Flurry Heart's Story: Let My Ponies Go!

by AleximusPrime

Rating: everyone
Tags: Anthology, Pound Cake, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Flurry Heart, Pumpkin Cake, Somnambula, Adventure
Length: 15571

While Flurry Heart and her friends are vacationing in Southern Equestria, they meet Somnambula who is studying clues leading to a mysterious temple where she finds an old friend.

Flurry and her friends get a chance to vacation in Southern Equestria with Spike, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Mrs. Cake. After meeting Somnambula, they are immediately thrown into adventure and peril when she finds a map that leads them to a cave in the desert mountains. Inside is an ancient temple where Somnambula is to meet an "old friend" as the map describes. What they don't know is this temple is booby-trapped and this mysterious correspondent is not here to be Somnambula's friend at all...

Inspired by the official show, this is part of a fan-made sequel series I created called "Flurry Heart's Story", which documents the adventures of Flurry Heart as she makes friends and faces new and familiar villains, some of which may still be redeemable.

Next story: Tirek vs Scorpan

Flurry Heart's Story and its author are in no way associated with Hasbro or any of the creative team behind My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. This series is entirely fan-made and is created in honor of the official show. No copyright infringement is intended or encouraged. Please support the official release.

Published 2022-02-14 21:00:01 UTC
Last updated 2022-05-29 17:22:30 UTC

1. Arriving to Somnambula

The train raced by through the desert of Southern Equestria. Its destination was the village of Somnambula, named after the famed ‘Pillar of Equestria’ who had protected her people from many evils in the past.

Inside the train were Spike, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Mrs. Cake, and Flurry and her five friends. They were all vacationing in Southern Equestria with Spike and their mothers, serving as chaperons. While the mothers talked amongst one another, Spike was sprawled out on his seat, snoring. The kids were all admiring the sights outside their window.

“Whoooah!” said Storm Streak, “Look at those big pointy things out there!”

“Those are called pyramids, silly!” Flurry giggled as she put down the book she was reading.

“Er, right. What are they for even?”

“Ancient Southern Equestrians built them to bury old kings known as ‘pharaohs.’ They’d put them in coffins and wrap them up in cloths.”

“Oooh, you mean mummies! Cool! We could go in and fight zombies then!”

Flurry rolled her eyes and shook her head back and forth teasingly as Stormy flew around speaking.

“Yeah, I don’t think those old pharaohs are gonna awaken in there, bud,” Pound told Stormy. “We’re here to see the pyramids from the outside along with the sphinx statue and plenty of other stuff, but I’m not sure they’d allow us into the pyramids. It’s okay though; there’s still plenty of great things to see.”

“Plus they’ll have some really cool souvenirs in the marketplace!” said Pumpkin.

“And we might even see Somnambula there,” Annie added.

“Somnambula? You mean the place we’re going to?” Stormy asked.

“No, he means the pony Somnambula. They named the city after her a long time ago,” Chip said.

“Oh, yeah. Her. Well I mostly just know about Flash Magnus. Mom always told me about how cool he was back when they all came back to stop the Pony of Shadows!”

Stormy flew over to Rainbow Dash to nudge her as he spoke. She smiled and patted him on the head.

“Flash was something else, Storm,” she said. “Somnambula’s also pretty neat. She’s a pegasus just like we are.”

“And she and the Pillars sure were the talk of the town over a thousand years ago,” Applejack added.

Suddenly, the train began to slow down and let off steam. Spike was startled from the light jolt and began to wake up.

“Ugh…we there yet?” he asked, rubbing his eyes.

“We’re there, big fella,” Mrs. Cake told him. “Alright kids, who’s ready for vacation?”

The kids all cheered and made their way to the door of their cab. Spike picked up the big suitcases and started carrying them while the mothers carried some smaller ones with their mouths and the kids carried backpacks. They walked out the door and stepped onto the station platform. There were many other ponies at the station. Some were from afar, while others appeared to be Southern Equestrians boarding to travel or waiting for loved ones to exit the train to greet them.

“WHOO! Man it’s a lot hotter here than Ponyville!” said Chip, fanning himself.

“That’s the south for ya, buckaroo,” Applejack told her son. “We farmers don’t even feel the same kinda heat the Southern Equestrians do, but at least we came prepared.”

“It’s hot but it’s still so beautiful seeing what the desert looks like!” Annie said, staring at the horizon out on the edge of the platform.

“Maybe we’ll see a giant sphinx roaming around!” Pumpkin said, bounding in next to her.

“Uh oh. I hope not,” Annie said, nervously.

“Pump, don’t scare her like that,” Pound said, elbowing his sister. “Don’t worry Annie, I heard the sphinxes keep to themselves in the mountains nowadays.”

“According to what Twilight told me, the sphinxes live out in places like the wilderness, the mountains or out by the sea where they have access to water. They’re pretty wild like the dragons, but they’re at peace with Southern Equestria now.”

“We’ve got nothing to worry about,” Spike told the children. “I think everything’s gotten better ever since Somnambula stood up to Anatankha.”

“Alright now, everypony and dragon. We don’t wanna be late for our check-in at the hotel,” Mrs. Cake told them as she flashed her ticket to a nearby guard who let her through a terminal.

“She’s right. Let’s go get checked in and then we can go shopping in the market!” Spike said as they all followed Mrs. Cake.

A few hours later, they had already gotten checked in and dropped off their luggage. Now was the time to go sightseeing in town and look for nifty trinkets. Mrs. Cake had already bought herself a sun hat while Rainbow Dash was wearing new sunglasses. The kids couldn’t help but stop to gaze at some of the wonders of the town of Somnambula. There were ponies in the streets doing amazing acts like fire-blowing, dancing, and snake-charming. Spike was in charge of the camera and used it to take photos of the things the kids seemed to love most.

“This place sure is cool!” Stormy said.

“Good thing we picked it for a vacation spot with Flurry visiting this year!” Chip replied.

“Hopefully we can make it next year, though I wouldn’t mind trying Baltimare too.” Flurry said.

“There’s a really cool Daring Do convention next year in Baltimare so I have a feeling Dash and Stormy are really wanna go there,” Spike said.

“THERE’S A DARING DO CONVENTION NEXT YEAR?!” Stormy squealed.

“There is kiddo, but we’re gonna need to save up our money if we wanna make it,” Rainbow Dash told her son. “It’s happening this year too but we all decided to come to Southern Equestria this time while your father, Tex, and Mr. Cake are gonna take you kids to the park in a few weeks.”

“Aw, okay,” Stormy said. “Least I get to finally go on the big kid rides this time!”

“Hey, everypony, come check this out!” Applejack said as she stood with a crowd that was watching an acrobatic show. Some of the kids and the mothers went over to join her while Spike and Flurry decided to watch from a distance.

“You glad we came here, Flurry?” Spike asked the little princess.

“I really am, Spike,” she replied. “I never got to see Southern Equestria, I just wish Mom and Dad could’ve been here. It’s too bad they still have a lot going on in the Crystal Empire.”

“Don’t worry, I’m sure they’ll be able to join you someday. You miss them a lot?”

“I do miss them, but I’m glad they let me stay with you guys for the rest of the summer. It’s been a lot of fun and we’ve had quite a few emotional turns like with Cozy the other day. I hope we can help her soon. I’d hate for it to happen while I’m gone this fall.”

“Hopefully she comes around. For now, things like this are a good distraction from some of the chaos.”

“Hehe, don’t say that in front of Discord.”

“Spike! Princess!” said a voice off to the side.

Spike and Flurry turned to see Somnambula standing a few yards away from them. She was just as Flurry had remembered; she just had a different headdress and necklace now and had her tail tied up with several metal rings. She smiled warmly as she greeted the familiar faces.

“Somnambula!” Flurry said as she rushed over to hug her.

“Hey, Somny! Long time!” Spike replied, walking over.

“It’s so good to see both of you! I heard through a letter from Starswirl that Flurry Heart would be here along with the new friends she’s made. I was in town and I thought I’d stop by to say hello.”

“Well hey, is that you Somnambula?” said Applejack as the others began to walk away from the performance, wondering what Flurry and Spike were doing.

“It is! Great to see ya again, Somny!” Rainbow Dash said, giving Somnambula a hoof bump.

“Guys, we found her!” Flurry told her friends, excitedly. “This is Somnambula, the Element of Hope!”

“Wow! Great to finally meet you, ma’am!” Chip said, bowing politely with his sister.

“Hi, Miss Somnambula!” Pumpkin said, joyfully. “It’s awesome getting to see some of the Pillars of Equestria like this. We finally got to meet Starswirl the other day and now you!”

“Pretty neat, right Stormy? Uh…Stormy?” asked Pound as he looked up.

Stormy hadn’t spoken a single word for he was too busy staring at Somnambula. He had never seen a mare so beautiful as her. Not even thinking about how grown up she was compared to him, he was already smitten. His eyes and mouth had been wide open the entire time the others were talking, but he finally blinked them and revealed heart-shaped irises, while tiny pink hearts started floating out of his head.

“Wow…guys, she’s…she’s sooooo pretty,” said the enamored little colt.

“Oh dear. Take it easy there, Casanova,” Rainbow Dash laughed, “She’s a little bit outa’ your league.”

“No Mommy, she’s perfect…” Stormy said, continuing to stare.

“Hehehe. You’re too late, Dash. All it takes is one look and he’s sold,” Spike told Rainbow Dash.

“Yeah, you would know, Mister Rarity’s-Number-One-Fanboy.” Applejack teased as she poked his belly.

“Sorry about Storm Streak over there,” Flurry whispered to Somnambula while trying not to laugh. “He’s the youngest.”

“Hehe, that is all right. I do tend to turn some stallions’ heads,” Somnambula giggled. “Anyway, I’m happy to see some familiar faces, and I hope you don’t mind if I join the troupe if you’re sightseeing.”

“We’d be delighted, Somny! We’re already having so much fun!” Applejack insisted.

