A Shadow of Myself

The day had come. In just a little while, Charlotte and her sister would be standing on a hostile and unfamiliar alien world. She was in the same large ballroom that she had attended the gala in, but the general public was banned from coming in here right now. In a few short minutes, Sunset would be putting Charlotte's magic to use. The entire team that would be stepping across the portal was here, and so were many of their family members, saying what they hoped would not be their final goodbyes to those about to venture into the unknown.

She was without the necklace, and it felt odd being out and about without it after more than a month, having to wear it whenever she wasn't sleeping. She had a heavy backpack sitting beside her and wasn't looking forward to lugging that around all day, every day. Not that she could complain too much. If anyone had room to complain about having to carry too much, it was Andrea. Andrea had a large backpack, and she had a strange oversized saddle to carry Phobia and Josie while those two slept during the day; in addition to a large sniper rifle she had strapped over one shoulder. Every other party member had a backpack or saddle bag, even Empathy.

"Remember, you can use your thing Sunset gave you to get you out at any time, don't try to be brave," her mom said as she fussed with the strap on Charlotte's backpack for what seemed the hundredth time.

Charlotte resisted rolling her eyes. "I know. Sunset made me go over how it works over and over again."

She overheard some of the other conversations.

Sapphire Sky and her husband.

"You come back safe and soon. Aurora will be angry if you miss your grandfoal's birthday party."

"Don't worry. I'm not going out at the paws of some care bears."

"Better not, my chaotic stormcloud."

Sweetie Belle and Rarity.

"Now, Sweetie Belle, don't overexert yourself. You aren't a young mare anymore."

"Rarity, don't give me that. I'm twelve years younger than you!"

"Are you implying that mwah is old???"

Phobia Remedy and Rosetta Stone.

"Keep yourself safe. I'm not going to have you die on me right after you retire."

"I'll do my best. When I get back, I'll find us a nice secluded tree to relive some moments."

"Now, that's a promise I'm going to hold you to."

Luster Dawn and Twilight Sparkle.

"I know you're eager to help save a world, but listen to Cadence. She knows what she is doing. This mission is about gathering information and establishing diplomatic ties. Don't try to be a hero."

"I know, I know, but if I get a chance to bring down No Heart-"

"Luster!"

Princess Cadence and Princess Flurry Heart.

"I should be the one going on this mission."

"Your place is here with your ponies. They need you. You're the true crystal princess. I was just keeping the throne warm for you. If something happens, I want you to know you've made me proud with how well you lead the empire. I'm more proud of you every day. You don't need me anymore."

"Don't say that! You aren't giving me your last words. You're going to come back! I'm always going to need my mommy."

Andrea tapped her on the shoulder and gave her a smirk.

"You checking out Princess Flurry Heart again?" Andrea whispered.

Charlotte balled a fist. "No! I'm human. Ponies don't arouse me."

"She checked out the princess?" their dad asked in surprise.

"Back during the gala, she did," Andrea chuckled.

Charlotte glared at her sister. "I was a pony at the time, and there's nothing wrong with looking. It wasn't like I was gaping at her anything."

"I tell your mom that all the time, kiddo, but she doesn't believe it," their dad laughed. "Nice to hear you aren't in denial any more. My little girl is all grown up."

She stomped her foot. "I was never in denial! Are you two really going to pick at me right now?"

"You know how we roll, Char," her dad said with a grin. "But, I'll lay off. You just focus on keeping safe and not focusing on these mare's flanks."

"Dad!"

Celestia and Luna walked into the room, and Wild Growth followed behind, looking spiffy in a business suit. Celestia spread her wings. "May I have everycreature's attention!"

Talk quieted down, and everyone turned to look at Celestia.

Celestia lowered her wings. She had a grave look on her face. "On behalf of Equestria and Earth, we thank you for agreeing to participate with this mission. I want to stress the importance of this mission. This world is currently held under tyrannical rule by a dark wizard. This wizard has learned how to cross over from his world to ours. This presents a clear and present danger to Equestria and Earth that we must learn how to counteract."

