Escape from Arora Ridge Quarry

Chapters

Prologue
Chapter One – A Grand Opening
Chapter Fifteen – Pony Wash
Chapter Twenty-Eight – Super Sneaky Misty, Part One - Reunited
Chapter Two – Stick to the Basics
Chapter Three – Hearing the News
Chapter Four – Meet Moondust Twinkle
Chapter Five – Where's Sunny?
Chapter Six – You need to look after Yourself
Chapter Seven – Quarry Arriving
Chapter Eight – Message Receiving
Chapter Nine – A Day on the Carts
Chapter Ten – Strawberry for Bait
Chapter Eleven – An Alliance of Escapees
Chapter Twelve – Meeting a Kirin
Chapter Thirteen – Airship Intrusion
Chapter Fourteen – Sending Messages
Chapter Sixteen – Confinement
Chapter Seventeen – Sinking Sunny
Chapter Eighteen – Skysurf’s Plan
Chapter Nineteen – Watchtower Infiltration
Chapter Twenty – Sugar Confined
Chapter Twenty-One – Sugar n Sunny
Chapter Twenty-Two – Developments
Chapter Twenty-Three – Misty’s Plan
Chapter Twenty-Four – Medium Sneaky Misty
Chapter Twenty-Five – Campsite Comforting
Chapter Twenty-Six – Misty’s Lament
Chapter Twenty-Seven – A Deal with the Leopard
Chapter Twenty-Nine – Super Sneaky Misty, Part Two - Searching
Chapter Thirty – Super Sneaky Misty, Part Three - Discovery
Chapter Thirty-One – Leopards have Claws
Chapter Thirty-Two – A Freezing Ultimatum
Chapter Thirty-Three – Awakening
Chapter Thirty-Four – Recovering Reunions
Chapter Thirty-Five - Departure
Chapter Thirty-Six – A Hippogriff Meeting
Chapter Thirty-Seven – Cloudstrike Industries
Chapter Thirty-Eight - Icy Surprises
Chapter Thirty-Nine

Prologue

Sugar Moonlight grinned brightly as she led Lily and Rosedust through downtown Zephyr Heights. All three were exhausted; it had been a long trip from Maretime Bay, and they were looking forward to a rest. However, as Sugar guided them using her phone, the streets she led them down became increasingly grottier and rundown.

Then, as they approached a large tower block of flats, Rosedust stopped as she stared over the top of her sunglasses in disgust. “Are you sure this is the right place, Sugar?”

The multi-floored building looked like its glory days had long passed. The exterior cladding may have once been white, but it had faded into a dark grey. Streaks of black mess ran down it from every horizontal surface. Green streaks also ran down the sides from various outlets. Graffiti was daubed at different places around the building.

Sugar grimaced slightly but quickly put on a brave smile. “Don’t judge a book by its cover. This is a huge opportunity for us, remember.”

Rosedust sniffed. “Well, it had better be better inside."

“I think we wait and see,” Lily smiled optimistically. “It’s the only place we could get.”

"Exactly, don't shoot a gift pony in the mouth," Sugar beamed. "Come on, everypony."

First impressions inside the building were no better than the outside. The entrance was dank and had an odd smell. Litter was scattered all over the place. The lift clearly saw better days and had a notice saying it was out of order.

Therefore, the trio headed towards the stairs. The stairwells had an even more pungent smell. They were concrete and utilitarian, with piles of rubbish gathered in the corners. More graffiti was also daubed around, and they looked worriedly at some of the anti-Unity slogans.

“The apartment itself will be better,” Sugar promised.

“I’ll believe it when I see it,” Rosedust muttered.

When they found the apartment, Sugar opened the door with excitement. She entered first, followed quickly by an equally excited Lily. However, as they looked around, their excitement melted away.

“Knew it,” Rosedust sighed.

The apartment was furnished, but there was a musty smell. Upon inspection, the walls had dated wallpaper, which had black damp marks in the corners. The kitchen was just as dated, too, with an oven that looked like it had come out of the previous century. However, it seemed relatively clean, at least.

Rosedust looked disgusted as she looked at the three single beds in the only bedroom. “So, tell me why we left Maretime Bay again?”

“Because the Twinkle Sky Modelling Agency is the best in Equestria,” Lily responded. “We need to live in Zephyr Heights to make it big with them.”

“Lily’s right,” Sugar added optimistically. “This place is just a stopgap. Thanks to all our hard work with social media, we’re one hoof away from the big leagues.”

“And you’re sure we’ll make the big leagues?” Rosedust frowned.

“Of course we will,” Sugar grinned. "Once we get some work, we’ll all be able to afford our own places.”

Rosedust frowned and turned her nose up doubtfully. “Oh, and how do we get work?”

“We do what our agent says,” Sugar smiled brightly. “Trust me, he’s the best there is. Before we know it, we’ll all be moving out of here.”

Lily grinned as she put a hoof over Sugar’s shoulder. “Sugar’s right. She’s not led us wrong since CanterLogic closed.”

Rosedust sighed and finally looked a little more positive. “Okay, forming the Filly Four to take on social media together was genius. Even though we kept having to get to know new ponies for the fourth slot.”

Sugar held a hoof to her mouth as she giggled, “I can’t even remember the name of that last Unicorn.”

“I think it was Minty,” Lily replied. “Wait, no, Milly.”

“No, that wasn’t it,” Rosedust chuckled. “I thought it was Marcy.”

“It was something like that,” Sugar laughed. "It doesn’t matter. Whoever she was, she’s a nopony to us now. Let’s try to make this place a little more habitable. Then, we’ll find out what we need to do and move out of here as soon as possible.”

However, the trio's first months were hard. The agency paid them a basic rate for just being on their books. The problem was that even by combining all three paychecks, they couldn’t make the rent payments. Therefore, all three were forced to use their savings to make up the shortfall and pay for essentials.

They were walking together on their way back from the castle, having been lucky enough to be in the Together Tree Garden when Sunny and her friends defeated Opaline.

“I can’t believe we got to see the Queen up close,” Rosedust smiled.

“I know, right,” Sugar grinned. “I thought it was great to meet our agent face to face, too, finally.”

“Oh, that was brilliant as well,” Rosedust giggled. “I knew he was going to be a hottie.”

“He’s married, you know,” Lily sighed.

Sugar laughed and shook her head. “From the sound of it, it shouldn’t be too long until we get some modelling work.”

“You’re right there, Sugar,” Rosedust smirked.

“Fortunately, I’ve still got enough savings to cover my contribution to this month's rent,” Sugar continued. “By next month, we should be on our way to getting out of that horrible apartment.”

“I hope you're right, Sugar,” Lily agreed.

Rosedust started hanging back as they continued walking. She nodded at Lily, indicating she should do the same.

“What is it?” Lily asked.

“Just to let you in on a secret, I’ve already been getting lots of work,” Rosedust smirked.

“Y…You have?” Lily gasped. “Well, I did get a little work last week. I’m worried; I don’t think Sugar’s gotten any yet.”

“Trust me, we’ll be out of that flat way before Sugar,” Rosedust advised. “If you wait for her, you’ll be stuck there for moons.”

With that, Rosedust picked up speed to catch up to Sugar. Lily blinked with confusion, feeling very conflicted. However, she grunted as she felt a tickle in her throat. A tickle she’d been feeling since they’d moved into the apartment and was getting worse. She sighed as she realised she didn’t have a choice. She had to get out as soon as possible.

Time passed, and despite Sugar’s optimism, she found work wasn’t forthcoming. She sighed as she exited the Pawn Shop. “I’d better get some work soon,” she muttered. “I don’t have much left. I really liked those sunglasses.”

She sighed as she arrived back at the block. As she entered, she found the lift once again out of order—not that she trusted it anyway. She grimaced as she avoided the pile of rubbish in the stairwell, which was clearly getting bigger. As she reached the apartment, she couldn’t help sighing with relief.

“Lily, Rosedust, you here?” she called as she opened the door.

Sugar stepped inside and gasped as she nearly tripped over a pair of saddlebags. She frowned in confusion before calling out again. “Lily? Rosedust? Where are you?”

Lily gasped as she appeared from the bathroom, clutching several toiletry items. “Oh, Sugar. I didn’t think you would be back yet.”

“W…What’s going on?” Sugar frowned. “Where’s Rosedust?”

Lily sighed as she headed to the saddlebags, depositing the toiletries inside before closing the flap. She gulped before looking back at Sugar with a guilty expression.

“Truth is, we’re both moving out,” Lily admitted. “We’ve both got enough money to afford our own places.”

Sugar’s eyes widened as she stepped backwards in shock, “W…What, how?”

“Well, we’ve got enough modelling work to pay for our own places,” Lily replied. “I’m sorry, Sugar, I can’t stay here a moment longer. You were right about needing it, but something’s affecting my health here, and I need to get away before it gets any worse.”

The colour drained from Sugar's face, “B…but I’ve not done any work. I call our agent daily, but he says nothing is coming up for me. He tells me what to put on the socials, but nothing changes.”

Lily sighed before coughing and trying to clear her throat. “I really don’t understand why not. Honestly, you’re a brilliant model, Sugar. I’m really sorry, but I can’t stay here anymore. It’s not doing my throat any good.”

“B…But, Lily,” Sugar pleaded. “I won’t be able to afford the rent on my own. Please, you’ve got to help me. C…Couldn’t I maybe move with you? I…I’ll cook and clean and do all the shopping and… and…”

Lily sighed as she shook her head. “My new place is only for one pony. That’s how I can afford it.”

“Lily, please, we’ve been through so much together,” Sugar begged. “You’ve got to help me somehow.”

“I’m sorry, I can’t afford to pay your rent as well as mine,” Lily replied. “To be honest, I only really became your friend in the first place to get noticed in the modelling world. But you’ve been a great friend, Sugar. I honestly really like you, and I’m sorry I can’t help you. If our friendship ends here, I’ll understand.”

Sugar blinked and looked on with shock as Lily picked up her saddle bags. Without another word, Lily walked out of the apartment. Then, with a final sorrow-filled look, she closed the door behind her.

Sugar sat down in shock, her mouth going dry as she stared blankly at the door.

After Rosebud and Lily left, Sugar called her agent daily to ask for work. She didn’t want to sound desperate, but as time went on, that was what she became. Eventually, this seemed to pay off, as she finally got on a photo shoot. However, it wasn’t modelling anything fancy, just household cleaning products.

Sugar wasn’t sure they’d even include her face in the advertisements. It was the kind of thing that she had told herself she’d never model for. However, it meant she could pay her next rent payment with the last of her savings.

Then, after phoning her agent, she got the worst news possible.

“What do you mean I’m being let go!” she exclaimed.

“Sugar, sweetheart, it’s just you’re not wanted by anypony.”

“But…But we have a contract.”

“No, we had a contract. Check your copy, darling. Paragraph 14, subsection 2A. It states that the agency will regularly review the models on our books. Anypony not receiving enough work will have their contract terminated.”

“You don’t understand. I need this work. There’s no way I can even afford the rent without it. I did everything you told me to do. How can you just drop me like this?”

“Listen, Sugar. Sweet name ‘n all, but someponys have it and someponys don’t. It’s a cutthroat world out there, and we ain’t payin’ you for doing nothing.”

With that, the agent hung up, leaving a mortified Sugar holding the phone to her ear as the dial tone played.

Knowing full well that she needed money, Sugar immediately began searching for a job—anything that would allow her to pay the rent.

She searched newspapers, websites, and social media, applying for anything and everything she could. However, she never got a response from any of them. As a result, the next rent payment day came, and Sugar could not pay.

She reassured herself that there would be some leeway. It would be a few months of non-payments before she’d face eviction. However, she returned late one evening to find a letter on the doormat.

Frowning, she picked it up and opened it. Then, her blood ran cold as she read it was an eviction notice.

“No, that can’t be right,” she said to herself. “It can’t be.”

She hurried to her bedroom and opened one of the drawers in the bedside cabinet. She searched through it until she found the rental agreement. Desperately, she read through it. Her eyes widened as she read the confirmation she didn’t want to see.

“How?” she gasped as her mouth turned dry. “How can they just evict me like this?”

Feeling numb, she looked around the flat. Confirming what she already knew, everything she could see had come with it. It wasn’t hers.

“I…I need some air,” she decided.

With that, she headed out the door and walked towards a nearby park. She had no idea what adventure was ahead of her.

Chapter One – A Grand Opening

Sunny grinned as she skated along. The sun was beaming down over Maretime Bay, and it was a day she had been looking forward to for weeks. She’d even gone through the trouble of marking the days off on the calendar, she was that excited.

Unlike the last time she’d counted days, she wasn’t headed to CanterLogic. Nor to the CanterLove Studios that now inhabited the same building. Instead, she was on her way to the seafront and a newly completed building that had its grand opening today.

As the sounds of her skates echoed around the seafront, the building in question was clear to see. Not only was it quite large. Its white rendered walls seemingly sparkled in the sunlight. A large sign proclaimed it to be the ‘Maretime Bay Museum of Equestrian History’.

Sunny grinned as she got closer and saw a familiar-looking Zebra pacing back and forth outside the building. She couldn’t help calling out to her, “Aunt Kendi!”

Kendi beamed as she turned and saw Sunny skating towards her. Sunny’s skates squealed in protest as she skidded to a stop in front of her surrogate Aunt. “I’m not late, am I?”

Kendi laughed as she pulled Sunny into a hug. “Not at all, Sunny,” she beamed. “It is I who is early. Come, you must see inside. I know you will love it.”

Sunny grinned with glee. “eee! I’ve been buzzing all week just thinking about it,” she admitted. “Just let me take my skates off first. I don’t want to put marks on the floor.”

It didn’t take Sunny long to remove her skates. She hung them over her barrel as they slowly walked into the entrance foyer. As she looked around, Sunny’s jaw dropped, and her eyes widened in awe.

This was no poky little museum, it was huge. The foyer was a massive cylinder reaching right to the top of the building, with a domed roof at the very top. Down the front, there was a series of windows which let in masses of light.

At ground level, there was a large curved desk to one side. This was set up with multiple stations for selling tickets. On the opposite side, was the bottom of a staircase that spiralled its way up the inside of the cylinder. It intersected with a balcony for each floor.

The desk was a light wood colour, whilst the walls were a gleaming white. The whole thing had a light and airy feel and was extremely impressive.

Kendi laughed as she watched Sunny look upwards and turn around and around. Her eyes were still wide, and her mouth was agape.

“Do you like it, Sunny?” Kendi smiled.

“Like it?” Sunny blinked. “This is amazing, how did you even afford all this?”

“Making it this large and impressive was Phyllis’s idea,” Kendi beamed. “She helped me apply for all sorts of grant funding. Before I knew it, there was more than enough money to make this museum the greatest it could be.”

“And you’ve really got enough to fill it?” Sunny blinked.

“Let us say there is room for much more,” Kendi grinned. “However, the Museum takes you on a journey through time. As well as the restaurant and gift shop, the ground floor has the earliest that we know about. Then the top floor has the most recent history, we can’t forget the individual histories from the Time of Separation. However, I suspect it is one of the middle floors you will like the most, come.”

Kendi led an excited Sunny up the staircase. It wasn’t long before they reached the floor in question. Sunny gasped as she saw ‘Time of Harmony’ written above an archway where the staircase met the floor’s balcony.

“This way, Sunny,” Kendi beamed as she headed onto the balcony. “The first room is the one I wish to show you.”

Sunny could already get a glimpse of what was inside as she walked off the staircase. They walked through another arched doorway and into a large circular exhibition room. She gasped and looked around in awe.

Straight ahead was a large image of Princess Twilight Sparkle. Clearly from partway through her reign. Her large body and long billowing mane clear indicators. There was a large area given over to describing her life and reign. The walls of this area being painted the same colour as her coat.

On either side of this, there were images and areas for each of her closest friends, the Guardians of Friendship. Each image was just as large as Twilights although their individual areas were smaller. Each one also being coloured the same as their primary coat colours.

Sunny gasped as she walked from display to display. Looking at the items within with wonder. “It’s as though my dad’s research is coming to life. Your life’s work is all here.”

In the centre of the room, there was an area given over to their combined story. From how they first defeated Nightmare Moon to when they stopped Cozy Glow, Chrysalis and Tirek.

“Princess Twilight lived for such a long time,” Sunny gasped. “I didn’t really realise how long she spent without her friends.”

“I think she always had friends,” Kendi smiled.

Sunny finally spotted that below each image of the Guardians there was the artefact that they’d recovered from Opaline’s castle. Each being contained within a glistening display case.

A crown for Twilight. A hat for Applejack. A flight jacket for Rainbow Dash. A rubber chicken for Pinkie Pie. A sewing machine for Rarity, and finally. A set of tail extensions for Fluttershy.

“I still cannot quite believe the tail extensions have survived,” Kendi laughed.

“Are they all safe?” Sunny asked. “Nopony is going to be able to take them?”

“Your friend Misty made quite sure of it,” Kendi reassured. “She used that sealing book.”

“The prison sphere,” Sunny gasped.

“Exactly,” Kendi smiled. “The versions Misty has created here can only be removed by her magic. Come, I want to show you this room.”

Kendi led Sunny through another archway and into a smaller room. Sunny gasped as she found it was dedicated to two ponies she knew very well. To one side there was a large image of Sunset Shimmer. On the other there was an image of Starlight Glimmer. Like the main room, the walls of the two areas were painted the same colour as their coats.

“Each of the smaller rooms here will be dedicated to Twilight’s other friends,” Kendi explained. “Or in this case, two of her students.”

Sunny gasped as she noticed the area at the back of the room. It was dedicated to when the pair time-travelled to their time. She frowned as she spotted a screen. Then, as she moved towards it, she jumped as it suddenly burst into life.

It depicted an interview Kendi had held with both Sunset and Starlight. As she watched, Sunny frowned with confusion. “I don’t remember you filming this, Aunt Kendi.”

“I had some time with them after you defeated Opaline,” Kendi explained. “I think you were busy with your cart.”

Sunny looked back at the display. She didn’t quite understand why she felt bothered about not knowing. It was just a harmless interview about their lives.

However, then she realised, it wasn’t that which she was bothered about. There was something else Kendi had never told her, and this reminded her of it.

“Aunt Kendi,” she ventured. “Before Equestria was unified. Did you know about Bridlewood and Zephyr Heights and where they were located?”

Kendi sighed, her face falling and looking grave. “I did, Sunny,” she admitted. “I’d even visited them many times. I have friends in both of them, as well as you here in Maretime Bay.”

“So, why didn’t you tell me?” Sunny frowned.

Kendi sighed again, “Because your father made me promise not to. He didn’t want you to go running off trying to find them on your own.”

Sunny’s expression softened and she let out a sigh. “Would this be after the camping trip with Sprout and Hitch that ended in disaster?”

“Yes, yes it was,” Kendi nodded. “He didn’t want you to try following me and getting into more trouble.”

Sunny’s ears flattened against her head as she looked down sadly. “I can’t help but wonder what else he never told me,” she sighed. “There could be all sorts of stuff that could be really important.”

“I’m sure if anything was important, we would have found it in his research,” Kendi soothed.

“But I lost so much of it when the Lighthouse collapsed,” Sunny groaned before her eyes narrowed with determination. “I’m not losing hope though, I’ll find out what happened to him someday.”

Suddenly, Sunny gasped as she heard a beeping sound. She reached into her saddle bag and pulled out her phone. She smiled as she read the notification. “Oh, Hitch is back!”

“Back?” Kendi questioned.

“He’s been to the Dragon Lands,” Sunny explained. “He’s dropped Sparky off there. We learnt from Twilight’s journal that there are things that she could never teach Spike. So, Spike Junior suggested we leave Sparky with him every so often. Then he can learn dragon stuff. I just hope Hitch will be okay without him.”

“Well, let’s go and meet him,” Kendi suggested. “I’m certain you will be a frequent visitor here.”

“Oh, I plan to be, don’t you worry,” Sunny grinned.

As the pair made it outside, they spotted Hitch walking towards the building. He smiled as he spotted them and made a beeline straight to Sunny, holding out a hoof.

Sunny grinned as she held hers out towards him as well. As they met, they recited their friendship hoofshake and carried out the well-rehearsed actions.

“Up high, down low, hitch it to a post. Fip it sunny side up and on a piece of toast.”

Kendi couldn’t help laughing warmly, “I see you two are just as close as ever.”

“We save that for special occasions,” Hitch admitted. “Like me being away for a few days.”

“Speaking of, are you going to be okay without Sparky?” Sunny asked.

“Don’t worry Sunny, he’s only having an extended holiday,” Hitch smiled. “I love him to bits but if anything this is going to be a chance to have some me time. I hadn’t realised how long it had been since I’d done something for just myself.

“Oh, and Spike Junior says hi by the way. He’s going to come back with us when we pick Sparky up to check out the museum.”

“I will give him a personal tour,” Kendi smiled.

“Is Phyllis here yet?” Hitch asked.

“She isn’t and I am not sure she will make it,” Kendi sighed. “She told me that something has come up. She’s had to go out to one of the remote construction sites.”

“Ah, okay,” Hitch sighed.

“That’s a shame, she’s worked so hard,” Sunny agreed. “Ooh, Hitch, you have to see inside, it’s incredible, eee he he.”

“Indeed,” Kendi gasped. “Please come this way Hitch and let me show you.”

With that, Kendi led Hitch and Sunny back inside the museum.

As the time of the grand opening got closer, Kendi’s staff arrived and were soon setting up inside. Apart from the red ribbon and lectern, they also set up barriers to control the crowds. Which would be needed as crowds were already starting to build outside.

Fortunately, Skywalk had been expecting this and therefore both Frost Wing and Sprout were already in attendance. Ensuring that everypony remained safe and those who wanted to get by could do so and carry on with their day. However, it was soon clear that pretty much everypony in Maretime Bay had purchased tickets for the opening.

“Maybe it would have been better to hold the ceremony outside,” Hitch chuckled.

“And be at the mercy of the weather?” Sunny laughed. “I told you the report was for rain, even though it’s still not arrived.”

Hitch laughed but gasped as he saw a familiar figure at the door. “Speaking of arriving.”

They both looked to see Sprout had opened the main doors just enough so both he and Phyllis could squeeze inside. Phyllis looked rather more dishevelled than her normal pristine appearance. She huffed and puffed as she tried to catch her breath.

“Mammy, are you okay?” Sprout asked worriedly.

“I’m okay, Baby. I’m okay,” Phyllis panted. “I didn’t think I’d make it. Cobalt sends his apologies.”

“Phyllis, I’m sorry, you don’t look okay,” Sunny replied worriedly. “Is everything alright? Kendi mentioned you had to go out to a remote site. I presume one for the new hydroelectric plant?”

“Well, I’m physically fine if a little out of breath,” Phyllis explained. “As for the hydroelectric construction site. There is a situation that I think I’ll need both of you to assist with. If I could have some of your time after the opening that would be appreciated.”

“Oh, okay. No problem at all, Phyllis,” Hitch replied.

“Sure, anything you need,” Sunny added.

“Thank you. I’d tell you more, but I don’t want anything to get in the way of this opening,” Phyllis smiled. “I’ll just go freshen up.”

With that, she headed towards the ladies whilst Sunny and Hitch looked at each other worriedly.

A short time later, the doors were finally opened and the crowds of waiting ponies were allowed inside. The media were ushered into a prime location, Pipp grinning as she joined them. Making sure she got some shots of the crowd getting their first look at the inside.

Everypony looked around in awe at the size and scale of the building’s interior. Clearly, they were just as impressed as Sunny had been.

There was excited chatter as Sunny, Hitch, Kendi, and Phyllis approached the lectern. However, there was a collective groan as the others stopped and Hitch continued towards it alone.

“What? Don’t you like me?” Hitch smirked as he picked up a set of cards. “Welcome to the opening of, what I have to say is, the grandest building in Maretime Bay. The Maretime Bay Museum of Equestrian History is a credit to all those who worked on it. Not just the building itself but also putting together the wonderful displays that chart the history of our fair land.

“Now, it is my absolute honour as Sheriff of Maretime Bay to introduce a special pony to come up here and open this museum. Our very own, Sunny Starscout.”

There was a thankful and welcome round of applause as Hitch put the cards down and stepped to one side. Sunny grinned as she stepped forward, her powers activating with a flash as she came to the lectern. She laughed, shaking her head with a beaming smile.

“Looks like I’m doing this as an Alicorn then,” she grinned. “Thank you for the introduction, Hitch. Thank you everypony for the applause as well. I still wonder if I deserve it at times.

“Equestria’s History is something that has always been dear to my heart. It’s been a special part of my life for as long as I can remember. Thanks to the stories that my dad, Argyle Starshine, used to read to me as a filly.

“I owe so much of who I am today to those stories. They inspired me, they inspired me to do things that many thought just weren’t possible. My father’s research forms the backbone of what you will find within this wonderful museum. However, he didn’t do it all alone and I want you all to meet somepony who helped him in many ways. Please let me introduce you all to, Kendi.”

Sunny held out a hoof as Kendi stepped forward, coming alongside her.

“It was Kendi’s expeditions that found the artefacts and stories that my father researched,” Sunny continued. “It’s from those expeditions that the majority of the artefacts found here were recovered. She worked hoof in hoof with my father and became a special part of my fillyhood. It was always an extra special day when Aunt Kendi came to visit.”

Kendi beamed as Sunny stepped to one side and she took her place at the lectern.

“Thank you, my dear, Sunny,” Kendi smiled. “Everypony, this is truly my life’s work and dreams coming to fruition. I have long dreamed of this day, but Sunny is quite correct it would not have been possible without Argyle Starshine.

“It was his diligent research that allowed me to find so many wonderful artefacts. He was a close friend and I miss him dearly. However, the highlight of the museum and the reason you see this spectacular building is thanks to Sunny.

“On the floor dedicated to the Time of Harmony, you will find six precious objects. All are either worn or used by the Guardians of Friendship. It was Sunny and her fellow Guardians of Unity who found and recovered these items.

“I must also pay tribute to our two time-travelling friends. Sunset Shimmer and Starlight Glimmer. To actually meet ponies from the Time of Harmony was an absolute joy and their insight was invaluable. There is a section on the Time of Harmony floor dedicated to them.

“Finally, thank you. Thank you everypony for coming and being a part of this opening.”

There was a round of applause as Kendi stepped to one side and allowed Sunny to take centre stage again.

“So, before we cut the ribbon, there is one other pony here who needs a special mention,” Sunny smiled. “For us to have this impressive museum building somepony had to build it. The many construction ponies working for CanterBlocks did the work. However, it was Phyllis Cloverleaf who ensured the project remained on schedule, on budget and completed to the high standards you see before you.”

Sunny held out a hoof and there was a round of applause as Phyllis stepped forward and bowed.

“I think you’ll all agree that her teams have done a fantastic job,” Sunny smiled. “Now, it’s time I stopped talking and did some cutting with these fancy scissors.”

Sunny grinned as she picked up the golden scissors with her magic. She stepped towards the ribbon and waited as Phyllis and Kendi got into position as well. They then all posed for photographs to be taken before Sunny turned back to the ribbon.

“I declare this fantastic museum of Equestria history, open,” Sunny grinned as she cut the ribbon.

There was a loud applause as the gathered ponies stomped their hoofs with glee. Sunny and the others happily stepped to one side as the audience began making their way into the museum. Many stopping and shaking hoofs with Sunny, Kendi and Phyllis before doing so.

However, Sunny couldn’t help feeling that, behind her smile, Phyllis was a worried pony.

Chapter Fifteen – Pony Wash

The following morning, the Ponies all lined up and waited for the Nirik to inspect them. However, as the Nirik entered the hut, it became clear that there were twice as many as usual.

As the Nirik worked their way down the lines of Ponies, they checked their bridles and harnesses as normal. However, the extra Nirik started attaching leads to their bridles, connecting each pony to those next to them.

Sunny gasped as a lead from Sprout was attached to her bridle, under her chin. Then, a second lead was attached to the back of her head. The other end of which was attached to Sugar.

It wasn’t long before all the ponies had been leashed together into one long line. A Nirik took the leash from the pony at the front and began leading them from the hut.

Sunny couldn’t help feeling worried as she followed Sprout outside. She tried to look around, but it was difficult with the leash pulling at her. However, from what she could see, nothing seemed out of place.

The Nirik led them through the quarry, down the narrow paths between the levels. Eventually, they walked towards the buildings at the very bottom of the quarry.

Sunny spotted Sprout glancing behind him. He looked as anxious as she felt, and she couldn’t help worrying about her disguise. Thymus and the others had done a good job patching it up. However, her mind raced, was this happening because it had been failing yesterday?

Eventually, they were led towards one of the buildings and were ushered inside. They went through a set of double doors and found themselves in a pen inside the building.

Above them, a circular walkway was suspended from the ceiling. Multiple Nirik walked around this and kept a watchful eye on those in the pen below.

Above that, the roof of the building had a set of skylights. All were slid open to allow fresh air in as the day got hotter. However, all but one of these were fitted with a set of bars.

Ahead there was a gate in the pen which led to a narrow corridor made of metal. In the walls of the corridor, there were what looked like small jet nozzles. They were positioned randomly and appeared to be pointing in different directions.

The floor of the corridor was also metal, shaped and angled so that water would flow into the multiple drains that were set into it.

At the far end, there was a doorway out of the building. Above the corridor, there was a belt suspended from the walls. Attached to this belt there was a set of hooks.

Above that, to one side, there was another walkway suspended from the ceiling. It intersected with the circular walkway and ran down to the far end of the building. There was an opening to the area outside when it reached the wall.

Sunny looked around worriedly as the doors behind them were closed. She didn’t like the look of this at all.

Sugar nudged her and indicated with her eyes toward the open skylight. Sunny frowned; she knew what Sugar meant but she wasn’t so sure. She looked around at the Nirik and tried to weigh her options.

However, any options disappeared as Allura flew in through the skylight. She landed on the walkway above the corridor and walked toward the pen. On her back, there was a small greyish-blue rabbit.

“Welcome Ponies,” Allura grinned as she paced back and forth. “Ordinarily, I don’t get involved unless creatures are misbehaving. But today I make an exception. You have all been working very hard, so have been chosen to be the first to use Twitch’s new masterpiece.

“Twitch knows how unbearably hot it gets in the quarry. Pulling carts is dusty work and that dust gets stuck to you. He convinced me that you need relief from it. You and all the creatures need an opportunity to be cleaned besides the rain. You all have him to thank for this.”

Twitch started hopping around on Allura’s back and made grumbling squeaking noises. Allura growled and spun her head around at him angrily. “Yes, yes, yes. Stop your jumping you idiot, I’ll tell them.”

She turned back to the ponies and smiled. “Twitch wants you to know the water used to clean you is fresh. It’s not dirty used water, it’s taken from the lake. He also insisted it’s filtered before being put back.

“Also, if you talk within this building you will not be punished. Nirik! Situation Ninety-Nine!”

The Nirik all stood to attention as Twitch jumped from Allura’s back and ran along the walkway above the corridor. He stopped a few times and looked over the edge of the walkway, seemingly checking things.

