Fallout Equestria: The Blue Lightning

— It… it’s not us, is it? We’re not the right group of friends either. We can’t bring Equestria back. You’re still looking.

Fallout: Equestria, chapter 21

A few days ago

“…Does it say there, in your show… what finally happened to the Elements themselves?” Cosmic asked.

The aliens’ account of the events in cartoon Equestria was longer than she had expected, and much more rambling. The earth pony had already guessed that the end would be as positive as possible, but the hedgehog and the fox had only reached the Friendship School in the eighth season.

Sonic sighed and bowed his head:

“In fact… they were destroyed.”

Something must have flashed across Cosmic’s face, he added immediately, “At least as they existed before. Actually, there’s still quite a long part of the story…”

It took a while to retell the main plot of the ninth season. Breathlessly, Cosmic listened to how King Sombra, who had literally appeared out of nowhere, had destroyed the Tree of Harmony along with the Elements; how the remains of the Tree had been transformed into a beautiful palace (damn, another one – after the Castle of Friendship!); how the villains from the previous seasons, who had been taken out of the storyline, had returned under new leadership – but had been defeated. Now for sure.

But there was one thing that stuck out to the mare about the whole story.

“I mean, the new Tree wasn’t shown there? And the Elements were thought to be irretrievably lost? But –” she pointed her hoof at the aliens “– did you come here to get them anyway?”

Sonic and Tails looked at each other and shrugged.

“We don’t know what’s going on,” the fox replied. “There’s supposed to be a tenth season in the comics, but we don’t know about it.” He looked back at the device by the window. “But the detector is pointing somewhere! And the signature of the energy it’s picking up is similar to Chaos Emeralds! What else could it be?”

“Um… Grogar’s Bell?” Cosmic suggested.

The villains’ main tool in the finale was a powerful artifact designed to store magic. It must have been left somewhere?

“It’s unlikely”, the hedgehog shook his head. “It would have been hidden somewhere in the dungeons of Canterlot Palace…”

“…And the device points in a completely different direction,” Tails continued. “Besides, something must have survived from that time. Why not think that the Tree created new material forms for the Elements? And somehow, they miraculously survived the apocalypse because they were inside a mountain dozens of miles from any populated area?”

“It all sounds....” Cosmic twirled her hoof, searching for a word, “fantastic. But… yes, not impossible.”

“And the way Watcher reacted confirms that they still exist!” Sonic pounded his fist into his palm. “Which means we can get them. Whatever it’s gonna take.”

Tails had to abandon his device after all. Sharp fragments from a nearby explosion of a sprite-bot had pierced the detector, making its electronics unusable. It seemed unusual to Cosmic that such a machine could work without magic, unlike the terminals of this world. Even though, in essence, those were just different forms of primordial energy.

By the time the three of them reached the bottom of the peak, it was already getting dark. The cloud cover was not as thick here, so they could catch glimpses of the setting sun through the gaps.

The light Equestria has lacked for two centuries.

It’s not forever, Cosmic comforted herself as she climbed the narrow, steep, stony path up the mountain. The pegasi cannot hide behind the clouds for eternity. One day someone will come who has the power to change everything. And then good will rise again. But unfortunately, not now.

The path Watcher had indicated could hardly be called a walkway. It was more like a series of ledges they could theoretically jump off without breaking their necks. Cosmic even joked to herself that it was about time she grew a pair of horns on her head. Sometimes being a pony wasn’t very comfortable.

If anyone wasn’t suffering from the steep climb, it was Tails. He circled above on his tails, keeping the rest of their little group safe, picking them up when they stumbled on a ledge or didn’t make it to the other side of a gap, or holding them up when they went over a ledge. The mare was grateful for the fox; it warmed her from the inside out in the bitter mountain wind.

Tails hadn’t left them for a second since Sonic had brought him here, trying his best to help. If he were a pony, Cosmic thought as she jumped over a not-so-wide gap, the Element of Loyalty would definitely be his.

The problem was, there might be a pony somewhere who had that trait. And that one would be better suited to be the keeper of the artifact.

After all, we’ll find out when we meet Watcher.

“And why did he… have to live… so high up?” Sonic muttered and followed Cosmic over to the other side. It was harder for him to jump directly, so he climbed over and grabbed the ledges on the rock.

“It’s safer this way,” the earth pony shrugged. “The same as when Long Claw sent you to Earth. Harder to reach, harder to hurt.”

“And harder to use…”

The hedgehog was clearly referring to his epic quest to find Master Emerald.

“Also true.” Cosmic looked at the rapidly darkening sky. “We have to hurry. Otherwise, we'll fucking fall. Or the Enclavers will shoot us.”

She honestly didn’t think the pegasi would spot them in the dark, but she still respected Watcher’s words. If he’d warned them, he must have really wanted to see them.

“For sure he has – we survived his attack, didn’t we? And we stayed on our way. It’s not a bad idea to meet such freaks, if only to find out how they did it. Unless, of course, we were really meant to be killed.”

She lifted her head and looked at the sky. It would be dark in a little while.

Was it her imagination, or was there a winged figure in the sky? A brush stroke of invisible ink on gray paper.

“Quiet!” she whispered to her companions. “Hide!”

They lurked behind the rocks, gazing anxiously at the impenetrable shroud not far away.

But a minute passed, and another, and still no one appeared in the sky.

And there was no way to guess whether it was a good or bad sign; whether no one was really following them, or whether they had already fallen into a trap.

Cosmic took a breath.

Either way, they would find out on the way back.

“Alright” she said quietly. Her heart was still pounding, demanding more, more air, but the mare tried to overcome the excitement that was tearing her up inside. “It looks clear. Keep going.”

And on they went.

Gradually the slope became steeper, and they had to literally climb up the path, crawling on the rocks to keep from falling. Darkness had almost completely engulfed Equestria; Cosmic could barely see the ends of her own hooves. But she didn’t stop climbing, knowing they were at their destination and remembering what they’d been through on the way.

They had no right to give up so easily.

After all the horrors of the recent past, dying while climbing a mountain seemed like a silly and unfunny joke.

With each passing meter, the breathing of the three throats got harder and harder. The muscles whimpered with the effort; the body no longer wanted to move. But the ghost of hope still loomed, forcing her to lift her hooves time after time and take the next step. Cosmic hadn’t even realized that this climb would take so much out of her. Maybe she shouldn’t have climbed the peak after a day’s trek, hoping to find shelter at the top – or maybe she was just tired of being afraid. Especially of something that hadn’t shown itself yet.