“This guy certainly wouldn’t mind,” Spike teased, pointing to Stormy who was still love-struck.

“Anypony wanna look in this shop? They’re selling some pottery and other decorations and I think Mr. Cake would love some!” said Mrs. Cake, pointing to a nearby shop with tons of Southern Equestrian ceramics and other hand-crafted items on sale.

“Ah yes, this place always has some really good heirlooms. Let’s take a look!” Somnambula said, leading them in.

They all went in to the shop to look around. The mothers bought a few nice little vases and some shirts for their kids while Stormy kept begging Rainbow Dash for a special headdress that resembled Somnambula’s.

“Mommy, can I get this? Pleeeeease?!” he begged.

“Alright, if you get this, that means no ‘I Heart SE’ shirt like the others, okay?” Rainbow Dash told him.

“Okay, I’ll take the hat! Somnambula might think I look cool in it!”

Rainbow Dash giggled and put the Somnambula hat on the counter for the cash register and paid for it with a few bits. Stormy squealed with excitement and put it on. It was made mostly out of cheep cloth, including the small moon on the golden band, but Stormy didn’t mind. He had already seen a few tourists wearing one earlier and thought he would find one to buy. It was something many shoppers would get to show their appreciation for the Element of Hope, and now Stormy had it to show his admiration for Somnambula.

“I look so awesome! She’s gonna love this!” Stormy said.

“Stormy, what are you wearing?” asked Flurry from behind.

“What do you think I’m wearing! This is like Somnambula’s pharaoh hat thingy! She might think I look cool in it!”

“Pffft! If you say so.”

“Where is she anyway?”

“She was just over there buying something.”

“Hey, Somnambula, I have the same hat you’re-”

“Shhhhh! What’s she doing?”

Flurry stopped Stormy as Somnambula appeared to be busy over at another adjacent shop. She was talking to a peddler that was selling old used goods that appeared to be from many years ago.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to pay for it?” she asked him. “It’s old, but it must be worth something.”

“Not at all, Lady Somnambula,” said the peddler. “Consider that a symbol of my gratitude for ridding us of that fowl Anatankha. This village would have been long gone if it weren’t for you!”

“Well, if you insist. I appreciate your generosity.”

Somnambula bowed politely to the peddler and then walked away with a small shabby urn in her hoof.

“Somnambula, what did you get?” asked Flurry.

“I’ve been searching for this ever since I escaped from limbo,” Somnambula explained as Flurry and Stormy gathered around. “I found an inscription on a tablet some time after I returned that told me to look for an urn of this description.”

“An urn like that?” Flurry said.

“But there’s probably tons of those around…uh, no offense, Somnambula,” Stormy added as he quickly remembered who he was talking to and went back to gazing at her.

“Yes, but this one is special because it is a puzzle. The top of it is closed, but if I turn it around just right…”

Somnambula began to fiddle around with the urn. There were colored rings with symbols on them and she tried to match them up in a specific sequence that she knew how to decipher. A tiny scroll popped out of the top.

Somnambula looked carefully at the scroll. She then used her feathers to unroll and read it aloud.

To she who walks blindfolded yet does not fall

Stands up to a sphinx when her people call

Follow this path to find a temple out yonder

Your gift awaits you! Waste time no longer!

-An Old Friend

“That’s interesting,” Flurry said, stroking her chin.

“Cool! A treasure hunt!” Stormy beamed.

“What’s this here about treasure now?” Applejack asked.

“Somnambula’s on a track for some clues leading to something this little note told her about,” Flurry explained as everyone else gathered around.

“Very interesting, but I’m not sure what this is talking about,” Somnambula said. “I’m sure this must be a note that was meant for me a very long time ago, but whoever wrote it is sadly long gone now. I wonder what this ‘gift’ is they have left for me.”

“Well, we best not keep you waiting any longer,” Rainbow Dash said. “Let us know what it is when you come back.”

“Mommy wait! Can we go with her?!” Stormy said, moving in closer to his mother.

“Eh, I dunno, Squirt. This wasn’t exactly on our agenda for things to do in Southern Equestria.”

“Mommy, pleeeease?! We might find some really cool treasure!”

“Well this thing is meant for Somnambula, don’t forget, Stormy,” Chip said, pointing to the letter in Somnambula’s hoof.

“What makes you think he cares about the treasure, Chip?” Pumpkin whispered into Chip’s ear as she pointed out how Stormy had hearts floating out of his eyes again.

“Eh, you make a valid point.”

“Well guys, we did have some more things left to do today,” Spike said, taking out an itinerary and unfolding it. “Next up we were going to go see the royal gardens and then we head back to the inn for the night, but…eh, tomorrow might work out if we get up early enough in the morning.”

“This note also has a map that leads to a secluded area in the mountains,” Somnambula said, showing the note to Spike. “It isn’t too far from here and it’s not dangerous. I can wait to go there tomorrow if you would all like to come with me.”

“Well, I mean I don’t mind going if you kids wanna go,” Mrs. Cake said.

“I think it sounds like a cool idea, Mom,” Pound said with the rest of the kids nodding in agreement.

“Cup’s right,” said Applejack. “We could just add that to our itinerary and check it out. We might find somethin’ pretty special!”

“Alright then, how’s eight o’clock tomorrow morning sound to you guys?” Spike said, taking out a quill to write on the itinerary.

“Yeah, let’s do it!” Pumpkin said as the rest of the kids cheered.

“YES!” Stormy said, pumping his hoof in to the air.

“Hey Storm, what’s with the hat?” Pound asked.

“It’s called looking awesome, Pound! By the way, how do I look Somnambula?”

“Hehe, it becomes you, little Storm Streak.” Somnambula giggled as she patted him on the head.

“She…she complimented and touched me…”

Stormy lowered himself to the ground slowly as Somnambula walked away with the urn and the paper, back to her house in the village.

“Well Stormy, I hope your suggestion will lead us all to a really cool treasure tomorrow,” Flurry told him.

“Forget the treasure,” Stormy said, still gazing at Somnambula as she walked away.

“Come on, we best get him to the inn before he follows her,” Pound teased, trying to lead Stormy in the other direction, while his face was still love-struck.

“What do you think this thing is that’s waiting for Somnambula?” asked Pumpkin.

“I dunno, but I’ll bet it’s worth looking into,” Flurry replied.

2. An Old "Friend" Awakens

The next day, everyone met Somnambula in town and walked off to the spot the map led them to. First they found some mountains a few clicks away from the village with a gorge carved through them. There was a labyrinth of paths that would be easy to get lost in if Somnambula didn’t have a map with her, but there were also some rocks with ancient inscriptions written on them to help out. Only Somnambula was able to decipher them since it was an older language in Southern Equestria that nopony spoke in the modern era.

“Hmmm. Someone definitely set this up for me not too long after I went into limbo,” Somnambula said as she led her friends on. “Those writings appear to have been carved about a thousand years ago. We are lucky there isn’t supposed to be any rain today or this gorge could be flowing with fast-moving water.”

“She’s so knowledgeable about…stuff,” Stormy said lovingly as he continued staring at Somnambula, while still wearing his hat.

“Stormy, come on, she’s not gonna notice you if you keep staring like that,” Chip teased.

“Ah, let him have his fun, Chip,” Applejack told her son.

“Pssst, Stormy, if you want any tips on how to win a girl’s heart, they really love jewelry and poems,” Spike whispered into Stormy’s ear.

“Poetry?” Stormy asked with his ears perking up.

“Spike, don’t teach my son poetry or he’s gonna start sounding like Zecora around the house,” Rainbow Dash teased.

“Somnambula, you’re such a pretty mare…uh…you’ve got nice hair…” Stormy started saying. “Somnambula, your coat is orange just like a…um…what rhymes with orange?”

“Hehe, too late. He’s hooked,” Pound laughed as everyone joined him.

“Shhh! Guys look!” Flurry said as they all stopped walking.

Somnambula was standing in front of a very tall stone with faint runic symbols on it. The stone appeared to be covering the entrance to a cave leading into the mountain in front of them.

“Whoa,” said Spike. “How has nobody found this place before?”

“Well I’m quite certain Somnambula would’ve been the only one to figure it out since she’s got that map,” Mrs. Cake pointed out.

“Yeah, but, like, it’s been about a thousand years and nopony else is aware of this place? I wonder if they’ve even seen this stone at all,” Rainbow Dash said.

“Well now what do we do, Somnamubla?” asked Flurry.

For a few moments, Somnambula did not speak. She was already occupied with translating the runes.

“The inscription on this stone is telling me a riddle,” she said, looking back at the others.

“What does it say?” Flurry asked.

“It says ‘I am in the hearts of those who have been wronged. To use me requires cunning and wit. To have me is painful until I am complete. I will not rest till you have what you want.’”

Everyone was silent for a few moments, looking at each other to see who could figure the riddle out. Flurry thought hard and seemed to know the answer, but she thought Somnambula was supposed to be the one to give it.

“Have you figured it out, Somnambula?” she asked.

“I have.”

Somnambula stood in front of the stone and cleared her throat.

“The answer is…Revenge.”

The runes on the stone immediately started glowing and the stone slowly moved to the side, revealing a rectangular door.

“Whoa! She did it! She’s so awesome!” Stormy shouted as hearts began to float out of his head again.

“Well I’m down for exploring the cave if you guys are!” Spike said, excitedly.

“I mean I guess it’s okay, so long as we’re just lookin’ for whatever this gift is that Somnambula’s gotta get,” Applejack said.

“I suppose Applejack’s got a point, even if it appears nopony’s been in here for over a thousand years,” Mrs. Cake added. “When we’re done, we’re going to have to report this to the villagers. There could be thousand-year-old antiquities in here that are worth putting in a museum!”

“Awesome! Come on Mommy!” Stormy said as he flew ahead.

“Alright, just be careful, Pipsqueak,” Rainbow Dash told him. “This is an old cave and we don’t know exactly what’s in here.