Eventually, he reached a control panel at the very end of the walkway. Just before the door out of the building. He immediately began pressing buttons. Smiling as suddenly there was a loud noise as a set of pumps spooled up.

As the noise settled into a loud humming, water began shooting out of the nozzles. It clattered off the metal walls, making a loud drumming noise. It was soon very clear why they were allowed to talk, there was no way the Nirik would know if they did.

Twitch pressed another button on the control panel and the belt with the hooks began moving. He looked around, checking all was well before he pulled a leaver.

The gate opened and Allura nodded towards the Nirik that was still standing at the front of the line of Ponies. It walked forward, pulling the leash and ensuring the Ponies followed.

Sunny looked at Sprout and Sugar. Their worried expressions told her all she needed to know. She looked around, even without the leashes, she could see no way of escaping the building.

When the Nirik reached the gate, it attached the leash it was holding to one of the belt hooks as it passed. The pony at the front of the line gasped as they were pulled into the corridor.

As each Pony arrived at the gate, the Nirik removed the leash from the back of their head. It then attached this to a hook on the conveyor. One by one, the Ponies were pulled into the corridors.

Sugar gulped as she moved closer to Sunny. “Your disguise won’t survive that,” she hissed. “They’ll find you out, you need to get away.”

“I can’t,” Sunny whispered back. “There’s too many watching us and Allura is right there. You heard what Misty said about her.”

Sugar looked up at Allura and gasped. Her eyes were watching the ponies intently. Suddenly, she spread her wings and took off, flying out through the same skylight that she’d entered through. However, after she’d done so, a set of metal bars slid down into position like all the others.

“She knows,” Sugar said worriedly. “Allura knows you’re here. She just doesn’t know which of us is you.”

“Well, there’s only one way out now,” Sunny breathed. “I’m getting washed, the same as you are.”

“You should fly away when you’ve gone through,” Sugar advised.

“No, she’ll be ready for that,” Sprout warned. “Hide among the rest of us.”

Sunny said nothing more, she could only anxiously await her turn.

All too soon, Sunny’s turn arrived. She couldn’t help gulping as her leash was attached to the belt. Then, she grunted as the leash went taught and she was pulled into the metal corridor.

As the first jets hit her, Sunny couldn’t help squeaking with surprise. Water hit her from all directions as she was forcefully pulled along. Thankfully, the water wasn’t freezing cold, it had been heated to a temperate temperature.

Suddenly, two jets of water hit her in the face, one from either side. She squeaked with surprise, closing her eyes tightly as she tried to pull back from them. However, the leash pulled her forward, keeping her head up and in the full force of the jets. She sputtered and coughed as she was forced through the wall of water.

Below, the water that ran off her was a thick black as the dye in her coat was washed out. It left streaks all along the floor as it was washed into the drains.

Above, Twitch’s eyes widened as he watched the dirty black pony that had entered turn into a clean orange one. Thumping a hind paw on the walkway multiple times, he hurried out of the doorway.

Sunny gasped and spluttered as she finally emerged from the corridor and out of the building. Another Nirik was waiting for her and detached the leash from both the belt and her bridle. Placing it on a rack with all the others.

Sunny immediately ran forward to join the other Ponies in the centre of another fenced area. She hurried into the middle of them before looking down and confirming what she already knew. Her disguise was completely gone.

She gulped, her normal coat and mane colours were clear to see as was her normal cutie mark. Suddenly, she felt somepony put their muzzle in her ear.

“She’s watching,” Sprout murmured.

Sunny looked at him before looking around the pen. Around the upper edge of the fencing, there was yet another raised walkway. It intersected with the one that ran through the building.

There was yet more Nirik that stood and watched them intently upon this. However, Allura was also there, standing directly opposite the building.

Allura scanned the ever-increasing crowd of ponies with a keen eye. On her back, Twitch was hopping up and down. Squeaking and grumbling as he pulled at her ear and pointed into the crowd of ponies.

“Will. You. Stop that!” Allura growled angrily. “I know what you said, you idiot. You’re so annoying! Go look after your machine.”

Twitch gasped and gave Allura a look of hurt and dismay. Then, he hopped down and crossly squeaked at her. He waved a dismissive paw in her direction as he walked along the walkway and back toward the building.

Allura rolled her eyes and resumed carefully watching the ponies.

Meanwhile, Sunny stood with Sprout and Sugar as they tried not to be noticed. They were amongst the largest grouping of ponies possible and looked everywhere other than toward Allura.

However, as she looked around, Sunny suddenly realised all the other ponies kept looking at her. They were only glances, but they were doing it far too often for her liking.

Everypony was on edge too, apart from not talking there was a feeling of apprehension in the air. One that Sunny knew was due to her disguise being removed. They were all waiting for her to make a move.

Suddenly, Sprout put his muzzle in her ear again. “This isn’t good, she’s looking straight at you,” he hissed. “You need to go.”

Sunny gulped and risked looking up at Allura.

Allura’s piercing stare met Sunny’s eyes and caused her heart to skip a beat. Her eyes widened and she couldn’t help staring back at Allura in shock.

“That’s right, Sunny Starscout!” Allura grinned deviously. “I know who you are! I know all about your abilities too. Trust me, make this easier on yourself and come willingly. Escape. Is! IMPOSSIBLE!”

Sunny gulped and she took a step backwards in shock. She glanced around at the others and realised they were all watching her. They were all waiting for her to make her move, to make her decision. Her heart was pounding as she spotted Sugar.

Sugar calmly looked back at Sunny’s horrified expression. She glanced to the sky and silently mouthed ‘go’.

That was all Sunny needed to break the deadlock in her mind. Bending her legs she jumped into the air as high as she could. Her powers activated with a flash and her wings gave a powerful flap. She shot skywards as fast as she could.

“NIRIK! Situation Zero!” Allura roared. “Target the orange Alicorn!”

From their positions on the raised walkway, the Nirik all began firing beams at Sunny. However, her shield activated, and they bounced harmlessly off of it.

Meanwhile, Sunny gasped, her mind went blank, and she didn’t know what to do. Her horn glowed as she started the messaging spell.

“MISTY! My cover has been blown! Allura knows all about my powers. I’m trying to escape! I don’t…”

Sunny’s eyes suddenly widened. She stopped flying away and started hovering as beams continued to impact her shield. She looked down towards the group of ponies below and spotted Sprout and Sugar. Her heart sank as she realised, she was leaving them behind.

“…M...Misty. I don’t know what to do! I...I can’t leave…”

That was all Sunny managed as Allura suddenly slammed into her shield with all four paws. Pushing off, she sent Sunny flying out of control.

Crying out in surprise, Sunny went tumbling through the air, her shield failing as she lost concentration. Suddenly, Allura grabbed hold of her, grasping her tightly with her paws from behind.

Sunny tried to kick out with her hoofs as the pair tumbled toward the ground. However, she couldn’t reach Allura as she clung to her back. Her wings were caught under Allura’s legs too, making them useless.

Allura used her wings and body weight to put them into a fast spin. Sunny cried out as her world spun and she desperately tried to escape Allura’s clutches. However, the spinning took its toll, and she was soon completely disoriented.

Allura meanwhile knew exactly what she was doing. As the ground came to meet them, she rolled them along it. As a result, the impact was significantly reduced and neither of them got hurt.

Then, Allura skilfully used her body weight to ensure that, when they stopped, she was on top of Sunny. She placed a paw on top of Sunny’s head and pushed it into the ground. Pinning her down so she couldn’t get away.

“G…Get off of me,” Sunny grunted. “You…You win, I’ll come quietly.”

Allura sneered as she put her mouth to Sunny’s ear. “No, you made your choice already.”

With that, she began to purr.

Sunny gasped and her eyes widened as Allura’s purr infected her mind. It felt like it was penetrating right into her very soul. Her eyes flashed and her expression went completely blank. Her muscles all relaxed and she stopped struggling, lying limply on the floor.

Knowing she had Sunny under her spell, Allura slowly stood up. All the while, ensuring her purring was still aimed directly into Sunny’s ear.

From the pen, Sprout, Sugar, and all the other ponies could only watch as Sunny slowly stood up. Then, she started walking away with Allura right beside her, still purring away into her ear.

As they disappeared, Sprout and Sugar looked at each other worriedly.

Aboard the Marestream, they also had their own situation that morning.

Zipp groaned as she tried to focus her tired bloodshot eyes on the instruments. It started getting harder and harder for her to keep her eyes open. Eventually, her eyes began closing and opening repeatedly, her head nodding forward each time they closed.

Hitch entered the cockpit and gasped as he saw Zipp’s head fall forward onto the steering wheel. She inadvertently pushed it forward, putting the Marestream into a steep nosedive.

“ZIPP!” Hitch shouted as he hurried forward.

“Huh, wassat?” Zipp groaned as she was woken up.

Her eyes shot open as she realised what had happened. She immediately began pulling back on the controls as Hitch grabbed them too. Together, they hauled the Marestream out of the screaming nosedive.

Zipp gasped as she checked the instruments and brought the Marestream back on course. Sighing with relief as she saw they were still tracking the airship.

Hitch meanwhile sat down panting, looking at Zipp with a confused expression. “Zipp, have you been up all night?”

“Y...Yeah,” Zipp admitted before yawning.

Hitch gawped. “I thought you said you could use the autopilot?”

“Autopilot...w…wouldn’t lock onto the t…tracking signal,” Zipp yawned.

“Okay, then you need to be relieved,” Hitch frowned as he got up and moved forward.

“B...But... You’ve only flown o...once,” Zipp yawned.

“Which is better than you falling asleep and making us tumble out the sky,” Hitch argued.

Zipp blinked blearily again and nodded. She moved to one side, allowing Hitch to take the controls before letting go. Then she gestured to a display on the instrument panel and started pointing things out.

“F...Follow the green marker. Keep it within the two yellow lines. Keep the numbers here between a hundred and a hundred and fifty. Lower and we’re too close and could be spotted. Higher and we’ll lose the tracking signal.”

“Got it,” Hitch said confidently. “I remember your instructions from last time too. Keep her steady.”

“Wings level, nose up,” Zipp added wearily. “OH! And the number here is the altitude of the airship. Keep ours higher.”

“Got it,” Hitch nodded.

Zipp sighed wearily and turned around to find the others had appeared behind her.

“Come on, sleepy Zippy,” Izzy grinned. “Let’s get you to beddy byes.”

“Yeah, come on, Sis,” Pipp smiled as she let Zipp rest on her. “You’re pushing yourself too hard. You should have woken us up last night.”

Feather Breeze was clinging fearfully to Misty as they both watched Zipp being escorted by Izzy and Pipp into the rear compartment.

“W…W….What happened?” Feather Breeze trembled.

“Zipp stayed up all night,” Hitch explained. “She should have told us she needed to rest.”

“O…Oh,” Feather Breeze said understandingly. “S…So the flying didn’t do that to her?”

“Well, it sort of did,” Misty admitted. “But only because she should have taken a break.”

“We’ll swap over from now on,” Hitch advised. “It’s okay, Feather Breeze. We’re not going to crash, honest. It’ll be smoother from now on.”

Feather Breeze frowned still shaking slightly as she held onto Misty.

Suddenly, Misty’s eyes widened in shock. “S...Sunny’s messaging!”

“What? Now? How?” Hitch gasped.

Misty didn’t respond, her horn glowed as she activated the messaging spell and listened to the message as it played in her head. Her eyes widened and her mouth opened in shock and horror.

“SUNNY?!... SUNNY?!...” Misty cried. “What’s happened? Are you okay?... SUNNY!”

Misty gasped as her horn stopped glowing, tears welling in her eyes.

“Misty?” Feather Breeze said fearfully.

“Misty?” Hitch blinked as he tried to concentrate on two things at once. “Speak to us, what’s happening?”

Misty gasped as tears ran down her face. Feather Breeze gasped and hugged her comfortingly.

“S...Somethings happened to Sunny,” Misty sniffed. “Her message, it was all rushed and broken up. She said something about her cover being blown, her powers and Allura.”

“But how would Allura even know about her?” Hitch frowned before gasping as he looked back at the instruments.

Misty and Feather Breeze cried out in surprise as Hitch put the Marestream into a tight turn to bring it back onto course behind the airship.

“Sorry, just getting used to following something,” he explained.

“Allura knowing, that’s likely my fault too,” Feather Breeze said sorrowfully. “I didn’t just collect creatures. I collected intelligence too. I remember taking Newspapers from your city.”

“There’s bound to be news about Sunny in those,” Hitch realised. “She opened a museum not so long ago and it made the front page.”

“Sunny sounded so scared,” Misty sniffed. “She said something about not knowing what to do. Then the message cut out.”

“I’m so sorry,” Feather Breeze said as tears welled in her eyes. “This is all my fault.”

“We don’t know that,” Misty reasoned. “You weren’t in control of your own actions.”

“But...But that means nothing,” Feather Breeze argued. “I know what I did. I regret it all so much.”

“I regret a lot of what I did in the past too,” Misty admitted. “But what I did, I did because I wanted to.”

She sighed and placed a hoof on Feather Breeze’s supportively. “I was taken away when I was small. Whisked away from everypony I knew by an evil pony called Opaline. She was all I knew for so long. I wanted her to be pleased with me so much that I did everything I could for her.”

Misty sighed looking down sadly as she rubbed Feather Breeze’s hoof reassuringly. “Opaline used me, she made me do so many bad things. Things I could have just said no to doing.

“Now, I’ve got wonderful friends who’ve forgiven me. They helped me understand what Opaline was doing. That I didn’t have to do what she was saying. Together, we defeated Opaline. They became my family and then helped me find my dad.

“You were forced to do what you did against your will. You couldn’t say no. You couldn’t change your mind. You had no choice. I’ve come to terms with what I did in my past. It doesn’t define me; I make my own future. You can too.”

Feather Breeze smiled. “Thank you, Misty. I...I need to come to terms with what happened to me too.”

“First step is rescuing everycreature,” Hitch said with determination. “Whatever’s happened to Sunny, we’ll help her too.”

Chapter Twenty-Eight – Super Sneaky Misty, Part One - Reunited

Misty appeared in the Ponies Hut with a flash. She looked around and smiled, glad to see she was the last to arrive.

“Evening, Misty Brightdawn,” Thymus smiled. “Are there any developments?”

“There is and there isn’t,” Misty admitted before taking a deep breath. “I’m about to go and infiltrate the Confinement area. I thought it better to come and tell you first.”

“You serious?” Giselle gawped.

Misty nodded.

The other creatures looked at each other in shock. All not quite sure they were hearing correctly.

“Misty, no,” Skysurf gasped. “You don’t have to put yourself in danger like that.”

“Skysurf,” Misty sighed. “We’ve seen no evidence of Coral Cloud and there’s been a development. Your Queen is in Equestria.”

Skysurf’s eyes widened in surprise. “W...Wait, no. Th...That’s not possible. Queen Skystar would never leave Seaquestria.”

“I don’t know the details why,” Misty admitted as she shook her head. “But she was upset that Coral Cloud wasn’t there.”

“Which means if she’s not here...” Skysurf gasped as she trailed off.

Giselle looked at her with confusion. “What? If she’s not here, then what?”

“Then she could be lost anywhere,” Skysurf sighed. “So, either way, I’ve failed to protect her.”

Thymus looked at Skysurf gravely. “Skysurf, do not be so hard on yourself. You jumped in the way of a beam aimed at Coral Cloud, did you not?”

Skysurf sighed and closed her eyes. “Yes, I did, and I know where you are going with this.”

“Doesn’t matter, you need to hear it,” Thymus frowned. “You sacrificed yourself for the one you were protecting. That’s the greatest thing a guard like you can do.”

“You sacrificed yourself for your friend,” Misty added.

Thymus moved closer to Skysurf and calmly looked into her eyes. “What happened after that, it wasn’t your fault.”

Skysurf closed her eyes and sighed. “I...I’ll try to remember that.”

Sprout frowned knowingly. “Coral Cloud isn’t the only one in Confinement though, is she?”

“Ah Ha!” Giselle said as she pointed at Misty. “You want to see your friend! You want to see Sunny!”

Misty sighed. “Yeah, I do. But we think Sunny will have information about Allura. Something happened today, Sunny and Sugar were taken to Level Zero. When they came out of the building, they didn’t seem to be under as much security.”

“Having more information about the enemy is important,” Bingo frowned. “Quite a good reason to see your friend.”

Skysurf sighed and shook her head. “It’s still a big risk.”

“There’s one last thing,” Misty reassured. “We have no idea how many creatures are in Confinement. We don’t know where they are or how to rescue them.”

“Allura could use them against us,” Thymus gasped.

Skysurf took a deep breath. “Okay, fine, you’ve explained your reasoning and yes all of that is probably worth the risk.”

“So, that’s it then?” Minty sighed. “We’re stuck waiting until tomorrow night before we’ll know you’re okay?”

Misty smiled as she fished around in her saddlebag. “No, I don’t want to leave you all waiting and worrying too long. I want to come back after I’ve finished.”

She produced a pile of small notebooks from the saddlebag and held them out. “Zipp prepared these, each one has the information she has on a specific subject. She suggested you all go through them and see if there is anything you can add.”

Thymus nodded as he accepted the notebooks. “Excellent, our time won’t be wasted then.”

“H...Hold on,” Sprout gasped. “The watchtowers, the emitters.”

Misty nodded. “I know. Please, add anything you saw or found out to the notes. I don’t know how long I will be.”

“I’m already ahead of you,” Skysurf winked as she held out a piece of paper. “I noted down everything we saw.”

“Oh, brill,” Misty gasped as she took the paper. “I’m going back to the hide first to check before starting. I’ll give it to Zipp then.”

“Did you have the recorder?” Thymus asked. “We maybe ought to record our discussion, beings as that is what your friend asked for before.”

Misty’s eyes widened as she squeaked. “I knew I forgot something else!”

She dipped a hoof back into her saddlebag and pulled out a red recorder. She held it out and Sprout took it. “Thanks, Misty,” he nodded. “Good luck.”

“O...Okay, I suppose this is it now,” Misty gulped nervously.

“It’s okay,” Sprout smiled. “You’ve got this!”

“I’ve seen videos,” Minty said suddenly. “Of you fighting a giant flytrap plant. Rescuing lots of Ponies. I think you underestimate how powerful and skilled you are.”

Misty’s eyes widened. “No, No. I don’t want to hurt the Nirik. They’re prisoners the same as you are.”

“Power doesn’t only mean harming others,” Thymus advised.

“You’re able to visit us whenever you want without our captors knowing,” Skysurf added. “That is more than the majority of creatures can do.”

“I’d say it’s more than any other creature can do,” Giselle beamed. “You’re awesome!”

“Yes, you would make a great top dog,” Bingo grunted.

“We wish you good luck, Misty Brightdawn,” Thymus nodded.

“Yes, good luck, Misty.” Skysurf sighed. “T...Thank you.”

Misty placed a reassuring hoof on Skysurf’s shoulder. “I’ll send you a message as soon as I know. I’ll try and come back before lights out too.”

Skysurf nodded. “Thank you. But, please, don’t rush to get back.”

“Yeah, if we don’t see you again tonight, we’ll assume we’ll see you tomorrow night,” Giselle winked.

Misty nodded and gave a small smile as she took a step backwards.

With final farewells and wishes of good luck, Misty’s horn glowed, and she disappeared with a flash.

Within the High-Security Confinement Area, seven small huts were arranged in a semicircle. The doors of the huts were all facing inwards, towards a watchtower that was positioned in the centre.

Along the straight side of the semicircle, there was a much larger hut, long and wide. It had two doors, both on the side that looked towards the central watchtower.

Around the outside of the huts, there was wide open ground before a large fence. The fence had one gate but there were multiple watchtowers along its length.

The Nirik patrolled around three circuits, each having a pair of Nirik walking in opposite directions. The first pair walked around the outside of the fence. Meanwhile, the next circuit was around the back of all the huts. Finally, the last pair walked around the front of the huts, past all the doors.

For any creature without magic, it would be hard enough to just get past the fence. However, a short way from the back of the large hut there were multiple piles of stones, sand and other building materials. It looked like they had been forgotten about after a building project had been completed.

It was among these that Misty appeared with a flash to start her infiltration, thereby bypassing the fence and the first pair of Nirik.

Gasping, she looked around before her horn glowed and she turned invisible. Once again, only her eyes could be seen.

“Okay,” she whispered as quietly as she could. “Okay. T...This is it. I can do this!”

Carefully, she made her way out of the piles and headed towards the back of the large hut. Dodging searchlights from the watchtowers on the perimeter fence as she went.

Once she arrived at the hut, she made her way along the back wall, following the track the Nirik had left. All the time, the searchlights continued to make sweeps. When one came near, she’d stop and look at the hut and wait for the light to pass before continuing. Doing so meant she didn’t need to close her eyes; they couldn’t be seen from the back of her head.

Reaching the corner of the hut she peeped around it and squeaked in surprise. A Nirik was standing with its back to her. Its ear twitched at the sound but it walked forward, away from her, much to Misty’s relief.

With her heart pounding, she pulled her head back before staying where she was and waited. She knew she didn’t have much time, the second Nirik would be coming towards her. Therefore, she needed to get off its patrol route. However, she wanted to be sure the one she’d just seen had gone.

Eventually, she risked looking around the corner again and sighed with relief, the Nirik had carried on its way. Quickly, she made her way around the corner and along the side of the hut. It was much shorter, so she soon reached the next corner.

Having been bitten by surprise Nirik before, she carefully poked her head around the corner, checking the coast was clear. There was a gap ahead of her before the next hut, the first of the smaller ones. With her heart pounding, she waited for a searchlight to pass before darting out.

Having stopped, she knew time was against her. Therefore, when she reached the hut, she hurried along the back of it as quickly as she dared.

However, she wasn’t fast enough. As she reached the next corner, her eyes widened. The Nirik was walking along the back of the next hut, coming towards her.

There was no time to check anything. Desperately, she closed her eyes and moved around the corner with feeling alone. Hoping no surprises were waiting for her.

Not wanting to risk continuing blind, she pressed her back to the side of the hut. Her heart pounded as she listened for the Nirik. Fortunately, she could only hear the one that she knew about.

Its hoofsteps got closer, and closer, and closer, then suddenly stopped.

Misty could barely breathe. Her invisible ears strained to hear what was happening. She could hear breathing that wasn’t her own and was certain the Nirik was only a few steps away from her.

She didn’t understand, this wasn’t in the plan. Zipp had watched the patrol patterns and told her the Nirik didn’t stop. She knew Zipp would be right, so why had the Nirik stopped?

Misty could hear the Nirik sniffing the air. Her mind raced, had it seen her eyes? Her heart pounded as she tried desperately not to make a sound.

Finally, she heard hoofsteps again, but they got closer. She held her breath and readied her teleport spell to escape.

However, the Nirik passed by and continued walking along the back of the huts. Heading the way Misty had just come from.

As she heard its hoofsteps retreating, Misty let out the breath she’d been holding and gasped for air. She opened her eyes and, heart still pounding, leaned around the corner.

The Nirik continued walking away from her along the back of the hut. Then when it walked out from between the huts it stopped again.

Misty pulled her head back and breathed a sigh of relief. She could only assume they had updated the patrol route. Maybe they changed things after Sunny and Sugar met Allura?

With a deep breath, she started the part she was not looking forward to.

To access the huts, she’d wanted to get to the doors, like she had done for the Ponies Hut. However, Zipp had warned that wouldn’t be advisable. She couldn’t avoid the flash being seen by the Nirik on the watchtower and those patrolling.

Therefore, they’d come up with a compromise. Misty had to get into a position where she could see the door. Hopefully, whilst she was still between the huts. Then, she could look at the door and focus on teleporting to the other side.

She’d decided that practising long-range teleporting to areas she hadn’t been to before was a must!

As she began making her way down the side of the hut, she looked up at the watchtower. It was square and there were two Nirik that patrolled the top. They continually walked around the tower, looking out opposite sides. She knew she’d need to time her teleport to perfection so she wouldn’t be seen.

When she reached the corner of the hut, she crouched low to the ground. Even though she was invisible, her eyes weren’t. She hoped the Nirik in the tower wouldn’t spot a set of floating eyes if they were near to the ground.

However, when she looked towards Sunny’s hut, she groaned with disappointment. She couldn’t see the door and needed to creep out into the open, further than she’d expected.

Before she could do so, Misty gasped as she spotted one of the Nirik that was patrolling around the front of the huts. It was walking towards her, and she closed her eyes to ensure she wasn’t spotted.

She listened hard and realised, she could hear two sets of hoofsteps coming towards her, one from either side. Another Nirik was coming from the other way, one she hadn’t seen.

Both sets of steps got louder and louder. Suddenly, one set got so loud she was sure they were right in front of her nose. However, she trusted in her invisibility spell and just about managed to keep calm.

Then, the closest set of steps stopped whilst the other set continued, getting louder and louder as it got closer and closer. Then, that set of steps stopped too.

She was sure she could hear breathing, really, really close to her. She wished she could see what was happening.

Finally, both Nirik started walking again. Misty heard another set of steps just in front of her nose, but they passed by. Then, both sets of hoofsteps began getting fainter as the Nirik both walked away.

After a few moments, Misty carefully opened her eyes and sighed with relief, she was safe. Both Nirik were continuing on their patrol route and had passed her by. Carefully, she crept forward and out from between the huts, just enough so she could see the door to Sunny’s hut.

She looked up at the watchtower and waited. A Nirik appeared and looked out, the spotlight on the roof moving around in a pattern. Misty narrowed her eyes, squinting in an attempt not to be seen whilst still watching.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the Nirik disappeared towards the other side. Immediately, Misty looked straight at the door to Sunny’s hut. With a deep breath, she concentrated on the teleport spell.

With a flash, an already invisible Misty disappeared completely.

Sunny couldn’t help chuckling and shaking her head as she looked at her bowl of food. She couldn’t eat anymore but there was around half of it left. “Well, Sugar, this confirms it. It was all a mind game. There’s too much here.”

Sugar nodded as she stopped drinking and looked at her unfinished food. “Yeah, I can’t get through all this stuff either. Doesn’t help that it tastes horrible.”

There was a flash from the door that made them both jump and squeak with surprise.

“W...What was that?” Sunny blinked as she looked around with confusion.

“I…I don’t know,” Sugar gasped. “There’s nothing there.”

Suddenly, two floating green eyes appeared from nowhere, making Sugar shriek in surprise and shock.

However, Sunny only gasped before her eyes widened, she’d seen those eyes before. “Wait? It…It can’t be…”

There was another flash, and it was Sunny’s turn to cry in surprise as Misty appeared in front of her, inside her cage.

“M...Misty?!” Sunny stammered as her eyes welled with tears. “Is...Is it really you?”

Misty flung her hoofs around Sunny as tears trickled down her face. “S...Sunny,” she croaked. “It is. It’s really me, I’m here.”

Sunny gasped, lifting her conjoined hoofs as she sat down. Doing so broke Misty’s embrace but only so she could put the chain from the shackles over Misty’s head and hug her back.

Misty chuckled as they both hugged each other, both of them crying with joy.

From her cage, Sugar could only watch the two friends reunite and suddenly realised she had nopony to reunite with. She couldn’t help feeling left out and gulped before sitting down sadly, looking at the floor.

Finally, Sunny and Misty broke off the hug and Sunny carefully lifted her conjoined hoofs back over Misty’s head.

“I...I can’t believe this,” Sunny sniffed as fresh tears began to fall. “Misty, I can’t believe you’re here.”

“I had to come,” Misty grimaced as her eyes continued to well with tears. “B…But now… I…I just wish…”

Sunny sighed knowingly. “You’re not here to rescue us, are you?”

Misty closed her eyes as tears trickled down her cheeks. Slowly, she shook her head.

Sugar blinked as she felt a sinking feeling inside. “Y…You’re not…”

“I can’t,” Misty groaned. “W…We’re….”

“Not ready,” Sunny sighed as she lifted her hoofs over Misty’s head again and pulled her into another hug. “It’s okay, Misty. I thought it didn’t make sense after your message last night.”

Misty wrapped her hoofs around Sunny again. Meanwhile, Sugar looked between the pair of them, looking completely confused. “Then why come?”

Misty let out a deep sigh as she broke off the hug. “There’s a few reasons, this is only my first stop though. I’ve got to get information about all the huts. We don’t want Allura to be able to use you or any of the other creatures here as leverage.”

She sighed again as she wiped her tears. “I’m sorry for getting your hopes up. The important thing is, when the time’s right, we’ll get you out of here.” She looked pointedly at Sugar. “Both of you.”

“Maybe you should be the Element of Bravery,” Sunny chuckled. “Oh, Misty! I’m so sorry. I’m sorry I convinced you that letting me play bait was a good idea.”

“It’s okay,” Misty reassured as she held Sunny’s hoofs. “Seems we don’t have the best track record when it comes to ponies playing bait. We tried it again when we needed to capture a Nirik, and the same thing happened. Strawberry got taken.”

Sunny looked confused. “Strawberry? As in Strawberry Sunflash? Isn’t she the Unicorn that set off that giant flytrap?”

“Yeah, I didn’t like how she felt like an enemy,” Misty sighed. “So, I’ve been slowly turning her into a friend. Luckily, they didn’t want Unicorns so sent her back. They’ve taken Pegasus Ponies though, including Minty Cloudstrike.”

“R...Really,” Sunny blinked before gasping. “Wait! That’s going to have changed, they’ll likely be after Unicorns as well now!”

Misty looked worried. “How do you know?”

Sugar frowned, determined to get involved. “The bridle Sunny’s wearing. It’s isolated her powers.”

Misty gasped and reached into her saddle bag and took out a blue recorder. “Hold on. Let me record all this for Zipp!”

Sunny chuckled. “Yeah, you better not forget anything. Is it on?”

Misty pressed a button on the recorder. “It is now.”

“H...Hey, everypony,” Sunny stammered as tears welled again. “I...I know Zipp likely wants us to talk turkey... But first I need to say sorry to you all. I’m sorry, Hitch, Zipp, for not listening to your concerns. If I had, I wouldn’t be in this situation and I wouldn’t have put all of you through so much.

“Pipp, Izzy, I’m sorry. I’m sorry I convinced you that making a disguise was more important than listening to your friends. I...I’m so… I’m so sorry.”

She broke down in tears again.

“It’s okay, Sunny,” Misty gasped as she pulled her into another hug. “What’s done is done. We’re here now.”

Realising the recorder was still running, Sugar piped up. “The disguise was epic though. Nopony recognised her at all when she walked into the hut. It did start to fail because it gets so hot, but we patched it up. Her cover only got blown because we were all given a wash.”

“Really?” Misty gasped as she broke off her hug.

“Y...Yeah,” Sunny sniffed as she wiped her eyes. “It lasted way longer than we expected it to.”

Sugar smiled. “Izzy’s fake cutie mark was brill, it stood up really, really well.”

“So, turkey talk,” Sunny sniffed. “Firstly, the hut we’re in now. We’re each locked in a separate cage, there are six cages in here though. I…I think the only way to get us out would be teleportation.”