Luna stepped forward. "I know you all know your personal worth and know how capable you are, but some of you may be wondering why we are not sending the Element Bearers, Starlight Glimmer, or others who have saved the world before to go on this mission if it is so important. The answer is we simply cannot spare them. We are about to enter into the greatest conflict in many generations, perhaps the greatest conflict ever, and your mission represents just one front of the war we are facing. I will let our friends from Earth explain."

Wild Growth stepped forward and coughed into her hoof. "When I was young, my brothers and I played this game called Fallout. It had this saying it liked to throw up, war never changes, but that isn't true; war has changed. Our armies are built to fight armies, but in the past century, they have learned that they are terrible at fighting against guerilla warfare that goes on and on. In the past thirty-five years, we have met individuals with the power to level cities. What do armies mean against the likes of Tirek or Discord? What do armies mean against the likes of me before I lost the ability to channel my magic? They mean nothing. War has changed. I need to stress that the primary purpose of this mission is to gather intelligence on No Heart because he is a threat the likes of Tirek." She looked to the side. "Sunset, your turn."

Sunset had been standing off in a corner and didn't move from it as eyes turned to her. She looked at them all and shook her head.

"Many of you might not like me. I am not here to be liked. One of the tasks the US government gave me back when I governed Riverview was to determine the answer to how do you beat a Tirek, Discord, alicorn, Dreamwarden, or other specific individuals of incredible power. It's a task I am doing again now. Everyone has a weakness, an Achilles' Heel, and limits to their power. Anyone can be defeated with the right strategy and know-how, anyone. We do not need a direct confrontation; we need you to get your information and get out safely. Others will fight, but you will be the ones to enable them to win. The right tool for the right job."

Luna nodded. "Establishing diplomatic relations with the intuit is a secondary goal but should not come at the expense of the primary. They are possible allies, which could be invaluable, but that alliance does us no good if we don't know how to win."

"You are all smart, capable, observant, and have survived your own trials and tribulations. This team was picked by all the princesses together with additional input from key advisors– such as Miss Growth and Miss Blessing here, among others. We know you can do this," Celestia concluded.

Luna looked around. "We wanted to keep the team small to draw less attention, but there have already been additions to the team. I am about to add another member who I think will be invaluable. Most of you probably are unfamiliar with her or may have misgivings about her, but she will do everything to help make this mission successful." Luna looked off to the side at a curtain. "You can come out now."

A very plain, frail-looking earth pony mare with dull grey fur and mane stepped cautiously from the curtain. Sunset and Wild Growth didn't seem to have been made aware of the addition and examined the pony closely.

"Who is this pony?" Wild Growth asked in confusion.

Sunset narrowed her eyes. "That's not a pony. I just looked at her magic. I haven't seen one before, but I can still tell. That's a changeling."

"Well, changelings aren't scary," Scootaloo spoke up. "And it makes sense to bring one on a spy mission. Why would anyone have misgivings?"

The changeling-pony looked at Scootaloo. "I'm Bursa."

Sweetie Belle, Applejack, Scootaloo, Wild Growth, and Sunset Blessing immediately fell back and took defensive postures.

Sapphire looked around and laughed. "Whoa, that bad, huh? I feel out of the loop here. Who is Bursa, and why is everyone suddenly on edge? She looks harmless."

Josie looked at Sapphire. "You're taking having half our team acting like they are about to be attacked in stride."

Sapphire shrugged. "The princesses wouldn't include her if she was that bad."

"Good point," Josie said with a nod.

Cadence walked over to Bursa. "Go ahead and assume your true form. There's no need to hide it from them. I trust you as a teammate. Do you trust me?"

Bursa fixed a stony glare on the Princess of Love. "It's hard to trust ponies. You keep me trapped. You don't let me go home."

"Rossman is dead, Bursa. There's no one left to take your vengeance out on. Going to Earth won't bring you peace and will only lead to you being hunted and hurt. Keeping you from going there protects you," Cadence said calmly and slowly.

"My past…"

"Is gone," Cadence said firmly. "Luna has searched your mind as thoroughly as she can. There is no memory to jog. Just the fractured fragments you have. I know it isn't the answer you want, but you must let go of it. You've been a changeling longer than you had been a human. You can still reform and live a happy life, but you have to let go of that hurt. I want to help you. I will see that you are well fed through this mission."