They all slowly followed Somnambula into the entrance. Flurry and Pumpkin used magic spells to light their horns and Spike grabbed a nearby torch to blow fire onto. They walked on for about a hundred yards until they got past the first room. This cave was actually a temple with expertly carved walls in the entrance. The walls were adorned with hieroglyphics that seemed to tell important tails of Southern Equestria. There were also statues of sphinxes and other wildlife common in Southern Equestria, including the gods that were worshipped in ancient times. While it was still dark enough to need torches to see, there were still some rays of light cracking through the walls near the top. It came from tiny windows carved in the walls to allow ventilation but could not be entered or exited. The only entrance so far was the one they just went through. Once they got past the corridor, they went up a fleet of stairs that lead them past a huge carved block with more hieroglyphics, this time with a large mural portraying the time Somnambula stood up to the Sphinx.

“Wow. This is more like a temple than a cave,” Flurry said.

“Definitely looks like the type of place to find treasure in!” Pound said.

“Mom, we could find some gold! Imagine what we could do with gold if we got back home to tell Dad!” Pumpkin told her mother, excitedly.

“Well let’s not get our hopes up, dear,” Mrs. Cake said, patting Pumpkin on the head. “Though we could use a bit of a renovation on the freezer storage back at the Corner.”

“I’m not sure there will be gold here,” Somnambula said. “This temple doesn’t appear to be the type that would house gold, at least not in this state. It looks like it might have been more of a shrine or perhaps a living space for an aristocrat from long ago. Well, whatever the case, if there is a gift in here as the note states, perhaps this temple was made in my honor. I did notice the picture of me standing up to Anatankha.

“Anatankha? Wait, so the sphinx you faced had a name?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“Not many mention it because they think it is bad luck to say her name, but yes, the sphinx who invaded my village was indeed named Anatankha.”

“There’s also a lot of spooky statues of sphinxes in here,” Annie said, huddling up to her mother.

“Yeah, whoever lived here sure did like these statues,” added Flurry. “Gosh, this is such a big temple. I really wonder what it was meant for. When we find this gift for Somnambula, we’ve got to go back and let everyone else know about this place!”

The group continued on for a few more minutes, following signs that were written in the ancient Southern Equestrian language. They went up some stairs, over bridges, and through large doors. The most peculiar thing was that there was a long sloped riverbed that could be seen on the side in the more cavernous areas. It seemed to be a place meant for water to drain out, but the riverbed was dry and looked more like a slide made out of smooth stone. The pillars and ancient architecture of the temple was a sight to behold and they all felt they were getting enough of a tour that wasn’t even originally planned on their itinerary. They continued on until they finally came to one large door that had a seal on it.

“Just how do we get past this one?” asked Applejack.

“I’m not sure. The inscriptions do not recite a riddle I must guess,” Somnambula answered.

“Oh hey, look!” Stormy said as he found a small pedal on the ground with a glyph on it. “Maybe if I step on this it will open!”

Stormy did his best to impress Somnambula and make the door open, but the pedal didn’t seem to be working.

“Uh…hehe, sorry,” he said, bashfully.

“Here, let’s see if it takes dragon feet instead,” said Spike as he gave it a try.

Finally Somnambula offered to put her hoof on the pedal and the door suddenly began moving.

“Wow, so it only responds to Somnambula’s hoof?” Chip asked.

“I guess it has a spell that is only meant to recognize my touch,” Somnambula replied. “That is rather interesting. Whoever made this temple and set this up must have really wanted to challenge me in finding this mysterious gift.”

They walked into the room and looked around. Spike lit a few torches on the side so they could see easier. As the room became brighter, everyone paused to look at a huge statue standing before them. It was a life-sized sphinx that closely resembled Anatankha.

“Is… is that…” Flurry began to say.

“Anatankha,” Somnambula said.

“That’s her?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“Well, that’s a statue of her. She would be long gone by now. Sphinxes don’t exactly have the lifespan of a dragon.”

Somnambula ascended to get a good look at the statue. She examined the face and the headdress closely.

“Whoever sculpted this did such a wonderful job. She looks just like how I remember her.”

“So you took on her a long time ago?” Stormy asked, eagerly.

“Well, more like I just guessed her riddle and then crossed a bridge while blindfolded and not able to fly. I definitely outsmarted her and my people never saw her again. She flew off in defeat the moment I rescued Prince Hisan.”

“Why would someone leave this statue of Anatankha behind though?” asked Flurry.

“Yeah, is this the gift we’re supposed to be looking for?” Mrs. Cake asked.

“Both good questions,” Somnambula answered. “Maybe it is meant to commemorate when I stood against her. It is a shame there is no statue of me to go with it though.”

“Somny, why don’tcha tell the kids the whole story of how ya took on this gal.” Applejack said.

“Hehe, alright. You see children; a while ago Anatankha invaded our village to plunder our crops. When Prince Hisan decided to…oh?”

Somnambula descended to the ground as she spoke, but she did not realize she landed on a circle with zodiac symbols and two figures of her and Anatankha. She was too distracted to notice it earlier, but as soon as she touched it with her hooves, the glyphs began to light up. Next, there were lines in the stone ground that lead from the circle to the square pedestal where the statue stood. They crept up until they touched the floor right beneath its feet. The lights in the ground made the sound of laser beams until they reached the statue and then all was quiet. Everyone stood still for a few moments.

“What was that?” Flurry whispered.

Suddenly, the statue began to crack and flakes of stone fell to the ground to reveal magenta fur underneath.

“Oh no! The statue…it…IT IS ANATANKHA!!” Somnambula shouted. “EVERYPONY RUN!”

They tried to run through the door, but some black magic had already caused it to close. Thankfully, there were plenty of pillars right before the walls for them to hide behind, but still no exits. They looked back and saw that the stone was falling off in larger chunks until Anatankha started moving her wings and tail around. As everyone scattered to find shelter, Anatankha’s eyes were revealed and she finally shook off the rest of the flakes, opened her mouth and roared like a lion. Anatankha walked forward and began to laugh in a deep, sultry Africolt accent.

“Hahahaha…Somnambula, my old friend,” she said. “I know you are in here. Come out so that we may play again.”

Somnambula stood behind a pillar with Spike and Flurry next to her. The others had found their own spots to hide in.

“What do we do?” Flurry whispered to Somnambula.

“It’s me she wants,” Somnambula whispered back. “I’ll stay and distract her. You two, get everyone out of here.”

“What about you?” Spike asked.

“I will find a way. We can’t let her escape from this place or she will terrorize the village again, so I will have to figure out how to trap her.”

“Where are you, Somnambula? You cannot hide forever!” said Anatankha.

“Go! Go now!” Somnambula told them as they tiptoed away to regroup with the others.

Spike and Flurry quietly crept through the shadows to not alert the sphinx, but Spike tripped over an overturned tile and landed with a thud. Anatankha’s ears perked up and she turned her head around quickly to their direction.

“Is that you, Somnambula?” she said as she slinked toward them like a lion stalking its prey.

Spike held Flurry close to him as they both shimmied up against the wall until Anatankha used her magic to light some nearby torches to get a better look at them. She tilted her head in confusion.

“Eh?! You are not who I am looking for… How did you fools get in here?!” she bellowed.

“Uh…we’re just tourists passing through,” Spike said, trembling.

“Well get out of here! This temple is only meant for me and-”

Somnambula flew right by Anatankha’s face and startled her. Anatankha growled and looked around to keep track of the thing that flew past her, but it looped back around and landed right between her friends and the sphinx.

“Anatankha!” Somnambula shouted.

“Ah, there you are, my old friend!”

“What is going on?! Who turned you into stone?!”

“Ah ah ah, I am the one who asks the riddles here, little one!”

“Anatankha, I don’t know what your endgame is, but if you give my village trouble again-”

“You’ll do what? Foolish little Somnambula, I have no quarrel with your village, it is you I want!”

“Whatever you do, just leave my friends out of this!”

“I cannot guarantee their safety, but they best stay out of my way. Right now, all that matters is that I am finally reunited with my old nemesis. I look forward to facing the great Pillar of Hope once again!”

3. Escape from Anatankha

Somnambula stared grimly at Anatankha. She knew the sphinx was about to cast a spell to take away her flying, so she slowly closed her wings. Anatankha’s eyes glowed green for a brief second, indicating that she had used her magic, and Somnambula finally decided to act. At just the moment Anatankha began to swipe her paw in Somnambula’s direction, Somnambula pushed off the ground, leaping onto Anatankha’s head. She quickly ran down her back and surfed down her tail, safely away from the sphinx. Anatankha turned around to see Somnambula rush to a nearby sphinx statue that was holding a ceremonial staff with a two-pronged bit at one end and an ankh on the other. She bucked at the statue’s paws and crushed the stone, releasing the staff. She grabbed the staff with her mouth, put it in her hooves and spun it around before making a battle-ready stance. Anatankha began to laugh and then lunged. Somnambula leaped in the air and used the pole to strike the sphinx in the side of her face. Anatankha grunted and swung her wings and tail around at Somnambula. The tail hit Somnambula, but she grabbed a hold of it. As Anatankha swung her tail around furiously, Somnambula held on tightly and let go at just the right moment, heading towards some nearby pillars. Her wings would be no use so she kicked off the pillars and landed safely in the corridor between the walls and the pillars where Anatankha peaked in and gave chase.

Meanwhile, Flurry and Spike had found the rest of their friends and tried finding a way out as the battle raged on

“How in tarnation are we gonna get out of here?!” Applejack asked, frantically.

“The whole place is closed down!” Mrs. Cake yelped.

“I think it’s meant to lock Somnambula in,” Flurry explained. “Obviously Anatankha doesn’t want her to escape, but we have to get out of here.”

“So what are we waiting for then? Let’s help Somnambula beat that stupid sphinx!” Stormy cheered.

“Just hold on a second there, Squirt,” said Rainbow. “I know you’ve got your old mom’s genes and all, but we can’t get too brave with that monster.”

