting to the loss of a hoof. The knowledge was frustrating, she needed to be back in action now. If only she had the remarkable recuperative powers of Rainbow Dash.

That thought sparked another one, which in turn led to another, a process that continued for a surprisingly short amount of time before she arrived at an audacious solution to her problem. She closed her eyes and focused on her magic. It was there, a pool of crimson power, ready to move as her will directed it. She thought back to when Rainbow Dash was healing from her own injuries at an incredible pace. She’d taken a look at Dash’s aura then, and seen how her natural magic had interacted with the healing array Star Fall had put together for her. While she couldn’t ever hope to equal Dash’s raw, explosive power, her Talent allowed her a fine control over her magic that none could match. She could use that control to emulate other pegasus Talents, like Cloudwalking, so there was no logical reason she shouldn’t be able to similarly copy Dash’s enhanced healing.

She set to work testing her theory. Her power stirred to life at the call of her will, reacting with an eager thrum. She sent it spinning through her body, sparking along her nerves and thrumming in her veins. The reaction began as a few tingles spread over her body that quickly grew to an itching that was just on the edge of being painful. She persevered, tweaking the flow and form of her magic, trying to find the same pattern she had seen within the ancient pegasus. Then, with a suddenness that made her gasp, her magic fell into a smooth, steady rhythm that pulsed through her body in counterpoint to the beating of her heart.

She relaxed into the bed, the painful itch gone. A vibrant thrill was left in its wake, the sense of strength and potential that she had only felt once before, in the Deep Power. She contemplated what had just happened. It had been like gears that had been grinding against each other had suddenly clicked into place and begun to turn freely. The flow of magic was so easy now, she barely had to concentrate on it at all. With a little practice, it wouldn’t even take that much effort. She wondered if she would even be able to keep it going while she slept.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a group of ponies coming up the hall. Agent Gamma, flanked by four RIA guards, strode down the hospital corridor like she expected doors to open and crowds to get out of her way through mere fact of her presence. When she reached Star Fall’s door, she turned to regard her escort with a cool gaze. “I was promised privacy when speaking to the Princess,” she said with a tone that made it clear that she considered any argument irrelevant.

“Those are our orders, Ma’am,” one of her guards replied with a slight tilt of his head and a faint smile on his lips. The way he kept his cool in the face of Gamma’s overbearing attitude instantly made Star Fall like him, which, she decided, probably also meant he was a Changeling and she should be very wary of her emotions in his presence.

Gamma didn’t respond, instead stepping into Star Fall’s room and shutting the door behind her. Her horn lit with the deep blue of her magic and she cast a spell to muffle sounds outside the room, making Star Fall’s ears pop at the change in pressure. She waited for another moment, allowing the spell to settle before she pulled a chair up to Star Fall’s bedside and sat down. Then she leaned forward, resting her hooves on the bed and locked her intense eyes on Star Fall’s. “What went wrong?”

Star Fall held back a grim smile. Right to business, then. “Do you want the full list of screw-ups, or just the most important ones?”

“Yes, let’s discuss the most important failure.”

“Cash got away,” Star Fall said. There was more that she could have added, but she felt those three little words encapsulated everything.

“Perhaps next time you should be more thorough in ensuring his demise.”

“Astrid pulled his heart out, he looked pretty dead to me,” Star Fall said. Then she sighed. “I didn’t anticipate how resilient he would be. Knowing what we do about contact with the Elements… I didn’t consider the possibilities, and I should have.”

Gamma quirked her eyebrow. “No excuses?”

“Oh, I’ve got plenty of those,” Star Fall replied. “But you’ve already thought of all of them. You’re not here to have me explain why I screwed up, or have me enumerate all the things I could have done better. No, I imagine this part of the conversation is about feeling me out to determine if my recent brush with mortality and very personal loss has impacted my ability to function as an Agent of the Crown.” Her ears flattened and her eyes narrowed. “I don’t need this, Gamma.”

Gamma slowly leaned back into her chair. If Star Fall had hit a nerve, her expression revealed nothing. “You are right, of course. I have no right to question your abilities, Your Highness, not any more. You are no longer an Agent of the Crown. You are the Crown.”

Star Fall stared at the spymaster. It was true. If she wasn’t declared a traitor for her connections to Twinkle Shine, then she was due to be Queen once Regal had his coronation. As Astrid had once so aptly put it, she was the boss of Gamma now.

She contemplated this for a long moment, holding Gamma’s gaze the entire time. Then she scoffed. “Yeah, right. I’m not going to take the first easy out you throw me, Gamma. I’m not just Princess Fallen Star, I am also Agent Star Fall, and I have never been more committed.”

“Fair enough.” Gamma didn’t smile, but there was a telltale twitch at the side of her mouth that told Star Fall that she wanted to. “In that case, Agent Fall, perhaps we should discuss the situation as it stands currently.”

Star Fall relaxed a bit, sure she’d passed Gamma’s test. “Astrid mentioned Umbra’s attack on the Stile Islands. What else has gone wrong?”

“A great deal, with the Destroyer acting as a force multiplier on our problems. First and most pressing for you and I is that the Republics Senate is preparing for a vote on whether or not to declare war on the Solar Kingdom.”

Star Fall let out a pained groan. “With Umbra on their doorstep? What are they thinking? Do they want her getting stronger?”

“They are thinking that the Kingdom has turned the Shadowed Alicorn loose on them, just as Twinkle Shine had planned to do.” Gamma sighed, a small crease forming between her eyebrows. “Rumors are running rampant. With the accuracy of some of them, I can only surmise that someone who was present at the Crown Summit has been speaking out of turn.”

Star Fall grimaced as a sick thought occurred to her. “We can’t discount that the one spreading those rumors could be the Professor herself.”

Gamma tilted her head in acknowledgement, a flicker of anger crossing her features. “No. We cannot.”

“I don’t understand it,” Star Fall said, shaking her head. “The Professor was always one of the loudest voices for peace in the room. But she is Umbra. I’ve seen it. Everything she’s done has been part of a long, long game. A game where we don’t know the rules or the goal. A game that’s reaching its conclusion.”

“Regardless,” Gamma said, cutting off Star Fall’s depressing line of thought. “If Twinkle Shine is behind the information leak, so be it. They have a rather more concrete reason for them to vote for war in what happened to Hoofprint.”

Star Fall frowned at that. “Why? What happened?”

“It was practically levelled,” Gamma replied. Star Fall flicked her ears to clear them, not sure she’d heard that correctly. “Agent Dash’s battle with Charisma apparently called on forces beyond what we predicted. She was not only a match for Agent Dash physically, she also was able to…” She paused, lips pursed, and Star Fall came to the jarring realization that Gamma was at a loss for words.

“Was it like what she did to Astrid?” Star Fall asked.

“More destructive,” Gamma replied. “Their fight has been compared to two gods vying for supremacy. I am not one for such hyperbole, but… There are pictures of the fight and its aftermath. Reels of film, too. Like you, I have witnessed the power of the Destroyer first-hoof, and what I saw in those images carried an uncomfortable familiarity. When I imagine what divine wrath looks like, it bears a striking similarity to what happened in Hoofprint.”

Star Fall was silent for a moment as she absorbed this. “They’re blaming Dash,” she said. It wasn’t a question, but Gamma nodded. “She’s a Knight of the Sun, and she destroyed a Republics city. Celestia’s day, they probably think the war’s already begun.”

“Our own position here is hanging on the outcome of the vote,” Gamma said. “If they declare war, then we are going to be prisoners.”

“And thus unable to act.” Star Fall spent a moment being angry at the possibility, then set herself to thinking of the possible answers to the problem. It only took her a few seconds before she remembered who else was in the room and turned a sly gaze on Gamma. “What’s the plan to stop that?”

“There are three,” she replied. “The first, best plan involves you making political inroads with a group of ponies who will see you as the epitome of everything they hate about the Solar Kingdom.”

Star Fall let out a small laugh. “Sure, sounds easy enough. Just in case, though, what are the other two?”

“The second plan is that we defect.” Gamma didn’t bother to hide her disdain for the idea. “We provide information on the Kingdom in exchange for reasonable autonomy and authority in solving the various global crises we are faced with.”

Star Fall shook her head, incredulous. “If that’s plan B, I’m really gonna hate plan C, won’t I?”

“The third option is to escape,” Gamma continued. “We wait until you and Spike can travel. Then we convince Rarity and Pinkie Pie to aid us, using them to neutralize the RIA forces. We make a run for the Everstorm and hope there’s a world left to save when we get to the other side.”

“Thus cutting ourselves off from any hope of help from the Republics, and virtually guaranteeing war.” Star Fall slumped in her bed. She went to tap her hooves together in thought, only to be painfully reminded that she now lacked one of the major requirements for the gesture. She bit back on a yelp, staring at her bandaged stump. A wave of despair rolled through her guts. “I don’t know if I can afford to divide my attention like this, Gamma. I should be focusing on stopping Cash, or reading Harmony Theory, or even trying to find some way to get leverage against Umbra. If I’m playing politics too…” She shook her head, blinking away frustrated tears. “It’s too much. I’m trying to save the world, Gamma. This is too much for me to carry.”

“Perhaps.” Gamma paused for a moment, then reached out and laid a hoof on Star Fall’s foreleg. It was as personal a gesture as Star Fall had ever seen the spymaster give. “Do not underestimate yourself. You are no stranger to difficult times and titanic tasks. At a young age you left your home and everyone you knew to enter the world of nobles, a world that resisted your very presence. You, a pegasus, mastered magic and forged a place for yourself as one of the most versatile and powerful spellcasters in the Kingdom. While accomplishing this astonishing feat you also went through Secret Service training, becoming one of my most valuable assets. You braved the Everstorm time and time again. You faced the Destroyer herself three times, and even after you knew the awful truth about her and the Professor, you did not break. You took a beating and mutilation at the hooves of Charisma, and still confronted Max Cash. None of this leads me to believe you are being given more than you can handle. You are a student of Twinkle Shine, an Agent of the Secret Service, a princess of a nation and a friend of legends. This may be a heavy burden that has been placed on you, but your entire life has been preparing you for it. I think you will find that the weight is manageable.”

Star Fall hung on every word. She knew the speech and the physical contact was calculated, but she didn’t care. She let the words sink in, let her pride swell at the list of her accomplishments. It didn’t change the enormity of her task, but it did make her feel better about it, and right then that was all that mattered. Besides, everything Gamma said was true. She’d stood up to the Shadowed Alicorn herself, how bad could a bunch of money-obsessed politicians be?

She favored Gamma with a small smile, and was surprised to see it returned. “Okay. I’m good now. I guess I’ll have to brush up on the movers and shakers in the Senate. Do you think you could convince Director Straff to let us peek at his dossiers on them?”

Gamma sat back again, giving a pleased lift to her eyebrows. “I’m working on that. He is fully on our side in preventing any war vote from passing, but still unwilling to break the necessary rules or fully trust me. With, it is fair to say, good reason.”

“Get me what you can,” Star Fall said, already spinning a few rough ideas out in the back of her mind.

“I shall. Now, we have other matters to discuss. How is your translation of Harmony Theory progressing?”

Star Fall shuddered. “I’ve only just started, but already it’s been… interesting.” She took the book and flipped it open. The smooth loops and strokes of the writing inside indicated that it was entirely horn-written, not created with a printing press. She supposed it could have been copied using a spell, but something told her that every word inside was meticulously and personally copied from the original by Twilight Sparkle herself. Either way, there was no difficulty in deciphering the cursive. Twilight’s style was clear and precise, meant to be read and understood. The problems came with the complex sentence structure and esoteric vocabulary. Unlike The Magic of Friendship, which was meant for a wide audience and thus took pains to explain difficult terminology and concepts, Harmony Theory was a personal affair, meant only to be seen by a select few, so some level of familiarity was assumed. She hadn’t included as many meandering stories in this book, though, which was a big help in getting to the important information.

Star Fall explained all this to Gamma, showing her a few key passages early in the book. She especially pointed out a warning at the end of the preface that felt particularly ominous. “‘The Magic of Harmony may not be magic as we know it at all,’” she translated for the Spymaster. “‘Worse yet, it may not have anything to do with Harmony, either.’ Emphasis on that word ‘Harmony’. It’s written as a proper noun, differently from how she uses it elsewhere in the book. She meant it as more than the concept you or I know, but she doesn’t explain. It was a message that her intended audience would get, but we just don’t have the context for. She does things like this several times in just the first section of the book.”

“Fascinating,” Gamma said. “But what relevance does it have to containing and controlling the Elements?”

Star Fall shrugged. “For all I know, it’s the key to the whole thing. Look, from what I’ve read so far, the Elements were a mystery even to the Goddesses. Twilight Sparkle clearly discovered a lot about their nature, but it’s going to take me some time to get through it. If I could see the notes the others have taken so far instead of doing it all from scratch, this could go a lot faster.”

There was a long pause as Gamma silently regarded her. “I’m afraid there aren’t any ‘others’, Agent Fall.”

Star Fall frowned at that. “Do you mean I’m the only one studying this book right now?”

“That is correct.”

“What? Why?” The bindings on Star Fall’s wings creaked as she tried to flutter them in agitation. “I was out for five days! I assumed there’d be a dozen copies of the book out there by now, being studied by the best scholars in the Republics! Hell, tell them it’s a lost work of Twilight Sparkle and you’d have to fend off the academics with a stick!”

“We tried that,” Gamma said. “It did not work.”

Star Fall paused at the annoyance in the spymaster’s voice. “How did it not work?”

“Duplication is impossible,” Gamma said. “Photographs are corrupted, print arrangements are garbled, horn and mouth-written copies are unintelligible, even tracery fails. We tried having someone read it aloud into a recording device, and the playback is just a rather disturbing series of screeches and clicks. It seems that when Twilight Sparkle wants there to be only four copies of her book, then there are only four copies. We are fortunate as it is to have the one.”

Star Fall absorbed this information with both awe and frustration. The kind of spell that would be able to do something like that was well beyond her. She couldn’t even imagine where to begin. In better times, she’d want to study its limits and devise ways of tricking it and testing it for loopholes. It would be a fascinating object of study. Yet here and now it made her task all the more difficult. “Then… why am I the one with it?”

“Because you are in the best position to do something with the knowledge it contains.” Gamma stood. “I will, of course, be waiting for a report on what you discover in its pages.”

“Of course.” Star Fall tapped her hoof on the open page of the book. “I need to talk to Spike. He’s the best resource I have to collaborate with.”

“I’ll ask that he be brought here. He’s currently being shuttled around with Rarity and Pinkie Pie. The assumption being that Cash will come for them and the Element of Laughter next.”

“I’ll want to talk to them too. And the others who went south with us as well. I’ve skimmed a few chapters ahead, and there’s something I want to test.”

Gamma quirked her eyebrow. “And you are not sharing what this test is for. Why?”

“There’s… a possibility of skewing the results,” Star Fall said.

“Fair enough. I expect a full accounting of it once those results are in.”

“You’ll know as soon as I do,” Star Fall promised.

Gamma strode to the door, raising a hoof to knock. Before she did, though, she cast an appraising look back at the bed-bound pegasus. “Your color has improved,” she said. “Even during the course of our conversation I’ve seen an improvement in your condition. Are you aware of this?”

Star Fall grinned, feeling the magic circulating through her. She’d practically forgotten about it, but now that she was looking she could feel the strength and energy already returning to her body. The last effects of the drugs were practically gone as well, and she barely felt any pain except when she’d tapped the end of her stump. “I was not. Thank you for noticing.”

“Well, keep it up, Agent Fall. The sooner you get to work on the Senate, the better.”

“How long until the vote?”

Gamma gave her a thin-lipped smile. “There we have caught a lucky break. As both Republics and Kingdom military efforts are currently focused on repelling the Destroyer, there has been no need for urgency. This has allowed the wheels of democratic bureaucracy to turn with their characteristic sluggishness.” She let out a derisive snort. “They’re still arguing over which city gets to host. When they finally make up their minds on a date, I will ensure that you are made aware.”

“Thank you Gamma,” Star Fall said. “For everything.”

“I trust my faith is well placed, Agent Fall,” Gamma said, knocking on the door. “And… good luck, Your Highness.”

***

Rainbow Dash leaned against the window, her forehead pressed to the cool glass. The view the expensive hotel suite offered was a wide one, and from her lofty vantage her eyes tracked the sheets of rain as they swept through the near-deserted streets like they intended to scour every sign of light and life out of the city. The sky above was a leaden gray, almost as dark as night. Those stormclouds boiled and writhed in tortured animation, laden to bursting with water that they were all too happy to disgorge on Virgo City. Curtains of heavy, fat rain turned the whole world into a shadow-play out of some impressionist nightmare: vehicles and ponies reduced to mere suggestions of shape and motion against a backdrop of buildings looming like uncaring colossi of concrete and steel.

Dash watched the storm with a weatherpony’s eye, but her attention was only partly out of professional interest. When Dash built a storm it was quick and colorful, with just the right amount of rain to water the fields and just the right amount of wind and lightning to make it interesting. This was an ugly thing, with no excitement in its brutal march across the landscape. No self-respecting weatherpony would have built a storm with that much rain. It was inefficient, wasteful, and, worst of all, dangerous. Rain like this not only swamped those directly under the clouds but also could cause flash floods miles and miles away, sweeping unsuspecting ponies up and drowning them.

Dash was also drawn to watch the storm out of the sick, creeping fear that came with the knowledge of who had caused it. She’d spoken to a few of the long line of people evacuating the city as they had come in, and they had informed her that Nightmare Umbra had birthed the tempest in her attack on the Stile Islands. The unnatural storm had spiralled out from there, pounding the coastal towns and cities with wave after wave of inundation. In truth, Dash hadn’t needed to be told. She recognized Umbra’s work the moment she’d felt the wind ruffling her feathers and seen the clouds on the horizon. She remembered keenly her first encounter with a storm like this, and hadn’t been able to fully put it from her mind since.

Mostly, though, she watched the storm so she wouldn’t have to look at her friends.

Not that staring out the window was much of a solution for that. She could still see them in the reflections on the glass. Applejack and Fluttershy sat together on the couch, talking quietly. Occasionally one of them would look in Dash’s direction, making it clear who the subject of their discussion was. Fluttershy’s eyes were full of confused hurt and sad sympathy. Every glance from her was like a knife in Dash’s gut, sawing at her innards and leaving her bleeding with grief. She preferred Applejack’s angry glare. Anger she understood and could deal with; she deserved it. Sympathy was beyond her.

“We can’t leave her like that,” Fluttershy said, her voice finally rising high enough to be heard clearly over the rain pounding on the window.

“She don’t deserve it,” Applejack snapped. “She don’t deserve none of it, after what she’s done.” They both spoke Lunar, and whether it was because or in spite of Cash’s advice that they all familiarize themselves with the language, Dash couldn’t have said.

“She’s our friend, Applejack, and she’s miserable!” Fluttershy replied, her wings twitching slightly in indignation. “We should at least hear her out!”

“I don’t need to hear nothin’ from that traitor,” Applejack said with a snort. “Get her to reverse whatever she’s done to us, and then we can talk. No promises, though.”

Fluttershy was silent for a long moment. When she did speak again it was with the low, rough tone she sometimes adopted when she finally decided to show some spine. “I’m going to talk to her.”

“Fluttershy…”

“No! She’s my friend and I owe her the chance to explain herself.” With that she got up and walked towards where Dash stood staring out at the grey world. Applejack sighed and got up as well, grumbling as she stomped to her room and slammed the door shut. Fluttershy jumped a little at the sound of the door, but then took a deep breath to steel her nerves. It took three tries before she was able to actually get any words out, and Dash took the time to mentally prepare herself for whatever her oldest friend might say. In the end, it was only one word: “Why?”

Dash shuddered, pulling her head from the window and looking at Fluttershy. “Simple answer is: he got me,” she said. Then she turned around and slumped back, her wings splayed out against the glass. “Applejack’s told you about what’s going on, right?”

Fluttershy sat down facing her and nodded. “Yes. She, um, she told me about a lot, I mean. I think she’s not telling me everything, though. Because, maybe, it would upset me? But I’ve heard about you two having adventures in the future, and how we’re all supposed to be, um, dead. But I still don’t understand. Why did you… do what you did to that mare? Applejack said she was bad, and she was… disappointed, but she didn’t seem angry at you for doing it. But then you and Max… and now she hates you and she doesn’t want me talking to you! I don’t understand and I can’t be sure if Applejack’s telling me the truth or trying to protect me!”

Fluttershy’s eyes glistened with tears, and Dash felt that knife get shoved another inch deeper. “The mare I killed, her name was Charisma,” she said, trying to keep her own voice level. “She was… complicated. She thought she was a monster, she sure as hell acted like one. That’s why AJ wasn’t angry. We knew from the beginning that one of us might have to stop her for good. But as bad as she was, Cash is a whole lot worse.”

“Applejack said that, but Max has only been nice to me.”

Dash shuddered at the thought of Fluttershy spending any time with Max Cash, but they’d been travelling together for a week now, there was no way they would have been able to prevent all contact. “Wait, why are you calling him ‘Max’?”

“He asked me to. He said he wants to be my friend.”

Dash shook her head slowly. “He’s not a good pony, Fluttershy.”

“I know that,” she replied quietly. “Even I can tell he’s… wrong. But maybe he’s like that because he doesn’t have any friends.”

“He did have friends, though,” Dash said. Names rose in her mind like ghosts from a scarlet hell. James Bay. Conrad Sherman. “He killed them all.”

Fluttershy cringed at that. “I… I don’t know. I can’t imagine anyone being that evil.” Dash opened her mouth to explain how evil Cash could be, but Fluttershy held up a hoof to stop her. “We can talk about that later. Right now I want to hear about Charisma. Who she was, and why you…” She winced. “Killed her.”

Dash pried her eyes away from Fluttershy’s. Their bond through the Element of Loyalty meant that she now knew the dead mare better than anyone else. Even Trail Blazer didn’t understand Charisma as intimately as Dash did. On top of that, every time she thought about the dead enforcer she remembered the feeling of her spine crumbling under her hoof, and the final thoughts that, it was clear, had been a warning she hadn’t heeded. “She…” A lifetime’s worth of words tangled into a knot in her throat, choking her. “She was…” Her heart pounded and her eyes burned. She could still feel the twisted urgings of the mare’s Talent echoing in her head like it had been her own. How was she supposed to explain that kind of madness to Fluttershy? Maybe Twilight could have found the words for it, but they were beyond Dash. “I just had to,” she finally said, hanging her head and refusing to meet Fluttershy’s gaze. “There wasn’t any other choice.”

“There’s always another way.”

The quiet words had been spoken with ironclad conviction. Dash remembered when she had said the exact same thing, and felt a surge of inexplicable anger rush through her. “No there isn’t!” she snapped. “She worked real fucking hard to make sure of that!”

Fluttershy cringed, curling up on herself and hiding her eyes behind her long, pink mane. Dash’s anger melted to bitter self-rebuke as she saw her friend’s fear, and she took a deep breath in an effort to slow the blood pounding in her veins. “I tried, Fluttershy. Don’t you think I tried?”

She peeked one eye out from the curtain of her hair. “I don’t know. I really don’t.”

Dash felt that cold knife slide a little deeper, and a part of her wondered how deep it could go before it hit her heart. “I’m sorry. I didn’t want you to be here.”

“Then why am I?” Dash was brought up short by the question, unsure what her friend was asking. Fortunately, Fluttershy decided to expand. “Applejack said that Max brought us into the future by, um, killing someone for our Elements.” She shifted a bit and touched a hoof to the pink butterfly that hung around her neck. Dash couldn’t help but touch her own Element. The gem felt as hot as lightning and cold as deepest winter. She never wanted to take it off and couldn’t wait to be rid of it. “She hates him. I think you hate him too.”

“More than anything else, ever,” she replied.

“Then why? Why are we with him? Why can’t we leave? Every time we try, we just end up coming back. Applejack said that it’s your fault, and I think she’s right. What did you do to us?”

“It… it was the only thing I could do!” Dash said, though even to her the protest sounded weak.

“The only thing you could do?” Fluttershy shook her head. “You had no other choice, right? Just like with Charisma.”

“Yeah! If I hadn’t… if I hadn’t then…”

“Then what, Rainbow Dash?” The visible slivers of Fluttershy’s kind eyes flashed with anger. “What would have happened? Why did you do this?”

“I don’t know!” Dash cried, anger and shame burning in her guts. Cash’s words echoed in her thoughts: ‘I wonder, will anyone be safe?’ It had been a chance she couldn’t take, yet she couldn’t help but think she should have anyway. “Something bad! Something really, really… bad.”

“Something bad,” Fluttershy repeated, and Dash was shocked to hear the mockery in her voice. She got up, though she still kept her mane draped over her face. “I want to understand. I want to know why you’ve changed so much. Why you… why you think you had to do these things. I’m trying to give you a chance, Rainbow Dash, but it’s up to you to take it. When you decide to tell me, I’ll be here to listen. Until then...” She gave an aristocratic sniff that reminded Dash of Rarity and turned away. “I guess until then maybe Applejack was right. Maybe you don’t deserve any sympathy. Maybe you really are a traitor.”

Dash took the word like a blow. She couldn’t even draw breath to respond as Fluttershy trotted up to Applejack’s room and knocked politely before letting herself in. Dash stared at that door for what felt like an hour before she finally was able to move. When she did it was only to turn around and press her head once again up against the window.

Her heart pounded, pumping blood that felt one step away from boiling. She tried to slow its pulse, but it refused her every effort. Her chest hurt, aching with a pain she hadn’t thought she’d ever have to feel. Fluttershy, her oldest and best friend, calling her a traitor? She wanted to deny it, to scream her innocence until any doubt of her loyalty was erased. Yet… here they were, following meekly along with the greatest monster she’d ever known, all thanks to her.

She screamed, smashing her hooves into the glass. It shattered with a single blow, jagged shards dropping to the thankfully empty street below, lost in the storm before they had gone two stories. Wind and rain burst into the room, soaking her immediately. She didn’t shy back from the deluge, her teeth bared in a snarl of rage and defiance as the storm lashed her. She screamed into the gale, calling for Umbra to show herself. She’d take facing the Destroyer over hearing the words of her oldest friend over and over in her thoughts.

Umbra did not oblige, and Rainbow Dash could not sustain her fury indefinitely. Finally, she fell back from the broken window, her head drooping almost to the level of her hooves. She made at first for her room, but paused before she reached its door. Instead her eyes went to another room attached to the suite, one claimed by Max Cash. A new spark lit her anger once again and she changed direction to confront the undead unicorn.

She burst through the door without knocking, slamming it behind her as soon as she was inside. The room could have served as a dining room or a small conference room, whichever the business-tycoon clientele wished of it. Cash had taken it in lieu of a bedroom because he apparently didn’t have to sleep anymore.

He had removed the jacket of the suit he’d taken to wearing and folded it over the back of his chair. This revealed the heavy bandages that were wrapped around his body, concealing the hole in his gut and the wounds he’d received in his battle at the ancient temple. He hadn’t healed even slightly from those injuries, nor had he shown any signs of decay. He was left suspended somewhere between life and death. He had no heart to beat, but his body refused to stop moving.

He looked up at her as she entered, a bemused smile on his face as he continued talking into a phone at his ear. “Yeah, no need to get the police involved. It was just an accident and nobody was injured. We’d just like a replacement window ASAP. Of course I’ll cover the cost. Cherry, have I ever not payed my bills? That’s right, there’s a nice bonus in it for you, too, if you can get it all done before we drown. Be expecting you, ta-ta!” He hung up the receiver with a flourish. “So! Did you get that out of your system, or is this going to be an ongoing thing? I only ask because most of my accounts have been frozen by now, and when I planned this part I didn’t really factor ‘replacement windows’ into the budget.”

“Listen up, buster,” Dash snarled, ignoring him. “It’s time you answered some questions.”

He blinked at her demand, as if surprised, then shrugged. “Sure, go right ahead. What do you want to know?”

Dash was momentarily taken aback by how casually he offered to spill his secrets, but she pressed forward. “What’s all this about, huh? Getting the Elements, kidnapping me and my friends, killing all those people, why are you doing any of this? What’s your plan?”

“You really want to know?”

Dash hesitated. Calumn’s long-ago command to her still cried out in the back of her mind: don’t let Cash talk. It was as good advice now as it was then, even if she never seemed to be able to act on it. Yet now that she was trapped with him, had trapped her friends with him, it only made sense to find out what it was all for. “Yeah, I want to know! Why else would I ask?” She tried to inject all the disdain she was capable of into her voice, unsure of her success.

“Wonderful!” Cash leaned forward and rubbed his hooves together in glee. “I can’t tell you all how excited I am. I never imagined I’d get to meet any of you, much less go on a cross-continent adventure! Oh, if only Rarity and Pinkie Pie were here!”

“I’m glad they aren’t,” Dash snorted. “Hell, I don’t want to be here. So why don’t you cut to the chase, huh?” She slapped a hoof on the conference table to emphasize her impatience.

“Well, my plan’s been a little upset for awhile now –thank you for that, by the way– but there are a few basic steps I’ve figured out. First we have to deal with this whole ‘Umbra attack’ business. I’ll admit, I wasn’t prepared for her to just launch a full-frontal offensive on the combined armies of the world. Hell, I was hoping she would stay out of it all entirely. It’s thrown my whole timetable out of whack. Now I’ve got to wait until my loyal captain gets a crew together willing to slip through the chaos and get us north of the Storm. I imagine by the time we’re done with that, it’ll be a race to the Crystal Kingdom against Lady Star and her racially diverse team of misfits and heroes. I’m expecting some sort of confrontation along the way. Maybe a dramatic reveal or two. I’m sure it’ll be very exciting, I can hardly wait to find out what happens.”

She gave him a level glare. She wanted to lunge across the table and destroy him, but she couldn’t. Every time she tried her body simply wouldn’t respond. She couldn’t even blame him for it, this she’d done to herself. “And when we get there?”

He grinned at her, and she could feel her flesh crawl at the look. She tried not to drop her gaze or shrink back, but her wings drooped and her hoof shook for a moment nonetheless. “Well, to put it simply, I want you three, plus Rarity and Pinkie Pie, obviously, to use the Elements of Harmony.”

She stared at him for a long moment, her hoof going to the ruby gem at her chest. “For what?”

He shrugged. “Whatever you like. Defeat Umbra, remove the Storm, unite the world, make bread land butter-side-up. I don’t really care.”

“And what do you get out of it?”

He winked at her. “Whatever I like.” At the look she gave him he giggled. “Oh, don’t give me that! It’s a win-win-win for everyone! You remember the spiel, don’t you?” He leaned even closer, until their muzzles were scant inches apart, and she had to force herself not to lurch away in disgust. His mad grin filled her view, and she had a strange sense that the room was expanding around her, the walls vanishing into infinite distance. She couldn’t look away from him. Couldn’t even blink. “Remember? Hot and cold running adulation? It’s all still on the table. I’m offering you a blank cheque. Whatever you want, to the limits of your imagination. All you have to do, the only thing I want from you, is for you to reach out and take it.”

Dash swallowed hard, fighting the dizzy sense of the world falling away and flipping over on itself. “And what if what I want is you facing justice for what you’ve done?” she demanded.

Cash’s answering smile was coldly amused. “Go right ahead,” he said, and it sounded like a challenge. “It’s probably the only way that’s going to happen.”

“What…” Fluttershy said from the door. Cash looked over, freeing Dash. She spun and had to catch herself to keep from falling to a sudden wave of disorientation. She’d been so focused on Cash that she hadn’t noticed the door opening, despite the wind and rain still ravaging the main room of the suite, and had no idea how long Fluttershy had been standing there. Cash quickly donned his suit jacket, clumsily buttoning it up as fast as he could, then gestured for Fluttershy to come in and close the door against the wind howling through the broken window. She obliged, gently shutting the door and continuing with her question. “What if we don’t want anything? Can we… not?”

Cash’s smile turned warm, but clearly patronizing. “I’m sorry, my dear, but you really don’t have a choice there. This is going to happen, whether you want it to or not. The best thing you can do is think of something you want and let the Elements sort it all out.”

“But you can’t!” Dash said, looking back to Cash. “Rarity and Pinkie aren’t here, and they aren’t dumb enough to come within a mile of us. And you don’t have the Elements of Laughter or Magic, either! How are you going to make the Elements work without them?”

Cash shrugged. “Those are all setbacks, I’ll admit. But not insurmountable ones. In fact, I’ve got a plan to get Pinkie and Rarity right where I need them. All I need is a box and some postage stamps. As to the Element of Magic… well, why are you so sure I don’t have it?”

“I saw it get smashed in the Everstorm,” Dash said. “Even if that was a fake or something, there’s no way you’d let it out of your sight. When you were searched in the jungle they didn’t find it, so that means you don’t have it.”

“Okay, that’s all true,” he said. “And, personally, I’m still amazed that you managed to make it into the Eye of the Everstorm at all. I didn’t think it was even possible. I’ve got to give Lady Star her due, she’s one heck of a spellcaster.” He laughed, the sound coarse and grating in Dash’s ears.

“If you didn’t think it was possible, how did you expect to get the Element of Magic?” Dash said, partly to cut off that laugh and partly because she wanted to know the answer.

He gave her a sly look, and she felt like she could see something moving behind his eyes, like she was looking into a dark hole where a beast paced in hungry patience. “An excellent question. Think about it for a while, I’m sure something will come to you.”

“What do you want?” Fluttershy asked, her quiet voice catching their attention immediately. She didn’t pull back or flinch as their eyes went to her, she just continued to give Cash a steady, calm gaze. “You said we could have whatever we want, and that you’d get what you want, but you didn’t say what that is. Could you, um, could you explain it to us?” Dash looked back to Cash. She wanted to know as well. He was already some kind of immortal undead abomination, what other horror did he have his sights set on?

He regarded her for a long moment with an expression of disquieting fondness, then slouched back into his chair. “Well, there’s a question for the ages. What do I want? Why, I simply want to exist.”

Dash’s face screwed up in confusion at that. “What? Don’t you… like, already exist? I mean, you’re here, right?”

He waggled a hoof back and forth. “Yes and no. I do exist, in a sense. I exist the same way that the billions of other hapless souls inhabiting this world do. But I don’t exist in the same way you two do. What I’m looking to do is change that. I want a kind of permanency that simply being in the here-and-now can’t afford. I could explain it better if I still had my book, but I guess it’s Lady Star’s to decipher for now. For now, let’s just say that only those who’ve used the Elements really, truly exist. Anything less can and will be wiped away at the whim of the Bearers.”

“We would never do something like that!” Fluttershy protested. Dash couldn’t agree, she found the thought of removing Cash from existence to be a wonderful one.

“Oh, you might not want to, but it’s just one of those things you have no control over.” Cash laughed. “Which I guess might be a new feeling for you. Ah, well, welcome to my world.”

“Wait,” Dash said. “If all you want is to use the Elements, haven’t you already done that?”

“By ‘use’ I mean the whole shebang. I mean all six together as one. I mean the rainbow of light. I mean, in the words of Twilight Sparkle, a Harmony Event.” His eyes went distant, the ever-present smile on his lips becoming whimsical and trembling. “Everything I’ve done up to now has been nothing… nothing compared to that one moment of pure power. At the center of the collapsing universe, there will be no limits to what can be accomplished. No horizons to set the bounds of vision. Everything and anything could happen. Absolute possibility.”

“I don’t understand,” Fluttershy said. “You think the Elements can do anything?”

“Yeah,” Dash added. “The Elements are powerful, but not that strong.”

He chuckled, his eyes focusing on them once more. “Sorry, girls, but that’s what Twilight discovered about them, and everything I’ve seen so far points to her being exactly right. You don’t have to believe me, though. You just have to play your part, and the rest will just… sort itself out.”

“Ok, if you think so,” Fluttershy said, though she sounded far from convinced. “It’s just, once you use the Elements, then what? You might just want us to use them, but I don’t think that’s all you want.”

“True, but all that is unimportant. Initiating a Harmony Event is goal number one, and if it gets accomplished than this whole thing was worthwhile. I won’t worry about the ‘what next’ part until I get there.” He leaned forward again, resting his chin on a hoof. “So, that’s what I want. Get to the Crystal Kingdom, then use the Elements. That’s the whole plan.” He grinned. “Now that doesn’t sound so bad, does it?”

Dash didn’t believe that for a second. “Well… it’s not gonna work out for you. Star and the others aren’t going to let you get away with what you’ve done. And even if you do make it all the way, it’s still not gonna work. You might think you can get the Elements to do anything you want, but no matter what you did to them they’re still the Elements of Harmony.”

He gave her another dark chuckle. “Are they? Are they really? I suppose we’ll find out.”

***

The pink party pony glared at her opponent, the concentration of a true competitor glowing in her blue eyes. “So, it’s come down to this,” she said, projecting a mountain of confidence with every word. “You and me. Mano a Pinkie.” Across the green field, the opposition readied for the final strike that would decide everything. The wreckage of their previous battles littered the space around them, a wasteland of plastic pieces, colorful cardboard and fake money. “One for the ages. Winner-take-all. The final countdown. The–” With a resounding ‘pok!’ the small plastic ball bounced on her side of the table and right by her. “Hey! I wasn’t ready!”

Trail Blazer shrugged. “You snooze, you lose.”

Pinkie Pie let out an animalistic growl, narrowing her eyes at her opponent. “You win this round.” She mimed throwing down her ping-pong paddle and jumping on it in frustration. A moment later she bounced onto the table, and in an instant her entire demeanor changed as she went from wild anger to grinning from ear to ear. “You’re good at this game! Want a rematch?”

“Only if we get to play beer pong,” he replied with an eager glint in his eyes.

“Ooh! I’ve never played that one before!” Pinkie said, but her smirk and the sly look in her eyes said differently.

Blaze matched her grin. “You get the cups, I’ll grab the booze.” In a flash both were gone, Blaze scrambling out the door and Pinkie moving so fast she left a literal pony-shaped cloud of dust in her wake.

“She knows what beer pong is?” Astrid asked, watching the two depart from across the room.

They’d been installed in what was supposed to be a recreational room for on-break hospital staff, but when Spike, Pinkie and Rarity had arrived it’d been given to them because its position in the building meant it didn’t have any windows they could be seen through. With Astrid and Trail Blazer joining them, Pinkie had immediately begun cajoling them into trying out every leisure activity the room boasted. With Spike claiming injury, Astrid stuck on the ceiling, and Rarity busy with a project of her own, that had left Blaze, who had taken to the whirlwind of board games and tablesports with casual gusto.

“If it’s a party game, Pinkie knows it,” Rarity replied. “Though, considering that beer wasn’t that common a drink in our time, I’m wondering if that particular game might have changed in the last thousand years?” She gave a questioning glance to Spike.

He shrugged. “I haven’t been to a party where they would play that kind of game in a long, long time.”

“High society has its downsides,” Astrid said, snickering.

“What was the last party you went to?” Rarity asked, looking back to her stitching and ignoring the return of Pinkie and Blaze, who quickly began setting up their game and hashing out the rules. “Before the one after Star’s engagement, I mean.”

“Gosh, it must have been five, ten years ago?” Spike shook his head, a millennium of life making it impossible to pin down the passage of a few paltry years. “The last time I had pieces I wanted to sell. There was a gallery in Joli’s Spiral that practically begged me to show them there. When I agreed they threw a party for every noble and wealthy citizen who could make it.”

“Seven years,” Astrid said. “I was there. With Fall.”