“It takes at least three Nirik to open each cage,” Sugar added. “So, when they come to get us each morning there’s five of them.”

“There are pads in the floor on either side of the cage door,” Sunny continued. “One Nirik stands on each pad, then there’s a control panel at the far end which the third Nirik uses to open the cage."

"The door to the hut is locked too," Sugar added. "It makes really loud clunks and rattles when it's unlocking."

"We've no idea how that's opened," Sunny said as she shook her head. "The control panel thing, that's locked too. I’ve seen Twitch use it before as well, it might control the food and water dispenser.”

“We’re fed twice a day,” Sugar explained. “The food’s horrible, truly and utterly rancid.”

Sunny couldn’t help chuckling and shaking her head. “Next, my powers, I can’t use them. The bridle they’ve put on me, it’s isolated them. When I first saw Allura, she said something about being able to capture Pegasi and Unicorns now.”

Misty looked at Sunny worriedly, “You have met Allura then? We thought you had.”

“Yeah, a couple of times now,” Sunny confessed.

“I’ve met her once,” Sugar added.

“Okay, that’s one of the main reasons I’m here,” Misty admitted. “What can you tell Zipp about her?”

Sunny sighed. “She’s powerful and maybe more dangerous than Opaline. Not because of her powers though, she’s hard to read. When I was talking to her, she sounded genuine but in the back of my mind I wasn’t sure.”

“Manipulative then,” Sugar frowned. “I’m sorry, I barely heard anything she said.”

“So, like how Opaline manipulated me?” Misty frowned.

“I’m not sure,” Sunny sighed. “I never fully saw Opaline’s manipulative side; not like you did, Misty. But it’s other things Allura says too, not just when she wants something from you. It’s…” She groaned. “It’s hard to describe.”

“Sunny, tell them about the thoughts,” Sugar suggested.

“Thoughts?” Misty blinked.

“Yeah, it’s something she can do with her purr,” Sunny sighed. “You said about her purr controlling the Nirik. Well, I think this is sort of similar.”

“In what way?” Misty frowned.

“Well, I’ve been controlled by her too,” Sunny admitted. “I...I suppose it’s like being remote-controlled. But she’s not controlling your body, she’s controlling your thoughts.” She closed her eyes and shook her head. “It quickly became a blur though; I can’t really remember most of it.”

“Sunny, when your cover was blown, she put her mouth right up to your ear,” Sugar remembered. “You just walked off, like you were possessed or something.”

“Yeah, that’s when she started to control me,” Sunny nodded. “Like I said though, I think she controlled my mind, not my body.”

“So, we need to keep away from her, so she can’t,” Misty frowned.

Sunny shook her head. “That wouldn’t help though. She didn’t need to be close to inject thoughts into my mind. She starts purring and says, just remember, then what she wants you to think.”

Misty looked at Sunny worriedly as she took hold of her hoofs. “What did she do?”

“She was trying to break me,” Sunny sighed. “Made me think things which started eating away at me, making me more and more depressed.”

“Sunny had to continually fight against the thoughts,” Sugar added. “It was kind of working too, I’ve never seen her look so depressed before.”

“Yeah, I...I had sunk to a really bad place,” Sunny admitted. “Some of it was reverse psychology, she made me think of things I didn’t or couldn't have. So I had to remind myself I didn’t or couldn’t do them." She sighed. "If I didn’t fight them, they’d keep coming and coming, repeating over and over. It...It was awful.”

“But you seem okay now,” Misty blinked as she looked at Sunny hopefully.

“Yeah, she didn’t break me,” Sunny smiled as she looked at Sugar gratefully. “But only because Sugar joined me here. She helped me to overcome it.”

Sugar gave a small smile and Misty looked at her gratefully before sighing. “We should have gotten here sooner.”

“No, no, Misty,” Sunny gasped. “It’s okay, I know you all came as fast as you could.”

Misty sighed and shook her head regretfully.

“Yeah, you’re here now,” Sugar grinned. “Literally!”

Misty smiled and took a deep breath. “Yeah, and we will get you out. We’ll save everycreature here.”

Sunny frowned in thought, “So, what else to tell you about Allura?” Her eyes lit up. “Oooh, she’s from another world, not the human world like Sunset, a different one. Twitch is too. The whole point of this Quarry is to mine the Ore, they need it to power their gateway home.”

“They had Sunny doing something with it today,” Sugar interjected.

“Yeah, we saw you being taken into a building on Level Zero from our hide,” Misty blinked. “What happened?”

Sunny sighed. “They needed help with their gateway. I think they said calibration or something.” She groaned. “Nopony can understand Twitch, only Allura and she doesn’t seem to understand the techie stuff. Their relationship, it’s odd.”

“How?” Misty blinked.

“W...Well,” Sunny shifted uncomfortably. “Misty, you said how Opaline treated you. It’s sort of similar, Allura is in charge and Twitch does as he’s told. But he talks back to her.”

Misty’s eyes widened. “If I talked back to Opaline I got in loads of trouble.”

“Exactly, but Twitch doesn’t,” Sunny sighed. “Allura praises him a lot too.”

Misty looked thoughtful, “Well, Opaline did praise me too. But only if I had done something she wanted.” She sighed. “Like when I got the Dragon Stone. She praised me a lot then, took care of me even.”

Misty suddenly shuddered, making Sunny gasp worriedly. “Misty, I’m sorry.”

“I’m okay,” Misty reassured. “I...I just...”

“No, I’m really sorry,” Sunny gasped. “I didn’t mean to dredge up your old memories.”

“So, back to today,” Sugar said, changing the subject. “I only saw what happened. They locked me in this tank thing, I couldn’t hear anything.”

Misty looked between them with concern.

“They needed me to use my powers,” Sunny explained. “So, Sugar ended up being their insurance.”

Sugar sighed. “If Sunny tried anything, they’d...”

Misty frowned. “Allura seems to like that kind of thing. That’s what worries us about this Confinement area.”

“Thing is, Allura didn’t use Sugar to convince me to help her,” Sunny frowned. “We made a deal...”

Misty listened as Sunny described the details of the deal she'd made with Allura. Then, what she’d done for Allura and what had happened.

When she’d finished, Misty frowned. “I sort of hope we rescue you before they use it. They’ll appear in this other world upside-down!”

Sunny blinked. “Huh, I didn’t think of that.” She sighed. “I don’t know if it was the right thing to do now. At the time, I hoped they’d go through the portal, and we’d be free.”

“Well, I’ve decided it was,” Sugar grinned. “I’m real glad we don’t have to wear the muzzles anymore. Playing charades all the time was getting so old.”

“Well, she can’t give mine back,” Sunny smirked. “I shot it before they could take my powers away.”

“Wait! Ice powers!” Sugar gasped. “We only saw them for a moment. She froze my muzzle completely before crushing it.”

Sunny blinked. “Yeah, that was so sudden. I’ve no idea how strong those are. She could do anything with them, I’ve no idea.”

“Well, she gives me the shivers just by looking at me,” Sugar shuddered.

They all chuckled before Sunny frowned. “There’s something else, Allura mentioned about programming.”

“The Nirik,” Sugar gasped. “They came in to get us and got all confused. That’s when Allura mentioned reprogramming.”

“That lines up with what Feather Breeze said about the instructions the Nirik follow,” Misty frowned.

“Feather Breeze, she’s the Nirik you captured,” Sunny remembered.

Misty smiled bashfully, “Well, she says I rescued her. Anyway, the Nirik follow these Situations things that are etched into their minds.” She groaned. “There’s so much we still need to find out and Zipp’s working so hard. She’s making breakthroughs, slowly but surely.

“One thing she’s worried about is you guys being tracked somehow. That’s what’s stopping me whisking you both to our camp. You could see everypony before I bring you back.”

Sunny’s eyes widened. “A...As much as that sounds brilliant. I don’t think it would be wise. I...I should have been more careful before. Misty, you’ve taken a huge risk coming here. I’m so grateful. But, please, don’t push it too far.”

“Yeah, if you’re not ready to rescue everycreature we need to stay here,” Sugar groaned. “I admit, I’ve been so selfish before. But everycreature deserves to be rescued too.”

“Don’t worry, we will,” Misty smiled as she stopped the recorder. “I think that’s enough turkey talking. I’ve got something for you both.”

She put the recorder away and withdrew a flask from her saddlebag. Sunny’s eyes widened with joy, “Is that?”

Misty smiled as she took two cups from the top of the flask and set them down. She undid the top and poured a steaming dark brown liquid into them.

“Yeah, hot chocolate,” Misty grinned. “I’ve got some of Dad’s best tea with me. But I know you really like this.”

Sunny grinned happily as Misty passed her one of the steaming cups. She blew on it before taking a sip and closing her eyes blissfully.

Sugar blinked with surprise as Misty carefully passed one to her through the bars. “M...Misty,” she gasped. “Thank you. I...I don’t deserve this.”

Misty looked at her with confusion. “Why not?”

“When you joined the Filly Four,” Sugar sighed. “I didn’t think of you as a friend. I didn’t even try to remember your name. I...I didn’t even realise you were that same Unicorn. I’m sorry for how I treated you.”

Misty shook her head. “I was only there because Opaline needed me to for her plan. So, you don’t need to apologise, I don’t hold any of it against you.

“I’ve changed so much since then. In many ways, I’m not that Unicorn anymore. I’ve become the real me. If you want to be friends now, then I’d really like that.”

Sugar gasped, her eyes glistening as she looked at Misty. “Thank you, Misty. I’d like to be friends too and to get to know you properly. Thank you for this.”

She blew on her cup before taking a sip. Sighing with satisfaction as the hot chocolate hit her taste buds. “Wow! Th...This is delish! Thank you!”

Sunny grinned as she finished her cup. “Misty makes epic hot chocolate. Her apple crumbles are brilliant too.”

Misty smiled. “I promise when this is all over, I’m making the biggest crumble yet.”

“I can’t wait,” Sunny beamed. “W...Wait that’s something else. Misty, come here.”

Sunny waved Misty closer so she could whisper something in her ear. Sugar blinked and gasped with surprise. “No, no, don’t you start planning something for me. I don’t deserve it!”

“Too late,” Misty grinned as she pulled back from Sunny before sighing. “Okay, that’s part one of this mission done.”

Sunny gasped. “Part One?”

“Yeah, I’ve got to check all the other huts for Coral Cloud,” Misty revealed. “She’s Skysurf’s best friend and...”

“Their princess,” Sugar gasped as she passed Misty the empty cup.

“Exactly,” Misty sighed. “There’s a chance she’s been in confinement the whole time. We need to know for sure or not.”

“Along with who else you need to rescue,” Sugar remembered.

Sunny looked at Misty calmly. “Then be careful. The next time I see you, I don’t want you to be stuck in the cage next to me.”

“Don’t worry, Sunny, I’ll be careful,” Misty smiled. “Anything happens, I’m teleporting straight back to the hide.”

She went to pull Sunny into a hug, but Sunny pulled her towards the bars. Misty’s smile broadened as she pushed one hoof through the bars while putting the other around Sunny.

Sugar gasped before moving closer, accepting Misty’s one-hoofed embrace through the bars. They all leaned in and enjoyed the hug, all hoping the next one would be without the bars stuck between them.

Chapter Two – Stick to the Basics

Whilst Sunny and Hitch were opening a new building, Misty had a huge grin on her face as she walked through Bridlewood towards the Crystal Tea Room for what had now become a weekly occasion. Afternoon tea with her dad, Alphabittle.

She was still beaming as she entered the tearoom. It was mostly quiet, but it was clear Alphabittle was in conversation with somepony. A strawberry red unicorn mare with a light cream mane and tail. Misty took no notice of the conversation; she looked over to the table they normally used and smiled as she spotted the reserved label.

Above the word ‘RESERVED’ there was an image of a butterfly on it so she trotted over and sat down, content to wait for Alphabittle to finish. However, it wasn't long before she couldn’t help listening in on the conversation.

“Strawberry, it doesn’t matter that you’re teaching at the magic school,” Alphabittle sighed. “The books that are coming out of the old Canterlot library need to be vetted before they are reproduced.”

“So why can’t I help vet them?” Strawberry grumbled. “I’ve got a treehouse full of magic books. I’ve studied magic my whole life, now we can actually use it I’m the most advanced of any of us.”

Alphabittle sighed as he poured water into a teapot. “Need I remind you that the school can only teach magic from officially vetted books.”

“Oh, I know that and it’s another stupid rule,” Strawberry frowned. “I told you. I know more than anypony.”

Alphabittle looked down at her sturnly. “You don’t know more than Starlight Glimmer or Sunset Shimmer,” he argued. “They taught magic to the Guardians of Unity. That means they are the ones who know the most about magic, not you.”

“Oh, it always comes back to the Guardians of Unity,” Strawberry huffed. “What’s so special about them?”

“They’ve seen what magic can do in the wrong hoofs,” Alphabittle explained. “Queen Haven agrees with the Elders, we need to be careful as we rediscover magic. One wrong spell could cause serious harm. The Guardians have been taught what to look out for. Therefore, they ensure the books that are reproduced are safe. Not you.”

Strawberry narrowed her eyes, taking a step back from the counter. “You know, I thought you’d support me,” she growled. “It seems I’ll have to take this up with Queen Haven on my own. I’ll show her what I’ve learned and that I understand magic just as much as those Guardians.”

With that, she turned and flounced away. The doorbell tinkled as she exited.

Alphabittle sighed as he retrieved a tray of cakes from under the counter. He picked up the teapot in his magic too before heading towards where Misty was sitting. He sighed as he placed the cakes on the table and began pouring the tea. “I’m sorry you had to hear all that, Misty.”

Misty looked on worriedly as she watched the tea pouring into her cup. “Who was that? Why’s she so upset with me?”

Alphabittle sighed as he placed the teapot on a mat. “She’s Strawberry Sunflash. She’s a teacher at the new School of Magic.”

Misty couldn’t help frowning with confusion as she blew on her tea. “There’s a School of Magic?”

“It was Queen Haven’s idea,” Alphabittle explained. “When Pegasi started flying again they had lots of injuries. So, they set up a flying school in Zephyr Heights for those who are struggling. She thought something similar would be good for Unicorns to learn magic.

“Strawberry was a teacher before magic returned. We never realised that she’d been collecting magic books from somewhere and studying them. I’d say after you, she’s the most advanced magic user.”

“So, she’s upset because she wants more books,” Misty frowned. “But I'm the only one looking through them and I’ve been working so hard. I…I even made myself ill.”

“Oh, Misty no,” Alphabittle sighed looking worried. “How?”

“I was staying up too late,” Misty admitted. “So, I wasn’t getting enough sleep. Sunny made me promise to spend only so much each day going through the books. There’s a storeroom full of them at the Brighthouse and they keep bringing more. I don’t think I’ll ever get through them all.”

“Can’t the other’s help?” Alphabittle asked.

“Not really,” Misty sighed. “Starlight made sure I understood how spells are written so I know what they will do. Izzy’s magic doesn’t go far enough for her to understand and she gets sidetracked. Whilst Sunny can cast more advanced spells, she struggles to understand written incantations." She paused and let out another sigh. "I’m basically on my own.”

“Just keep doing as much as you can,” Alphabittle smiled. “We’re all still learning about the basics. Strawberry is just being greedy, she can wait.”

“She sounds like she knows more than I do,” Misty sighed as she eyed up a jam tart. “I’ve only been using magic for a short time.”

Alphabittle smiled as he passed the jam tart to Misty. “You’ve had invaluable lessons from two ponies who have likely forgotten more about magic than Strawberry will ever know. She’s got a thirst for knowledge which, in her case, could be dangerous.”

Misty frowned as she chewed on the tart and sighed after she’d swallowed. “I know what it’s like though. I’m excited to learn more about magic too. But now I feel guilty, I’ve got access to those books that nopony else has.”

“Misty, that’s fine when you understand what you should and shouldn’t be learning,” Alphabittle smiled. “You are part of the group of ponies that protect Equestria from magical threats. I think it’s right that you should learn as much as you can about magic. That’s the only way you’ll help protect everypony. Got anything you’ve learned recently?”

“Oh, there is one thing I wanted to show you,” Misty smiled as her horn glowed.

Alphabittle gasped as Misty suddenly disappeared completely. He looked around with confusion, trying to work out where she’d gone. “Misty?”

Suddenly there was a giggle and Misty opened her eyes. Alphabittle nearly fell off his chair in surprise as he looked back at the two floating eyeballs. Misty giggled again before she reappeared completely.

“Sorry,” she smiled. “I didn’t mean to startle you.”

“That was incredible,” Alphabittle gasped. “So, you…”

“Turned invisible,” Misty smiled. “It doesn’t work on your eyes though, so you have to close them if you don’t want to be seen. It’s something Starlight suggested I learned. She’s still helping me.”

Alphabittle looked back at Misty with surprise, “She is? How?”

“Zipp identified a code that Starlight has left for us,” Misty explained. “There’s lots of books that she’s either written herself or helped others write. Each one has a message for us. Well, for me. Pointing me towards which spells it would be best to learn next. I’ve got a long list, I just have to find them all.”

Alphabittle smiled as he poured them both another cup of tea. “You see, how could you do that if you didn’t have access to the books?”

“I miss them,” Misty admitted. “I miss being able to ask them questions. I miss their guidance. I wish there was some way to contact them. Sunset’s journal has a message just for us at the start as well. It’s all one-way communication, them telling us things. None the other way.”

“It sounds like they must have had fun leaving things for you to find,” Alphabittle smiled. “When you were born, I never imagined you’d be at the forefront of rediscovering magic. Then you’ve been through so much with Opaline too. Misty, you make me so very proud.”

Misty smiled gratefully, a warm feeling swelling inside. However, her shoulders slumped, and she looked down worriedly.

“It all feels like such a huge responsibility,” she admitted. “That’s why I spent so much time doing the vetting. Staying up late and getting hardly any sleep. I promised Sunny I’d only spend time in the morning doing it now. Then I spend the rest of the day doing what I want to do. Like learning magic or coming to see you.”

“Go at your own pace, Misty,” Alphabittle advised. “The Elders and Queen Haven trust you. There’s no need to push yourself too hard. Ponies like Strawberry Sunflash will have to wait.”

Misty smiled again as she finished eating another cake. “Thanks, Dad, I’ll do my best to remember that. Hoof to heart.” Then she looked down at the now empty tray and gave a sheepish grin. “So, is there any more cake?”

Elsewhere, a still disgruntled and fuming Strawberry had arrived at her treehouse. Situated on the outskirts of Bridlewood not far from Izzy’s.

She kicked the door closed with a hind hoof as she entered, it slammed back into the frame with an almighty bang. “I can’t believe he won’t support me,” she muttered. “I was best friends with Luna1, how could he overlook that.”

At one end of the room, there was a large round rose window. In front of this, there was a reading lectern positioned to get the maximum amount of light. All around the walls, there were shelves and shelves of books. Some looked extremely old. Just like the large one that was currently sitting on the lectern. Its cover was predominantly a dark brown with embossed inscriptions in gold shadowed by a dark green.

“I’ll show them,” she growled. “I’ll prove to them I’m the most talented magic user there is.”

She headed towards the lectern and flipped open the large tome of spells. She flicked through the pages until she came to the one she’d been working on. “I don’t need spells to be vetted before I can use them.”

She re-read the spell a few times. Then, with a confident smirk, she turned towards a Venus flytrap plant that was growing in a pot to one side of the lectern. She fired a beam of teal magic from her horn at the plant. Nothing happened.

Frowning, she tried again. The beam of magic hit the plant and she growled with annoyance as again nothing happened.

“Why isn’t it working?” she growled. “There’s got to be something wrong with this spell.”

With an angry scowl, Strawberry looked at the spell once more. Then with an angry cry, she fired one final beam of magic at the plant. This time, something happened, this time the plant started to grow.

“YES!” Strawberry shouted with a huge grin. “I knew Earth Ponies weren’t the only ones who can do plant-based magic.”

However, her grin suddenly changed to one of confusion. The flytrap was getting bigger and bigger. “Wait, that’s enough,” she said. “You don’t need to get any bigger than that.”

The flytrap seemingly didn’t hear her as it continued to increase in size. Even the pot was getting bigger and bigger. Strawberry desperately turned back to the book but yelped as one of the flytraps snapped out towards her. She jumped back just in time and gasped as the plant grew so large that it knocked the lectern over. The book flew off and onto the floor under the window.

“No, stay back,” Strawberry yelped.

She tried to run towards the door, however the flytrap snapped out again. Strawberry cried out in desperation as she dodged one of the traps. However, another lashed out and she couldn’t dodge it fast enough. It snapped closed around her, trapping her inside. “NO! SOMEPONY, HELP ME!”

Meanwhile, Alphabittle and Misty had finished their afternoon tea and were heading towards Izzy’s. Alphabittle smiled as they trotted along, “So, any idea what she’s been working on?”

“Not a clue,” Misty admitted. “I know she keeps coming back and forth between here and the Brighthouse on her scooter.”

They both frowned as they heard shouting in the distance. “Wait, what’s that?” Misty gasped.

“I don’t know but somepony shouting in Bridlewood normally means trouble,” Alphabittle frowned. “Come on.”

Misty squeaked as Alphabittle started to gallop, gasping she hurried to keep up. Her insides churned as she struggled between the urge to run in the other direction and to go and help somepony who could be in trouble.

They soon arrived at Strawberry’s house, both gasping in shock at what they saw. The flytrap had grown so large that it had erupted out of the door and windows. Its traps were wobbling around in the breeze, snapping out at anypony who dared get close.

The reason they dared get close was the unfortunate Strawberry who was pawing at the barbed bars of the trap she was caught within.

“Somepony, please help me!” Strawberry cried desperately. “I don’t want to become the first pony eaten by a plant.”

However, all of Strawberry’s cries for help were attracting ponies to come near enough to become trapped. Many had already fallen victim and Jasper gasped as he accidentally got too close. A trap lashed out towards him and snapped closed around him. “Aaah, help!” he cried.

“Everypony get back,” Alphabittle ordered. “Stay well back from it.”

Misty’s eyes were wide as she looked on in horror. She panted and panted as she struggled with conflicting emotions. She felt an urge to run away, to get well away from this beastly plant. However, she also saw the terrified expression on Strawberry’s face. The desperation on Jaspers.

Gulping, she knew in her heart she had to help. With a deep breath, her eyes narrowed, and she looked on with determination. “Dad, I’ve got this.”

Alphabittle gasped as Misty galloped forward. However, his look of shock quickly changed to one of admiration. “You can do it, Misty,” he breathed.

Misty narrowed her eyes as she saw a trap streaking towards her. Wide open, ready to snap closed around her. However, her horn glowed and she fired a powerful beam of magic at the trap. There was a boom as a huge hole appeared in the trap, right in the centre.

Misty dodged as the remains of the trap fell harmlessly to the floor. Another trap shot towards her, but this time she let it come. She teleported just as it got to her, appearing behind it. She fired a beam at the stem and cut it off. Once again, the severed trap fell harmlessly to the floor.

Strawberry blinked with shock as she watched Misty, dodging and effortlessly cutting off traps.

Then, Misty yelped as a trap appeared from behind her. This time, it slammed closed around her, and a cloud of dust was kicked up. All those watching gasped, thinking the worst.

However, the dust cleared and it was clear the trap wasn’t fully closed. Its barbed leaves were held open by a glistening shield. It trembled with effort as it tried in vain to break through this to the pony within.

Misty frowned and teleported, the shield disappearing, and the trap slamming shut in thin air. She reappeared before the now-closed trap, severing it from the plant with a swish of her horn.

It took some time, but Misty had eventually pruned away all the empty traps. All that remained were the traps that had successfully captured unfortunate ponies.

One by one, Misty began the task of cutting the ponies free. However, after she’d cut a thankful Jasper out, Misty gasped as more traps emerged from the treehouse.

Grimacing, Misty spotted that Strawberry was the only pony left. “Please don’t leave me here,” Strawberry said desperately.

“I’m not going to,” Misty reassured as she jumped back from a trap as it snapped out at her.

She cut the trap away before teleporting, appearing in the air above the trap that held Strawberry. She shot a beam at the stem of the trap, cutting through effortlessly.

Strawberry cried out in surprise as the trap fell with her still trapped within it. However, the trap took the brunt of the impact as it hit the floor.

“Oof,” Strawberry groaned. “What sort of a rescue is this?”

“A quick one,” Misty advised as she reappeared in front of the trap.

“Who are you?” Strawberry gasped.

“I’m Misty Brightdawn,” Misty replied as she took Strawberry’s hoof in her own and then teleported them both.

They reappeared in front of the crowd, a safe distance from the flytrap. Strawberry gasped with surprise, jumping to her hoofs, and looking around with confusion. “What, how, huh?”

“Strawberry, what spell did you use?” Alphabittle demanded.

Strawberry shook her head and looked at Alphabittle. “A growth spell, if Earth Ponies can do plant magic why not us Unicorns?”

“Where’s the book you used?” Misty asked.

“Why?” Strawberry asked defensively. “There’s nothing wrong with it.”

Misty sighed and lifted a hoof towards the plant. “Because it’s still growing,” she explained. “I need to see the book if I’m going to stop it.”

Strawberry looked back at the flytrap as there was a shattering of glass. One of the upstairs windows suddenly broke and another group of traps emerged from it.

She sighed and looked at Misty with resignation. “There’s a large round window in the main room. The book was on top of a lectern in front of that window. I think it fell to the floor directly below the window.”

Misty only nodded in reply and ran back towards the flytrap. A look of determination on her face despite her insides screaming at her to run the other way. However, she ignored them, she had come this far and needed to finish the job.

She fired a beam at the doorway, cutting through the multiple stems that were blocking her way. Creating enough space, she ran through and into the house.

There were so many stems that there was barely any space to move. She spotted the window and started squeezing her way through the stems towards it. Then she saw there was a gap low down and knelt down in front of it. Without thinking, she started crawling her way through the gap.

However, she realised too late that this had been a mistake. Misty squeaked in surprise as the trap she’d crawled into suddenly clamped closed around her from above.

Wide-eyed and desperate, Misty immediately began struggling. However, she quickly realised that wasn’t going to work. The trap was clamped tightly around her and seemingly squeezed her tighter as she struggled. Escaping via struggling would be impossible. Desperately, she fired a powerful blast of magic straight into the heart of the trap.

Outside, Strawberry squeaked in shock as the powerful beam shot through the wall of her home. “What is she doing in there?”

“Fighting the giant pony-eating plant you created,” Jasper retorted.

Strawberry looked on wide-eyed as a few more beams blasted through the walls of the house. Finally, there was a flash as Misty appeared, panting as she held a large tome. Dark brown with embossed inscriptions in gold shadowed by a dark green.

“Is this the book?” Misty panted.

“Y…yes,” Strawberry gasped. “But what did you do to my house?”

“That doesn’t matter now,” Alphabittle responded. “Which spell was it?”

Strawberry looked confused but Misty was already turning the pages of the book. Holding it in her levitation as she scanned them. Finally, she turned the book towards Strawberry, “This one?”

Strawberry looked and nodded, “Yes, yes that’s the one.”

Misty frowned as she turned the book back and studied the spell. “It’s not meant to be used on plants like flytraps,” she explained. “It’s supposed to be used on seeds. To make them bigger so they grow into bigger plants. If you use it on a fully grown plant they’ll keep getting bigger until you use the companion spell to make them stop.”

“So, is there one to make it smaller?” Alphabittle asked.

Misty turned the page and smiled, “Yes, there is.”

She studied the incantation and then turned around looking determined. Taking a wide stance, she placed the book down before she closed her eyes to concentrate. Then, opening her eyes she fired a beam of magic at the flytrap.

A glow of magic grew out through the plant from where Misty’s beam hit it. Then, it began to shrink and disappeared back inside the house. The gathered ponies suddenly cheered and applauded.

“Three cheers for Misty Brightdawn,” Jasper shouted. “Our Guardian of Unity.”

Misty gasped as she turned and looked around the gathered ponies in shock as they all shouted. “Hip, Hip. Hooray! Hip, Hip. Hooray! Hip, Hip. Hooray!”

Strawberry wasn’t listening, she was too fixated on the book. She picked it up in her levitation and moved it towards herself. Only to gasp as Alphabittle intercepted it and grabbed it with a hoof.

“No, I’m sorry Strawberry but this is clearly a book that’s not been vetted,” he frowned. “Where did you get it?”

“A lifelong friend gave it to me,” Strawberry growled. “One that a certain somepony used to call a friend too.”

Alphabittle’s eyes widened, and he gulped before he regained his composure. “Well, it’s going to be vetted now. Somepony could have been hurt because you didn’t know what spell you were using.”

“I did know,” Strawberry gasped. “I maybe skipped one tiny detail, but we can’t all learn magic if we restrict ourselves to the very basics.”

“The basics are all we should be working on right now,” Alphabittle sighed. “Somepony could get seriously hurt if the wrong spells are used. You’ve just proven that.”

Strawberry’s eyes narrowed as she scowled at Alphabittle. Then, she thrust an accusing hoof in Misty’s direction. “What? Like my poor house hasn’t been hurt by her random beams? Just how does she know shields, beams, and teleports anyway?”

“Because Starlight Glimmer taught me,” Misty responded.

Strawberry’s face went blank, and she blinked with surprise. “Y…You’re the one doing the vetting,” she gasped before her eyes narrowed again. “But you’re so young! I’m old enough to be your mother.”

“Age has nothing to do with it,” Alphabittle replied sternly as he stepped between Misty and Strawberry protectively.

Strawberry’s eyes widened as she looked between Alphabittle and Misty, putting two and two together. Then, she looked at Alphabittle with understanding before she headed back towards her home without another word.

After watching her go, Alphabittle sighed and held the book out towards Misty who looked on worriedly.

“I don’t know what we’d have done if you hadn’t been here, Misty,” Alphabittle admitted.

Misty gulped as she took the book and looked back at Strawberry’s house worriedly. She didn’t like the feeling that she’d just made an enemy.

Author's Note

1 - For those who have not read Marking the Generations. Luna here is reference to Luna Brightdawn, Misty's mother.

Chapter Three – Hearing the News

After Sunset and Starlight had returned to their own time. Starlight’s little bedroom had been made into a guest room.2

Meanwhile, Pipp had turned the area where Sunset’s bed had been positioned into a small filming studio for her videos and livestreams.3 This consisted of nothing more advanced than a sofa, a green-painted wall, a camera, and a set of lights. Pipp had also added bookshelves on either side which she’d filled with various items that related to her channels.

Pipp grinned as she sat on the sofa shooting a news update. She preferred to livestream these but had taken the wishes of her star guest into consideration.

Misty sat nervously next to Pipp on the sofa. Trying to smile into the camera as her friend started recording.

“Hey there, Pippsqueaks. Ya girl Pipp here with a Brighthouse news update. This time we’ve got two massive items of news for you. A grand opening and a grand battle!

“Next to me, is our very own Misty Brightdawn. Fresh from her one-on-one battle with a terrifying out-of-control giant flytrap that tried to gobble up the residents of Bridlewood.”