Sonic and Tails looked tired as well. But at least they didn’t faint. And it was obvious why: one was a damned spark battery on maximum power, and the other just could fly.

The mare even calculated how long the fox could resist in an aerial battle against a pegasi squad. And it had to be said, Tails definitely had a chance to escape.

Sonic would simply roll down the mountain and scamper across the Wasteland.

The earth pony tried not to think of herself that way.

When Cosmic suddenly found a flat and relatively spacious area in front of the gaping entrance to the cave instead of another uphill section or an abyss, she let out a sigh of relief and rolled onto her side. She needed to catch her breath at least a little after such a marathon of adventuring.

And the hardest part was keeping her eyes from closing.

The aliens stood nearby, waiting patiently. Sonic shuffled faintly from foot to foot. Here, above the lower edge of the clouds, the moon shone dimly, colored by the haze of the upper part of the veil. A pale light with a bluish cast fell on the rocks. The mare suddenly saw the silhouette of a horned pony’s head on the moon’s disk and shook her head, chasing away the strange vision. Come on, nonsense…

Finally, Cosmic looked at Sonic and Tails, who were waiting for her to recover, and got to her hooves with a groan.

“All right, all right, I’m up. Let’s just g–”

And then from the dark yawn of the cave, a head peeked out.

The words immediately stuck in the earth pony’s throat. She couldn’t even breathe as she looked into the huge green eyes staring back at her. Only by a miracle she managed to keep from wetting herself.

A sharp green crest gleamed in the moonlight, harmonizing with the pale lilac scales.

The three travelers stood face to face with… a dragon!

Until now, Cosmic had only heard of dragons in the legends of ancient Equestria. During the war, these creatures were used heavily by the Zebras, as the ponies couldn’t cope with them. Most of the dragons died in the battles, and the rest were left to their fate.

And now one of them was staring at the mare and the two aliens who were frozen in place.

“Well, hello, Cosmic Valor,” a voice said. Not as low as the mayor of The Republic, but still powerful in its own way. “Nice to meet you. I am Watcher. And now I shall try again to prove to you that your journey here was a mistake.”

He opened his huge mouth, studded with yellowish, sharp teeth, and sucked in air. Sonic and Tails were almost pulled in, but they grabbed onto each other and managed to stay in place, thanks in large part to the fox’s spinning tails.

That’s it. We’re done, Cosmic thought distantly. All other thoughts had been blown out of her head, leaving only emptiness. That must have been what the end felt like.

Now he’ll breathe fire and we’ll all be here…

“Spike?!”

Now it was the dragon choking on air. Watcher coughed, spitting out small bursts of green flame. Cosmic hurriedly stepped back so she wouldn’t accidentally get hit.

“How…” the dragon wheezed continuing to cough. “How do you… know… my name?!”

“So…”

In Cosmic’s head, as if the gears turned. If accepting what the aliens told was true, then…

“…that you were Twilight Sparkle’s assistant?”

“How?!” the dragon roared in anger. He had already gotten over his cough. “How do you know that?! Are you spies or what…?”

“We’ll explain everything to you,” Cosmic said quickly, before they all got really fried. And not in the figurative sense. “Just, please, calm down. And if you don’t mind… can we go inside?”

Spike glared at the newcomers for a moment, then blew a puff of acrid black smoke from his nostrils and grumbled, “All right. But swear that you will not move a single step further without my permission!”

“I swear,” the earth pony said immediately and looked at her companions.

“We too,” they sighed.

“Come in.”

Spike removed his head and hid in the cave.

Cosmic, Sonic and Tails looked at each other and followed him.

A small tunnel led them into a spacious hall with a ceiling that lost itself in the height. Despite the fact that it was night outside, the room was flooded with light: a green flicker on one of the walls of the terminal screen, and a faint glow from a spark battery on top – hardly more powerful than in Cosmic’s home.

But what caught the mare’s attention and amazed her were… the books. Tall bookcases made of old wood lined the walls – and each shelf was densely packed with books, many times more than in The Republic’s library. Some of the titles caught Cosmic’s keen eye, and she remembered her father vividly. He wouldn’t have missed a chance to go through all this treasure.

Sonic and Tails were drawn to something else. The two aliens were standing by one of several piles of gems scattered on the floor, whispering animatedly about something.

Also in the room was a huge round bed with a pile of pillows and blankets – as Cosmic estimated, just the size of a dragon. Opposite the entrance, a tunnel could be seen off to the side, leading further into the depths of the cave.

I wonder what’s in there that made Watcher so nervous? Oh yes, of course. Elements. How could I forget. He must have them somewhere – so why not…

“So…” The dragon flapped his wings and lowered himself onto the sleeping spot near the terminal, looking around at the guests with a menacing gaze. “I’m listening. I’d like to know what else you know about me. About me, about the Elements – and about Equestria, for that matter.”

Cosmic smiled slightly. Oh, that’ll be fun…

“I suppose it’s fair to begin with the fact that our whole world is fiction. Then,” she looked at the aliens, “they’ll tell you all themselves.”

What happens when you suddenly find out that everything around you that seemed so tangible and close, including yourself, your friends, and your past, turns out to be unreal?

Cosmic had experienced this before. However, she didn’t feel particularly linked to Equestria that Sonic and Tails were talking about, so her brain had somehow accepted the idea very easily. Well, it was fiction – so what? She’d still have to find something to eat tomorrow and something to shoot back with.

But for Spike it was different.

The first time, he didn’t believe it. The second time, he didn’t believe it either and filled the room with a low, growling laugh. It was only when the two uninvited guests began to recall some very sensitive incidents that something changed in Spike. The dragon ordered them to be silent and sank into thought for a long moment.

Cosmic even tried to breathe quietly so as not to disturb him. And it was bad timing – she wanted to go to the toilet more and more after the long crossing. But she held out and looked around the room as if nothing had happened. She noticed that Sonic was looking more and more at the passage in the back wall – and the mare didn’t like it.

Please, don’t do anything stupid! the mare mentally pleaded to the blue hedgehog, who could be expected to do anything.

Suddenly she heard some kind of sound coming from the dragon and turned to him. Spike sat with his paws around his snout and trembled slightly. Listened carefully, Cosmic realized that he was… laughing.