“Oh yeah!” Spike smiled, remembering. “It was the first time I’d met her. She was so excited you could see it taking all her mental effort not to zip around the gallery like a sugared up hummingbird.”

“If you thought she was crazy then, you should have seen her the day before,” Astrid said, laughing. “When she heard she was gonna meet you she went ballistic, grabbing every book that she could that even mentioned you and reading them all nonstop. She wrote out these lists of questions she wanted to ask you, and then kept scratching them out because they were ‘too simple’ or ‘too childish’. I practically had to sit on her to get her to stay in bed. I don’t think she slept a wink anyway.”

“The next year she was living with me,” Spike said, fond nostalgia thick in his voice. “What are the odds she asked every single one of those questions in her first month?”

Astrid snorted. “No bet. I’m glad I wasn’t around, or the constant noise would have driven me nuts.”

“You didn’t go with her?” Rarity asked. “I understood you two were practically inseparable.”

Astrid’s face fell. “That’s…”

“You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to,” Rarity was quick to assure her.

Astrid shook her head with a look of self-contempt. “No, I’m good. Not gonna wuss out just to save my feelings. While Fall was living with Spike and learning about magic and history and junk, I was in the Steelwing Aerie, nesting.”

Rarity drew in a slow breath, taking a moment to think through what she’d been told before speaking. “By ‘nesting’, darling, do you mean…?”

Astrid sighed, rolling her eyes. “Yes, Rarity, I mean ‘trying to have babies’.” She kept her features composed in an expression of bored nonchalance, but Spike could see through the mask as if it were made of clear glass. “I was paired with this big moron named Roan. He was a Bloodtalon, but he’d been sweet on me ever since I beat him up during joint exercises when we were six. It wasn’t where I wanted to be, really, but it was fun, you know?” Sadness moved across her eyes, sparkling in the unshed tears that gathered there until she blinked them all away. “Didn’t work out, though.”

“What happened?” Rarity asked.

“None of my eggs were viable,” Astrid replied. “I’d been too close to Fall for too long. Her magic got into me a bit, and it was interfering in the spells the Royals use to help Griffin hatchlings survive. They figured I needed to be away from her for a full year before I could try again. By that point, though, Fall was coming home soon and I’d be damned if I was going to leave her to some new guardian who didn’t even know her. So I gave up on the whole thing and went back to doing what I do best.”

“I’m so sorry, Astrid,” Rarity said. “I can’t hope to understand what that must have been like for you.”

“I don’t need sympathy, Rarity,” Astrid said, and while there was some heat in her voice it wasn’t directed at the unicorn. “I need to be able to walk around on the goddess-damned floor.”

“Well, I’ll be done with this by tomorrow,” Rarity replied, indicating the thick fabric being carefully stitched together by her. “I can’t promise it will be the height of style, sadly, but it will certainly hold the weights necessary to, ah, keep you grounded, as it were.”

“However it looks, it’ll be better than those.” Astrid indicated the heavy weights she’d been using to get around since they’d returned to civilization.

“Oh, very much so!” Rarity said, laughing. “In addition to much improved looks, this should be comfortable, as well. Though I daresay it will take some getting used to.”

“I’ve trained with heavy armor before,” Astrid said.

“I’m sure, but this won’t be like that,” Rarity replied. “You see, as you will be pushing up with all your weight, this outfit will be pulling down with half again as much. With the peculiar manner of your, ah, indisposition, it will feel like wearing something more than twice your weight, while to every scale you will appear as if you weighed half as much as you do. Then there is the fact that your mass has not changed, so despite your halved weight, your momentum will act as if you were two and a half times your normal size.”

Astrid frowned at her. “While I think I understood all that, I’m gonna ask you to dumb it down for me anyway, just in case.”

“Essentially, darling, you will have to learn to move as if you were a particularly heavy sort of balloon. You will not take corners as you expect, and while it will be fairly easy to start moving, you may find it rather more difficult to stop.”

“On the plus side, if you tackle someone it’ll hit like a truck,” Spike said brightly. Astrid made a pleased noise and nodded in thoughtful approval.

Spike was about to broach a new strand of conversation when there was a knock at the door and Director Straff entered. He looked around the room, noting with a quirked eyebrow the game of beer pong that was just heating up between Pinkie Pie and Trail Blazer, before turning his attention squarely towards Spike. “Master Spike, if you would come with me. Her Highness, Princess Fallen Star, has said she’s ready to see you.”

Spike felt a chill go up his back, making his spines quiver. Rarity, clearly sensing his trepidation, set down her sewing and stepped over to give him a hug. “I don’t want to do this,” he whispered to her. “She deserves to know, but I’m afraid this will just hurt her more.”

“Perhaps it will,” Rarity said. “I know I’m not shy about avoiding bad news to spare my own feelings. Yet Star Fall is in a position where her decisions can change the fate of nations. If she is to make those the best decisions she can, she will need to know everything, even if it is unpleasant.”

“Even if it could end our friendship?”

“Is what you must tell her really so bad?” she asked, her voice a breath in his ear.

“Pretty bad,” he murmured back. “Twilight made some big mistakes. Some of them… some have come back to burn Star directly. I kept them a secret, so it’s my fault too.”

“Well, I suppose you will just have to live with it, then.” Rarity nuzzled him and pulled away. “You’re a big Dragon. I’m sure you’ll be able to handle it.”

He gave her a sheepish smile, then levered himself up from where he was sitting and limped over to Straff. His braced leg protested at the movement, but settled down within a few strides. “Let’s go.”

They walked in silence for a while, a quartet of guards keeping a respectful distance from both of them. Finally, in the elevator ride up to the floor Star Fall’s room was on, Straff spoke. “The city has been chosen for the vote,” he said. “Gemini City will host the full Senate in six days.”

“That’s a long time to wait when Umbra’s on your doorstep,” Spike replied.

Straff made a low noise of agreement. “Fortunately, the Gray Mare seems content to batter our entrenched positions in the Stile Islands with merely invincible forces, rather than scouring them bare herself. It’s a losing battle, but our most dire estimates say we still have a fortnight before we’d be forced to commit reserve forces. It’s given us plenty of time to regroup and reinforce.”

“And it’s probably exactly what she wants you doing.”

“No doubt,” Straff said, inclining his horn. “Her… statement... at the opening of hostilities shows that she wants a challenge. She wants us to throw everything we have at her in a futile gesture of defiance.”

“Do you really believe that?”

“I don’t know what to believe when it comes to her,” Straff said, giving Spike a pointed look. “Her true nature, it seems, has been carefully hidden from us for a long, long time.”

Spike took this in silence as the elevator opened and they continued their walk to Star Fall’s room. As they got to the door they paused, and Spike looked to Straff. “Will you be listening in?”

“Would you believe me if I were to say no?”

He shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe. But if you do listen in, be sure of who you’ve got in the room with you. I’m going to be talking about things that have… real heavy implications. If it gets out, even a little, it could… well, it could make achieving any lasting peace in the world all but impossible.”

“I see,” he said, a small crease forming between his brows as he thought. “You are aware, Master Spike, that if the vote does not go… well, you may be the only one of your friends able to walk away free.”

“I won’t abandon my friends, Director.”

“I did not mean to suggest that. I only meant to remind you that your status allows you certain privileges that will not, cannot be afforded to the others.” Spike narrowed his eyes at the Director, who schooled his features to placid blankness. “Perhaps it is something you should think on, when you have the time. For now, though, the Princess is waiting.”

“Right,” Spike said, filing the comment away for later. Then he pushed everything else out of his mind, and entered Star Fall’s room. As Spike stepped through the door his heart filled with trepidation at what he would have to do. The dark look in Star Fall’s eyes as they met his only made everything worse.

She broke the gaze to look him over, and he did the same to her. He knew what she would see. He was healing well, a testament to both the quality of his care and the innate physical prowess that came with being a Dragon. His wounded leg was wrapped in steel bands that made it stiff and clumsy, but he could at least walk on it. His mouth itched terribly where Charisma had pierced it, but the stitches were out and his tongue was curling properly again. The various other stab wounds might as well have not happened for all they bothered him anymore. No, his body was nearly well, but his heart had wounds that could never heal, and he was about to pull them open once again.

“You’re looking good, Star,” he said, and meant it. Like him, one of her legs was wrapped in a brace, though hers was mostly plastic. Her wings were free, though, and they flexed slowly open and closed as she regarded him, working out the stiffness of being bound for a week. The most striking injury was the missing hoof. Fortunately, he had more than enough control to avoid staring.

On the other hand, her coat had a healthy shine to it, and as she sat in her bed waiting for him she looked strong and energetic. After he’d heard what had happened to her, he had imagined her lying there in terrible pain, weak and melancholy. The fact that she looked so well made him both glad and suspicious. He could feel magic at work, though it didn’t feel like a healing spell. “What…” he began, then realized he didn’t know how to ask tactfully. A moment of thought was all he needed to decide tact wasn’t necessary here. “What are you doing?”

“Copying Dash,” she replied. He smiled at her, but it was a kindness she did not return. Instead she gestured towards the furniture in the room. “Grab a seat, Spike. We’ve got a lot to talk about.”

He didn’t see any chair that could reasonably accommodate his bulk, so he slowly lowered himself to the floor, stretching out his banded leg and coiling his tail around to provide some support for the knee. The cool tile actually felt good for now, so he relaxed into it, hoping it wouldn’t grow uncomfortable too quickly. She stared at him for a long moment, and from the haunted look that passed behind her eyes he knew she was dreading this conversation as much as he was. More, perhaps, since she had no idea what he was about to tell her.

“I’m sorry,” he said. She tilted her head quizzically. “About what happened to you.”

She reflexively looked down to her stump. She stared at it for a long moment before speaking. “I’ll live. I’ll keep going. For as long as I can. For as long as I have to. But that might not be very long if we don’t hurry up and save the world. I didn’t want to do this, but I have to. I can’t wait any longer, Spike. I need to know. Tell me about Umbra. Tell me everything.”

Spike sat down, and did as he was asked.

Chapter 36: The Old Story

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Chapter 37: Special Delivery

The effect of the Elements on probability and happenstance cannot be overstated. Coincidences pile up around them. Improbable events become commonplace. One merely has to look at the unrealistically frequent afflictions that plagued Ponyville to see a concrete example of this effect in action. Not even being next to the Everfree Forest can account for the preponderance of catastrophe experienced, almost all of which was in some way connected to a Bearer and thus to the Elements.

Simply put: they make things happen, even when not directly in use. For many years they were either locked up in Canterlot or attached to the Tree of Harmony, yet still their influence could be felt and, indeed, measured. Even as of this writing, years after I personally sealed them away, I am seeing evidence of their manipulations.

…Interestingly, the events so created seem to have some sort of purpose. More often than not, especially in the early days, the result was a friendship lesson. Later they took on more subtle hues, but retained their essential base quality: the events manufactured by the Elements are explicitly done to provide an experience, lesson or revelation to the Bearer.

While I have only anecdotal evidence to support it, my hypothesis is that these lessons are meant to teach the Bearer how to use the Element. Once my friends and I started becoming more comfortable with our Elements, the rate of incidents dropped off, only to pick up again when we passed them to our ‘successors’.

This is another indication that the Elements, for lack of a better term, want to be used. In the face of this, and their capacity to manipulate the world, I am left wondering exactly how far they will go to achieve this end. Or how far they have already gone.

-From the third section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Thirty-Seven: Special Delivery

“I’m fine,” Applejack lied.

“You should come out,” Fluttershy pressed as boldly as she dared. “You’ve been in your room for days and we’re getting worried.”

“We?” Applejack asked, giving her an incredulous stare.

Fluttershy couldn’t hold her gaze, eyes dropping to the floor. “Rainbow Dash is worried too.”

Applejack’s eyes flashed with fury. “That traitor don’t have to worry none about me. I’m doin’ just dandy!”

“I don’t think–”

“Thank you very much for your concern!” Applejack snapped. “Shut the door when you go, please and thank you!”

“Oh… okay.” Fluttershy retreated from the room, shutting the door quietly behind her. Applejack was becoming more withdrawn with every hour. Dash had begun talking to herself. Two friends so close by, and Fluttershy had never felt so alone.

Yet… She reached up and touched her face with a hoof. Sure enough, her lips were set in a small, delighted smile. She rubbed at her face, wiping that terrible smile away. She couldn’t be happy with her friends’ misery. She just couldn’t.

Even if it was exactly what they deserved.

She mentally repeated the scrubbing, blotting out the thought. It was so unlike her, so ugly, so uncharitable, so… unkind.

You’ve been kind for far too long.

A voice interrupted her thoughts, saving her from contemplating further on her own contrary mind. “She’s not coming?”

Fluttershy composed herself and turned to face Max Cash, who wore the smirk of someone who had seen the embarrassing thing you’d just done and wanted you to know it. Fluttershy ignored the look; it was just one of a variety of smiles he wore, each one more fake than the last. She didn’t understand how someone so deeply unhappy could smile so much, but she knew all about pretending for the sake of others, so she let it pass without comment.

“Applejack is, um, resting,” she said. “What about Rainbow?”

He shrugged. “I asked, and she told me to go f–” he cut himself off, giving her a considering look. “Well, she told me no, but with gusto!” He chuckled and turned towards the door. “All for the best. This will work just fine with only the two of us.”

“Won’t they… won’t they be dragged along anyway?” Fluttershy asked.

“We won’t be going too far,” he replied. “And we intend to come back. I think they’ll be fine.”

She could do little but accept this, so she went with him without asking anything else. The elevator ride down was quiet, almost peaceful. For once, he wasn’t trying to engage her in conversation, and she had a moment to consider what she was doing.

She knew her friends didn’t want her spending time with him. They’d both been adamant about that. Yet, with both Rainbow Dash and Applejack withdrawing so much from each other, she was left with the choice of being pulled apart by her friends or spending time with the stallion who had, for all intents and purposes, kidnapped them.

It didn’t help that he was so friendly. He hadn’t said an unkind word to her yet, hadn’t even raised his voice, though his regular manner of speech was still louder than she would have preferred. He clearly wanted to get to know her better, and despite the warnings of her friends, she had decided that she wanted to get to know him as well.

So, when he had told her he wanted her to come with him on this little trip, she’d said yes without dithering. She’d requested that Applejack and Rainbow Dash be asked along as well, and he’d been fine with the idea. Perhaps because he’d known that they wouldn’t want to go.

The elevator opened to the lobby of the hotel. The mare behind the counter smiled at them and Cash gave her a little wave. Fluttershy could see the bags under the mare’s eyes, and noted the little tremble in her face as she held the smile. She’d been spending her nights sleepless and worrying. The reason why wasn’t hard to guess.

The rain splattered against the windows in sporadic gusts. Beyond, the storm raged unabated. Somewhere, miles and miles away, a terrifyingly powerful monster assaulted two armies. When she was done with them, she might be coming here. Fluttershy knew that such things would keep her awake.

Just as they were stepping towards the doors, a thought struck her. “Oh! We don’t have any umbrellas!”

“You’re right,” he said, and it clearly wasn’t a revelation to him. “But I don’t think we’ll be needing them.” He gave her a sly, expectant look. “I think you can take care of the problem for us.”

“Um, I’m not really good at weather-work,” she admitted, dipping her head in embarrassment. “I can’t do much more than push around a few clouds. A storm like this is too big.”

He chuckled, grinning at her. “A nice thought, but not what I meant.” He reached out and tapped the gemstone hanging from her neck. “You have the power, Fluttershy. You can calm this storm with a thought.”

She stepped back from him, turning her head to conceal her face behind her mane. “I don’t know. I don’t think I have any kind of power like that.” It wasn’t a complete lie. She really didn’t think she had power like that. She knew the Element had power, though. She could feel it like a warm caress, like all her furry friends snuggled up to her at once.

“You do,” he said, and there was such amazing confidence in his voice. Like the thought of her not having the power was laughably absurd. “You can do anything you want. All you need is some encouragement. Close your eyes.” She did so, taking a deep breath as she felt him step close to her again. “Think about the storm out there. Not about how you can move it or how big it is. Don’t worry about that.” His mouth was right by her ear, close enough that if she flicked it she would brush his lips. He did not whisper, but spoke with a calm and even cadence, the rhythm of it almost hypnotic. Yet despite how close he was and the strength of his voice, his breath wasn’t enough to tickle her hair. How could he speak so clearly with so little breath?

“That storm is following a pattern. It swells and it roils and it spits out lightning and rain because the patterns of air and heat and moisture determine that it should swell and roil and spit. Nightmare Umbra may have created the storm, but she doesn’t decide where each raindrop falls and when each bolt of lightning strikes. That’s down to those patterns. Think about those patterns. See them in your mind. Feel them. Can you feel them?” She nodded. She could feel the storm almost as if it were inside her. It felt like all her fears and anxieties bundled up and set alight. It scared her. “Those patterns guide the storm, and they’re wild things. Born in an ever-moving system. But you know how to deal with wild things, don’t you Fluttershy?” She could hear the sly grin in his voice, the chuckle on the edge of being let out. “All they need is a little attention, some love, and some regulation, and they’ll be eating out of your hoof.”

Fluttershy’s mouth opened in a soft gasp. She’d never thought of weather as a wild animal before. Of course, weather had never been wild for her before. It had been carefully prepared by pegasus ponies and put to work like any other tool ponies crafted for their use. This… this was no tool. It was practically alive. She reached out to it, though she would never be able to explain how, and touched it like she would a skittish animal. She stroked it and murmured encouragement to it, and soon enough it yielded to her.

Her eyes opened just as the rain stopped falling and the clouds opened up above the city, letting a fall of glorious sunlight gleam on the slick streets and glass buildings. She felt a warmth within her. A glow of pride, and of a joy that she had been missing since she had awoken in this time. And, secretly, she felt a thrill at the power Cash had just helped her find.

“See? Wasn’t that easy?” Cash said, then he strode towards the door, a vicious grin stretching across his features. “Come, come! Lots to do!”

She followed meekly behind, eyes fixed on the wide blue sky. The sky she had made happen.

They travelled first to a photography studio. She recognized the type from her horrible time as a model. This wasn’t so bad, though, since this time there were so few others around. Just her, Cash, and the pony with the movie camera. Cash and the filmmaker exchanged a few quiet words and some slips of paper Fluttershy took for currency, and then it was her turn. She was nervous as Cash laid out what he wanted her to do, but in the end she followed through on his script and an hour later they were heading to a postal office with a canister of film tucked in his bags.

“It won’t be publicly viewed, I assure you,” Cash said, sensing her mood as they walked. He laughed. “It’ll probably be a national secret halfway through the first viewing!”

“I, um, I don’t mind that,” she said, with as much sincerity as she could fake. “But, well, when Pinkie and Rarity see it, I wonder what they’ll think?”

“Hopefully ‘by Luna’s starry mane, we’ve got to go help her!’ and then they’ll race to cross the Storm and come straight for you.”

And right into your clutches. An incongruous snicker drifted through her mind, and she shook her head to clear the offending thought. “I just hope they’re not upset.”

“Why would they be? You’re safe and sound and learning new languages and cultures! If anything, they should be happy you’re getting out.”

“I suppose,” she said, entirely unconvinced.

“Here we are!” Cash announced as they entered the office.

Like everywhere else in the city, it was practically deserted. Also like everywhere else, it wasn’t shut down. As unceasing as the storm was, it was mostly wind and lightning with frequent but short bursts of intense rainfall. It hadn’t actually rained enough to cause much flooding, so the impact on the city’s ability to operate was minimal. No, it hadn’t been the storm that had driven people away, but fear of the one who had caused it.

The mare behind the counter was like any of the others who’d stayed. Some were stubborn, some were fearless, but most of them were simply too poor to leave. The stores and shops were still open, and someone had to tend them even if there were no customers. If they didn’t work, they didn’t get paid, and never mind the Destroyer thrashing the two most powerful militaries in the world only a few hundred kilometers away. Money was king in the Nightlands, and in some ways it was a more oppressive tyrant than any Solar noble could ever manage. She looked tired, slumping at her post, but she perked up as Fluttershy and Cash walked in.

“Welcome to the Pegasus Parcel Service! How may I help you today?”

Fluttershy held back, standing surreptitiously behind Cash as she studied the mare. She was a pegasus pony with a long blue-green mane, a russet coat and a nametag that read ‘Kelly’. Her Talent in Writing Music was printed in sigils on her flanks –something Fluttershy was never going to get used to– which made her wonder why the mare was working here. Her smile was genuine, and if it was more for the rays of sunshine coming in through the open door than for the customers themselves, well, Fluttershy wouldn’t blame her.

“I’d like to send a package,” Cash said, striding up to the counter and hefting his bag onto it. The mare took in the bag, then took a closer look at Cash. Fluttershy could see her recoil when she saw the broken stump of his horn, but she recovered quickly and smoothly, ducking below the counter to bring out a scale.

“Of course. I must tell you, however, that due to the recent… troubles, our express delivery service is not being offered right now.”

Cash shrugged, rummaging in the bag to pull out the canister of film they’d just shot. “That’s fine. I don’t particularly care how fast it’s delivered. In fact, I’m sure you’ll get it where it needs to go precisely when it needs to get there.”

“Thank you for your confidence, sir,” Kelly said, taking the film and weighing it.

“Think nothing of it,” Cash said, and there was an acid edge to his voice, as if he was holding back from laughing in her face. “Seriously.” He dipped a hoof into the bag again, and this time came out with the Element of Generosity.

“Oh!” Kelly’s eyes widened as she saw the Element. “What a pretty necklace! Are you sending that too?”

“Yes I am. It’s for a special lady. I promised I’d give it to her, but it looks like I won’t get the chance in person for a while. I’m hoping this will help speed our reunion.”

“How romantic!” Kelly gushed. “Well, for jewellry we require that insurance be purchased. How much is this beauty worth?”

“More than all the stars in Luna’s night,” Cash said, and Kelly laughed. “Put it down for two thousand full moons.”

She let out a low whistle. “Expensive, is there anything else you’d like to send?”

“What about it?” he asked, turning to Fluttershy. “Anything you want to add?”

Fluttershy squeaked, freezing in place as their attention turned to her. She was about to shake her head and scrunch down a bit, but she stopped herself. “Could, um, I send a letter?”

Cash grinned at her, and she couldn’t get the first inkling of what was going on behind that rictus smile. “Well, sure.”

Fluttershy turned to Kelly. “Could I please have a pen and some paper?”

“Absolutely, I’ll add it to the bill,” Kelly said, fetching the supplies.

Fluttershy didn’t spend long writing her letter. She didn’t have a lot to say. Cash hovered at her back. Not quite looking but palpably curious. She didn’t show him what she’d written. She was sure he would have been fine with it, but some part of her wanted him to suffer in ignorance. She folded up the page neatly and gave it to Kelly. “There,” she said. “I’d like that included as well, if, um, if that’s alright.”

“Sure, that’s no problem,” Kelly said brightly, and Fluttershy retreated once more. The mare gave her a considering look, but didn’t say anything, instead returning her attention to Cash. “With the insurance, the basic fee for inter-Republic delivery is twenty-five full moons. Are you sending this package outside of the Republics?”

“Nope. Just to an address in, hmm, Orion City.”

“Oh! I’ve got a cousin who lives there. Have you been?”

“Couple times. Met some very special people in that area. Of course, the last time I was there didn’t go so well, but, hey, you can’t win ‘em all, right?” She smiled in agreement, and the two continued their bantering small talk as Cash spelled out the address for her and paid.

Fluttershy didn’t pay much attention to them at that point. Cash was being charming, but she could hear the double meanings in every other sentence that came out of his mouth. She imagined he was enjoying himself immensely with the mare. Perhaps that was why he was dragging it out.

Finally, they finished up. The film, the Element and Fluttershy’s letter were boxed up and sent into the back room, where they were assured the package would be on its way in a matter of hours. Cash and Kelly bid each other farewell and they were once more on the move. “Now,” Cash said. “There’s one more thing to do before we head back to check on our grumpy little roommates.”

Fluttershy gave him a questioning look, but didn’t say anything as he led them down one street after another. He stayed abnormally silent himself, only shooting her gleeful looks every few steps. She resolved to enjoy the walk. The sun on her wings felt good, and she could hear the sounds of birds taking the opportunity to sing. The smell of drying rain and the quiet sounds of a city beaten into slumber were a heady mix, reminding her of Cloudsdale on the morning after the Storm Season Festival, when the rain clouds had all been delivered and all the pegasus ponies who had worked so hard on them had partied well into the night. She had walked the cloud-streets of her birthplace and felt the same sense of calm in a place not meant for calmness.

Eventually, they came to a large park. Fluttershy was delighted already with the thought of spending some time around trees, but Cash led them even further. When she saw their destination her heart leapt up into her throat and she let out a little squeak of joy. The park was home to a small petting zoo, and the animals had been let out to play in the sunshine.

She took wing before she knew what she was doing, speeding ahead until she was among all the furry creatures that she had missed so much. Lambs and pigs and possums and marmots and so many others. They looked at her with uneasy surprise, but very little fear. “Hello, little ones,” she said, light and sweet and welcoming. “I’m Fluttershy, and I’m so very pleased to meet you all!”

The animals jolted as if struck with an electric shock. She saw a new light dawn in their eyes: comprehension. She knew from what Applejack had told her that the ability to speak with animals was probably unheard of in this age. These poor little creatures had probably never had a pony to talk to before. Cautiously, almost with an air of reverence, the boldest of them, a goat with two nubs for horns, nudged up to her. She reached out her hoof and stroked its head. “There, see? I’m perfectly safe. Why don’t you come over and I can greet you all properly.”

With that the others rushed to her, surrounding her in a fuzzy swarm of bleating, barking, squeaking love. She listened and she spoke, learning each of their names and listening to their stories. She laughed and smiled as she stroked them and hugged them and assured them that the storm was over and that everything would be all right. For a time, she felt like herself again.

Eventually, though, it was time to eat and the little ones were called away by those who ran the zoo. The sun had moved a fair distance across the sky, and she was beginning to feel peckish herself. She made her way over to where Cash had stood watching her frolic, his eyes fixed to her the entire time. She hadn’t minded his gaze, a fact that somewhat surprised her. If it had been anyone else, she would have begun feeling self-conscious immediately. Not for him, though. No, being stared at by Cash was like… well, it wasn’t like anything at all, really.

“I see you had fun,” he said. “Going to need a bath, though. Grass and mud stains show up crazy-good on yellow.”

“Thank you,” she said, then frowned. “But, um, if you don’t mind me asking, why do this for me?”

He shrugged, turning to walk back through the park. “I have a feeling you and I are going to have a complex relationship, Fluttershy.”

She trotted up to stay at his side. “Oh? What do you mean?”

“I mean, on the one hoof I want to watch you play with bunnies and take you to all my favourite diners. For some reason I want you to like me.”

“And on the other?” she prompted when he fell silent.

He stopped dead in his tracks and turned to her, their snouts almost touching. The moment their eyes met, she felt it. The Stare. Her Stare. She’d used it to cow cockatrices and talk down Dragons, seeing it from the other side was a whole different experience. The most shocking part of it was that even as she found herself unable to pull away, unable even to blink, she felt no fear. “On the other? On the other, every time I look at you I feel like I’m going to scream. With rage.” He grinned. Not a joking-grin, but a mad smile full of glee at some terrible notion dancing behind his eyes like a great coiled creature winding around his brain. “So, yeah. Complicated. And boy oh boy is it only gonna get worse from here!” He laughed, a wild, braying sound that would have made most ponies flinch.

Fluttershy let the grating noise wash over her without a twitch, holding Cash’s gaze. “Well, um, thank you anyways.”

“You’re welcome!” he said, and turned away, releasing her.

She watched him go for a few steps, contemplating what she had seen within him. Her gaze tracked up to the sky, and the swirl of clouds that spun around the city without touching it. She’d done that. She had the power.

You’ve been kind for far too long.

Cash was going to take them someplace terrible. He was going to use them, use the Elements, and she didn’t believe the explanation he had given to her and Rainbow Dash for a second. Something awful was coming, and she wouldn’t be able to hide from it this time, no matter how much she wanted to. Applejack and Dash were increasingly unable to help her, and while the message she had just recorded would send the others running to her, they would be running right into a trap. If anything could be done, she would have to be the one to do it. She had the power, now she needed the strength of will to use it.

She knew, somehow, what she had to do.

Time to be cruel.

As she started after Cash, the clouds stopped their swirling, pausing for a long moment as if in indecision, or as if listening to someone giving them new instructions. Then, with peals of thunder roaring like laughter, they rushed back in to bury the city.

***

The Pegasus Parcel Service prided itself on being able to get a package ‘from anywhere in the Republics to anywhere in the Republics’ within forty-eight hours. Even standard mail services were held to a high standard. Certainly, so went the corporate literature, higher than those other courier companies a pony could choose. While the potential end of the world had put a hitch in the regularly smooth service, the decision makers at the top of the corporate pyramid had decided that on the off-chance that the world didn’t end, then if they kept the mail moving during the crisis they would come out the other side with a reputation bump, soon to be followed by a revenue bump, and a hefty round of bonuses shortly thereafter.

So while Max Cash’s special delivery wasn’t guaranteed the fastest transit, he could still rest easy knowing it wasn’t going to languish in the back of the office, and would be well on its way before the end of that day. Not that he ever doubted it. He was, after all, taking advantage of powers far beyond any mere corporate bureaucracy.

The package was loaded into the back of a truck that was otherwise empty. The ponies driving it were thankful for that, as it would speed their way out of Virgo City. Kelly looked at the truck wistfully as it pulled away from the loading bay of her little office. She wished that she could go with them, but knew that she’d be fired for abandoning her place, and she couldn’t afford that. Little did she know this was the last chance she would have to escape the city for a long, long time.

Shortly after the truck had passed out of the city limits the winds kept at bay by Fluttershy came back with a vengeance, ending the few hours of light and peace that had graced the city. Then there would be flooding and power outages and wind stripping roofs from buildings. Emergency shelters would fill beyond capacity, and the prospect of evacuation would vanish along with any hope of outside help.

But the package was already gone, bound now for Orion City.

***

“So what did you tell her?” Rarity asked, leaning forward, ears perked. The hospital cafeteria was a bustle of activity, but none of it came close to where they sat, allowing them to carry on a conversation in normal tones. The table between them had the remaining scraps of their lunch, which was a limp salad for her and a cutlet of some kind of greyish meat that Rarity strove not to look at for him. Next to them was a large window that looked out on a quaint little garden area where patients could sit or walk in. Hard Boiled was out there now, talking with Traduce. Rarity was trying very hard not to look at him, too.

It had been two days since Spike had gone to talk to Star Fall, and they’d both been kept busy enough in that time that this was the first chance they’d had for Spike to tell her all he’d revealed in that meeting. Just in time for Star Fall to call them both up for some kind of briefing with everyone involved in the fight against Max Cash. Spike, his leg finally out of its steel brace, answered her question with a helpless shrug. “What could I tell her? I told her Discord was a spirit of chaos, that he could only be defeated with the Elements, and that he really, really pissed us off. There’s not much more to tell.”

“The way you flinch whenever his name is mentioned makes it obvious that’s a lie,” Rarity said with an accusatory glare. Then she sighed and slumped back in her seat. “I was hoping you gave her the full story. At the very least then I’d have an excuse to pry it out of you myself.”

Spike slowly shook his head. “We thought he was our friend, Rarity. For years. We thought he’d reformed. Then he betrayed us all.”

“Yes, you’ve said that, but you haven’t said how he betrayed us. Really, it must have been quite something to bring out such an extreme reaction!”

“It was.” Rarity sat back, expecting this to be the end of it, then he began speaking again. “It was personal. That’s what makes it so bad. You’d think, after everything I’ve seen and done in the thousand years since we put him down that I’d be over it, but I still can’t think about him without flinching. Because it was personal. The war, the Schism, was worse for me in every conceivable way, but I can talk about it. I can understand it; what led to it, what came of it. There was a logic to the Schism, if a terrible one. And I know that even though it hurt me, even though I still have scars from it, it wasn’t personal. I wasn’t special, it didn’t create those torments just for me. Not so with Discord. When Discord turned, he made a living hell designed specifically for us.”

He let out a soft growl, the tip of his tail twitching in agitation as it lay curled on the seat beside him. “And it makes no sense! Not that I should expect it to with him, but… well, we still don’t know what set him off. Even when he was our friend there were times he’d get nasty, but there was always a reason: some insult or snub that usually only existed in his imagination. Something to justify him acting out, at least to himself. This time I guess he just… I don’t know, got bored of being a good guy. It was just after the Summer Sun Celebration, which was always a magnet for trouble. We went to sleep after the party, and when we woke up all the children were gone.”

“He kidnapped the foals at the party?” Rarity asked.

“Not just the foals at the party. Every child. Everywhere.” Rarity stared at Spike in shock. “Yeah, even baby Dragons. Which I still, technically, was. The only reason he didn’t take me is that I was the Bearer of Generosity at the time, and the Element protected me. He took all the children, Rarity. Imagine what kind of havoc that would create.”

“I can practically hear him laughing about it,” Rarity said, shuddering at the image.

“It was crazy. But that was only the beginning. He used the children as leverage on their families. Got them to do things for him.”

“What kind of things?”

Spike wouldn’t meet her eyes, staring out the window instead. “Things you don’t want me describing, trust me. Some of it was the usual chaos and madness. Some of it, though, was aimed directly at us, the Bearers. We’d… well, our reputations as heroes and badasses were pretty solid by then. Most bad guys wouldn’t mess with us anymore. At least the ones who didn’t have a spell to lock the Princesses in a snowglobe or a magic bell that summoned an army when rung or some other stupidly powerful advantage like that. We could handle ourselves against world-ending threats and demonic invasions. What we couldn’t handle, what we could not even begin to handle, was a mob of terrified parents who just wanted to make sure their children were safe.”

He leaned his head against the window, his horns clunking against the glass. His eyes weren’t seeing the scenery, however, locked instead on something far away and long ago. “The love of a parent for a child… It’s such a strong thing, Rarity. A lot of parents say they’ll do anything to keep their child safe, and Discord set out to see if they meant it. Most of them did. What do you even do against that? We had no idea, and the more we scrambled trying to find a solution, the worse it got.”

“But you did defeat him, eventually.”

“Eventually. I don’t know how long it really took –you know how time gets freaky when Discord gets going. All I know is there were a couple false starts before we got it right. When we confronted him the first time he just brushed us off. Threatening him could work, sometimes, but not this time. Even Fluttershy couldn’t persuade him to bring the children back, and you can be sure she gave it her all.”

“Fluttershy? Why her?”

“She was his first friend. Sort of. He liked her more than he liked anyone else, at least.” He snorted. “Fat lot of good that did us. Anyway, we got in touch with some of the kids that he’d taken. They were all in some crazy dangerous alternate dimension –it’s a weird story. Working together we managed to trap Discord. Then we turned the Elements on him.”

“Bringing all the children back, safe and sound,” Rarity said, sure there was no other way to end it.

Spike nodded. “They all returned to their families no worse for wear and with a few exciting adventures of their own to tell about. Discord was a statue again, but… but we’d had enough of him. We shattered him, taking the pieces and scattering them all over the world. Even throwing a few into space, not that Luna was very happy about it, but Twilight argued that the more dispersed his essence, the better chance of him being put out of commission permanently. After that, we… well, we tried our best to forget him. Even saying his name became kind of taboo. None of us wanted to remember how he’d turned on us. What he’d done. Just mentioning it makes my scales crawl.” He looked over to her, meeting her eyes again. “I know it’s not the best story, but the details would just make you angry.”

“It’s enough,” Rarity said, though she hungered to know more. What had Discord set those poor parents to doing that made Spike so upset? The possibilities that floated up from her imagination were legion, and ranged from the silly to the lurid to the horrifying. The fact that she was naturally creative added an extra sting to the possibilities, giving them depth and color a lesser imagination wouldn’t have. She gave herself a mental shake, trying to throw the horrifying thoughts off. They had other things to focus on.

“Do you think Star is going to talk about what you told her today? About Umbra and… Twilight?” The meeting Star Fall had called would begin soon, and Rarity was almost as curious about what would be discussed there as she was about what really happened with Discord.

He shrugged. “I don’t think so. At least, not much. She said she has ideas about what to do now, so I think she’s got a plan. Something to defeat Umbra and Max Cash and get the girls back.”

“Well, wouldn’t that be a welcome thing!” Rarity said, pushing the remains of her salad away. Then her expression became closed and she stared at the tabletop for a long moment. “Spike, there’s something else.”

“Go ahead, I’ll listen to anything you need to say,” he said, leaning in so that she could smell the mixed scents of meat and sulphur on his breath.

“When I was… following Laughter’s power. That thing I saw…”

“The ‘dark egg’?” he asked, remembering what she had called it when she had woken from her faint.

“Yes. Whatever is inside it is something terrible and evil, I know that, but I also felt like I knew it. It certainly knew me. Could it be… could it be Discord?”

Spike frowned. “I hope not. Because if it is then every precaution we made a thousand years ago wasn’t enough, and I don’t know if anything could get rid of him in that case.”

“It’s probably not, though. Right?” She looked into his eyes, seeking affirmation there.

He had no answer for her.

***

Outside, Lieutenant Hard Boiled sat in a wheelchair, eyes closed as he enjoyed the warm sunlight on his face. Or, he would have been enjoying it if he wasn’t simultaneously trying not to move a single centimetre, lest the change in balance tug his bent horn in a way that would send him into screaming convulsions of agony. It was a delicate balance, and the anxious worry that he would mess it up prevented him from truly enjoying such moments of peace.

Traduce stood next to him in her yellow earth pony disguise, and he could feel the look she was giving him. If he turned his head, he knew exactly what would be in her eyes. Not pity, never that. No, there would be something else there, something that was a far cry from anything compassionate or caring. It was a look that would have held all the raw, forceful need he was feeling from the bond she had forged with him. A need that was more than sexual, and more than just friendship. It was something he didn’t know how to respond to, something that frightened him as it echoed in the space between them. Just as he knew it frightened her.

“You have to get better,” the words were a plea, but spoken with a hard edge that made them sound more like a demand. “You have to.”

“I don’t have a lot of control over that,” he said, and though he meant them to be gentle his own words came out harsh with resentment.

“If you don’t… if you’re stuck in this hospital… I can’t stay with you. Whatever happens, I’ll be leaving to help deal with Cash and what he’s done.”

“I know,” he said. The thought galled him. It was twice now that Cash had escaped justice. Every detective bone in his body demanded that he pursue the criminal to the ends of the earth. Unfortunately, the one bone that mattered was refusing to cooperate. “But even if I could go with you, I’d be useless. Without my magic, I’m just a half-decent detective with chronic pain issues. You don’t need that kind of load weighing you down.”

Traduce shook her head. “HB…”

“It’ll be ok,” he assured her, trying for a self-deprecating smile. “You’ve gotten along without me for years, you’ll do fine.”

“You arrogant blue bastard. Of course I’ll do fine.” She shook her head again. There may have been tears in her eyes, but for both their sakes he didn’t look to find out. “It’s not about me.”

A cloud seemed to roll over the sun, though its light remained undiminished. “What are you saying?”

She took a slow breath before she replied. “How much pain are you in?”

The pit of his stomach dropped out at that question. He didn’t need his magic to understand what she meant by asking it. “As much as I’ve ever been in before,” he replied in a quavering whisper.