Misty couldn’t help squeaking as Pipp held a hoof in her direction and plastered a terrified grin on her face. “H…Hi,” she said meekly.

Pipp slumped forward and sighed as she pressed a button on her remote to stop the camera recording. “Oh, come on, Misty,” she wined. “You can do better than that.”

Misty sighed, looking at Pipp with sorrow-filled eyes. “I…I can’t. It’s too scary, all those ponies watching.”

“But they’re not watching,” Pipp blinked. “Not yet anyway. I told you. I’ll make sure the best take is used.”

“I know, but just the thought that all those ponies will be watching me makes my fur tingle,” Misty sighed.

Pipp sighed and looked at Misty with concern. “But Misty, you did that interview for the television.”

Misty sighed and looked at Pipp with sorrow. “Yeah, but I didn’t do it very well.”

Pipp blinked with confusion. “Misty, I’ve seen it. You were brilliant.”

“No, I wasn’t,” Misty sighed. “I was terrified, and they didn’t get anything useful at all.”

Pipp frowned, she’d seen the interview in question. Misty had been chatty and bubbly, just as she was around her friends. Suddenly, Pipp realised how they could have done it. Carefully, she set the camera recording again without Misty noticing.

“Misty, you saved so many ponies,” Pipp smiled. “You’re a hero.”

“I didn’t feel like a hero,” Misty admitted. “I just did what I could to help. I wasn’t brave. I was terrified.”

“But you overcame that fear,” Pipp beamed. “You managed to put it to one side and not let it stop you from helping. That makes you the bravest pony I know.”

Misty blushed slightly, looking down bashfully.

“Come on, Misty,” Pipp smiled warmly. “I want to hear you tell me what happened, in your own words.”

Misty sighed and looked back at Pipp’s smiling face. “Well, my dad and I were….”

When Pipp eventually finished the video a few days later she made sure Misty was the first to see it. They both sat in the living area as Pipp cast it to the TV. Outside, the rain that had been forecast had finally arrived with a vengeance.

Misty sighed as the video finished. “So, you filmed me without me knowing?”

“I did,” Pipp sighed. “I hope that’s okay, Misty. But if you don’t like how I did it, I won’t upload it.”

“Of course, you should upload it,” Misty gasped. “I think you did the right thing. As awful as that may sound. I just get so worried and scared sometimes that I can’t think straight.”

Pipp smiled as she put a reassuring hoof around Misty. “I’d never put anything up without you or anypony else knowing. I just wanted to make sure you came across in the video the same as we all see you.”

“I know,” Misty smiled. “I trust you, Pipp. Thank you for being honest. Hit that upload button.”

Pipp smiled as she did so. Blinking as Izzy and Zipp entered and sat down.

“You done with the TV?” Zipp asked. “We wanted to check the news bulletin.”

“Why?” Pipp frowned. “The TV News is always so behind.”

“Yeah, but we wanted to see if Misty or Sunny appeared again,” Izzy beamed.

“Also, mom said we should watch, remember,” Zipp winked.

“Oh, I’d forgotten about that,” Pipp frowned. “I wonder why.”

Zipp smiled as she picked up the remote and pressed a few buttons. “Well let’s find out.”

“Sunny!” Izzy shouted as the TV burst into life. “You joining us?”

“In a minute,” Sunny shouted absently from the kitchen.

On the TV, a jingle played as the camera swooped down towards a desk where two familiar ponies were sitting.

“This is Sky Silver here alongside Dazzle Feather,” Sky smiled.

“Bringing you the latest news from across all Equestria,” Dazzle grinned.

Then, Sky looked seriously into the camera as a graphic appeared behind them both. “Our top story tonight is the protests by extremist group, Pegasus for Pegasi.”

“They brought the centre of ZH to a standstill this morning,” Dazzle explained. “As they protested against the rising number of Earth Ponies moving from Maretime Bay to Zephyr Heights.”

“Protesters carried out a slow walk and fly through the streets for many hours this morning. Causing untold delays and disruption to many ZH residents,” Sky explained. “Our very own Dazzle Feather managed to get this report from the scene.”

The screen cuts to a group of Pegasi slowly walking and flying through the centre of Zephyr Heights. All carrying placards with various anti-unity slogans painted on them. They created a wall of Pegasi, stopping others from easily flying or walking past.

At the front, a mint green Pegasus mare was shouting.

“Earth Ponies are moving in and taking our homes and jobs,” she shouted. “ZH is for Pegasi and Pegasi alone. We shouldn’t be standing idly by and seeing our proud Pegasus heritage being undermined.”

Then, Dazzle came alongside the Pegasus, holding a microphone. Her camerapony clearly walking backwards to get the shot.

“Excuse me, Dazzle Feather here from Equestria News. Could you tell everypony back home who you are and what your protest is about?”

“I’m Minty Cloudstrike, leader of the Pegasus for Pegasi movement. There are far too many Earth Ponies moving into Zephyr Heights. They’re taking Pegasi jobs and Pegasi homes. Our aims are simple, to highlight the issue and demand something be done about it. Queen Haven, you’d better be listening to this.”

“Thank you, Miss Minty Cloudstrike,” Dazzle smiled before she hurried away.

The TV cuts back to the studio to see Sky smiling into the camera. “We contacted the castle for comment and received this statement.”

The screen cut to a written statement that Sky read out.

All within the Castle of Zephyr Heights are saddened by these displays of Anti-Unity. We remind all ponies that amendments to employment law have been made to ensure equal opportunities. Candidates for roles that could be carried out by any race of pony should not receive discrimination. There is equal opportunity for all in Zephyr Heights, the same as there is in Maretime Bay and Bridlewood.

We actively encourage the movement of Ponies between our communities to increase diversity. Work to increase the amount of affordable housing within all communities to accommodate this is ongoing.

The greatest period of Equestrian history occurred during a time of cooperation between all three pony kinds. However, the independent heritage of Pegasi, Unicorns and Earth Ponies is equally important, and we strive to protect it. Queen Haven encourages the members of Pegasus for Pegasi to meet with her to discuss their concerns and worries.

Pipp sighed as she looked at Zipp. “I can’t believe that Minty really still hates Earth Ponies.”

“You know her?” Izzy gasped.

“Yeah, she was one of the cooks in the palace,” Zipp explained. “She left after unification.”

“She’s been popping up at all sorts of protest rallies since,” Pipp sighed. “She’s turned into an extremist campaigner.”

“Isn’t that similar to Sunny?” Misty asked. “She campaigns for all sorts of things as well.”

“Yeah, but Sunny campaigns for new things that can improve our lives,” Zipp explained.

“Like the community garden,” Pipp smiled.

“Exactly,” Zipp grinned. “Minty Cloudstrike is campaigning against things. She wants to stop things, like that new Hydro Plant CanterBlocks are building.”

“Oh yeah, she’s got a whole social media campaign going against that,” Pipp nodded. “All she seems to want to do is stop things from happening.”

Suddenly, their discussion was interrupted by the doorbell. Sunny immediately hurried from the kitchen to the door. Almost like she’d been expecting it.

Sunny opened the door to find a wet and bedraggled Phyllis standing in the rain. However, she was clearly far more worried than you would expect from being wet.

“Phyllis, come in, come in,” Sunny gasped.

“T…Thank you, Sunny,” Phyllis said worriedly. “Is Hitch here?”

“Not yet,” Sunny sighed. “I haven’t said anything to the others yet either. We need him to be here first.”

Phyllis nodded as she walked through the door. The others looked at each other with confusion. Something was clearly happening, but they weren’t in the loop.

Sunny was just about to close the door when her ear twitched. She thought she’d heard a voice and looked outside to see Hitch galloping through the rain towards the Brighthouse. She held the door open as he skidded to a stop inside.

“Thanks, Sunny,” Hitch gasped as he shook his mane. “Sorry, I wanted to beat Phyllis here but couldn’t get away from the office.”

“It’s okay, Hitch,” Sunny smiled. “You’re not that far behind her.”

Zipp frowned as she stood up and looked towards the trio, “Yo, Sunny. Want to fill us in? What’s up?”

“Sorry, Zipp,” Sunny sighed. “There’s some trouble and I needed to wait for Phyllis and Hitch to be here to explain. They know all the details better than I do.”

Pipp frowned as she turned off the TV. “Okay, this sounds serious.”

“It kind of is, Pipp,” Hitch sighed as he walked into the living area proper. “Ponies are going missing.”

“Missing,” Misty gasped, her eyes widening in shock. “Who?”

“Workers from my remote hydroelectric construction sites,” Phyllis sighed as she sat down. “Specifically, Earth Ponies. I’ve been going back and forth between here and there so many times since the Museum opened. It’s wearing me out.”

“So, how does this involve us?” Pipp frowned before she looked around at the others. “I don’t like hearing Ponies are disappearing but is that part of what we do?”

“Phyllis spoke to both me and Sunny after the Museum opening,” Hitch explained. “Skywalk and I sent Sprout to keep an eye on things and gather information. But we haven’t heard anything from him since.”

Phyllis suddenly seemed to look even more distressed than she was already. “I found out today. H…He’s one of the ponies that disappeared. His phone was found on the ground this morning. It looks like it had been there for a few days. My Baby has just vanished into thin air.”

“Two others disappeared as well,” Hitch revealed. “This is getting bigger than I can handle and Queen Haven is trying to avoid calling in the Equestria Guard.”

“Woah, woah, woah,” Zipp frowned as she shook her hoofs. “Okay, firstly why wasn’t I told earlier? I’m the detective here. Secondly, why avoid calling in the Guard?”

Hitch sighed and looked down at the ground with resignation. “We couldn’t involve too many ponies until we had more information. I wanted to tell you but was overruled.”

“We had no clue what was happening,” Phyllis sighed. “My workers could have just been leaving without telling me. I gave Sprout complete authorization to go everywhere without question. So, we didn’t realise he was gone, and it tears me up.”

“Things have changed rapidly since Sprout’s disappearance was confirmed,” Hitch clarified. “The hydroelectric scheme is a big deal.”

“There are multiple sites for the scheme,” Phyllis explained. “However, the whole project is far bigger than that. At the moment, Queen Haven wants to keep the entire scope as secret as possible. But, I’m able to tell you.

“Whilst constructing the power plant, we’re developing new tunnelling technologies. Technology that will be needed for the next phase of the project, connecting Maretime Bay, Bridlewood and Zephyr Heights together by rail.”

“Really!” Izzy exclaimed. “That’s amazing!”

“That will transform so many lives,” Pipp gasped. “Instead of it taking days to trot between everywhere it’ll…”

“Take an hour or two at most,” Sunny continued. “Honestly, I had an inkling. During one of my meetings with Phyllis about repairing this place. She asked me about how rail worked in the Time of Harmony.”

“I spoke to Sunset and Starlight about it too,” Phyllis confirmed. “Sunset mentioned how in her Human World they used electricity to power their trains. That’s what we’re looking to do. Given Maretime Bay has trams we’ve been given the lead on the project.”

“So that’s why you need the power plant,” Misty blinked.

“Yes, but there’s a growing number of ponies that see it as destructive,” Phyllis sighed. “They see the power plant as unnecessary and can only see the damage that building it causes to the natural environment.”

“Minty Cloudstrike,” Zipp gasped. “Everything she’s campaigning against is in direct competition with what CanterBlocks is doing.”

“And her followers are growing by the day,” Hitch revealed. “That’s why Queen Haven wanted to keep these disappearances quiet. She’s worried about interspecies relationships breaking down.”

“Wait? Why would that happen?” Zipp frowned. “You’re going to tell me there’s more to this aren’t you.”

“There’s another complication,” Sunny sighed. “Earth Ponies aren’t just disappearing from the construction sites. They’re disappearing from Zephyr Heights as well.”

“News of the disappearances has been kept as quiet as possible,” Hitch explained. “Queen Haven wanted to avoid a panic, or hoofs being pointed.”

“Hoofs that would be pointed at Pegasus for Pegasi,” Zipp frowned. “Their sudden rise seems oddly coincidental to all this.”

“Okay, this is getting more and more serious by the second,” Izzy gasped. “Everything you’re saying is bad news.”

“Well, we’re going to turn that around,” Sunny said confidently. “I spoke to Queen Haven this afternoon. I’ve offered our assistance.”

“Okay, that’s fine but I still could have been way further along in solving this if you’d told me sooner,” Zipp sighed.

Sunny grinned confidently, “Don’t worry, Zipp. I already have a plan to speed things along. It’s only Earth Ponies that have gone missing and I’m an Earth Pony who has magic.” Her powers activated, her wings spreading wide for emphasis. “I’ll be able to catch these activists in the act and hopefully persuade them that it’s the wrong cause to be fighting for.”

“Woah, woah, woah! Cool your jets, Sunny!” Zipp exclaimed as she waved her hoofs back and forth. “We’re nowhere near ready for any sort of action like that. Hitch, I want all the information you have on these disappearances. Then I can investigate this properly and we can take it from there.”

Sunny frowned as Hitch produced a folder. He placed it on the coffee table and extracted the papers, spreading them out on the table. “I knew you’d say that and that’s why I wasn’t here sooner,” Hitch smiled. “This is all the information I have right now. More and more information is coming too. Yellow paper for the construction sites, green for Zephyr Heights.”

Zipp immediately began picking up papers and reading through them. Sunny looked and blinked with surprise as she spotted the photo of one of the victims. “Sugar?” she breathed.

“What was that, Sunny?” Misty asked.

“Oh, it’s nothing important, Misty,” Sunny smiled. “Come on, let’s leave Detective Zipp to her work. Phyllis, you look like you could do with something to eat.”

“Oh, only if that’s not too much trouble, Sunny,” Phyllis gasped. “I…I’m just so worried about my baby Sprout.”

“I’m sure he’ll be fine, Phyllis,” Sunny smiled. “I bet the training he got from the Guard has put him in good stead for this. Come on, I’ll make you something. It’s no trouble at all.”

“Don’t stay up too late, Zipp,” Pipp frowned as she followed Sunny and the others to the kitchen.

“I won’t,” Zipp responded. “There’s not that much here.”

The next morning when the others came down for breakfast. They found Zipp waiting for them in front of a case board. The images and names of the ponies that had disappeared were positioned around the edge. Red threads connected the images to anything which linked more than one pony together.

“Woah, you’ve been busy,” Izzy gasped.

“You didn’t stay up all night, did you?” Pipp frowned.

Zipp smirked, “Do I look sleep-deprived to you? Honestly, this was pretty easy. With the names of the ponies, I could dig up all their info pretty quickly and then connect things together. There is one massive problem though.”

“Which is?” Sunny frowned.

“There is only one thing that links all the victims together,” Zipp explained. “The fact they are all Earth Ponies.”

“There’s still lots of lines here though,” Izzy smiled. “It looks like a pretty spider web.”

“There are lots of lines because the ponies either live in Zephyr Heights or work at the Construction Sites,” Zipp clarified. “There’s only one or two that live in Zephyr Heights and work for CanterBlocks as well.”

“So, we can rule out the possibility that CanterBlocks is being specifically targeted,” Hitch deduced. “Zephyr Heights is huge; do we know where the ponies were disappearing specifically?”

“Thanks to some CCTV help we do,” Zipp smiled. “They all disappeared from one park.”

Zipp flipped the board over. The same photos ran around the edge of the board. However, in the middle, there were two maps. One of the construction sites and one of a park.

There were red and yellow threads this time. They ran from the pictures to a point on either of the two maps.

“Red threads show we know the exact position of the disappearances,” Zipp explained. “Yellow, we don’t know exactly. In the case of the park, they show where the pony entered. Annoyingly, the CCTV in the park has been on the fritz for moons.”

“So, do we know who’s entered and exited the park around the times of the disappearances?” Sunny asked.

Zipp looked down and sighed, “That’s being worked on currently. But early indications are there’s no commonality. Just ponies going around their normal business. The only common thing is it’s normally late at night and therefore the park is quiet.”

“Soooo, was anything left behind in the park?” Misty asked, trying to be helpful.

“Same as all the victims we know the locations for,” Zipp explained. “Anything they had which is electronic was left behind.”

“That’s oddly specific,” Pipp gasped.

“Not really,” Zipp countered. “If you’re ponynapping somepony you don’t want them to have their phone. If they did, they could be tracked. Experts at Zephyr Heights have already been gathering info off the victims' phones. If we have their phone, we know roughly when they disappeared.”

Misty frowned, holding a hoof up to her chin in thought. “What about magic? I think I remember seeing a tracing spell in one of the books.”

“The park is a public place,” Zipp sighed. “Unicorns use it all the time, there’s nothing to stop them from using magic there.”

“Phyllis confirmed they use magic at the Construction Sites too,” Hitch added.

“Moms already had the park closed,” Zipp informed. “Officially it’s closed for maintenance. There is one final clue though.”

“Which is?” Sunny frowned.

“There’s a time pattern,” Zipp replied. “The disappearances appear to occur on a set schedule.”

“I hate to say it,” Pipp sighed. “But I’ve thought of the one thing that ties everything together.”

“Which is?” Hitch frowned.

“Minty Cloudstrike,” Pipp replied.

“Well ahead of you there, Sis,” Zipp responded. “Her campaigning makes her the prime suspect. Not only is she against Earth Ponies being in Zephyr Heights but she’s also against the Hydroelectric Scheme.”

“If she knew about the rail links, I bet she’d be against that too,” Pipp added. “It would conflict with her campaign about preserving Pegasus heritage.”

Sunny grinned, stepping forward as her powers activated and she spread her wings wide. “Which means with all that information we need action. I can be the bait to draw out Minty Cloudstrike.

“Then I’ll have a one-on-one discussion with her. Campaigner to campaigner. The Time of Separation is just as much a part of our history as the Time of Harmony. There’s a whole floor in the new Museum dedicated to that time and the individual history and customs we created.”

“What? No, Sunny,” Hitch gasped. “That won’t work. How can you of all ponies be bait? Everypony knows you have powers.”

“Besides, we ought to gather more intel first,” Zipp responded. “Based on the schedule, the next disappearance would be tomorrow night at the park. Then there’s a gap before the next one at the construction site. We can check it out and see what happens. Then, we’ll know what we're up against and have time to plan a proper sting operation before the next one.”

“But just think of all those poor Earth Ponies who are who knows where,” Pipp argued. “We need to find them, and once Izzy and I are done with Sunny nopony will recognise her.”

“Yeah, we can’t leave them trapped wherever they are for that long,” Izzy grinned. “Sunny will be able to talk some sense into these activists. I know she will.”

“But we don’t even know for sure it’s Minty Cloudstrike behind it,” Zipp argued. “I mean, she’s prime suspect right now but I want to check out what she’s been doing. I can’t because I’m waiting on the access to do so. Sunny, you could be taken anywhere and have no way of contacting us.”

“Yes, she will,” Misty said confidently before squeaking as all eyes turned towards her. “Ah, urm. That is, I’ve just gotten this spell book that includes a chapter on messaging spells. The simplest one would allow Sunny to communicate with me directly.”

Sunny grinned, stomping her hoofs with excitement. “eee, that means I’ll not only be disguised. I’ll be able to tell you where I am so you can come and help me save everypony.”

“That’s only if you’re actually taken,” Pipp grinned. “We can catch the culprit red hoofed. Then they can tell us where the ponies are.”

“Are you sure they’d have red hoofs?” Izzy blinked. “Ponies have all sorts of different coloured hoofs. Isn’t hoof polish expensive in that colour?”

As Sunny, Izzy, Pipp, and Misty continued to plan. Zipp and Hitch looked at each other with bewilderment. It seemed they’d somehow been outvoted despite their increased experience in these matters.

Author's Note

More notes for those who haven't read Marking the Generations. :twilightsmile:

2 - We all know Starlight Glimmer snores. So she made herself a small bedroom in the Brighthouse instead of sharing the communal one.

3 - Sunset's bed was positioned right next to Starlight's bedroom. Up against the wall so they didn't take up too much space.

Chapter Four – Meet Moondust Twinkle

After that morning’s meeting, despite their reservations, Zipp and Hitch threw themselves into planning. If Sunny was going to play bait, they were going to ensure that she was as safe as possible.

Meanwhile, Misty spent time working with Sunny throughout the day. The messaging spell was simple enough and once it had been explained to her, Sunny had no issues casting it. Despite this, Misty had her practice and practice over and over, just to be sure.

They started to look at teleportation. However, just like every time previously, Sunny continued to appear the wrong way up. Misty was starting to think Sunny's mind was wired differently from hers, nothing seemed to work.

Izzy and Pipp meanwhile started planning Sunny’s disguise. The problem was they had far too many ideas and options. Therefore, Pipp decided they’d just go with the flow the following morning.

So, the following morning, Pipp led Sunny and Izzy towards Mane Melody. All three were excited but Sunny seemed to be even more so. She giggled and laughed as she walked along and wasn’t paying attention. Pipp grunted as Sunny bumped into her for the third time. “Woah, Sunny. It’s a good job you’re not skating. You’d be crashing all over the place.”

Sunny laughed as her powers activated. “I’m sorry, Pipp. I’m just buzzing! This is all so exciting, eee!”

Izzy looked on worriedly as Sunny fluttered her wings. “Sunny, I thought you had control of your powers. They’d better not pop out like that later.”

“Oh, don’t worry, Izzy. I do have control of them,” Sunny responded reassuringly. “I could have easily stopped them just now, but I feel like a big ball of excited energy! I want to let it all out before it gets serious later. Honestly, maybe I should have gone for a quick skate around town this morning. Going really fast would do it!”

“Yas, that’s the way, Sunny,” Pipp grinned. “I often try to work through performance jitters like that. Get them all out of your system before it’s time to get serious.”

“But Sunny doesn’t look jittery to me,” Izzy frowned. “She’s excited like it’s the first day of Wishiehoof, or it’s the first day of Summer. Ooh ooh, or the first day of Autumn with all those crunchy leaves to play in. You can make great big piles of them then crash into them to make them go flying!”

Sunny laughed as she shook her head. “It’s nearly the same thing, Izzy. I want to rescue the missing Earth Ponies as quickly as possible. If Minty Cloudstrike doesn’t appear then I’ll need to be taken, then I’ll be able to have a one-on-one with her.”

Pipp suddenly looked worriedly at Sunny. “What? Are you serious, Sunny?” she gasped. “Can’t we just catch whoever tries to take you?”

“Maybe, but it will be fine, Pipp,” Sunny reassured. “I’ve got the messaging spell down. Misty made sure of it. If things look really bad I should be able to escape.”

“Ooh, like teleporting away?” Izzy asked.

Sunny groaned and looked frustrated, “No, not yet. I still appear upside down and it’s massively disorienting. I can’t go far either.”

“Okay, well we’ll make sure this is the best disguise ever,” Izzy smiled. “I trust you, Sunny. I know you’ll talk some sense into Minty Cloudstrike.”

“I’m not sure it’s a case of talking sense into her,” Sunny admitted. “It’s reassuring her that Pegasus history is important. Also, hearing what problems there are and making sure that things are done about them.”

“Like houses,” Pipp agreed. “Mum already knows there’s a shortage. There’s a whole neighbourhood of really old tower blocks she wants to knock down and replace with new ones. Most of the flats and apartments there are so disgusting. It’s no wonder nopony wants to live in them.”

“Okay, so what this situation needs is for everypony to sit down and talk,” Sunny grinned. “If Minty and Queen Haven have a discussion, I bet all the problems can be solved.”

“Of course they can,” Izzy beamed optimistically.

“Sure, they can, mum can’t fix things if she doesn’t know what needs fixing,” Pipp agreed.

They soon arrived at Mane Melody and headed inside. Pipp grinned as she saw Jazz had pulled out multiple trollies of supplies and positioned them around one of the treatment chairs. “Oh, thank you, Jazz. You didn’t have any trouble clearing the morning appointments, did you?”

“Well, there was one,” Jazz smiled. “But I came in early and gave Posey’s mane its weekly shampoo.”

“Came in early,” Pipp echoed with concern. “You didn’t need to do that. Especially for Posey of all ponies.”

“Oh, no it’s fine, Pipp,” Jass reassured. “Besides, I’d prefer to keep Posey happy. When you get trapped with somepony you learn things about them you never realised.”

Izzy frowned and looked confused, “Trapped?”

“Posey and Jazz were caught by Opaline,” Sunny reminded. “They spent the night trapped in her castle together.”4

“Not to mention the struggle getting back,” Jazz shuddered.

“Oh! I completely forgot about that,” Pipp gasped. “I’m sorry, Jazz.”

“It’s okay, I’d prefer it if we forget about it,” Jazz responded brightly. “But on the bright side, I learnt things about Posey I never realised. Things I promised to keep to myself.”

“Ah, say no more,” Pipp grinned. “Make sure you log down that extra time though.”

Jazz gasped and looked surprised. “Oh, okay. I’ll do that. So, what’s happening here? Why did you need me to clear the appointments and get all this ready? Everything we have that’s washable is here, are you experimenting on somepony?”

“You might say that,” Sunny grinned as she sat in the treatment chair.

Izzy narrowed her eyes and smirked seriously as she got close to Jazz so she could whisper. “Don’t tell anypony, Sunny has a secret mission and needs a top-secret disguise.”

“When we’re done, we need to ensure nopony will recognise her,” Pipp gushed excitedly. “We’re about to give her a whole new look!”

Sunny grinned as she bounced up and down in the chair and clapped her hoofs together. “Okay, as long as these will all wash out then let’s do this.”

“You’re a braver pony than I am, Sunny,” Jazz gasped as Pipp and Izzy got started. “But if you’re serious, I’d suggest coat colour first.”

That afternoon, Queen Haven was sitting trying to enjoy a cup of coffee when Zoom burst through the doors to her throne room.

“Sorry to interrupt your coffee break, Your Majesty,” Zoom gasped as she skidded to a stop. “The Marestream is on approach, you said you wanted to know.”

“Oh, my hoofness,” Queen Haven gasped as she put down the cup. “Yes, I did want to know. Thank You, Zoom. We must head out to meet them. Come, Cloudpuff.”

Cloudpuff yapped in response as Queen Haven got up from her throne. Then, she hurried from the throne room with both Zoom and Cloudpuff in pursuit.

Outside, the Marestream was just touching down on the landing pad as Queen Haven exited the castle. She hurried towards it as Zipp, Pipp and the others exited. Her daughters ran towards her and flung their hoofs around her. “Mom!” they chorused.

“Oh, my darlings,” Queen Haven smiled as she put her hoofs around them both. “It has been far too long again. I can never get to see you as often as I’d like.”

“We know,” Pipp smiled. “It just makes seeing you feel even better.”

Queen Haven sighed as they pulled away and she looked around the group with worry. “Oh, I wish it wasn’t under circumstances like this though. I don’t think Sunny acting as bait will work. Especially as we don’t know for sure what’s happening.”

“Err, Your Majesty,” Zoom frowned. “Sunny Starscout isn’t here.”

Queen Haven looked around the group with concern. She looked questioningly at Pipp and Zipp as they were accosted by Cloudpuff. Suddenly, she realised there was a pony in the group she didn’t recognise.

Hiding shyly at the back with Misty was a black Earth Pony mare with a silver-grey mane and tail. “Wait, who’s that with Misty? Is it a new friend?”

Pipp grinned and managed to suppress a giggle. “Oh of course. Mum, you have to meet our new friend, Moondust Twinkle. Moondust, don’t be shy, come and meet Queen Haven.”

‘Moondust’ gasped and carefully walked forward shyly.

“I...It’s an honour to meet you, Queen Haven,” she said in a soft voice.

“Ah, it’s lovely to meet you too, Moondust. I’m sorry we couldn’t meet at a better time,” Queen Haven replied. “Zipp, where is Sunny? I need to talk some sense into her. There is no way anypony is going to see her and not recognise her. This playing bait plan isn’t going to work.”

“I’d like to agree with you, Mom,” Zipp sighed. “But you’ve just proven the flaw in that argument.”

“The talents of Pipp and Izzy,” Hitch sighed. “I don’t like the plan either, but you’ll find you actually know Moondust better than you realise.”

Queen Haven looked at ‘Moondust’ with surprise and shock. “Wait? No, you’re not telling me...”

‘Moondust’ grinned and there was a flash as a golden orange horn appeared on her head and a pair of wings on her back.

“I’m sorry, Queen Haven,” Sunny giggled. “I’ve been arguing with Zipp and Hitch all the way here. I knew you wouldn’t recognise me.”

“Oh, my hoofness,” Queen Haven gasped. “I truly had no idea it was you, Sunny. Even your cutie mark is different.”

Sunny grinned as she looked back at her right flank. It was true, her normal cutie mark had been covered over. Instead, there was an image of the moon being trailed by a streak of dust. A series of sparkles around it.

“That’s my doing,” Izzy grinned.

“We knew it had to be perfect,” Pipp smiled. “This is Sunny’s safety we're talking about here.”

“Okay, if disguises are getting that advanced. I need to review castle security,” Zoom frowned.

Queen Haven pretended she hadn’t heard that and sighed with resignation. “There really is no stopping you from doing this, is there?”

“I’ll be wearing a tracker and will be in contact the whole time via an earpiece,” Sunny explained. “I know this could be dangerous, but I’m doing it to find and save those Ponies who have gone missing.”

“Hopefully, Sunny won’t be taken at all,” Hitch added. “Hopefully, we’ll catch the culprit in the act and get them to reveal the location of the missing ponies.”

Queen Haven let out a deep sigh. “Okay, whilst I don’t like it, I admit I’m deeply worried about the missing ponies and the problems their disappearances could cause.

“I don’t want there to be renewed anger between Pegasi and Earth Ponies and, what with the protests, that’s exactly what’s happening. Sunny, please promise me you’ll be careful.”

“I will, Queen Haven, I promise,” Sunny smiled. “Don’t worry, you can count on me. I’ll do my best to speak with Minty Cloudstrike too and try to calm the Pegasus for Pegasi movement. I’m sure that whatever their issues are, you’ll be able to fix them. You just need them to tell you what they are.”

“Thank you, Sunny,” Queen Haven smiled gratefully. “But the sooner tomorrow morning comes, and you're safe and well, the better.”

Sometime later, a base of operations had been set up in one of the park's buildings. Members of the Castle Guard that had been borrowed for the operation were preparing themselves.

Meanwhile, Zipp and Hitch stood on either side of a map of the park. Both watched Sunny as she studied the red line that had been drawn on it.

“So, you want me to take this exact route?” Sunny frowned. “Why can’t I just walk around anywhere?”

“Because there will be ponies hiding along this route,” Zipp explained.

“They’ll all be ready to act as soon as something happens,” Hitch added.

Zipp gestured towards a small computer desk which had multiple screens on it. “I’ll be sat here monitoring your every step. You need to keep on course so I can predict what’s happening.”

Sunny sighed and looked dubiously at the map. Hitch groaned and shook his head. “Sunny, you need to realise this is really, really dangerous. You could end up trapped anywhere.”

“Hitch, I doubt Pegasus for Pegasi will whisk me off that quickly,” Sunny smiled.