“So many years…” the dragon murmured softly, with unexpected bitterness in his voice. “So many years fighting the usual villains, then trying to stop the war… Then I stayed here and tried to do something to give the ponies of the Wasteland some hope… And for what?!” he suddenly shouted, and the mare guessed that it wasn’t laughter – but tears. “To find out that it was all just a show?!!! An amusement?! Maybe someone is watching us right now, huh?! Hey, come on, hello?!”

He took his paws away from his face and turned his head to look for the other “watcher”. Cosmic suddenly realized what a mockery of fate this must have seemed to the dragon.

“But how… How… How…?”

“Hey, but the show ended with Twilight’s reign,” Sonic said, seemingly not understanding what it was that had Spike so upset. “There was no war with the zebras, and especially not this,” the hedgehog waved his hand in the direction of the exit, “for those who watched MLP. And the new generation doesn’t say anything about the end of the world either…”

“You think that makes me feel better?” roared the dragon, staring at his interlocutors. There were still tears in his eyes, but he didn’t want to sob openly in front of everyone. “I too thought that Twilight’s coronation would be the end of all troubles and that we would have another thousand years of peace,” he hissed. “But I was wrong – we all were!” He shook his head. “The beginning of the end was when Twilight had to… step down from the throne.”

“What? How? Why?”

This time it was the hedgehog and the fox who were stunned.

Cosmic sat silently on her haunches, ready to absorb every word. Her worldview was just missing a little information about Equestria’s forgotten past.

“It’s because of the spell,” Spike explained with a sigh in response to the uncomprehending stares. “Twilight was a researcher, and she always remained one. Her passion for learning new magic continued even after she became ruler. One day, she decided to perfect a spell she’d first stumbled upon as a unicorn… teleportation with lightning, it seemed. But…” the dragon’s voice trembled, “the experiment failed. Something went wrong, and instead of traveling from Canterlot to Ponyville… she burned her wings.”

He squeezed his eyes shut, holding back the tears inside him. Cosmic stared at him with her eyes wide open; wet streaks ran across the earth pony’s face. The world of friendship and magic that Sonic and Tails had created for her was crumbling in these moments. And worst of all, she would soon learn exactly how it happened.

“It took a huge toll on the Princess of Friendship. She was so depressed about what had happened that neither I, nor Celestia and Luna, nor even damn Pinkie Pie could comfort her! Celestia healed her wounds so that not even a scar remained and was ready to give Twilight new wings… but she didn’t feel like an alicorn anymore.

“She had grown as big as the other princesses, but after everything…” Spike sobbed. “She started to shrink back down to size. And about a month after it happened, she had turned into a regular unicorn.

“Depressed, Twilight abdicated her throne. Celestia and Luna had to cut short their vacation on the Silver Shoals and return to Canterlot to rule Equestria once again.

“The Princess of Friendship wasn’t stripped of her title or even her allowance, but Twilight still stopped calling herself that. She retreated to Ponyville, the place where she had first learned about friendship and where there were those who could truly support her. She had a castle there, but she no longer felt entitled to live there. At her request, the town rebuilt the Golden Oak Library (in Twilight Sparkle’s name, of course), where she took up residence. Just like old times.”

Spike fell silent; it was obvious from the way the memories tortured his soul. Cosmic couldn’t find the words to express her sympathy, so she just stared at him with a look of astonishment and despair. She had never imagined that fate would be so cruel to the heroine she loved.

“Gradually…” Spike continued. His voice trailed off and the dragon had to clear his throat before he could speak again. “Gradually, Equestria began to develop. Technological advances took over town after town, and new science centers, laboratories, factories, and power plants sprang up. But Ponyville remained much the same as before, and that allowed Twilight to recover, little by little.

“But the Friendship School she had founded began to decline. Fewer and fewer students went there when they saw what had happened to their former idol. Moreover, all the other races began to leave Equestria because of the problems in their own countries. It was a vicious circle that could not be broken.

“The school was eventually closed; Twilight didn’t really care what happened to her brainchild. Friendship Castle fell into disrepair, and even the Mane Six felt uncomfortable there. But even worse, they no longer understood why it was there. Finally, Starlight… Starlight Glimmer, whom Twi had once put in charge of her school, teleported the Castle to Baltimare, where they promised to take care of it.

“You may already know what happened next. New weapons began to appear, Equestria began trading gems with Zebrica in exchange for coal, and after a while both sides got greedy, and one day,” the dragon grinned wryly, “there was what the Zebras called a casus belli with the hostage-taking by their pirates and the rescue operation by the Wonderbolts. The Zebras invaded to take over the borderlands, Celestia was convinced that the war would end with our quick victory…” He shook his head. “’We’ll reach Roam in five days…’ Oh, Goddesses, how naive that was…

“And it was all downhill from there. The gas bomb at Littlehorn School, Celestia’s abdication in favor of Luna, the creation of the Ministries (which, by the way, helped Twilight finally get her mind off the past and back to her magical studies), the assassination attempt on Celestia, and the bombs falling and killing everyone and everything… I just wanted to say, ‘Twi, we’ve fucked. Everything. Up.’"

Spike looked up at Cosmic and her companions. His eyes were dry – but there was such pain in them that the earth pony’s heart skipped a beat as she looked into them.

“We failed to hold this world. No one could hold it. And eventually it slipped from everyone’s hooves and shattered into tiny pieces. And for two hundred years, there was no pony to put it back together.”

“Sounds like one of those fan theories…” Sonic snorted, but corrected himself under Spike’s angry glare, “…which certainly explains what we’re seeing. But it feels,” the hedgehog frowned, “like everything the writers have created since season three, or even season two, has just been… reset! It’s like it never happened.”

“I liked Shining Armor the best in the cartoon,” Tails said thoughtfully, turning to the dragon. “Was he actually here at all…?”

“Sure he was,” Spike grinned, and Cosmic breathed a sigh of relief that they’d managed to get him out of the depression they’d driven him into. “I even have a memory orb with a recording of his conversation with Twilight. I can show it to you if you’d like.”

“The orb of what?” Sonic misunderstood.

“In case you hadn’t noticed, there aren’t many unicorns among us,” the earth pony said ironically. “Not a single one to watch this recording.”

“And there’s a recollector too,” the dragon sighed.

“I’ll explain everything to you later,” Cosmic promised the aliens and turned to the owner of the cave. “But what happened to you? How did you end up here? And Elements… You wanted them stored somewhere safe, didn’t you?”