“It’s only a third of what it should be,” she said. She moved around in front of him, so he was forced to look into her eyes. To see the serious set of her jaw and the slight twitch of her lips that showed the restless worry that made her want to scream. He fought to control his breathing as the sheer gut-ripping horror of that statement pounded into him. “I’ve been eating the rest. That’s why I’ve kept so close to you. I’ve been using my own recovery as a cover, but it’s… we Changelings heal fast, when we have love to feed on. Calumn and I have been spending afternoons in the pediatric cancer ward, and now we’re both nearly full strength. I don’t know what Princess Fallen Star wants to see us about, but I guarantee that part of what comes next is her giving us official permission to enter the Solar Kingdom and go after that son of a bitch. I can also guarantee that Straff will be sending me along with whoever else is going.”

“And when you go…”

“I can’t help you anymore.” The silence between them after that statement stretched on for over a minute before she spoke again. When she did it was with an authority that came from desperation. “So you’re going to get better, and fast. Better enough to go with me, at least.”

“It’s, uh, it’s pretty good incentive,” he said. The problem, as he saw it, was that he wasn’t sure how much ‘better’ he could get. His horn was mangled, every motion bringing stabs of pain like fiery pokers being thrust into his brain. Who even knew what the effect on his magic was? It was likely that even if they managed to straighten his horn again, he was too far gone for rehabilitation. Odds were, he was a cripple for life. The best they could do was detach the horn’s nerves completely, ending the pain but forever denying him even the possibility of regaining his magic. That thought frightened him worse than the idea of Traduce leaving.

Still, that didn’t mean it was over for him. His magic had been what made him a superlative detective, but it wasn’t like he didn’t have the mundane skills to do the job. The weakness, the exhaustion, the headaches, they were all just manifestations of pain. He knew pain. He’d lived with it all his life. The only difference now was a matter of degree. He wouldn’t let himself be beat just because his horn had decided to turn up the dial a bit.

Even as he thought that, a part of him knew it was a lie. Pain of this magnitude would ruin a pony; there was almost no way to truly cope with it. Traduce was gulping that pain down by the litre to keep him from feeling it, and even the remnant she wasn’t able to swallow had been keeping him in writhing agony since their return from the jungle. His only hope to remain sane and regain the use of his magic was to be allowed to go with her, and even if he managed to get his blue butt moving, the odds of that were all but nonexistent. It was a hard truth that he couldn’t allow himself to admit, couldn’t even let himself think of. He was racing before a tempest, and if he faltered he would be drowned.

So he slowly, with a will bolstered by fear, forced himself to rise from the chair and stand before her. He felt the moment his hooves touched down like a lightning bolt, the impact jarring his horn and setting off sympathetic sparks of wretched agony pulsing down his spine and out to the very ends of every limb. His vision swam and his empty stomach clenched in turbulent nausea. Yet he rode the pain, letting it ravage him and moving through it. His lips slowly went from a grimace of pain to a smirk at Traduce, silently willing her to ignore the tears in his eyes. “Look, I’m feeling better already.”

Green fire raced over her as she shed her earth pony disguise, and she looked at him with her true eyes so that he might see the fierce pride in them and know it to be true. The smile she returned to him had more than a little of her old mischievousness in it as well, and was all the warning he got before she leaned in and kissed him gently on the lips. He might have been surprised at the move once, but he knew her too well now. He wasn’t about to pull away when the motion would bring fresh agony from his horn, and she was not going to pass up a chance like that. And somewhere, deep inside, he didn’t want to pull away.

When she broke the kiss she didn’t step back, instead holding herself close and breathing in the scent of him, both emotional and physical. She opened her mouth and he could feel the words on the edge of being spoken. But there were things that once said could not be forgotten, and lines even she wasn’t willing to cross. So she finally drew back and if her parting didn’t take any more of his pain with it, he still felt better for having had her close. “We should get going,” she said, slipping back into the shape of the yellow mare. “It won’t do to keep the Princess waiting!”

***

The room had been cleared of beds and furniture, leaving it spacious enough to fit everyone in comfortably. When they entered, Star Fall was standing above an array of spell-sheets carefully arranged in the center of the room, testing her balance with the simple prosthetic hoof they’d given her. It was an ugly thing, bulky and incongruous. Yet it allowed her to stand and walk with only a slight limp, so it was a vast improvement over the alternative.

They came as a group, gathered by RIA agents and led here for a meeting they probably didn’t understand the purpose of. She wasn’t even sure she understood it, but she had to find out in any case. There was little chatter as they came in, a rarity where Blaze and Pinkie Pie were concerned. Every one of them knew Star Fall had something important to say, and they would do their best to give the princess their full attention.

Once they were all settled in a circle around her spell array, with Astrid nestled onto the plate installed in the ceiling, she carefully took the book that was at the center of everything and laid it on the ground at her hooves, ensuring that they could all see it. “This is Harmony Theory,” she began. “Written by Twilight Sparkle over the course of something like thirty years, it is the culmination of her research into the origins, abilities and purpose of the Elements of Harmony. It is meant to be an examination of their power, but it can also serve as an instruction manual on their use. This is what Max Cash has been using to control the Elements, to twist them to his desires.”

She looked around, meeting each of their eyes. They were with her so far, and most already knew or had guessed what she had said. “I’ve had a week to read through it; he’s had a lot longer. If I’m right about when he acquired it, he’s been in possession of this book for twenty years. That means that just getting it away from him won’t put a dent in his plans. I wouldn’t be surprised if he could recite it cover to cover. What it does give us is a chance to use it ourselves. To stop reacting to his moves for once and get out ahead of him.

“To do that, though, I need everyone to be on the same page. That means all of us need some basic understanding of what we’re dealing with. This is going to be a bit of a lecture, so I apologize in advance if I get too long-winded or too technical. I’ve tried to simplify things, but I just don’t understand it all well enough to do a good job of that.”

No one made a comment on that. Even the least-attentive of them still watched her with quiet patience. She took a deep breath, and began. “The Elements of Harmony are more than just six magic gems. They are a kind of extra-universal entity or object of immense proportion, and of which we can only perceive an aspect as it intersects with our reality. Think of it like a mushroom. We see a toadstool popping up from a field, but that’s just a tiny part of a massive organism that could stretch for miles under our hooves. The gems are that toadstool.

“The Elements have their own powers, which are more conceptual in nature than actual, by which I mean that their limits seem to be defined by ideas rather than anything physical. Take Loyalty, for instance. It can make someone willing to die for you, or it can glue two things together, or it can make two things repel each other. From what I have read, what it’s actually capable of doing is unlimited, so long as what you want it to do can be somehow thought of as ‘binding’. The rest are similarly awesome in power with equally vague limits.

“However, their individual abilities pale in comparison to what they do together. When used in concert they quite literally end existence. Not just as we know it, but completely. Then they rebuild existence in a manner that suits their wielders. Twilight called this a ‘Harmony Event’. The ethical, moral, theological and intellectual problems I have with this concept are staggering, and from what I’ve read and been told by Spike, Twilight Sparkle if anything felt even worse about it than I do.

“Now, this is all well and terrifying, but the Elements don’t do this stuff on their own. They need Bearers to take them up and use their power. Here, we have some interesting complications. There are two types of Bearer: True Bearers and Proxies. Rarity and Pinkie Pie are both True Bearers, as are Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Fluttershy and Twilight. Everyone else who has used them, including, apparently, the Goddesses, is a Proxy. When the Elements are used by Proxies, their power is much, much less and their Harmony Events are merely cataclysmic instead of apocalyptic.

“This is where it gets really relevant to all of you. Proxies are not just anybody. They have to have a particular kind of cosmic-level connection to each other. A resonance, if you will. This resonance is not something that can be defined, since it doesn’t seem to conform to any particular model of behaviour, but it can be detected. Which brings me to the practical portion of today’s lesson. Pinkie, I need you to leave.”

“Aww, but I was listening! I really was!” Pinkie said, standing up on her hind legs to put a hoof on her heart and making the saddest face Star Fall had ever seen. “I’ll be good! I won’t fall asleep or space out and start thinking about butter tarts and funny balloon animals, I promise!”

“It’s not that,” Star Fall assured her. “I need you to leave because I’m going to bring out the Element of Laughter.”

Pinkie was halfway out the door instantly, without seeming to cross the distance from where she had been previously standing. Star Fall was still sufficiently unused to Pinkie’s strange abilities that she felt her heart pick up a few frightened beats at the sight, and several others actually let out quiet sounds of surprise. Rarity and Spike, she noted, did not even blink. Pinkie Pie gave everyone a big smile and a wave. “Woops! Gotta go everyone! Tell me how it went after, kay? Buh-bye!”

Star Fall watched the door swing shut, then nodded to Straff, who pulled out his radio and spoke a few quick words into it. Less than a minute later the door opened again and an RIA soldier carrying a heavy case came in. He set the case next to Star Fall, then retreated back outside the circle of watchers before Star Fall opened it. Within, nestled in a hollow in gray shock-absorbent foam padding, was the Element of Laughter.

Star Fall took the Element out, laying it on the spell-sheets she had spent two hours painstakingly drawing out. She took a breath, whispered her mantra, and released the spell.

Light exploded from the Element of Laughter. Blue and joyful, it swirled and eddied like a dancing flame, pouring around the occupants of the room in a rippling flow. Where it touched the watching people, some gained a glow of their own. Faint, in most cases, but still visible. When it touched Rarity, she burst into her own purple incandescence that rivalled what was coming from the Element.

They looked around at each other, blinking in surprise and awe. Star Fall only let out a long breath as her suspicions were confirmed. She herself glowed with a steady magenta hue. Blaze’s rapid, swirling aura matched the blue of Laughter. Astrid stood in a light that gave a ruby tinge to her feathers. Calumn gawked at his hoof, and the pink light that played in rippling waves across it. Hard Boiled’s orange aura seemed to extend itself over Traduce, lending her a faint shimmer of her own that still somehow clearly belonged to him. Spike’s purple light didn’t surprise anyone, and if it didn’t hold a candle to the brilliance of Rarity’s aura, it still outshone all the others by an order of magnitude.

Star Fall looked from them to the others, but couldn’t see any light around Gamma, Straff or Birchfield. That was only further evidence for Star Fall. They hadn’t been part of the trip to the ancient pegasus temple. This group, right here, had been pushed together for that mission. Now they would have to stay together to have any hope of defeating Max Cash. She only wished she knew how to make that happen.

“Twilight called this ‘testing the resonance’,” she said, catching everyone’s attention again. She picked up Laughter and dropped it back in the case, shutting it firmly and handing it back to the waiting RIA operative who quickly carried it from the room. He would ensure that Pinkie was informed it was safe to come back, but Star Fall wasn’t going to wait. The auras lingered for a moment as the Element was sent away, but faded out shortly after. “We can all guess what this means, but to lay it out clearly: those of us who showed a reaction just now are potential Proxies. If we get our hooves on the Elements, we can use them. That makes us the best weapons against Cash.”

“Excuse me, Star,” Rarity said, raising her hoof. “But will it be as easy as all that? I mean, I was a Bearer of Generosity for over a year, and I was never able to ‘use’ it other than when fighting Nightmare Moon and Discord.”

Star Fall nodded in acknowledgement of Rarity’s point. “There is that. According to Harmony Theory, though, Proxies and True Bearers learn to use the Elements in different ways. As best as I can discern, a Proxy has to work at it, experimenting and pushing the limits to figure out what they can do. You, and the other True Bearers, can essentially just… make stuff happen whenever you need to. So, since you didn’t need them to do anything in that year, they didn’t. Whereas, for instance, Charisma seemed to master Loyalty in a matter of days. We’ve found the remains of her experimentation, and she clearly worked very hard to achieve her level of competence with using the Element. You wouldn’t have to work at all, you’d just need something to happen, and it would. Do you understand?”

“Not entirely, darling,” Rarity said. “But I believe I’ve gotten the gist of it.”

“I’ve got a question,” Hard Boiled said. His voice was rough, his eyes narrowed with pain. Star Fall had requested that the doctors dial back his medication so that he’d be more lucid for this meeting, and the effects of that were showing. It was encouraging that he was standing on his own, though. She had expected him to be much worse, and he would need to be mobile for what was to come. She gestured for him to continue. “So what? We can use these Elements, I guess. What good does that do us? How does that get us a way to put Cash in the ground so that he doesn’t just dig his way back out again?”

“Cash is connected to the Elements just like we are,” Star Fall replied. “Except in his case he’s somehow forced a connection not to one of them, but all of them. I believe this is how he survived both your gunshot, Lieutenant, and evisceration by Astrid. He’s using their power to become invulnerable. If we get the Elements, we can turn them against him, essentially revoking his immunity.”

“Great, why us? All the old heroes are back, right? Why not have them do it?”

Star Fall frowned. “There’s… Well, when a Proxy calls on the Elements, they’re not really getting the power.” Confused faces gazed at her, and she stamped her artificial hoof, trying to get her stump to settle more comfortably in its cup. “The True Bearers are still in the loop, so to speak, and the power of the Element is really going to them. Proxies kind of sit between the Element and the True Bearer and siphon off some of that energy for themselves. When a Proxy calls on a lot of energy suddenly, the Bearer gets hit with the load. The Element feeds a lot of power into them, but at the same time takes a large amount out. Twilight called it feedback, and it’s a shock to the Bearer’s system. Enough of one that it incapacitates them for a while.”

“Like what happened with Applejack,” Calumn said.

Star Fall nodded. “Yes. I saw it happen to Rainbow Dash, too. You got off lucky in the temple; the first time they get hit with the feedback they tend to scream.” Star Fall shivered, remembering the haunting wails that she had heard from both Dash and Applejack. “When they do that, it can get… rough, even for the people around them. Anyway, Cash can likely do this at will. I don’t know if he needs physical contact with the appropriate Element to do it. It seemed like he did at the Temple, but I wouldn’t bet on that still being the case. That means Rarity and the others are the worst choices to take on Cash. No, it has to be us.” She gave them a lopsided smile. “It’s not all bad. One of the advantages of our connection to the Elements is that we have a measure of resistance to their effects. We’re not immune, but we’re not as vulnerable as anyone else.”

“Nice to know,” Astrid said with a laughing snort. “But something tells me you’ve been giving us the good news so far. Spill, Fall, what’s the downside here?”

Star Fall’s smile fell away. “The downside is Inversion,” she said. “Which is exactly what it sounds like. The Elements can be flipped, positive to negative, and when they go they take their Bearers, True or Proxy, with them.”

“What does that mean?” Hard Boiled asked.

“It means that the Element becomes the opposite of what they were originally. Loyalty becomes Betrayal, Generosity becomes Greed, etcetera, etcetera. And the personalities of their Bearers undergo the same inversion.”

“Discord!” Rarity gasped. Spike reached out to wrap a comforting arm around her. The others didn’t pay much attention to the exchange, since the word was meaningless to them. Star Fall, however, noted it. Spike’s explanation of who and what Discord was had helped her understand what Twilight had been talking about in Harmony Theory, but it had also left much to be desired. Especially considering what the book said about the chaos spirit in its seventh section. She hadn’t shared that part with Spike. Considering his reaction to the mere mention of the name, she didn’t know how he’d take it.

“So the Bearers become evil?” Blaze asked.

“Not evil,” Star Fall replied. “It’s not about morality, though that inevitably shifts. Their personalities rearrange so that the dominant trait associated with the Element is opposite what it had been. The Bearer of Kindness becomes cruel. The Bearer of Generosity becomes greedy. Supposedly, they don’t even know something is wrong. Their new and wildly different behaviour seems perfectly natural to them.”

“You think Cash can cause the Elements to Invert,” Spike said.

“I’m sure of it. There’s no other explanation for how he got Rainbow Dash to help him. With her loyalty inverted, she betrayed us all. We have to be prepared for this to be true of everyone he took with him. Which means that when we find them, they might oppose us.”

“Fighting an evil Dash?” Astrid shuddered. “Gimme back Charisma. She at least was a professional.”

“I would be worried about Fluttershy, myself,” Rarity added. “The poor dear is so timid most of the time that it’s easy to forget that when she comes out of her shell, well, she really comes out of her shell.”

“I’m worried about all of you,” Star Fall said. “And I’m worried about all of us. A lot of what’s happening isn’t in our control. It’s…” She paused, struggling with words she didn’t know if they should hear. Words about fate, about free will and choices that were not choices. Would they understand? Would it even matter? In the end, she decided that it didn’t need to be said. “We’re still running ten steps behind Cash. We’ve got to get proactive, and that means we need to get moving. Astrid and I are headed to Gemini City to address the gathered Senate. It needs to be done, and at any other time it would be the most important thing in the world, but right now it feels more like a distraction. Cash wants a war. He wants us all looking in the wrong direction when he pulls off whatever he has planned. But even if we stop that, the time we spend stopping it lets him get closer to his goal.” She snapped her wings, shaking off the trepidation she felt. “It doesn’t matter. I will do what I can with the Senate. Everyone else has to start preparing for a trip through the Everstorm.”

She looked at them again, meeting each of their eyes in turn. She noted with suppressed unease that Pinkie Pie had somehow re-inserted herself into the group without anyone noticing. It was good that she was here. They all needed to know their parts in the plan she had cobbled together from desperate intuition and half-understood scraps of knowledge. “I know a lot of you were hurt down in the jungle. Clearly, I was too. I know this is all a lot to take in, and it’s coming so fast it makes your head spin. Celestia knows I’m grinding myself down just trying to keep up with it all. But we can’t let anything stop us. This is it, guys. The fate of the world is in our hooves. I’ve got a plan to make it all work, but I need you to do your parts. This is a lot to ask, I know. A lot more than most of you signed up for. But I can’t do it without you, any of you. Will you help me?” She looked to them, pleading with her eyes.

The wave of warmth she got back from them, carried in the determined set of their eyes, in the heat of their smiles, nearly bowled her over. They didn’t need to think about it now, they’d had two weeks to contemplate whether they wanted to keep fighting Cash and his machinations. Their choice had been made, and nothing she’d said here changed that decision. Calumn glanced at the others, then back at Star Fall, showing his fangs in a happy grin. “I think it’s unanimous, Princess. We’re all in.”

“Thank you,” Star Fall said, and blinked away the tears that had begun to well up in her eyes. They could do it. So long as they kept up the strength and togetherness they were showing now, they could win. “Now, here’s what I need you all to do. Blaze, you’ll be leading us through the Storm, so you have to put together a list of what we’ll need for a group this big. At the same time, I need you, Calumn and Pinkie out in the desert. There’s some things that need to be tested, and that needs to be started before we cross the Storm. You’ll get more details on that later, but I want to keep the objective quiet for now.” Pinkie saluted while Blaze and Calumn shared an inscrutable look. She turned her attention to the next group.

“Lieutenant, you need to focus on convalescence, but we’ll be transferring you to Orion City so you can be closer to the Storm for when we make the crossing. I’ve asked Director Straff to assign Traduce to assist you in that.” Hard Boiled tilted his head slightly, wincing at the pain even such a small motion caused him. She hoped he would be ready, though if her fears about what was said in Harmony Theory were correct, then she needn’t hope at all.

“Spike, Rarity, I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I need the both of you to go to hell.”

“Come again, darling?” Rarity said, eyebrow rising quizzically.

“Tartarus,” Star Fall said, and Spike’s eyes widened in understanding. “You know what we need.” He nodded. Rarity looked at him with her own questions plain, but he murmured something to her and she focused once more on Star Fall.

“We don’t have a lot of time,” she continued. “Celestia only knows how far Cash has made it by now. The moment Astrid and I are done with the Senate, we have to be ready to move through the Everstorm. You have to be ready. Director Straff will be co-ordinating your assignments. Everything’s already been cleared by him and Gamma.” She gave the two spymasters an appreciative nod. They’d helped her craft this strategy in a lightning brainstorm session early that morning. Their agreement with her plan was one of the few things that assured her it would work, and their silent support had kept her voice from wavering as she laid out the apocalyptic power of the Elements for those who might be forced to use them. She turned her attention back to the watching faces of the disparate group that had somehow been chosen to save the world. “You leave in two hours. Good luck, and may the Goddesses watch over you all.”

***

Gamma knew that Straff was approaching well before he spoke. She could feel him, the weight of their shared past gaining new gravity in his presence. It conjured memories of smoke and wind, the smell of burning bodies and the taste of the poisonous crystal shards that had blown like fine dust, coating her lungs with every breath. She could feel the burn of the rope around her neck, and the terror inspired by seeing the luminous eyes of Nightmare Umbra staring at her with such cold hatred.

She let none of this show, of course. She’d become so practiced at hiding her thoughts and feelings that she didn’t know if she would ever be able to let her guard down. In that, at least, she was in good company.

“Your protégée is impressive,” Straff said as he stopped a respectable distance back. Close enough that their conversation could be kept low, far enough away that he could react if she lunged for him. He knew she wouldn’t try it, knew that as long as they were allies she wouldn’t consider harming him. More, he knew that even if she did, she wouldn’t make it far before the RIA agents around the perimeter of the hospital’s side entrance brought her down. Still, he was being cautious, and the sight of that was professionally satisfying.

“Agent Fall is an exceptional individual,” she replied.

“One with a talent for attracting other exceptional individuals into her orbit.” He looked towards where the mare in question and her Griffin bodyguard waited for the car that would take them to Gemini City, and a historic moment in the diplomacy of their two nations. “I recognize some things that I taught you in how she handles the others: collaboration, honesty, a willingness to admit her own shortcomings. I’m both surprised and touched that you chose to pass that along to her.”

“You can’t take all the credit,” Gamma said. “A lot of that is natural to her.”

“And wholly unnatural to you.”

Gamma let out a small sigh, shaking her head just enough to indicate the weariness of having her interpersonal skills questioned for the thousandth time. “You are not here to question my leadership skills or style. You are too professional for such pettiness. You are not here to discuss the mission at hoof, or you would have led with that and foregone any preamble. I am left considering that this conversation is personal in nature, which does not fit with either our mutual history or current circumstances. Since neither you nor I have expressed any personal interest in the other’s life or history since our parting, I am wary of any change in behaviour now. What has happened?”

“I wonder if that’s something you imparted to her,” Straff continued in the same tone as before. “That first instinct of thinking that she’s the smartest person in the room. That she has to explain everything for the rest of us. I’ve seen her backtrack on herself several times now when she realized that she shouldn’t be doing all the mental heavy-lifting on her own. Is that natural as well? Something you had a hoof in? Or is it, as I suspect is true, a reaction to being raised by mares who do naturally work that way?”

“She’s a smart girl,” Gamma snapped, lacing her voice with a precise degree of annoyance. “I’m sure she operates in a way that works best for her. What has happened?”

“Someone who thinks that way can be prone to overreach. I just can’t help but wonder if she’s going to take on too much, too fast. With all the responsibility that has been thrust on her, burnout is a very real danger.”

Gamma glared at him. More than a little of the heat in her eyes was genuine. He turned his head to meet her eyes, and she stared into irises that were so blue they practically burned like fire. Just like her own eyes burned. The taste of the crystals was in her mouth again, their poison quickening through her veins. “What has happened?” she asked again, making sure her tone communicated that this would be the final time that she did him the courtesy of asking.

“We know where Max Cash is,” Straff replied.

Gamma did not jerk at that pronouncement. Her eyes did not widen, her breath did not speed. She would show no such weakness before the stallion who had tied a rope around her neck and left her to dangle at its end while the world erupted around them. Instead she nodded as if the news simply confirmed something she had believed all along, while her Talent went to work analyzing the new information. “He’s still in the Republics, in one of the coastal cities.”

“Virgo City.”

“Very close to the Stile Islands. I see.”

“The analysts say he won’t be able to find passage around the Storm so long as Umbra continues her assault.”

“They’re wrong.”

“I agree.”

“I assume you’ve already dispatched an assault team to capture him, futile as that will be if he’s being guarded by Agent Dash, to say nothing of the Elements.” He would have to make the effort at least, to satisfy his Senate masters that he’d done everything he could to contain the problem to Republics borders.

To her genuine surprise he shook his head. “Any attempt to send forces to Virgo City has been deemed unfeasible.” She quirked an eyebrow at him, knowing he would explain. “Yesterday, the Umbra-generated storm cover over Virgo City cleared for a period of approximately three hours. By ‘cleared’ I mean that the clouds parted in a perfect circle over the city, a process that took seconds, then spun around it like the eye of a hurricane. The phenomenon collapsed as quickly as it began, and in the aftermath the intensity of the storm has increased to catastrophic levels, cutting the city off completely. There are only two beings known to have such power over the weather. One of which is still on the Stile Islands and has no reason to clear the skies over a city hundreds of kilometers away.”

“The other is Rainbow Dash,” Gamma finished for him. “Though, with no mention of rainbow etherealizations or spectacular aerial displays, I wonder if it might not be the work of the other pegasus, Fluttershy.”

“She was not described as particularly adept at weather manipulation,” Straff pointed out. “However, the possibility cannot be ignored. Either way, Max Cash is there, and there is no chance of us stopping him before he’s able to bribe or coerce someone into taking him to the sunlands.”

Gamma nodded again, finally understanding his approach to this conversation. “Thus your concern with Agent Fall. Or, rather, Princess Fallen Star.”

“For better or worse, we have ceded leadership of this mission to her. I see a lot of the best of us in her. I recognize lessons I attempted to teach you coming to fruition in her, coupled with the same incisive, powerful intellect that drew me to become your mentor. However, I also see some of your worst habits, but not the iron control that allowed you to fool me and the rest of the RIA about your true loyalties for years. I am worried that without that control those bad habits will cause her to overreach herself.”

Gamma considered this for a long moment before making her reply. “She is not merely a product of my training. Just as I am not solely a product of yours. She has had many teachers, and the one who has influenced her most is not me, but her adopted mother.”

“I was afraid of that,” Straff said. “I know you. I can pick out the ideas and actions that have their genesis in your training, because in a way they began for you in my training. I thought I knew Professor Twinkle Shine, at least by reputation, but she had us all fooled. What, then, do we make of her daughter? What things could a millennia-old war-Goddess have taught her that you or I can’t even imagine?”

“I think Twinkle Shine taught her that she was loved,” Gamma said. “And how to love in turn.”

Straff looked at her with surprise bordering on shock. “Sentimentality? From you, Gamma? Don’t be absurd.”

“It is absurd, isn’t it?” Gamma snorted. “To love, and to be loved. What a thing to teach someone. I can’t even imagine it.” She quirked her eyebrow at him again. “Can you?”

He turned away from her, unwilling to show her the impact her words had. The crystal-shard taste receded, and she took a deep, quiet breath to remind herself that she could. “Is it enough?” he asked.

“She cares,” Gamma replied. “She will use every asset to its fullest, but she will care about them while she does. They recognize that, and I believe they will love her for it, and thus perform above and beyond anything we could goad out of them. That is why we ceded authority to her. We are both respected, effective commanders, but in essence we are dictators. She is a leader, and we both recognized it from the moment we first laid eyes on her. I spent years cultivating that potential, and the stresses of everything that has happened in the past few months has only made that potential bloom in full.” She paused for a moment, gauging the proper length of silence for maximum impact. “Twinkle Shine wanted her to run.”

“Run?”

“The King was planning to marry her into the Royal family from the beginning. Twinkle Shine didn’t want that for her, and went to great lengths to ensure that Star Fall had the ability to escape to the nightlands. I aided the Professor in this, making sure she had missions in the Republics, that she would be familiar with the place she would have to run to. At the same time I saw in her the makings of a true leader, so I prepared her for both possibilities. She had everything she needed to disappear into the nightlands, and all she would need to thrive at court. If anything, the Professor wanted to teach her to let that potential die and save herself. But she didn’t. Instead the Professor taught her how to love. When the time came, that love led her to choose to take on the challenges of leadership. She chose the burden, and it truly is a burden for her, because she knows how to love. Because that’s the kind of pony she is. She can’t help but love.”

He let out a small chuckle. “I’m beginning to think Rainbow Dash’s appearance has brought with it a terrible pre-Schism disease that we have no immunity to. Some virus that attacks the mind and changes the way people think and act. First my Changelings abandon their duties to attach themselves to ponies that should be nothing more than assignments to them. Now there’s you pontificating about love as if it were the highest of virtues.”

“Do you disagree with my assessment?”

He slowly shook his head. “No. Which probably just means I’m infected too.” He turned back to her, a weary smile ghosting across his lips. “Well, it’s out of our hooves now, isn’t it?”

“And in hers,” Gamma agreed, then corrected herself. “In theirs. Star Fall will not be alone in this.”

“Alright. I’ll trust them,” he said, then his eyes narrowed. “But I still won’t trust you.”

“Fair enough. Do we tell them where Cash is?”

“No. There’s nothing that can be done about it. Telling them will just make them worry. Once Star Fall is done speaking to the Senate, we let her know, and she can decide what to use the information for, if anything. Agreed?”

She nodded, turning to look back at her Princess. “Agreed.”

***

The Pegasus Parcel Service has excellent mail re-routing services. New addresses for those who move are filed and implemented within a day. There is a fee, of course, but it’s hardly an obstacle for those with the means and the need to have all their mail redirected suddenly. When Cash’s package arrived in the Orion City depot, it was quickly discovered that the address it was to be delivered to no longer existed. Senator Birchfield’s mansion was now just a hole in the ground. Some said it was destroyed by sunland terrorists. Others said it was the Gray Mare. Some bought the official line that it had been an unfortunate gas explosion, though they were few and far between as it was well known that there had been some sort of shoot-out at the mansion the night before and the coincidences were just too much to look past.

Fortunately for the hardworking employees of the sorting center, the good Senator had left an emergency forwarding address. So the package had a new destination sticker placed over the old, and it was shuttled off to the appropriate mail truck, which got rolling towards the local RIA offices just as a very different truck was arriving there. This second truck carried not mail and parcels, but people.

The ride hadn’t been much more than four hours, but every moment of it had been clear agony to Hard Boiled. Rarity had done what she could to keep the bumps in the road from jostling him, but there was only so much she could do. Traduce looked sick sitting next to him, as if she had eaten something that didn’t agree with her, but she had kept up a whispered conversation with him that seemed to help him keep his mind off the pain. The detective had needed help getting down from the truck when they had stopped at the Orion City General Hospital, but he insisted on walking his own way into the building. Rarity had watched him go with the grinding, useless worry of someone who desperately wishes they could help, but knows that they can’t.

“He’ll be okay,” Spike had said, with a forced cavalier air. “He’s a big, tough detective, just like in the books you used to r–”

“Don’t,” Rarity had replied. She was unable to articulate any more, but knew that he understood when he fell silent. Now, as they got out at the RIA headquarters, she turned to him. “Let’s take a walk,” she said, and suited actions to words as she strolled off to the small, tree-lined green space that surrounded the building, giving it some privacy from the electric bustle of the city. Spike followed obediently, moving with only a slight limp.

Rarity set a meandering course, skirting around the parking lot and past the rear patio where RIA analysts had lunch on pleasant days. Finally, she came to a spot where they were screened from the windows and the eyes of those no doubt tasked with watching over them. She stopped, idly picking over her clothing and removing any little scuffs and burrs it had picked up during their walk. Spike waited with a calm patience that she would never have seen from him as a baby.

Finally, she turned to him with a hard gleam in her blue eyes. They hadn’t had a moment to themselves like this since Star Fall had given them their task, and she was determined to make full use of it while it lasted. “Tartarus,” she said.

He nodded. “Tartarus.”

“The place with the three-headed dog?”

He nodded. “Though, Cerberus has been dead for a while, which is too bad, he was a good dog.”

“The Schism?”

“No. Earlier. When Tirek freed the Tartarus Dragons. That’s kind of the reason we’re going down there.”

“Going into Tartarus. The place of torment and eternal imprisonment.”

“Well, yeah. I mean, the whole ‘eternal’ thing doesn’t really hold anymore, with all the things that kept escaping from it, but, uh, yeah.”

“You know where it is.”

“Yes.”

“You can get in, and –more importantly– out.”

His eyes darted nervously around, but her gaze didn’t waver, drilling into him. “Yeah, I can.”

“And you know what it is Star wants from there? How to get it?” He nodded. “So, with the logistics of it taken care of, could you perhaps tell me why we are going down into that… place?”

“Because the Tartarus Dragons were held there with chains made from a magic-eating crystal, and when Tirek freed them they left those chains behind. Star wants to use them as a weapon against Nightmare Umbra.”

“Will they work?”

He shook his head. “They’ll hurt her, weaken her, but what Star’s doing with the Senate will go a lot farther in defeating Umbra than anything we can dredge up from Tartarus.”

“Then why send us to get them?”

“Because sometimes you have to fight, and having the Chains gives us a weapon that will actually do something against her.”

“And why does she need me to do that? I should be out with Pinkie, helping them test the Element of Laughter, and don’t give me that look! It’s pretty obvious why she sent those three to a desert isn’t it? I helped Pinkie before! I should be there just in case it happens again!”

“She needs you to get the Chains of Tartarus, because you’re the only one we know who can use them.”

“Why in the world would she think that? As I keep telling everyone, I’m a seamstress, not some magical powerhouse, and certainly not some… dungeon-delving adventurer!”

He actually chuckled at that. “She thinks that because I told her you could. You’ve done it before, after all.” She goggled at him. “And more than a little dungeon-delving, too, come to think of it.”

“Spike!” Rarity gasped. “You know I don’t remember doing any of that!”

“But you did. And I can show you how to do it again.”

She snorted in irritation. “I suppose you can. I just wish you had talked to me about all this first.”

“You would have tried to say no. That you couldn’t do it. And Star… might have believed you.”

“You knew she would send us to do this?”

“I suspected. After she asked her questions about Discord and Umbra, she had a lot more to talk about. She already knew all the stories about how we fought the Tartarus Dragons and raised Elysium, but she kept asking for more details on the Chains and what they could do. I know her well enough to see when she’s putting a plan together. I was going to tell you at lunch, but you got me talking about Discord, and, well…” he shrugged helplessly.

Rarity sighed and turned away from him. “Well, this is perfectly distressing. I hope you know what kind of position you’ve put me in, Spike!”

He cringed. “I know, Rarity. I’m sorry.”

“I mean, what does one even wear for a trip to hell? Do I use bright colors to stand out, or dark to match the decor?” She rounded on Spike, whose attempt at an innocent look was ruined by the big, goofy grin that stretched his mouth. “I hope you’re happy, Spike! Oh, I will be up all night working on this!” Then she smiled, and with the both of them laughing they made their way back to the front entrance.

At that moment the Pegasus Parcel Service truck was just pulling up. The package was offloaded with little ceremony and handed over to the RIA clerk whose job it was to receive all incoming mail to be sorted and subjected to a battery of tests to ensure that it was not a bomb or poison or junk mail. The package was run through a metal detector first, and it gave a ping that said there was something metal inside. A unicorn with a poison detection spell went next, and she found nothing suspicious. So assured, the package was opened and searched for any dangerous device. The business with Cash and the Elements being kilometers above their pay grade –and the idea of finding one of the mythical artifacts being sent through the mail having never occurred to those who did know of them– they found nothing worth noting.

So the package was loaded onto a trolley and wheeled out of the mail room towards the place where Senator Birchfield’s forwarded mail was being stored until he could come by to collect it. By one of those coincidences that was no coincidence at all, the opened package was coming out of the mail room just as Rarity and Spike were passing by the door. Distracted by the unexpected sight of a Dragon in the corridor, the clerk pushing the trolley couldn’t correct in time and the cart collided with Rarity, knocking both to the floor and sending the contents of the package scattering beside her.

“Oh, my! I’m so terribly sorry!” Rarity said, the words automatic.

“No, no, my fault!” the hapless clerk replied, eager not to offend someone who walked in the company of Dragons, but Rarity was no longer paying any attention to him. No, every fiber of her being was now squarely oriented towards the gleaming purple gem lying a bare hoof-length away from her. The clerk had disappeared from her world, as had the building and everyone around her. Her fears about what was happening to her kidnapped friends, the coming confrontations with Max Cash and Nightmare Umbra, the worries about delving into Tartarus and the expectations being placed on her, none of them mattered.

All that mattered was the necklace, and the terrible need she had for it.

“Rarity, what’s wrong?” Spike asked her, somewhere a million miles away.

“Run,” she said in a hoarse whisper. Visions of what happened with Pinkie Pie at the mansion flickered around the edges of her mind, unable to penetrate deeply enough to prevent her from reaching for the Element. For the first time she realized the amount of sheer willpower her friend must have possessed to have stopped herself from donning her Element for as long as she had.

“Oh no,” Spike said as he realized what was happening, an almost childish shock in his voice. When he moved, it was with lightning quickness. He grabbed the clerk and threw him down the hallway, eliciting a scream from the pony. “Rarity!” he cried out, reaching down to snatch the necklace away from her. He was too late.

The Element practically leapt to her throat. It locked into place with a small, satisfying click that vibrated through her soul like the wheels of some vast machine beginning to turn. She closed her eyes, waiting for the burst of light and the inevitable devastation to follow. When nothing happened she risked her voice. “Spike?”

“I’m here,” he said, and she could feel him curled protectively around her. He would have used his body as a shield to give the people in the building an extra moment to escape. She felt an indescribable warmth in her chest at that realization, that he was willing to give his life to save others, indeed to save her. “You’re okay. It’s okay.”

But it wasn’t okay. She knew it in the way she felt the heat of his body wrapped around her. She knew how far that heat was radiating, how it was slowly spreading through the floor and the walls. She could hear it in the voices of the crowd that was gathering at either end of the hallway, which had taken on a new dimension of clarity. She knew, without even thinking of it, how the sound of those voices bounced along the walls, where it was absorbed and the exact point it would fade below the ability to hear.

She opened her eyes and looked at that crowd. She could see into the ponies staring at her. Not like their skin was transparent or anything as simple as that, no. She still saw them as she always had, but now she saw more. She could see the blood pulsing through their veins, could track the nerve impulses as they commanded muscles to bunch and stretch, could even plot the electrical course of the neurons firing in their brains. She could see all this, and she knew with a bone-deep certainty that all it would take was a nudge from her –no, not even that, a passing whim!– and she could direct all that she saw to move as wished.

She wrenched her attention away from them. She had to, the moment it occurred to her, thoughts of strokes and seizures and limbs exploding as all the blood in the body rushed to them at once screamed through her mind.

She took in a breath as deep as her lungs could allow, the air flowing in with shocking ease, concentrating to the point where it nearly liquified inside her. Then, in a voice like the ringing of a great bell, she screamed one word: “Run!” and in the wake of her cry the hallway exploded.

Chapter 38: Thunderous

Avenues of exploration opened up wherever I looked, but while some of them started off promising, all of them turned into an identical morass of confusion and contradiction. I found that each revelation I managed to eke out had ten more waiting just behind it. Each new line of inquiry branched off into a dozen others that had their own tributaries of questions, and so on and so on, forever. The flood of junk data seemed never-ending.

Indeed, it might be. The Elements seem to stymie investigation by design, and too many of my inquiries came to nothing. Or, rather, they gave a lot of extremely interesting data points that utterly failed to paint a greater picture. Just noise, in the end. Still, I persevered through years of growth and adventure, certain the truth was just around the corner. With the wealth of information I was gathering, surely something about the Elements’ true natures should have become clear.

Eventually, it did. But by then it was too late. And that clarity is still incomplete.

There are some things I now know. I know what they do. I know how they do it, to a degree. Even as I write this book, however, I am at a loss as to why they do what they do. All I have are suppositions, guesses and gut-feelings. Those are bad enough that I’m left wondering if the truth might be even worse. A thought that only scares me half as much as the idea that the reason I cannot find the answers is because I do not wish to know them.