“No, they won’t,” Zipp sighed. “But there is still a chance that this isn’t them. This could be something else.”

“You said it yourself, Zipp. Minty Cloudstrike is the primary suspect,” Sunny responded.

“Yes, but there’s also innocent until proven guilty,” Hitch groaned. “We’ve nothing that links her to this for certain.”

“I’m still waiting for access to look for anything that could,” Zipp explained. “That’s why this is so silly and dangerous. It’s too early.”

Sunny took a deep breath and sighed. “Okay, okay. I hear you. I’ll stick to this route, and I’ll make sure I’m in continual contact with you. It will be fine though, I’ve got this. If things start looking really bad, I’ll activate my powers and fly away.”

“I just hope you have time to,” Hitch groaned. “There is a complication. For the culprit to have access for this to work the park can’t be closed, it has to be open. You should try to avoid other ponies as much as possible. We don’t want members of the public to get in the way should things start happening.”

“Okay, so how do I do that if I’m supposed to follow a route?” Sunny frowned.

“Turn around and follow the route the opposite way,” Zipp explained. “Only stray from the route if there’s no other option. The park should be quiet though so it should be fine.”

“And I’ll keep you informed at all times,” Sunny smiled. “Got it, instructions all received and understood. Could we get the tracker and earpiece set up? You both want me to be careful. So, let’s be careful and make sure those are hidden and work.”

Zipp and Hitch both looked at each other and sighed. There really was no going back now.

As darkness started to fall over Zephyr Heights everypony got into position. Despite there still being plenty of light, Sunny began walking the route. However, this turned out to be a good thing.

Sunny frowned as she approached a fork in the path next to a bench. She couldn’t remember if she went straight here or turned. She chose the one she thought was right, but an angry Zipp immediately shouted in her ear over the radio. “Sunny! It’s left at that bench, not straight ahead.”

Sunny grimaced, holding a hoof up to her now ringing ear. “Zipp, not so loud,” she protested. “I’m sorry, I thought I turned left at the next one. If I get it wrong, please don’t shout at me.”

“I’m sorry, Sunny,” Zipp sighed. “I just thought you said you understood how important staying on the route was.”

“I do,” Sunny protested. “It’s just remembering all the turns. I’ll get it right, I promise. Just guide me if I go wrong to start with.”

“What, like now?” Zipp chuckled. “It’s a right at that bin, not left,”

“Urgh, that’s because I’m talking to you!” Sunny groaned as she turned around.

“I know, I know,” Zipp laughed. “Come back here to double-check the map. Then we’ll take it from the top.”

It wasn’t that long later until Sunny had gotten used to the route. She was soon making the turns automatically.

This meant that she started to enjoy the park. From the colourful formal flower beds to the wilder-looking shrubbery. She admired the design of it, the way a stream ran through the middle looked natural. Not pony made.

Then, as the sun went down, she began to admire the reflection of the colours in the glass of the tower blocks all around the park. Everything was bathed in a golden aura which looked breathtaking. It was all quite enjoyable, even if she had to keep to a set route.

However, this started to change after it got dark. As it became more difficult to see, Sunny started to hate the fact she was walking the same route. She plodded along with a half-interested expression on her face. Suddenly, she started to wonder how long she’d have to keep going.

Meanwhile, Hitch groaned as he peered through the darkness from his hiding spot. “Pipp,” he hissed into the radio. “You could have chosen a different colour to black. I can’t tell when Sunny’s walking past. I think I missed her!”

“Hey, it’s a completely different colour to what anypony would expect Sunny to be,” Pipp responded. “Also, it goes well with her eyes. Gives her a spooky vibe.”

“Well, safety is more important than spooky,” Hitch hissed.

Suddenly, the radio crackled into life with a new voice. “This is Zoom at the North Entrance. We’ve got a group of five Pegasi entering the park. Appears they’ve been out partying. Let’s just say they’re in high spirits.”

Sunny frowned, suddenly starting to take notice of what was happening around her. “Understood, thank you.”

Then, there was another voice. “Thunder here at the East Entrance. Got a group entering here too. Three Pegasi, I think they have Pegasus for Pegasi badges.”

“Sunny,” Zipp hissed urgently. “You’re likely to run into the north group. Hopefully, the east group will bypass you.”

“Understood, Zipp,” Sunny whispered. “Thank you, Thunder.”

Sunny was now on high alert and her ears twitched back and forth from left to right. She could hear the group of Pegasi from the north. They certainly were in high spirits and were quite rowdy. Sunny had to admit, she didn’t want to run into them anyway.

She reached the bench where she’d failed to turn earlier. However, she realised the rowdy Pegasi were just up ahead on her route. She stopped and listened, confirming her suspicions. They were coming towards her.

“I’m at the bench, the north group are on my route ahead and coming closer,” she advised. “I’m turning back to avoid them.”

“Understood,” Zipp responded. “Everypony, high alert.”

Sunny did as she’d advised. However, she hadn’t gone far when she gasped and stopped again. The group from the east had gotten behind her somehow.

Her heart racing, she turned around again and tried to think of a way out. Suddenly, she remembered the radio. “I’ve turned around again, the east group were behind me,” she hissed. “I’ll have to go straight at the bench and then try and get back on route as soon as I can.”

“Shoot, yes do th… Wait, no! This could be it!” Zipp gasped. “Sit on the bench and let them come to you. It’s right by where Pipp’s hiding.”

“Pipp here, I’ll still have a visual if Sunny goes straight.”

“No! It’s a pincer movement!” Zipp insisted. “Sunny, sit on the bench then we’ll have control of the situation. Everypony, be ready to move on my signal.”

Sunny gasped as she reached the bench. “But what am I doing on the bench? I’ll look so strange just sitting there.”

Sunny gasped as a comic book suddenly came flying from a nearby bush. “Use this,” Pipp instructed.

“What?” Zipp questioned.

Sunny grinned as she picked up the comic and sat on the bench. Feeling glad there was a light above so she could see it. “Doesn't matter Zipp, sat on the bench as instructed.”

“Good,” Zipp sighed. “Everypony be ready to move.”

Sunny’s heart continued to race as she tried to focus on the comic. She heard the hoofs of the group of three Pegasi getting closer and closer. Then, she couldn’t help frowning as she realised, they’d walked past.

“Pipp here, the Pegasi from the east have walked straight past without paying any attention to Sunny. I can see the North group approaching.”

“Sunny, stay put,” Zipp instructed.

Sunny gulped and continued to focus on the comic. She could hear the rowdy north group getting closer as they laughed and joked with each other. They got closer and closer until.

“Pipp here, the north group have passed by as well. They turned and followed the other group.”

“Okay, situation normal everypony,” Zipp sighed. “They were just members of the public. Sunny, when your ready resume your route.”

Sunny let out a deep sigh of relief. She’d gotten so caught up in the moment, that she’d forgotten that getting caught was exactly why she was there. “Okay, resuming.”

She got up from the bench and placed the comic under it. However, just as she was about to turn the corner, a flash of fire appeared in front of her.

Sunny gasped as a strange-looking creature appeared from the flames. However, before her brain could even process exactly what was standing in front of her, the creature fired a beam of magic at her.

Sunny squeaked with surprise as the beam streaked towards her. With no time to react, it hit her and there was a flash as she disappeared.

Her earpiece and tracker seemed to hover in the air for a moment before falling to the ground. Instantaneously, the creature was enveloped in another ball of fire and also disappeared completely.

From her hiding place, Pipp had seen everything and looked on with widened eyes and bated breath. Blinking she finally realised what had just happened.

“Sunny? SUNNY! NOOOOO!”

To be continued...

Author's Note

4 - Posy and Jazz were both captured by Opaline and used to test her cutie mark-stealing vines. They spent the night in the castle dungeon before taking their cutie marks and letting them go the following morning. It took them a while to find their way back to Maretime Bay.

Chapter Five – Where's Sunny?

“Sunny? SUNNY! NOOOOO!”

All the others winced as Pipp’s voice screamed through the radios in their ears.

“Aaah,” Zipp cried before she barked into the radio. “Pipp, stop screaming! Sunny, come in? What’s happening? ”

“Sunny, thing, poof, gone,” Pipp babbled incoherently.

“Gone? What do you mean gone?” Zipp gasped in response.

“I don’t like, poof,” Izzy worried.

“I don’t like, thing,” Misty fretted.

“Okay, nopony panic,” Hitch responded. “Sunny? Are you there?”

“Misty, you’re at the next junction, any sign of her?” Zipp asked.

“No, nothing,” Misty gasped.

“I told you she’s gone!” Pipp sobbed.

“I’m going to look for her,” Misty replied.

“No! Everypony, stay where you are!” Zipp instructed. “I’m on my way. If there’s any evidence, I’ll find it!”

Zipp growled as she slammed her radio headset down. Grabbing her visor, she hurried from the control desk.

“Okay, gates, close the park,” Hitch instructed. “We need to preserve what’s happened here.”

Knowing that Zipp will have searching the scene covered. Hitch decided the best thing he could do was speak to the one pony who’d seen what happened.

Sure enough, as he approached the bench, he could see Zipp was already there. Hovering above the ground, scanning anything and everything with her visor. Hitch carefully kept to one side and moved to where Pipp was hiding.

He gasped as he moved the camouflage and revealed Pipp. She was distraught, head in her hoofs as she cried into them. She sniffed as she looked up and saw Hitch looking back at her.

“Oh, Hitch!” she cried as she flung herself forward and wrapped her hoofs around him. “Why didn’t I listen to you!”

Hitch gasped as Pipp continued to cry into his shoulder. He sighed and put his hoofs around her comfortingly. “Pipp, that doesn’t matter now. Crying like this isn’t going to help Sunny,” he said carefully. “She needs you to be strong. You’re the only one who saw what happened. We’ll find her but only if you help us.”

Pipp’s sides heaved as she gasped for air. Sniffing, she pulled back from Hitch’s embrace. Her eyes were red and puffy, but she began drying them with a hoof as she recovered.

“Y...You’re right,” she breathed. “Crying won’t help. I just didn’t think anything like this could happen. I just wanted to give Sunny an awesome disguise. I didn’t think it would get her poofed away like this.”

“I’d be lying if I didn’t say the possibility had crossed my mind,” Hitch admitted. “But even I thought it was unlikely. Now, come on Pipp, what happened?”

Pipp sighed, rubbing her nose with the back of a hoof and sniffing. “Well, as soon as Sunny got off the bench this fire creature appeared. It was as though it was waiting for her. It fired this beam at her, she disappeared and then it disappeared too.”

“Teleportation then,” Hitch responded thoughtfully.

Suddenly, they heard Zipp’s voice shouting at somepony. Gasping, they saw she was shouting at Misty.

Zipp was hovering above the path. Misty meanwhile was stood on the path holding a spell book.

“Misty, I told you to get back!” Zipp roared. “You could be stepping on something important!”

“B...But I think I can help,” Misty gasped.

“Zipp, stop shouting at Misty. There’s not going to be much to find.” Hitch informed. “From what Pipp’s told me the creature used teleportation. Come and listen to what she has to tell us.”

Zipp groaned as she heard somepony running. She looked and saw Izzy running up the path towards them. She glanced around at the worried faces of her friends. Then, she closed her eyes and screwed her face up into a pained grimace. “I’m sorry everypony, I just knew this was a mistake. I should have been firmer with Sunny.”

“It’s too late for that now,” Hitch responded soothingly. “Right now, we need to work together to find where Sunny’s gone. Pipp saw what happened so let’s listen to her.”

“Okay,” Zipp sighed. “Just please don’t walk around. There could be anything here that will help.”

Zipp flew over to Pipp, pulling out her phone and putting it on record. “Okay, Sis. What happened?”

Pipp sighed as she looked sorrowfully at Zipp. “It was all so fast. This fire creature just suddenly appeared. It fired a beam at Sunny that teleported her away. Then it disappeared too.”

“A fire creature, can you describe it?” Zipp asked. “I know it’s difficult but try to be as detailed as you can.”

Pipp took a few deep calming breaths as Hitch put a reassuring hoof around her. “Take your time,” he soothed.

Pipp gave a small smile before looking back at Zipp and took a deep breath. “Well, it appeared in a burst of flame. I don’t know what colour its coat was, it was too dark. But its mane and tail were made of blue and red flames. Well, I think there was a little flame at the end of its tail. Its mane wrapped around its head, and it joined together under its face. Oh, the hoofs! They were flaming too.”

“That’s a lot of flames,” Zipp noted. “What about its face? I know it was really fast, but did you see that?”

Pipp shuddered and grimaced. “That’s the worst part. Its eyes were completely white, its teeth were too. They were sharp, Zipp. Like they could cut through anything, and it was snarling at Sunny. Oh, Zipp, Hitch, we’ve got to find her!”

“We will,” Hitch said with determination. “It doesn’t matter that she didn’t listen to us. We’ll find her.”

“Exactly,” Zipp said as she put her phone away. “And we’ll all do it by working together.”

Suddenly, there was a frustrated groan. Zipp, Hitch and Pipp looked to see Misty looking frustrated at the book. Izzy was sat holding it in her hoofs, using her horn as a light source. Misty’s horn was glowing, her eyes closed as it seemingly pulled her head back and forth in different directions. Finally, Misty cried out in dismay as she stopped the spell.

“Misty,” Zipp said with concern. “What were you trying?”

Misty said nothing, she sat down panting. Closing her eyes with a pained expression before slamming a forehoof on the ground in frustration.

Izzy sighed as she looked back at the others. “She was trying to see if she could trace the spells.”

“It’s no use,” Misty said at last. “There’s been too much magic used around here for this spell.”

“Is there one that would just track teleporting?” Pipp asked.

“Yes, but I can’t cast it,” Misty said crossly. “It’s written in old Ponish and I’ve not learnt enough of that yet.”

“Misty, it’s okay,” Zipp responded. “I’m sorry for shouting at you earlier. You tried and that’s the main thing. What about the messaging spell?”

“Nothing yet,” Misty advised. “When I was teaching it to Sunny, we agreed she’d message me. If we do it the other way it makes her powers appear.”

“And that will blow her cover,” Izzy gasped.

“That could be all that’s keeping her safe at the moment,” Hitch sighed. “Look, we know when and where these creatures appear next. Let’s put a plan together to capture one.”

“Sure, let me just double-check for anything useful here,” Zipp advised. “Like scorching or anything like that. It could help piece together the bigger picture.”

With that, Zipp donned her visor and began scanning the ground again. Meanwhile, Misty looked down at Sunny’s earpiece and tracker. A feeling of determination building within her.

Elsewhere, Sunny let out a groan. Her vision was blurry and didn’t want to clear. No matter how many times she blinked.

She was laid on something cold and hard which felt like it was slowly swaying. She groaned again, bringing a hoof to her forehead as her head pounded.

Finally, her vision began to clear as the pain in her head lessened. As everything finally came into focus, she pushed herself up into a sitting position. Looking around she gasped at what she saw, and a sinking feeling grew in her stomach.

She was in a bell-shaped cage. It was hanging from a chain that was attached to a pole. The pole was jutting out from a wall that was behind her.

As she looked around, Sunny realised her cage wasn’t the only one, far from it. There were similar cages attached to the wall, above, below and on either side. Ahead, there was an open gap before a series of suspended walkways.

Each row of cages had a walkway which were held up by a series of wires. On the other side of the walkways, there was another gap. Then more cages were attached to another wall in the same way.

Sunny gasped, there were cages attached to this wall as far as she could see in every direction. She therefore presumed the same was true of the wall hers was attached to.

She got to her hoofs, gasping as the movement made her cage sway. Carefully, she moved closer to the bars, so she could get a better view. The other cages weren’t empty, they each contained a creature.

Not since the Night Market had Sunny seen so many different creatures.5 Some she recognised, like Griffons, but there were others that she didn’t. “Oh no, nonono,” she whispered.

Her mouth turned dry as she sat down. The sinking feeling in her stomach getting deeper. This was way bigger than she’d ever imagined it could be. Gasping, she tried to keep a hold of herself, she knew panicking could be the worst thing she could do.

Suddenly, she gasped as she spotted one of the fiery creatures that had taken her. It was walking along the walkway below. She watched with wide eyes and gasped as she heard shouting.

“Oi, where you taking us? You fire monster!”

Sunny blinked as she saw the creature shouting was a dark blue Griffon. She was hanging onto the bars of her cage, shaking them angrily.

The fire creature stopped, it looked at the Griffon with a blank expression.

“Don’t just stand there!” the Griffon shouted. “Let us go!”

The Griffon started swinging on the bars, slamming her hind paws into them, and making a loud banging sound. Other creatures began getting rowdy too but seemingly daren’t make as much noise as the Griffon.

The fire creature suddenly snarled and fired a beam of magic at the Griffon. The Griffon gasped as the magic hit her, then groaned as she collapsed to the floor of the cage, unconscious.

The other creatures immediately went silent. Meanwhile, the fire creature said nothing, it just resumed walking.

“That’s what happens if you cause trouble,” a voice said.

Sunny gasped in shock and turned to see a light teal buglike creature in the cage next to hers looking at her.

“Oh, I’m sorry if I startled you,” the creature said. “I am Thymus.”

“W...What are you?” Sunny gasped.

“I’m a changeling,” Thymus smiled. “I presume you have never met one of my kind before. I admit, I’ve never met a pony before either. What’s your name?”

Sunny gulped, remembering her disguise. “Moondust,” she responded. “Moondust Twinkle. I’ve heard of changelings but never met one.”

“I suspected not,” Thymus replied. “Equestria has been hidden for so long so it’s not surprising. So, Moondust Twinkle, are you one of those ponies that does magic?”

Sunny blinked, unsure if she should be honest or not. Finally, she decided to play it safe. “No, I’m an Earth Pony.”

“An Earth Pony?” Thymus blinked, looking confused. “I’m sorry, I don’t know what that means.”

“Well, there are three kinds of pony,” Sunny explained. “Pegasus ponies have wings so they can fly. Unicorns have horns and it’s those that allow them to use magic. Earth Ponies have neither, but we’re stronger.”

“Interesting, we don’t have physical differences like that, but we choose our jobs when we are young,” Thymus explained. “I’m a guard and I help protect the hive. That’s how the Nirik captured me. I was trying to help capture one so we could find out where they were taking our brethren. But we failed.”

“Nirik?” Sunny gasped. “What’s that?”

“The creatures that captured us,” Thymus explained. “I don’t know much about them. I’ve certainly got no idea how they built this airship.”

“Airship?” Sunny said as she cocked her head.

Thymus laughed, “You ponies really have been hidden for too long. We’re on board an airship. I think it’s a big one too, what we can see from our cages is only a small part of it. I’ve been releasing pheromones which other guards of the hive will be able to follow. But I have no idea if they will make it out of the ship. Do others know you are missing?”

“They do,” Sunny conceded. “Lots of Earth Ponies like me have gone missing. I thought it was other ponies taking them so offered to be bait. I didn’t listen to my friends. They said we weren’t ready for anything like that, that we needed more information. I...I should have listened to them.”

“Well, I’m sure they will be doing everything they can to rescue you,” Thymus responded. “Just the same as my fellow Hive Guards will be.”

“I hope so,” Sunny sighed. “This is way, way bigger than what I was expecting. If you’re a changeling, can’t you change into other creatures?”

Thymus sighed and pointed to a collar around his neck. “Normally yes, but this collar is preventing me somehow. I can’t remove it.”

Suddenly, there was a loud noise. A droning sound which got louder and louder. Sunny gasped as her cage began to shake.

“We’re taking off,” Thymus advised.

There was a series of loud bangs and thuds. Then, Sunny gasped as she felt as though she was moving. Her cage started to sway in a rhythmic motion. She looked around, spotting all the other cages were swaying as well.

Sunny sighed and her heart sank as she realised, she had no idea where the airship was. Let alone where it was taking her now.

She really, really should have listened to Zipp and Hitch.

Author's Note

5 - In Marking the Generations, it wasn't just Breezies that ran the Night Market. Many, many other creatures do too.

Chapter Six – You need to look after Yourself

When everything feels like it’s just too much
But you gotta let it in, even if it’s tough
Know it gets better, know it gets better
We push through the weather, weather

Let it ra-a-a-ain
(There’s beauty, there’s beauty in the breakdown)
Let it ra-a-a-ain
Don’t be afraid of walls coming down
Sometimes it hurts, you’ll figure it out
Let it ra-a-a-ain
(There’s beauty, there’s beauty in the breakdown)

Let it rain, let it ra-a-a-ain...

Pipp sniffed as she looked at her phone screen. She’d been watching and re-watching Sunset Shimmer's performance of Let it Rain at the leaving party. It was a beautiful song, and it was certainly helping her through her current feelings.

They had returned to the Brighthouse in the early hours of the morning. Most headed straight to bed, including Pipp.

However, bed was where she’d stayed, even after the sun had come up. She hadn’t slept as fresh feelings of guilt washed over her. She felt awful for the role she’d played in Sunny’s disappearance. Covering her head with the covers. She started flipping through her phone and hadn’t moved for hours.

Suddenly she heard Izzy’s voice. “Pipp? Are you still in bed? It’s time to get up sleepyhead, you need to eat something.”

Pipp groaned as she rose upwards, curling the covers around her head like a hood. “I can’t eat at a time like this, Izzy,” she wined. “It’s all my fault that Sunny’s gone.”

“No, it isn’t,” Izzy responded. “It was Sunny’s own idea and she convinced us to support her.”

“But we should have listened to Zipp and Hitch,” Pipp moaned. “I got so caught up with the thought of giving her a whole new look for her disguise. Why do things always go wrong when I don’t listen to Zipp!”

“Well, I didn’t listen either,” Izzy reasoned. “I wanted to give Sunny an awesome disguise too. I worked so hard on that cutie mark design. But I know we’ll find her.”

“How?” Pipp sniffed. “How will we find her?”

“By working together,” Izzy smiled. “We might not be the best when it comes to solving clues. Or doing magic. But we can help those who are. We can encourage them. We can support them. How can Zipp think about clues and things if she’s got the munchie munches or a sleepyhead? We got to make sure they don’t work themselves too hard and I can’t do it on my own.”

“You’re right, Iz,” Pipp smiled as she came out from under her bedsheets.

“Course I am,” Izzy beamed. “I trust Sunny too. She’s so strong and resilient. She’ll come through and her disguise is really awesome.”

“I just hope it’s holding up,” Pipp admitted as she led them towards the ramp. “I mean as long as she doesn’t get wet it should be okay for a while.”

“It’ll be fine,” Izzy grinned optimistically. “Now I’ve got an awesome lunch prepared for you.”

“Oh, Iz, you better have not made a mess again,’ Pipp chuckled. “Wait, lunch? What happened to breakfast? Have I been under my sheets that long?”

In the living area, Zipp and Hitch were tucking into healthy portions of daisy and clover sandwiches. They were watching the TV at Izzy’s insistence, as a way to take a break from their investigations. Pipp smiled as she sat down, and Izzy passed a full plate to her.

“Wow, you are looking after us,” Pipp gasped.

“Oh good,” Zipp smiled. “Well done, Iz. Have you had any joy with Misty?”

Izzy sighed despondently, “Not yet and she’s been up all night reading books.”

“Really,” Pipp gasped. “I mean I was up but that’s because I couldn’t sleep. Where is she?”

“In the Crystal Chamber,” Hitch sighed. “She’s been searching through the books from Opaline’s castle for something, but she’s not told us what.”

Suddenly, the TV show cut to an intermission screen and an announcer's voice could be heard.

“We interrupt this scheduled broadcast with a special news bulletin.”

The news jingle played as the screen cut directly to Dazzle Feather sat alone at the news desk.

“Sorry to interrupt your scheduled broadcast,” Dazzle said. “Reports are emerging that many Earth Ponies have been mysteriously disappearing. Queen Haven herself made this announcement to the press moments ago.”

The screen cut to Queen Haven stood in front of a lectern. She had a grave look on her face.

“Ponies of Equestria, I stand before you today to inform you of a new magical threat that is looming over our land. I hope doing so will help protect you all.

“With immediate effect, work at the Hydroelectric Construction Sites will stop overnight. Similarly, the parks of Zephyr Heights will be closed during the hours of nightfall. I also urge everypony to remain at home between the hours of sunset and sunrise, no matter where you live.

“You may be wondering what the reason for this is. I’m saddened to announce that several Earth Ponies have disappeared. The safety of all is my primary concern; therefore, these measures must be implemented to protect everypony.

The disappearances have been identified as being caused by magical creatures. We currently have no idea where these creatures may strike next. So far, they have targeted Earth Ponies. However, they could start targeting Pegasi and Unicorns. I therefore ask everypony to take this issue seriously.”

Please rest assured that the Guardians of Unity are on the case. They are doing all they can, and I am confident in their abilities. They will stop these creatures, one way or another.”

There was a chorus of voices as the waiting media absorbed this information. Many raised their hoofs to ask questions and Queen Haven selected one.

“Queen Haven, there are reports that Sunny Starscout is one of those missing, is this true?”

Queen Haven sighed and looked down in dismay. “As I mentioned, the Guardians of Unity are looking into this and that includes Sunny. I therefore cannot comment on their specific whereabouts. We must all trust our protectors, they have saved us all before and I am confident they will do so again.”

With that, Queen Haven stepped back from the lectern to a cacophony of voices shouting questions. As she walked off stage, Zoom and Thunder both stepped forward protectively.

“Sorry, no more questions,” Zoom informed.

In the Brighthouse, Zipp and Hitch looked at each other with worry. They both started getting up, leaving their half-eaten plates of food behind.

“No, no, don’t do that,” Izzy gasped as she blocked their way.

“Izzy, everypony is counting on us,” Hitch said.

“Especially Sunny,” Zipp added.

“Yes, but how can you investigate if you’re tired and hungry?” Izzy asked.

“Izzy’s right,” Pipp protested. “How can we help Sunny if we don’t take care of ourselves?”

“Says you after crying under your bedsheets all day,” Zipp frowned.

“I know, but that’s why I’ve stopped crying,” Pipp responded. “You were right Zipp, we should have listened to both of you. But, crying isn’t going to save Sunny and the others. Supporting both of you and being there when it’s time for action will.”

Zipp sighed as she sat down again. “I hear you, Sis. I’m sorry for snapping.”

“You’re right, Izzy, Pipp,” Hitch sighed as he also sat down again. “We need to look after ourselves if we’re going to find and save Sunny.”

“You can count on us to help,” Pipp winked.

“Cool, cool, just tell that to Misty,” Zipp sighed.

“Oh, I’ve already put a call in for somepony to help with that,” Izzy grinned.

A short time later, there was a knock on the door. Izzy practically skipped over and beamed as she opened it to reveal Alphabittle. However, he looked far from happy and Izzy’s face fell at seeing his sour expression. “Oh? Y...you don’t look happy to see me?”

“I’m sorry, Izzy,” he sighed. “It’s just I’ve been forced to bring somepony else along.”

Alphabittle moved inside and revealed Strawberry was standing behind him. “Izzy Moonbow, meet Strawberry Sunflash,” Alphabittle sighed. “Now, Strawberry. You’ve seen the Brighthouse so now you can go back to Bridlewood.”

Strawberry scowled and looked Alphabittle in the eye. “Oh no, you’re not getting rid of me that easily! I will prove that I’m just as much an expert on magic as Misty Brightdawn. Where is she?”

Alphabittle sighed as Zipp flew over and put herself in the doorway. “Look, I’m sorry, we don’t have time for tours or magic competitions right now.”

Hitch hurried over, and stood next to Alphabittle, “Zipp’s right, there are lives of many ponies at stake and we need Alphabittle’s help. We don’t have time to show you around.”

“I saw the news on my way here,” Strawberry sniffed arrogantly. “Unlike some Bridlewood residents, I’ve embraced technology. If there’s a magical creature problem, then the more horns the better.”

“No,” Zipp said crossly. “We’ve got enough problems with Misty as it is. We don’t need somepony coming and turning this into a competition and making it more difficult.”

Strawberry blinked with surprise. Her arrogance melted away and she looked generally concerned. “What do you mean problems? She’d better be alright, what’s wrong?”

“Why would you care?” Hitch asked unsurely. “You’ve just said you wanted to prove you were better than her.”

“Well, yes. But she’s still my best friend's daughter,” Strawberry revealed.

Everypony turned and looked at Alphabittle with surprise. He looked equally surprised at their reaction. Then, after a look of realisation, he sighed and looked down. “She means Misty’s mother. She was best friends with her.”

“Luna Brightdawn was my best friend since I was a filly,” Strawberry sighed. “I remember when Misty was born, she was all Luna could talk about. Look, I admit I can be a stubborn and arrogant pony at times. I do want to prove I’m better. But I won’t do that if Misty’s already struggling through something. I owe it to Luna to help her.”

Zipp sighed and looked at Hitch. “Maybe, another pair of eyes looking at the books would help.”

“Misty’s driving herself too hard as it is,” Hitch admitted. “I don’t know.”

Alphabittle started to look very worried. “Wait? What’s going on? Where is Misty?”

Hitch groaned, “Okay, come in and close the door, we’ll bring you up to speed.”

“What? Really?” Zipp gasped.

“I think we’re going to need more magical allies if we’re going to rescue Sunny,” Hitch admitted.

Strawberry gasped and her eyes widened in shock. “Rescue Sunny? So, the reports are true, she’s been taken!”

Zipp let out a deep sigh of resignation. “Yes, she has.”

“And Misty’s in the Crystal Chamber trawling through books and getting no rest because she blames herself,” Izzy added.

“And that she thinks she’s got to do all the magic stuff alone,” Pipp admitted.

“Then I need to speak to her,” Alphabittle frowned. “Which way?”

Upstairs, the Crystal Chamber was a complete and utter mess. There were piles of books all over the place. Some were stacked neatly, but the majority were messy unorganised piles. Random books lay scattered around as well.

Misty let out a bellowing cry of frustration as she suddenly slammed the book that she’d been reading closed. She picked it up with her magic and flung it across the chamber, letting out another cry. It impacted one of the few neat piles, causing it to fall over.

There were dark lines under her tired bloodshot eyes. She sat panting, blinking rapidly as she struggled to stay awake. She looked around with frustration, picking up another book and opening it. Suddenly, the lift activated and started to lower.

“I said I don’t need anything!” Misty shouted irritably.

She tried to focus her eyes on the pages of the book, but it remained stubbornly out of focus. Then, she heard the lift coming back up and growled with annoyance. “Go away, Izzy!”

Misty turned and readied the book, intending to throw it at Izzy who she thought was coming up the lift. However, as it reached the top, she gasped as she saw Alphabittle standing on it alone.

“Misty,” Alphabittle gasped. “Oh, my little Mistywhisty. There’s no need for this.”

Misty stared at her father as the book fell to the floor. Her eyes started to fill with tears as she struggled to answer. Her mouth made juddering movements, but nothing came out. Finally, she let out a cry of anguish as she closed her eyes and let the tears fall.

Alphabittle moved forward and off the lift. However, he didn’t get far as Misty jumped up and hurried forward and into his embrace.

