The four ponies lay crowded around Jelly Splash’s saddle bag. A fragment of crystal, long and pointed, sat in front of them.

“I don’t know why I kept it. I guess I just thought I was taking him with me,” Jelly Splash looked away, shame radiating from her usual aura of aggression. “I know I messed up, you don’t have to tell me.”

“I wasn’t going to. If every Crystal Pony is connected to the Heart, maybe you really are taking him with you,” Fire Bolt suggested. “I do wonder how you didn’t disappear with the rest, though.”

“Yeah, that part was weird enough on its own. I don’t remember anything between bodies everywhere and then nopony anywhere. It’s just… not in my head, I guess,” Jelly Splash stretched out her front hooves, a popping sound echoing around the cave as she extended each shoulder, before relaxing further into her laying position.

“Do you think… I don’t know how to ask this – have you tried to put it back together? You know, with your magic?” Sapphire asked, earning a subtle kick to the flank from Bolt.

“Yes. That’s why I told you to stay away from it. I don’t want to talk about this anymore,” Jelly Splash suddenly shut down, her tone returning to cold and guarded. “What are we waiting for again?”

Bolt looked to her partner expectantly, who had his eyes shut, flicking around aimlessly under his closed lids. “He’s searching for it now. Just give him a minute,” Fire Bolt lowered her voice, laying down next to Sonar and leaning up beside him.

As if he hadn’t noticed her, which he probably had not, Sonar Moonshadow suddenly stood and began to twitch his ears in several directions before picking one and following it, nose in the air. His eyes slowly slid open as he reached another opening that went deeper into the cave, looking up into the cave as if there was somepony directly in front of him.

“Sonar, what do you see?” Fire Bolt asked after a moment, knowing the look that washed over his face.

“Follow… she wants me to follow her,” Sonar replied in a sluggish voice, squinting at a figure that nopony else could see. Before anyone could reply, he started deeper and deeper into the cave, his magic barely illuminating the cave as it got darker and darker.

The remaining three got up and followed him as quickly as they could before losing his guiding light, Sapphire and Jelly sharing a concerned look. Fire Bolt wasn’t worried.

It was several dozen yards into the pitch-blackness before the light stopped, Sonar freezing in his tracks with twitching ears, and Bolt held out a hoof to indicate that they should all stay back.

That was when Sonar Moonshadow finally used his unique talent.

Waves of buzzing filled the room, illuminated by the remaining flecks of his light magic clinging to the vibrational pattern. It bounced off of every surface around them and back to his horn – that was when the ripples briefly revealed a form in the darkness, sending its own tiny vibrations back to him. It couldn’t even be described as a figure, but more like an absence of the far-reaching waves emanating from Sonar’s horn – it simply looked like an interruption in the pattern that lasted a millisecond.

That was enough to catch his attention, and his ears flew forward as if being spoken to. The four of them took up a quicker pace in the direction of the figure, the cave’s walkable areas almost completely illuminated now with sparkling waves of energy bouncing around and sticking to the stone like stars.

After several minutes of quick travel followed by pauses and subsequently Sonar’s echolocation ability, they hit a wall – literally. Their guiding light led them to a cracked stone barricade of a wall. Sonar took a few more steps forward than the other three, and Fire Bolt clicked her teeth to discourage him from hitting the wall, a practice that was nowadays a rarity. He luckily froze in his tracks before his nose hit the rocks, looking back at the other three expectantly.

“There’s got to be a way around,” Sapphire Swirl stepped closer, squinting at the light particles repeatedly bouncing off of the impossible path in front of them, almost beckoning them to pay closer attention. “Oh, wait! Moon, take four big steps back.” With that, Sapphire turned around and bucked the stone with what looked like casual ease, knocking the large stones out of their places. The bouncing light around them finally flooded through the open pathway, racing forward and directing everyone’s attention to a faint blue light in the distance.

Sapphire looked intently through the partially-lit cave. They flew ahead, carefully keeping their head low in case of stalactites, and pointed out a corner in the tunnel. “Up here!”

Moonshadow stopped his illuminating spell and the three of them raced to catch up, following this distinctly magical light until they turned the corner, revealing the source of it.

“By Celestia-”

“Holy SHIT!” Sapphire cut Sonar Moonshadow off, loudly. “Look at that thing!”

“I don’t believe it. Don’t get close to it, not yet!” Sonar was louder than he had been this entire journey, and Fire Bolt quietly wondered how his brain was interpreting the sight in its own magical way.

“What is that thing?” Jelly Splash spoke up, her voice riddled with a mixture of awe and anxiety.

“Nebulith Etherbloom. I’ve only read about it in old spellbooks,” Sonar stepped closer, the blue light casting a soft glow onto his lavender coat. “I think this is where she wants me.”