-From the second section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Thirty-Eight: Thunderous

The world exploded around them, the walls, ceiling and floor of the hallway crumpling like wadded-up tinfoil. Layers of material peeled back one after another, plaster and tile giving way to wires and pipes which then folded back to reveal the concrete and steel bones of the building. Sparks from broken electrical circuits caught at the air, igniting it into hanging lines of fire that spiraled around in a twisting, pulsing vortex of heat and light. Ponies cried out, but the sounds were distorted, voices threaded together into a chorus that sang over the roar of the fire and the scream of tortured metal.

Spike observed all this happening as discrete images and impressions. It was simultaneous, and yet disjointed. An apocalypse coming in lazy waves, unhurried in its immediacy. With his own pounding heartbeat providing a rhythm to measure by, he realized that it wasn’t just the physical world that was being affected. Time itself was caught in the rampaging power of Generosity, seconds bunching up or stretching out like the fabric of a particularly frilly dress.

“Rarity!” he called out. He was curled around her, his face next to hers, and even so his bellow barely reached her ears.

“Help me,” she said, a whisper that rocked the building to its foundations. “I can’t stop it.”

Light bent and twisted, creating patches of impenetrable shadow where no obstruction existed. Frost spread in places, climbing walls in swooping ferns. In other places the paint browned and peeled as temperatures rose to oven-like levels. Screams and the clatter of running hooves echoed strangely as sound waves moved through the broken spaces, sometimes doubling on themselves or reversing direction.

Glass shattered everywhere. Spike looked through the fire and distortions to see the people running for the exits. The doors of those exits didn’t so much open as withdraw into the walls, absorbed by the buckling structure, leaving gaping holes as exits. She’s trying to save them, he realized. Even as he thought that, he saw that the panicked RIA employees were too disorganized to make good use of what she’d given them. “Rarity, focus on getting people out!”

“I can’t!” she wailed, her face buried in her hooves. “If I look at them… Oh, Spike, if I look at them I could kill them!”

Water burst out of the ruptured pipes and sprinkler system, some of it spilling through the broken walls in glittering cascades, some of it freezing into ice that flowed into radiating patterns, cracks adding depth and contrast to the shapes created. Smoke poured through the open wounds in the building, reaching every space as if eager to fill it. Ponies coughed and gagged as the smoke surrounded them.

“They’re choking!” Rarity cried out. Air thundered with hurricane force. It dispelled the smoke, but suddenly every breath felt like he was going to explode his lungs. Too much air, his ears popped painfully and even with his draconic constitution he felt instantly light-headed. Others without his strength passed out immediately.

“Oh, no!” Rarity said with a gasp. “No, no, no!”

“Rarity,” Spike said. “Stop! You have to stop!"

“I can fix this,” she said, though from her tone he couldn’t tell if she was responding to him or not. “I can fix it.”

The torrent of air reversed itself, and with Spike’s next breath it had become as thin as at the heights of his mountain lair. That was no good for the unconscious people either. Yet the dancing fires began to go out, fading away to nothing in moments.

“No! Don’t try to make things happen!” he wheezed out. “There’s… a balance! Not too much, not too little! Find that balance and let it happen!”

“I’ll try.”

Air once more rushed in, and this time it only equalized the pressure with the outside, not super-concentrating. Still, his ears popped again, and he could only imagine what the sudden and vast changes were doing to everyone else. Still, it was an improvement.

“Focus,” he said, tightening his grip on her. “Come on, Rarity, you can do this.”

“I can do this,” Rarity repeated, her voice clear and gaining in strength. The return of air also started the fires again, but this time the water flowed up walls and along exposed support beams to smother the renewed flames.

“Good, that’s good,” he said, giving her another little squeeze. “Now, the building. It’s full of, um, holes. Focus on shoring it up so it won’t collapse.” The building groaned as the steel and concrete within it was rearranged. It didn’t repair the damage, but it did ensure that the unconscious people inside wouldn’t have it fall on top of them. “Okay, now try to pull back from everything else. Let it all find its balance, okay? Don’t force anything, just let it all sort itself out.”

“Okay,” she said, and he could feel the change even as she said it. Sounds returned to normal first, then the bulging moments of time smoothed out once more into an orderly progression.

Everything seemed to fall still, but he knew that it couldn’t last. He wouldn’t waste this opportunity. “You’re doing real good, Rarity,” he said. “Now, I’m gonna take the Element off of you, okay? Can I do that?”

Her body went rigid. “I… don’t know, Spike. I think… maybe?”

He resisted the temptation to swear. He had to stay calm to help her stay calm. If either of them started losing it, who knew what kind of havoc would ensue. “I’m going to try, alright? Will you let me try?” There was a long moment when he thought she was going to refuse, but then with a tiny motion that was barely perceptible, she nodded. He reached behind her neck, for the place where he knew the necklace parted. There was no catch, nothing to indicate how it came off, but he’d worn it himself and knew it intimately. He touched it, and willed it to open. To his immense relief, it did. A moment later he had the Element in his claws, and Rarity practically melted in his grip, all the tension going out of her in a wave.

“Thank you, Spike,” she said, and then with a flutter of her eyelashes and a dramatic sigh, she fainted dead away.

***

“You’d think they’d be punctual,” Astrid said, bouncing up and down a bit. It was something she’d taken to doing, a restless little motion that was a vain attempt to help settle the weighted outfit Rarity had created for her. Star Fall was impressed with the engineering of the thing. The weight distribution was set so that Astrid had almost as much freedom of movement as she would naked, and the added bulk just enhanced her already formidable physique. She settled after a few bounces, giving the door an irritated look. “They’re meeting with royalty, after all.”

“It’s because they’re meeting with royalty that they aren’t punctual,” Star Fall said. “It’s meant to be a message. ‘You’re not important here’ they’re saying.” Astrid snorted. “Yeah, it’s rude, but it’s about what I expect from Republics Senators. Honestly, if it’s the worst thing they do this meeting, I’ll count myself incredibly lucky.”

“Fucking republicans. If you had a bank account with enough zeroes, I bet they’d be falling all over themselves to kiss your ass.”

Star Fall made a thoughtful noise at that. “Technically, I have the biggest bank account in the world.”

“Yeah, but it’s in gold, and they prefer silver,” Astrid pointed out, starting to bounce again.

“True,” Star Fall said, turning away from her friend so that she could resist the urge to start bouncing herself. Her mimicking of Rainbow Dash’s uncanny healing abilities had brought back her health and energy in record time, but that didn’t do much to speed along all the therapy she was going to need to learn how to walk with a prosthetic hoof. She’d been managing so far, but it felt wrong every step she took, and if she tried to walk without thinking she was more likely than not to trip and find herself face first on the ground. She’d tried hovering instead, but recent marathon flights notwithstanding, her wings were just not up to such sustained use. She could keep herself aloft for a while, but the longer it went the harder and more painful it became. Then it was back to clumsily staggering around.

It felt loose, was the problem. Even with the straps tight enough that she was risking cutting off blood flow to her stump, every move she made was accompanied by minute shifts in the way her truncated leg sat in the cup that attached it to the artificial hoof. The longer it went, the more it felt like the prosthetic was in the wrong place and she needed to re-set it. Hell, that could even be true. The hoof was a mass-produced kind that they gave to military vets who’d lost limbs. Functional, but made one-size-fits-all. Not something made specifically for her.

Regardless of whether it was real or imagined, watching Astrid dealing with her own prosthesis only made her acutely aware of her discomfort. It also gave her the utterly irrational but maddeningly insistent feeling that she should be copying the Griffin to see if it helped her own predicament. Giving in to that feeling would mean that the two of them would be bouncing like a pair of hyperactive fillies, and she just knew that would be the exact moment the Senators chose to show up.

As if to justify her fears, the door opened to admit Senator Alan Birchfield. He gave Star Fall a small smile and nodded to Astrid, who came to stiff alertness. He looked over his shoulder as he walked further into the room, smiling at a pair of well dressed people who followed him into the room. “Right this way,” he said to them, shutting the door as soon as they were inside. Star Fall studied the newcomers, calling to mind the political briefings Gamma had given her as they entered.

The first to follow Birchfield was a slim earth pony in a severe charcoal grey suit and a hard look in her eyes, the lines on her violet face showing her age and giving her a permanent scowling expression. Her sharp eyes scanned the room and its occupants, and her only reaction was an arched eyebrow for Birchfield, who smiled back with a politician’s amicability. This was Senator Graves, whose ominous name went along with a reputation as one of the premier hawks in the Senate. She’d spent her career pushing for the Republics to go to war with the Kingdom, and she was now key to Star Fall preventing that very outcome.

The second was a bulky Diamond Dog who walked entirely on his hind legs, presumably so as not to scuff the many rings he wore on his forepaws. His own suit was a crisp pinstriped blue, complete with a lighter blue pocket square and a platinum watch chain. His nose twitched wetly in his squashed-in pug face, and his eyes went to Astrid immediately. Astrid returned the look with professional equanimity, and after a moment he gave her a short nod and turned his gaze instead to Star Fall. This was Senator Cyrus Cartwright, one of the wealthiest –and thus most influential– non-ponies in the Republics.

Neither of them looked friendly, but they weren’t showing the signs of unreasoning hatred or fear, either. That boded well. Hatred and fear were never conducive to reasoned discussion, and their absence fed the hope burning in Star Fall’s chest.

“What have you brought us into, Alan?” Senator Graves asked, her tone as arch as her eyebrow. Star Fall didn’t buy the question for a second. She’d known what she was walking into.

“Something important,” he replied. “Maybe the most important thing in our lifetimes. Senator Graves, Senator Cartwright, may I present Her Royal Highness, Princess Fallen Star of the Solar Kingdom. Princess, my colleagues.”

Star Fall nodded. “Senators, thank you for meeting with me.”

“You and your personal murderer,” Senator Graves said.

“This is Astrid, my bodyguard,” Star Fall said, refusing to rise to the bait. “She is not here as a threat.”

Graves scoffed. “Of course she’s a threat. She has knives instead of hooves and she eats flesh. What else could she be?”

“Elle,” Senator Cartwright said in reproach. He held up one paw, showing the carefully manicured stubs of his own claws. “Please.” She had the good grace to look chagrined.

Star Fall watched the exchange, analyzing everything. Her mind sorted through the possibilities as she bent all of her Secret Service training to figuring out what these two Senators were up to. Was this part of an act? Had they planned it beforehand? Neither had been surprised to see Astrid, so it was reasonable to assume they had been fully briefed about who would be at this meeting, regardless of how they and Birchfield played it off. This exchange could have been rehearsed, designed to put them in opposing roles, Graves playing the antagonist while Cartwright took the friendly route, allowing them to play against and maneuver Star Fall towards an agenda they both shared. She would have to be on guard for more tactics like it. However, it could be a genuine moment, which in turn revealed facets of each Senator’s personality that she could use to predict and appeal to them.

Cartwright then turned to Star Fall. “Princess. You are a long way from home.” His voice was deep and rolling. Diamond Dogs didn’t think like ponies, a fact that often showed in their idiosyncratic speech patterns, but the Senator was either naturally able to mimic a pony’s way of talking or he’d spent some time in speech therapy. Regardless, he sounded exactly like she expected of an upper-class Republican elite. Which was worrisome, since it would be too easy to forget that he wasn’t your average Republican elite. She’d have to remember not to make assumptions with him. “I heard of the tragedy that occurred during your nuptials. My condolences for your loss.”

“Thank you, Senator. In truth it was a loss for the entire Kingdom.”

Graves snorted. “Yes. One mad king dead, very sad. Fortunately you’ve got the next tyrant all lined up to take the throne. And you, lucky little filly, managed to marry him just in time.”

Again, Star Fall refused to rise to the obvious bait. Graves was probing, pushing every emotional button she could think of, but if she truly were as belligerent as she wanted to appear she would be acting differently. Hell, she probably wouldn’t have come at all. No, this was a test, to see if Star Fall was going to be worth listening to. The real question she needed to answer was whether Cartwright was in on it or not. “Yes, we are lucky my father-in-law left clear instructions for the succession. The world faces dire peril. Now is not the time for a political crisis.”

If Graves was pricked by her return jab, she didn’t show it. Cartwright made a thoughtful hum and tapped one claw on his small chin. “When is the coronation? I would have thought you would all want it over and done with as quickly as possible.”

“I–” Star Fall tried not to pause here, but her mind went blank on what to say. She didn’t know why it hadn’t happened yet. A bevy of possibilities came to mind, but in her instant of hesitation she shoved them all away. She needed to be honest with these Senators. They had to trust her. That wasn’t to say, however, that she shouldn’t be choosing her words with incredible care. “I’m afraid my abrupt departure has left me out of the loop as far as that goes.”

“Until then the former Queen is in charge, yes?”

Graves interjected before Star Fall could answer. “She’s probably the one holding that coronation up. It’s good to be Queen, I bet it doesn’t sit well with her that she’s about to get replaced.”

It was a clumsy attack, but that only made Star Fall pay even closer attention to the older mare. Graves was a long-time political operator, if she wanted to insinuate that the Queen was holding on to power to keep it out of Star Fall’s hooves, there were subtler and more effective ways of going about it. For such a seasoned politician to take such an amateurish swipe said something. She kept a pleasant smile on her face as she contemplated it and answered both of them. “In the Kingdom, royalty can’t really be demoted, per se. As she was the Queen, she will remain a Queen, with all the privilege and power she is accustomed to. For the moment she is acting with the authority of the Crown, but upon his coronation my husband will assume those duties.”

“Or she won’t step down at all, and just continue to rule in her son’s name,” Graves said. There was a cruel smirk tugging at her lips, but it didn’t reach her eyes. Those were busy searching Star Fall’s own face, looking for clues and tells.

“The rules that govern royal succession won’t allow that, I assure you,” Star Fall said with a disarming smile. “My mother-in-law will return to the role she’s been invaluable in for decades, as a close and trusted adviser to the Crown.”

“And just what might she be advising?” Graves asked, continuing to hammer at Star Fall’s poise. “Perhaps she’s even now advising all manner of things regarding his runaway wife. The wife whose own mother was revealed as the Gray Mare!”

And all at once, Star Fall understood. This was the crux of it. She still didn’t know what Cartwright’s angle was, but she saw into Graves’ heart, and there she saw fear. Not fear of Astrid or Star Fall or the Kingdom, but fear of the Destroyer. Fear of the juggernaut even now chewing through everything the Republics military could throw at it. This was good. This wasn’t a fear that made her stupid, but a fear that motivated her. A fear that had her looking for allies, looking for help. Star Fall might become an ally, but first she needed to find out if Star Fall could help, or if her connection to the force out to kill them all had rendered her powerless.

She was silent as all this flashed through her head, and all eyes in the room watched her expectantly as she formulated her answer. “Yes, Twinkle Shine, my mentor, my adopted mother, the closest adviser and friend to the royal family, is in truth Nightmare Umbra. She hid herself well. None knew of her true nature. Not myself, not the Queen, no one. All of us who knew her must live with that fact, must think carefully about all that she said and did, wondering if each kindness, if each wise word was instead some play by the Destroyer, manipulating us to her own goals.”

In fact, her talk with Spike had convinced her that most of that kindness and wisdom had been completely genuine. Oh, there had been manipulations, certainly, but considering Corona’s purpose and ultimate goal, her friendships were likely sincere. She didn’t need to explain that to the Senators, though, it would only confuse them at this point.

“I’ve known Queen Aqua Regia since I was a filly,” Star Fall continued. “She was always very kind to me, even from the start. As I grew, I found that she and I shared opinions on a wide range of topics, both political and personal. I learned recently that she has been working and advocating on my behalf since she first met me. She is my friend, a fact that I am extremely proud of. Because of this I know she is not speaking against me. Not to my husband, not to anyone.”

Star Fall looked around at the watching Senators, meeting the eyes of each one, holding Senator Graves’ gaze last. “If you need proof, simply look to the news coming out of the Kingdom. I’m certain the nobles are calling out for my blood. What has the Crown said? Have they denounced me? Declared a divorce? Have they called for my arrest and trial? Tell me, have any of these things happened?” She watched carefully. She was sure any such announcement would have gotten to her through Gamma, even with them being pseudo-prisoners of the state with the limited access to information that entailed. For even more confirmation, there was no denial in their eyes. “No,” she said with confidence. “They’ve done none of these things. Because I am still Regal Stature’s wife. I am still Princess Fallen Star, soon to be Queen, and I have the full confidence of the Crown.”

She stared at Graves, watching as the mare’s true question was answered. There was a shift, a subtle one, and a layer of tension evaporated from the room. Just like that, she and Graves were on the same side. There was still a ways to go in this negotiation, but her first hurdle was passed. Now she just needed to figure out what angle Cartwright was playing and they could get down to the true meat of the meeting.

Cartwright huffed out a small laugh. “Well said, well said.” He turned to Birchfield. “You’ve certainly been making some strange friends lately, Alan. I can’t say I ever saw you as the diplomatic type.”

“I’m not,” Birchfield replied. “I’m just an old soldier who knows when someone isn’t his enemy.”

Cartwright’s eyes swung back around to Star Fall. “Well!” He rubbed his paws together, the rings making clicking sounds with the motion. “Well, well, well. I’d love to keep the pleasantries and posturing going, but there is too much to do to waste time. Fallen Star– may I call you Fallen Star?”

“In both Solar and Lunar common speech my name is rendered as Star Fall, Senator,” she replied. “If you like, just Star will do.”

“Ah, good. And if we’re being familiar and dropping the titles, then in the interest of fairness, call me Cyrus.” She nodded in acknowledgment. “Star, you are here to beg for your country.” He held up a paw to forestall any protest. “I know, you wouldn’t put it that way, but it is true. The coming vote will determine whether our two nations finally go to war, and you are desperate to prevent that. The Kingdom cannot survive a war with the Republics. The cost will be great for us, yes, but the victory all but assured. You cannot match our technological superiority or our manufacturing base, to say nothing of sheer numbers. Thus, finally, you sue for peace. You have come here to negotiate terms, to offer us whatever you can to sway us. Thus, you beg.” He bared his teeth in a gesture that might have been a smile. “Am I wrong?”

Star Fall didn’t frown. Here was the second half of her test. “You are mostly correct, Cyrus, but you have one part of that wrong.”

“Oh?” he said obligingly. “What is that?”

“I’m not just here to beg for my country, Senator. I’m here to beg for yours as well.” There was a moment of silence as Cartwright’s smile vanished. “The Destroyer is on our doorstep. The time for fighting each other, if there ever was such a thing, is gone. Now is the time we either stand together, or die separately.”

He nodded. “Good words. Yes, good words, but–”

“They’re not just words,” Star Fall said, cutting him off. His eyes widened at her rudeness, but she ignored it, bulling ahead. “I know how to defeat her.” Each of the Senators stared at her with wide eyes, Birchfield’s mouth dropping open in surprise. “I know her weakness. But it’s a weakness neither of our nations can exploit on our own. We need each other, Senators. We need each other.”

Graves took a step towards her. “I suppose you won’t be telling us what this weakness is unless we accept your demands.”

Star Fall shook her head. “No. I’ll tell you, if you want. I’ll even provide my source for the information if you don’t believe it coming from me. I’m not using that as a bargaining chip. I’m using it as the reason to start bargaining. We can win. We can defeat her. We just need to work together to do it. What I’m interested in, Senators, is what it will take to make that happen.”

There was a moment of silence, and the three Senators exchanged a long look. Finally, they turned back to her. “There must be concessions,” Cartwright said.

“Of course,” Star Fall replied. “Just like there must be concessions from you.”

He didn’t look too happy about that statement, but didn’t challenge it directly. “The Kingdom must open its markets to the Republics.”

“The Kingdom is a controlled economy, Senator. If we open ourselves to Republican free-market capitalism that economy would collapse. Instead, we can allow Republican corporations to operate on our soil, so long as they obey the regulations and restrictions that a Solar company must follow.”

Cartwright’s face wrinkled into a scowl. “The costs would be...”

“High, yes. Much higher than you’re used to. Your corporations would be operating as private citizens, and thus allowed to run a profit, but even so profits from the Kingdom would be slim in comparison to what they are here. Still, I think you’ll find that there is a great hunger for Republics-made goods in the sunlands. That is only one side of this, though. The other, I think you’ll find much more to your liking: exports.” She saw the gleam in Cartwright’s eye at that. “You have technology, Senators, but we have magic. There are a plethora of enchanted items that could prove absurdly lucrative for any company savvy enough to bring them to Republics markets. Hell, I guarantee you that whoever kickstarts the television industry in the nightlands is bound for wealth beyond the dreams of avarice.”

“Surely you’d want Solar corporations to profit from such things,” Birchfield piped up.

Star Fall shook her head. “Companies in the Kingdom don’t work like they do here. A company in the sunlands exists for a purpose, and making money is incidental to that purpose. Sometimes it’s unnecessary or even unwanted. So long as they’re fulfilling their purpose, so long as that purpose is still needed, Solar companies don’t really have to worry about finances beyond reporting everything to the Treasury. A company like that coming into a place like the Republics would be just as unfair as the reverse. No, I think instead a Republican corporation partnering with a Solar company to bring sunland products to the Republics.”

“You’re giving away a lot,” Cartwright said, and she heard a note of suspicion in his voice.

“I’m giving away nothing,” she replied. “We must learn to get along, and one of the best ways for countries to get along is for them to trade with each other. I’m not coming up with this stuff off the top of my head, Senators. The Kingdom has agreements like this with several of the Zebra nations, and they work. They protect the Kingdom from exploitation by unregulated businesses, and protect our partners from being out-competed by Solar companies with no need to run a profit.”

Cartwright was frowning again. “This will be a hard sell. Solar regulations are stifling, and from what I understand your tax laws are set by local nobility, and can vary from one street corner to the next, driving up costs even more. Regardless of import potential, this is set up for a massive trade deficit in your favor.”

Despite his negative tone, Star Fall’s heart surged at his words. ‘A hard sell’, he said, which meant he was thinking of how to sell it. He wasn’t rejecting it out of hand. She took a calming breath, then decided it was time to play her trump card. “Yes, which is why I’m also willing to offer the Republics mining rights in the northern crystal deposits.”

There were gasps at that, one of which Star Fall was sure came from Astrid, though she refused to turn and look. She wouldn’t fault her friend for being surprised. The crystal mines were the primary source of the Kingdom’s wealth. All the enchanted products she had just talked about selling to the Republics were only possible because of those crystal resources. Giving the Republics rights to some of those resources would undercut Solar exports, and certainly go a long way to closing the gap in magical capabilities between the two countries.

Now the avaricious gleam was in the eyes of all three Senators. “What are the conditions on that?” Graves asked.

“Regulation and oversight,” Star Fall said. “The operations must meet Kingdom environmental and safety standards. Other than that, the Crown takes its cut and the rest go to the Republics to do with as you please. The rights are given to the Senate, and the Senate can contract out whatever company you like to do the actual mining and import. There could be a limit on tonnage extracted per year, but that can be hammered out in formal negotiation.”

“That,” Cartwright said slowly, his tongue darting out to lick his nose in a gesture she hoped was thoughtful and open, but didn’t know enough about Diamond Dog body language to say for sure, “is a generous offer. But it only addresses one side of what must be done.” Star Fall struggled to keep the frown from her face and the tremble from her limbs as her heart sped up. Gamma’s briefing had presented Cartwright as a consummate businessdog. Eminently reasonable so long as he could see the money in it. Her allowance of mining rights should have had him salivating over the prospect of a deal. Instead he appeared as someone who, while interested, had a more important agenda.

“I think this proposal will benefit both our nations quite nicely,” Star Fall said.

“While some of my colleagues might be willing to go along with it purely for the silver to be made, I am more concerned with the morality of any alliance.” Star Fall’s heart rate jumped up another notch. Morality? She had no idea where he was going. “Tell me, how are Dogs treated in the sunlands?”

“They are citizens, just as any pony. They obey the same laws and duties, and have the same rights and privileges.”

“Oh? Then they don’t need permission from the government to breed?”

Star Fall’s racing heart skipped a beat. “Just like here, they need the assistance of a unicorn to conceive.”

“And this assistance is provided at their request, yes?”

“No,” Star Fall admitted. “They apply for a permit. If the application is granted then, yes, they get all the assistance they need.”

“Are these permits always granted?”

“No.”

He nodded slowly at her terse answer. “And what of Griffins? The great warriors so integral to your Crown’s authority. Surely they have control over when they breed and who they mate with?” Star Fall didn’t answer, simply holding his gaze. “No. They don’t. No they don’t. Only ponies can choose for themselves when to have their children. And even then! Oh, even then those selfsame children may be sold into slavery!”

Star Fall didn’t flinch back as his voice rose to a sharp bark, but it was a near thing. Her wings wanted to flutter and her stump was sitting wrong in its cup and her mouth had gone dry but none of that could be allowed to show –not for one instant– if she was to walk out of this room with new allies in the Senate.

Cartwright wasn’t done. “You imagine nightlanders to be blinded by love of silver– Don’t bother denying it! You see our wealth, our drive for prosperity, and you imagine it is all we are. You come to us with tempting offers and promises of riches, as if that is all we care for. But you do not understand. I will not accept evil such as your Kingdom perpetrates. No, not even for all the silver in the world.” He huffed out a breath, visibly reining himself in. Star Fall waited, knowing there was more for him to say, knowing what he was going to ask her for. This felt rehearsed, but even so the emotion seemed real. If his anger was an act, he was performing masterfully, and she still couldn’t see the advantage for him in it. “I spoke of concessions earlier,” he continued in a more subdued voice. “I was not simply speaking of trade. We need your help against the Gray Mare. By the same token, you need ours. This is my price to support you: the abolition of all slavery in the Solar Kingdom.”

Star Fall waited to see if there was any more, but he had said his piece. She unfolded her wings, stretching them wide before settling them back in place, the gesture giving her time to think on a response. “I understand you better than you might think,” she said. “I’ve been back and forth from the Republics many times in secret. I’ve walked among your people, I’ve spoken with them and laughed with them. I know that a strong spirit of virtue resides in them, one that sees the indentured servants of the Kingdom as creatures to be pitied, to be outraged on behalf of. A similar spirit resides with us in the sunlands, and we feel the same pity and outrage when we look upon the homeless and the destitute that huddle alleys and shantytowns in your great cities. What you ask is similar to my demanding that you end poverty in the Republics.”

She held up her good hoof to forestall their defensive retorts. “Oh, I know how impossible that would be. I know that despite all the good words every politician mouths about it, the will to do what’s necessary is simply not there. The disruption to your economy would be vast and unpredictable, and the opposition from everyone who benefits from the current situation would effectively kill any effort to change it.

“So it is north of the Storm. There have been voices crying for the end of indenture since it was created. Those voices, incidentally, include the Queen’s. And mine. Yet the challenges are vast. The economic damage would be incredible. There would be revolts, both among the nobles who use indentured labor and among the commoners who would no longer have an easy means to escape debts. The social unrest would exacerbate the economic struggles, and who knows where that will end. Yes, it’s just as impossible to end indenture in the Kingdom as ending poverty in the Republics is. Save for one thing.”

They looked at her expectantly. Cartwright’s squashed face was set in a dark glower. Graves’ ears were perked up with interest. Birchfield, for some reason, looked abashed. She took a slow breath, drawing out the natural pause to something filled with tension. Both for the theatrics of it, and because it was a big step for her. “The difference here is that in the Kingdom we don’t have to negotiate with a thousand different factions to get things done. In the Kingdom the only will that matters is the will of the Crown. You want an end to indenture? Done.”

Cartwright’s eyes widened with a measure of surprise. “I want all the slaves freed, Princess. Your Griffins included.”

“Fuck that.” Heads turned to regard Astrid, who glared back.

“Astrid,” Star Fall said, though any admonishment in her tone was a faint thing.

“No, Fall. This shitheel thinks we’re oppressed or some bullcrap. We’re not. We chose to serve the Crown, we fought to get where we are. You wanna stop a bunch of losers from selling themselves off instead of facing the consequences of their actions? Fine. You wanna force the nobles to pay more attention to their vassals, stop treating them like free labor? Great, anything that ruins their day is fine by me. You wanna piss on eight hundred years of Griffin pride? No. Fuck that.”

“I was going to say, Astrid, that if he wants us to ‘free’ the Griffins, then he’s going to have to do the same for the Changelings.” Star Fall looked over to Cartwright, who shifted uncomfortably.

“The Changelings aren’t slaves,” he said.

“No, they made a deal with the Republics. Service in exchange for protection and assistance breeding. An almost identical deal to what the Griffins and the Kingdom has, in fact.”

“I meant that the Changelings are paid for their work.”

“The Griffins speak with the voice of the Crown. They don’t need money.”

“Don’t want it, either,” Astrid added.

“It doesn’t matter,” Star Fall said, waving a wing in front of her as if to dispel the tension between her and the Senators. “I know that ‘freeing’ the Changelings is something you don’t have any power to do. Not without years of committees and referendums and backroom dealings. Whereas I could have the Griffins released from their oaths with a few words to my husband. I won’t,” she quickly added before Astrid could chime in again. “Because to do so would be saying to them that they are not wanted or not needed, when they are very much both. You’ll have to be content with the end of indentured servitude. Is that enough, Senator? Will that overcome your moral objections to working together against a threat that will annihilate us both if we don’t?”

His face scrunched up, pride and bruised ego warring with his rational mind. Star Fall’s heart was still pounding away, and her list of distracting ailments only grew as she felt the tingle of an incipient cough begin to ravage her throat. There was no way she was breaking her staredown with Cartwright, though.

Finally his tongue darted out to lick his nose, and with a grunt he ducked his head in a nod. “Yes. That will be a start. I’d also like breeding assistance to Dogs to be automatic, no applications that could be denied.”

“Is such assistance automatic here?” Star Fall asked, knowing the answer.

“It is given to any Dog who…” he scowled, unable to meet her eyes any more.

“Any Dog who can pay for it,” Star Fall finished for him. “It seems, then, that breeding permits are denied in the nightlands, too. Be assured, Senator, that when such requests are refused, it is for a good reason, and not at the whim of some bureaucrat with a rubber stamp. We aren’t without our faults in the sunlands, but we have our laws and our courts, and any such arbitrariness would soon find itself under the scrutiny of the Crown.”

“Fine.” The reply was curt, but Star Fall thought that was more from embarrassment than from anger at her for refusing him. “Alright. Alan is clearly on your side, and I know that Senator Graves was convinced by your little speech about the Gray Mare. I accept that I won’t get everything I want out of you, so I’ll take what I can get and we can get down to the real business. You agree to end slavery, I’ll work to keep us from declaring war on you.”

“Agreed. Thank you, Senator,” Star Fall said.

“Thank Luna’s bright moon that’s done with,” Graves said, taking a step closer to Cartwright, as if closing ranks with him. “Honestly, Cyrus, this isn’t a business deal, all of our lives are at stake.”

He shrugged at her. “What better time to negotiate good terms?”

“Preferably after the world-ending threat has been dealt with,” Birchfield said, wiping sweat from his brow as he too stepped in line with his fellow Senators. “Now, Star, you said you knew how to defeat Nightmare Umbra. If we’re going to sell this to the rest of the Senate, we’ll need some details.”

Star Fall let out a slow breath. It wasn’t quite time to relax yet, but the hardest part was done. She’d gained more allies, and they would prepare the ground for her. Hopefully by the time she addressed the full Senate, they would already be on-board and it would just be a matter of making the deals struck here in this tiny, bare room public.

“First, we need her out of the way at the Stile Islands. Her ghouls are tough, but not terribly intelligent or creative in their tactics. It’ll be hard going, but our two armies can grind them down eventually. The problem is her. She doesn’t even need her army to take on both of ours. As long as she is present her victory is inevitable. Fortunately, I’ve learned some things about her recently, and I have a way to get her to leave. Something she won’t be able to resist…”

***

It had been a long way to go to get to the desert. There was plenty of empty space in the Republics suitable for what they wanted to do, but the place they were going was specifically set aside for testing weapons. Hundreds of square kilometers of desolate wasteland, fenced off and kept from the public eye. They would be far from anyone who could be hurt by whatever happened, and free to do their work in perfect secrecy.

Calumn had been to places like it before, though not this one in particular. Changelings did all sorts of training, after all, and most of it couldn’t leak to the general populace without starting up all the old paranoias. He’d actually enjoyed those times, and had many fond memories of being out in the wilderness under a desert sky so wide you could fall right into it, the stars brighter and clearer than could be imagined in a city. If their situation wasn’t so rushed, he’d be looking forward to sharing some of that experience with Trail Blazer.

As it was, he was hoping they wouldn’t get the chance. Cash was getting ahead of them with every hour. The need to move was a pressing weight that followed him no matter what form he took. Even what they were doing, as important as it was, felt like a distraction from what had to be their primary focus. Find Max Cash and put a permanent stop to him.

Maybe, along the way, he could make up for being the one that let Cash go.

The trip had been a nonstop rush of chatter from Pinkie and Blaze. He couldn’t remember how they had gotten started anymore, but no line of conversation ever seemed to come to an end. Each new sentence was a potential breaking point where a topic would be abandoned for whatever tangent had come up. Those tangents led to more, and more, until Calumn was sure that neither pony actually knew what it was they were discussing any more, defaulting to merely spewing a call-and-response stream of consciousness, only to be taken aback a moment later when one of them somehow tied their current thought back into a point they had been making a dozen topic shifts ago.

The most notable part of the journey happened while Pinkie and Blaze had been in the middle of an in depth investigation into their mutual experience of… something or other. He really hadn’t been paying attention by that point.

“I spy with my little eye, something that begins with… Pancakes!”

“Breakfast?”

“No thanks! I had a big one this morning. Did you know that the hospital serves food all the time?”

“I thought it was the angry lady behind the counter that did that.”

“She didn’t like it when I asked for gummy worms on my mashed potatoes.”

“What? But that’s the best part! They make little mashed gummy tunnels and you can peck at them and pretend you’re a bird with a really healthy pancreas.”

“I know! So I had to get some myself!”

“From the vending machine?”

“From the vending machine.”

“Oh no.”

“So when I pressed the button.”

“Oh Goddesses, no!”

“It got stuck!”

“Tragedy! What did you do?”

“I had to squeeze myself in there to get them, of course.”

“Well, that’s only logical. But wait, did you bring your mashed potatoes in too?”

“Hehe, well, I kinda didn’t think about that. So I was stuck in there for half an hour while people screamed and found a guy with a key to open it. And my potatoes were cold. Also in the garbage because I had just left them there and somebody thought they were abandoned. Poor, sad, orphan potatoes.”

“That’s rough. At least you had gummy worms.”

“Yup, want some?”

“Do I ever!”

Pinkie produced a package of candy from nowhere Calumn could define and after letting Blaze grab a few she had passed them around to the soldiers and spies in the van with her. Having been given strict instructions to accept anything she offered them, they each took a rainbow-colored gummy and began chewing on it. None of them looked happy about it, and Calumn’s emotional senses were awash with a grinding mixture of confusion, annoyance and pounding anxiety. This hadn’t been the first time she’d done something bizarre and maybe physically impossible on the ride, and every time it caught them off guard.

Calumn wasn’t so worried. He could feel her emotions blazing like the summer sun, and as mercurial as she was she didn’t want anything more than to see others happy. Which is why he suddenly started paying attention when those emotions shifted sharply towards alarm.

“What is it?” he asked, coming instantly alert.

“Uh-oh,” Pinkie said. She twitched. Her entire body rapidly going through a series of contortions that looked like they would be painful happening all at once like that. She popped back to her normal shape, with a sound like a spring in a radio-play, and turned to stare to the north. “Oh, no. Rarity.”

It was then that Calumn noticed that her eyes were glowing. “Pinkie, can you tell me what’s happening?”

“Rarity’s in trouble,” Pinkie said. Her voice was distant, like she was half asleep. “She’s trying too hard. She keeps pushing things too hard. Fluttershy should be helping her, but… but she’s not.”

“Fluttershy? Are they together?” Had Cash gone after Rarity? Would he be coming for Pinkie Pie next?

“No,” Pinkie said, but then seemed to reconsider. “Yes? Maybe? It feels like… like we’re all kind of together. Only not. I think I’m the only one who noticed because no one else is helping Rarity.”

“Can you help her?”

Pinkie frowned. “Maybe… Mayyyybe. I think I can turn down the juice…”

“Sir,” one of the soldiers called out, catching Calumn’s attention as Pinkie narrowed her eyes at something only she could see far in the north. “Lead car is radioing. The object is radiating light and magic. The unicorn watching it is, uh, incapacitated so we can’t get a good reading on how much magic it’s emitting. They’re requesting permission to stop and get to a safe distance.”

“Denied,” Calumn said. “Pinkie, are you going to blow us up?”

“What? No, don’t be silly.” She paused, pursing her lips in thought. “Well, I mean, probably not.” He gave her a stern look and she raised her hooves in surrender. “Kidding! Kidding! It’s ok, Rarity’s almost got a handle on it. Spike’s helping her, I think. It’s almost done.”

Calumn turned back to the soldier at the radio. “Tell them that it should go back to normal in a moment. Continue on.”

A minute later Pinkie’s eyes had stopped glowing and she had informed them that everything was A-OK. Except it wasn’t, not completely. He could feel the worry in her, and the fact that she had lapsed into a thoughtful silence for nearly half an hour spoke volumes. Eventually she had recovered, leading the whole van in a sing-along that had turned out surprisingly well considering the gruff, taciturn group that she had to work with.

The testing ground consisted of a series of interconnected concrete and steel bunkers buried under miles of empty wasteland. The base was sparsely populated, with only a skeleton crew there to keep the place operational. The contingent they had brought with them in three vans easily tripled the population.

As night had already fallen when they’d arrived, they were given cramped rooms to sleep in, a meal of military rations –that Pinkie still managed to play with before devouring by sticking out her tongue a full three feet, dropping the food on it, then rolling it all up and swallowing it down in a display that sent at least one unprepared technician into a panic attack– and a reminder that testing would start bright and early the next day.

Calumn slept that night, but only fitfully. The testing plan Star Fall had come up with was not difficult. Not really. But it was predicated on assumptions that Calumn didn’t particularly share: that the Elements could be used by Calumn and the others that had gone to face Cash in the jungle, that they wouldn’t blow up in their faces like it had for Pinkie when she put on Laughter, and that they could be used in the fight against Cash. As far as Calumn was concerned, the Elements were too dangerous even for them. Power corrupts. He was trained both on how to exploit that fact and how not to fall into the trap himself. Yet his training had already failed him once in the face of the Elements, and he feared it would fail again. Add to that the possibility of ‘Inversion’. What if giving them this power just created more monsters?

There was no answer to that question. Not yet. He could only hope that the reborn heroes were a good precedent. They had borne the Elements for years and had apparently remained good and just ponies to the end. Power corrupts, but the Elements seemed to break all the other rules, why not that one as well?

It was perhaps because of his own inner turmoil that he was acutely aware of the lack of the same from Blaze as he stood with his friend in the rising heat of the morning outside one of the squat bunkers that poked up out of the ground only far enough to allow a narrow viewing window out into the desert. Five hundred meters away a technician had just placed the case that housed the Element of Laughter into the testing zone and was now trotting back toward them. Once he was here it would be Blaze’s turn to head out, open the case, and see if he could access the powers of the Element.

Pinkie stood a short distance away, giving them a moment of privacy. She had a part to play in this: Star Fall’s instructions were clear that both she and Blaze were to be monitored throughout the testing process, even though she was not supposed to get any closer than this to the Element itself.