“I…It’s all m…my fault,” Misty sobbed. “I…I can’t… I can’t find it!”

“Find what?” Alphabittle said soothingly as he heard the lift going down.

“The s…spell,” Misty wept. “T…The one that w…will find Sunny.”

Alphabittle sighed as he rubbed Misty’s back and mane soothingly. “Oh, Misty. You’ll find it if you take your time. Staying up all night won’t help.”

“I…I know,” Misty cried. “I…It’s just I should have listened… I should have listened to Hitch and Zipp. I s…should have taken their side... Convinced Sunny it was a bad idea, that we should be more careful. I didn’t think it would be something like magic creatures. N…Now I’ve got to try and deal with it alone.”

“Like you haven’t already dealt with powerful magic?” another voice said.

Misty gasped as she saw the lift had come back up. Stood on it was Strawberry with Izzy standing behind her.

“You defeated a powerful Alicorn,” Strawberry continued. “You bested that flytrap I accidentally made into a pony-eating monster.”

Misty sniffed as she blinked the tears from her eyes. Frowning she looked at Strawberry cooly. “Opaline was different, I knew how she worked. The flytrap, I just did what I had to.”

“Which you’ll do again,” Izzy said brightly. “Wearing yourself out isn’t going to help Sunny though.”

Misty groaned as she felt Alphabittle rubbing her back soothingly. “Misty,” he said. “Pushing yourself this hard to find the answers isn’t going to help. You need to take care of yourself as well. If you're too tired and hungry you won’t be able to help Sunny.”

“I’ve seen what you can do and it’s... impressive,” Strawberry added. “But right now you’re nowhere near impressive.”

Misty scowled at Strawberry, “Why are you even here?”

Strawberry sighed, looking less confident. “I came because I wanted to prove I’m better than you. But now I’ve realised, that’s not what your mum would want. She’d want me to help you.”

Misty gasped and pulled away from Alphabittle’s embrace. “What’s my mum got to do with it?”

“I was best friends with Luna,” Strawberry explained. “We were like two peas in a pod. The books I have, we both studied them. If we’d had magic when…”

She trailed off, closing her eyes as a pained expression appeared on her face. She sighed and looked back at Misty with determination. “Teach me, teach me how to properly interpret the spells. Tell me what you’re looking for and I’ll help you find it.”

Misty frowned, looking at Alphabittle unsurely.

“I’ll be honest,” Alphabittle sighed. “Strawberry can be an arrogant and conceited pony at times. But your mother proved, underneath that she’s got a kind and caring heart.”

Misty closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “Okay, I’ll show you. When we first met, I hated the feeling I’d just made an enemy. I'd prefer to make friends, not enemies. So, if letting you help me and teaching you will turn you into a friend, then let’s do that.”

Strawberry’s chest puffed up with pride. “Being friends with Luna’s daughter sounds brilliant. When do we start?”

Misty was about to reply, however there was a loud growling sound from her stomach.

Izzy couldn’t help giggling, “Right after Misty finally gets something to eat and has a nap.”

“Sure,” Strawberry replied. “But maybe I could organise this lot so our task will be easier? I assume these are the ones from Canterlot?”

Misty frowned and shook her head. “No, these are from Opaline’s library. These contain dangerous magic, the kind that nopony should currently get their hoofs on, if at all.”

“Then why are you looking through them?” Alphabittle asked in shock.

“Because I’m looking for a spell that I saw Opaline cast,” Misty explained. “A location spell, she used it to find the Dragon Stone before she sent me to retrieve it. I know that spell is in this lot somewhere, I just can’t find it.”

“No wonder with how messy it is,” Izzy admitted.

“That’s because we never organised them when they got put up here,” Misty growled before sighing. “Also, I got frustrated. I don’t even know if it will find Sunny. But it’s all I can think of right now.”

Strawberry nodded understandingly and looked determined. “Okay, I understand, the magic in these books could be dangerous. Go and get some rest, I’ll organise these and then we’ll find that spell together. I promise, if I see anything in these books, I’ll speak to you before using my horn.”

Misty locked eyes with Strawberry and they stared at each other for a moment. Then, Misty nodded, “Okay, I...I think I trust you.”

She started to walk shakily towards the lift. Alphabittle smiled as he joined her, supporting her as the tiredness started catching up with her.

As the lift descended, Alphabittle smiled as he rubbed Misty’s mane reassuringly. “You’ve made the right choice, Misty.”

“I want to make friends,” Misty yawned. “Not enemies.”

Chapter Seven – Quarry Arriving

Sunny sighed as she lay in her cage, it had been ages since they’d taken off. At least she thought so, she had no way of knowing. The continual rhythmic drone confirmed they were still in the air. Her cage continued to sway from side to side too which made things interesting.

One thing she’d kept an eye on though was the Nirik. They were making regular patrols and she’d worked out there was a window in which she could activate her powers and contact Misty.

However, she knew that would mean that Thymus and her fellow captives would know her secret. Something she remembered Zipp telling her over and over was how important maintaining her cover was. After not listening previously got her into this situation, she was now determined to follow Zipp’s advice.

Which was proving difficult as Thymus kept asking her questions about Equestria. She’d decided that if she ever went undercover like this again. She would need to come up with a convincing backstory. However, she also knew that wouldn’t help her current dilemma.

There was a niggling question in the back of her mind that was related. Would it matter if the creatures knew the truth? She certainly didn’t want the Nirik to know. But what about the other creatures that were captives like she was? Would they even know who she was?

As she tried to work out what to do, there was a loud clunk followed by a rising number of voices.

“Moondust,” Thymus said urgently. “Moondust Twinkle! Get up and look!”

It took a few moments for Sunny to realise Thymus was talking to her. “Huh? What?”

“Look, that Griffon from before. She’s gotten out!” Thymus said urgently.

Sunny quickly got up and moved to the edge of her cage. She looked down at the walkway below and gasped. The Griffon had indeed escaped her cage and was carefully walking along the walkway, trying not to make a noise.

However, as creatures noticed, there was soon a rising cacophony of shouting voices as they all tried to be heard. Most were asking to be let out, others were shouting instructions. Several were telling her not to be so silly. Meanwhile, some were trying to calm the situation.

The Griffon looked around the cages with dismay as the volume rose higher and higher. “Will you all shut up!” she shouted urgently. “You’re going to ruin everything!”

The Griffon scowled as Nirik appeared at either end of the walkway, running towards her. She tried to flee by jumping from the walkway. Opening her wings, she started flying upwards to get away. However, she hadn’t realised there were Nirik on the walkway above and was immediately caught in their levitation.

She growled as she was held in the air and struggled in vain, “Gah, you all did this shouting like that! Now nocreature will escape!”

As the Nirik carried the Griffon away, Sunny sighed as she looked around the cages. That settled it, she couldn’t trust the other creatures to keep quiet if she activated her powers. She would need to bide her time and hope she’d get another opportunity.

The humming drone continued for days. At least Sunny thought it had been days, it was difficult to know. She couldn’t see outside, and the lights were left on continually. They were fed, but it didn’t seem to be at any specific time. However, eventually, things changed.

“We’re landing,” Thymus said suddenly.

Sunny turned and looked at him with confusion, “What? How do you know?”

“The sound,” Thymus answered. “It’s changed. Last time it changed we landed and picked you up.”

Sunny frowned and felt the movement of her cage. It did feel different.

The new lower humming continued for a while and then got louder again. Then, there was a series of loud clunks at either end of the airship. The whole airship shook which made the cages vibrate violently. Creatures reacted to this, crying out in surprise and fear. Then, for the first time in ages, there was silence and the cages finally settled and stopped swaying.

“We’ve landed, but that was odd,” Thymus admitted. “I don’t remember those clunks last time. But, I expect that cage next to you will be occupied soon enough.”

Sunny frowned and looked at the empty cage beside her. Suddenly, a loud bang from below made Sunny squeak with surprise and shook the whole ship. Then, there was a loud whirring noise. “Okay, what’s happening now?” Sunny gasped.

“I think there are doors below us,” Thymus explained. “Once they’re open, that cage will be lowered down ready to become occupied.”

“Why?” Sunny frowned. “Why move the cage when you’re using teleportation?”

“I don’t know,” Thymus admitted. “That’s just what happened last time.”

However, they both gasped as their cages began moving along with the empty one.

“Woah, what’s happening?” Sunny gasped. “Why are we moving as well?”

“Okay, this time I don’t know,” Thymus admitted.

“Oh, but I was starting to think you were the expert,” Sunny smirked.

“I just take note of my surroundings,” Thymus smiled. “Like how we’re moving because the poles above us are extending.”

Sunny looked up and saw Thymus was right. The pole that the chain her cage was attached to was extending. It did so until the cages were hanging between the walkways and the other cages, then they started descending.

“Okay, I don’t need to be told we’re going down because the chains are getting longer,” Sunny frowned. “They must be on winches.”

“We must have arrived at our destination,” Thymus reasoned. “That’s the only explanation. Look, Moondust Twinkle, I’ve been meaning to suggest we work together to escape. I think there is more to you ponies than meets the eye.”

Sunny was about to respond when they suddenly emerged from the bottom of the airship.

They were both bathed in bright sunlight and Sunny gasped as she shielded her eyes. Once they had adjusted, she looked up and her jaw dropped. The airship was huge, the doors they’d emerged from were just one set of four.

Sunny’s heart sank as she realised how many creatures must be on board. There had been rows and rows of cages, as far as she could see. If that was just one section of four there had to be hundreds and hundreds of creatures trapped aboard it.

She spotted three large towers made of black metal latticework. These went up to the bottom of the airship and she realised it was docked with them. That must have been the cause of some of the noises earlier.

Suddenly, the cages jolted which made Sunny squeak with surprise. She looked down at the floor and thrust her legs out into a wide stance as she tried to keep her balance. The cages had stopped descending but continued to swing on the chains.

“This doesn’t look good,” Thymus said.

“W…What doesn’t?” Sunny gasped.

“Our destination,” Thymus responded gravely.

Sunny finally stopped looking down and looked outwards. She gasped and her eyes widened at the sight before her.

They were above a massive quarry, gouged into the side of a mountain in a massive horseshoe. There were many, many massive grey shelves which seemed to walk up the side of the mountain.

Each had a sheer rock face that linked it to the shelf below. Between these levels, there were inclines. The one in the middle was huge, it ran from the level at the very top of the quarry right down to the bottom. At the top of each incline, there was what looked like a small shed. Ropes ran from the shed down to tubs that were running up and down the inclines.

At the very bottom of the quarry, there was a lake full of glistening water. Between this and the first rock face, there was a series of large buildings. Then, on one of the wider levels around halfway up the quarry, there was a series of large huts.

Suddenly, Sunny yelped as she felt her cage start descending again. She looked in dismay as she realised it was just hers.

“Looks like this is goodbye,” Thymus shouted.

“Seems so,” Sunny called back. “If we manage to see each other again, I’ll gladly take you up on that help escaping,”

Thymus nodded, “Good, I think we will both need it! Good luck, Moondust Twinkle!”

Sunny looked down and closed her eyes, letting out a deep sigh. She gulped before she took a deep breath and opened her eyes again with determination. Whatever was about to happen to her, she wouldn’t give up hope. She would contact Misty and she would escape along with every captive creature here.

As her cage finally neared the ground. Sunny gasped as she realised, she was being lowered into a pen. Formed of high mesh fencing, there were multiple Nirik stood around this. All were looking up at the cage expectantly.

Sunny licked her dry lips with concern. She wasn’t expecting the bottom of her cage to suddenly disappear. She shrieked as the floor parted, and the two halves swung away on a pair of hinges. It took everything she had to resist the urge to activate her powers.

It was only a short fall and Sunny landed on her hoofs with an ‘oof’. She looked around the pen worriedly. Unsure what was happening. She looked upwards as she heard a clunk. The cage’s floor had swung back into position, and it was being lifted away.

Looking around the pen, she realised its high wire fence had multiple gates. The Nirik each stood next to these gates on the outside of the pen. They watched her expectedly as one of the gates slid open.

Sunny blinked and looked around worriedly. Did they want her to go through the gate, or was something else going to join her in the pen? The Nirik looked like an audience, so she got worried she was expected to fight a monster or something. Maybe it was a test!

She soon got her answer though as the Nirik behind her began snarling. They slammed their hoofs on the fence, making a noise that made Sunny jump.

“T...That way?” She asked, pointing a hoof.

This made all the Nirik snarl. Their fiery manes flared, and their eyes seemingly flashed with anger. Finally, one of them pointed with a hoof towards the gate.

“Okay, okay, I’m going,” Sunny said carefully, holding a hoof up in submission.

She quickly moved through the open gate and found she was in a narrow-fenced walkway. Wide enough for just herself. Wire mesh covered the top, presumably to stop creatures flying away.

As she worriedly walked down this, she squeaked as she was picked up and held within a Nirik’s levitation. She looked up and spotted a Nirik above her, its curved Y-shaped horn glowing. Sections of the fencing on either side of her suddenly slid downwards.

Sunny gasped as the hold on her seemed to tighten so she couldn’t move. Then, she felt a harness being fitted around her barrel. Followed quickly by a light bridle around her head.

After the invasion of personal space, Sunny was let go. As she landed back on her hoofs, she heard the sections of fencing sliding and clunking back into place. Then, she squeaked as something pushed against her backside. She didn’t look to see what that was, she just started running forward.

As Sunny galloped through the fenced corridor, she approached several gated junctions. Each time she got close, the gates moved, swinging either left or right. Ensuring she went the way her captors wanted her to travel.

Finally, she ran out into another pen and skidded to a stop. She looked back as the gate to the fenced corridor behind her closed with a clatter.

She panted as she looked around, the pen was round and smaller than the last one. Apart from the gate that she’d just come through, there was one other. A large double one that looked to be designed to let large numbers of creatures through.

Through the fence, she could see it was one of many in a long row. There were Nirik around but not in the same numbers as before. They appeared to be patrolling, the pens appearing to be for holding creatures rather than sorting them like the previous one.

She sat down and fiddled with the harness. It wasn’t uncomfortable but she couldn’t see any way to take it off. Similarly, when she felt the bridle, she couldn’t find any way to release it. She flexed her jaw, feeling relief as she found it was unrestricted.

She looked back toward the airship. Now she was further away she could get a better look at it. It looked like it was in two halves. The top half was rounded and ribbed, as though it was a large canvas balloon. The bottom half was more angular and made from metal. She cocked her head in confusion, the bottom was shaped like the small boats she had seen back at Maretime Bay.

It was a dark charcoal grey colour all over, apart from a cream number 2 on its side that made Sunny’s heart sink. “How many of them are there?” she breathed. “How many creatures are they taking against their wills?”

She looked through the fences, the pens on either side of hers were filling up. She soon realised she was the only pony there, nopony else joined her. She wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or not.

The Nirik continued to patrol too. She knew there was still no way she could contact Misty. She sighed and wondered how long it had been, her friends must be so worried. She couldn’t help feeling bad for what they must be going through.

Suddenly, a horn bellowed out. Sunny frowned and turned towards where it was coming from. A tall pedestal had been lifted into the air, and a large purple leopard with wings stood atop it. Looking around and snarling at the creatures in the pens below.

“Welcome to your new lives! Whatever life you had is over, it is gone. The sooner you accept that the better. Your only purpose now is to serve the Arora Ridge Quarry. To serve me, your new mistress, Allura.

“Your combined task here is to mine the Arora Ore. It will be far easier for you to accept your new life willingly. There is no escaping! Work hard and once my goals are completed, I may return you to your old lives. BUT only if there is no trouble!

“Communication is banned, anycreature caught talking will be dealt with by my loyal Nirik guard. Anycreature causes trouble, I will deal with personally. Pray this is the only time you see me!”

With that, Allura jumped from the pedestal. Spreading her wings and gliding down out of sight. There was suddenly a chorus of dismayed voices from the other pens. However, these were quickly replaiced by howls of pain.

Sunny frowned; she couldn’t see what the Nirik had done but decided she didn’t want to find out. She felt the pit in her stomach returning and getting deeper.

She’d been so sure that Minty Cloudstrike was behind the disappearances and had been completely wrong. Why hadn’t she listened to Hitch and Zipp? She was well in over her head now.

Suddenly, Sunny was shaken from her thoughts as she felt something being attached to her bridle. Gasping, she looked and saw a Nirik holding the other end of a leash in its teeth.

Without a word, the Nirik turned and began leading Sunny towards the large gate in the pen. The leash went taught and Sunny was forced to follow. She gulped, trying desperately to keep calm, and hoping she would eventually have a chance to contact Misty.

The Nirik led Sunny through the quarry. It took her up winding narrow paths and onto one of the higher levels.

Despite Allura’s rule of no communication, the quarry was a hive of noise and dust. There were continuous banging and crashing sounds as large, strange creatures dug away at the rock. Sunny spotted other creatures loading the rock into carts. Carts that she realised were being pulled by a mix of creatures including some odd-looking ponies.

Finally, the Nirik stopped walking and Sunny found herself standing before several carts of different sizes. The Nirik selected one and gestured for Sunny to stand in front of it. Not wanting to cause trouble for herself, Sunny silently did as instructed.

The reason for the harness soon became apparent as the Nirik attached the cart to it. Sunny watched as it did this, frowning as she realised it did so using its magic. Once it had finished, Sunny couldn’t see any way to unhitch herself from the cart.

The Nirik grunted to get Sunny’s attention. She looked and gasped as it removed the leash and then held out a flaming hoof, pointing up a track.

“What would you like me to do exactly?” Sunny asked carefully. “What are my instructions, please?”

The Nirik’s eyes narrowed, and it snarled dangerously. Sunny gasped and held her hoofs up submissively and this seemed to pacify the Nirik. It stood looking at Sunny blankly, as though it was working out what to do.

Finally, it reattached the leash to Sunny’s bridle and started to lead her along the track. They eventually came to a line of carts, it appeared all were waiting to be loaded.

The Nirik attached Sunny’s leash to the back of one of the larger carts. Sunny frowned as it then walked away, leaving her stuck to the cart. “I suppose this is one way of finding out what to do,” she muttered quietly.

Sunny soon found out what her task was, moving rock from where it was being dug to the large central incline.

The cart in front of her was being pulled by two of the strange-looking ponies she’d seen earlier. Sunny could see they had crystallised horns, but she couldn’t make out much more. She sighed, thinking better of trying to talk to them.

Pulling the cart was hard and dusty work. Especially as she was following another cart, still attached by the leash. It caused her to walk in a cloud of dust, before long, she was longing for a drink.

As she walked back and forth along the same route. Sunny also began to realise there was a series of watchtowers. Each one contained several Nirik which watched over them from a high level.

Finally, the sun started to get lower in the sky. After unloading, Sunny gasped as the same Nirik from before appeared. It unhitched Sunny’s leash from the other cart and started to lead her away. Sunny frowned, she wanted to ask where they were going but thought better of it.

Finally, they stopped, and Sunny was unhitched from the cart. Then, she was led down some of the narrow paths between the levels.

They eventually neared the large huts on the middle level. Sunny spotted above each hut there was a picture of a creature. Soon, they came to one with a picture of a pony above the door.

The Nirik stopped, it removed the leash before unlatching and opening the door. Sunny couldn’t help noticing the door was locked from the outside. The Nirik growled and pointed inside, and Sunny immediately did as instructed.

She walked through the door and was blinded by the bright light within. As her eyes adjusted it felt like she’d just walked in on a private party.

The inside walls of the hut were panelled in silver metal. On the grey concrete floor, there were brown rectangular-shaped mats. A row down each side, the short end near the wall with a wide aisle between them. Above was a grey ceiling which had two sets of strip lights running down the length of the hut.

All the missing Earth Ponies were there. Many stood or sat around in groups, others lay on the mats. They were all wearing the same as Sunny and all looked filthy. Sunny gasped and looked down at her disguise, the black dye was now covered in a layer of grey dust. However, to her relief, it still looked to be intact.

Suddenly, the door slammed shut behind her which made Sunny squeak with surprise. That caused everypony in the hut to look at her. Sunny gasped and suddenly felt nervous, did she come clean about who she was? Were they being watched?

Sprout suddenly appeared from the crowd, hurrying over towards Sunny with a concerned expression. His guard uniform was gone, replaced with a similar bridle and harness to Sunny’s. His red coat was covered in grey dust, as were his mane and tail. “I thought I saw a new pony,” he gasped. “It must have been so scary in that flying thing all on your own. It’s okay now, we can speak here. What’s your name?”

Sunny blinked with confusion. Even though she’d literally just been thinking about her disguise, hearing Sprout ask her name was strange. Fortunately, Sprout just assumed her silence was nerves or fear.

“It’s okay, I’m Sprout Cloverleaf. I’m one of the Equestria Guard based in Maretime Bay. Don’t worry, despite what that Allura says we’re going to find a way to escape and get everypony back to Equestria.”

Sunny sighed, finally having made up her mind on what to do. She was in this mess because she didn’t listen and wasn’t cautious enough. So, she was going to continue to take Zipp’s advice and be careful.

Therefore, she responded in a soft voice, “I...I’m Moondust Twinkle. I moved to Zephyr Heights some time ago. Do you know what those scary fire creatures are?”

“Well, that Allura said they were Nirik, but I don’t know anything about them,” Sprout responded. “As long as you behave, they won’t hurt you. We’ll escape soon enough anyway.”

“B...But how?” ‘Moondust’ replied worriedly.

“We’re working on a plan,” Sprout said confidently. “We’ve searched this hut carefully. There are no cameras and nocreature is watching us. We’re free to do what we like within here.”

“As long as you leave everything the same,” another voice said condescendingly. “There’s no point getting in trouble trying.”

Sprout sighed as he turned and looked at Sugar Moonlight who was laid on a mat nearby. Sunny couldn’t help noticing her appearance. Her normally meticulously applied eyeshadow and makeup were gone. Her mane was a mess, having not seen a brush in ages. She had the same bridle and harness as the others, and she was covered from nose to tail in dust.

“Sugar, we’ve been over and over this,” Sprout sighed. “We will escape, and we will get home. I told you; I was sent to gather intel by Sheriff Hitch. That I’ve disappeared will mean he and the other Guardians will be looking for us.”

Sugar groaned and shook her head, “And I’ve told you there’s no point. All you’ll do is get in trouble.”

There was a chorus of other voices. All encouraged Sugar that they would get away. However, Sugar just sighed and looked down. ‘Moondust’ frowned, she couldn’t help thinking Sugar looked sad, therefore she joined in.

“I…I know I’ve just arrived, and this is all scary. But we can’t just give up hope. It’s all we have if we’re going to get through this.”

“Well said, Moondust,” Sprout smiled.

However, Sugar scowled and stared at ‘Moondust’ accusingly. “You sound like Sunny Starscout, she’s always preaching about hope. She’s a fool.”

‘Moondust’ gasped, she couldn’t help taking a step backwards in surprise. Fortunately, Sprout didn’t notice her reaction as he leapt to Sunny’s defence.

“What’s that supposed to mean? Why’s Sunny a fool?”

Sugar closed her eyes and grimaced with pain. Then, she growled and scowled with anger as something seemed to snap within her. She jumped up from her mat and looked Sprout in the eye. “She’s a fool because she should have left everything as it was! I was happy working for CanterLogic. Getting to strut my stuff in their showcases. I’ve got nothing now! If...If I go back to Equestria I...I don’t know what I’ll do!”

Sugar groaned as she sat down and tried to get a hold of herself. She trembled, having just let out a cartload of bottled-up feelings.

Sprout blinked with surprise before sighing. “I thought you’d been oddly quiet,” he said. “Sugar, it’ll be okay. We’re in this together and we’ll only get out of it with everypony’s help.”

“I know that but there’s just no point for me,” Sugar frowned. “My modelling career is done. I’ve got nothing, no job, no home, no money, nothing. I’ve certainly got no hope so ponies preaching to me about it just makes me more upset.”

“So, how’s this all Sunny’s fault?” Sprout asked. “You sat next to her in Miss Butterscotch’s class, didn’t you? I bet if she knew your situation, she’d help.”

“I’ve not been friends with Sunny since school,” Sugar scowled. “She’s no reason to help me, especially after my stunt with the Alicorn thing.” Sugar sighed and lay down, putting her head in her forehoofs. “Nopony has a reason to help me. You all may as well leave me here. I’ll be your distraction or something.”

Sunny frowned, that was it, the time for being cautious had passed. “How do you know I wouldn’t help you, Sugar?”

Everypony gasped as they heard Sunny’s normal voice. They watched in surprise as ‘Moondust’ stepped forward and there was a flash. A glistening horn appeared on her head and two golden orange wings on her back.

Sugar’s eyes widened in shock, “Sunny?”

Suddenly, everypony in the hut got very excited. Voices filled the air, the volume getting louder and louder. Many thought rescue was at hoof, others thought it strange Sunny was in disguise. Sunny herself looked around with confusion, not sure which questions to answer.

However, Sprout took control of the situation. “Quiet, not so loud!” he said urgently. “Do you want to get the Nirik in here? Calm down, everypony.”

Everypony looked at each other and quietened down. However, the feeling of excitement was still there.

Meanwhile, Sugar blinked as she got up and looked at Sunny in surprise. “Why are you even here? What’s with the Moondust thing?”

Sunny sighed and shook her head. “I was playing bait for what I thought were disgruntled Pegasus ponies,” she admitted. “I wanted to help you all. But honestly, this is way bigger than I ever imagined it could be. I should have listened to Zipp and Hitch. They said we weren’t ready for action, truthfully, I’m just as trapped here as you all are.”

The others all looked at each other with a mixture of confusion, worry and some disappointment. Sunny looked around them all and gave them a small smile.

“I know, I’m not the rescuer that you all thought I was. I’m not even the rescuer I thought I was going to be. But, all is not lost. I wanted to be sure that the Nirik weren’t watching. Now I can finally contact Misty and my friends. They’ll help us, I know they will.”

Everypony looked at each other unsurely as Sunny’s horn started to glow.

“Misty, are you there? It’s Sunny, can you hear me?”

Author's Note

The quarry is loosely based on the Slate Quarrys in Wales. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slate_industry_in_Wales

Chapter Eight – Message Receiving

At the Brighthouse, the Crystal Chamber looked far more organised than its previous messy and chaotic appearance. Strawberry had worked hard to reorganise the books and after she’d rested Misty assisted. However, it took the rest of that day which annoyed Misty greatly. Mainly as she knew the reason it took so long was her fault.

Fortunately, Alphabittle's presence helped her push past this. Then, the continued encouragement from Pipp and Izzy helped Misty and Strawberry continue their search.

However, as the days passed, Strawberry began to suspect the location spell they were searching for didn’t exist. They’d gone through nearly all the books and still hadn’t found it.

Strawberry let out a groan as she closed a book and put it to one side. “Misty, are you sure this location spell you're talking about is here?”

“Yes, I'm certain,” Misty responded before looking less confident. “A…At least I think so.”

Strawberry frowned and grunted, “You think so?”

“I know Opaline cast this spell,” Misty explained. “She never cast spells without looking them up first. I never saw her just cast spells, apart from if she’d already used them before.”

“Okay, but that doesn’t explain why the spell would be here,” Strawberry scowled.

Misty frowned with frustration, “It’ll be here because these are all the books from Opaline’s castle. It, it has to be here.”

As Misty returned to searching, Strawberry scowled as she looked over the piles of books. The pile they had gone through was far larger than those they had left. However, she also knew the titles of those books didn’t sound promising.

She looked over towards Misty with annoyance. This had to be some sort of initiation test or something. But then she spotted the concern on Misty’s face, the way she was intently searching the books. Then she remembered the emotion Misty had shown when she first arrived. No, this wasn’t a test.

Strawberry’s scowl softened to a look of sorrow, and she let out a deep sigh. “I’m sorry, Misty.”

“What?” Misty blinked, having not quite heard.

“I said, I’m sorry,” Strawberry groaned. “I’m sorry for questioning if the spell we’re searching for is here. I forgot why we were doing it.”

“Which is?” Misty queried.

“To save somepony,” Strawberry responded. “Just like you saved me from that pony-eating flytrap I created. I…I never said thank you for doing that. If anything, I’m sorry for the way I acted. I’d still be trapped if it wasn’t for you.”

Misty let out a sigh as she looked at the dwindling pile of books they still needed to look through.

“You’re welcome,” she said at last. “But I would have done it for anypony.”

Strawberry watched as Misty retrieved another book. She sighed as, for a moment, Misty reminded her of somepony else. “I kind of thought you would. However, that doesn’t make your actions any less noble.”

Misty blinked, she was about to reply but then her eyes went wide, and she gasped.

Strawberry frowned with concern, “Misty? What is it?”

“It’s the messaging spell! It’s Sunny!” Misty said happily. “Quick, go get the others in the living area. I’ll be down shortly to tell them.”

Strawberry blinked, looking confused. “The what spell?”

“GO!” Misty urged, waving a hoof towards the lift. “Get the others downstairs and tell them Sunny is messaging me.”

Despite still looking confused, Strawberry headed towards the lift to carry out Misty’s instructions.

Meanwhile, Misty’s horn glowed and she frowned as she concentrated on the messaging spell. Finally, she heard Sunny’s voice in her mind.

“Misty, are you there? It’s Sunny, can you hear me?”

“Sunny!” Misty replied with relief. “I hear you, are you okay?”

“I am, I’m with the other missing ponies. I’m so sorry, Misty. I know you all will have been worried and I couldn’t message you until now.”

“It’s okay, I’m just over the Luna Moon to hear from you. Don’t worry, wherever you are, we’ll find you."

"I...I know but I should have listened to Hitch and Zipp. This is way, way, way bigger than I expected!"

"We know, Sunny. Please, don't worry about that, we won't give up. Hitch and Zipp most of all. We'll help all of you, give me as many details as you can.”

With that, Misty quickly grabbed a notebook and pencil and began jotting down everything she could.

It wasn’t long before Misty came hurrying down the ramp and into the living area. Strawberry had done as requested and gathered the others.

“Misty!” Pipp gasped. “Have you really heard from her?”

Misty beamed as she skidded to a stop, “Yes! She’s okay. She’s sorry it took so long to message. She’s maintaining her cover.”

“Sensible,” Zipp smiled. “So, did you get any details of what’s happened to her?”

“Of course,” Misty grinned. “I noted them down too so I wouldn’t forget anything.”

Misty produced her notebook and began flicking through the scribbled pages. Meanwhile, Zipp got her phone ready to record.

“Okay, so she’s been taken to this massive quarry. There’s hundreds of creatures there, all captives like she is.”

“A quarry,” Hitch blinked.

“Details,” Zipp said desperately. “Does she know where?”

Misty sighed and shook her head. “She’s no clue where she is. The creature that took her, it’s called a Nirik. She said they’re the guards in the quarry. But they didn’t teleport her straight there, she woke up on an airship.”

“An airship?” Izzy frowned. “What’s an airship?”

“It’s a flying machine,” Strawberry replied knowingly. “One of the books I have mentions them.”