“I was helping Twilight. Ever since she was Princess Celestia’s apprentice… then when she became a princess herself… even when she became the leader of Equestria… and finally when she was the Ministry Mare…” The dragon’s eyes became hard again. “But I can’t tell you why I’m here. It’s too important. I can’t take that risk. And… since you already know about the Elements, I’ll tell you this: they stopped working. The old Six were no longer the ideals of their virtues… and the Young Six – the best of the first graduating class of Friendship School – never became them.” He sighed. “I guess the point is that after the Tree was destroyed, the power of unity among all the ponies was enough to produce an effect comparable to the use of the Elements – that’s why they defeated Tyrek, and Cosy Glow, and Chrysalis. And then… when the war broke out, that was all gone, and the new artifacts hadn’t grown yet. But more importantly, there weren’t the right ponies to use them.” Spike pointed a giant clawed finger at Cosmic. “And you won’t be able to. So go away. There’s nothing for you here.”

“Where does this passage lead?” Sonic asked casually, pointing to a nondescript tunnel in the far wall.

Cosmic tensed. Please, just don’t…

“NOOOOOOOO!!!” Spike roared as a blue, blurred silhouette darted toward the passage and disappeared into the darkness.

The dragon flapped his wings and soared into the air. Cosmic locked eyes with the cave master – nothing good was coming for them now.

“YOU SWORE AN OATH!” he roared. “SO THIS IS HOW YOU KEEP YOUR PROMISES?!!!”

He sucked in a breath of air, and the earth pony realized with a glimmer of consciousness what awaited her. There was no fear, just doom and a distant annoyance that it had to end so stupidly.

A jet of green flame burst from Spike’s throat and hit the ground – where the mare had just been standing. Cosmic opened her eyes, squeezed shut by the attack, and found herself being held by Tails, who was hovering on his tails on the very ground just off to the side. The fire the dragon spewed was indeed hot, its warmth reaching Cosmic’s skin. She jerked her shoulders and slipped out of Tails’ grip; yeah, she didn’t want to get hit like that.

“Cosmic, they’re here!” Sonic shouted from the other room of the cave.

Elements? So they were really here the whole time…

The fire was out – Spike turned his head towards the mare and the fox, apparently not wanting to set fire to the bookshelves behind them.

“STAY WHERE YOU ARE!!!” he shook the cave again with his roar and flew towards the passage he had squeezed through, folding his wings for a moment.

In the next instant, the green flame spewed by the dragon could be seen there.

Cosmic froze, not knowing what to do.

On the one hoof, she was really afraid: Spike was really terrible in anger, and it didn’t seem right to end her days as a pile of ashes. It wasn’t supposed to be like this, that’s all! And in a way, the hedgehog deserved what he got – after all, it was only after his appearance that the blue pony’s previously well-established life began to crumble before her eyes.

But on the other hoof… Sonic had saved her life back in the Wasteland. He hadn’t let her die so she could repay her debt to Metal Dawn. And after the elimination of her old team, the hedgehog had become her first real friend.

Cosmic gritted her teeth. No matter what it would take – but she’d made her decision.

And she galloped towards the passage.

Tails landed on the ground and ran after her.

The tunnel was longer than it looked at first glance, and Cosmic was nervous as she raced into the next room, especially when the green flashes kept flickering. At one point she almost tripped over a thick cable – obviously running from Spike’s terminal to the other side of the cave.

But what she saw made her stop abruptly at the threshold. Tails dodged at the last moment, flying up on his tails to avoid hitting her back, and stared dumbfounded at what was in the next room.

This place was even larger than the dragon’s own room and was obviously located in the center of the mountain. The hexagonal chamber was flanked by maneframes, some of them humming softly in hibernation mode; insulated wires snaked everywhere, and the crystals that lined the floor and walls gave off a faint glow. Cosmic’s eyes even went wide at the sight of this technomagic splendor.

And then she saw it. In the center of the hall, a huge supermaneframe stood in a column of steel and amethyst, reaching far up into a circle of clear, dark sky. It was too high up here for the cloud veil to work effectively. A bright white star rose just above the pointed top of a marvel of arcane technology that had been created by someone.

From the base of the supermaneframe, like the rays of the giant star, six transparent platforms protruded, on which, resting on velvet pillows, were six pieces of jewelry with gems of various colors and shapes.

Cosmic’s breath caught. These gems looked exactly like what Sonic and Tails had described!

Elements… so that’s what they were…

And Sonic and Spike were running around the most important treasure in post-war Equestria. The hedgehog ran in circles around the hall, dodging flashes of green fire and transforming into blue and white sparks as usual. The dragon maneuvered delicately, trying to keep his wings from hitting the spire of the central maneframe, and from time to time exhaled downward jets of flame; his target was clearly Sonic. The tongues of fire were at least pony-high on the floor and walls – Spike had made sure to leave the machinery intact.

And that kept the dragon from sizzling the “threat”.

“Sonic, you idiot!” Cosmic shouted, her voice echoed off the walls.

“GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE, YOU MARE!!!” Spike replied, firing another bolt of fire.

It didn’t hit Sonic, of course. The hedgehog suddenly came out of super-speed mode on the other side of the hall and threw something into the air, then immediately darted away, dodging another bolt.

In the light of the green flame, a ring – one of the four remaining – glittered golden. Cosmic watched in fascination as the portal opened: the ring grew larger than any door, and another dimension became visible through the transparent membrane. It seemed to be some kind of room… but the earth pony couldn’t get a good look inside.

New creatures, unknown to Cosmic, began to come out of the portal. But from how they looked, one could tell that they were playing with Sonic, so to speak, for the same team.

A hedgehog girl with pink needles, wearing a red sweater and carrying a huge sledgehammer behind her back. And she’s pretty… flashed through the mare’s mind.

The red… beast with the angry look was obviously Knuckles, who Sonic had told her about. So this is what Echidnas look like? I didn’t know…

And finally, from the other world, stepped into the cave… a rabbit? That’s all Cosmic could make out of her long ears and yellow-brown fur; the guest was wearing a light, colorful dress. But in her hands, she was carrying… something the earth pony didn’t even know the name of. The closest she could come to describing it was a blue mushroom with eyes that made the sounds of a baby.

“Hush, Cheese,” the rabbit girl murmured in a soft, pleasant voice. Was she talking to that… mushroom?! “We shouldn’t… Aaaaaaahhhh!” she screamed, noticing Spike, and slipping behind Knuckles’ back.