“Blaze,” Calumn said, looking at his friend and wondering if he was sensing things correctly. “How… how are you doing?”

“Just fine, buddy. A little dry-mouthed. And eyed. And eared. And, well, dry-everythinged. Which might also explain the urge to wet myself everytime I think about putting on the big blue necklace.”

“Blaze…”

Trail Blazer looked at him, grinning. “Buddy?”

“I can tell what you’re feeling.”

“Oh. Right.” He looked away again, his smile still in place. “Is that, like, a permanent thing, now? Like, we’re good enough friends that you can tell what I’m feeling even from across the country? Or the world? ‘Cause, um, if so then that one time I swear I was just having a really good lunch. Like, really good. And all those other times too. Yup. Really good lunches. I mean, who says you can’t have lunch at eleven o’clock at night. It’s noon somewhere, right?”

“Why have you turned them off?”

He paused. A flash of guilt. “Um…”

“Your feelings, Blaze. It’s taken me a while to notice the absence, but you’ve shut them down.”

“Not all of them. Just, you know, the ones that care that Charisma is dead.”

Calumn closed his eyes for a moment. “I thought that was it.” He took a deep breath, not sure that he wanted to dive into this now, but also not sure if he would ever want to. “Can you tell me why?”

Blaze laughed. “Lots of reasons. I mean, I could start with how bad the whole thing was to begin with, you know? It was not a safe, sane and consensual relationship. Also, she killed a lot of people and that kinda makes it really inappropriate to feel sad about her being gone. And… and she told me…”

Calumn reached out and pulled Blaze into a hug. “Keep smiling. I know. It’s gotta come out sometime.”

Blaze sighed. “Maybe after we save the world, huh? I’ll rent a hotel room, buy all the ice cream and tissues I can carry, then bawl it out over a weekend.”

Calumn squeezed tighter. It wouldn’t be that simple. Grief never was. “I’ll help you, Blaze. However I can.”

Blaze squeezed back. “Well, there’s something that might help right now...”

“This is not going to be an excuse to turn me into a filly again, Blaze.”

“But it’s so adorable!”

“No.”

“I bet Pinkie would love it.”

“Not in front of the soldiers.”

Blaze pulled back, smile in full force. “I’ll be fine, buddy. I’m not good at fighting or planning or spy stuff or any of that other stuff that makes you and everyone else so awesome, but I’ve got a lock on being me. Nobody does it better. And if I know me, and I do, then I can tell you with super-complete hundred and twenty percent certainty that I’ll be fine.”

Calumn quirked an eyebrow. “Hundred and twenty percent, huh?”

“I borrowed twenty percent from Dash. She can have it back when she stops being brainwashed and evil.”

“I’ll tell her you said that.”

“Uh…”

The technician reached them at this point, ending their banter. “We’re all set up,” he said. “The case is unlocked, mister Trail Blazer, all you have to do is open it.”

“Cool,” Blaze said with a distinct lack of enthusiasm.

“Pinkie, now comes your part,” Calumn said, turning to the ancient hero.

“Oh! Right! Shoot, where’s the script?” She waved her hooves about herself. Then, despite not wearing any clothing, somehow managed to pull a folded piece of paper out of what very much looked like a pocket that formed out of her skin as she shoved her hoof into it and vanished once the hoof was withdrawn. The technician made a strangled sound and then turned and quickly walked away. Blaze and Calumn merely watched with casual interest, having seen much stranger feats in the past few weeks from the pony.

“Ahem!” Pinkie said loudly, unfolding the paper and giving it a close look. “‘I, Pinkamena Diane Pie, being of sound mind and body.’ Hmm.” She reached up and squeezed her mane between her hooves, which made a squeaking noise like a child’s toy. “Yup! That’s a sound alright! ‘Do hereby declare that I am passing bearership of the Element of Laughter to Trail Blazer, to act as my proxy in all things Element-related, effective immediately.’” She looked around expectantly, but only the dry wind moved. “Well, that was disappointing. I expected way more.”

“We were told it wouldn’t be flashy,” Calumn said. “Blaze, you’re up. Pinkie, you’re with me.” Blaze gave them a nod, then started off towards the Element. Pinkie saluted smartly, then somersaulted down the steps and into the bunker. Calumn watched Blaze go for a moment, then followed Pinkie.

Inside, technicians were already busying themselves over Pinkie Pie, attaching electrodes and sensor pads to her. A bank of machines sat behind her, humming with power and flashing sequences of tiny light bulbs that Pinkie was smiling at gleefully as she was hooked up to the device.

“Yay, blinky lights! Blinky light science is the best science!”

Calumn walked over to the observation window. It was low to the ground, but the whole area was so flat he could see a long way even so. He watched Blaze trot up to where the Element of Laughter had been left. Once he was close, Calumn picked up the radio microphone set by the window and switched on the transmitter.

“Everything set out there?”

Blaze poked at the accompanying radio out at the testing ground for a few moments before he found the right switch. “Yuppers. One radio, one big gray case of doom, and one very nervous Trail Blazer. It’s got all the makings of a great party.”

Calumn turned to the technicians. “Are we set up in here?”

“She’s set up and we’re getting clear if, ah, a little strange readings.”

“Strange is to be expected. Pinkie, are you ready?” She gave him a grin and a sloppy salute. “Good. Blaze, it’s time. You are clear to begin the first phase of experiments with the Element of Laughter.”

“Ooh, ominous,” Blaze said. Then he gingerly opened the case and took the necklace from inside. It glinted in the bright sun, the blue of its gem clearly visible, like a beacon. Blaze made a sound that could have been a sigh or a prayer, but didn’t come through the radio well enough to tell. Then he slipped the necklace around his neck in one quick, jerky motion, his forelimbs flailing after he had it in place as if to ward off some phantom danger. After a long moment of nothing happening his panic ebbed and he looked down at himself, patting here and there as if to make sure that he was really unhurt. “Uh, ok,” he said through the radio. “I am not blown up. So, I guess, step one is a success?”

“Try using it.”

“Okay. Um. How?”

This was something Star Fall’s instructions hadn’t covered in much detail. “I don’t know. Just… try to do something Pinkie-like, I guess.”

“Yeah, okay! Pinkie-like… Pinkie-like…” He spun around in a circle a few times, and then started hopping. He circled the test ground a couple times before coming to a stop. “Oh, wow, is that ever tiring. Hey, buddy, is it working?”

“Do you feel anything?” Calumn asked, his eyes focused on his friend, seeking any sign that something might be going wrong.

“A little thirsty,” Blaze replied. He turned towards them, and the sun once more caught the gem that hung around his neck. “No explody world-bending superpowers, though.”

“The reaction was instantaneous with Pinkie Pie,” Calumn said. “Star Fall’s notes say you’ve got to work at it, though. Maybe do something else. Concentrate on using it, maybe? Try to do something concrete.”

“Like what?”

“I don’t know… blow something up, maybe?”

“Uh, buddy, I’m not exactly the blowing-things-up kind of guy, you know?”

“Right. Of course not.” Calumn shook his head, looking over to where Pinkie was still staring at the flashing lights of the machines, the gaggle of technicians quietly watching every readout. “Any ideas?”

“We could get some blue frosting and I could make Laughter-cupcakes for everyone!” Pinkie helpfully supplied.

“Okay, that’s a no.” He looked back through the binoculars, where Blaze was making weird gestures. “What are you doing?”

“Trying to use my super-awesome Element powers to throw a fireball!” Blaze replied.

“Why are you… are you pretending to do martial arts?”

“Magical martial arts!”

“Why would you think… look, just stop that, alright? You look like you’re drunk when you rear up like that.”

“I actually could use a drink,” he said. “Of the get-you-drunk kind, I mean. Not just the quench-your-thirst kind. Though that’s probably not a good idea right now, even if I am thirsty, which I am, because alcohol dehydrates you and I’m out in a desert and it’s really sunny out here and kinda dry, but, you know that’s the whole desert thing again, which I guess it’s hot, but it’s a dry heat, which is supposed to be better than a wet heat, but, and this is where they get you, there’s such a thing as too much dry, which, okay, any fish could tell you, except they can’t talk or anything, so it’s hard for them to tell you anything, and I think that the first thing they’d say isn’t ‘did you know there’s such a thing as too much dry?’ Instead I think it would go more like: ‘aaaah! I’m out of water! I’m dying! Why did you do this? What’s wrong with you?’ and, okay, dick move from the fish’s perspective, sure, but I’ve got some philosophical questions that need answering vis-a-vis the point at where dry becomes too much dry. I guess it’s all a matter of perspective, right? I mean, in the jungle it was all sweat and bugs and terrible super-powered battles to the death and I was never thinking ‘gee, I wonder if this is too much wet?’ Though, I think too much wet is pretty much the definition of drowning, but at the time I wasn’t in any danger of drowning, except in my own blood, which is a kind of constant danger that I have some good experience with so it didn’t really occur to me at the time, but seems like it probably should have. I mean, on the way here I was wondering, and I thought to myself: ‘self, what else is like a jungle,’ and I thought back to myself ‘why are you asking this question? You aren’t heading to a jungle, you’re going to a desert.’ to which I replied ‘oh yeah, thanks,” and then I said: ‘no problem, and, hey, what are deserts like anyway?’ which led to a whole discussion about rainfall averages and an expected prevalence of tumbleweeds and cactusses. Um, cactusees. Cacti? Anyway, there’s not too many weird-looking prickly plants around here and not a single tumbleweed, which is, honestly, a lot disappointing. I know I can’t get everything I want, but would it really be so hard to have just one come rolling through here while I do this? You know, because nothing else is happening and if movies have taught me anything, and they've basically been my primary teacher since that incident in second grade so I’d say they have, then it’s that tumbleweeds are irresistibly attracted to places where nothing is happening at the moment, but a lot is anticipated to happen soon, which kind of describes this situation here pretty darn well. Though, I guess, if one did come by I might have to be in a gunfight, and I have never successfully fired a pistol. I mean, I have fired one, I get the basics of it, but I keep getting hung up on the whole ‘aim and bite trigger at the same time’ bit. I keep trying but I get confused and then I turn to ask the instructor for help but I forgot to take the trigger out and sometimes when you talk your mouth closes and, well, I’m not allowed back to that shooting range anymore. Or to own a firearm in Leo city. Which is fine because I’m usually not in Leo city, but I guess that was my point.”

“Your point is that you’re not usually in Leo city?”

“Yeah, because there’s this really good bar there, and I could really use a drink.”

Even with all the tension, Blaze still found a way to be Blaze. Calumn couldn’t help it, he let out a small but genuine laugh.

Blue light exploded from the desert. Ponies shouted in surprise and fear as the entire bunker rattled from a shockwave that had the ground bucking beneath their hooves. Calumn dropped to the floor, trying to keep his balance and blink away the spots from his eyes. “Report!” he shouted out.

“The readings are going crazy!” one of the technicians replied. “This can’t be right! The power readings are magnitudes greater than–” He was cut off as the machine began to spark and spit arcs of electricity and jets of fire. Pinkie let out a surprised squeak and scurried away from the haywire device.

“Blaze, can you hear me!” Calumn called into the radio. There wasn’t even static to reply, it had gone completely dead. Light was still pouring in through the narrow slit of a window. Calumn raised himself into that brilliance, squinting as he tried to locate his friend. “Blaze! Shut it down!” How was he even supposed to do that? “Think unfunny thoughts!” Might as well ask a boulder to dance. “Come on, Blaze… I believe in you… You can do it…”

“Aww, thanks buddy.” The light was gone in an instant, leaving behind a desert bleached to waves of blue and white, and a crater where the test ground had been. Blaze was nowhere in sight. But then again, the voice hadn’t come from outside, or from the radio. Calumn spun around and found Blaze standing right behind him, the Element of Laughter glowing at his chest and a big, happy grin on his face. “I believe in you too.”

They stared at each other for a long moment. “Did you just teleport in here?”

Blaze looked around at his surroundings, as if noticing them for the first time. Then gave a helpless little shrug. “I guess?”

“Oh.”

They both turned to see Pinkie Pie staring at them. More importantly, staring at the Element. “Aw, crud,” Blaze said. “I wasn’t supposed to let this get anywhere near her, was I?”

“No, it’s okay,” Pinkie said, taking a half-step closer, then stopping, a look of wide-eyed wonder on her face.

“What do you mean, Pinkie?” Calumn asked, ready to throw himself in the way if she lunged for Blaze, but knowing it would very likely be a meaningless gesture. “Why is it okay?”

“It’s not there,” Pinkie said, her face stretching with a huge grin. “I… I don’t have the irresistible urge to put on a necklace! I am totally fine with my bare neck!” Pinkie gasped, her mouth opening comically wide as she pointed her hoof at Blaze. “You! You did the thing!”

“I did the thing?” Blaze stared at her in wide-eyed confusion.

“You did the thing!” Pinkie shouted, bouncing in irrepressible excitement.

“I did the thing!” Blaze shouted back, starting to bounce in counterpoint to her.

“You did the thing!”

“I did the thing!”

“Whoo!” The two of them started dancing around each other, limbs flailing, sounds of elation filling the bunker.

Calumn watched as they cartwheeled all around the terrified technicians. Their antics only increased with each passing moment, and soon they seemed to be everywhere, disappearing from one spot only to pop out someplace they should not have been able to physically get to. Their excitement was infectious, though, and soon everyone in the room was giggling and snorting instead of cowering and screaming. That laughter only egged the two on, seeming to give even their inexhaustible energy a boost.

“Well,” Calumn said, watching all of this with a smile of his own. “This was clearly a mistake.”

***

“I don’t understand it,” Rarity said. “Or… maybe I do. It was a sense of… I can’t even find the words to describe it! It was like when I’m in the zone, my muse singing and the ideas just burning through my brain, my every thought realized with style and elegance. Except I was utterly terrified and out of control. It was exhilarating, Spike. Utterly, completely exhilarating.”

Spike nodded. “I’ve got an idea what that must be like.”

They were in the hospital. Again. This time neither of them was injured, but everyone who had been at the RIA building was getting checked out. Many had burst eardrums, or were suffering from other problems brought on by the sudden shifts in air pressure. Others were burned or had hurt themselves in escaping. No one seemed seriously hurt, fortunately.

“I think… I think I felt Pinkie there with me, just for a moment,” Rarity continued. “I was so focused on, well, on stopping that I wasn’t paying much attention to anything else. But I’m sure I felt her there. And the other girls too, but more distantly. As if I was looking at them but Pinkie was the only one looking back, if that makes any sense.”

“I don’t know, Rarity,” Spike said, watching as she paced back and forth in the small examination room they’d been put in. He’d had to insist to keep them together, which had meant scaring some poor nurse, but Rarity had been practically manic since waking from her faint and he wasn’t willing to leave her alone like that. “It makes about as much sense as anything else.”

“Yes! Exactly! Why send us the Element at all? It makes no sense! There were other things in that package, Spike. I saw them. We have to find them! What if there’s a clue in there? What if one of the girls found a way to get out of Cash’s control and are trying to contact us! You talked to the agents, is Straff here? Or Gamma? We need to find out what else was in the package!”

“It’s okay,” Spike said, reaching out to stop Rarity’s frantic pacing with a touch. This was the fourth time she’d circled back around to this thought in between rants about the bland hospital decor and deep analyses of the differences she’d seen between Kingdom and Republic fashions. “If there’s anything to find, they will.”

“Spike,” she said. There was a wordless pleading in her eyes. He wanted to help her, but he didn’t know what she needed. He doubted she knew either. “Spike, I feel fantastic.” She nuzzled against his claw, and he could feel the tension thrumming in her body with every breath. “I’ve never felt this good before. I shouldn’t feel this good now, not after I nearly… Oh, Spike, you’re sure everypony’s okay?”

“Yes. Some were hurt, but not too badly.”

“Oh, thank goodness. And the building? You said it wasn’t destroyed, but…”

“It’s still standing. It’s not much of a building anymore, though. More like a work of art.” It had certainly seemed like it as he’d carried Rarity’s unconscious form outside during the panicked aftermath of the Element’s power. The walls folded in on themselves like the lace of a frilly dress. Water still flowed up in some places, only to spill down in glittering waterfalls across exposed concrete and steel structure twisted into incredible designs. It was beautiful. And terrifying.

“Oh, they can’t be happy with that.”

“They aren’t,” he said. “But they’re blaming Cash, not you.”

Rarity’s tone turned worried again, frantic and pleading. “Did we always have this kind of power, Spike? Was it always there and we just… didn’t notice?”

He thought carefully about how to answer that. “We noticed,” he said. “You just don’t remember.”

“Why don’t I remember?”

That was a question he could only shrug helplessly at. She worried at her lip for a moment and then started pacing again. He watched her, waiting for the next tangent to catch her attention. This time, though, her nervous energy seemed to bleed away slowly with each trip back and forth across the room until she finally came to a stop. She stared into nothing, eyes unfocused and pupils contracted to pinpricks.

“I saw the shape of us, Spike,” she said. “I don’t know if the others can as well, but I… we each have our roles. The places where we fit. I could see those places as if… like it was a dress I was making. No. Not like that at all. But in a way, exactly like that.” She shook her head. “I’m not making any sense, am I?”

“It’s okay,” he reached out to touch her reassuringly. “Just say whatever you feel like. I’ll listen.”

She frowned as she continued, the words coming in short, halting bursts. “We all have a purpose. Something to do. The Elements are like… It’s like a dress. Like making a dress. Do you remember? When you were still a baby Dragon you watched me create the finest of dresses. Oh, it was just a few weeks ago for me and so long ago for you!”

“I remember,” he said. “I loved watching you work. It was as magical as anything Twilight ever did.”

She smiled at him. “It was, wasn’t it?” Her expression sobered as she fought her way back to the point she was struggling to get out. “Using the Elements is like making a dress, I think. We each have our part in making it work. If I had to put names to the roles… well, then, Applejack is the needle, and Rainbow Dash is the thread. Pinkie is… she would be the fabric. Fluttershy is the design, the pattern to follow. I’m the seamstress, putting everything in its place. I think… That’s all wrong. Completely wrong. But it might be the closest I can get to it. It’s… I know it, Spike, I can close my eyes and see it all again in perfect clarity. But every time I try to put words to it, it comes out all wrong.”

She stamped her hoof and made a high-pitched sound of frustration. He sympathized. “It’s okay, Rarity. The fact that you’ve discovered anything at all about the Elements is kind of really good. I don’t know how yet, but this might be important to finding a way to rescue Fluttershy, Dash and Applejack.”

“You really think so?”

“I really do.”

She sighed, closing her eyes and tossing her mane to make the curls bounce against her side. “Thank you, Spike.”

“You’re welcome. And, hey, you didn’t mention Twilight in any of that. Where does she fit in?”

“Twilight? Oh, Twilight is the customer, of course. The client. When we make the dress, we make it for her.”

“Oh.” There had been no hesitation in her voice then. None of the uncertainty that had come before. “Wow.”

“Yes, it’s all so terribly mysterious, isn’t it?” She sighed again, then leaned against him. “What do we do now, Spike?”

“Well… Star Fall is counting on us. We need to keep going. Tartarus.”

“Oh, joy. I had nearly forgotten about that.”

“I can go alone, if you–”

“Don’t be ridiculous, Spike!” she cut him off. “I admit I was not looking forward to the journey, but after what just happened I think it might be a welcome break from all the drama. Not that I’m not fond of drama, of course, but, well, I did just destroy a government building. I feel it might be a good idea to make myself scarce for a time, and a quest to the depths of Tartarus sounds like a wonderful excuse not to be available for questioning.”

“If you’re sure…”

“Absolutely.”

“What about the Element of Generosity? Are you feeling like you want to… um…”

“Find it and put it on again?”

“Yeah.”

She shook her head. “The compulsion to wear it vanished once you’d taken it off of me. Just like it did for Pinkie with Laughter. I’m certain that it will be safe from me.”

“That’s good. Because they want me to wear it.”

Rarity’s eyebrows shot up. “Do they?”

He nodded. “I’m a Proxy Bearer. The only one with previous experience, even. If I can get it to work, and you don’t go crazy around it, well, that’s only a good thing. It means that we can get the Elements away from the others and still be able to use them against Cash.”

“Oh, won’t that make this trip much more interesting. We leave in the morning, I assume?”

“At first light.”

She sighed dramatically at that. “No time for beauty sleep, then. Not that I think I’ll be sleeping at all, given how energized I feel. Ah, well. I shall make do. Let’s find me a sewing machine and some cloth. I have but one night to create an outfit worthy of hell itself! Care to assist me, my not-so-little Spikey-wikey?”

He chuckled at that. “I wouldn’t miss it for the world, Rarity.”

***

Rainbow Dash was losing her mind. That was the conclusion that Applejack came to as she watched her friend –former friend– trudge along ahead of her through the screaming wind and pounding rain of the storm. Dash was talking to herself, the words lost to the gale but her mouth clearly moving in heated argument. Her eyes darted about from place to place, never settling, barely even blinking as the rain pelted her. The bags under those wide eyes spoke of sleepless nights and heavy worries. Applejack knew her own features would show just as much fatigue, but she at least wasn’t talking to anyone that wasn’t there.

She looked past Dash, squinting to see Fluttershy walking side-by-side with Max Cash. The snake had somehow gotten to her. She’d warned her friend to stay away from him, to ignore anything he said and treat him like Applejack was treating Dash: nopony worth talking to. Of course, Fluttershy had gone and made friends with him anyway. Applejack should have expected it – No, she had expected it. Of course she had. It was easy enough to see coming.

Now they were finally getting out of this waterlogged city, finally moving towards whatever insane goal Cash had in mind. She’d thought about resisting, about staying in her room and refusing to come out, like she had for days. She knew that she’d just get dragged along anyway, courtesy of the traitor Rainbow Dash. ~~Even so, an act of defiance, even if only symbolic, would have made it clear that she was~~ never ~~going to cooperate with him.~~ She’d come along quietly because it would have been petty and childish to do otherwise and she wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of getting her to behave like a filly. She’d cooperate until she found her chance to escape.

Lights pierced the gloom ahead of them. The docks were a maze of slick pathways cutting through roiling waters, boats lining each side of the wooden platforms. They bobbed in their berths like the heads of ponies at the hoppingest hootenanny she’d ever been to, synced to the rapid beat of the unending storm. Their destination was at the end of one of the docks, a heavy fishing trawler with a half dozen rough-looking equines scrambling about its deck.

Cash paused a hundred feet out from the boat, motioning the rest of them close. Rainbow Dash didn’t seem to notice, though she came to a halt when Cash did. Applejack brushed past her, shouldering her aside with a touch more force than was necessary. The contact seemed to bring Dash out of her stupor for a moment, and she locked eyes with Applejack as she went past. There was a plea in Dash’s gaze, a cry for understanding, for forgiveness. What was happening hurt her more than it hurt the rest of them, and Applejack was her best friend. She may have done wrong, but in the end the truth was…

The truth was…

If all the truth does is make your heart ache…

The truth was Rainbow Dash was a no-good traitor who didn’t deserve a kind word. Applejack turned away from her with an angry jerk of her head, stomping up to where Cash and Fluttershy waited.

“There’s our ride out!” Cash said, grinning in a way that reminded Applejack of the times when a young Applebloom had done something naughty and thought she’d gotten away with it. “Now, I’m not too fond of rough seas, so I was hoping we could do something about that.”

“This storm ain’t fixin’ to blow itself out anytime soon,” Applejack said. “It looks like those clouds are tryin’ to drown everythin’.”

“It’s not their fault,” Fluttershy spoke up. “They’re just doing what they’re told.” There was something not right with the way she was looking at Applejack, something that poked the part of her brain that had been on high alert ever since Dash had turned on them. If she was seeing something like that with Fluttershy, then what could it mean? But… no. Fluttershy was just looking at her with the same innocence as always. Poor dear was clearly out of her comfort zone and needed some reassurance. That was all Applejack was seeing.

“Well, I’d like them to be told to do something else then,” Cash said. “Think you could ask them nicely?”

Fluttershy ducked her head, hiding behind a wet lock of mane. “Oh, I don’t know if I can do that. I… I could try, but I don’t think it would work.”

“Well, shoot. How about the rainbow wonder? I bet she could clear this up in ten seconds flat, what do you think?”

Applejack looked over to where Dash was clearly not paying any attention to what they were saying. “I think Dash ain’t up to much these days. Serves her right for turnin’ against us.”

“Are you still on about that?” Cash asked, shaking his head. “Boy, you are stubborn. It’s been weeks, Applejack, let it go.”

“Ain’t takin’ friendship advice from murdering scumbags.”

He rolled his eyes. “Fine, it’ll be a group effort. I’ll get Rainbow Dash helping, and you two make sure the crew don’t mutiny on us.”

Fluttershy just nodded meekly, but Applejack squared her jaw. “Why in tarnation do you think we’ll be helpin’ you?”

He smirked at her. “I don’t know, why are you helping me?”

She didn’t answer that. ~~She~~ couldn’t ~~answer that.~~ She didn’t need to answer that. That’s right, it was self-explanatory. She wasn’t helping him, she was helping her friends. Friend. “Come on, Fluttershy,” she said, turning away from Cash and trotting towards the boat. “The sooner we get this done, the sooner we get out of this darn mess.”

Fluttershy looked towards Dash, and there was a flash of something in her expression, a kind of dark glee that didn’t belong on the shy mare’s face. It was gone in an instant, though, and Applejack knew she hadn’t really seen it. Of course she hadn’t. Her loving, timid friend would never enjoy seeing Dash fall apart. Never.

“So you’re the passengers that just have to get to the sunlands,” a sailor, possibly the captain of the ship, called to them as soon as they were close enough to hear. He stood at the top of the gangplank, giving them an appraising stare from under the wide brim of a rain-hat. “Well, I gotta warn you, it isn’t looking like we’ll be going anywhere.”

“I thought you were bought and paid for,” Applejack said, coming up on deck.

“Your boss has bought my boat and bought some risk, but he hasn’t bought my suicide, and that’s what going out in this weather is. I told him this. He insisted I get her prepared to sail, and I did that, but unless the Gray Mare decides to have mercy on us for once we’re stuck.”

“Alright, that’s bein’ taken care of,” Applejack said.

The captain frowned at that. “What do you mean?”

“I mean it ain’t a problem. The weather’s not gonna bother us. It’ll be smooth sailin’ the whole way, just you watch.”

“Smooth sailing,” the captain repeated, his eyes unfocusing for a moment. “Yeah. Yeah, the weather’s not going to be a problem. We can cast off as soon as you want.”

“Thank you kindly,” Applejack said with a tip of her hat. “Are we gonna have a cabin or somethin’ to stay in, or are we gonna be on deck with the rest of you? I don’t mind bein’ put to work –would prefer it, actually– but Fluttershy here’s more delicate and I wouldn’t trust the other two to know a sheepshank from a bowline.”

“You know your knots?”

“I tie my own lassoes. I ain’t a sailor, but some of my cousins are, and they’d show me a few things every reunion.”

“Well, this is a modern trawler, so there’s not as much call for a fair hoof with a rope as there was in the old days. And since we’re not going to be catching any fish on this trip there isn’t much to do, really. I guess there’s always busywork I could get you to do, if you like. As for a cabin, I can set you all up in the mess if you like.”

Applejack looked to Fluttershy, who shrugged. “That’ll do.”

The captain led them into the ship’s interior. It was cramped, with barely enough room in the hallways for two ponies to squeeze past each other. Still, when they got to the mess it was more spacious than Applejack had thought it would be. The kitchen was tight but well ordered, with a clear place for everything and enough supplies to feed the crew for a while. There were two tables that could be folded down into the floor to make space, and a bunch of folding chairs latched to the walls that could be fitted into slots in the floor to hold them in place in rough seas. It was all very pleasantly utilitarian, and while it lacked the warmth of a good home kitchen and dining room, it was at least clean.

“This’ll do nicely,” Applejack said. “How long do you think it’ll take?”

“Depends on how…” he trailed off, once more getting a distant look, as if he was struggling to remember something. He shook his head a moment later. “It’ll be smooth sailing, so I don’t think more than four hours to get you to the other side of the Storm. The real problem will be sneaking by the navy. They’ve got their hooves full with the Gray Mare, though, so we’ll be fine.”

“You ain’t worried about Umbra?”

“Why would the Destroyer care about a fishing boat?” the captain asked with a laugh. “She’s busy gearing up to end the world. We’re nothing to her.”

“Aren’t you afraid?” The question came from Fluttershy, who was standing at a window and looking out at the storm. “She’s going to kill you all. Doesn’t that scare you?”

The captain sighed. “It does. It surely does, miss. But if ponies like me stopped their lives because something scared us, well, nothing would ever get done.”

“You got that right,” Applejack said with a proud nod. “And don’t you worry none about Umbra. She won’t get her way.”

“She… she won’t get her way,” the captain repeated, and a tension she hadn’t noticed before drained out of him. “I should… I’ll go and make sure mister Cash knows where to find you. Once we’re under way I’ll find something for you to do, miss…”

“Applejack.”

“Miss Applejack. The rest of your friends can relax here and enjoy the trip. There’s no need to worry. It’ll be smooth sailing.” He turned and walked out, clipping his shoulder on the door as he went, but he didn’t seem to notice.

Applejack walked up to stand beside Fluttershy, who was still staring out at the rain. “Are you afraid, Fluttershy?”

She didn’t speak for a long moment, and when she did it wasn’t an answer. “Does he really not need to worry? About Nightmare Umbra?”

Applejack’s ears laid flat as she thought about it. “She ain’t the kind to go quietly. She’s more ornery than a shook up box of wasps and strong enough to take it out on everyone. Even if she does get stopped, I think she’ll take a bite out of the world. Maybe this boat, maybe the captain, they’ll be in that bite. Maybe not. It’s reason enough to worry, but it ain’t nice to tell a body that. Tell him not to worry and he might believe it, even just a little. That could be enough to keep him goin’ when everythin’ else is gone.”

“So you lied to him.” There was no accusation in her tone, merely a statement of fact.

Still, it stung. “Eyup. That I did.”

Fluttershy turned to look at her, a wide smile on her face. “That was very kind of you, Applejack. Thank you.”

There, that looked like her friend again. “Aw, shucks, Fluttershy. I was just doin’ what you would have done.” Fluttershy giggled a bit at that, and Applejack joined in with a small chuckle. “Though, you didn’t answer my question. There’s more dangerous things than Umbra we’re dealing with. Tell me the truth, are you afraid?”

Fluttershy’s smile faded away, and she looked back out the window where they could see Rainbow Dash leaving a prismatic trail as she flew into the storm. “Of course I’m afraid. I’m so afraid I feel like I’ll just curl up screaming at any moment. But I’m trusting that you and Dash and our other friends are going to get us out of this. That together we can do anything. I just hold on to that thought and I can make it through.”

“I surely hope we can,” Applejack said, pulling the other mare into a hug. “I just don’t see how.”

“You will,” Fluttershy said, leaning into the hug and draping a wing over Applejack’s back in return. “I believe in you.”

They stayed like that until Cash found them, immediately launching into compliments about how they’d handled the captain. Words that Applejack ignored, responding to questions only with grunts or monosyllables. She hoped her glare would keep him back. Hoped her own racing heart didn’t give her away.

She couldn’t believe it. It made no sense. But it was the truth.

If all the truth does is make your heart ache, sometimes a lie is easier to take.

The thought burned through her, offering an escape, a release from the revelation. Yet it couldn’t compete with the shock of what she now knew. Besides, it was a lie that started this, adding more lies would just compound the problem. She forced the tantalizing thought away, focusing instead on the cold, unrelenting truth.

Fluttershy had lied. That in itself wasn’t anything special, as Applejack had just said sometimes a lie is a kindness. No, it was the specific lie she’d told that had made the bottom drop out of Applejack’s stomach. ‘Of course I’m afraid’, she’d said, and somehow Applejack had instantly known the size of the lie she’d just been told.

It wasn’t just that Fluttershy wasn’t afraid of Umbra, or of Cash. She could be brave and fearless when facing down bullies and Applejack could see her standing up to those two in a heartbeat. No, it was that she wasn’t afraid at all. Of anything. The mare who literally jumped at her own shadow could now cheerfully stare death in the face.

Seeing the one lie opened her to the rest of the truth. It wasn’t just Fluttershy who wasn’t herself, it was all of them. Dash was losing her mind, and Applejack… something was wrong with her. She couldn’t put her hoof on what it was, but she knew it was there.

The ship pulled away from the dock as Rainbow Dash opened a path through the raging wind and rain. Soon enough Applejack left the mess to help with the shipboard chores. Through it all she maintained her usual friendly demeanor, talking and laughing with the other sailors who were amazed at Dash’s power to change the weather. She couldn’t stop herself from throwing a few insults at her traitorous friend, but for the most part didn’t make too much of a fuss about it. She looked to all the world perfectly normal, while deep inside she was trembling, asking herself one question over and over again:

What was happening to them?

***

Gemini City was aptly named. Its history was one of two competing cities that had grown so large that they had merged into one sprawling metropolis with two distinct characters. The rivalry was alive and well even after over a century of amalgamation, with the citizens still identifying themselves as ‘east Gemini’ or ‘west Gemini’ if asked where they were from. West Gemini was a center of innovation in the Republics, boasting more technical colleges and universities than any other Republic. East Gemini was an industrial hub, with a reputation for being perpetually clouded over with the smoke from its factories. Thus the population skewed heavily blue collar in the east and white collar in the west. It made for quite a bit of friction between both halves of the city.

One thing they could all agree on, however, was that the Senate Chamber in the center of the city, where the two halves met, was an eyesore. It was bad enough that they had removed a good chunk of beautiful parkland to build it, but due to its size and central placement, it was visible from practically anywhere you went. It was annoyingly ubiquitous. It was inescapable.

‘And,’ Star Fall thought, looking out the window of the luxury car that was taking her there, ‘it’s also incredibly ugly.’

As something designed to house the entirety of the Republics Senate, someone had gotten the genius idea to build it with architectural styles from all the different Republics. The result was an awkward kludge with no unifying aesthetic and little regard for sense. Leonine buttresses held up Capricorn balconies right next to a Virgin Arch that had no purpose but as a placeholder between the balcony and the Cancerian relief. Oh, there were certainly parts of it that if taken on their own were beautiful enough, but the overall effect was a designed-by-committee nightmare.

Star Fall amused herself by identifying all the different elements that she could. She was by no means a student of Republican architecture, but the Professor had ensured that she’d learned enough to be conversant, and the Senate Chamber was tailor made for such shallow understanding. It wasn’t a useful way to pass the time, but it kept her from thinking too hard about what she was planning to do in this place.

“You ready for this?” Astrid asked from the seat beside her.

“How long are you going to keep asking me that?”

“Until it’s done, obviously.”

Star Fall smirked. “Obviously.”

There was a squawk from the radio. Their driver answered it, and a garbled voice said something Star Fall couldn’t quite make out. Astrid’s eyes narrowed, however, and the two other RIA agents in the car with them visibly tensed. The driver and the agents shared some quiet words. Star Fall looked to Astrid, who gave a slight shake of her head. With that reassurance, she relaxed and waited to be brought into the loop.

Finally, one of the agents turned to her. “We have a situation. I’m sorry, Princess, but we will need to bring you in by an alternate route.”

“What sort of situation?” Star Fall asked.

“There’s a protest blocking the secured lot. They’ve already stopped two Senator’s cars and the police aren’t having much luck breaking them up.”

“A what?” Astrid sounded incredulous. “A protest? A bunch of punks with signs and nowhere better to be is giving you guys grief?”

“They’re a little more involved in the nightlands than what you might be used to,” the other agent said. “Freedom of assembly is a guaranteed right in the Republics constitution, and our citizens aren’t shy about taking advantage of that. These things happen every Senate meeting, but with current events being what they are…”

“They’re frightened,” Star Fall said. “And they don’t think their government is taking it as seriously as they should. Believe it or not, the same thing happens in the Kingdom. People are people no matter what side of the Storm they’re on.”

“Sure. On our side they don’t block roads or stop the people who are trying to fix this shit from doing their jobs, though.” Astrid’s open contempt earned her a hard look from Star Fall, and she quickly shut her beak.

“Whatever alternate arrangements need to be made, I’m sure it will be fine,” Star Fall told the agents.

“Thank you, Princess. We’re bringing you around to the front doors.”

“The front?” Astrid said, feathers rising in alarm. “Won’t that be worse?”

“It’s mostly media there. They might be a little intense, but they won’t block your way inside.”

Star Fall held up a hoof to forestall any more complaints from Astrid. “It will be fine,” she said again, making sure her tone was one of finality.

They said a couple platitudes to reassure her even so, but she had tuned them out and only responded with a nod and a smile. Protests. She’d actually participated in one, during her third mission to the nightlands for Gamma. It hadn’t been a big one, but it had served as excellent cover for a handover of information by one of their informants. There hadn’t been any blocking of traffic for that one, just a lot of standing around shouting slogans. It had made the local papers, complete with a group photo that happened to include her in it. Star Fall had brought a copy of that paper through the Everstorm to show the Professor.

That thought led to others, and she nervously touched the folder that contained the pages of a spell she had crafted on the way to Gemini City. A spell that would, if she was right, cement a Republics-Kingdom alliance.

If she was right.

The car threaded its way through to the front doors of the building. A less than ideal place to disembark, considering it was swarming with press. Better than a frightened, angry mob, however. Astrid preceded her out of the door, eyes scanning the ranks of journalists with their microphones and flashing cameras. Star Fall winced at those flashes, still unused to being this much in the public eye, but finally stepped out into the spotlight with as much grace as her artificial hoof would allow her.

Questions were shouted from every side. Her name and her title were wielded like bludgeons, demanding her attention, insisting she reveal everything. More than a few of those voices were hostile. They knew who she was, and they knew who her mentor was. Inevitable leaks meant that a few even knew to shout questions about the Elements, though none of them knew what they were. It was overwhelming.

Astrid sensed her anxiety. Or perhaps her control had failed and it was written all over her face. Either way, the Griffin held a wing over Star Fall’s head, buffering her against the camera flashes and the shouts, allowing her to move up the steps to the open doors of the Senate.

Once inside they were ushered by a pair of security guards so generic they were almost certainly Changelings into a small but comfortable room where they could rest and wait to be called on. There were chairs and couches in the room, as well as a table with some food and water laid out and a radio that was tuned to broadcast the Senate meeting.

Star Fall lay on a couch, surprised at how fast her heart was beating. For all that she’d faced death itself these past few months, the coming speech still scared her. It wasn’t just her own neck on the line, her words and actions before these people could decide the fate of the world.

“Do you want to listen in?” Astrid asked, tapping a talon on the radio.

Star Fall shook her head. “It’s going to be an hour of procedure that we already know the outcome of.” Indeed, Senators Graves, Cartwright and Birchfield had told her how they were going to give her the chance to convince the Senate not to go to war. They hadn’t had much time to plan it all out, and Star Fall worried that there was too much to do to make it work. Fortunately, it turned out that while the wheels of Republican government might grind slowly, their political maneuverings were done at lightning speed.

The first step in the plan was to secure the position of Speaker. Senates didn’t have a leader, but at the beginning of each session once a quorum was reached they would randomly select one Senator to take up the position of Speaker. The Speaker had the power to influence the agenda for that session, as they were the ones who gave others the chance to speak and decided when a vote would occur. Every Senator present was part of the random selection, but they could voluntarily withdraw themselves from consideration. It was a well established practice that when a contentious issue was to be raised that factions would decide on a single candidate for speaker, and the rest withdraw themselves so that their candidate had a greater chance of being chosen. Withdrawals could also be negotiated in return for favors.