Zipp sighed, trying not to get too annoyed with the tangents. “Does she know where the airship was when she woke up?”

“Afraid not,” Misty confirmed. “She said she was locked in a cage on-board it for ages. She has no idea how long exactly, just that it transported her and lots of other creatures to the quarry. She said they were all being made to mine something called ‘Arora Ore’. Oh, and the Quarry is the Arora Ridge Quarry.”

“That’s all information we may need but nothing that helps us find her,” Zipp sighed. “Why would these Nirik want the ore?”

“Oh, wait!” Misty gasped. “It’s not the Nirik that wants it. It’s somepony called Allura.”

“Somepony?” Pipp gasped.

“Oh, no! Not somepony,” Misty clarified. “She’s a purple leopard.”

Zipp couldn’t help sighing with disappointment as she tucked her phone away. “Okay, I’m super happy that Sunny’s okay. Apart from that, this isn’t much help finding her.”

“Probably a little optimistic that she’d know her exact location though,” Hitch winked.

“Well, yeah, it’s the biggest flaw with her getting captured plan,” Zipp admitted. “But it’s made more questions than answers. I wish I could have been there to ask things.”

“Well, next time you can,” Misty smiled. “Sunny’s going to message each evening. You can tell me what to ask her.”

Strawberry sniffed arrogantly, “You think Sunny’s going to have all the answers?”

Pipp frowned back at Strawberry with annoyance. “Oh, and have you helped Misty find the location spell yet?”

“No, we’ve not found it yet,” Strawberry admitted.

Misty sighed with resignation. “I’m starting to think the book with it in isn’t there,” she admitted. “We got all the books we could find from Opaline’s but…”

“We could have missed some,” Hitch sighed.

“The titles of those left don’t sound like they’d have that kind of spell in,” Strawberry explained.

The others looked at Misty, her silence and look of sadness were all they needed for confirmation.

“Then our best bet is to capture a Nirik,” Zipp decided.

Izzy gasped and looked worried. “But how are we going to do that? Didn’t Pipp say the one that took Sunny poofed her away and then poofed off itself? How do we know where it’s going to poof next?”

“We know where and when,” Zipp replied. “There’s a pattern, the next disappearance will be from the CanterBlocks Construction Site.”

“And when?” Pipp questioned.

“Tomorrow night,” Zipp replied.

“We’ve got a plan,” Hitch added. “We just need somepony to play bait.”

Pipp frowned, looking concerned. “The Nirik thing that took Sunny was so fast though. How do you plan to capture it before it disappears?”

Zipp let out a sigh of resignation. “That’s another detail I’m kind of still working on,” she confessed.

“We can’t let anypony be taken either,” Hitch revealed before rubbing the back of his head with a hoof. “Yeah, there’s some major kinks that need ironing out.”

“Sounds like we’re starting over then, Strawberry,” Misty sighed as she got up.

Strawberry blinked, looking confused, “Wait, what?”

“The Nirik uses some sort of teleportation,” Misty explained. “We need to see if we can find a spell that will stop that. If the books upstairs don’t have anything then we’ll need to look at those in the basement.”

“Basement?” Strawberry blinked.

“The books from the recent expeditions to Canterlot are down there,” Misty sighed. “What we’ve looked at is nothing compared to how many are down there.”

Misty started walking toward the ramp. However, as she passed Izzy a rumbling sound could be heard from her stomach.

Immediately, Izzy sprung up from her seat and grabbed Misty from behind. “Wait! Stop right there! I heard a rumbling tummy. You are not. I repeat, not! Going hunting through books on an empty tummy.”

Misty groaned as she tried to push Izzy off. “Then bring something up to me,” she insisted. “If Sunset and Starlight were here, they’d know exactly what books to look in. But I don’t, I’ve got to look through all of them and I don’t have enough time.”

“You’ve got help though,” Izzy responded, not letting go.

“No, there’s too much relying on me,” Misty argued.

Suddenly, a stern-looking Strawberry stood in Misty’s path. “You sound so much like your mum,” she said sternly. “The number of times I’ve had to stand in her way. To stop her from pushing herself too hard. You are not alone. You’ve got good friends around you who are going to help you.”

“It’s okay, Misty,” Pipp smiled. “We’ll come up and help. Just tell us what to look for like Sunset did when we were in the Canterlot Library with her.”

Misty groaned, looking at the ground with resignation. “Okay, fine. Food first, then we’ll look for a bit tonight before getting some sleep.”

“Good,” Izzy beamed. “Now sit down, one meal coming up!”

“Wait, Iz,” Pipp squeaked. “I’m coming to help you. Maybe then we can avoid another mess!”

Meanwhile in the quarry, Sunny smiled as she ruffled her wings. She couldn’t help feeling happy after finally hearing Misty’s voice. Sprout however looked at her with confusion. “You do realise you were just talking to yourself?”

Sunny laughed and grinned at him. “It’s called a messaging spell, Sprout. I know you couldn’t hear Misty but trust me I was talking with her just now.”

“You were?” Sprout said, looking confused.

“Yes, it’s like using audio messages,” Sunny explained.

Sprout however looked none the wiser, “Whatever you say, Sunny,” he said brightly. “Come on, I’ll show you where you’ll be sleeping.”

Sunny followed Sprout down the line of brown mats, until he stopped at one and sighed. “It’s really basic I’m afraid. It’s even worse than what I had to sleep on at boot camp. No sheets or pillow either.”

“Anything will be better than the floor of that cage,” Sunny admitted. “What’s with the bowls?”

Sunny pointed to the wall above the mat. There were two bowls set into an alcove in the wall. Each mat seemed to have one.

“Well, one is for food and the other for water,” Sprout explained. “We get fed automatically. It’s really, really nothing to write home about either.”

“It’s awful,” Sugar piped up. “Some sort of oatmeal slop. I tried growing something but the floor’s too hard.”

Sunny’s eyes suddenly widened, and she gasped with surprise. “Wait, do the Nirik know about Earth Pony magic?”

Sprout frowned looking thoughtful. “Don’t think so.”

“I told you,” Sugar snorted. “It doesn’t work in here.”

Sunny groaned and looked around at the others. “Has anypony tried using Earth Pony magic outside the hut?”

Ponies looked at each other questioningly. Many shaking their heads, others looking confused. However, nopony confirmed they had.

“There’s no time to grow anything outside the hut,” Sprout said at last. “We’re watched too much. If you slow down or go off course, then the Nirik notice.”

“Okay that’s good,” Sunny smiled. “It means we’ve got an advantage over them. We can use that in any escape plan.”

“Oh, we’re well on our way with an escape plan,” Sprout smirked. “We’ve started a tunnel.”

Sugar snorted, “Oh please, it’s not a tunnel. It’s a few scratches on the floor.”

“Show me,” Sunny responded.

Sprout shot Sugar an annoyed look before leading Sunny towards the mat in the furthest corner from the door. He pulled it to one side and pointed proudly at what was revealed. A series of scratches in the concrete which formed a square.

“It’s going to take some time to cut through but once we do, we’ll have ourselves an escape tunnel,” Sprout grinned.

“And how are we going to get rid of the dirt?” Sugar groaned. “The Nirik come in every morning and inspect us. They’ll notice a sudden pile of dirt.”

“We’ll worry about that later,” Sunny smiled as she fluttered her wings. “Do we need the concrete?”

Sprout gasped, suddenly realising what Sunny was about to do. “Yes, yes we do. As Sugar says, it’s got to go back in so the Nirik won’t find the tunnel.”

“Okay, stand back everypony,” Sunny grinned.

Sunny studied the marks on the floor, walking around and seemingly forming a plan. Then, she angled her head, aiming her horn at an angle to the floor.

She fired a fine-cutting beam and carefully traced around the marks that were already there. By holding the beam at an angle, she created a socket that the floor would return into.

When she was finished, Sunny beamed with delight as she used her magic to effortlessly lift the piece of floor from the hole, revealing a patch of dark grey earth. She placed the floor down and then looked triumphantly at the others who were all looking impressed.

Lifting a forehoof, Sunny smiled towards Sugar as it began to glow green, and she tapped it on the now-revealed earth. A green aura grew through the ground before a small apple tree started to grow. It quickly grew to full maturity, the golden red apples rapidly ripening and looked ready to be picked. Everypony looked at each other with excitement as Sunny started picking the apples with her levitation.

“Okay, quietly form a line everypony,” Sprout instructed. “I’m sure there’ll be plenty for everypony. We don’t want to share this with our Nirik friends.”

“But we will with the other creatures,” Sunny winked. “A tunnel is a good idea but we can’t escape on our own. We need help.”

“Okay, the problem will be communicating with them,” Sprout sighed.

“We’ll work on that tomorrow,” Sunny smiled.

As Sprout continued to hand out apples, Sunny made her way towards a surprised and confused-looking Sugar and held an apple out for her.

“Sugar, I know Miss Butterscotch put you next to me in class, but we got on so well,” Sunny smiled. “I know that we’ve not really been friends since but don’t worry. When we get out of this, whatever’s happened to you, I’ll help. I promise.”

Sugar frowned as she took the apple. “Okay, whatever, Sunny.” She paused as she looked at the apple. “Thanks.”

Sunny smiled in response before she headed back to the tree to grow more apples. Meanwhile, Sugar headed back to her mat, sitting down on it she looked thoughtfully at the apple. Studying it for a moment before tucking into it.

As she ate, she couldn’t help feeling she had a lot to think about.

Chapter Nine – A Day on the Carts

While having a mat was better than trying to sleep on a hard metal cage floor, and the lights got turned off in the hut, Sunny still struggled to fall asleep. It was nothing like sleeping in her warm, comfortable bed in the Brighthouse. However, once she finally got to sleep, exhaustion kept her there.

A high-pitched beeping eventually awoke her and the lights in the hut turned on. Sunny groaned as she tried to keep her eyes firmly closed. However, the bright light burrowed its way through and forced her awake.

“Come on, Sunny,” Sprout said urgently. “You can’t stay there. You need to get up!”

Sunny grunted as she started trying to move, finding her muscles stiff and unresponsive from the hard mat. “W...What’s happening?”

“You’ve got to be ready to eat,” Sugar groaned. “The food is horrible but trust me, they won’t let you leave any of it.”

Sunny looked confused as there was a lower-toned beep. She was about to ask what that meant when food and water were dispensed into the bowls.

Whilst everypony else started eating, Sunny finally hauled herself from the mat and moved to her bowls. She grimaced at the strange porridge that somehow managed to look both lumpy and runny at the same time.

“I know right,” Sugar sighed. “It’s vile, but you don’t want to be force-fed.”

Sunny looked around unsurely, she couldn’t see any utensils to eat with. Then, she realised the others were all eating straight out of the bowl. Sighing, she moved in to do the same.

The food was indeed horrible. She could feel it sliding all the way down her throat and it left a nasty aftertaste in her mouth. After a few mouthfuls, she had to drink some water before continuing.

“Is this all we’ll be given to drink today?” Sunny asked.

“Most likely,” Sprout advised. “It varies.”

Sunny sighed and continued trying to force the food down.

A short time later, there was another series of beeps. All the others immediately stood by their mats, lining up so they were looking into the central aisle. However, Sunny was still trying to eat as the door was unlocked and swung open.

As a group of four Nirik entered the hut, Sprout realised Sunny wasn't finished. “Sunny,” he hissed.

However, Sunny didn’t hear him and was completely unaware of what was happening.

The Nirik walked down the two lines of ponies. Checking their bridles and harnesses and ensuring they had all eaten. Eventually, one reached Sunny and snarled angrily.

Sunny gasped with surprise as she turned and saw the Nirik. She looked around and realised the others were lined up. The Nirik walked towards her and inspected the bowl. There was a small amount left and the Nirik looked at Sunny expectedly.

Sunny said nothing, she guessed what it was waiting for and ate the last of the food. She looked back at the Nirik, and it pointed to the water. Sunny sighed with relief, she had wanted to wash away the taste anyway.

After she finished, the Nirik had Sunny stand in the line like the others. It checked her harness and bridle before finally moving on. Sunny couldn’t help letting out a sigh of relief, feeling she’d gotten off lightly.

With all their checks completed, the group of Nirik ushered the ponies out of the hut where others were waiting. The Ponies were split into smaller groups and guided to different areas of the quarry. Some of the groups were attached together with leads before being led away.

Sprout kept close to Sunny and ensured they were in the same group. They were escorted towards a set of carts and the Nirik started hitching them up. They appeared to prefer using the larger carts that needed two ponies to pull.

Sunny looked around as she waited her turn, there were two watchtowers looking out over the area. She gasped as Sprout poked her in the side and silently indicated towards one of the carts.

As two Nirik began hitching them up, Sunny watched intently. The Nirik were pulling the straps into position and then using their magic to fasten them. Sunny frowned; it was suddenly becoming clearer to her why only Earth Ponies had been taken.

Once hitched to the cart, Sunny and Sprout were ushered away. Sunny let Sprout take the lead as they started down a track. Eventually, Sprout looked around and smiled.

“If we’re careful we can talk between the towers,” he explained. “The Nirik have good hearing but can’t be everywhere. When we’re near them, stay quiet. I saw you watching them hitching us, there’s no way to undo the straps.”

“I think there is, I’m pretty sure the buckles are activated by magic,” Sunny revealed. “I’ve got to maintain my cover.”

“Why?” Sprout frowned.

“Because we don’t know if the Nirik will recognise me and realise I have magic,” Sunny explained.

“Oh, okay,” Sprout responded.

Sunny frowned, she wasn’t sure if he understood or not. He’d certainly changed after getting the training from the Equestria Guard, but she doubted it would make him smarter.6

They stopped talking as they neared another watch tower, trotting past it with no issues. Then, when she thought they were clear, Sunny started talking again. “I didn’t see that much yesterday. Do you think there is any chance of speaking to the other creatures?”

“Knew you’d say that and it’s going to be difficult,” Sprout explained. “The areas they’re digging are watched and the Nirik are like hawks. Where we unload, there’s fewer Nirik but fewer other creatures as well.”

“Then in the middle, we’re on our own,” Sunny sighed. “What about those other ponies, with the crystal horns?”

“I’ve no clue what they are,” Sprout admitted. “They’re very chatty with each other though. They talk about how nice everything is, how it’s a lovely day and the like. It’s like they have no idea what they’re actually doing or where they are.”

Sunny looked confused, “But I thought there was no talking.”

“There isn’t,” Sprout responded. “But they get away with it somehow.”

Sunny frowned with thought, going silent again as they neared the area where creatures were digging, and they would be loaded.

As they waited, Sunny watched with interest. Now she wasn’t stuck behind another cart she had a much better view. She knew Zipp would want as much information as possible.

She gasped as she watched four massive creatures dig away at the rock face. They looked like a cross between a bear and a bee and each was a different colour.

Suddenly, there was a whistle from one of the Nirik. The four creatures immediately stopped digging and there was a flash from each of them. Sunny’s eyes widened as all four turned into Changelings. She squinted at one before grinning as she realised it was Thymus.

The Changelings all moved to one side, standing under a cover out of the sun. A Nirik stood with them, making them all drink water from a trough.

Meanwhile, a group of other creatures moved in and began digging at a seam of pink rock that had been exposed. Most were Griffons, however there were other creatures with them. Instead of being half lion like the Griffons, they were half pony.

Sunny watched with interest as they loaded the pink stone into baskets. However, suddenly she felt the cart shake. She looked back and saw a group of Diamond Dogs loading the cart with rock. It didn’t take long at all and all too soon they were on their way.

This time as they walked along, other carts were coming the other way. Sunny knew other creatures were pulling carts too. However, she didn’t expect the first one to be pulled by two Yak.

They both looked strange, their normally long and woolly coats had been shaved right back. Sunny frowned as she suddenly realised how hot it was getting as the sun climbed into the sky.

“It’s going to be a hot one,” Sprout sighed. “Hopefully, they’ll have water waiting for us where we unload.”

“Did you see those creatures that look like a cross between a bird and a pony?” Sunny asked.

“What, the Hippogriffs?” Sprout asked. “We were told about them in basic training. They were some of the first creatures to contact Queen Haven after magic returned.”

“Really?” Sunny gasped with surprise. “Why haven’t we heard anything about them?”

“Ah, shoot,” Sprout gasped. “Ah well, it's probably better you know, Queen Haven kept it quiet. We needed to learn to get along with ourselves first. Then you went and met the Dragons and made instant friends with them. There hasn’t been contact with the Hippogriffs since.”

Sunny frowned with thought as they passed another watchtower. Then, a cart pulled by two Hippogriffs passed them. Sunny couldn’t help noticing how, unlike the others she’d seen, their wings were restrained by straps.

Sunny was glad to find water waiting at the central incline. However, she was less enthusiastic about how this was given to them in a trough, it felt so demeaning. However, it was getting hotter, and it was a relief to be able to drink something cool.

Later, Sunny and Sprout were back at the digging area and waiting to be loaded. The cart ahead of them was a large twin axle one pulled by two Yak. Filling it was therefore taking some time to complete.

As the Nirik’s whistle blew, the Changelings pulled back like before. However, whilst the Hippogriffs moved in to dig out the pink ore, the Griffons didn’t.

Sunny and Sprout looked at each other with confusion. Meanwhile, the Nirik looked equally confused. One advanced on the Griffons, snarling and pointing at the pink rock with a flaming hoof.

However, the Griffons didn’t do anything, they didn’t move. The Nirik snarled again, its flaming mane getting bigger as it got angrier.

Reacting to this, more Nirik advanced on the Griffons from where they’d been watching the other creatures, leaving them unsupervised. They stood alongside the first Nirik, all snarling as they stared down the Griffons.

However, there were still more Griffons than Nirik and, suddenly, the Griffons all lunged forward in a coordinated attack. As the Nirik began defending themselves, a group of three Griffons suddenly took to the air. They flew off in the direction of the rim of the quarry.

As Sunny watched the commotion, she heard a whisper. “Pssst, Moondust Twinkle. Down here.”

Sunny gasped as she spotted Thymus hiding under the Yak's cart. Alongside him was a lavender Hippogriff with a yellow beak.

“This is Skysurf,” Thymus introduced quietly.

“Thymus tells me we can trust you,” Skysurf hissed. “Those Griffons are doomed to fail. Their wings are clipped so they will tire before reaching the quarry's edge. We must work together if we are to escape.”

‘Moondust’ nodded before turning to Sprout. “Keep watch, Sprout,” she instructed before looking back at her two visitors. “I agree on needing to work together. What’s your plan?”

“We don’t have one yet,” Thymus admitted. “However, we’ve started a tunnel between our huts so we can meet privately.”

“Thing is, yours is between them,” Skysurf admitted. “It would be silly to not invite you to join us.”

“Sure,” ‘Moondust’ nodded. “We’ve already cut through our floor.”

“R...Really?” Skysurf gasped. “How?”

“Wrap it up,” Sprout hissed urgently. “The Griffons are nearly done.”

“Tell us later,” Thymus gasped. “Our tunnels are well advanced. Where should we aim?”

“The back corner, side nearest the Changelings hut,” ‘Moondust’ instructed. “It’s under the mat there.”

“That’s not far,” Skysurf smiled. “We should reach it tonight if you tap next to it to help us aim.”

“We’ll do that, get back to where you should be,” Sprout advised. “Quickly.”

Thymus and Skysurf nodded and hurried away. Meanwhile, Sunny couldn’t help smiling. Even if the Griffon's escape attempt failed. They’d given them all an opportunity and that gave her more hope than ever.

Author's Note

6 - The Pegasus Guards of Zephyr Heights are on a recruitment drive. Sprout's grandpappy suggested he join as a surprise for Phyllis. He flew through his basic training and joined the unit operating from Maretime Bay.

Chapter Ten – Strawberry for Bait

After a busy morning catching up with things at the Station, Hitch was making his way towards the Brighthouse. As he approached, he felt confused as he could see Misty and Strawberry were stood outside. He thought they would still be searching in books.

Then, he realised they could have found something. However, he couldn’t see what they were doing from a distance. Seeing Misty suddenly disappear with a flash before reappearing again moments later added to his confusion.

As Misty reappeared, she looked at Strawberry with an almighty scowl. “What happened that time?”

Strawberry grunted and scowled back. “I did exactly the same as before,” she snorted. “You must be doing something different.”

Misty sighed with frustration. “I didn’t do anything different. You must be getting the incantation slightly wrong or something. We’ll need to keep practising.”

Strawberry grunted with annoyance as Hitch finally arrived. “Morning, what’s happening here?” he asked brightly. “Did you find something in the books?”

“Morning, Hitch,” Misty sighed. “Yeah, we found a spell that prevents teleportation.”

“That’s excellent news!" Hitch grinned. "Just in time too, we’ve got to get everything ready for this evening. How does it work?”

“It’s an area effect,” Strawberry said matter-of-factly. “I cast the spell and anypony within the area around me can’t teleport.”

“That sounds like just what we need to capture a Nirik," Hitch beamed.

“Yes," Misty sighed, "But there’s a few complications.”

“Oh?” Hitch blinked. “Which are?”

“The area is really small,” Misty explained. “So, the Nirik will need to be very close to who’s casting the spell.”

“Which I keep saying isn’t a problem,” Strawberry replied crossly. “I can get as close as I need to be.”

Hitch blinked and suddenly looked very confused. “Wait, how are you going to do that?”

“She’s going to be the bait,” Misty sighed.

Strawberry couldn’t help grinning as her horn glowed. She transformed into an Earth Pony security guard.

“Woah, woah, woah, I thought the Security Guard was going to be a dummy,” Hitch exclaimed. “Least that’s what Zipp and I planned.”

“Yeah, that’s changed,” Misty admitted. “The only way for Strawberry to be close enough to prevent the teleport is for her to be the bait.”

“Oh,” Hitch gasped. “I’m telling you now, I really don’t like the idea of somepony else playing bait.”

Strawberry smirked arrogantly, “You don’t need to worry, I’ll be completely fine.”

“You won’t if you can’t cast the spell correctly,” Misty frowned.

Hitch blinked before staring back at Misty. “Wait, what?”

“She can’t cast it reliably,” Misty groaned. “She needs more practice.”

“I don’t like the sound of that,” Hitch sighed. “Are you able to cast it, Misty?”

Strawberry couldn’t help smirking as Misty shook her head sadly.

“I don’t know if I could cast it any better as there’s nopony I can test with,” Misty explained. “Also, that’s an advanced disguise spell she’s using. I’ve looked and it’ll take me ages to learn.”

Strawberry’s chest puffed out with pride. “You see, she’s not the most advanced magic user after all.”

Misty sighed and frowned with annoyance. “It’s not a competition.”

“Says the pony who’s currently losing,” Strawberry grinned triumphantly.

“Okay, okay, we get the point,” Hitch said diplomatically. “Does Zipp know about all this?”

Misty nodded. “Yeah, she does. She’s already been making the arrangements.”

“Good, then I’ll go check in with her,” Hitch smiled. “Strawberry, I suggest you keep practising. I’ve not seen you stop Misty teleporting yet.”

“Oh, don’t worry,” Strawberry smiled arrogantly. “I will!”

It was late afternoon at the CanterBlocks Hydroelectric Construction Site. Phyllis stood on a balcony outside one of the Portacabins that made up the main site office. She was looking out towards Maretime Bay from her elevated position, watching intently.

Meanwhile, down below, Cobalt Blocks was busy moving the last few items of construction materials as he cleared a landing pad.7

Finally, Phyllis spotted the Marestream approaching and called down to Cobalt. “They’re nearly here.”

“No problem,” Cobalt called back. “Everything’s ready down here.”

It wasn’t long before Phyllis and Cobalt watched as the Marestream touched down on the makeshift landing pad. As they both waited as the group disembarked, Phyllis sighed and looked worriedly at her business partner. “I…I don’t see Sunny.”

“The reports must be true then,” Cobalt frowned.

Zipp had a look of concern on her face as she made her way towards where they were standing.

“So, is it true then, Zipp?” Phyllis asked. “Sunny is gone?”

Zipp gave a small nod. “Yes, she didn’t listen and got herself in over her head. Finding her and the others rides on being successful tonight.”

“Are we hearing right?” Cobalt frowned. “You’ve swapped from using the dummy to having somepony play bait?”

Zipp let out a sigh. “Yes, and it’s not my preferred option. But for the anti-teleport spell to work, the caster needs to be close to the Nirik. Strawberry will disguise herself with a spell and be our bait.”

Phyllis gulped and looked at Zipp with concern. “I don’t like this, Zipp,” she admitted. “I don’t understand spells, but we’ve done a really good job on the old CanterLogic test dummy. These Nirik wouldn’t be able to tell the difference.”

Zipp was about to respond when Strawberry trotted over, chest puffed out proudly and with a confident smirk on her face. “I appreciate your concern but there’s really no need,” she said arrogantly. “When the Nirik appears, I’ll cast the anti-teleport spell, and it will be completely helpless.”

“You’re certain you’ve learnt the spell,” Zipp frowned.

“Completely,” Strawberry said haughtily. “You keep asking and I keep telling you. I’m not a beginner, it doesn’t take me long to learn new spells.”

In the background, Misty frowned and rolled her eyes. Meanwhile, Zipp ignored Strawberry’s posturing and turned back to Phyllis and Cobalt. “Have all the other arrangements been made?”

“Yes,” Phyllis nodded.

“We sent the entire workforce home this morning,” Cobalt explained. “They should be back with their families now.”

“Queen Haven provided us with members of the Equestria Guard for security,” Phyllis continued. “Their checkpoints are someway away. Cobalt and I are the only ones here and the site is completely secure.”

Zipp nodded thankfully. “Good, Good, you both should stay with Hitch in your offices where it’s safe. Leave this all to us.”

Phyllis and Cobalt both nodded in agreement.

It didn’t take long to set things up. Hiding places were positioned whilst Strawberry donned her disguise and sat in the guard hut. As she looked around, she activated her earpiece. “So, what do I do again?”

Hitch couldn’t help sighing before responding. “Just sit there. Now and then, I’ll tell you to walk out of the hut to the other side of the gateway and back. Make it look like you’re patrolling.”

“Is that all?” Strawberry grunted.

“Yes,” Zipp groaned. “Misty and I are close. We’ll back you up once you stop the Nirik from being able to get away. Then, Pipp and Izzy are ready to help contain it.”

Strawberry grunted with annoyance. “Why can’t I go further than just across the road? It’s not much of a patrol route. Why don’t I…”

“Because last time we did this there were too many variables,” Hitch interrupted. “We’re keeping this simple. I’ve got an overview via the site’s CCTV. Strawberry, please, do as I tell you.”

“Fine, fine,” Strawberry grumbled.

From her hiding spot, Misty held a hoof to her mouth as she yawned. She couldn’t help feeling worried. Not only because she wasn’t sure Strawberry could cast the spell. She was feeling increasingly tired and didn’t want to fall asleep.

It wasn’t long before night fell, and it got increasingly darker. Although, the area was floodlit which made things simpler.

However, as time ticked by slowly, Strawberry got increasingly bored. Eventually, she let out a deep sigh as she looked around. “If this is what being an actual security guard is like, it’s a boring job.”

From her hiding place, Pipp too was getting bored to death. “Are we sure the Nirik is coming? There’s not even any signal out here!”

“Good job,” Hitch grunted. “Or you’d not be paying attention. The Nirik that took Sunny appeared much later than this, so stay alert. Strawberry, if you're falling asleep, do another patrol.”

Strawberry rolled her eyes and got up from her chair. She walked to the door of the hut and out into the now frigid night air.

She walked across the gateway, looking around with an uninterested expression. As she reached the other side, she rolled her eyes and sighed with annoyance. Holding her tongue, she turned around.

Which was when there was a flash of flame in front of her. Strawberry squeaked with surprise and looked on, wide-eyed, as a Nirik appeared. She stared blankly at the creature before her, she’d never seen anything like it. The Nirik snarled and its curved horn started to glow.

Strawberry gasped, suddenly remembering what she was supposed to be doing. She tried to remember the anti-teleport spell. However, before she could even start, the Nirik fired a beam straight towards her.

“Aaaah,” Strawberry cried as the beam hit her and she disappeared.

The Nirik gave a small growl, its horn was just starting to glow again when a beam hit it in the back of the head. It growled with annoyance, whirring around and through narrowed eyes, it began scanning for the source of the beam.

Suddenly, a flash from the nearby undergrowth caught its attention. The Nirik snarled and fired a beam directly at it.

However, there was another flash behind it as Misty appeared. Immediately, she fired another beam into the Nirik’s back, making it stumble forward.

The Nirik spun around with an enraged growl. Its horn glowed again, and it fired a beam directly at Misty.

Misty narrowed her eyes, lighting her horn and creating a shield around herself. The Nirik’s beam impacted the shield and had no effect. Jumping to one side as she lowered the shield, Misty fired at the Nirik again.

From her hiding place, Zipp watched in awe as Misty and the Nirik traded shots. It was abundantly clear that Misty was holding back. She wanted to knock the Nirik out and was trying to do so without severely hurting it.

What was less clear was what the Nirik was doing. Why didn’t it teleport away?

Zipp decided that didn’t matter, she needed to help Misty. She reached for her earpiece and readied herself. “I’m moving in to help.”

“NO! Stay hidden, Zipp,” Hitch ordered. “The Nirik could be using teleporting beams. We need to leave this to Misty, she can defend herself. You can’t. Everypony maintain your positions!”

Zipp scowled and begrudgingly held her position, “Understood.”

Misty reappeared after using a teleport to reposition. She fired a beam which hit the Nirik in the side of its neck. As it impacted, it’s mane was deflected, and Misty gasped as she spotted something. A box attached to a collar around its neck, the multiple flashing LEDs making it stand out clearly.

The Nirik growled and spun around to where Misty was now standing. Misty squeaked as the Nirik fired another beam at her, only just managing to raise her shield in time.

However, she now had a new target. With a look of determination, she teleported again and swapped sides. After reappearing, she spotted where the collar was and carefully aimed.

The Nirik was slow to react as Misty’s beam hit its mark. Impacting the collar, the beam cut its way through the material. As the collar fell away, the Nirik let out a visceral growl as it was suddenly enveloped in a ball of fire.

Everypony watched in surprise as the fire dissipated. Instead of the Nirik, another creature stood in its place. The creature looked completely dazed, wobbling on its hoofs before its eyes turned back in its head. Groaning, it fell to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust as it did so.

Misty stood panting as she watched the creature intently. However, after a few moments, she let out a sigh of relief as she sat down. Gasping for breath, she looked upwards and closed her eyes. Her mouth was dry, and she suddenly felt exhausted as the adrenaline of battle started to wear off.

With the threat seemingly over, Izzy came bounding from her hiding place. “MISTY!”

Misty looked but had no time to react as Izzy jumped at her. Squeaking, Misty found herself held tightly in Izzy’s embrace. Her eyes bulged as Izzy squeezed her.

“You did it!” Izzy cried. “You caught it!”

“Well, she’s caught something,” Zipp said as she approached. “Misty, what did you do?”

Misty didn’t reply, she only grunted and gasped for air. She desperately tapped Izzy on the side with a hoof.