Bursa turned her eyes to Sunset Blessing. "Rossman is dead, but she still lives. She gave others the information to make me, both times."

Sunset threw up a shield around herself. "Bursa, I did what I could for you. I don't want to hurt you, but if you attack me, there will be bug guts everywhere. I am not as weak as I was last time we met."

Cadence sighed. "And that is why Sunset Blessing is staying home. I've never seen such a violent pony before. Bursa isn't going to attack you. You can drop your shield."

"I'm not very trusting. I'll feel better with it up. She's known to be mentally unstable. I don't expect her to be reasonable," Sunset Blessing replied, taking another step back, so her flanks were now touching the walls.

"I'm not Sunset's biggest fan these past few years, but knowing what she's capable of, if she's nervous around this pony, I have concerns," Josie said.

Luna cleared her throat. "Um… Cadence…perhaps it is inadvisable for Bursa to assume her true form right now. It can wait until after she is through the portal."

The younger princess raised an eyebrow at Luna. "Why?"

"My mother has an extreme case of arachnophobia," Phobia answered for Luna. "It is best not to have my mother freak out."

Charlotte wanted to laugh. She shouldn't, but there was a strong urge. They were afraid Sunset would burn the whole place down if she saw Bursa's true form. Who's mentally unstable now? Luckily, Charlotte didn't share that fear of spiders.

"If she looks like a spider, I can handle it. I'm not going to lose my mind," Sunset said gruffly. She pressed her flanks up against the wall. "But I'd rather she didn't get too close to me, and please excuse the mess if I piss myself."

"It's good that you are so open about your fear and are willing to face it, Mom," Phobia said.

"Phobia, I love you but please shut up," Sunset hissed. "I'm trying to brace myself and prefer not to be patronized about how well I'm doing."

"We need her to be in her proper form to ensure we properly attach her return brace," Twilight Sparkle informed them. "I made modifications for it to stay on through her transformations and blend with her when she is disguised, but those modifications only work if I put it on while in her true form."

"You messed with the braces I made?" Sunset asked. "Without telling me?"

Twilight looked sheepish. "I felt modified versions of them would be needed for Bursa and Andrea, so they can properly use their skillsets. I didn't do anything to the main spell. Just the physical structure of the brace."

"Could have still told me," Sunset muttered.

"I'm sorry, but you were indisposed, and I have a lot I'm trying to deal with right now. I didn't have a chance to tell you," Twilight explained. "Plus, I needed to check your work. Making magical artifacts is not something you have a lot of experience with. You've only personally made one thing before this, and it had major design limitations."

"Did anything need to be fixed?" Sunset asked.

"Nothing was broken, but a few things were not optimal, primarily with power transfer. I don't think they would have worked in the full radius from Charlotte that they were intended the way you had them set up. I fixed it."

Sunset nodded. "Do you have notes so I can see what you did and what wasn't right about my work?"

"Of course I do!" Twilight answered happily. "I'll send them to you later today."

"Bursa, it's okay. Go ahead and transform," Cadence said gently. "And leave Sunset alone. She never intended for Rossman to experiment on you, and you are only alive because of her helping come up with a solution to make your resonance stable. She's a friend…a difficult friend, but a friend."

Bursa looked around, then lowered her head. There was a flash of light, and when the spots cleared from Charlotte's eyes, she gasped.

Bursa was big, bigger than Andrea. Like Andrea, Bursa had six limbs. She was big and black, with jagged zig zags of red matching her mane and tail. She had a crooked horn and holes throughout her legs. Charlotte was unsure if a spider was the fitting description of what she looked like. Maybe if a spider and a mantis had a baby and gave it a pony face, she found herself taking an involuntary step back. She wasn't the only one.

"Well, there went my bladder," Sunset muttered. Charlotte glanced her way and saw a puddle forming around Sunset's hooves.

There were a few seconds of silence then Sapphire stepped forward.

"Hey there, Bursa. I'm Sapphire Sky. Nice to meet you. Pretty impressive stature you have there," Sapphire said with a smile. She then held out a hoof. "I'm sure those bears will think twice about messing with us with you around. Hoofbump?"

Bursa leveled her gaze down on Sapphire. "You are scared too. You're hiding it, but you can't hide it from me."