This time her three Senators had maneuvered it such that Graves was the only candidate, and thus would become the Speaker for this session. It would take some time to go through the process, but the result was a foregone conclusion.

The second step was to prepare the grounds. Graves would have their military advisors speak, giving the Senators the shape of the conflict on the Stile Islands. That should scare them some, but would also be an opportunity to direct that fear where it should be placed: squarely on Nightmare Umbra. Then she would have Straff give a report on the hunt for Max Cash and reveal some information about the Elements of Harmony. Not a lot, not the whole story, but enough to let the Senators know that powerful magical artifacts had been found and were being wielded by a madpony. The destruction of Senator Birchfield’s mansion and the devastating fight in Hoofprint would be used to illustrate why they should care. That would provide the background the Senators needed to understand what Star Fall would do.

That done, the third step was to get the Senators to convince themselves to go along with Star Fall’s plan before she ever gave it. This meant letting a few choice Senators give speeches. Graves was a leading hawk, so she’d be expected to call on Senators from her faction to speak for immediate war with the Kingdom in order to secure resources to fight Umbra. There would be pushback from the doves and other factions, of course, and demands that their side be allowed to speak as well. Graves would acquiesce, and soon each faction would have had a speech or two to give the unaligned Senators something to think about.

The maneuvering here was more subtle than the Speaker selection. Most would think the speeches wouldn’t really matter because everyone knew that Star Fall was in the building, and the whole of it would pivot on what she said to them. Yet, they would set the stage for her. She needed the Senators to be in a particular frame of mind to accept what she was going to show them. Thus Graves would choose Senators who she knew would give particular speeches, their own agendas working to direct the attention of the whole where Star Fall wanted it.

Umbra was the key to it all. If she could do what she’d promised, if she could get Umbra off the Stile Islands, then she would have her alliance. If not, then she would likely see the world end from a prisoner’s cell.

She considered what was to come carefully, going over her planned speech and its climax again and again. It wasn’t complicated. Wasn’t long. She’d decided to be as direct as possible. Still, the potential for disaster was immense. She had to be flawless.

At some point she must have dozed, because it only felt like minutes had gone by before Astrid was shaking her. She blinked up at her guardian, her friend. “Is it time?” Astrid nodded. “Okay. How do I look?”

Astrid’s eyes scanned over her, and her beak opened in a smile. “Like a princess. Come on, Fall. Time to make history.”

Minutes later she walked out onto the floor of the Senate chamber, wings and head held high as befit a Princess of the Solar Kingdom. The chamber itself was enormous, an amphitheater with tiers reaching up a dozen levels, and then galleries above that where citizens watched in quiet anticipation. Every eye was on her, and she wasn’t ignorant to the fact that most of them weren’t friendly. She stood before the high bench where Senator Graves presided and waited. Astrid stood back and to the side, doing her best to look unintimidating and failing.

“The Senate recognizes Princess Fallen Star of the Solar Kingdom,” Graves intoned. “Princess, you have requested to make a statement and then offer a proposal for vote. The Senate will now hear your statement. Proceed.” There was no applause, no polite acknowledgement from the gathered people. Only a silence heavy with the weight of the world.

“Thank you Senator,” Star Fall said with a polite incline of her head. She then paused and looked around at the gathered Senate. Thousands of people from many different species stared back at her. Their variety alone was stunning. Earth ponies and pegasi and unicorns were the majority, of course, but there were also zebras and Diamond Dogs and at least one Dragon. There weren’t any obvious Changelings, but she was sure they were mixed in. It was bizarre to her sunlands-trained eyes, but it also gave her hope.

She had paused long enough that the anticipation was cresting. It was time to put her rhetoric training to use. She steeled herself against the last flare of nerves and began speaking.

“Senators, thank you for letting me speak. It is a historic thing for me to stand here today and address you like I am. Still, I hope for more. More than you simply hearing my words, I hope that you will also listen. I know it isn’t an easy thing to ask for, to listen to me. I come from beyond the Everstorm, from the sunlands that you have been taught to hate and fear your entire lives. Not without reason. Our two nations have a long history together. A history of pain. A history of anger, and of hatred. A history of debts made and paid in blood and death. That history is a lens that distorts everything between us. I know this, and still I ask you to listen.

“You know that I am here to plead against war. It seems almost absurd, doesn’t it? For so long we’ve considered a war between us inevitable, waiting only for one side or the other to make the first move. We’ve all felt it coming, prepared for it. Even, I think, looked forward to it. Eight centuries of tension building up to a crescendo that demands a climax. To plead for peace? It might seem a betrayal in itself of all that has come before.

“Yet that climax would have been an illusion. There is no release in war, save for that of death. Only misery would have resulted, and no matter who won the battles, all would have lost the war. Fortunately for us all, this end has been forestalled.

“Unfortunately, our reprieve came in the form of Nightmare Umbra. The Destroyer. She has hidden herself among ponies for centuries, on both sides of the Storm. She has funded political campaigns and whispered in the ears of kings. She was my mentor, and I will never forgive that deceit. For all that time she has been guiding us to this, pushing our nations towards the brink of a new war. This is what she wants. War between us would only feed her power and give her purpose. She would have waited until blood had been shed and the fighting entrenched before revealing herself, but events have forced her hoof. Exposed early, she placed herself between us, and dared us to try her power. So now she makes war against us both, and as you have just been informed by your own generals, we are losing.”

She paused again, gauging their reactions. There were too many faces for her to focus on any one of them, but the general mood of the room seemed to be where she needed it. There were quiet murmurs, a few louder comments, but no one was shouting her down. No one was screaming denials or demanding she account for past crimes of the Kingdom, whether real or imagined. They were hearing her out, and she could only hope that they were doing as she needed and actually listening.

“The time has come to be bold,” she continued. “The time has come to put away old grudges and to forgive old debts. The time has come, not for division, but for unity. The disaster facing us demands no less! There is an old adage, Senators, that comes from a time before the Schism, from before the separation of our two peoples. A saying from the time of a united Equestria, flourishing under the guidance of our Goddesses. One that speaks to us even now, showing how ancient wisdom can guide modern paths: ‘Friendship is magic’.

“Think about that. Friendship is magic. We need all the magic we can get right now.” She paused again, letting it sink in. A few breaths later, she continued. “This is what I have come here to propose to you: friendship. Forgive the old debts, forget the ancient grudges. Leave our history in the past and search instead for a future. Senators, let us be friends. I propose an alliance between us. A grand Equestrian Alliance that will allow our people to finally be rid of the specter of war and the legacy of hate. Only together can we succeed. Only together we can walk into a future of prosperity without fear. Only together, in friendship, can we face the darkness and see it defeated.”

She gestured to Astrid, who came forward with the sheets of her spell, laying them before her on the ground. There were more murmurs at this, probably the Senators wondering what she was doing.

“I know it’s not easy. I know how strong the emotions are that hold us to the dark path. Mere words won’t be able to overcome them. So I have come not just with words, but with actions. To cement our alliance, I have agreed on behalf of the Solar Kingdom to open our markets to your products. I have agreed to allow the crystal resources of my kingdom to be exported to the nightlands. And I have agreed to end the practice of indenture.”

There was a great deal of noise at this, an uproar of excited talk and shouted questions. It was enough that Graves had to ring the bell at her side to bring the Senate to order. Once it had quieted, Star Fall continued. She put her weight on her artificial hoof, the living one hovering above the spell arranged in front of her. Magic poured into the design, lighting it with a crimson glow. She kept her eyes on the Senators as they shifted uneasily at her display of power.

“Finally, I have this. I have learned secrets about the Destroyer, passed on to me by Master Spike, a Dragon who lived through the Schism and saw the birth of the Nightmare himself. I have learned that she is not unbeatable! I have learned her purpose, and I have learned what it will take to defeat her. It’s something neither of our nations can do alone. I have also learned what she fears most. Not us, no. Not our armies, not our weapons, not our magics. I will show you that fear. I will speak to the Destroyer herself and I will drive her from the Stile Islands, giving our combined armies the chance to defeat hers. I will do this, Senators, in the hopes that you will see it as the overture it is. In the hopes that you will remember friendship, Senators. For all our sakes, friendship.”

***

The spell came to her like a whisper on the wind. It would have been barely perceptible had she been anyone else. For her, it was a scream in her ear distracting her from her work. The havoc of the battlefield was both distant and near, the closest fighting miles from her physical body, but she was riding the minds of her minions, coordinating their efforts, seeing what they saw and hearing what they heard. It was her commands that had kept the battle at a near stalemate so far. Not that she was struggling to keep up with the pony forces. No, just the opposite. It was only because she was holding her side back that the ponies hadn’t been wiped off the islands completely.

Not that the ash-ponies were strategic geniuses. They retained rudimentary cognition, but they were animalistic in nature, higher thought processes and problem solving severely limited. They had no more grasp of war strategy than an ant would. She could create more intelligent servitors, but it was a time-consuming process and counterproductive to her designs. Nor were they particularly indestructible. The ponies had discovered the weaknesses of her minions fairly quickly, aided no doubt by what had been learned in the assault on the Solar capital, but ‘aim for the head’ is good in theory and all but impossible in practice. If she had simply left them to their own devices, her ghouls would have swarmed over the two armies in a day, an endless tide of death to cleanse the living from the world.

That would not do. They must fear her. They must know that alone they faced annihilation, and that only together could they hope to survive. For them to realize that, it needed to seem like she was struggling against both their armies at once, and they had to have time to push beyond their prejudices and unite. For both those reasons and one more she held her forces back.

Some would know the truth. Some would see what she was truly doing. Like the one who was reaching out to her now, whispering a call she could not ignore into her mind.

The spell was one that she had created. A very special spell that could reach across even this magic starved world to find her. On its own it was but a request. A hoof reaching out across fathomless distance. To truly complete the magic, she had to reach back.

So she did.

She opened her body’s eyes and beheld the image of Star Fall standing before her. She had no need to pretend her magic less powerful than it was, so the pegasus appeared as if she were physically present, no telltale translucence or ghostly glow to indicate the illusion. She would appear just as solid on the other end. With a small additional investment of power she would feel solid as well. The Student stood in darkness, a light from above all the illumination in the vast chamber she stood within. Yet Umbra’s eyes could pierce the darkest depths of Tartarus, and she saw the hundreds of ponies who sat in audience, silent but fearful.

What was this? She recognized the Republics Senate. What was Star Fall doing there? What’s more, as her attention turned back to the Student, she finally saw the prosthesis that had taken the place where a hoof should have been. A part of her cried out at that, a wail that would never be given voice rising from the chorus of screams within her. Her gaze left the false hoof, and she examined the rest of her protege. She had lost weight again, but even so she was looking well. Surprisingly well. There was a shine to her coat and a shimmer to her wings that had never been present before, not even when she had been made up as a princess on her wedding day. There was magic at work here. Old magic.

“Nightmare Umbra,” Star Fall said, and when Umbra met her gaze she did not flinch away. “I bear a message.”

She spoke in Lunar, likely for the benefit of her audience, so Umbra did the same. “Student. You Cannot Sway Me From My Appointed Course. This World Will Feel The Full Measure Of My Wrath. I Will Not Stay My Hoof, Even For You. Should You Survive The Coming Inferno, You Will Walk A World Of Ashes And I Will Not Weep For Your Fate.”

Star Fall’s lips thinned for a moment, but she mastered whatever emotion had prompted it. Not fear, she could see in her eyes that Star Fall had moved beyond fear. Good. It would serve her well.

“I am not sending you this message as the student of Twinkle Shine,” she said, the barest flick of an ear betraying her unease at saying the name. “I speak now as Princess Fallen Star, Queen presumptive of the Solar Kingdom and spokesperson for the Equestrian Alliance.”

Alliance? So soon? Too soon. At this point it would be a fragile, temporary thing, made of cobwebs and promises. She had to ensure that the alliance would hold fast beyond her defeat. She would need to adjust her strategy, increase pressure on the divided lands so they were forced to integrate with each other. Perhaps an example, to drive home the threat? Virgo City wasn’t too far away, she could level it in an hour.

Something to consider later, as Star Fall was speaking again.

“I know who you are, Umbra. I know what your purpose is. Because of that, I also know that you will not listen to anything I have to say. You can’t listen. But you are more than you seem, and there is another that will listen, and will be able to get you to do the right thing. I want to speak to Corona.”

Oh, Spike, the Professor sighed into her thoughts. You warned me. You said you would not lie if asked. I should have listened.

“You Use An Ancient Name. You Demand Of Me, Thinking To Leverage Some Hidden Knowledge You Presume Has Power Over Me.” Umbra’s gaze drifted to the watching Senators, though that was merely for show as her attention remained firmly on Star Fall. “And You Have Shared This Knowledge With The Robber Barons and Pedagogues Who Rule The Nightlands.”

“They know.” The sign was barely there, but Twinkle Shine knew her student’s face better than any other, and she did not miss it. A tell. A lie. So they did not know everything. “The survival of both our peoples is at stake, and false unity will get us nowhere.”

Ah, she understood. The part of her that was the Professor surged with pride. Still, she couldn’t show vulnerability here. “You Cannot Order Me As You Would A Palace Servant, Princess.” She spat the word with such disdain that she saw some of the Senators flinch. “I Am Umbra! The Destroyer! I Bow To No Ruler! No Authority! I Crush All Nations Beneath My Hooves And Render Their Mightiest To Ash. Whatever Secrets You Know, Whatever Names You Speak, They Hold No Sway Over Me.”

“Fine, then you have nothing to fear by letting me talk to Corona,” Star Fall said, her eyes fierce and unblinking.

“Such Childish Manipulation–”

“Is not manipulation at all. I have no patience for your grandstanding, Umbra!” The shout, and the sheer frustrated anger in it, caught her off guard. She gave no reaction, of course, but inside the Professor flinched in pain. “You are not the greatest danger to this world right now, and frankly, I was sick of your shit already the first time I heard it. Bring out your mortal half. Bring out Corona and stop wasting my time.”

The silence in the Senate chamber was deafening. Umbra stared at Star Fall for a long beat, then snorted. “Very Well. Speak With Your Teacher, Student. When We Meet Next I Will Have A Lesson Of My Own For You To Learn.”

With that the Nightmare retreated, allowing the pony to rise to take her place. Her body changed, falling apart even as it came together into the familiar shape of Professor Twinkle Shine. The remaining mass swirled around her as a cloud of ash that was soon drawn in to her mouth, disappearing within her to wait until it was time to form the fearsome Nightmare Umbra once again.

“Star Fall,” the Professor said. “You’ve been spending too much time around Rainbow Dash. It is very rarely a good idea to mouth off to an evil Goddess.”

Star Fall’s lips tightened, anger sparking in her eyes, though she kept her ears up. “I have no time to feed her ego. I have no time to banter with you, either. You will be leaving the Stile Islands immediately.”

The Professor quirked an eyebrow. “Really, Star Fall? A demand?”

“A statement of fact.”

She shook her head, Umbra’s indignant rage a throbbing background noise in her thoughts. Star Fall wouldn’t say something like that without anything to back it up. “You know Umbra won’t move just because you or I tell her to. She is even now grinding down the armies of both nations. It’s only a matter of time before there is nothing left to slow her conquest. What possible reason could you give to abandon that?”

“Max Cash has released all the Elements,” Star Fall said.

Whatever reaction she was hoping to get, Twinkle Shine did not give it to her. “Yes. I know the Elements are in play. I saw the Rainboom. Tell Dash that it was very impressive. It changes nothing.”

“It changes everything. Cash has turned Rainbow Dash, Applejack and Fluttershy.”

“Turned?” The bottom dropped out from her stomach. It was impossible.

“He used a quirk of the Elements to turn them against their virtues, and against us. They have joined him.”

“No.” Here was what Star Fall had been hoping for. She reeled at the news. Max Cash was bad enough, but with the power of the others added to his? He would be all but unstoppable. She stared at her student, hoping to see that tell again, the lie subtly playing in her features. She saw nothing. “That won’t be enough,” she said, though the words were numb as they left her mouth, empty of confidence. “The Element of Magic is shattered.”

“I’ve read Harmony Theory. I know as well as you that breaking an Element is meaningless, if that even was Magic you broke. This is my message to you: the greatest threat to Umbra’s purpose is if Cash activates the Elements. A Harmony Event under his control will destroy everything you’ve worked for since the Schism. I know you can’t let that pass. Umbra can’t let that pass. And with Rainbow Dash and the others working with him, Umbra is the only one capable of stopping him. There is no choice here, not for you. You will leave immediately.”

“Oh, Star Fall,” Twinkle Shine said, feeling the rising might of the Nightmare within her. “You play a dangerous game.”

"It’s not a game, Professor,” Star Fall replied. “It never was.”

Umbra surged up, tearing through Twinkle Shine in a burst of blood and skin. “You Have Not Ended My Conquest. Merely Delayed It.”

“If you don’t stop Cash, none of that matters.”

Umbra let out a growl that reverberated through the spell, low tones spreading into the Senate chamber in a disquieting rumble that upset delicate inner-ear balances, sending dozens of Senators reeling and vomiting. Star Fall staggered, but didn’t fall, glaring at the Nightmare the entire time. Then with a mighty flap of her dark wings, Nightmare Umbra took to the sky, the spell ending with a thought.

The Student was right. She had no choice. She had to stop Cash before he completed his goal. He had escaped her clutches before, but this time would be different. This time she would do what was necessary to end him once and for all. And with him, Rainbow Dash, Applejack and Fluttershy. Their deaths would ensure that the Elements could never be used against her.

A cold smile revealed vicious teeth. Yes, she would finish what she’d started with Rainbow Dash months ago. Then there would be none who could stop her.

***

The Senate chamber was filled with the moans of those made ill by Umbra’s parting snarl. Star Fall took a few shuddering breaths, trying to keep the shaking from her wings. She’d done it. She’d been so sure it would work, but a nagging voice in the back of her head had been saying ‘what if it doesn’t?’ since she had come up with the plan. Now that voice was silent, and soon the Senate was as well.

She stood in the center of the floor, the spotlight still shining down on her, and they looked at her with a mix of emotions that ran the gamut from awe to suspicion. Low conversation rumbled through the chamber as the Senators discussed with each other what they had just witnessed. Star Fall stood through it, gazing back at them with calm patience. Minutes passed, then a pony trotted up to Graves in the Speaker’s bench and whispered something in her ear.

She stood, ringing the bell at her side to call the chamber to order. All the conversation ceased as she addressed the assembled Republics Senate. “I have just received confirmation that the Gray Mare was spotted leaving the Stile Islands, heading north. Her forces continue to fight, but she is gone.” There was a loud outcry at this, shouted questions directed at Graves or at Star Fall or at the military advisers. Graves rung the bell several times before silence once again reigned. “Princess Fallen Star, you have delivered on your promise. Now it falls to us to decide if that is enough. Senate, I call for a vote. The proposal is an alliance between the Solar Kingdom and the United Lunar Republics. Yea, or nay? Stand for your people and be counted.”

Star Fall watched in silence as the names were called and the votes were counted. She held her wings outstretched until they ached from holding the position. A glance at Astrid showed that her friend was staring right back at her, tense and ready should this not go their way. Star Fall gave her a reassuring smile. She saw the faces of the Senators, and she didn’t need to be a Changeling to know what they were feeling.

Finally, after what seemed to be an eternity, the results were tallied and Senator Graves stood, all eyes on her. “The will of the people has been heard. This is a historic occasion, and one I never imagined I would witness in my lifetime. The proposal of an alliance between the sunlands and the nightlands, brought to us by our guest the Princess Fallen Star, has been accepted! Our two nations will now stand united against the Gray Mare, and beyond.”

The stomping applause, when it came, was thunderous.

Chapter 9: Perceptions

Each Element has three states, which I have named Active, Neutral and Inverted. Active and Inverted are both 'powered-up' states, while the Neutral state is what we might term the 'default mode' of the Elements. The Magic of Harmony is only created when all six Elements are in an Active or Inverted state. Inversion, and the issues associated with it, shall be discussed in a later section. What we will be discussing in this section is the Active and, to a lesser extent, Neutral states and the powers associated with them.

Each Element gives its bearer access to certain magical powers above and beyond those available to most ponies. Most of these powers are associated with the trait the Element is said to represent, but there are exceptions. The powers granted can be themselves divided into Activated and Passive categories. Passive abilities are always present, while Activated abilities are only available when the Element is itself in an Active state.

Passive abilities are often subtle unless the bearer knows how to exploit them. It is entirely possible that there are many more Passive abilities that I have not discovered, simply because they are not prominent enough to be noticed. Activated abilities, on the other hoof, are spectacular, obvious, and shockingly powerful.

These powers are used by the bearers, often without them realizing it, but they can easily affect others. The consequences of these powers can be extremely far reaching, in fact the first one I encountered had such a great impact that I wasn't even aware of the full implications until more than a decade later...

-From the fourth section of Harmony Theory by Twilight Sparkle

Chapter Nine: Perceptions

The street was almost completely clear of ponies, but Calumn still watched it carefully. Blaze was talking as if he was worried someone would make it illegal soon and Calumn had half tuned him out as he led them towards his target, a pawnshop that just so happened to be a front for the RIA.

Their train ride up had been uneventful, except for a minor scare where he thought they had to evade and trick the pony looking for tickets. Blaze’s fast-talking and random non-sequiters had been excellent cover for Calumn’s more subtle manipulations and sleight-of-hoof tricks. In the end it had been easy to sneak into the heart of the Kingdom. Too easy.

There was no sign that the Kingdom was actively looking for him, which was both reassuring and distressing. The Griffin had survived the Everstorm, he had confirmed that early on. The question now was why she hadn't informed her government about him. It didn't make sense with what he knew, so something else had to be going on. It brought up possible implications involving the Solar Crown in the entire Max Cash affair, and he couldn’t even begin to think through the consequences of that idea. Still, this inattention gave him some room to maneuver in the sunlands, and he was going to take advantage of that while it lasted.

“So that’s how I made my first trip through the Storm,” Blaze finished, smiling in fond remembrance. “I still have that tutu.”

“Blaze,” Calumn said. “I’m probably going to be leaving you alone for a bit while I gather information. Will you be alright to stay out of trouble?”

“Cross my heart and I forget the rest, but you can count on me!” Blaze said, stopping to go through a series of complex motions as he spoke that as far as Calumn could discern involved either planting flowers or punching people. The Changeling just shrugged and accepted it.

The pawnshop had a bright, cheery marker and pencil crayon open sign in its window, advertising that they bought silver, gold and jewellery and giving generous hours. That sign was part of the signal to RIA operatives like Calumn, the order of the words, even the colors used were part of a code that could be read by those with the proper training. This particular sign said that the owner was waiting for him, and had information that might be relevant to him. There was nothing warning that this place might have been compromised, so he felt a little safer approaching it, but he was still cautious as he walked in the door.

The interior of the shop was full of little bits and pieces of other ponies' lives that they had chosen or been forced to part with. Musical instruments lined one wall, and a display case showed off small figurines, many of them renditions of Celestia from household shrines. By far the largest part of the shop was taken up by displays of jewellery and enchanted items. Calumn circulated through the displays, looking idly at things while he examined the shop for any irregularity that would mean it was compromised. He found nothing of the sort, so while Blaze was eyeing a beat-up accordion with interest he made his way over to the earth pony mare behind the counter.

“You got any good watches?” he asked.

The pony shrugged. “Sure. What kind are you looking for?”

“Something with a season dial, and maybe one for moon phases.”

“Moon phases? You have problems looking up at night?” the pony snorted.

“No, just looking ahead,” Calumn said. “Do you know what the phase is tonight?”

“Waning gibbous, I think,” the shopkeeper said, eyes scanning the room.

“Oh, I was hoping it was full,” Calumn said, sighing. “See why I need the watch?”

The shopkeeper shrugged. “I might have something for you, but it’s in the back, come on and we can pick something out.”

“Thanks,” Calumn said, smiling. He turned to Blaze. “I’ll be right back,” he said, and Blaze nodded with a grin while miming pulling a zipper across his lips. Calumn sighed and followed the shopkeeper as she went through a door into the back room.

The back room was exactly how one would expect a pawnshop's storage room to look like: filled with boxes and stuffed with trinkets and things that weren’t on display in the main store. There were two obvious safes and one concealed one that Calumn noticed. The door shut with a solid thunk, cutting out the sounds from outside completely. “Calumn, I presume?” the shopkeeper asked, turning towards him.

“You have information for me,” he said, not bothering with the pleasantries. The less time he had to spend here, the safer both of them would be.

“Some. There’s been no sighting of the pegasus we’ve been told to look out for, but yesterday around noon there was a pegasus who left a clear etherealization during a high-speed takeoff. I wasn’t there, so I can’t confirm that, but I was able to do this,” she rummaged through a box and pulled out a photo. “This was taken over the forest an hour after the etheralization incident.”

Calumn looked at the picture. It showed two winged figures flying over the treetops. It wasn’t a clear shot, and details were ruined by motion blur, but enough was visible for him to nod. “That’s her,” he said. The pink-blue blur could have been any pegasus, but the brown-white Griffin next to her made the connection clear. "Who took the shot?"

“I did," she said. "I was doing surveillance on another target and just happened to catch them. The direction they left in means they’re headed to the capital. If your target’s travelling with a Griffin it means she’s connected to the Royalty. You’re not going to get close to her.”

“I know,” Calumn said, pushing the photo back to the mare. “If you can get word back to Straff, tell him I’m still on the job.”

The shopkeeper shrugged. “I’ll see what I can do,” she said, then paused, frowning in thought. “I’ve got something else, but I’m not sure what to do with it.”

Calumn gave her a steady look. “Why aren’t you sure?”

“It’s kind of tertiary.”

“Tell me, I’ll decide whether it’s useful to me.”

She nodded. “Okay. I’ve been tracking operatives loyal to Max Cash in this town for the past three days.”

“What are they doing?” Calumn asked, his interest piqued.

“They’re shadowing this pony,” she said, pulling out another photo. This one was a much better shot, framing a smiling unicorn looking at an expensive watch. “This is Conrad Sherman. He came into town shortly before Cash’s agents. He’s a slimy sort, but supposedly a real smooth-talker. Managed to score himself a room in the Drake Hotel for less than half what it usually goes for, and he’s been boozing it up and trying to charm the skirt off of any mare he lays his eyes on since. Other than that I’ve got no solid information on him. No business, no purpose, nothing. I think he’s a gambler, but that’s just because his Glyph says his Talent is Games. If he is, there’s still no reason for him to be here. No casinos, not even a good underground gambling circuit.”

“Interesting,” Calumn said, studying the picture. “Is this your work as well?”

“It is,” she answered. “Used a hidden camera. Why?”

“He’s posing,” Calumn said, looking closer. “He didn’t spot your camera?”

“I’m sure of it,” she said. “He’s like that all the time, just prancing around town.”

“And Cash’s people?”

“They shadow him everywhere,” she said, pulling out another photo. This one wasn’t as good as the one of Conrad, but better than the blurred shot of Dash and the Griffin. Two ponies, both wearing clothes that were loose enough to cover up thick muscles and conceal weapons. Calumn didn’t recognize them, but he recognized the type. Bruisers, bodyguard types. Not the kind of ponies sent to keep an eye on someone and not be noticed. More the type to keep someone in line. “They’ve got a room at the Drake,” the shopkeeper continued, “but they’re also renting a place across the street. At least two of them are following him all the time. Whoever he is, they’re very interested in him.”

“How do you know they’re connected to Cash?” The shopkeeper pushed forward yet another photo, this one showing the two bruisers meeting a pegasus mare in an alleyway. Calumn recognized her immediately from the photos in Cash’s file. “Thanks,” Calumn said. “What rooms at the Drake?”

“Conrad’s in 502, his shadows have 503.”

“And he’s been tail-chasing?”

“Like he wants it to be his Talent, giving a different story for himself every time.”

“What about the local intelligence? Have they twigged to this?”

The shopkeeper shrugged. “Not that I’ve heard. They’ve been focused on other stuff right now. The usual informants don’t seem to be looking for Cash’s people.”

“Is she still in town?” He tapped the photo of the pegasus mare.

“I don’t know.”

Calumn accepted that with a nod. “I need funds, can you supply?”

“A little, instructions are for passive assistance only.”

“I know, but I need seed cash. I’ve got tradeables, this can be a legitimate exchange.”

“Good enough for me, let’s get back out there.”

They left the back room to the sounds of an accordion wheezing. Blaze was suspended in the air, somehow tangled in the strings of several instruments that were themselves hanging from the wall at odd angles. Blaze looked back at Calumn and the shopkeeper, a look of wide-eyed innocence plastered on his face. The shopkeeper’s mouth hung open in disbelief, while Calumn found himself shaking with barely suppressed laughter.

“Um, okay. I can explain,” Blaze said. “But I gotta warn you, it’s going to sound like a really weird and improbable sequence of events, and I want to assure you that it had absolutely nothing to do with a failed attempt to put together a one-pony-band suit using only wind and stringed instruments.”

It took ten minutes to get Blaze out of his predicament, ten more to sell the tradeable items Straff had provided Calumn with, and another ten to assure the shopkeeper that there was no lasting damage to her merchandise. Forty minutes later Blaze and Calumn were eating lunch and discussing what to do next.

“We’re going to stick around for a bit,” Calumn said.

“I thought you were in a rush to get to the capital?”

Calumn shook his head. “No. I was hoping to use the train to get ahead of them, but that didn’t happen. They’ve obviously gotten there ahead of us, and a small delay won’t stop me from picking up the trail there. I’ve got another opportunity to do some information-gathering here, though, and I don’t want to lose it.”

“So what are we doing?” Blaze asked, happily sucking on the thick milkshake he had insisted on getting.

“We aren’t doing anything,” Calumn said. “I’m going to see what information I can get out a pony named Conrad Sherman. He might know something relevant to my mission.”

“Ooh, cool,” Blaze said. “So what’re you going to do? Wait in an alley, then grab him when he walks past, then throw him in a chair, shine a light on him and sweat him until he pops?”

“Uh, no. Well, not entirely. He’s got thugs protecting him. Just jumping him is going to get me beaten up. I don’t know about you, but I’m a little low on the energy I’d need to handle a fight.”

Blaze smiled sheepishly. “Heh, well, I’m not exactly a fighter myself. I’m more of a ‘sit there and snark at them’ kind of stallion.”

“And I’d exhaust myself taking out one of them. Not a good option. Instead I’m going to use my Luna-given gifts of disguise to get close to him and ask him some questions surreptitiously.”

“Nice! Maple or butterscotch?”

Calumn blinked at his companion before he realized what he had been referring to. “Not syrup, Blaze, surreptitiously. It means secretly, as in I’ll ask him questions that he doesn’t realize are making him give up answers he doesn’t want to give up.”

“Ah, okay, that should work too,” Blaze said. “I guess I’m not good for helping with that, huh?”

“Not with that part, no, but there is something you can do for me. Two things, actually.”

Blaze leaned forward eagerly. “Tell me! I’ll do it!”

“Well, first I’m going to want you to play lookout for me. Remember those thugs? I’m going to need to know if they catch on to what I’m doing and start moving in. So when I make my move you’ll have to be positioned so you can watch for them and warn me.”

“Yeah! I can do that. I can even distract them so you can make your getaway. You might not know it from looking at me, but I can be one hell of a distraction when I want to be!”

“No doubts about that one,” Calumn said.

“What’s the second thing?”

“Well, that’s a little harder,” Calumn looked out at the street and the ponies walking by. “Blaze, I’m going to need your help in picking out the most good-looking mare we can find.”

“Really? Why?” Blaze asked. Calumn smiled at him, and let the true color of his eyes show through for a moment. Blaze’s own eyes widened as he understood. “Ohh! Oh yeah,” he chuckled and turned to watch the crowd like Calumn was. “Let’s find you a hottie!”

***

The whole story came out. When Dash realized that Star Fall wasn’t going to hold anything back she threw herself into telling her side of the tale with gusto. She had to backtrack a few times to explain references to her own time and her friends, but not nearly as much as she had when telling Star Fall her cutie mark story. The sparseness of Gamma’s office actually helped her focus on the details, and she was able to describe the scene she had woken up to fairly well. Gamma asked few questions, but when she did they were to clarify points that got a little muddled or to clear up the proper sequence of events.

Gamma only made them pause the tale once, when they revealed that a Changeling had been after Dash while they were crossing the Everstorm. She spent several minutes talking silently with her horn glowing before asking them to continue. Finally, when the tale was done, Gamma sat at her desk and was silent for a long moment.

“So, uh, yeah,” Dash said as the quiet became uncomfortable. “That’s pretty much the whole deal.”

“I see,” Gamma said, then took in a long, deep breath. “That is an interesting tale. For the moment, as I said, I will be suspending judgement on your origins and just take you at your word. In which case it brings up several questions about exactly what Cash could have found or done that would precipitate your existence in the here and now. I see no reason to think that his plans and your arrival are unconnected.”

“Yeah, I guess,” Dash said, frowning. “About this Cash guy you keep mentioning. Who is he?”

“Maximillion Oswald Cash,” Gamma said, eyes going flat. “Is a thorn in my side, and quite possibly an enemy of the crown. He’s a unicorn who is, much like yourself, something of a mystery. He was born in the Republics, which is where he made the initial bulk of his fortune, but has long since expanded into business dealings on both sides of the Storm. That business consists of both legitimate enterprise and a great deal of criminal activity. Despite the best efforts of ponies such as myself and my opposite numbers in the Republics, Cash has remained impossible to counter or arrest. The best we can do is inconvenience his agents and watch him. He is smart, charismatic, magically Talented and utterly ruthless. Worst of all, we have no clue what his ultimate goal is, save that it somehow requires him to maintain several expensive and sometimes illegal archaeological expeditions. Such as the one you awoke in.”

“Wow, ok,” Dash thought about what she’d been told. “So this guy’s bad news, right?”

“Terrible news,” Gamma confirmed.

“And you think I’m mixed up with him somehow?”

“Without a doubt.”

“Alright, that makes sense. I’d just kind of assumed I was here because of Nightmare Umbra.”

Gamma’s eyebrow rose quizzically at that. “What in the world would make you think your presence had anything to do with the Shadowed Alicorn?”

“Well, Star told me all about the Schism, and how Nightmare Umbra’s still alive somewhere, and could come back or something. Since if I was still back home I could have done something about her I figured she must have pulled something to make me be here so I couldn’t.”

“That’s... Miss Dash, I understand that you were able to accomplish great deeds in your own time, but the Shadowed Alicorn is a Goddess, one that single-hoofedly defeated two of the most powerful armies ever assembled, and took the combined might of two other Goddesses to contain. While your circle of friends is legendary enough to have stories of your deeds survive the Schism, you are still mortal ponies. I doubt very much that you could do more than slightly inconvenience her, assuming she deigned to notice your existence at all.”

Dash snorted. “Sure we could, we’ve done it before.”

“Before?” Gamma asked, her voice was deceptively calm, but her eyes showed rapt interest.

“Yeah, we beat Nightmare Moon, and she was, well, okay, so I’m still not going to call them ‘Goddesses’, but she was an Alicorn too. That was practically the first thing we did when we became friends. It’s why we became friends.”

“Wait, Nightmare Moon was an Alicorn?” Star Fall asked, staring at Dash with wide-eyed shock.

“Um, yeah? I thought you knew that.”

“No!” Star Fall practically shouted. “Nightmare Moon was supposed to be some sort of evil spirit! A bogeymare to scare kids with! You’re saying she was actually an evil Goddess?”

“Not a Goddess, exactly, and not completely evil,” Dash said, wiggling a hoof in front of her to hopefully show how she wasn’t sure how to explain it. “Just kind of really sad and really lonely. And a little crazy. Okay, really crazy. Wanted-to-create-eternal-night crazy.”

“Regardless of the exact extent of her insanity,” Gamma cut in. “You say she was an Alicorn, and that you managed to defeat her. How?”

“Well, not by myself. My friends and I used the Elements of Harmony to defeat Nightmare Moon,” Dash said.

Gamma turned her gaze to Star Fall, who shook her head. “I don’t know what those are either,” the white pegasus said.

“They’re these magical necklace... thingies. Okay I went through this with Star already, I don’t know how to explain them. They just shoot rainbows and win against crazy and evil stuff.”

“So it wasn’t something you did, or a power innate to you, but a set of artifacts you possessed?” Gamma asked.

Dash nodded. “I guess, yeah.”

“Hm. Too bad, we could have used power like that,” Gamma mused. “Oh, well, I can make do with what I’ve been given. Sergeant Steelwing, what’s your estimation of Dash’s fighting abilities?”

Astrid perked up after having practically fallen asleep through the preceding storytime. “Oh, okay. She’s good. Got some training, don’t recognize the style but it’s definitely a pegasus-based art. Lots of fast strikes, fancy wing-work, no grappling or throwing moves. It might have just been what she was doing, but it was a timid style. Lots of dodging, no kill-shots, very little aggression.”

“Well, yeah, it’s supposed to be for defense,” Dash said.

“Right, timid,” Astrid continued. “With her speed and strength she could have taken enemy combatants clean out of the fight in seconds. Even the Griffins might have had a problem with her if she had actually fought them instead of getting fancy. She didn’t, though, and I think that’s ‘cause she’s not trained in how to actually disable someone.“

“That’s her close-quarters style. How about the rest?” Gamma prompted.

Astrid shrugged. “She’s got everything you’ve already seen going for her. Strength, speed, toughness, agility. Some of what she pulled down there was clever, too. She thinks on her hooves and she’s goal-oriented. She didn’t stop to fight when she could advance through the course instead, so she’s got priorities and sticks to them. And she didn’t panic when she took a hit, so she’s got some pain resistance and determination. More than most ponies who aren’t military can say.”

“I see. And the cons?”

“She’s reckless, stubborn, and while she’s clever she doesn’t think deeply. When the Griffins appeared she didn’t back off and re-evaluate, she doubled down and went with a risky plan that got her intentionally flanked between magic and muscle. It worked, but it was dumb. Going supersonic indoors? Also dumb.”

“Hey!” Dash protested.

“What? You’re dumb. It happens,” Astrid said. “Fact is, Dash, the only reason any of the crap you pulled in the Maul worked is because you’re fast enough, tough enough and strong enough that you outclassed every single pony in the arena so much that they might as well have been paper targets to you. Winning a fight against a cripple isn’t exactly impressive, and having to pull stupid shit to do it does not make that shit any less stupid. All it shows is that you have a crapton of potential that you are really not living up to.”

Dash stared at the Griffin for a moment, mouth hanging open. “Damn, Astrid. That was harsh,” she finally said.

“But informative,” Gamma said with a smile. “I’m glad you agree with most of my assessment, Sergeant.” Astrid snorted dismissively at that. “However, I think you’re underestimating miss Dash here. She wasn’t ‘pulling stupid shit’ as you say in order to win. She was doing that in order to win without badly hurting anyone else. Am I right?”

Dash frowned. “Well, yeah, but what does that have to do with anything?”

“Martial arts focused on defense, a lot of effort expended on not hurting others who are directly attacking you with deadly force, and a casual acceptance of both of those facts,” Gamma shook her head. “You’re a pacifist.”

“What? No I’m not,” Dash said. “I’ll fight if I have to!”