Sonic stopped running from Spike and rushed towards… his friends? Tails pushed Cosmic away with sudden force and hurried towards them as well; the mare rubbed the shoulder she’d hit against the wall with a sigh and stepped into the hall as well.

Even Spike stopped breathing fire and hovered in the air, looking at the uninvited guests with disgust.

“You…” he growled. Smoke rose from his nostrils. “So this was all your plan to sneak in and take the Elements from me!” He looked around at everyone and stopped at Cosmic. “And you… Do you realize that by helping them, you’re betraying Equestria? Betraying the legacy of all those ponies who gave their lives so that it could be reborn?”

“But for now, Equestria is dead.” Cosmic shook her head. “And if we don’t help these creatures, their world will suffer the same fate. And then…” She looked sternly at Sonic. “They promised me they’d return the Elements afterward.”

“Oh, you found them!” the pink hedgehog girl exclaimed, hugging Sonic and Tails. “And so quickly! We were just starting to worry about you…”

“Who’s that, Sonic?” Knuckles asked, staring at the dragon. “If that’s our main opponent, I’d like to take him out as soon as possible…”

“YOU WON’T GET THE ELEMENTS!” Spike thundered, spreading his wings. “I’VE BEEN GUARDING THEM FOR TWO HUNDRED YEARS, NOT TO BE TAKEN BY A BUNCH OF UPSTARTS WHO DON’T EVEN KNOW HOW TO USE THEM!”

The aliens looked at each other. Cosmic had a strange sucking feeling inside, as if something they had completely forgotten had been revealed. Something important, something they’d paid attention to before.

Spike chuckled suddenly.

“Really? You don’t even know that you’re supposed to be the bearers of the virtues? And yet you showed up…” The dragon chuckled again, this time threateningly. “And how were you going to make the magic of friendship serve you, huh? Do you guys have any idea who you are…?”

“Well....” Sonic stepped forward. “We’ve known each other for a long time. We’ve been through a lot together, and in a lot of trouble. It may not compare to Twilight and the Mane Six, but it means a lot to us.” He looked back at his friends. “And I know for a fact that we have among us the Elements of Honesty,” – glanced at Knuckles – “Loyalty,” – now at Tails – “Kindness…” The hedgehog’s gaze flickered between the pink and the rabbit. “Laughter…”

He sighed and bowed his head.

“And I so wish I could be the Element of Magic – my own, special, pure energy… But now I realize that we’re not the right ones. After all, we’re not even ponies.”

“So you haven’t decided which of you should represent which Element…” Spike muttered and flapped his wings to get lower. “And what are you going to do now, huh?”

“Listen!” Cosmic stomped forward, drawing attention to herself. “Yes, we’re at a dead end. But maybe there’s still a way out, a way to resolve everything?” She turned to the dragon. “Can you give them something more powerful than just an instruction to seek their virtues? If not the Elements themselves… at least something?”

The dragon hesitated for a moment.

Different feelings had to be fighting inside him. On one side was anger at the (let’s face it) brazen invasion of his home. On the other (or so Cosmic hoped), a genuine desire to help, as he had helped the blue earth pony before; as he had been helping the Wasteland ponies for two hundred years; as he was helping Twilight Sparkle when he was young. Well, and maybe a wish that everyone would go away and leave him alone to keep watch at the terminal.

Finally, he replied, “All right. I think I know what you want.”

And, pushing himself off the floor, he took off.

Cosmic lifted her head and followed him with a glance.

Spike flew over to a glass case mounted high on the wall, almost impossible to see from the entrance, carefully opened the flimsy door and carefully removed… six statuettes of what must have been those ponies. Ministry Mares. The former bearers of the Elements of Harmony.

Reaching back down, he lined up all six figurines on his huge palm. Purple, orange, pink, blue, white, and yellow. Cosmic would never have guessed that these colors could have any meaning.

“After the Elements,” the dragon said, pointing to the statuettes, “these are the most valuable things in Equestria. There are only seven of these sets, and I can only guess how far the others might be scattered. These are not just figurines; unlike ordinary crafts, they have their own magic – and so can serve as a ‘lighter’ version of the Elements, so to speak.

“I want you to find what remains of the Tree of Harmony in the Everfree Forest, near the ruins of the Castle of the Two Sisters, where Stable 101 was built before the war. The Tree had kept Equestria in order with its magic for centuries… until it was destroyed – for the first time, I believe. Later, a palace was built from its fragments, and a new Tree grew inside it – with the same Elements, since their bearers remained the same. That’s where the artifacts were taken. But now… I don’t know what’s there. Most likely, the palace has been destroyed for years, and there are raiders and Red Eye’s soldiers around. Maybe there’s nopony there and the Tree stands untouched – I don’t know. And I want to find out. And you,” Spike pointed at the group gathered in the cave, “are going to help me. And if you can, try to reactivate the Tree. I think the statuettes should work,” the dragon gave himself a wry smile, “if, of course, you’ve decided who represents which virtue by then. If you really do.”

“How’ll we keep you informed?” Cosmic asked – and nearly facehoofed. The answer was obvious.

“By the nearest sprite-bot. I’ll take whatever results you get and send another bot with a section for light cargo. And you will return the statuettes to me,” the dragon added with pressure. “Otherwise, you’ll get another rain of steel parasprites.”

So that’s what those bugs are called… was the first thing Cosmic thought.

And then the wheels in her head spun faster.

The Everfree Forest… The uncharted territory where, according to radio reports, the supreme leader of the slavers was stirring up something. What if this quest becomes just another suicide attempt?

But there was nowhere to run.

“We agree,” Cosmic sighed. “At least there’ll be a new purpose.”

“And what about Dr. Eggman?!” exclaimed the pink hedgehog girl, turning to her kin. “Sonic, you said that–”

“I’m sorry, Amy, but things have changed,” he said. The hedgehog girl sobbed; Sonic walked over and hugged her. “We can’t get the Elements – but Eggman doesn’t have the Emerald either. Besides, this world’s going through worse times than Earth. We gotta do something to help it.”

“How long has it been in there? A few hours?” asked Cosmic sharply. “And here – two weeks! Your Eggman is not going anywhere. And what’s he without the Master Emerald? Cannot someone take over the world alone…”

“Well, he almost did once,” Sonic countered. “But, yeah, he’s far from all-powerful on his own…”

“Remind me again, why do we have to do what you say?” Knuckles asked Spike. The echidna looked… to put it mildly, angry.