“Jeans? Uh…but Mommy, if we don’t do something, they’ll hurt her!”

“He’s right, we’ve got to help out somehow!” Flurry added.

“Maybe we should just go get help,” Pound suggested.

Suddenly a pillar was knocked over by Anatankha and began falling towards everyone. They scattered just in time and the pillar broke open the door.

“Well, there’s our ticket out of here!” Chip said as they all rushed out past the pillar and into the previous room.

“SOMNAMBULA!!” shouted Flurry.

Somnambula stopped what she was doing and looked to see that the way had been opened for her to escape. She was luckily closer to the entrance than Anatankha so she took her chance, leaving the sphinx behind. Anatankha ran after Somnambula, but failed to catch her before she went out past the door. She could not squeeze out of the door with the pillar in the way and Somnambula had just narrowly escaped her paw stretching through. Anatankha retracted her paw and then roared.

“SOMNAMBULAAAAAAA!!! I WILL FIND YOU!!!”

“We did it! We’ve got everybody, now let’s get out of here!” shouted Rainbow Dash as Somnambula caught up with them.

Anatankha’s roar echoed throughout the entire temple, causing rocks and dust to fall from the ceiling. Some torches began to light and the sounds of gears and large ancient machinery began to sound. The walls with the hieroglyphics started to move down to reveal small holes inside. They made their way to a bridge, but it started splitting apart. Before anyone with wings could fly across, their wings all closed up and the ones in the air plummeted to the ground. Rainbow Dash tried to open her wings to fly across, but all of their wings were closed.

“What the?! My wings! Rainbow said, catching Stormy as he fell.

“She’s used her spell to cancel out all of our flying!” Flurry cried.

“Well now what?! We can’t get across that bridge!” Mrs. Cake said as both ends of the bridge had already finished splitting and there was nothing but a pool of deep, dark water.

“We need to find another route,” said Somnambula. “Look, there is a passage up there!”

She pointed to a nearby set of stairs leading to a small doorway off to the side. They rushed up the stairs just as they heard the sounds of rocks tumbling and large footsteps. Anatankha had just made it in and saw them escape through the door. She slowly walked over to the door and began to laugh.

“You can run, but you cannot hide, Somnambula! This temple is under my control and I will find you!” she warned as she put her eye right in front of the door.

As they rushed through a corridor, they noticed holes in the walls. The walls began shooting small green blobs of a sticky material. Thankfully everyone was running quick enough that the blobs didn’t hit them in time, but Spike got one stuck to his foot and was unable to move. He tried pulling with all his might, but it did no good, so he blew fire at the blob until it melted away and his foot was free. He rushed forward to catch up to the others under a door that was starting to close. Spike dove just in time before the door hit the ground. Unfortunately Stormy’s hat had fallen off in all the commotion and was crushed under the door.

“My…my Somnambula hat…” he said with tears in his eyes.

The sound of Anatankha roaring shook the whole room and the floor began to move. They were all standing on a large tile that was moving upwards towards an opening in the ceiling.

“Well this would be a lot easier if we could just fly!” Pound complained.

“As soon as we get in there, follow me. I think Anatankha is waiting for us up there,” warned Somnambula.

The tile slowly moved up into the opening. A few moments later, they were in a higher level where it was completely dark. Spike blew his fire up in the air to light the room. There was a deep ditch carved in the floor before them, so they turned around, only to find Anatankha before them.

“THERE YOU ARE!”

The torches began to light and metal bars grew out of the ground in a circle around them. There was no lid to the cage, but no one could escape without the ability to fly. Before they could figure out how to escape, Anatankha had already reached in and pulled Somnambula out. She held her firmly in her paw, not enough to hurt her, but enough to keep her from escaping.

“You’re all mine, Somnambula!” Anatankha laughed.

“SOMNAMBULA!!” shouted everyone else.

“AAARGH!! Release me, Anatankha!” she shouted, angrily.

“LET HER GO, ANASTASIA, YOU BIG, DUMB…CAT-HORSE THING!” shouted Stormy as Rainbow Dash tried to hold him back.

“Somnambula is all mine now. I have no use for you fools.”

“Don’t you dare hurt them, Anatankha!”

“Oh they’ll be fine, Somnambula. It’s only water after all.”

Anatankha walked over and pulled down a lever in the wall. The floor behind the cage opened up and there was a moat with water rushing through it. The bars shrank into the ground and the whole floor began to tilt. They all fell into the water and were swept away.

“EVERYONE, DON’T WORRY ABOUT ME! GET HELP!!” shouted Somnambula before they landed in the water.

For the next minute or so, everyone was traveling down an underground river. The only sound was screaming and the constant sound of rushing water. This must have been the empty riverbed they noticed earlier, only now it had water flowing through it, serving as a trap to get rid of any intruders. The water was too fast for them to reach out and grab onto anything and it was too dark to see. They had no choice but to ride out the rough waves until it would eventually let them out of the temple.

They finally came to the area where the water was being drained out in a large bowl-shaped spot in the cave. Everyone spun around the center as the water lowered. All of the kids went down the drain hole first. Spike followed after, but only his legs and tail made it in before he was stuck. The hole was far too small for his large belly to fit through. Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Mrs. Cake rolled in next to him with no way to catch up with their kids. They had all been separated.

“FLURRY!!” Spike called.

“STORMY?! Oh no! Spike, quick! Get out of it!” Rainbow Dash said, pulling on one of his wings.

“I can’t! I’m stuck!”

“Pound and Pumpkin are down there too!” cried Mrs. Cake. “I think we just lost all the kids! Oh, and my snacks too!”

“Hurry, ya’ll, we gotta find them! Up and at ‘em, Spike!” Applejack said as she and Mrs. Cake pushed against Spike’s belly.

“Aw no. I hope they’re okay down there,” Spike said, anxiously. “If anything happens to Flurry I’ll never forgive myself!”

Author's Note

Highly recommend this song for background music! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fUNRbZABDho

4. We Must Rescue Somnambula

The children continued to slide down a smooth granite pipe in the ground, barely keeping their heads above the water to gasp for breath. They finally saw light and were dropped down into a pool inside a cave with some light shining in. Stormy came out of the pipe last and instinctively flapped his wings. He was airborne and realized he now had his ability to fly back.

“Whoa, I can fly again!” he said.

“Is everypony okay?” Flurry asked.

“Could be better,” Pound said, walking out of the water and shaking himself off as the others did the same.

The kids all did their best to dry themselves off and spit out as much of the water as they could. Annie kept coughing as Chip had his hoof over her shoulder to make sure she was all right while Stormy carried Pumpkin out. She used her magic to lift Mrs. Cake’s bag of goods that made it down the pipe with them. Flurry used her magic to squeeze the water out of her hair. Anatankha’s magic had clearly worn off on her, Pound and Stormy so they were able to fly again. They tested it out by buzzing their wings to get the water off.

“Now what do we do?” asked Pumpkin.

“We do the smart thing: we go back to the town to get help,” Pound said, authoritatively.

“No wait, we can’t just leave everyone else behind,” Flurry told Pound. “Somnambula’s in there and the others stuck back there too. We’ve got to find a way to help them.”

“Flurry, we don’t even know how we’re going to get back in there.”

“Sure we do. Look, follow me.”

Flurry flew ahead as the others followed her. She exited the cave and turned right. In just a moment, they could all see the same entrance they came in with the stone that had rolled aside after Somnambula guessed the riddle.

“Whoa, how did you know the entrance was there, Flurry?” asked Chip.

“I saw that cave earlier. I would’ve said something, but I didn’t think it was important at the time,” Flurry replied. “Hurry, we don’t have much time.”

“Flurry hold up!” Pound said, flying in front of her and blocking her path. “You heard what Somnambula said earlier. We have to go get help!”

“Pound, that was before we lost everyone else. It would be better to go in and rescue them right now. We have our flying back, it won’t be hard.”

“Flurry, you saw what that sphinx can do. Do you really want to try taking on her again?”

“Who cares, Pound!” Stormy butted in. “Somnambula’s in trouble. Let’s go stop that dumb Anaconda and rescue her!”

“Her name is Anatankha,” Flurry told him.

“Yeah, what she says.”

“Stormy, I know you like Somnambula, but we need to think practically,” Pound told Stormy as Stormy crossed his arms and grumbled.

“Pound, look, if we go in now, we can get it done faster than if we waste our time going all the way back to the town to get help,” Flurry continued.

“And just what do you plan on doing once you get in there?”

“Well, first we rescue Spike and our moms. Second we rescue Somnambula.”

“No, second we go get help. We can’t risk our lives in there against Anatankha!”

“Pound, you’re not listening to me!”

As Flurry and Pound continued to quarrel, Pumpkin nervously looked back and forth at them both. She finally reached into the saddlebag and pulled out a plastic container that had some muffins inside. Mrs. Cake had brought them for snacks on their trip and thankfully they survived the watery trek.

“OKAY! Muffins? Anypony?” she shouted to get their attention. “They didn’t get wet on the way down! It’s one of Mom’s best recipes! Come on, you guys know you want one…it will make you feel better…

Pumpkin smiled and put the muffins between Flurry and Pound, as they continued to stare at each other angrily. Flurry used her magic to lift and eat one of the muffins, while Pound reached down to bite one with his mouth. They still looked angry and didn’t take their eyes off of each other.

“GREAT!” Pumpkin said, happily. “Now we’re all feeling a lot better and ready to have a nice, civilized conversation! Right guys?”

Flurry and Pound turned their heads and stared menacingly at Pumpkin. With an expressionless face, Pumpkin closed the container and placed it back into her mother’s satchel.

“Okay, I’ll shut-up now,” she said, smiling nervously before slowly shimmying off to the side.

Flurry and Pound turned back to each other and took deep breaths before continuing.

“Look, Flurry, how about we just go get the adults and then we go back to town?”

“I don’t feel right leaving Somnambula behind. Who knows what Anatankha could do to her.”