“She?” Sapphire cocked their head in confusion.

“The mare. I was listening to her the whole way. How do you think we got here?” He explained calmly, and a proud smile crept onto Bolt’s face.

She had only seen him use his skill in action once before, and that was to locate a neighbor’s lost kitten years back now. Even then, she knew that this unique ability was capable of far more than shivering felines. Now, he was shifting closer and closer to the plant, his hooves rustling the moss growing on the cave floor.

“Do you know what’s going to happen?” Fire Bolt inquired apprehensively.

“Well, not exactly, but I’m going to try the Interstellar Rift spell. I practiced on a lotus… what’s a Nebulith Etherbloom if not a big lotus?” He nervously cracked the joke, and Jelly Splash started forward.

“Hold on! The last time you did a spell, I saw my aunt’s decomposed corpse trying to light a candle in my hideout. Don’t you think we should do some more thinking before jumping right into this?” She exclaimed, a tremor gripping her voice.

“Hey! He’s the most powerful unicorn I know! He knows what he’s doing!” Fire Bolt snapped back, taking the insult to his intelligence personally.

“It’s okay, Boltie. You’re right, Jelly Splash. I didn’t know what I was doing or what would happen to anypony else, and I’m sorry,” Sonar admitted, looking down anxiously. “But I know what I’m doing this time, and I have this… feeling that I can really help you if you just trust me.”

Jelly Splash stared at him for a long moment… then stepped aside.

Sonar Moonshadow took several deep breaths, then marched up to the root of the flower, taking a seat at the base and closing his eyes. Fire Bolt watched his shoulders rise and fall slowly before he clearly held his breath as he focused his magic.

It started in small red sparks clinging to his horn like static and then crackled into more of a flare. As the energy surged above him, it changed in ways that were almost indistinguishable at first, and then it was ever-changing between floating liquid, flames, sparks of electricity, and then finally into a warm, steady glow that was brighter than the sun. He took several moments to ensure that he had a steady control of the magic, and then leaned his head forward, the tip of his horn just barely making contact with the stalk of the plant. When it did, its petals shifted to the unforgettable shade of crimson that was Sonar Moonshadow’s magic, and the hue of the room changed to a warm and almost menacing atmosphere.

The three ponies watched quietly as the scene in front of them remained unchanged for quite some time, frozen in anticipation.

It was then that Sonar was plunged into a somehow even more blinding light than before to the point where none of them could distinguish his figure, and then… it was pitch black. Jelly Splash ignited her horn instantly in a panic, and the three of them raced towards the now unlit but perfectly lively plant.

Sonar was slumped on the floor, luckily his chest still rising and falling, and when Fire Bolt pulled his head into her arms, she noticed that his eyes were completely white.

Sonar Moonshadow felt sick, and a thumping headache was easing into the corners of his skull. Lifting himself to his hooves, he opened his eyes, and to his shock, he looked around at his surroundings. His usual “sight” was a magical mush of colors and intuition, but this… this was seeing. Strangely, he found that he could not conjure a memory back in a time when he could not see. In fact, he couldn’t remember… anything.

What he saw around him was that he had been laying on a shaggy rug on the floor of a warm cottage, flames flickering in the fireplace in front of him, but no other light was on inside the house. Everything was crisp, and he took careful time scrutinizing the sharp edges of the table and the corners of the room. After fully soaking in his surroundings, he laid back on the rug in front of the fire, finding himself shivering so hard that his teeth were clattering.

The cottage was cozy and felt safe; the den consisted of the fireplace and rug as well as a wide padded cushion in front of it, looking more like a futon than a couch. To the left of the fireplace was a carpeted staircase that rounded the corner obstructing any vision of the upper floor, and opposite of that wall was a small dining area with only one chair in front of the table. A window provided a nice looking point from the chair, but the outside was concealed by frilly blue curtains.

Sonar decided that he didn’t need anything beyond what the cottage provided anyways, and closed his eyes to stave off the nausea that was slowly settling back down.

He had drifted so close to falling asleep under a blanket of calm emotions and the warm fire when he suddenly jerked his head up at the sound of hooves on hardwood floor above him, almost getting dizzy from opening his eyes to see again.

The sound then changed to hooves on carpet, and it clearly sounded like a pony starting down the stairs. Finally, the mystery pony had reached the turn in the staircase, rounding the corner to make confused eye contact with the equally as startled unicorn laying on her rug.

“Oh, wow! I’ve never had a visitor before!” She exclaimed, clearing her throat as if she wasn’t used to speaking. “What’s your name? I’m Misty.”

Author's Note

is this easier to follow? i was hoping that drawing more would help everyone understand what's going on a little bit better. i'd love to know what you think!! :)