“Because someone,” the dragon looked at Sonic accusingly, “broke the word he gave when he entered this cave. Either that,” Spike gritted his teeth, “or I’ll crush you into a pancake. And burn what’s left.”

“He’s not kidding,” Cosmic interjected. “Believe me, it’s serious.”

“We need a plan,” Tails said. And already to Spike, “Can you please give me the exact coordinates of this place?”

“Sooo… and none of you have a PipBuck, of course,” the dragon said.

“This one?”

The fox opened a small bag that was attached to his belt with all sorts of technical things and took it out… PipBuck! A little scratched and with a broken flashlight eye, but it looked like it worked.

Cosmic went cold. Goddesses, she knew where this PipBuck came from!

“You… you…” she stammered, pulling the carbine from her back, and pointing it at the fox. Tails staggered back a few steps, clutching the device in his hands. “You dared to… search the… corpses of my comrades!”

She clenched the weapon in her teeth, fumbling with her tongue for the trigger…

But a powerful blow from the dragon’s tail threw the mare against the wall. Cosmic slammed into one of the shutdown maneframes and slid down, groaning. Argument rattled across the floor, released from her mouth grip.

“No one is allowed to shoot here!” Spike growled, leaning over the earth pony. “If you damage anything, two hundred years of my hermitage will be for nothing! TWO HUNDRED! FUCKING! YEARS!” he shouted directly into her ear.

“Why…?” Cosmic shook her head and came to her senses. The dragon’s last words made her ears ring wildly. “Why are you here? What are you guarding so preciously?”

“That’s none of your business, mare. But believe me, it’s more important than all your lives put together. More important than the lives of every pony in Wasteland.” Spike gave her a faint smile. “It’s hope.”

“Hope for what?” Cosmic grinned in disbelief. “That Equestria will be cleansed of radiation and Taint in no time, and the pegasi’s cloud veil will be fucking blown away?”

When she saw Spike’s eyes widen, she frowned in bewilderment. “Wait… really?! Really?!!!”

The dragon stared at her in silence for a few seconds, then sighed doomedly.

“Okay. You’ll know. But a bit later. And no one else can know.”

“W-why?”

The mare struggled to get to her hooves and hobbled back to her weapon. She didn’t feel like anything was broken, but her legs were a little shaky.

“Because anyone can get the information, you fool!!!” Spike exploded again. “The Enclave, the Steel Rangers, the alicorns – all of them! Alicorns in general are fucking telepaths! I cannot allow the fate of all of Equestria to be in the hooves of any of them! I! CAN! NOT!!!”

“Wow,” Cosmic raised an eyebrow and strapped the carbine to her back. “Now I see why all the secrecy–”

“I hope so,” the dragon exhaled angrily and turned to the others. “Let’s go. There’s nothing left for you to do here.”

He waited until all the aliens had left the hall and ducked into the next passage. Cosmic sighed and limped after them.

At the entrance to the tunnel, she turned and looked again at the hulk of the central mainframe.

So it wasn’t the Elements that the dragon was guarding…

If this machine really is capable of healing Equestria… well, that changes everything. Then Spike’s aggression was justified. Even the attack of those… as Sonic said, “kamikaze drones”.

If Cosmic had such a thing – even without being able to use it – she wouldn’t hesitate to kill anyone who dared to hurt “her precious”. So, Spike was right. And she should have died on the way up. That would probably be fair.

Sighing, Cosmic left the hall.

The maneframes near the walls were humming softly.

“You never used it before?” Spike asked as the earth pony pulled on the wired black crown of the recollector.

“Nope,” Cosmic shook her head slightly and adjusted the device on top of her head. “And where would it be? No, there was one in my father’s workshop, and I even put it on sometimes to play princess…” Her eyes clouded for a moment, and a faint smile touched her lips: Cosmic remembered the past. “But we didn’t have any memory orbs that I could do research on. And when my father died, the mayor sold the recollector for three wagons of greens. That should have been enough for the whole winter.”

The mare was sitting on the far side of the hall, leaning against one of the piles of jewelry. Sonic and the others huddled by the terminal, watching the Wasteland through the sprite-bot cameras. Cosmic didn’t look there; she was still angry.

And just to distract herself from the unpleasant thoughts and feelings, she asked Spike to show her the memory orb the dragon had mentioned in their conversation.

“Then the feelings would be new to you.”

Spike flew away for a moment and returned with a translucent bluish orb in his paw. There was a light smoke swirling inside the sphere – apparently a magical form of memory.

“You’ll just be inside… some other pony.”

The dragon carefully placed the orb into the slot at the top of the recollector. Cosmic chuckled, imagining what it looked like from the outside now. The sight of a “princess” with that orb on her head was imperceptibly changing into the image of some ancient goddess.

“You’ll feel the same as she did, but you won’t be able to read her mind. Looking through the memory orbs, the differences in race and gender are probably the most striking. Many unicorns are willing to enjoy others’ memories for days, it becomes a kind of… entertainment.”

“Of course, they have a horn to do it without that thing…” Cosmic sighed, touching the recollector with her hoof. The thing on her head was quite heavy, and just uncomfortable as hell to wear. “Actually, it’s not a good thing to spy on others. Even if they allowed it themselves by recording their past.”

“Then why would you look through this orb?”

Cosmic smiled slightly.

“Sometimes the past is worth to be touched.”

Spike nodded and pressed a button on the recollector.

And in that instant, the familiar world dissolved.

<========ooOОOoo========>

After a new picture seemed to assemble itself out of dots in front of her eyes, Cosmic wanted to blink. Just so she could adjust. But she could not. The body her mind was in didn’t obey her. She was just a helpless witness of what was about to happen. Whatever it was.

This pony (mare – at least the genitals felt the same) was standing in front of a huge, almost wall-sized screen, like a giant terminal. It really was a terminal, for the keyboard case was inconspicuously tucked away to the side. On the screen, a circle made up of bars was rotating, and a cursor was flashing at the end of the sentence “Waiting for connection…”

A black camera looked down at the body owner from above. It looked like this pony was about to make a video call.