“If you have to,” Gamma repeated. “You’ll defend yourself if you are attacked.”

“Duh.”

“Would you defend your home? Your friends.”

“I totally would, and I have. I kicked a Dragon in the face!”

“So you’d face great odds for what’s close to you, what about an ideal?”

“Like what?”

“Something that was important in your time. Celestia, say. Would you fight for your Goddess.”

“I’m always loyal to the Princess,” Dash said, her tone low and serious.

Gamma’s eyebrow twitched at the word ‘Princess’, but she continued without comment. “Admirable. But would you fight for her?”

“Yes.”

“Not just to defend her, but actively commit violence against her enemies.”

“Yeah, okay? If she needed me to, I would.”

“Would you kill?”

That question brought her up short. “What?”

“Would you kill? Would you take the life of a pony, or Griffin, or Zebra, or Dog, or any other thinking person?”

“I... I don’t know,” Dash admitted.

“Let’s make it easy for you. A pony is threatening you and your best friend. He is bigger, stronger, faster, and has no desire except to see you and your friend hurt terribly. Your friend is already injured and cannot run or defend herself. You are in a position to stop your attacker, but the only way to be sure is to go for a killing strike. You know you can make that blow, but it will certainly kill him. If you do not, he will likely beat you and your friend to death. Would you kill then?”

The answer was easy. Which, of course, meant it wasn’t easy at all. “I don’t know,” Dash said. “There has to be another way. There’s always another way. I’m not in that situation so I can’t see it right now, but there’s always another way. That doesn’t make me a pacifist.”

Gamma nodded. “You’re right. You’re not a pacifist. You’re a civilian. Sergeant Steelwing, what would your response be?”

Astrid laughed. “Come on, Gamma. He’d be dead way before it got to the ‘kill or be killed’ stage.”

“Yes,” Gamma acknowledged. “I already know what Agent Fall’s answer would be. Our Equestria is very different from yours, miss Dash, I know enough history to be sure of that. In our world if you are not prepared to answer ‘yes’ to that scenario, and many more where the outcomes are not nearly as clear-cut, you will not have the capacity to act on the world stage. There are many who lack that capacity, and there is no shame in it. Ponies like me exist to ensure that they do not have to face that choice. Ponies like you, however, have to come to terms with it. Your history and abilities will force you to the forefront of events whether you like it or not, and there will come a time when you must choose between lives. If you’re lucky it will only ever be your own that is in danger. Vanishingly few are that lucky, however.”

Dash stared at Gamma, then dropped her eyes and slowly shook her head. “Guys, I get it. Sometimes you think you gotta kill. I’ve been in that kind of situation before, but it’s never come down to it. I told myself I’d do whatever it takes, but I never had to actually make the choice, so I don’t know. What I do know is that every time I thought I’d have to choose, there was another option. Maybe I couldn’t see it by myself, but my friends did and they pointed me in the right direction. I guess that means I’ve been lucky or something, but it’s what I know. If I get into that situation again, I’ll look for that other option.”

“And if you can’t find it in time?” Gamma asked.

“Then I don’t know,” Dash said, holding Gamma’s gaze. “I guess I’ll find out if it happens.”

Gamma relaxed back into her chair. “Fair enough. Now I just have to figure out what to do with you.”

“Hey! I’m not someone you can just push around like this!” Dash snarled, coming to her hooves.

“Miss Dash, what gives you that idea?” Gamma asked. “If you’d take a moment to think it through, I think you’d find that you are exactly the sort of person I can ‘push around’.”

“Calm down, Dash,” Astrid said. “She’s not going to do anything to you. If she was, she would have done it already.”

Dash shot the Griffin a hard look, but then sat down in a huff. Star Fall laid a hoof on her shoulder. “Astrid’s right, Dash. Gamma’s being more abrasive than usual, but I think there’s a point to it.”

“Indeed there is,” Gamma said. “The point being to find out what kind of person you are, Rainbow Dash. I think I have all I need to know.”

“Like what?” Dash huffed, crossing her forelegs and trying to cool her temper.

“Like your strength of will,” Gamma replied. “Astrid said you were stubborn, but I think it’s more than that. I think you have something better than stubbornness: conviction. You refuse to admit you would kill, even when presented with a scenario where that’s the only viable response. You do this not because of some hard-headed obedience to the social mores of your time, but because you genuinely believe that there is another option. You believe it because of experience and thought, not just blind adherence to principle. I also notice that you didn’t judge Astrid for her answer, or even glance at Star Fall when I mentioned that I knew what hers was. That shows that you also don’t expect everyone else to keep to your principles. To stick to your own position while not judging others for theirs? That requires strength of will. I admire that, even if I disagree with your position.”

“So all that was just testing me?” Dash asked. “That’s kind of a sick way to find out if someone’s a good person.”

“It wasn’t to find out if you were a good person,” Gamma said. “It was to find out how I could use you.”

“Wow,” Dash said, caught off guard enough that her temper was momentarily subdued. “That was pretty direct.”

“I have neither the need nor the desire to be circumspect with you, miss Dash,” Gamma replied. “You’re a potential asset, one I am not going to waste. You on your own have the potential to reshape the political landscape. Honestly, you’ve already done so much damage to the status quo between the Solar Kingdom and Lunar Republics that we’re a step away from going to a war footing anyways.”

“Wait, what?”

“You didn’t think you could show off the abilities you have and get away with no one caring did you? Why do you think they sent a Changeling after you? I wouldn’t be surprised if my opposite numbers in the Republics are scrambling to find out if you’re one of mine, and then if they can at all field something that could challenge you. With what you did in the Maul their spies are going to be reporting that yes, you are one of ours.”

“Why did you set that up if you knew it would get back to them?”

“Because I wanted it to. The first thing you learn when you are being trained to be a spymaster is that you never make a move that has only one purpose if you can help it. I confirmed the worst fears of my competition. That it may turn out to be a bluff is irrelevant, as it will force them to divert resources into countering a phantom threat. Even if they do somehow work out a way to counter a pony with your abilities, my spies in their organization will find out those techniques and get them back to me. The end result is still an advantage for me in the short term which I can parley into an advantage in the long term.”

“That’s... pretty crazy twisted,” Dash said, leaning back as she thought through the implications.

“That’s why I’m the spymaster,” Gamma said. “I take potential disaster and I turn it into ways to protect the Kingdom. You are a potential disaster. I have decided the best way to turn you to the service of the Kingdom is to offer you a job.”

It took Dash a long moment to absorb that. “A what?”

“Work. Employment. A career. Money in return for services rendered. I’m fairly certain such things existed in the past.”

“Yeah, but I’m not really going to be sticking around, you know?” Dash said. “I’m going to talk to this Professor Shine and she’s going to find a way to get me back home.”

“Of course, and while you’re waiting for her to figure that out, you’re going to want to buy things and have a place to stay. I can provide the means to do both, and rather comfortably.”

“Okay. You’re offering me a job?”

“Yes,” Gamma said, leaning forward, her blue eyes boring into Dash. “I am. And you’re going to take it.”

“Why would I? You’re kind of pushy.”

Gamma’s lips twitched up in a smirk at that. “Because I’ve been testing you since you left your hotel room this morning, and I’m fairly certain I know what kind of mare you are. You’re the kind of mare who doesn’t like to be pushed into things, which means you want to say no, even if that will end up making your life miserable. However, you’re also the kind of mare who will stick by her friends and her principles. Agent Fall and Sergeant Steelwing are your friends, and they’re going to be going into danger soon. You’re going to want to go with them, and you’ll only be allowed to do that if you say yes.”

“What danger? Where?”

“Say yes and you’ll find out.”

Dash stared at Gamma for a moment before shaking her head. “I don’t know whether you’re awesome or horrible,” she admitted with just a touch of awe in her voice.

“Go with horrible,” Gamma said. “It will make it easier to accept it when you catch me manipulating you.”

Dash choked back a laugh. “Fine. I’ll join your super-spy crew, so long as I get to help Star and Astrid. And so long as I can still go home when Professor Shine finds out how to get me there.”

“Trust me, if Professor Shine wants to figure out how to transport a person back in time I will not stand in her way. Deal. Agent Rainbow Dash, welcome to the Secret Service.”

Dash stuck out her hoof, and Gamma only hesitated for half a moment before taking it and shaking firmly. “Okay, so what the hell is this danger?”

“Well, Agent Dash, Agent Fall brought back some information about Max Cash’s illegal digging in the Kingdom, much like the excavation you woke up in. There’s three dig sites, but I only have so many agents that I can trust to scout them. I’m sending Agent Fall to one of them, and you’ll be accompanying her.”

“Which one?” Astrid asked.

“The hidden dig, the one we didn’t know about until Agent Fall brought it to my attention,” Gamma said. “It’s only a couple days away, taking it slowly."

“When do we leave?” Star Fall asked.

“Tomorrow morning, you still have an appointment with your mentor to keep,” Gamma answered, then stood. “Speaking of which, I believe it’s time for you to head to the university. You won’t be able to catch her before she starts a class, unfortunately, but you should have some time with her afterwards to make your introductions.”

Star Fall was on her hooves instantly. “Thank you, Gamma. I know you didn’t have to be this understanding.”

“I’m not being understanding,” Gamma said. “I’m just acting in the best interests of the Crown. Don’t confuse the two, Agent Fall.”

“I won’t,” Star Fall said, smiling. “Trust me, I won’t.”

***

The lecture hall was built like a theater, with tiered rows of seats leading down to a wide stage where the Professor stood and gave her lesson. Her golden coat nearly sparkled in the harsh stage-lights, while her mane was a stark white with a shocking purple streak running through it. Her mane and tail were given a simple style that wasn’t ostentatious, but presented an image of being expensively maintained nonetheless. She was not a large pony, but even to Dash her presence seemed to fill the room. She was the first pony Dash had seen in the city who went naked, not even a scarf or hat to accent her natural form, and Dash was beginning to think that nudity was something that only the most important ponies were allowed to indulge in.

The audience was filled with unicorns, the muted glows of their magic illuminating their faces as they levitated notepads and pens. There were a few ponies from the other tribes scattered through the audience, but they were so few that they might as well have not been represented at all, and all of them looked like they were there with a unicorn.

Star Fall directed them to sit in one of the sparsely populated back rows, and Dash took her seat, hoping that the lecture would be over soon and she could get to meeting this Professor. At the very least she had her feathers crossed to hope that this lecture wasn’t as boring as the ones she remembered from when she was in school.

“Global rotation,” Professor Shine was saying, “provides the initial cyclic impetus for any basic magic circle. Energies always flow in a certain direction, depending on what hemisphere you are in. You can reverse this flow with the right environment, but that requires so much effort that it’s only used for certain specific magics, none of which are available to the public sector, so those of you not looking to be research unicorns can probably sleep through any lecture on counter-flow circles and the only thing it’ll hurt is your GPA.”

There was a chorus of chuckles from the students, and Dash couldn’t help but feel she was missing something. She leaned down to Star Fall. “What’s she talking about?” she asked in a whisper.

“Magic circles, shh,” Star Fall answered and admonished.

“Rotation provides the push and direction, but it’s the axial tilt that determines the strength of the flow. This means certain orientations of circles are always more powerful in the winter, or conversely in the summer, especially close to the solstices.”

“Star, what’s ‘axial tilt’?” Dash asked.

“Dash!” Star Fall hissed back. “Just be quiet.”

“I’m sorry, am I interrupting something?” Professor Shine called out to them. Her horn flared and a light shone on them as every head in the theatre turned their way. Astrid snickered and smirked at the staring faces, but both Dash and Star Fall were caught wide-eyed.

Star Fall sighed and stood, giving a deep nod to the unicorn on stage. “My apologies, Professor. We did not mean to interrupt your lesson.”

Twinkle Shine smiled, and the genuine expression transformed her face, making her look twenty years younger and far less jaded than the stern teacher she had been a moment before. Dash frowned; there was something about this pony that had started bugging her right then, but she couldn’t put her hoof on what it was.

“Students, I believe most of you know my daughter, the Lady Fallen Star,” she said. There was a wave of bowed heads as the audience acknowledged her. Star Fall had to stop herself from cringing, but she managed it. “Who is your companion? Is it?”

Star Fall nodded. “My new hoofmaid, Firefly. She doesn’t know the proper protocol for sitting in on one of your lectures yet.”

Professor Shine’s smile seemed to fold in on itself, compressing until it wasn’t an open expression of happiness, but a mask that guarded the thoughts that flashed behind her eyes. “Firefly, is it?”

“Uh, yeah,” Dash said, standing. She didn’t know whether to nod or bow or what, so she didn’t do anything, just let her gaze dart nervously around the room.

“You had a question about my lesson? You may not be one of my students, but from the papers I’ve graded over the years I know that many of them don’t ask questions when they should. Perhaps others will benefit from the answer you seek.”

“Oh, uh. Right,” Dash took a deep breath. She normally loved the spotlight, but academics weren’t something she was good at, and she had learned too many times that this kind of spotlight was not where she would shine. “I was wondering what you were talking about. Rotation and axial tilt and all that.”

“I’m talking about magic, Firefly, and how the motion of the earth relative to the sun affects it.”

“You lost me again,” Dash said. “What motion?”

Professor Shine frowned, clearly caught on the wrong hoof with the question. “Well, the earth travels around the sun.” Dash blinked at that in confusion, but didn’t say anything so Professor Shine continued. “It also spins around its axis, creating day and night, and that axis itself twirls, which we call axial tilt.”

“Okay, that doesn’t make any sense,” Dash said.

Twinkle Shine was clearly perplexed by the resistance to what she was saying, and shot Star Fall a questioning look, which the white pegasus didn’t catch as she was frowning at Dash herself. “Could you please specify what part doesn’t make sense?”

“Well, the whole thing. The world doesn’t really spin, does it? I mean, Princess Celestia raises the sun to create the day, right?” Dash wracked her brain, trying to remember if she had ever learned about this when she was younger. She had a vague memory of diagrams of circles and constellations, but she was also fairly certain she slept through most of that stuff.

“Princess?” Twinkle Shine shook her head. “This is strange. Where did you receive your education?”

“Uh, school?” There were titters at this statement throughout the theatre.

Twinkle Shine snorted. “School? Very cute. Well, this isn’t a theology class, Miss Firefly, but your question does actually have some relevance. Alright, students, for the moment imagine that this lecture is not on circle theory, and is instead on fundamental forces. How many of you have attended Professor Blueband’s lecture series on divine interactions with the mundane world?” A few hooves went up, but not many. “Really? The next time he gives them I would suggest you attend. He’s spent his career learning about the numinous and the sublime, his insight into the power of the Goddesses is truly fascinating. You,” she pointed her horn at one of the unicorns that had raised their hoof. “What would Professor Blueband say to Miss Firefly’s question?”

The unicorn stammered, but eventually managed to get an answer out. “He would say that the Goddess is the sun, that her will created it and maintains it. So she does raise the sun, but not literally.”

“A nice answer,” Twinkle Shine said, “It was close, but wrong. I know we Professors can get long-winded, but please try to pay attention, you learn better that way.” The class chuckled at their fellow student’s misfortune, but Twinkle Shine was already moving on. She stepped to the blackboard and erased it with a flick of her horn. A dozen pieces of chalk floated up simultaneously and began to draw so that the complete picture was done in moments. There was a large circle in the middle, an open curve to one side and a small circle on the other side. Between the three she had drawn lines and squiggles with arrows coming from the small circle and the curve towards the large middle circle. All of this was labelled, which was unhelpful to Dash understanding what she was seeing.

“Here is the truth of it,” Professor Shine said. Several of the unicorns in the audience were leaning forward with hungry eyes, and Dash got the distinct impression that this was something important that she just didn’t have the background to understand. Even Star Fall looked like she was caught up in what was happening, and Astrid was watching with no small interest. It left the time-tossed pegasus feeling incredibly left out and more than a little alone. She shoved aside those feelings and studied the diagram on the board, trying to force her brain into figuring it out through sheer determination.

“The power of the Goddesses runs deeper than any magic known to ponies. Tales from before the Schism say that they could literally move the sun and moon in the sky, either to bring night and day, or stop them in their tracks. There are official scientific documents that survive that even reference these tales as fact. The ponies back then were not stupider than we are today, nor any less rigorous in their research. Even religion as we know it did not exist then, so they were not fanatics blinded by their beliefs into ignoring the evidence. No, they simply accepted as absolute fact the utterly religious notion that the Goddesses were solely responsible for bringing day and night. This is apparently still taught in some schools.” Twinkle Shine gave a mocking nod to Dash, who bristled, but held back from commenting.

“The thing is, they were right. In a very real, very literal sense, the Goddesses raised and lowered the sun and moon. That is true. What is also true is that the world rotates on its own wobbling axis once every day and also circles the sun once every year, with the moon in turn circling the world once every twenty-nine days. This was just as true back then as it is today. Who here can tell me why both of these things are true?” There was no response from the audience. “Anyone? You! You’ve gotten the short straw, give me your best answer.”

The unicorn she singled out swallowed hard and looked around as if for assistance, but none was coming. “I, uh, I think it has to do with... multi-modal reflection sorting?”

“You just made that up, didn’t you?” Twinkle Shine asked with a smile as snickers and laughs rumbled through the audience. “Very technical sounding, I’ll give you that. No, it has nothing to do with whatever it is you just came up with. Come on, someone has to have some idea! You’re all magic students, or at least you should be if you’re taking this class. The Magic Of Friendship is on practically every course reading list for a reason, you should all at least recognize what I’ve put on the board. No? Don’t tell me none of you have actually gone through it.” She was met with nervous stares and silence. “Okay, a little advanced for you, I guess. Miss Firefly, what’s your guess as to how this works?”

“Magic,” Dash answered immediately.

Laughter was the response from the unicorns in the audience, but this time Twinkle Shine’s smile was genuine. “Yes,” she said when the laughter had died down, which sent the room into silence as surely as if she had yelled for it. “Magic. In its most basic form magic is the alteration of observed reality through the use of will. The Goddesses use magic in the same way that unicorns do, but on a scale that no mortal can match. For unicorns like myself and most of you, we tap into the energy of the world, store it in ourselves and then release it with our wills to create the effect we want. A Goddess, on the other hoof, does not store energy, for the entire cosmos is hers to command. This means that reality is as we observe it to be because the Goddesses will it to be so. Celestia creates the day by willing there to be day. It is thus by her will that we have sunlight and all the things that come with it. If she didn’t will the day, there wouldn’t be one. Our world would still orbit the sun, still rotate on its wobbling axis, but to our eyes the sun would never crest the horizon, no matter where we were in the world. If Luna similarly forsook her duties then we would have eternal day, where the sun never quite sets. Should they both abandon us then all we would be left with is perpetual, endless twilight. Star Fall, what am I talking about here?”

“A rule of magic,” Star Fall answered. “What you experience may not be what is real, but it is still what you experience, and is therefore real.”

“Reality is a perception,” Twinkle Shine said to the crowd. “What you see, hear and feel is real, but it is not necessarily the full reality, and a being with perception beyond yours can interact with that fuller reality it in ways we cannot understand or match. The Goddesses are two such beings. The world turns, we know that is true, but we do not experience it. The sun rises and sets, we know that isn’t true, but it is what we experience. These are not contradictions, simply our limited way of describing the reality that we exist in. Whatever the Goddesses know and experience, it does not resemble our own limited understanding. Just as when I reach out and lift a piece of chalk, I do it by the mechanisms of telekinesis that every unicorn can perceive. But an earth pony who sees it doesn’t understand the action that allows it, all they see is the chalk rise. In the same way the Goddesses use their power to alter the world that they see to their will, and as a result we have day and night.

“So there’s your explanation, Miss Firefly. The sun rises because the part of the world we’re standing on turns to face it, but it only rises because the Goddess wills it so. In the space between these two truths lies all the potential of magic.”

She set down her chalk, and there was a stomping roar of applause from the audience that only quieted when Professor Shine gave them a stern look. “What are you cheering for? Most of you didn’t understand that, and those that do are probably second-guessing themselves. Think about it. If you can work through the implications of this then you are well on the path to becoming masters of magic regardless of what your Talent happens to be. Well, I think that’s more than enough for all of you to ponder on today, so I’m going to cut this class short. Go, do some research, or get some lunch, or go back to bed, but whatever you do, think about it. And for Celestia’s sake read The Magic Of Friendship, I guarantee you it will be on the test!”

The class stood and began to make their way out, chatting excitedly. A few stayed behind to talk to Professor Shine, but she made her excuses and sent them away. Star Fall was still staring at the chalkboard, her lips moving silently as she talked her way through what was written there.

“Nice work,” Astrid said to Dash. “You’re makin’ yourself real popular today. Powerhouse, spy, and now you get to be an egghead. It’s like you’re doing Fall’s life in reverse. If the Professor adopts you, I’m out of here.”

“I didn’t know she was going to put me on the spot like that,” Dash protested. “I still don’t know what the hell she was talking about.”

“Those are the Sparkle-Pie equations,” Star Fall said. “The basis of modern quantum theory. This was stuff created in your time, Dash. Do you seriously not know that the earth spins?”

“It wasn’t exactly a priority in flight school!” Dash snapped. “Astronomy’s a unicorn thing, I wasn’t paying a lot of attention in the two classes we ever had on the subject. I was too busy learning how to turn clouds into rainbows.”

Star Fall cringed. “Ouch, Dash we’re not making fun of you.”

“I am,” Astrid interjected.

“I’m not making fun of you, it’s just surprising that you didn’t know this stuff.”

Dash huffed, but reined herself in. “I’m sorry, Star. I just don’t like feeling like I’m being laughed at. I’m not stupid.”

“I never said you were,” Star Fall sighed.

“To be fair, neither did I,” Astrid added. “Come on, you’re hardcore enough not to have to care about this lame stuff.”

“It’s not lame,” Star Fall protested. “It’s a fundamental part of our reality.”

“Sure, Fall,” Astrid said. “I’m sure the entire legion of snotty eggheads will back you up on that, but people like Dash and I don’t get it, and we don’t need to get it. We’ve got our own stuff that brains like you just can’t match. Doesn’t mean we’re stupid, just focused on something other than apple pie numbers.”

“Sparkle-Pie equations,” Star Fall corrected automatically. “She’s right, Dash. You’re not stupid, just way out of your time.”

Dash gave them a smile that was only half-forced. “Thanks, guys. I’m kinda stepping in it all over today, huh?”

“Your first real exposure to a new civilization, and the people you have to deal with are Gamma and Professor Shine? Dash, you are doing wonderfully,” Star Fall assured her.

“Heads up, here comes the boss,” Astrid said.

Twinkle Shine was indeed making her way up the aisle to them. She was smiling, but her gaze lingered warily on Dash, evaluating her. “I’m glad I didn’t have to come and get you,” she said to Star Fall, laying a welcoming hoof on her shoulder. “I’m sorry I wasn’t here earlier, but the King needed my advice.”

“I heard,” Star Fall said. “Gamma took the opportunity to bring me in and get my report.”

Professor Shine snorted at that. “Of course she would. A Dragon goes missing and she decides to harass my student instead of help look for it. That mare is going to give me an aneurism trying to keep her in check.”

“Professor,” Star Fall chided gently. “She’s doing what she thinks is best for the Kingdom.”

“And I’m not?” Professor Shine asked, then waved off any attempt to answer. “No, it’s fine. I know she does her best, but her best involves far too much manipulation and underhooved dealings for my comfort. Ponies like her are as necessary to our nation’s safety as I am, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it.” She turned to Astrid. “I’m glad you were able to drag my apprentice through yet another foray into enemy territory.”

“Yeah, well, she’s getting better at taking care of herself,” Astrid said. “I don’t have to baby her all the time anymore.” She gave the pegasus in question a playful shove.

Twinkle Shine finally turned to Dash. “And this must be your mystery mare. Fallen Star says you can speak Old Equestrian,” she said, switching to the ancient language.

“Yeah, sure I can,” Dash replied in kind. “I hear you’re probably the smartest pony around. I’ve got this problem, and everypony says you’re the only one who can help me, so here I am, asking for help.”

Twinkle Shine started back in clear surprise, a deep frown furrowing her forehead and her ears twitching. “That’s... that’s incredible,” she took a deep breath and visibly calmed herself down. “Your speech patterns, inflection, accent, everything is just as Fallen Star said. You speak the language as a native would.”

“You’re not too shabby yourself, lady,” Dash replied.

“Who taught you the old tongue?”

“Uh, my mom and dad?” Dash said. “Look, that’s what I’ve gotta get your help with, I’m not from here. Not, like, the city or anything, but from this future.”

“This future?” Twinkle Shine asked, dropping back into Solar.

“Professor,” Star Fall said, “please listen to her. She’s from the past, before the Schism, during the time of legends. She’s been brought forward in time, and we don’t know how or why.”

“From the past?” Twinkle Shine asked, eyebrow quirking in a gesture that reminded Dash of Gamma. “Star Fall, you know how ridiculous that sounds, right?”

“I know, but she can do things. Incredible things that no one else has been able to do for over eight hundred years. She speaks Old Equestrian like a native and she is absolutely not from our time. I didn’t believe her at first, and I still have my doubts about some of the details, but I believe that she believes it, and there’s too much evidence supporting her to dismiss it out of hoof.”

“What evidence?”

“She can cloudwalk, etherealize.”

“She can break the sound barrier,” Astrid put in.

“She heals and learns incredibly fast, and she can work the weather. She made a rainbow for me, Professor. A real rainbow.”

“Impressive,” the Professor mused. “She’s a pegasus from the past, then.”

“Not just any pegasus,” Star Fall said. “Professor, this is Rainbow Dash.”

For a moment, almost too quickly to be seen by anyone other than a pegasus like Dash, Twinkle Shine’s eyes flashed not with surprise, but with rage. It had been brief, and quickly covered up with disbelief, but the force of what she had seen rocked Dash back a step. “Rainbow Dash?” Twinkle Shine laughed. “Right. Of course she is.”

“Hey, I am Rainbow Dash, and I can prove it!” Dash said, her blood heating from the dismissal.

“How?” Professor Shine asked, shaking her head. “Rainbow Dash has been dead for over a thousand years. How would you even begin to prove you’re her?”

Dash paused at that, she hadn’t really thought about it. She had convinced Star Fall by simply being herself, and she had figured that was enough, but when confronted with the question directly like this it made her doubt that it was going to work like that this time. She pulled at the hem of her dress and hiked it up to display her flank. "Check the cutie mark." This tactic failed to elicit a reaction beyond a questioning stare so she dropped the dress and thought of something else. “Uh, okay. Ask me any question about Rainbow Dash’s life and I’ll answer it.”

“Alright then, what’s Rainbow Dash’s favourite food?”

“Professor!” Star Fall whined. “Take this seriously, please!”

“Star Fall, she’s obviously not Rainbow Dash,” Twinkle Shine said to her student and adopted daughter. “A pony pulled out of her own time I could maybe buy, there are ways it could be done, but to claim that she’s Rainbow Dash? It’s ridiculous.”

“Peanut butter and Zap Apple jam sandwiches!” Dash shouted. Star Fall looked at her and Professor Shine sighed and did the same. “That's my favourite food. They're delicious." The Professor just quirked her eyebrow at Dash while Star Fall frowned as she tried to pin down where she had heard the term 'Zap Apple jam' before. Dash took a heavy breath before continuing. "Okay, there's another food that I really like, but it's kind of special for me so I don't normally count it as my favourite. Chocolate cake. I don’t eat a lot of sweets. I’ve gotta eat right to keep in shape, but my friend Pinkie Pie makes this awesome chocolate cake, and every time I perfect a new trick or do something I’m trying really hard for I treat myself. She makes it specially for me, and I don’t like to admit it, but it tastes even better than peanut butter and Zap Apple jam sandwiches. It tastes better because she put so much effort into it for me, and I know it and I can just picture her smiling with every bite. So that’s, uh, that’s my favourite food.” Dash’s head hung a bit at the end, and for once she was glad of her dyed coat as its color could hide any embarrassed blush she might have.

Twinkle Shine’s smile had faded. “Chocolate cake, huh? How about Twilight Sparkle? If you’re Rainbow Dash you’d know her. What was her favourite food?”

“Doughnuts,” Dash said without hesitation, “but she’d probably claim it was daisy sandwiches.”

“When a Dragon was threatening to cover Equestria in smoke, how did you defeat it?”

“Well, I kicked it in the face,” Dash said, smirking proudly at how much use she was getting out of that memory before continuing. “It was Fluttershy that got rid of it, really. She went all ‘stare master’ on it and glared it right off the mountain.”

“How did you resolve the Bison-Appleloosan conflict?”

“We... didn’t. Kinda made things worse, really, and then it all just sorted itself out. Pinkie was ranting about that one for weeks, you shoulda seen how ticked she was her little song-and-dance routine didn’t work.”

“Name the pets of all of Twilight Sparkle’s friends.”

“Pets?” Dash asked in surprise, even Star Fall blinked in confusion at that one. “Well, okay. Pinkie’s got Gummy. Rarity’s cat is Opal, or, uh Opal..escence? Yeah, Opalescence. Applejack’s dog is Winona. Fluttershy’s got every pet in the whole world at her house. You could say Angel bunny is her pet, but he’s more like a roommate or... something. Twilight has Owlowiscious, and I guess Spike could count if you’re a total jerk. And I have Tank the flying tortoise.”

Professor Shine shook her head in disbelief. “Only the most obscure texts even mention that they had pets. You’d have to comb through ten different sources to piece together all their names. You’ve certainly done your research.”

“It’s not research, this is my life,” Dash said. “Come on, you got more for me? I can take it.”

“How did the Goddesses defeat Chrysalis?”

“Uh. Okay, you lost me on that one. Who?”

“Chrysalis? The Changeling queen?” Dash shook her head. “What was the ultimate weapon of Tirek?”

“Still lost.”

“No? Who was the first to confront Celestia Nova, and why did they fail to reach her?”

Dash just shook her head. “Okay, Celestia what? Are you talking about the Princess?”

Twinkle Shine gawked in renewed disbelief. “You know some of the most obscure facts of their mundane lives, but you can’t even recognize their most famous and storied accomplishments? Rainbow Dash figures fairly prominently in these stories, surely if you were her you’d know. What was it like leading the charge against the Tartarus Dragons? How were the Parasprites removed? Who was the saviour of the Crystal Kingdom?”

“Uh, no clue, Pinkie did something with music, and no clue,” Dash replied. “Seriously, what is all that stuff? I’ve never done any of it. Tartarus Dragons? That sounds totally cool, I would have remembered that.”

The Professor drew back, looking at Dash with a mixture of curiosity and confusion. “You are just random.”

“I am not random. Do I look pink to you?” Professor Shine raised an eyebrow. Dash looked down at herself. “Okay, bad question, but I’m normally blue, and I’m still not random.”

“Your knowledge is.”

“I think her memories don’t extend as far as the Changeling invasion,” Star Fall put in. “Dash, didn’t you say your last memory was preparing for something?”

“Bringing water to Cloudsdale to make rainclouds, yeah,” Dash said. “I’ve heard of Changelings, sorta, but they never invaded.”

“Fascinating,” Twinkle Shine said. “You honestly believe what you’re saying, don’t you?”

“I don’t just believe it, I know it,” Dash said.

The Professor chuckled. “Well, okay. You’re no simple charlatan, but I am not just going to accept your word as it is.”

“That’s cool,” Dash said, smiling. “I’ll find a way to prove it to you. I promise.”

“Yes, well, we shall see,” the Professor said. She checked the clock on the wall. “But for now I suppose I could run a few tests. Since you’re going to be staying with Star Fall anyway, I officially invite you to stay at my estate until I’ve ascertained the veracity of your assumed identity.”

“She means you can crash at Fall’s place and she won’t kick you out,” Astrid helpfully translated.

“Thanks,” Dash said, relaxing a bit. She hadn’t won the Professor over, she knew that, but just like with Star Fall, it was a start. Still, that flash of rage she had seen worried her. Where had that come from? Why did the Professor react that way to hearing her name? Dash shoved the questions out of her head and extended a hoof to the golden unicorn. “I really want to get started. The future is nice and all, but I’m missing my friends and Ponyville pretty bad.”

“No promises, but I’ll see what I can do,” Twinkle Shine said, and for the second time that day Rainbow Dash found herself shaking hooves with another pony.

***

Calumn sashayed into the club with a smile and a wink to the heavy-set bouncer, who watched the Changeling's flank with hungry eyes as she went past. He was in the form of a gorgeous grey-blue unicorn mare, decked out in a little black dress and tastefully placed jewellry. Changelings had fairly flexible ideas about gender, being a species that could change it at will. In general it depended on whether they were 'in-character' or not. Out of character Calumn was male, but for the moment and in this character? She was as resolutely female as it got.

She made her way to the dance floor, joining in the twirling crowd with the finesse of a master socializer. The music was upbeat, some of the newer stuff coming out of the Solar capital that combined old folk dances with modern beats and instrumentation. She'd studied it as it was getting popular, and while she didn't know this particular song she knew the music and the dances that went with it well enough to do them in her sleep. She found a partner and proceeded to lead him in leading her in the dance. She didn't devote a lot of attention to it, though. She was too busy scanning the club for her target.

The club was surprisingly full for it being early afternoon. It wasn't as packed as it would likely get come sundown, but it was a fair sight more crowded than she had expected. It made finding her target harder than it had to be, and would make it more difficult to hold his attention with all the distractions. On the plus side it meant she would be able to slip out with him more easily. Getting lost in a crowd was practically child's play.

Blaze appeared from a backroom door. Calumn didn't know how he got in that way, but she didn't question it. This club was upscale, and you needed either a lot of money or a certain look to get through the door. Calumn had that look but Blaze did not, and he certainly didn't have the money to flash to bypass that. As it was he took up a position with a good view. His Everstorm experience allowed him to ignore the extraneous ponies with barely any effort and focus on finding the ones he needed to. Calumn just hoped he would be able to stay focused without causing a scene.

"Wow, you are one heck of a mare," her ignored dance partner said, practically drooling over her.

She gave him a whimsical smile and did a complicated little twirl that had him paired with a new partner while she took up with a different stallion. This one looked even more surprised to find who he was dancing with, but didn't salivate at her like a Diamond Dog looking at a prime steak.

Finally she spotted her quarry. He was sitting at the bar, chatting with the bartender. He talked with his hooves, she noticed, swinging them around and making big gestures. He also flashed smiles over his shoulder or held certain postures for a few moments longer than necessary. He really was posing all the time.

She gave her dance partner a quick air kiss and stepped off the dance floor. She caught Blaze's eye and he jerked his head at the two bruisers who were sitting at a table in a dark corner of the club and sipping at their drinks. They looked sullen and bored, which was good news for her. They didn't even blink in her direction as she stepped up to the bar and slid into the seat next to Conrad.

"What can I get you?" the bartender, a Dog in a very nice suit, asked her.

"I'll take a strawberry daiquiri," she said, making sure to give a sultry little smirk to the dog as he turned away to get her drink.

"Now that's not the best choice," Conrad said, leaning up next to her at the bar. "This season, this time of day? You want to go with something lighter, build up to the daiquiri and probably not strawberry."

"But I like strawberries," she said, licking their lips. "They're sweet."

"They're out of season," he replied, eying her up and down. "Takes all the taste out of them."

"And you're an expert on drinks?"

"Oh yeah, I've got my own winery in the west," he said, puffing out his chest proudly. "Make some of the best vintages south of the capital."

"Really," she said, leaning into him and staring into his eyes. "Do tell."

"Well, I don't like to brag," he said, chuckling. The bartender came back and put her drink down in front of her. She dutifully picked it up and took a sip.

"So, what were you saying about your mining business?" the bartender asked.

Conrad lurched half over the bar. "I'll tell you later, man, I've just got this filly on the hook, don't screw it up for me."

The Dog took a long look at Calumn, who batted her long eyelashes at him, and backed off. "Okay, mister. Good luck with you."

"You get a tip, sir," Conrad said to him before turning back to Calumn. "So, what were we talking about?"

"Your fine wines?" she supplied.

He laughed. "Nah, let's not talk about wines, that's boring stuff. Hey, why don't you tell me about yourself."

"Well, I'm not from around here," she began. "I'm just in town for business, and maybe a bit of pleasure," she winked at the appropriate place, making sure he got the implication

"Yeah, I'm in town for business too," he said, stretching out a hoof as if to encompass everywhere in the area. "Looking to do a lot of buying."

"Oh? You're not local?"

"Actually I was born here," he said. "Lived in a little house, just me and my dad. Got out of town as soon as I could, but I figured now that I've got money it's time to come home and re-invest."

"Wow, an entrepreneur. I love ponies who give back."

"Yeah, and I love giving," he laughed.

"And I love getting given to," she gave him her best sultry smile. "You wanna get out of here, maybe continue this conversation in your room?"

He looked at her, his eyes roaming to her shapely flank, then shrugged. "Nah. I'd rather stay here."

Calumn blinked. That wasn't what she was expecting. She shifted herself to display even more of her assets. "Come on. Tell me you like what you see."

"Meh," he said, waving a hoof in the air ambivalently. "Not really."

Calumn was shocked. She had been sure that he was hooked completely. He'd practically been licking her with his eyes, but now he was acting as if she was barely more than a pony he bumped into on the street. A plain pony.

She was just about to try again when another unicorn mare sat down on the opposite side of Conrad. "Hey, I heard you were new in town."

"Not really," he said, turning away from Calumn and towards the new mare. "I lived here when I was younger, did some work for the local Royal Liaison."

The two quickly got into a conversation, and every attempt Calumn made to get the attention back on her was rebuffed by Conrad. It just didn't make sense. He had been flirting with her pretty hard, and he was doing the same to the new girl. Lying through his teeth the entire way, but doing it fluidly and flirtatiously.

Calumn excused herself and headed to the washroom. She had to re-think her approach, and might have to re-think her appearance too. The new mare was far plainer than her current form. She ran some water and dabbed it at her face, looking in the mirror to see if there was anything she missed when donning her current disguise. It all checked out, there was something that she was missing that was causing the problems. It wasn't with her so it had to be with him.

Just then the door opened and that same unicorn mare stepped in. She sidled up to Calumn at the sink counter and gave her a sidelong glance. "You tried too hard," she said.

"Sorry?" Calumn asked, surprised that the mare would talk to her.

"Conrad? The stallion you were talking up? You were trying to hard, being too forward," she continued.

"He seemed pretty into it."

"Yeah, he will, then he'll shut you down the minute you suggest going somewhere. It's not that he doesn't want to, it's just he's got to be the one making the moves. Let him take the lead and you're golden."

Calumn blinked, she hadn't thought of that. It was a common seduction technique, but everything she'd seen about this stallion had said he would have jumped at a forward mare. "Thanks," she said. "Why are you telling me this?"

"Oh, sisterly solidarity and all that." The other mare grinned. "By the way, my name's Janice and I'm with the Kingdom Secret Service. Who do you work for?" Calumn froze, eyes wide. "Yeah, thought so," Janice said, then bucked Calumn in the side.

Calumn smashed into the wall, once again lamenting that carapaces didn't carry over to assumed forms. She hit the ground gasping for breath just in time for Janice to slam a forehoof into her stomach, doubling her over. The unicorn's horn lit with a pale green light and the lock clicked in the door.

"Why... what?" Calumn wheezed out.