“Okay, but we clearly aren’t able to fight back and we’re just going to lose our flight again. If we rescue Somnambula, she’s just going to come after us and then take it outside.”

“Yeah, but if we’re outside, we have an advantage because she can’t use any of her traps and she can’t take away our flying.”

“What? How do you know that?”

“Because she uses labyrinth spells. Starswirl taught me about them. It only works inside something like a temple or cave. She can cast some spells outside, but she can’t keep our wings closed unless we’re inside this temple. I think that might be why our wings are working now. Either that or we’re out of range.”

“Flurry,” said Chip. “I think Pound’s right. If we go in there, it’s too dangerous. Knowing Spike, he probably got stuck in the drain and that’s how we lost them, but our moms are safe with him.”

“I agree,” Annie said. “They should be safe and Anatankha didn’t seem to want to harm any of us, but they’ll probably find their way out anyway. If we go in it might make things worse.”

“Alright, so me, Chip and Annie agree we head back to town. Pump, how about you?” Pound asked his sister.

“Anypony want some soggy pretzels?” Pumpkin asked.

“PUMPKIN!!!”

“Er…um…should I plead the fifth?”

“Okay so three agree we should go to town, two disagree, and one is undecided. The majority wins.”

“Pound, wait, we can’t just vote on this!” Flurry groaned.

“Sure we can. That’s how democracy works.”

“Pound, if you would just listen!”

Stormy got increasingly irritated, listening to everypony argue. He couldn’t wait any longer and finally rushed into action.

“Alright, enough talk! Let’s do this! I’M COMING SOMNAMBULAAAAAAAAA!”

He took off into the temple at high speeds, whooping as he went until he disappeared in the darkness. The rest of them just stood with shocked faces.

“And there goes Stormy,” Pound said, flatly.

“Stormy, wait!” shouted Flurry as she and Pumpkin ran after him.

“Come on, we’d better at least make sure he doesn’t do anything stupid,” Pound told Chip and Annie as they all took off to follow the others.

Back in the cave, Rainbow Dash had figured out Anatankha’s spell had worn off and she could fly again. Hovering just above the concave floor, she continued pulling on Spike’s wing from above, but it did no good. Spike was getting impatient and was really worried about Flurry.

“Geez Spike, could you maybe lay off on the gems every now and then?!” Rainbow Dash said through her teeth.

“I think I may be partially to blame. Every time he comes by Sugarcube Corner, he always buys one of our gourmet gem cupcakes,” Mrs. Cake said.

“I can’t help it! You guys make ‘em so good!” Spike said, nervously.

“Never really were great with tight spaces, eh Big Guy?” teased Applejack.

“Not like I used to be. If I weren’t so fat we wouldn’t have lost the kids. Then again, I also wouldn’t have been able to protect Flurry from Scutellum, so I guess I should count my blessings,” Spike said, patting his belly.

“Well, sorry Spike, but it doesn’t look like you’re going anywhere,” Rainbow Dash said, landing on the ground in defeat. “I’m just going to wear myself out if I keep this up.”

“I hate to say this, but maybe you guys should just leave me and go find the kids,” Spike said, sullenly.

“I can stay with Spike while you two go,” Mrs. Cake told the other two.

“That’s probably best,” Applejack added. “We gotta make sure the kids are alright.”

“No need to check, Mom. We’re right here!” said Chip above.

They looked up to see all the kids except Stormy at the top of the slope. Pound and Flurry flew down while Chip, Annie, and Pumpkin slid down cautiously to reunite with their mothers.

“KIDS! You’re alright!” Mrs. Cake said, hugging Pound and Pumpkin as Chip and Annie did the same to Applejack.

“Hey Flurry, think you could give me a helping hoof here?” Spike asked, bashfully.

“Sure thing, Number-One Guardian,” Flurry said happily as she used her magic to pull him out of the hole.

“Wait, where’s Stormy?!” Rainbow Dash asked, frantically.

“Eh, you know Stormy. He flew ahead to go find Somnambula,” Pound told her.

“UGH! Storm Nimbostratus Streak, you lovesick little Romeo!!”

Rainbow took off flying of the cave and got back on track with the stairs they went up earlier when they first entered the temple.

“Rainbow Dash, wait!” Flurry said, trying to catch up with her. “We’ve gotta be careful! We can fly again but it might still be a bit unsafe with some of these booby traps!”

“I think we’ll be okay,” Rainbow Dash replied. “Those blobs that came out of the walls weren’t lethal, just really sticky.”

“Still, it could still be really dangerous.”

“Do you have any ideas of how we can stop them?”

“Sadly no...”

As they continued talking and flying with the others running close behind, they came to the spot where the bridge had retracted and revealed water underneath.

“Uh, Rainbow, some of us can’t go any further!” Applejack called from behind.

“No problem,” Rainbow Dash said as she picked up Applejack and carried her to the other side while Pound and Spike helped carry some of the others and Pumpkin used her magic to lift them.

They all quietly crept towards the room they met Anatankha in. They made it past the pillar that had crashed through the doors and saw that Anatankha and Somnambula were nowhere to be found. The only thing different was a door near the back that had been opened and revealed a set of stairs leading up.

“That must be where she took Somnambula,” Flurry whispered.

“And where Stormy is,” Rainbow Dash replied.

“Well, what’re we waitin’ for?” Applejack said.

“Wait,” Flurry said, looking at a piece of paper on the ground.

“Somnambula’s map!” Pumpkin added. “She must have dropped it while fighting Anatankha.”

Flurry picked up the map and noticed a section that Somnambula hadn’t told them about. There were symbols on it that translated into standard Ponish letters.

“These glyphs…” Flurry said, “I’ve seen them before.”

Flurry then walked over to the zodiac that Somnambula stood on earlier to release Anatankha and noticed it had the same symbols. She spent a few seconds studying the symbols and then managed to make a translation out of it.

“It’s…it’s a riddle! The zodiac has a riddle on here to guess!”

“What happens if we do?” asked Annie.

“Well…it looks like this says…uh…it says ‘Should you guess the riddle… before the setting of the sun…all the sphinx’s magic…shall be undone.’ Perfect! All we have to do is guess it and we might be able to stop Anatankha!”

“What’s the riddle, Flurry?” Spike asked.

“Hold on…”

Flurry took a moment to translate the riddle and this time she used a spell that Starswirl showed her to make the translation quicker. She shot a beam out of her horn onto the map, which then shot a beam at the zodiac and back to Flurry, creating a glowing triangle. The symbols appeared above the triangle. They flickered back and forth to other symbols until they were translated. Flurry read the translation out loud.

“I am in the hearts of those who feel they’ve lost purpose. When you are at your highest, I can take that away. How you get rid of me is up to you, but I can still return at any given moment.”

Flurry stepped back and cleared her throat before answering.

“The answer is: Sadness.”

The glyphs on the zodiac stopped glowing and the sound of a machine powering down could be heard throughout the temple. They heard stone slabs moving which must have meant some of the traps were deactivated. They all had gotten their ability to fly back earlier, but hopefully this meant Somnambula had her flying back and was now able to defeat her wherever they were.

“I think it worked!” Chip exclaimed.

“EEEE! We’re gonna win!” Pumpkin said, jumping up and down joyfully.

“Pound, do you still object to going to rescue Somnambula?” Flurry asked.

“I guess not,” Pound sighed. “No sense leaving Stormy back here too. Lead the way, Flurry.”

Flurry confidently nodded and turned to the doorway that undoubtedly lead to Anatankha.

Meanwhile at the top of the temple was a large exquisite throne room where Anatankha and Somnambula resided. Somnambula was inside a cage hanging from the ceiling while Anatankha was tidying up.

“Anatankha!” shouted Somnambula.

“Hehe, you want to speak now?” the sphinx replied, turning around to face her prisoner.

“We need to talk. How did you last this long? Were you the one who turned yourself into stone?”

“Ah, so you’ve figured it out now. Yes, it was I. I cast a spell on myself so I would be around one day to meet my nemesis again.”

“And you set up everything so that I would come here?”

“To release me, yes. The messages were designed so that you would find this temple. I was afraid someone else would find the clues first, but the zodiac you stood on as well as the tile to open the door to that room would react to you and you alone. I knew you wouldn’t stay imprisoned in limbo forever.”

“But how did you know I was gone to begin with? Starswirl did not disclose our plans to anypony else.”

“I followed you to Ponehenge and saw what you and your friends did to that Pony of Shadows. I could not decipher the wizard’s spell, so I took all of those talismans you left behind and placed them in the appropriate spots, hoping someone would one day find them all and use them to release you. I then set everything up so you would eventually find me, and find me you did.”

“Why though, Anatankha. Why go to all that trouble?”

“Why?! Silly Somnambula! The answer was there before you even entered this temple!”

“Revenge…your first riddle. You wanted revenge on me. I figured it, but you promised you would leave after I rescued Hisan.”

“I promised I would leave the village and stop taking their crops. I never said I wouldn’t come back to exact my revenge on you one day. This was all designed so you would enter and face me again. I have all sorts of challenges for you to complete. It will be so entertaining to see you toil away and try to use your wits to overcome me. And if you escape, it does not matter. That will just add to the fun. I will find you again and we will continue to play this game as punishment for what you did to me!”

“I feel I am not getting the entire story, Anatankha. What other motive was there besides-”

Before Somnambula could finish what she was saying, her wings popped open. She stopped talking, looked at her wings and started to flap them. Anatankha’s spell had been undone.

“WHAT?!” Anatankha bellowed. “WHO HAS UNDONE MY SPELL?!? That riddle was meant for you to solve! It was that little alicorn girl that was with you, wasn’t it? I told her to stay away from my temple!”

Anatankha’s eyes glowed green and Somnambula’s wings folded up again. She then turned hastily to the door to leave.

“Anatankha, stay away from her! She is the princess of the Crystal Empire!”

“Princess or not, I will dispose of them properly and then rig this entire temple so no one else will dare enter!”

Anatankha slammed the door behind, leaving Somnambula to herself in the cage.