I wish dad was here. I’m sure he’d appreciate all this splendor. I wonder where… Oh, Celestia, that’s…

The most unusual thing about the new body was… the horn. It was as if Cosmic – or whoever she was now – had a hard, but also sensitive stick growing out of her forehead. Cosmic suddenly wondered: what would it be like to cast magic with that? At least holding a carbine would be possible without using the mouth. And it wouldn’t be a problem to add submachine guns too…

The mare bit her lip. The display had been flickering for about twenty seconds, and the pony was clearly nervous. She jerked her shoulders, hidden under a light navy cape, and Cosmic suddenly felt a slight pain in her back: two aching points just to her sides. Exactly the echo of another, much stronger pain.

Wings! This pony didn’t have wings, but she knew how to use them!

Waiting until the connection was finally made, the unicorn mare lowered her gaze and looked at her hooves. The lavender skin looked harmonious against the pale yellow walls and white marble floor.

It was Twilight Sparkle. The second pony in a thousand years (after Princess Cadance) to receive wings from the outside – and the first to lose them.

Cosmic’s soul prickled with pity and compassion. The pony whose body she was in would never be able to fly again. Probably, for an alicorn or a pegasus, the loss of their wings would be like being a unicorn without a horn. That’s why Twilight wore clothes – so nopony would see that her wings were gone.

Cosmic had seen some ponies in the Wasteland who’d had their horns chopped off with a shovel or sawed off with a hacksaw by raiders. They could no longer use magic – and felt damaged by that. And even the slavers valued earth ponies much cheaper than unicorns.

She wondered how any of the Wasteland’s alicorns would behave without wings, and then the screen came to life.

The Princess of Friendship looked at a handsome unicorn in a red dress uniform with a dark blue mane and a shield-shaped cutie mark with a six-pointed star in the middle. Even through the monitor, he exuded a sense of power and confidence; in the back of Cosmic’s mind, it even flashed that she wouldn’t mind sleeping with him. Maybe more than once.

Behind his back, the richly appointed chambers were visible. Bookshelves, furniture – everything was made of shining blue crystals. Even the walls had their druses protruding, shimmering in the daylight. No doubt it had cost more than The Republic and the two Appleloosas combined.

Another character from the past. Shining Armor, ruler of the Crystal Empire and brother of Twilight Sparkle.

“Shining…” the lavender pony murmured, stuttering. “I…”

Something about their relationship was clearly not as Sonic had described it, the earth pony thought. Or what was going on in Equestria at the time.

The white unicorn bowed his head.

“Hey, sis. I know why you’re calling: Cadance and I have already received a letter from Princess Luna. And before you say anything… Believe me, we’ve given it a lot of thought – and we’ve decided it’s safer for us… and for the Empire.”

What are they talking about? Okay, wait… So the recording was made in wartime…?

“But… but we must stay together!” Twilight said almost pleadingly. “Our countries, yours and mine! Ever since the Empire returned… We’ve always been friends!”

“And that’s true,” Shining Armor nodded. He, too, was obviously sad and uncomfortable talking about this (though still unclear to Cosmic) subject. “The Crystal Empire is indeed closely related to Equestria. But you know… have you ever thought that we’re being kept in a secondary role… on purpose?”

“What do you mean? Princess Celestia would never–”

“Are you so sure? We may not see our future apart from Equestria, but –” he lifted his chin “– the Empire is not a puppet. And we are entitled to our own interests.”

“Then let me remind you of something, BBBFF,” Twilight said in a similarly dignified tone. “We are going through a difficult time. We need every gun, every bullet, every magical amulet we can find. It will take several years for Equestria to overcome the crisis of going to war. And we need cooperation now more than ever!”

“I’m sorry, but no,” Shining Armor shook his head. “All you need is cheap weapons and resources, which you do not have. But it doesn’t work like that, Twi… Yes, if it were that simple… You see, the crystal ponies don’t like this war. Not at all. And even though most of them are for Equestria… none of them want to get directly involved.”

“But you can’t do that! There’s a signed treaty–”

“Sometimes,” the unicorn sighed, “you have to choose between fulfilling your obligations to your allies – and to your own nation. I would never want that option, of course… but what if Equestria loses? The Zebras would probably want to hunt down those who supported you… Damn – we’re even glad we haven’t given up on Stalliongrad, the Griffons, or the Changelings yet! And in the worst case… we’ll need something to defend our home with.”

“So you won’t change your mind?”

“No.” Shining’s tone became emphatically official, as if the unicorn were reading a decree. “The Crystal Empire suspends the lend-lease of weapons, gems, and food to Equestria. From now on, the war is primarily your problem.

“However,” he raised a hoof, cutting off his sister’s objections, “we will still protect the southern lands from the Windigos and the possible return of King Sombra.” He sighed again. “Though I’m not sure Equestria deserves that anymore.”

“What are you talking about…?”

Twilight was about to cry. At least the burning in her eyes felt very realistic.

It was as if Cosmic herself had been kicked in the ass from The Republic.

“The Crystal Empire will remain neutral in your conflict. That’s the compromise we decided to make for our future.”

“I see.” Twilight sobbed, but when she looked back at her brother, her voice was calm and steady, “How is Flurry Heart…?”

“She and Cadance are fine… as well as they can. This war is getting to everyone’s nerves, and it’s my duty as a father and husband to protect my family from its influence.”

“Can I see them?”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Shining Armor shook his head. “Flurry is with her art teacher, and Cadance has gone for a walk in the garden. And I have a few more meetings and business appointments today. So… let’s wrap it up, Twily. And, uh, if you don’t mind, don’t call here again. As you can see, neither of us would be happy to have this conversation right now. And for your own safety. After all, zebras can tap even such secure channels.”

“Shining… You’ll still be my BBBFF no matter what, right?”

“Yes, sister,” the unicorn grinned sadly. “I can promise you that.”

“You know… I wish there was a seventh Element of Harmony.”

“And what is it?”

“Justice.”

<========ooOОOoo========>

The memory shattered and Cosmic was thrown back into the real world.

Floating back into her body was like squeezing into a tight but cozy enclosure. Like a snail crawling back into its shell.

A strange emptiness formed in her forehead, as if what was there before wasn’t there now. Probably the same thing unicorns experience when looking through the memory orbs of earth ponies.

However, there would be no more pain in her back at the site of the lost wings. It was actually unbearable, and Cosmic had no idea how Twilight dealt with it.

So this was like being a princess…?