"She might be scared, but she is still offering you a hoofbump," Phobia said. "She is facing her fear. Sometimes you have to stow your fear away to make an unlikely friend."

"Why aren't you giving a hoofbump then, little pony?" Bursa asked the former Dreamwarden.

Rosetta stepped defensively in front of her wife. "Because Phobia is uncomfortable getting near anyone big and hostile, and while her arachnophobia is extremely mild, you're the biggest living spider she's ever seen. I'm not scared of spiders, and if you threaten her, I'll cook you up and serve you to my grandfoals."

Bursa blinked. "You're telling the truth." She turned her attention back to Sapphire and cautiously hoofbumped the pegasus.

Sapphire smiled. "I don't know you. You have a lot of ponies on edge, which is a little concerning. I'll admit it makes me a little nervous to see Wild in a defensive position– just nervous, not afraid, but you've got a blank slate with me."

Twilight Sparkle let out a long relieved breath. "Now that that is settled, I can distribute the bracers and necklaces. The bracers are your lifeline. If something goes wrong, they will get you back here in an emergency. However, you must be within thirty meters of Charlotte Portsmith for them to work. I made some small improvements to Sunset Blessing's design, but that will only buy you a few meters more at best. Cadence can walk you through the use after you arrive."

"And the necklaces?" Charlotte asked as Twilight started by attaching Charlotte's brace and putting a necklace around her neck. "No one mentioned any necklaces to me."

"They prevent mind magic from being used on you. Everyone but Phobia and Empathy is getting one. Phobia is already selectively immune to mind magic," Cadence explained.

"Selectively immune?" Sweetie Belle asked as Twilight moved on to her.

"Only what mind magic I allow to impact me does," Phobia explained. "A carryover ability from having been a warden."

Charlotte went wide-eyed. "How will I talk to Empathy if his mind magic doesn't work on me? That's how he communicates."

Empath made an unintelligible set of sounds in protest.

"How will we establish diplomatic ties if we can't talk to the intuit?" Apple Bloom asked.

"I can speak with Empathy," Phobia replied. "And the necklaces are hopefully only temporary until I have determined whether you are under immediate threat of mind control once we get there."

"How long will that take?" Charlotte asked with a pout.

"At least a day," Phobia answered as Twilight fastened the brace around Phobia's leg

"At least?" Charlotte whined.

"This is something you are better safe than sorry with," Phobia said gently. "I won't draw it out longer than I need to, but I won't have this party's minds be in jeopardy."

"Guess you and Empathy are going to be playing charades," Andrea commented.

"It's time for everyone to say their final goodbyes," Celestia announced. "We are only allowing thirty days for the mission. We hope it won't take that long, but we request you withdraw within a month if you still are gathering information. That way, we know we haven't lost you."

"Princess Luna, Twilight, I will need your assistance with the portal," Sunset announced.

"Why?" Charlotte asked, concerned, considering Sunset was supposed to already know how to make her use her magic.

"Princess Luna needs to put you to sleep and suppress your pain reception so you don't feel this, and Twilight needs to send her magic to probe into the portal to ensure it is in a safe spot. I'll be preoccupied making the portal, and they're better than me at those tasks anyway," Sunset explained. "Don't worry about it; just say your goodbyes."

"I don't get to even be awake for it?" Charlotte asked in outrage.

Sunset looked at her like she was stupid. "Do you want to be in agonizing pain? I'm unlikely to find a safe spot on the first try or even the fifth. We could be at this for a while. Best to keep you asleep and not feeling anything."

Well, hell. She wasn't going to argue with that.

"Thank you…for trying to make it better for me," Charlotte replied.

"What? I told you I would do my best to minimize the pain. Thank Luna for suggesting a better solution than the one I came up with. I didn't know she could suppress pain reception in sleep. I was going to dope you up with morphine," Sunset said with a huff.

Her mom pulled at her arm to get her attention. There were tears in her mom's eyes. "We'll tell her thank you for you. Right now, let's spend what time we have. You both promise to come home. I'm not losing any more of my babies."

Charlotte reflexively felt defensive about being called a baby, but she buried the feeling.

"We'll make it back home, Mom, I promise."