“Flurry, if that is you, please be careful out there!” she said, lying down with her eyes closed.

5. Anatankha Confesses

Somnambula sat in the cage, worrying over her friends and the fact that she could do nothing to help them except pray for their safety. She was still for a few moments until she heard the sound of tiny wings buzzing. It got closer and closer until she lifted her head and saw Storm Streak, hovering right in front of the cage with a big smile on his face.

“Somnambula! You’re alright!” he said, happily, trying to not be too loud.

“Storm Streak?! How did you get in here?!”

“I’ve watched enough of the Daring Do Saturday morning cartoon to know how to get through these dungeons. That dumb sphinx didn’t expect me!”

Stormy began looking around until he found the keys to the cage and brought them over to free her.

“You are a brave little colt, Storm Streak, but it’s still dangerous in here. Where are the others?”

“We got separated from the grownups. Pound and Flurry kept arguing over what to do, so I just decided to come in and save you myself.”

Stormy finally opened the cage and Somnambula leapt down onto the ground.

“We have to go help them and stop Anatankha. If we escape from here, Anatankha will probably follow us and lay waste to the entire village just to find me. I think I know what is wrong with her though. I must get to her.”

“Get to her? Don’t we wanna escape from her?”

“You must escape, but now that I know she set this all up so I would find her and be captured, it’s quite clear she wants revenge, but I think there is something else.”

“Wait, she set this all up?”

“Yes, she just told me she turned herself into stone and made sure I would find her years later. No one would go to all the trouble of doing that without a reason, and I think it is more than just wanting to get back at me. I am going to get to the bottom of this.”

Somnambula began to walk towards the door and pushed. It was heavy, but just enough for her to get it open since Anatankha didn’t bother to lock it. Stormy stood still and thought for a moment if he should do as she told him and try to escape, but he wasn’t ready to give up on any of his friends, especially his mother. With a confident smile on his face, he flew over next to her.

“I’m coming with you. I gotta save my mom and the others.”

“Well, if you insist. I would be glad to have company.”

Somnambula smiled and walked on. Stormy followed close behind, with hearts over his head.

Flurry and the others quietly made their way up a fleet of stairs after getting past several empty rooms. Getting through this temple was much easier now that everyone with wings could fly again and all of the traps had been turned off. Most of the torches were still lit, though the rooms were still quite dark, so Flurry and Pumpkin used their horns to brighten things up. By the time they had gotten to the top of the stairs, there was a large set of doors with two regal sphinx statues next to it.

“Is that where Anatankha is?” Annie asked, trembling behind Applejack.

“I reckon it is,” Applejack replied.

“So what are we gonna do once we find her?” Pumpkin asked Flurry.

“I think I know how I can stop her,” Flurry said. “That zodiac undid her spell so we have our flying back. Rainbow Dash, do you think you can distract her while I try charging up some magic?”

“I can try, but I’m a little more concerned with finding Stormy,” Rainbow Dash replied. “That kid is gonna get a scolding when I find him!”

“Well we should really try not getting in the sphinx’s way. We should try to find Somnambula and Stormy first and then escape with them,” Mrs. Cake suggested.

“Yeah Flurry, this is why I thought we should let he village know,” Pound told Flurry. “We could have at least told the Teachers or Discord and let them take care of Anatankha.”

“Well if this doesn’t work, we’ll have to get her to hand over Stormy and then we go alert Discord or the Teachers or somebody. Hopefully this won’t be as bad as the situation with Cozy Glow was the other day. At least Anatankha’s only crime so far is kidnapping Somnambula. Makes you wonder why she didn’t go attack the village again. Anyway, let’s see what’s in this next room.”

Flurry used her magic to push open the door, with Spike, Rainbow Dash and Applejack helping her. Once the doors were opened, they entered a large audience room with light shining in from some windows on the side. There was another set of doors at the other end with a picture of Anatankha on it.

“Looks like we’re getting close,” said Spike.

“Let’s try to be as quiet as we can,” said Pound. “If we can rescue Somnambula without Anatankha hearing us, we don’t have to worry about the latter.”

“Yeah, that’s going to be the challenging part,” Flurry responded.

“If Anatankha comes, just leave her to me,” Rainbow Dash said. “I’ll show that sphinx a thing or two about…wha…AGH!!”

Rainbow Dash’s wings suddenly closed up and she fell to the ground, grunting as she landed.

“Whoa! Rainbow, you okay?” Applejack said, helping her up.

“Uh oh guys…my wings closed too,” Spike said, trying to open his wings.

“Mine too,” Flurry said, trying to do the same.

“Great. I thought we undid that spell earlier!” Pound complained.

Just then, the sound of gears and machinery began to go off throughout the temple and slabs of stone covered all the windows. The entire room was dark until some torches lit themselves. Large stone blocks began to move out of the walls on both sides, forcing everyone to separate. Without flying, they were unable to escape from the traps currently in play. Flurry was scared these blocks would crush them until she realized what was happening. She, Pound and Pumpkin were together on the floor while the others were separated. Circular tiles on a huge corkscrew began to spin upwards out of the ground with her friends on top. Chip, Annie and Spike were on their own platform, while Rainbow Dash, Applejack, and Mrs. Cake were on the other. The blocks finally retracted back into the walls. They were all being purposefully kept apart and some of them were on objects that they would not be safe to jump down from. Anatankha had detected them and was now on the move.

“GUYS!” Pound shouted.

“FLURRY, POUND, PUMPKIN, STAY PUT! WE’LL FIND A WAY DOWN!” Spike shouted.

“Oh no you won’t…” said Anatankha’s voice, echoing in the entire room.

“Anatankha?” Flurry asked.

“So you’re the princess of the group, are you? Funny, I remember a time when alicorns were far more common in Equestria. I don’t know if they’ve nearly gone extinct now, but I can already tell you have much potential as a magic user.”

“We’re here for Somnambula, Anatankha! We just want her back!”

“And my son Storm Streak too!” Rainbow Dash shouted.

“Ah yes. I’m guessing that is the mouthy little colt that cannot pronounce my name. Wherever he is right now, it matters not.”

“How did you take away our flying? We undid your spell earlier!” Pound shouted.

“The riddle on that zodiac was meant for Somnambula to solve. Just because you solved that riddle doesn’t mean I cannot cast the spell again.”

“Then what was the point of capturing her to begin with?”

“Foolish little pegasus! I set up this temple to be for Somnambula to play my games. If she solves the riddle, I congratulate her and then everything resets and she goes back to her cage. This entire place was made for me to have my way with her as revenge for what she did to me!”

“So you set this all up?” Flurry asked.

“And in case you are wondering, I am the one who turned myself into stone. Only she could undo the spell so I waited until the day we would both come in contact. Her wizard friend’s spell would not last forever. Somnambula made a grave mistake standing up to me years ago, and you fools are making an even bigger mistake coming back in here!”

The doors then burst open. Light shone in with Anatankha’s silhouette in view. Anatankha slowly walked forward with her paws pounding on the ground with each step. After she was close enough, the doors closed.

“I was going to just throw you all out and seal this temple, but now that I have overheard you discussing to get help from powerful beings like Discord, I’m afraid I have no choice but to keep you all prisoners.”

Pound stepped in front of Flurry as if to defend her. Pumpkin nervously stepped forward with him and took out a muffin, which had fallen out of her mother’s satchel on the ground in all the commotion.

“You stay away from Flurry!” Pound barked.

“Uh…muffin?” Pumpkin asked nervously, offering it to the sphinx.

Anatankha shot a low-powered beam out of her eyes and turned the muffin into ashes in Pumpkin’s hoof. Pumpkin looked down at the remains of the pastry and rushed back to Flurry.

“Uh, Flurry? Any ideas?” she said, nervously.

“Just keep her distracted,” Flurry whispered.

Pound and Anatankha stared each other down for a few seconds until Pound finally rushed forward between her legs. Without his flying, he had to rely on his footwork this time. Thankfully he had enough practice with running due to his time playing baseball during the school year. Like a cat chasing a laser pointer, Anatankha tried to catch him as he ran around. She suddenly felt something land on her back and then something grabbed her tail. She looked back to see Applejack had jumped on her and used a rope to lasso her tail. Anatankha spun around, trying to get Applejack to fall off. Finally Applejack was flung off against the wall and slid back down with a thud. Next was Rainbow Dash who had hopped down onto Anatankha’s back, surfed down her tail, and grabbed onto the rope with her teeth. She ran it around the pillar that Spike and the kids were on. Anatankha pulled hard on the rope until the pillar began to crumble. Rainbow Dash jumped to save Chip just in time while Spike held onto Annie and let himself land on the ground, back first.

“Spike, are you okay?!” Annie asked.

“Bit of a rough fall, but I’ll live,” he said, getting up.

Spike then rushed forward to Anatankha and began blowing fire at her. Anatankha roared and backed up into a wall but eventually charged up her own fire breath. She blew against his column of fire until Spike ran out of breath and was overcome. Flurry ran in front of him to use a magic shield to protect against the sphinx’s fire. Anatankha stopped blowing and saw Chip, Annie, Mrs. Cake and Pumpkin off to the side, throwing some snacks at her as a distraction. Pumpkin had used her magic to bring her mother down to the ground to fight back. Anatankha started to walk towards them, when suddenly she noticed Rainbow Dash behind her, crawling up her tail to get onto her back.

As this happened, Somnambula and Stormy anxiously watched the battle from a balcony above.

“What do we do, Somnambula?” Stormy asked.

“We need a plan. If I could get that rope on Anatankha’s tail, I might be able to use it to swing down to her level, but I cannot fly right now. Storm Streak, Anatankha cast her spell too far away from you, so you’re the only one of us that still has their wings open. Can you fetch me that rope?”

“You got it!” Stormy said heroically as he zoomed down to Anatankha and worked to pull off the rope while his mother kept the sphinx busy. He finally pulled it off and brought it back to Somnambula.