"Don't play dumb, it won't get you anywhere," Janice said, grabbing Calumn and hauling her up to slam her back against the wall. "Who do you work for?" she snarled. She was surprisingly strong for a unicorn, but now that she was using that strength Calumn could see the corded muscle under her slinky dress. This was a full-on Kingdom spy, not a local operative like the pawnshop owner had been. She would have training equivalent to Calumn's own, and probably some backup in case things went bad. Calumn wouldn't be able to lie her way out of this one.

So he didn't.

With a flash of green fire Calumn assumed his true shape. The unicorn's eyes went wide and her grip loosened for just a moment, which was all he needed. He smashed his forehead into hers, his carapaced skull far more resilient than her own flesh and bone. She reeled back and he pressed his advantage, shooting off the wall with a buzz of diaphanous wings and hitting her several times. She dropped to the floor, shaking off the blows, but he slammed a hoof into the back of her head. She went limp.

Calumn flipped her over, examining her. She looked up at him with dazed eyes. "Changeling," she said, her breath fluttering as she fought to hold on to consciousness.

"Changeling," he agreed, his horn lighting up with a sickly green glow. "Sleep," he said, touching his crooked horn to her forehead. She let out a sigh and relaxed completely, her eyes closing as the spell took hold. "Forget," Calumn said, casting a second spell into her. It took a lot of energy to do, but not enough to put him in danger, and it would be necessary to keep him from being discovered so soon. She'd know she'd been beaten up and her memory messed with, but that could easily have been another unicorn. They might connect the dots and find it spelled 'Changeling' eventually, but by then he hoped to be long gone.

For now, though, he'd just been given a second chance. He swapped clothes with Janice and assumed her form, stuffing her into one of the stalls and locking it. The sleep spell would keep her under for hours, so he had to work quickly, but he kept her advice in mind.

Giving her mane a little comb through to hide the slightly dishevelled state, Calumn as Janice strode out of the washroom and back to the bar. She caught Blaze's eye and gave him the sign that meant she had switched forms. She didn't see him react so she hoped he remembered what that meant. She slid into her seat and gave her target an apologetic look. "Sorry about that. Okay, what were we talking about?" She smiled at Conrad, and Conrad smiled back. And just like that the plan was back on track.

***

Twinkle Shine had to force herself not to slam the door as she stepped into her office. As it was her legs were shaking and she barely was able to lock the door and turn on the stereo to prevent eavesdropping before she collapsed to her knees.

Star Fall, Astrid and Rainbow Dash had gone on to her home. The Professor had ostensibly stayed behind to clear up some paperwork before joining them, but the true reason was a voice in her head. A voice that was both her own and alien to her. A voice that had started talking during her confrontation with Dash and had only gotten louder since. That voice was screaming in her head now, and had it been a physical thing it would have been loud enough to shake the walls and shatter the windows.

How Dare They? The voice thundered in her head, making Twinkle Shine shudder. Rainbow Dash? They Would Use Rainbow Dash Against Me?

“Quiet, please!” the Professor pleaded as she crawled to her desk and struggled to open one of the drawers while the voice ranted in her mind. She pulled out a small rectangular mirror and set it carefully on the ground beneath her, then stared into the eyes of a reflection that was not her own. “I can barely hear myself think.”

“They Dare To Use Her Against Me?” the reflection snarled, her volume dropping down to mortal levels. “I Will Find Them And End Them.”

“I don’t even know if there’s a ‘them’ to find,” Professor Shine hissed. “She certainly believes she’s Rainbow Dash.”

“She Is Not,” the reflection insisted, her eyes flashing gold and white. “I Watched Rainbow Dash Die. I Watched Her Burn And Her Ashes Scattered To The Wind.”

“I know,” the Professor sighed. “She isn’t Rainbow Dash, but she could be something very close. She knows things. Impossible things. And she doesn’t even realize how impossible they are.”

“It Is Irrelevant,” the reflection said. “She Is A Threat.”

“Star Fall is in danger,” Twinkle Shine said in agreement. “This could be a ruse aimed at her.”

“The Student Has No Experience With Rainbow Dash. It Is More Likely To Be Aimed At Me,” the reflection pointed out.

“But why? And who would know enough to do that? Let alone the question of who could have the power to create a facsimile so close.”

“I Do Not Know,” the reflection stared at her, burning eyes narrowing. “The Forces Of War Gather. It Is Nearly Time For My Return.”

“I know,” Twinkle Shine sighed. “The timing is too much to be coincidence. And whoever she is and whatever purpose she has, she’s dragging Star Fall into it. I have to find a way to separate them without arousing suspicion.”

“The Student Can Be Persuaded.”

“How? How can I convince her?”

“Use Secrets. She Has Been Protected From The Truth For Too Long. It Is Time She Learned What Has Been Planned For Her.”

“I don’t want her exposed to that. She’s still so young, there's time yet.”

“She Is Old Enough To Spy For Gamma. She Is Old Enough To Know The Price Of Her Power.”

Twinkle Shine sighed. “She is, isn’t she? I can’t tell her everything, not yet, but I think I know what I can say to start her on the path to safety. It has to be done carefully, though. Slowly. I need to do it without making Gamma or Star Fall suspicious. They can't learn the truth yet.”

“Very Well. The Student Will Be Protected, And I Will Learn From This False Rainbow Dash Who Has Set Her Against Me. And Then I Shall Destroy Her.”

“So be it,” Twinkle Shine said as the voice faded and her reflection’s eyes ceased their glow. “Let the Nightmare fly once more.”

Prologue: A Canterlot Wedding Reception

It is from small moments and innocuous decisions that all great events are born. A butterfly flaps its wings, and there is a mighty hurricane. A filly sees the sunrise, and the world is saved. Three enemies share a laugh, and a great nation is founded. Small things can have large consequences.

In this case, the end of the world began with an argument between two sisters.

-Source unknown

Prologue: A Canterlot Wedding Reception

Her city celebrated.

Pegasus ponies danced among fireworks in the sky while their earthbound cousins twirled around lights both magical and mundane below. Music and song flowed from every quarter, and while it clashed at times, a current of harmony made even the most different of styles work to a common beat on this night. Voices called out in joy and laughter, and everywhere, absolutely everywhere, the magic of friendship sparkled in the eyes of her people.

Princess Celestia, ruler of the nation of Equestria, Shepherd of the Sun, looked down from the balcony of her personal chambers and smiled. Her gaze specifically lingered on the gardens of her castle. There the party had gotten off to a late start but was all the more intense for it and showed no signs of slowing down. Her little ponies danced and laughed and shared together with such fervour, such untainted joy that she felt her heart swell with pride. It had been a trying time, and they had all been so strong in finding their way through it.

Her eyes sought out one particular pony. Twilight Sparkle. The unicorn whom she had taken on as a student so many years ago was just as involved in the festivities as any other. She had even sang earlier, in front of the crowd no less! It was something the ancient monarch could not imagine the young mare she sent to Ponyville two years ago doing. Watching her now - confident, outgoing, making and enjoying friendships - in her secret heart Celestia delighted more in that image than in the joy of all the rest of her little ponies combined.

Celestia watched her student strut out onto the dance floor with two of her friends, then winced and sucked in a long, hissing breath. It was an amazing thing that Twilight had grown enough to actually participate in a party like this, but someone still needed to teach that filly how to dance.

A shadow fell over her, and Celestia looked up in time to see her sister glide down to the balcony. Luna, Princess of the Night, fellow ruler of Equestria, looked more than a little tipsy. She was clearly enjoying the celebrations a lot more than Celestia allowed herself to. Her uphill battle to improve her image with the populace had, ironically, given her much more freedom to interact with the ponies she ruled than her universally-beloved sister. Celestia had an image to maintain; Luna had an image to destroy. It was enough to make Celestia jealous of her younger sibling, a reversal of situation that she was absolutely overjoyed to accept as the payment for her sister's healing and safe return.

Luna touched down lightly, her silver shoes making little chiming sounds as she sidled up to Celestia and sat down. "It hath dawned on us, sister, that when Pinkie Pie throws a party she does not, as we have been informed our subjects are wont to say, 'buck around'."

"Luna," Celestia said, a warm admonishment in her tone.

"What, sister?" Luna asked, drawing herself into a regal pose. "Dost thou not appreciate such a fine turn of phrase? Or is it mayhap the festivities themselves that have in some way gained thy ire? Seeing as thou has planted thyself here, gazing down upon all from a perch high above, instead of joining thy subjects in merriment, one could be forgiven in thinking that thou has seen fit to spurn the celebration entire to play host to a fell mood."

Celestia snorted back a laugh. "No, Luna. Your elocution is slipping."

"What slander! We have not seen fit to give any of our subjects a taste of lightning in many a day!"

Celestia just smiled and shook her head. "Seriously, Luna? Elocution as electrocution?"

Luna shrugged. "What matter that my quips are suffering? I have taken many a mighty draught of the Griffin mead this night, I find it encouraging that I can carry a conversation at all."

"At least you've dropped the royal 'we'."

"Yes," Luna said, turning pensive for a moment. "When we began that tradition we spoke in the plural because the word of one of us was the word of both. I had not thought that such a practice would have been so ... forgotten."

"It wasn't right," Celestia said. "When you were gone, it wasn't my place to continue speaking for you. And a thousand years and a lot of hardship makes us all forget things that were important once upon a time." She nuzzled the smaller princess. "If you'd like we can re-start the tradition at court. Explain the reasoning behind it and I'm sure my little ponies will adapt to it in no time at all."

Luna shook her head. "No. It is a tradition that died for a reason, and I must move beyond it so as to become the Princess Equestria needs today, instead of the Princess it once shunned an eon past."

Celestia favoured her sister with one of her best smiles, then returned her gaze to the party below. "To answer your question, Luna, I am not spurning the party. Nor am I in any sort of dark mood. I just wanted to come up here and see it all, all the happiness my little ponies are feeling. It's always after times of hardship that they come together most strongly. While the Changeling invasion lasted only a few hours, it scared so many of them so badly. To see them now, unafraid and unfettered, it is a wonder and a delight."

"To make no mention of the royal wedding that has just occurred!" Luna said. "A matter for grand celebration beyond the survival of another attack on our fair nation."

"Indeed you are right," Celestia said. "I'm so sorry you weren't there."

"As am I, dear sister. Though that business you did have me watch over was of great import to our nation, I am greatly saddened that I was not there to see the grand wedding of our dear... what is she to us again, sister?" Luna asked with a sly look.

"Niece," Celestia replied.

"Ah, yes. Our dear niece. Prithee, sister, tell us which of our beloved siblings begat young Cadance? I am ashamed to admit that perhaps the mead has gone more to my head than I realized, for I am quite unable to remember having any siblings besides thyself at all."

Celestia laughed this time. "Oh Luna, you couldn't have asked this when you first met her?"

"Perhaps I should have," Luna said. "But there is much about this world of which I am wholly ignorant after my banishment. I had always intended to ask, but the thought would slip from my mind whenever I had the chance to, crowded out by more pressing and immediate concerns. Now, please, what is the girl to us?"

"She is a direct descendant of the Unicorn King," Celestia replied, memories of a time far more than a millennium gone bringing a wistful smile to her lips.

"Ah, and so many questions are answered and new ones arise." Luna said, contemplating similar recollections. "Did they finally succeed, then? Is she like us? She seems so much more... complete than their first attempts."

"They did succeed, in a way. But no, she's not like us," Celestia said. "She is a unicorn of great power, but she lacks much of the Pegasus magic beyond cloudwalking and a little bit to help her fly, and she has no Earth Pony magic at all."

"And yet you refer to it as a success?" Luna asked, frowning. "That is no more than the wretched experiments were capable of a thousand years past."

"Please, Luna, they were wonderful ponies," Celestia held Luna's glare only for a few moments before relenting. "Okay, some of them were wonderful ponies. You liked Electrum Dream, at least." Luna finally broke her glare and snorted derisively. As her sister stared out over the city, Celestia couldn’t help but think she was remembering the unicorn princess she had once been friendly rivals with, long before the Nightmare found her. "Cadance is special,” Celestia continued. “There are a few others like her around, winged unicorn throwbacks to the experiments the unicorn royals did to insinuate themselves into our rule. The actual experimentation, the quest to become like us, ended not long after you... left."

Luna's eyes turned downcast. "It always comes back to that, doesn't it?"

"It was the end of an era," Celestia said. "So many things ended or were changed because of it. For the Unicorn Royals, I told them that their attempts would create another Nightmare before it could ever result in a success, and after the devastation of Nightmare Moon the only response they could have was to abandon what they were doing. In recompense for giving up their dream I integrated them officially into the court. All direct descendants of the Unicorn King are princes and princesses of Equestria now, officially as my nieces and nephews. And yours, now, as well. Every few generations one of the family lines produces a winged unicorn."

"Such as Mi Amore Cadenza."

"Yes," Celestia confirmed. "But as I said, Cadance is special. She may not have all the magic of the three tribes as we do, but what she does have is a piece of the Deep Power."

"Does she?" Luna asked, impressed enough to forget her momentary melancholy. "I have never felt it in her."

"It isn't nearly as much as you or I have, Luna, but the fact that it's there at all is incredible. She can only call upon it sometimes. Such as when she and Shining Armor repelled the Changeling invasion."

"I have heard it was quite the feat of magic," Luna said, an excited smile gracing her features. "A great wave of pink light that washed away all the vile changelings from our fair capitol. I have no doubt that stories will be told of this day for centuries! Although, I did hear some of the guards making light of Shining Armor's barrier, especially its grand hue. Sister, tell me in truth, is pink no longer a proper stallion's color?"

Celestia choked back another laugh. "No, Luna. It's been taken by the fillies I'm afraid."

"Oh. I must confess that I had been assuming much about the sexual preferences of our subjects simply by the fashions and colors they chose to employ. So many mares in pink. Now I perhaps understand better the reaction I got when inviting them all to a rousing game of hoofball."

Celestia couldn't hold it back this time, letting out a long and hearty laugh. "Oh, Luna, sister, thank you. I might have poked fun at it earlier, but your sense of humor is as strong as ever."

"A-ha-ha. Yes. Humor," Luna said, perfectly straight face marred only by the way her eyes darted from side to side. "In any case, Cadance has demonstrated a sliver of the Deep Power, you say. I would assume from the way in which recent events have played that it manifests only in response to a great need in her Talent."

"Yes, and Cadance's Talent has always been Love. Encouraging it in others and experiencing it in herself." It had been one of the reasons Celestia had encouraged her to foalsit. Her caring personality and Special Talent could only have positive effects on a certain young Unicorn who was going to need to know as much about caring and friendship as possible.

"A strong power to have," Luna mused. "As great, some might say, as the Elements of Harmony themselves."

Celestia looked back down at the party where the bearers of those items were watching as two of their number engaged in a hoof-wrestling match. "Yes, some might say that." And they would be wrong, she silently added.

"The Elements of Harmony," Luna said, following her sister's gaze. "And with true bearers to match. It is quite lucky that Cadance so wished them to be a part of her wedding that, despite having never met five of them before, she had made solid plans for their attendance long before Chrysalis took her place."

"They are quite famous in some circles," Celestia pointed out. "And famously led by my own personal student Twilight Sparkle, whom Cadance had met and formed quite a bond with. As a Princess of Equestria it was only right that such celebrated personages attend her nuptials."

"Of course,” Luna said, unamused with Celestia’s thinly-veiled bragging. “And so wonderful that they each had something important to contribute directly to the wedding itself, other than their presence."

"They are immensely talented ponies," Celestia said.

"That is a certainty. I'm told that they fought off nearly a hundred Changelings while making their way to the Tower of Harmony, before they were overwhelmed," Luna said, dramatically throwing up a hoof as if imagining a great battle.

"An exaggeration. There was likely no more than fifty Changelings. Probably closer to thirty," Celestia said.

"Ah, Rainbow Dash does appear to have something of the braggart to her," Luna mused, looking down at the pony in question, who had lost the wrestling match and was apparently badgering Applejack for another try.

"Only something?" Celestia asked, eyebrow raised.

"Am I mistaken again?" Luna asked, looking back to her sister. "I was under the impression that it was not arrogance to claim ability where one actually possesses it."

"Still true, Luna, but it's become less socially acceptable to rub everypony else's face in it."

"Was that a criticism?" Luna smiled mischievously. "By Celestia? Of one of her subjects? Why, I have barely heard such from you in the two years I have been free. I had begun to think that perhaps you had transcended such things in my long absence."

"No, Luna, I've simply learned to hide some of my less pleasant opinions more securely." Celestia sighed. She knew where this conversation was going, and as much as she was delaying the inevitable a part of her wished her sister would just hurry up and get there. It was hard enough to know what was coming, this slow drawing out truly grated on her nerves.

"Very well, but braggart or not, Rainbow Dash has regaled me with all the myriad goings-on that I missed due to my daily tasks outside of the city. She can be quite the storyteller when she is wont to be. The descriptions of their flight through the city to the Tower of Harmony and the battle with the thirty-or-hundred Changelings were quite exhilarating. I felt their despair as they were captured so close to their goal, and their triumph as Cadance and Shining Armor used their love to blast away Chrysalis and her brood."

"It is a wonderful tale," Celestia said, watching as the festivities had switched to some sort of karaoke event with Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy in a duet.

"Indeed it is. Though I found myself glad that the bearers failed to gain the Elements. Can you imagine it? The power of Harmony unleashed three times in two years?" Luna was closing in on her goal now. The smile vanished from her face and her stare bore down on Celestia, made heavier with the rising anger that tightened Luna's musical voice. "And this time, not for an otherwise unconquerable foe, but for a meagre beast such as Chrysalis? 'Twas a shame I was not there, else I would have made short work of the so-called queen and her retinue, and spared the bearers the burden that nearly fell to them."

"Yes," Celestia agreed in a dead voice. "You would have."

"Oh, but there is one curious part of the tale that I had to be told thrice before I could accept it," Luna said. The obviously forced joviality in her tone stung Celestia like a slap. "You fought her, that Changeling queen, in all your majesty, and were defeated by main strength. Then you told the bearers to seek the Elements, as they were their only hope. Quite curious."

"Well, Luna, it's been a while since I've had to fight anything, and I've been extremely out of practice," Celestia said, but her words lacked conviction. "Also, Changelings gain power from love, and she was feeding from both Shining Armor and Cadance, who, you'll recall, has Love as her Talent as well as access to the Deep Power. Is it so strange that I, a Princess of a long-peaceful nation, might fail in such a circumstance? And am I so removed from Ponydom that I would not have a moment of panic on that occasion and perhaps make a foolish request?"

Luna fell silent for a long moment, thinking deeply. "Yes," she finally allowed. "Under such circumstances, I suppose, as you say a Princess of a long-peaceful nation might falter, and panic. I would accept this but for one fact."

Here it comes, Celestia thought, closing her eyes and waiting for the inevitable blade to fall.

"You have been raising the sun and moon for the past thousand years, and she bested you in a contest of main strength!" Luna snarled as she rose to her hooves, her wings snapping open in her rage. Her volume reached close to Royal Canterlot Voice levels and Celestia winced, hoping the music in the garden would be loud enough to cover the shouting. "She did not use war magics or trickery or indirect means or some will-sapping power! You blasted raw magic at each other, and she won out! How can this be?"

"Luna," Celestia said, trying to be soothing and placate her furious sister.

"No, sister!" Luna snapped, stepping away from Celestia and pacing back and forth across the balcony as she talked. "I have drunk a barrel of mead to gain the courage to confront you on this! I will say my peace before you claim yours! You let her win! It would have been a trifle to overmatch her, even strong with Love as she was! We have known it since the early days of our reign, no being, pony or not, can match us in direct power. We can be defeated by cleverness, and deceit, and unknown magics, but only one force we have ever faced has been able to overwhelm our power completely! And equal to the Elements of Harmony Chrysalis is not."

"The Elements aren't the only thing stronger than us," Celestia said, remaining seated by the railing as she watched her sister stalk around her.

"Pfah! He does not count!" Luna stamped one hoof, the silver shoe ringing a clear tone against the marbled floor. "You let her win, and then you commanded the bearers seek out the Elements. Not in panic, but with purpose! As I recall the events of the past several weeks, I find that I was called to be away during the day just at the point Chrysalis would have made her switch. Then I could return only at night, to watch for the threatened attack, and could spend no time with our 'niece'. Yet you did spend time with her, and knowing her as well as you seem to, would have been aware of the change in attitude completely at odds with her normal character. Yet you were not suspicious, yet you ignored your own faithful student, who is perhaps the most intelligent mare I have ever met, when she was warning everypony about what she discovered! You knew!" Luna stopped her pacing and shoved an accusing hoof at Celestia's face. "You knew that Chrysalis had taken Cadance's place, and you set her up! You were planning to have the bearers wield the Elements against her all along!"

"Luna!" Celestia shouted, cutting off her sister's tirade. The two Princesses stared at each other in silence for a minute, gathering themselves. Then Celestia dropped her gaze, her wings fluttering restlessly in her guilt. "Yes. I knew. I recognized the disguised Changeling within minutes of being in her presence. I almost revealed her then, but then I considered alternative options. Yes, the bearers of the Elements were planned to be part of the celebrations, but that was Cadance's idea, not mine. Cadance was close with Twilight since before she was my student, and marrying her brother. Of course Twilight was going to be there, and with the rest of the bearers and their individual skills, it only seemed right to invite them all to do what they do best for Cadance's big day. That was all decided long before I ever knew of Chrysalis."

"I see," Luna said, voice cold. Her wings were once more furled at her sides, but Celestia did not mistake that for an end to her anger. "Continue."

"With our spies learning of the imminent attack and Chrysalis taking Cadance's place, I knew it was all connected, and I knew when it would all come to a head," Celestia said. The words were leaving Celestia in a rush, as if she were a balloon filled with secrets that Luna had poked a hole in. "I let Chrysalis think she had me fooled. She was never foolish enough to use mind-controlling magic on me, but she kept up the act far better around me than she ever did around everypony else. I played oblivious and let her go on, waiting for the moment when she revealed herself and I could make the bearers take up the Elements once more. You're completely right about that. I threw the fight. I made Twilight and the others think Chrysalis was a real threat, then sent them for the Elements. I hadn't quite realized how many Changelings Chrysalis had brought with her, otherwise I would have made the battle a little more spectacular in order to injure enough Changelings that they would have made it. After they were captured I was just about to step in before Cadance and Shining Armor saved the day. That's the truth."

Luna just looked at her sister, expression unreadable, before responding with one whispered question. "Why?"

"Because I didn't want to be the one to save the day again," Celestia said, sighing. "My little ponies are so precious to me, but they love the idea of me so much that they forget I'm not an omnipotent god. I am, at best, a pony of a god. Flawed, imperfect, sometimes careless, and unable to always be there to save them if they fall too far. The more my little ponies rely on themselves, the happier a world this will be. On the day when they no longer need me as their Princess, I think I will sing with more joy than I have since we first used the Elements of Harmony. It's been a painfully slow process, but I've been working on it for a couple centuries now, and I take every opportunity to move it along."

"No," Luna said. Her voice was quiet now, as cold and distant as the moon she commanded. "Thy personal fatigue with thy rule is not what I was asking for. To encourage our subjects to rely upon themselves and the relationships they build together is a noble thing, and while I would suggest that thou needst not tear thyself down to build them up, I find it utterly besides the point. That to which my question pertained was the matter of the bearers of the Elements, which thou didst knowingly send to use those weapons once again!"

"They aren't weapons!" Celestia protested, locking gazes once more with her sister.

"Have we ever used them otherwise?" Luna demanded. "Sister! Such power is too great to be used in any but the most dire of needs! Even for us the power of the Elements was overwhelming, for mortal ponies the damage can only be catastrophic!"

"The Elements don't injure them," Celestia said.

"Not in body, perhaps, but in spirit?"

"Not in spirit either. Do you think I would subject them to such danger?"

"I think thou dost not know what the Elements truly are," Luna accused. Celestia stayed silent, she had no response to that. "Did you ever find the truth about them?" Luna asked, making an effort to speak in modern Equestrian as she resumed her pacing. "Who made them? For what purpose? What we do not know about the Elements far outweighs what we know. And they do cause damage to the spirit, sister. I have had them turned against me twice now, and I know. Even to the wielder they do damage. I saw what they did to you when you turned them on me, and I cannot help but feel the Nightmare would not have found me had we been less free in our use of that power."

"We just found them, Luna," Celestia replied, trying not to slump against the balcony's railing. This was their first real argument since Luna's return, and it was draining her reserves of control faster than she would have thought possible. "We could use them because of what we are. The others who bore them for us were the same. These six? They were destined to bear them. I think the Elements themselves chose these ponies to wield them. Our severed connection with them is evidence enough. We were just temporary guardians, waiting to pass them along to their true owners."

"And does that make a difference?" Luna demanded. "They are still mortal ponies."

"Yes, I believe it does," Celestia said, conviction filling her and stilling her restless wings. "What I did today was wrong. I will admit that to you. But getting them to become more comfortable with using the Elements? That I think is necessary."

"Why? What have you foreseen that would require such facility with those weapons?"

"They aren't weapons, Luna," Celestia gently insisted. "That power, it's not meant to destroy. No matter how we used them in the past. You're right, when I turned them on you, it hurt. Not just because of how I was forced to hurt my own sister, but in a way that felt like something was being torn out of me in a very real, very literal sense."

"Your mane changed," Luna said. It was as much a question as a statement of fact.

"Yes," Celestia said, turning introspective as she remembered the long hours over the centuries spent trying to find the reason for that change. "I didn't understand what it was. I still don't. I was still connected to the Elements, I was until Twilight and the others took them up against Nightmare Moon. I searched my heart and my soul, and while it ached for your loss, it was otherwise whole. They do not hurt their bearers, Luna. They perhaps do something else, but they do not cause damage."

Celestia looked down again, at the six friends who took up so much of her thoughts in the last few years. They sat around a table now, laughing quietly so as not to disturb the young dragon who had fallen asleep and wrapped himself in the table-cloth. "I had hoped that the Elements had chosen bearers because you were due to return. When I realized Twilight was chosen by the Element of Magic I knew that I was not going to have to use them against you again myself. I knew that the Elements had chosen bearers to free you from the Nightmare, not just banish you for a millennium. I searched high and low for the other bearers, found them, and gathered them all in the place I had prepared to meet your return."

"Hah, I was sensing far too much contrivance in that," Luna snorted.

"Contrived or not, I think all I was doing was speeding up the process. Those six would have found each other one way or another, and taken up their Elements with or without my guidance," Celestia said, watching the friends in question talk, almost envious of their camaraderie. "Twilight was the worst in that regard. So very anti-social. You have no idea how many nights I stayed up fretting about how she was going to forge the bonds necessary to use the Elements. I couldn't be overt on that, of course. False friendship pretended to for necessity would never have worked. But every manipulation I made to get her to open up to others failed utterly. On the eve of the Summer Sun Celebration I was such a nervous wreck I couldn't even go out among my little ponies and join in the all-night party."

"I remember. I was much disappointed when you didn't fight or scream or beg. You just seemed relieved," Luna mused on that for a moment. "I suppose in a way that contributed greatly to my freedom. I was so disturbed by your lack of resistance I could not focus my all upon the ponies seeking the Elements. I am in the confusing position of thanking you for being more worried about your student's hermitic nature than my own imminent return. Is my pride pricked, or am I grateful?"

"Be grateful, Luna. You are free."

Luna nodded smartly. "Grateful then. Yet you were coming to a point about the Elements and their bearers, continue."

"The point is they came together, and they freed you. I was overjoyed, and I locked away the Elements, secure in the knowledge that their work was done. With my sister at my side there was nothing that we couldn't handle together. Twilight and her friends could live out their lives as the heroes they were, celebrated or unknown as was their choice. I resolved to spend more time among my little ponies and with a few minor Dragon and Parasprite related snags, everything was running smoothly," Celestia smiled, but that smile quickly fell away. "Then Discord returned."

In an instant the temperature plummeted to far below freezing. Frost grew like white moss out from the hooves of the Princess of the Night, crackling like fire in the sudden stillness. Her eyes glowed, burning white with anger far greater than that which she had directed towards Celestia earlier. "Do not say his name," she hissed. "He should not be given the honor of such recognition."

"His name is a concept, Luna. I can't very well ban it," Celestia chided, careful to keep her voice neutral.

The rage in Luna's eyes faded away, and the temperature began its slow climb back to normal. "Forgive me, sister. The thought of him, it does me ill."

"There is nothing to forgive, Luna. It disturbs me as well." Celestia favored her sister with as comforting a smile as she could manage before she continued. "More so in that only the Elements could defeat him. This has always been true. Yet with our connection to the Elements severed, only Twilight and her friends could defeat him, and I was unable to help them fight. I had to watch as they were twisted by his games, one by one. I was reduced to trying anything in a desperate attempt to bring them back to themselves. Fortunately, my student has never been able to resist the written word and tends to throw herself completely into what she's reading. All those wonderful friendship reports, one a week, every week, perfect for jogging memories of better times."

"And so they defeated him," Luna said, once more coming over to sit beside her fellow Princess. "A sound and great victory, made a great deal more quickly than our own victory over the monster. Sent him back to his granite prison for eternity."

"The very fact that they had to use the Elements again made me start thinking. Thinking that your return was not the reason the Elements chose bearers, or at least not the only one. They were chosen, Luna, for a purpose. Just like the Elements were made for a purpose, and in the same way we don't know what that purpose is. My assumption that it was for you was arrogant, and I see that know. However, because I do not know why they were chosen, and because I cannot simply make assumptions about it anymore, I must instead help them to be ready to face whatever challenge it was that they were chosen for."

"And you think that by having them use the Elements at every opportunity they will be so prepared?" Luna asked, incredulous.

"Well, there is a learning curve with them, you remember?" Celestia said, glancing at her sister before letting her gaze drift off into the night sky. "Those six have a natural affinity for their Elements, but they still need experience with them to be able to control the power, to direct it. The Elements aren't a weapon, to be primed and fired like a cannon. They require understanding, finesse, confidence. They need not only their bearers to be harmonious with each other, but also for each bearer to be harmonious with their Element. They need to experience them more, or they might not be ready for whatever comes next."

"And what does come next, sister?" Luna asked, her own eyes watching the Sun Princess, searching for answers.

"I don't know," Celestia shook her head, shivering. "And it terrifies me. The only foes that ever required the use of the Elements were Nightmare Moon and ... him. Every other enemy we used them against could likely have been defeated another way. It was just easier and more efficient to use the biggest power we had, and we can't have been using them properly when we did that."

"And is that different from sending them against Chrysalis?" Luna asked.

Celestia cringed. "Not at all. Of course. I am not perfect, and sometimes my own fear blinds me as much as it does anypony." The explanation felt hollow, but it was still the truth. Celestia returned her gaze to the gardens, her features tight with worry. "Yet still it remains. They are going to need to use the Elements again. I can feel it, in the part of me that is the Deep Power, in the moment before sunrise when everything is potential and nothing is made certain yet. Those ponies have yet to face their greatest challenge, and when it comes I will not be there to protect them."

Luna joined her in gazing down at the bearers, still talking and laughing but making their way back to the dance floor. "You must not manipulate them like that again. I will not stand for it. They are my friends, and my saviours. I cannot countenance such a violation of their trust."

"I promise, Luna," Celestia said without hesitation. "I cannot say I will curtail all my meddling, but I will not try to force them to take up the Elements again. On that you have my word."

"Good," Luna sagged against the railing, sighing miserably. "Yet now my thoughts are much like your own, and I find that your certainty has been shared. I, too, believe their use of the Elements, and the challenges that come with it, are not over for them. Huzzah, the angst has been doubled."

"No, Luna," Celestia said, raising her sister's chin with a gentle hoof. "This isn't a multiplication of worry, but the sharing of a burden. I know it will be lighter with you here to carry it with me. I should have remembered that, we are always stronger together than we are alone."

"Ah, the lesson of Harmony. How easily do we forget," Luna said, then smiled at her big sister, leaning over to nuzzle her softly. "There must be a better way to allow them to become more familiar with their Elements. One that doesn't involve lying to them or letting threats to the nation go through with their evil plan."

Celestia stared down at those girls. At Fluttershy swanning gracefully about the dance floor, her shyness forgotten in the warm glow of the cider she'd been drinking. At Applejack, bouncing back and forth in an energetic rodeo routine adapted for the steady beat coming out of DJ PON-3's magical speakers. At Pinkie Pie, who seemed to be in ten places at once, some of them physically impossible for her to get to. At Rarity, who was doing her best to match Fluttershy's grace without mussing up her dress too much. At Rainbow Dash, who was proving that breakdancing had never lost its awesomeness, it just needed the right pony to rediscover it.

Finally, she looked at Twilight Sparkle, the most powerful unicorn she'd ever seen in all her incredibly long life, her personal student and treasured friend. Twilight Sparkle, who at times felt almost like a daughter to the Princess. The bearer of the Element of Magic, the one who brought the others together, who faced Nightmare Moon, who defeated the spirit of Chaos and Disharmony. Twilight Sparkle, who even now was...

"Sister, is your student having some sort of fit?" Luna asked.

Celestia sighed. "No, Luna, that's just the way she dances. Now, hush, I was following a train of thought."

Twilight Sparkle, who even now was dancing like... no, skip that thought. Twilight Sparkle, who was diligently researching the endless font of wonder that is the Magic of Friendship. Twilight Sparkle who would... research diligently and thoroughly absolutely anything the Princess told her to.

"Luna," Celestia said with building excitement. "I think I know how to do it."

"No tricks?" Luna asked, eyes narrowed warily. "No manipulations or lies?"

"No. I'll be as straightforward as possible," Celestia promised.

"Very well then, sister," Luna said, pulling away. "I shall take my leave."

Celestia frowned at that. "Oh? I was hoping you would stay with me a while. I do so love spending as much time with you as I can, and now that my greatest burden is off my back I would like to talk with you some more."

"Ah, yes. As would I, dear sister," Luna assured her. "However, as I have told you, my courage to face you in accusation and debate is somewhat lacking when I am in my clearest head. Hence I didst drink far more than my measure, and now do I pay the cost. My bladder is fit to burst and there are foreboding rumblings that stir within my stomach. Thus I depart to the water closet. I might be some time. Best continue without me," she stood, trotting back into the castle.

"Oh. Well. Uh. That's my bathroom you’re heading towards. Don't make too much of a mess, please."

"Fear not, I shall be as conscientious as befits a Princess of the Night," Luna gave her sister a smile. "But please, dear sister. Thy subjects wish to see thee amongst them, not simply watching from above. Thou art their rock and their guide, and I know thou feel they depend upon thee too greatly, but thou art yet their Princess. Be with them, be among them as you and they both wish. This is a night of celebration! As such it is my domain, and I give thee permission to cease for a time to be the one set above and become instead the one set beside."

Celestia grinned at that, it was just like Luna to get poetic as a parting shot. "I will, Luna. I promise."

"Excellent. Now, turn away so as my unprincessly gallop may go unwitnessed."

Celestia snorted with laughter, but turned her head back to the party. Her thoughts burned with an idea. It was elegant, simple, easy, and far, far too obvious. She was forced to wonder if she had become so used to thinking four layers deep that she was missing the golden insights that lay only on the surface. That thought bore some consideration, but for another time. Now she summoned up a scroll, quill and ink. She need not send this as a letter, Twilight was going to be in Canterlot for the next few days and would need to know about her new assignment, and have the tools to complete it, before she left. Yet the form of their communication had become so ingrained it didn't feel right to start this any other way. With a shrug she gave in to the impulse and began her letter.

To my most Faithful Student, Twilight Sparkle

I am so glad that you were able to rescue Cadance, and myself, from Chrysalis and her Changelings. While it might have been Cadance and Shining Armor who cast the spell that defeated them, I know that it was you who gave her the confidence to try. I am so proud of you, my little pony.

Your studies in the Magic of Friendship have progressed quite well, and I am hearing that you are looking for opportunities to branch out into other subjects. I believe I have just the thing. The Elements of Harmony are a mystery even to myself and Luna. Their origins, their true purpose, and even how they work is not understood. All we know is that they are a powerful magic that you and your friends are connected to on a deep level. Since we know so little of the Elements I believe it is time somepony did a proper study of them, and I cannot think of a better candidate to undergo this research than you, my faithful student. It also dovetails nicely with your Friendship research, since the Magics of Friendship and Harmony are related.

I will be sending you home with the Elements for you and your friends. Please be careful with them, and do not lose them. One never knows when their power will be needed again. I know this is a great responsibility, but you have shown me that you are more than worthy of it.

I will not be needing regular reports on your progress, Twilight. However, I will expect a presentation of your findings periodically. Perhaps once a year? Eventually, I would like to see all the research you've done be properly published. In any event, I look forward to seeing what you discover.

Sincerely, Princess Celestia

Twilight put down the letter she had been hoof-delivered. They would be leaving for Ponyville in a couple of days, and she looked forward to spending the intervening time with her parents and the Princesses, but this threw her for a loop. Her, studying the Elements of Harmony? The most powerful magic known to Ponykind? A mystery even to the Princesses?

She jumped around her room shouting "Yes!" over and over again for a good ten minutes before she was calm enough to actually process what the Princess was asking her to do. This was a whole new area of research. New frontiers, new boundaries, new rules. The books on the Elements of Harmony talked about what they had been used to do, and even that was thousand-year-old knowledge that may or may not have been lost, misremembered or just plain lied about. Even the Elements of Harmony Reference Guide blatantly stated that no one knew how the Elements did whatever they did, worse yet it didn't even know about the Element of Magic. She would be the first pony in a thousand years to be able to study the Elements properly, and with so little information even from the Princesses she might be the first to study them properly ever!

How was she going to begin? Jump right into experimentation, or collect all the periphery data from those thousand-year-old books first? What sort of tests could she even devise for them? Oh, there were just too many ideas!

Twilight pulled a scroll from her traveling desk, grabbing the quill and poising it above the page. She would start with the first thing that she always started with. A checklist! But what should be the first item on the checklist, and what, really, was the checklist about? Should she make a checklist for what she needed to do in order to make this checklist?

No. She needed to back off. Think about this differently. This wasn't like her usual research efforts. This was serious business. She couldn't be goofing off with checklists about checklists. That was fun, but this was the big leagues. This was a personal request for actual, serious research from the Princess herself! She needed to take a whole new approach this time.

She spent a long time staring at the blank page, turning it all over in her thoughts. Finally, with a slow, even smoothness that her writing usually didn't possess, she inked her quill and began to write.

Kindness, Laughter, Generosity, Honesty, Loyalty, Magic. Why those specific traits? What makes it so those six create the Magic of Harmony? How? What are they? What do they mean? What can they do? What can't they do? What is their purpose? Why were we chosen to bear them? What does being a bearer mean?

Twilight raised the quill, staring at the questions she had laid out. Well, it was no checklist, but it was a start. She would have to think about this a lot more before she could even begin to answer any of those questions. She had a feeling it was going to take a long, long time to work through this. The Princess might just have given her the project of a lifetime.

Twilight Sparkle smiled. She was very, very okay with that idea.

She started to put the quill down, but stopped, staring at the page with its burst of possibly-unanswerable questions. She wanted to share this enthusiasm with her friends. She was sure they'd be as interested as her to find out the truth about the Elements they had all been chosen to wield. It was going to be an exciting time. She just couldn’t tear herself away yet. The page felt unfinished, somehow. As if a stream-of-consciousness assortment of questions and ideas could ever be finished or unfinished. With a grin Twilight realized what was holding her there. The page was missing something, and she knew exactly what that was. With a laugh she scribbled a few words as a heading to the page before magically drying the ink and bounding towards the door.

Harmony Theory