Cosmic groaned and opened her eyes - to finally blink enough to get used to the semi-darkness inside the cave. Spike’s face loomed in front of her as he pulled the memory orb out of the slot and began to remove the recollector from her.

“BBBFF…?” Cosmic squeezed out, recovering from the memory.

Her body still didn’t obey her well. The mare wondered if she would have to adjust to herself after each visit to another mind…?

To be honest, it was a bit scary.

“Big Brother – Best Friend Forever,” Spike explained and took off, stowing the orb and device in a box on the top shelf. “A foalhood nickname Twily had given Shining. When everything went down, it was her last attempt to keep in touch with her brother. But as you can see, it didn’t work. The Crystal Empire distanced itself from the war with the Zebras and focused all its energies on maintaining internal order. No one knows what’s happened there since the bombs fell. No one – in all of Equestria. Maybe it even disappeared for a thousand years…”

The dragon sighed heavily and glided down, landing on the ground next to Cosmic.

“Or… they were completely wiped out by mega spells. Though in that case all Windigoes should be dead too – otherwise I don’t understand why they haven’t taken over half the world in two hundred years of our sluggish civil war.”

“Eh, if only there really were a Seventh Element…” the blue earth pony muttered.

“Yeah, we certainly do need a little justice right about now,” Spike nodded. “And actually… you know, there were not five branches on the Tree of Harmony, but eleven. And the existence of six basic virtues didn’t mean there weren’t others. Courage, Justice, Wisdom, Repentance, Sincerity, Mercy – all of them could have their bearers. Perhaps they still do. They’re just not the ones that have been chosen as the primary means of reviving Equestria. But they can be of great help in everyday life.”

“Still – what are the maneframes in this room for?” Cosmic asked, nodding toward the dark corridor.

“Gardens of Equestria,” the dragon replied deafly. “The most important – and last – superspell developed by Twilight Sparkle. No one else in the Mane Six knew about it. Sunburst and Starlight had helped Twilight with the implementation, along with the other scientists. Sunburst programmed the central Crusader maneframe, and Starlight helped develop the magical matrix. After all, she was a very powerful unicorn and knew magic better than most.”

“And you’re looking for the right ponies to activate the spell…”

“For two centuries now. But that” – Spike closed his eyes – “has proven to be a nearly impossible task. You’re the first non-bearer pony to learn the secret. Despite my best efforts to keep it safe,” he grinned weakly. “You were very persistent. I hope you won’t use this knowledge for your own ends. Because if you do, it will be the end of everything, and Equestria will always be the way it is now.”

“I won’t,” Cosmic whispered. “Now I realize that you had the right to kill us when we came here. I didn’t know… I didn’t know anything…”

“At least you’re not John Snow,” Sonic’s voice sounded above her ear.

Cosmic turned around. The hedgehog and the fox walked over to her and Spike and sat down next to them. Tails felt very, very uncomfortable because he was wearing the PipBuck from the pegasus that Metal Dawn had killed.

“Go away,” the mare said, turning away. “I don’t want to see you. After what you did… By the way, when did you manage to do that…?”

“When you and Sonic were burying them,” Tails replied. “While you were lying there unconscious, he told me everything, and I asked him to get me one of those… PipBucks. I… I just wanted to study the technology… thought we could use it… and we did! Cosmic, I… I didn’t mean to hurt you that much, but…”

“You looted the corpses of my comrades,” Cosmic said without looking in his direction. “This isn’t something that can be easily forgotten and forgiven. Maybe I can, but… I’ll need time. A lot of time. By the way, whose the fuck is this? Stream’s or Spark’s?”

“Spark’s,” Sonic said with a sigh. “I couldn’t get that thing off Stream’s leg. It was firmly attached…”

“Yeah, Spark Glider was a real badass… But he also was a good friend. Like… like all of them. Except for one…”

“I didn’t think I’d find myself in a situation where my fourth wall would be broken after… Pinkie Pie left,” Spike changed the subject. “That was… unexpected. And made me think.”

“But you’ll continue to guard the place, won’t you?” Cosmic asked.

“Yes. I’ll probably invite some of the other good ponies I’m watching here soon. With any luck, I’ll find at least one or two bearers.”

“And… here’s something else I wanna ask…” The earth pony looked into Spike’s eyes. “What do you know about a pony called Lyra?”

“About whom…?” The dragon hesitated. “Wait, I seem to remember something… Lyra… Heartstrings, did you mean her? It’s just that she lived at the same time as Twilight… she was… a musician, I think… yes, played the lyre with her telekinesis…”

“Do you know what happened to her? Well, when–”

“No. I don’t know," he shook his head. “After all, she was kind of a… background pony back then. Why do you remember her now?”

“Well, there’s one thing…”

Cosmic briefly recounted the history of her investigation up to the meeting with the cyberghoul in New Appleloosa.

“…Someone must be behind all this, right? And then there’s that merchant… where did he get the cybernetic implants? What was in those blueprints he was supposed to pass on? And who ‘turned him off’? It’s all very strange. And I just want to find out so I can finally put this mystery out of my life.”

“Basically, ponies can live that long. And you know one way they can.”

“As ghouls?” Cosmic raised an eyebrow. “Well, anyway, what does that give us? We don’t know anything else. It might even be different Lyra.” The earth pony yawned. “Things could have changed so many times in two hundred years…”

“If she knows that you survived, she’ll try to get to you,” Spike said and looked towards the cave’s exit. “It’s almost daylight now. Do you need more rest, or are you leaving now…? Cosmic? Cosmic…”

But she was already asleep, leaning against the wall.

Spike looked at the sleeping mare for a while, then gently picked her up with his paws and carried her to his bed. After that, he carefully laid Cosmic down and covered her with a blanket.

She only moved slightly in her sleep. And smiled.

Purely and joyously – as if she had seen in her dream the renewed Equestria of the future.

Note: Level up.

Player: Cosmic Valor. Survival skill increased to 100%. New perk: Stone wall – 25% increased blunt resistance.

Player: Sonic. New perk: Bullet Dodger (level 1/3) – increased evasion by 15%. Bonus: Bullet Dodger (level 2/3) – increased evasion by 30%.

Items obtained: Twilight Sparkle statuette (1 item), Applejack statuette (1 item), Pinkie Pie statuette (1 item), Rainbow Dash statuette (1 item), Rarity statuette (1 item), Fluttershy statuette (1 item).

The quest stage “Get to the Cave” has been completed. Added a new stage “Find the Tree of Harmony”.