“Here you go, Somnambula!” he said as he handed her the rope.

“Storm Streak? Is that you up there?!” Rainbow Dash called.

“Hey Mommy! Don’t worry, Somnambula’s got this!” he called back.

With Rainbow Dash momentarily distracted, Anatankha reached back with her head, bit down on Rainbow Dash’s tail, and yanked her away. Rainbow Dash tumbled around on the ground and skidded to a halt. This enraged Stormy.

“YOU…YOU’LL PAY FOR THAT!” he screamed.

“STORM STREAK, WAIT!” Somnambula called.

Stormy flew as fast as he could around Anatankha’s head like an annoying fly that could not be touched. Anatankha swatted at him with her paws but could not land a hit. Flurry took this opportunity to charge up a beam like the one she tried to use on Scutellum. She shot Anatankha in the face with her beam, though it didn’t seem to do much damage. Anatankha roared and then shook her head around and looked back angrily at Flurry. Spike ran in front of Flurry to protect her.

“You are becoming a thorn in my side, little princess!” the sphinx said, angrily.

“HEY ANADORKA!!” shouted Stormy from behind.

The sphinx looked back to see the thing that was bothering her earlier.

“Why don’t you try picking on someone your own size! Or better yet, try me! You can’t catch me; I have my mom’s jeans! I don’t know what that means cuz I don’t wear pants, but that’s okay cuz I can still do this! NA-NA-NANA-NA! PFFFFFFF!”

Stormy turned himself around and spanked his butt while sticking his tongue out at the sphinx. Anatankha gritted her teeth and her eyes glowed green. Stormy’s wings folded up and he fell to the ground. Meanwhile, Somnambula finally managed to tie the rope onto a nearby torch and prepared to use it to swing into action.

“You’ve forgotten wings don’t work in my temple, little one. You should have taken this outside!” Anatankha laughed, walking towards Stormy who was now cornered.

“Oh no…” Stormy said, backing up, nervously.

Anatankha drew closer and closer, growling. Finally Somnambula swung down on the rope, let go, and landed on the ground, skidding to a halt right overtop Stormy to protect him.

“ANATANKHA, THAT’S ENOUGH!!!” she shouted.

“SOMNAMBULA! How did you get out of your cage?!”

“Nevermind that. We did not finish our conversation earlier. I know you want revenge on me, but what else is bothering you?”

“That is none of your concern, Somnambula! You humiliated me and I am making you my slave now! That is all that you need to know!”

“But you said you followed me and the other Pillars to Ponehenge where you witnessed us trap the Pony of Shadows in limbo. That was several years after our first encounter. Why would you wait that long?”

“Stop it!”

“What happened after you left the village that caused you to be this way? You promised you would leave forever!”

Anatankha reached her breaking point and roared as loud as she could, causing everyone to cover their ears in submission.

“DO YOU WANT TO KNOW WHY I HATE YOU SO MUCH?! DO YOU WANT TO KNOW WHY I SPENT YEARS PERFECTING THIS TEMPLE AND PREPARING ALL THESE TRAPS?!”

Anatankha used her magic to lift Somnambula and Stormy onto a platform so they would be at her level. She then zapped a nearby wall with a laser from her eyes and some animated figures came to life as she spoke.

“After I left your village in defeat, I returned to the other sphinxes and they demanded a report on my plundering. I tried to avoid them, but eventually they got the answer out of me. And do you want to know what happened next?! They laughed at me! The very name of Anatankha became synonymous with ‘coward’ or ‘joke!’”

As she told her story, the character that resembled her on the wall sat down crying as the other sphinxes were surrounding her, pointing and laughing.

“I was chastised and shunned by the other sphinxes for not being tougher on the ponies. I was supposed to leave after you completed my challenge as is the tradition of the sphinxes, but it did no good to explain this to them. Everywhere I went I was always met by this ridicule until I could take it no more. I had been driven to insanity so I vowed revenge on you. After I failed to catch you at Ponehenge, that’s when I started devising my plan to bring you back and I began working on this temple and then I turned myself into stone. When you released me from stone, that was when I would finally have what I want. It was all I could do. The only thing that made me happy was the very thought of getting back at you!”

Anatankha slammed her paw on the ground in her anger and shook the room. She stood there, panting. After a few moments, tears finally began to form in her eyes and she removed her nemes headdress. Somnambula looked up at the sphinx. For the first time ever, she finally saw just what was wrong with her archenemy. Anatankha’s desire for revenge wasn’t because she was pure evil; it was just the result of years of bullying from the other sphinxes. Everyone else in the room looked equally shocked to hear this story. Finally, Anatankha threw her nemes off to the side and opened her eyes.

“Oh what is the point anymore…” she said as she snapped her fingers.

Somnambula, Stormy, Flurry, Pound, and Spike’s wings all opened up and the temple powered down again with all the traps being turned off. The windows to the audience room opened up to let in some light again and the torches were snuffed out. Anatankha had shut the temple down entirely, but she was in no mood to talk. She walked past Somnambula and opened the doors to return to her throne room. Somnambula reached out her hoof as if to stop the sphinx, but Anatankha had already slammed the doors behind her.

“Storm Streak!” Rainbow Dash shouted, rushing over to hug her son. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, Mommy. Are you?”

“Don’t you ever run off like that again! And don’t ever antagonize someone who knows how to take away your flying WHILE you’re flying!”

“I’m sorry, Mommy.”

“Is everyone else alright?” Spike asked, looking around.

“Bit of a rough ride back here, but I’m okay,” Applejack said, rubbing one of her shoulders.

“Alright, let’s get out of here while we still can!”

“You said it, Spike!” Mrs. Cake replied.

Everyone started walking towards the door they came in until Stormy nudged Rainbow Dash to get her attention.

“Mommy, what about Somnambula?”

“Somnambula? You coming?” Rainbow Dash asked, looking back.

Somnambula stood still in front of the door Anatankha had left through. She hadn’t moved an inch since the sphinx had left and hadn’t said a word. She had her head down.

“Somnambula, come on, girl!” Applejack called. “You heard that sphinx. She doesn’t want ya anymore.”

Flurry walked forward as Spike followed her.

“You all go back to the village. I’m not giving up on Anatankha,” Somnambula told them.

“What?!” Spike exclaimed. “Somnambula, are you crazy?! She’s giving you the chance to leave now! Do you really think you can talk some sense into her?”

“I think I can.”

“Flurry, come on. Let’s just go.”

“No Spike. We have to try,” Flurry responded.

“Flurry, we’ve already failed at getting Tirek and Cozy Glow to listen. I don’t think right now is the best time for a villain reform session. We’ll tell Discord about her later.”

“She already feels sorry or else she wouldn’t have let us go like this. There’s good in her. If we just tell everyone else and send someone after her, that won’t do any good.”

“Okay, but shouldn’t we let Somnambula deal with it.”

“I want to help Anatankha, Spike. I already feel bad for her. Maybe I didn’t come to Ponyville to reform some villains, but I think it can work.”

Spike thought for a moment and then smiled confidently at Flurry.

“Just one favor. Can you fly real quick back to the village and get me my Journal of Friendship?”

“Sure.”

Spike spread his wings and flew up into one of the open windows to go retrieve Flurry’s book.

“Well, think we should help out?” Applejack asked, cautiously.

“I mean I don’t see why not,” said Pumpkin.

“Pumpkin, dear, I’m not sure that’s a good idea,” said Mrs. Cake.

“I agree. I don’t really think we should bother anymore with that sphinx,” Rainbow Dash said, skeptically.

“Mommy, we can’t leave Somnambula to do it by herself though,” Stormy said.

“You really like her, don’t ya, kid?” Rainbow Dash teased as Stormy blushed.

“Well guys, Flurry and I fought earlier over whether we should come back in here and help rescue Somnambula or just go back and get help and I honestly didn’t think Anatankha would admit that,” Pound said, stepping towards Flurry. “Maybe Flurry’s right. Maybe we can help her.”

Everyone stood and thought for a few seconds until Applejack finally walked forward.

“Come on, ya’ll. We might as well give it a try.”

Rainbow Dash followed her to help Somnambula push the door open. Soon everyone else smiled and joined them.

“We’re coming too, Somnambula,” Stormy said excitedly.

“Thank you, everyone,” Somnambula told them. “I wouldn’t ask you to stay, but help would be nice. I think that sphinx just needs a friend or two.”

6. Forgiven and Reformed

The room after the battle had a long flight of stairs leading up to a corridor with pillars on the side. This section was more decorative and no traps could be seen, though there were some torches lit. Everyone continued to walk quietly up the stairs to find Anatankha. Flurry asked Somnambula more questions about Anatankha’s story.

“Wait, so the reason Twilight and the others were able to find the talismans so easily is because Anatankha put them all right were they needed to be?” Flurry asked.

“That is what she told me,” Somnambula answered.

“I always wondered who moved all those talismans away from Ponehenge.”

“Then that means it’s because of her that we were able to stop the Pony of Shadows,” said Rainbow Dash.

“And bring me and my friends out of limbo,” Somnambula added. “I don’t think she realizes just how much good she has actually done, and I did not know she went through all of that torment.”

“I actually feel pretty bad for her,” Annie said.

“She just needs a friend. That’s all,” said Pumpkin, cheerfully.

“Shhh. That’s her throne room,” Stormy said, pointing to a large door that was still opened a bit.

They all crept quietly to the door and walked in slowly with Somnambula leading the way. In the throne room was Anatankha, lying on the ground like a resting cat. She was not facing them and had her head buried in her crossed arms, with her necklace and armbands removed. In the center of the room, a ray of sunlight shone down from the hole in the roof above, but Anatankha was in the darkness behind it. The particles in the air made it hard to see through the filter of light, but her tail was visible in the sunlight.

“Anatankha?” asked Somnambula, stepping into the light.

The sphinx did not make a sound, though she was aware they had entered. Somnambula tried getting closer until Anatankha responded.

“Shouldn’t you be far away from here by now?” the sphinx grumbled.

“Anatankha, I’m sorry to hear about what happened to you after you left my village. I did not know.”

“What difference does it make? I have done enough damage. There’s nothing left for me any longer.”

“Then why did you let me and my friends go?”

Anatankha turned her head around. Some of her mascara had mixed in with her tears and was now smeared on her face.

“Do you think it was easy for me to plan all of this? Do you think I didn’t have second thoughts? Of course I feel sorry. I didn’t want to come back and do this, but the torment from the others was too much. I felt I had no other purpose.”

“Anatankha, it has been over a thousand years since the day I went into limbo and you turned yourself to stone not long after. Those sphinxes are long gone now and the new sphinx kingdom is far more accepting of ponies. It is clear you feel sorry and do not want to do this anymore.”

“If you are asking me to apologize, it will not change anything. Your people have demonized me for everything I have done. They will never accept me.”

As they were speaking, Flurry noticed Spike walking in carefully past the door with the Journal of Friendship in his arms. He signaled for Flurry to take the book and she made her way to Anatankha.

“Um…Anatankha?” asked Flurry, stepping forward.

“What do you want, princess?” Anatankha replied.

“If it makes you feel better, there are other villains in Equestria who have done things far worse than you and some of them have already joined us.”

“Joined you?”

“That’s right. Why do you think we mentioned calling Discord for help earlier? He’s on our side now. A friend of ours named Fluttershy actually tamed him and it was because Princess Celestia had faith he could be reformed.”

“What? That is preposterous. Discord plunged their whole kingdom into an eternal state of chaos. The princess and her sister were the very ones who turned him into stone. The Equestria I knew would never give such a monster a chance at redemption.”

“Well maybe back then it was like that, but times have changed now. It’s not just Discord either. Look at this…”

Flurry flew up to Anatankha’s level and opened the book to the chapter documenting Twilight’s confrontation with Starlight.

“This is Starlight Glimmer. She started off by enslaving and brainwashing a whole town of ponies and forcing them to give up their cutie marks. After my aunt Princess Twilight Sparkle and her friends all stood up to her, Starlight came back a while later and tried using a really dangerous time-travel spell to change the course of history. It took some convincing, but Starlight showed remorse and she’s a good friend of ours now.”

Anatankha looked closely at the pages of the journal and saw that Flurry was right. Flurry then turned the book back to her and flipped through some more pages.

“And here’s Trixie. She put on the Alicorn Amulet and enslaved the entire town of Ponyville, and Twilight and the others had to outsmart her to get her to remove the amulet. Trixie felt bad later and apologized, but it took a while for her to really come around until she befriended Starlight over their past mistakes.”

“There’s also Mommy’s griffon friend, Gilda,” Storm Streak said, pointing to his mother.

“Ahuizotl and Dr. Caballeron,” Rainbow Dash chimed in.

“Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon,” added Mrs. Cake.

“Flim and Flam,” added Applejack.

“And a whole lot of changelings,” said Chip.

“We’re still working on their queen though,” said Annie.

“Let’s not forget Captain Tempest and Grubber,” said Pound.

“Ooh, ooh! And Stygian!” Pumpkin said, hopping up and down.

“Oh that’s right!” Flurry said, turning back to the sphinx. “Anatankha, I don’t think you’ve realized it yet, but by returning all those talismans in their rightful spots, not only did you bring back the Pillars, but you helped us defeat the Pony of Shadows!”

“I…I did?” Anatankha said, wiping away her tears.

“Stygian was a unicorn I was friends with who lost his way and turned his back on us after a misunderstanding. The Pony of Shadows manifested itself within him, but we freed him from its clutches and banished it into limbo,” Somnambula explained. “Anatankha, you did a good deed for us already and you didn’t even know it!”

Anatankha took a moment to think to herself. It became evident she no longer had the desire to do villainous deeds, especially after hearing all of this. She had no idea she would find herself in an Equestria where some villains had their hearts changed already, but she already hated herself for everything she had done. She wasn’t sure she was worthy of a second chance.

“Why did you come back for me, Somnambula?” she asked. “I invaded your village, plundered your peoples’ crops, kidnapped your prince, and on top of that, I kidnapped you with no intentions of letting you go. Why should you give me a second chance? How could you trust me after everything I’ve done?”

“Because that is what friends do,” Somnambula said, tenderly.

Anatankha was moved by her words. Her nemesis was actually willing to give her a chance and accept her apology. There was no turning back now. Anatankha had to let go of all her hatred and accept Somnambula’s friendship. She walked into the light and held out her paw. Somnambula flew up and landed in it as Anatankha nuzzled against her.

“I am sorry, Somnambula,” she said with tears flowing from her eyes. “You are right. I didn’t think there was anything else I could do. You showed me today what friendship really means.”

Flurry closed her book and breathed a sigh of relief. Everyone smiled warmly as they watched.

“She did it, Mommy!” Stormy said, hugging Rainbow Dash.

“Phew!” said Applejack. “Good job with the book there, Flurr! Didn’t think ya had it in ya!”

“Especially after what happened the other day with Cozy,” Mrs. Cake added. “Good to see we now have another reformed villain!”

“It’s good to have you like this, Anatankha,” Somnambula said as Anatankha let her back down. “I will talk with the pharaoh about this and I’m sure he will have you pardoned.”

“Thank you, Somnambula,” said Anatankha, bowing her head. “I hope the others don’t mind. Only one question still remains: what am I going to do with this temple? This was an ancient enclave for sphinxes during the age when the ponies shared their kingdom with us. I outfitted it as a trap for you, but now it has no use.”

“Uh…maybe you can use it as a haunted house?” Stormy answered as everyone turned to him.

“A haunted house?”

“I think what he’s talking about is a themed attraction,” Rainbow Dash clarified.

“Yeah, like ponies come in and go through all these puzzles and stuff it’s scary but it’s supposed to be for fun.”

“A themed attraction. It is a form of entertainment for ponies in modern Equestria,” Somnambula clarified. “Like Flurry said, much has changed.”

“Hmmm. Strange way for ponies to be entertained, but that does sound like an idea. I would have to change things to make the temple a bit safer, but if ponies enjoy it, then I could convert this temple into an attraction after all. Whatever it takes to help rebuild my reputation from the ground up.”

“That would actually be nice,” Annie said. “The temple is still quite a sight and I wouldn’t mind coming back one day to visit this place.”

“Me too! We’re gonna have to give it a name though,” Chip said.

“You can call it Anta…Antana…Antonia’s Temple!” Stormy suggested cheerfully.

“ANATANKHA!” all of his friends shouted in unison.

“Er…whatever.”

“Just make sure you make that drain hole a little wider next time so dragons my size can fit down it.” Spike said, patting his belly as everyone else laughed.

Everyone went back to the village that afternoon to finish the rest of their planned tours, while Anatankha stayed behind to clean her temple. Somnambula spoke with the current pharaoh about Anatankha and he agreed to have her pardoned for her misdeeds. Soon the whole town knew about what had happened and while there were some who were still suspicious of the sphinx, Somnambula did her best to assure everyone she could be trusted. Flurry and her friends all made the most of the time they had left in Southern Equestria. They got to visit the sphinx statue and the pyramids in the Hayza Neighcropolis just outside of town, taking plenty of pictures throughout. After pondering their adventure in Anatankha’s Temple, Flurry thought up a friendship report to give to her aunt that reads as follows:

Dear Twilight Sparkle,

Today I learned that sometimes the ones who do harm in our lives are only doing it because someone else may have harmed them in the past. Sometimes someone’s anger in such a situation can get the best of them and cause them to do horrible things, but if we hold on to hope that they can be redeemed, they just might change. It’s always a good idea to talk to our enemies to get their perspective. I’m pleased to report that the legend of Somnambula and Anatankha the Sphinx now has a happy ending for both of them.

Your niece,

Flurry Heart

When the trip was nearing its end, they all packed up their belongings, said one last goodbye to Anatankha and went to the train station to meet with Somnambula and then return home to Ponyville.

“Well guys, I’d say that was a successful trip,” Flurry said confidently as they waited on the platform. “Bit of a hiccup along the way, but at least we reformed a villain.”

“We’ve got a story to tell dad when we get home, don’t we, Pumpkin?” Pound asked his sister.

“Ohoho, you bet! Dad’s gonna be so jealous!” Pumpkin responded.

“I don’t think he’s going to be quite so jealous that we were in a spooky temple, but I’m sure he’ll want to come with you two next year for sure,” Mrs. Cake told her twins.

“Tex is probably gonna be jealous I got to go on this wacky adventure,” Applejack added.

“Well, there’s the train, you guys,” Spike said as the train arrived and stopped in front of them. “Everypony got your luggage?”

“Everpony except me,” Stormy said, sullenly. “I still never got my hat back.”

Just then, Somnambula removed her headdress and put it on top of Stormy’s head.

“Why don’t you take this, Storm Streak,” Somnambula told him. “A brave little colt like you deserves an heirloom like that.”

Stormy sat still for a moment and could not speak. Rainbow Dash nudged him.

“She just gave you a gift, squirt. You gonna say something?” she teased.

“I…I…THANK YOU SO MUCH, SOMNAMBULA! I’LL NEVER TAKE IT OFF!!” he squealed as he hugged her tightly.

“Aw, you’re welcome, little one!” Somnambula replied before giving him a kiss on the cheek.

Stormy jolted like he had been zapped by electricity while his eyes opened as far as they could. His face turned beet-red and hearts floated out of his head once again. He began to close his eyes and smile as he fell to the ground in a love-dazed shock.

“Best day ever…” he said contently.

Everyone else laughed hysterically as Rainbow Dash patted him on the head. Somnambula giggled and then looked off to the side and noticed something in the corner of her eye. Not far away in a nearby mountainous area was Anatankha, perched atop a cliff, wearing her sphinx regalia again. She smiled at Somnambula and gave her a wink. Somnambula smiled and winked back to her old friend.

THE END