Izzy blinked and her eyes widened as she spotted Misty’s desperate wide-eyed expression. “Oops.”

Misty gasped for air as Izzy loosened her vicelike grip around her. Feeling her wobble, Izzy held Misty to support her as Pipp and Hitch finally arrived.

Eventually, Misty recovered enough breath to respond. “I…I spotted a collar,” she panted. “Around it’s neck. I managed to cut it off.”

“Wait, and that’s when it transformed?” Zipp gasped.

“Y…Yeah,” Misty gasped. “It had loads of blinking lights on it. I thought it must be important and went with my gut.”

Zipp frowned as she found and picked up the now damaged collar. “Interesting.”

“Well done, Misty,” Hitch smiled as he patted her on the back with a hoof before sighing. “Why didn’t Strawberry use the anti-teleport spell? Now we’ve got to rescue her as well.”

Misty’s face fell into a scowl. “She wasn’t ready, but she was too arrogant to admit it,” she grimaced and looked down sorrowfully. “Now she’s gone.”

“Everything keeps going wrong when ponies play bait,” Pipp commented. “Can we not do that anymore? I don’t want to be next!”

“You won’t because nopony is playing bait again,” Zipp frowned as she studied the collar. “Misty, can Strawberry contact you?”

Misty sighed and shook her head. “I can message her, but she won’t be able to respond. We concentrated on the anti-teleporting spell.”

“And she can’t teleport,” Hitch sighed.

Misty groaned as she shook her head sadly.

“Okay, there’s two things,” Zipp said optimistically. “Firstly, they’ve not taken Unicorns before and hopefully won’t want one. They might send her back.

“Secondly, when our friend here wakes up. They should be able to tell us how to find the airship or the quarry.”

“Speaking of what are we doing with it?” Hitch asked as he checked the creature over. “It’s still breathing, just knocked out.”

“Misty, can you put it in the Prison Sphere?” Zipp inquired.8

Misty took a deep breath and narrowed her eyes, “I can try, I think I remember the incantation for the basic one. The same that Opaline used on Sunset. It will stop it from getting away or teleporting.”

“That should do fine,” Zipp smiled.

Misty nodded and started to get to her hoofs. Izzy gasped as she was forced to let her go. Misty smiled at her gratefully before indicating to her friends that they should all get back.

With a deep calming breath, Misty closed her eyes and focused. Then, she opened her eyes and fired a beam of magic at the creature. With a flash, the creature was trapped within a translucent sphere that floated a few feet from the ground.

“There,” Misty groaned as she sat down. “It’s going nowhere. C…Could I maybe go have a rest now? Please?”

“Phyllis prepared quarters for us,” Hitch smiled. “Go rest, Misty. We’ll take our friend here somewhere safe and wrap things up here.”

“We’ll come and get you when food’s ready,” Pipp smiled kindly.

Misty nodded and slowly started heading towards the main offices.

After speaking with Phyllis, Misty was shown to a small room. It had a single bed, a desk, and a small washbasin.

Groaning, she lay down on the bed. Hoping to at least have a nap before she was summoned to eat. However, a tingling sensation in her horn put paid to that.

Misty couldn’t help groaning as she sat up. However, she suddenly realized what the sensation was. Gasping, her horn glowed as she focused on the messaging spell.

“Misty, are you there? It’s Sunny, you’ll never guess all the progress we’ve made!”

Author's Note

7 - Cobalt Blocks is a Pegasus Pony with an expert eye for construction. Before joining forces with Phyllis, his companies kept failing as he's not much of a business pony. Now, Phyllis looks after the business side whilst he takes care of the actual construction. Together they run 'CanterBlocks'.
8 - The Prison Sphere so called because Opaline used one to contain Sunset Shimmer. Sunset found that escaping it was impossible, she drained herself of all her magic in her escape attempts.

Chapter Eleven – An Alliance of Escapees

As the ponies were all ushered inside their hut, Sunny immediately made her way to the very back. She stopped and waited until the door had been firmly closed and locked before she activated her powers.

“Sunny!” Sprout gasped. “What are you up to?”

Sunny grinned as she moved the mat and removed the concrete floor ‘plug’. “Sprout, start tapping next to the hole,” she instructed. “I’m going to make another hole for us to grow food.”

Sprout suddenly remembered and with a look of understanding did as instructed. Meanwhile, Sugar and the other ponies watched on with confusion.

Sunny moved the next mat in the row, then angling her horn she fired a fine cutting beam. Walking around in a circle she created a smaller round hole. One which would be big enough to grow plants but not for anypony to get through.

Sugar frowned with annoyance as she watched Sunny remove the round ‘plug’ and Sprout continued to tap on the floor with a hoof. “Okay, you’re acting weird, Sunny. You’ve even got Sprout acting strange. That’s saying something.”

“Hey,” Sprout frowned as he continued to tap.

Sunny giggled giddily, “We made contact with other creatures, Thymus the Changeling and Skysurf the Hippogriff. Their huts are on either side of ours and they’ll be busy digging towards Sprout’s tapping right now.”

Sugar blinked with confusion as the others looked at each other. “So, what you're saying is we’re getting visitors?”

“Yes, isn’t it exciting? Eee he he,” Sunny squeaked. “If we all work together then we’ll all escape.”

Sugar scowled with annoyance. “I don’t think escaping will be quite that easy, Sunny.”

“Maybe not,” Sprout interjected. “But it’s a start. At least with tunnels between our huts, we’ll be able to plan a coordinated effort.”

“Wow, big words for a little Sprout,” Sugar goggled. “Can we grow some food then?”

“Not yet,” Sunny instructed as her powers disappeared. “We need to wait for them to get here first.”

“Okay fine,” Sugar sighed. “But I’m still getting my apple tonight.”

“Don’t worry, Sugar. I’ll make sure you do,” Sunny beamed.

As the evening went on, Sunny’s previous enthusiasm started to wane as nothing seemed to happen. Both she and Sprout began taking turns tapping on the floor. Especially when there was a low-toned beep and food was dispensed.

“Do they come and check we’ve eaten?” Sunny asked worriedly.

“No, but if you don’t finish it tonight, it will still be there tomorrow morning,” Sprout advised.

“They’ll make you finish it then,” Sugar grumbled.

“I take it you talk from experience, Sugar,” Sunny smirked.

Sugar’s scowl was all the confirmation Sunny needed.

Later, Sugar was laid on her mat watching as Sunny continued to tap next to the hole. She was tempted to ignore what Sunny had said and grow some decent food. However, she didn’t get the chance.

Suddenly, there was a scraping sound and Sunny stopped tapping. She gasped, as the ground in the hole began to shift. Then, it disappeared, and revealed a very dirty Thymus.

“Moondust Twinkle,” Thymus smiled. “It’s good to see you.”

‘Moondust’ grinned as she offered a hoof to Thymus. He took it gratefully and ‘Moondust’ pulled him from the hole.

“Some of us thought you wouldn’t make it,” ‘Moondust’ smiled, shooting a look at Sugar.

“I did say our tunnel was advanced,” Thymus smiled. “It shouldn’t be too long until Skysurf arrives.”

Suddenly, there was a tapping sound from under the floor on the opposite side of the room. Sprout gasped and immediately resumed tapping on the floor.

“Thanks, Sprout,” ‘Moondust’ grinned. “Seems you're right, Thymus, she’s not far off.”

“I may as well assist her,” Thymus grinned as he headed back into the hole.

It wasn’t long before ‘Moondust’ and Sprout were pulling both Thymus and Skysurf from the hole. However, they were surprised to find that behind Skysurf was a dark blue Griffon.

“So, these are the Ponies,” the Griffon sniffed. “To be clear, we ain’t joining you yet. I wanna hear your plans first.”

“Well, before that let’s make some proper introductions,” Skysurf suggested. “I’m Skysurf, I’m here to represent the Hippogriffs of Mount Aris and Seaquestria. There are many of us here, we’re all desperate to escape and return home. Especially those of us who prefer to live in Seaquestria. I’m the personal guard of Coral Cloud, the daughter of our Queen.”

“Seaquestria?” ‘Moondust’ gasped. “Where’s that? If it’s underwater, how do you breathe?”

Skysurf smiled. “It’s under the sea near Mount Aris. Hippogriffs have long lived both on land and in the sea. We transform into Seaponies to live below the waves.”

‘Moondust’ gasped in amazement as the Griffon grunted and rolled her eyes.

Thymus smiled knowingly. “You know Equestria has been isolated for moons. They are going to have many questions. Why don’t you introduce yourself?”

“Yeah, ponies are so naive,” the Griffon snorted before sighing. “Fine, I’m Giselle, I’ll decide on behalf of the Griffons of Griffonstone if we’re going to join in here. So, Changeling, why don’t you impress me with your changing?”

“Well, firstly my name is Thymus,” he sighed. “I’m a guard and sworn protector of the changeling hive. I’m sorry to disappoint you, Giselle, the collar the Nirik fitted me with prevents me from using my changeling abilities.”

“But you do change,” Giselle frowned. “I’ve seen you.”

Thymus nodded. “Yes, when we are at the dig sites, we’re able to transform into Bugbears. But only Bugbears and only when we’re within the dig sites. They can also turn it off at any time and force us back to normal form.”

‘Moondust’ gasped as Giselle frowned with annoyance. She poked Sprout in the side, indicating he should introduce himself.

“Oh, errr. So, I’m Sprout Cloverleaf. I’m a Private in the Equestria Guard based in Maretime Bay.”

Skysurf gasped and suddenly looked very interested. “Maretime Bay? What’s that?”

“It’s the Earth Pony town,” Sprout explained. “We’re all from Maretime Bay originally. Although some of us moved to the Pegasus City, Zephyr Heights.”

“As its name suggests, Maretime Bay is situated on the coast,” ‘Moondust’ explained.

“So, is it right you were all divided until recently?” Skysurf asked.

“Yes, we were,” Sugar nodded in the background.

“Well, as we’re in your hut, please feel free to join our discussion,” Thymus smiled. “What is your name?”

Sugar sighed in resignation before stepping forward. “I’m Sugar Moonlight. Before unification, I worked as a model for CanterLogic. But it’s closed now.”

“CanterLogic produced personal protection equipment,” Sprout explained. “We Earth Ponies can’t fly or use magic, so we needed a way to protect ourselves. My mom was the CEO, she closed it after unification.”

“Unification?” Giselle blinked.

“That was when all three pony kinds reunited,” Sugar explained before sighing. “An Earth Pony was brave enough to make friends with Unicorns and Pegasi. Together they travelled across Equestria and found the three Unity Crystals. They reunited us all and brought back magic.”

“How wonderful,” Giselle snorted.

“You’ve suddenly gone very quiet, Moondust Twinkle,” Thymus said worriedly. “I thought you’d be excited by this.”

“I’m just, being cautious,” ‘Moondust’ frowned. “Giselle, you look familiar. Did you attempt an escape on the airship?”

Giselle grunted with annoyance. “Yeah, that was me. If you were one of those idiots who started shouting, we’re going to have words.”

“Moondust and I were there,” Thymus admitted. “But we only watched. We didn’t contribute to the noise that caused your downfall.”

Giselle’s expression softened slightly. “Good. Whilst I’m still not convinced by this. The Griffons have been recklessly trying anything to escape. It’s landed many of us in high-security confinement, myself included.”

“What’s that?” Skysurf frowned.

“They lock you in cages, amongst other things,” Giselle snorted. “Allura got angry with how many of us were in there this afternoon and turfed us all out.

“Anyway, whilst the Griffon tactics need to change. I don’t currently see what working with you lot will achieve. Especially you ponies, no offence. But you’re stuck pulling carts. You’re going to be no help at all.”

‘Moondust’ took a deep breath and frowned. “Then, my question to you all is this. Can I trust you?”

“Trust us?” Skysurf gasped.

“Can I trust you to keep a secret from the Nirik,” ‘Moondust’ clarified looking pointedly at Giselle.

Thymus nodded reassuringly. “Of course, you can trust me, and the other Changelings. We owe the Ponies a great deal from deeds done in the past. I hope we can rekindle past relations with Equestria.”

“Same here,” Skysurf nodded. “You can trust me and the other Hippogriffs. When we were attacked by the Nirik. Coral Cloud and I were part of a delegation heading to Equestria. We want to restart our friendly relations that our ancestors enjoyed with you.”

Giselle scowled with annoyance. “Well let me put it this way. Anything you say stays within this hut. I won’t tell the other Griffons unless you want them to know.”

Sunny sighed. “Close enough because I want to introduce myself properly. My name isn’t Moondust Twinkle. It’s Sunny Starscout.

“Sugar mentioned an Earth Pony who made friends and travelled Equestria to reunite us all. Well, that pony was me and when we reconnected the Unity Crystals, I was given something special.”

Sunny took a step back from the others, closing her eyes she activated her powers with a flash. She spread her wings and flexed them a few times before folding them against her sides.

“Okay, now things are getting interesting,” Giselle gasped.

Thymus nodded understandingly. “I can see why you are being cautious, Sunny Starscout. It is good to meet you properly.”

Sunny sighed and looked down. “Thymus, I’m sorry for deceiving you on the airship. I was being honest about my friends though. They are looking for me and I’ve even been able to use my magic to message them.”

Giselle’s eyes lit up. “You have magic then!”

Sunny nodded. “Yes.”

Giselle jumped forward, a beaming grin on her face. “Then teleport us home!”

Sunny gasped, stepping back in shock. “I…I can’t.”

“Sure you can,” Giselle beamed. “I’ve heard the stories of pony magic. You teleport, fire rainbow beams, and turn creatures into stone. What are you waiting for?”

Sunny gulped, suddenly wondering if this had been such a good idea. “I…I can’t teleport you. Well, I could, as far as the other end of this hut. But you’d appear upside down.”

Giselle pulled a confused face. “What?”

Sunny sighed and shook her head. “I don’t know why it won’t work right for me. My friend, Misty, is currently the only Pony in Equestria that can teleport properly. She’d maybe be able to take three others with her, but that’s it.”

“When we divided, we lost magic as well,” Sprout interjected. “Sunny and her friends brought it back with the Unity Crystals.”

“That’s why they’re the Guardians of Unity,” Sugar added. “They didn’t just bring back magic. They defeated a powerful enemy too, one who threatened all Equestria.”

Giselle’s eyes twinkled. “Was that with a rainbow beam?”

“Yes, that was using powerful artefacts called the Elements of Unity,” Sunny confirmed with a small smile. “I can’t do that on my own though. I can only do that with my friends, I don’t have my element with me either.”

“Okay, okay,” Giselle said as she held up her claws. “You’ve convinced me, I’m in. The thought that you are in contact with these Guardian friends of yours sounds good.”

“The Nirik must not find out about you,” Skysurf said suddenly. “I don’t know who you are, but the Nirik know who’s important. Coral Cloud was the most important Griff in our delegation, they targeted her specifically.”

“They may already know you’re here,” Thymus said gravely. “Pseudonym or no, I suspect they’ll recognise that mark you have on your flank.”

Sprout couldn’t help laughing and the creatures all looked at him confusedly. “Oh, don’t worry,” he chuckled. “I’ve known her since we were foals and when she came through that door, I didn’t recognise her.”

“I’m kind of not normally this colour, it’s a disguise,” Sunny sighed as she looked down with embarrassment. “You all knew you were dealing with Nirik when you were captured. I didn’t. I thought we were dealing with disgruntled Pegasus Ponies.

“There have been protests from a group of them against unification. My friends, Hitch and Zipp. They told me we didn’t know what we were dealing with, but I didn’t listen. I should have, Hitch is the Sheriff of Maretime Bay and Zipp is a brilliant Detective. They knew something didn’t add up but I paid no attention.

“I convinced my other friends it was Pegasi too. I knew Pipp and Izzy would enjoy creating this disguise. Also, I knew Misty would enjoy teaching me a new spell.

“So, when the Nirik appeared, I wasn’t ready at all. I completely screwed it up.”

“None of which matters,” Sugar responded. “You made a mistake, get over it. I bet you’ll listen to Zipp and Hitch next time.”

Sunny looked at Sugar with a thankful smile and Giselle let out a groan.

“Okay, that actually sounds pretty similar to my story,” she admitted. “I didn’t know why Griffs were going missing either. I just jumped into things too. I wasn’t the bait, but I got caught trying to stop a Nirik getting away after it surprised us.”

“It sounds like we have a lot in common,” Skysurf smiled. “I think this alliance will work well. The last thing I want to know is, what’s with the other hole?”

Sunny smiled. “I’m sure Sugar will be pleased to show you. She’s been waiting all night.”

“Finally,” Sugar sniffed.

She moved over to the smaller hole in the floor and raised a forehoof. The creatures gasped as it glowed with a green aura.

Then, as Sugar tapped her glowing hoof on the ground, the creatures watched in awe as a small Apple Tree grew from the hole. The apples quickly ripened to maturity and Sugar grinned as she picked one.

“Oh wow,” Giselle gasped. “Okay, everything I said before about you Ponies being useless I take back. You guys are epic.”

“That is Earth Pony magic,” Sunny smiled. “We’ve only had it since unification. We can grow any plants instantly.”

“But, what happens when the Nirik come in tomorrow?” Skysurf asked worriedly.

“They won’t have a clue,” Sunny beamed. “We can reverse plant growth too, so that tree will be gone when we’re done with it.”

“We just need soil,” Sprout added. “We couldn’t grow anything substantial on this concrete.”

“I knew there was more to you Ponies,” Thymus grinned. “Alas, time is getting away from us. We had better leave before lights out.”

“Make sure you take some Apples with you,” Sunny grinned. “Don’t worry, we can make the tree produce as many as we want.”

With that, the creatures each said their goodbyes and headed into the tunnel. Each loaded up with apples before carefully making their way through.

After they’d gone, Sunny carefully placed the concrete ‘plug’ in the hole. She shot Sprout and Sugar a confident smile.

“You sure you made the right choice?” Sugar frowned. “Showing them your powers?”

“We’re not going to escape on our own,” Sunny sighed. “I don’t think I’d even be able to get away on my own. We need to trust them, and they need to trust us.”

“At least you managed to convince Giselle,” Sprout grinned. “Although you ought to have upside down teleported her. That would have been proper funny.”

Sugar snorted in disgust. “Well, we ought to tidy up. Lights will be going out soon.”

“Yeah, let's do that,” Sunny smiled before gasping. “Oh no! I need to message Misty!”

“It’s fine, Sunny,” Sprout smiled. “We’ll take care of it.”

“Whatever,” Sugar groaned.

As Sugar and Sprout made sure everypony had been given an apple and started tidying. Sunny walked to the corner of the room as her horn started glowing.

“Misty, are you there? It’s Sunny, you’ll never guess all the progress we’ve made!”

Chapter Twelve – Meeting a Kirin

“Misty, are you there? It’s Sunny, you’ll never guess all the progress we’ve made!”

“S…Sunny,” Misty gasped. “I’m here, w…we’ve made progress too.”

“Misty, are you okay? You sound worn out?”

“I…I am. I’ve just caught a Nirik. Well, it was a Nirik.”

“Was?”

“Yeah, it was wearing this collar, so I shot it off. It changed, transformed. W…We’ve got it in a Prison Sphere, a…and I was about to take a nap.”

“Oh, Misty! I’m so sorry, you sound really exhausted. Things have been happening here and I completely forgot I still needed to message you!”

“It…It’s fine, I wouldn’t have been able to receive it until now anyway,” Misty admitted. “Please, tell me what’s been happening?”

“Well, we’ve got an alliance going here. Today, Sprout and I made contact with Thymus the Changeling and Skysurf the Hippogriff. This evening, they dug tunnels between our huts. They’ve just left with Giselle the Griffon, they agreed we’ll all work together to escape.”

“Th…That’s great news.”

“Misty, how soon do you think you’ll be here?”

“I…I don’t know. We need to wait for the Nirik creature to wake up first.”

“Wake up?”

“Yeah, when the collar came off it kind of collapsed. I...I’m worried it might not know where the Airship is. I…I’ll have to get back to you on that.”

“That’s okay, Misty. I know you’re all doing everything you can. I’m still so sorry for messing up like this. I’ll message you tomorrow evening when they’re all here.”

“S…Sounds good. I’ll make sure Z…Zi…Zipp’s with me too.”

“Bye, Misty. Get some sleep.”

“Bye, S…Sunny. W…We’ll sa…save you.”

With that, Misty collapsed onto the bed. Her eyes closed even before her head hit the pillow.

However, she didn’t stay asleep long as there was soon a knock on the door. Misty groaned and didn’t reply. However, that didn’t stop Pipp opening the door and poking her head inside. “Misty? Food’s ready.”

Misty groaned, bringing her hoofs to her eyes, and rubbing them blearily. She started to push herself up from the bed but was clearly struggling.

“Oh, Misty,” Pipp gasped as she came inside to help. “Come on, you need to eat. Why are you so tired? That didn’t look like it was a taxing battle.”

Misty groaned as she blearily looked at Pipp. “I…I might have been up most of last night looking at books.”

Pipp’s eyes widened with surprise. “But you came to bed with the rest of us?”

“I did,” Misty nodded. “But I couldn’t sleep so went back upstairs.”

Pipp frowned with confusion. “How? The lift always wakes me up when it’s activated.”

“Yeah, that’s why I teleported up there,” Misty confessed.

“Oh, Misty,” Pipp sighed as she put a hoof around her and helped her off the bed. “Come on, lean on me. Let’s get some food in you and then you can get some proper sleep.”

With that, Pipp led Misty out of the room and towards the office where hot food had been prepared.

It was early the next morning and Pipp sighed as she aimlessly tapped away on her phone. She couldn’t help feeling relief that Phyllis had provided her with wireless access.

She was sat in the room that they’d brought the creature into. Hitch and Zipp had wanted to split watching it between them, however, Pipp insisted that she took a watch too. She hadn’t wanted Zipp to get too tired. However, she soon regretted it after her early morning wake-up call.

She sighed as she looked at the unconscious creature. Its coat was a light brown and there were dark green scales which ran from its nose over its head and down its back.

From its forehead, it had a dark red horn which curved backwards and split into a Y shape. This had multiple stripes of lighter red circling it. Its mane was burgundy red, bushy and curly with the appearance of a lion mane. Its tail was long and thin with more thick burgundy red hair growing at the end.

It looked completely different to the angry fiery creature that had taken Sunny and Strawberry. However, as she continued to study it, Pipp suddenly realised that its eyelids were starting to flutter.

Slowly, the creature began to stir. It groaned as its eyes opened and, slowly, it brought a hoof to its head. Pipp gasped, she put her phone away and moved closer to the sphere. The creature groaned as it slowly began to push itself up into a seating position. Then, it spotted its own hoof and, with a confused expression, studied it intently. “I…I…I’m f…free?”

Pipp watched the creature intently as it continued to study its hoof with widened eyes. Then, it looked up and spotted her. Wide-eyed and slack-jawed, its body trembled with what appeared to be fear.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay,” Pipp coaxed. “I’m not going to hurt you.”

“W…Who, w…where?” The creature closed its eyes in pain, putting a hoof on its head and grimacing. “Th…The blue one? Where? Rescued…”

“It’s okay, it’s all going to be okay,” Pipp persuaded. “Do you have a name?”

The creature opened its eyes and looked confused. “N…Name? Do I have a name?” Suddenly, its eyes lit up with recognition and it looked at Pipp with confidence. “I’m Feather Breeze.”

Pipp beamed, fluttering her wings with joy. “That’s a beautiful name Feather Breeze. I’m so pleased to meet you. I’m Pipp Petals but you can call me Pipp.”

“Pipp,” Feather Breeze repeated. “You’re Pipp.”

Feather Breeze grimaced again, holding a hoof to her head in pain. Pipp couldn’t help but feel concerned. “Are you okay?”

“I…I think so,” Feather Breeze responded. “My mind is getting clearer and clearer. It’s been so long.”

“What has?” Pipp asked worriedly.

Feather Breeze sighed and looked down sadly. “Since I was myself.”

Pipp moved towards the sphere, placing a hoof on it reassuringly. “It’s okay, you’re safe here. What did you mean? Why wouldn’t you be yourself?”

Feather Breeze blinked, looking around and finally realised she was inside the sphere. “W…What? What is this?”

She held out a hoof and touched it. Then she banged on it a couple of times, confirming she was trapped. “P…Please, let me out. I’m not a threat, I promise.”

“It’s only a precaution,” Pipp reassured. “It’s going to be okay.”

“No, nonono, please,” Feather Breeze gasped with wide eyes. “I…I’m not… I have to help them. Please, let me out!”

“It’s okay, you’re safe. Nopony can hurt you,” Pipp reassured. “Help who?”

Feather Breeze’s eyes widened, and she jumped to her hoofs. “The Kirin!” She exclaimed angrily. “They’re all prisoners in their own minds! I have to help them! Let. Me. OUT!”

Pipp gasped as Feather Breeze suddenly erupted in a burst of flame. She jumped back as the flame swirled around within the sphere. It dissipated and revealed Feather Breeze had transformed into the same Nirik form she’d had before Misty removed the collar.

“You don’t understand, they’re all in trouble!” Feather Breeze shouted. “My friends and family are all trapped in the quarry! I have to help them!”

Pipp’s eyes widened as she started to piece together what she’d been told. “We will,” she reassured. “We will help them. I have friends trapped in the quarry too. We can rescue them together.”

“To…Together?” Feather Breeze repeated, her eyes widening and her fiery mane diminishing.

“That’s right,” Pipp calmed. “But we’ll only do it by working together. I want to let you out, but I can’t. I don’t have that kind of magic.”

Feather Breeze sat down, taking deep breaths, and trying to calm herself.

“That’s it,” Pipp smiled. “Deep breaths, it’s okay. We’ll help you, we’ll help them, together.”

“Together,” Feather Breeze gasped as she erupted in flames again.

Pipp couldn’t help feeling relieved as Feather Breeze transformed back into what she assumed was her Kirin form.

“I…I’m sorry,” Feather Breeze gasped as she held her head in her hoofs. “I just want to help my friends and family.”

“You will,” Pipp reassured. “Please, we know nothing about you and your kind.”

Feather Breeze took a deep breath and looked at Pipp with interest. “I know nothing about your kind either.”

Pipp smiled and spread her wings. “I’m a Pegasus pony, I fly, and I sing.”

“Sing?” Feather Breeze blinked hopefully.

Pipp gave a powerful flap of her wings, she lifted into the air and rotated around as she sang a verse from one of her songs.

You gotta follow your beat
And then soon you will see
You won't have that far to go
Until your song starts to grow
All you need is your beat

Feather Breeze finally smiled as Pipp’s hoofs reconnected with the floor. “I used to sing, before the quarry,” she sighed. “I’m a Kirin, our village is near the Peaks of Peril. Well, it used to be.”

“So, what’s with the fire thing?” Pipp asked.

“When we get angry, Kirin transform into Nirik,” Feather Breeze sighed. “I think it was a defence mechanism. Thanks to Allura, I…I haven’t been in my Kirin form for some time.”

“Allura? Isn’t she the leader of the quarry?” Pipp queried.

Feather Breeze nodded. “Our leader, Winters Breath, is good friends with the leader of the Auroricorns, Violet Frost. Violet Frost sent a message, saying the Auroricorns were in trouble. So, a group of us went to help, including me. But it was a trap.”

“A trap?” Pipp gasped.

Feather Breeze nodded sadly. “Violet Frost was under the control of Allura. When we arrived, she was ready for us. In our Nirik form, we’re more susceptible to her purr. So, she quickly took over our minds as well.

“When we’re in Kirin form though, she can’t control us as easily. Her little friend, Twitch. He made collars which somehow trapped us in Nirik form. I…I haven’t been able to control my own actions for so long.”

“I can’t imagine what that could be like,” Pipp blinked, looking sombre.

“It’s horrible,” Feather Breeze admitted. “I knew what was happening, I just couldn’t do anything about it.”

Pipp looked at her sadly. “So Allura made all those in your village come to the quarry?”

Feather Breeze shook her head sorrowfully. “No, she ordered us to take her to our village. When she arrived, she quickly took control of everypony. Then, she had us burn our own village down.”

Pipp couldn’t help gasping in shock. However, Feather Breeze looked at her with determination. “You said we’ll help them all together, do you have a plan?”

“Well, first we need information,” Pipp admitted before sighing. “Let, let me go and wake up Misty and my sister, Zipp. Misty can let you out and Zipp can ask you what we need to know.”

“I’ll try and answer every question they have,” Feather Breeze said firmly.

When Pipp eventually returned, Feather Breeze noticed only one pony was with her.

“Feather Breeze, meet Misty Brightdawn,” Pipp smiled. “She’s going to get you out of that sphere.”

“Y…You’re the one,” Feather Breeze gasped. “You’re the one that saved me.”

Misty blinked with shock. “I…I don’t know about that. I was trying to stop you getting away.”

“Yes, but you removed the collar,” Feather Breeze smiled. “You saved me.”

Misty couldn’t help frowning and looking unsurely at Pipp. “You sure this will be okay?”

“Perfectly,” Pipp reassured. “Feather Breeze is a victim here.”

“So, where’s Zipp?” Misty asked.

Pipp waved a hoof dismissively. “I’ll get her in a minute.”

“You don’t want her to know,” Misty gasped.

“No, no, I do,” Pipp responded desperately. “It’s just she’ll make this way more difficult than it needs to be. Trust me, Misty. Feather Breeze is cool, and I trust her.”

Misty sighed and nodded. “Okay, I trust you, Pipp.”

Misty took a wide stance and closed her eyes to focus. Then, opening her eyes she aimed her horn and fired a beam of magic at the sphere. Immediately, its membrane wobbled and shifted.

Feather Breeze gasped as the hard surface she’d been sitting on seemingly disappeared. She fell through the sphere's membrane and onto the floor below.

As soon as Feather Breeze was free, Misty cut the beam. She then fired another one, this time making the sphere disappear completely.

Feather Breeze groaned as she picked herself off the floor. Gasping she found Pipp directly in front of her, offering a hoof. Tentatively, she raised a hoof and took it, allowing herself to be pulled to her hoofs.

“Thank you, Misty Brightdawn,” Feather Breeze nodded.

Misty sighed. “Please, just call me Misty. I…I hope you won’t make me regret this.”

“I won’t, I promise you,” Feather Breeze responded. “We Kirin always speak the truth. You have my word.”

Misty was about to reply when there was a loud gurgling growling sound. Feather Breeze gasped and looked at her stomach which had been the source.

“Pipp, I’ll make breakfast, whilst you get Hitch and Zipp,” Misty suggested. “I’m still worried about Strawberry.”

“Strawberry?” Feather Breeze frowned.

“She’s a friend,” Pipp explained. “She was kind of playing bait for... Well... You.”

Feather Breeze’s eyes widened in realisation. “A…And I zapped her away!”

“It’s okay,” Pipp said quickly. “You said it yourself; you were under some sort of mind control. I’ll go get Zipp, then you can answer all her questions.”

“She’s kind of our detective,” Misty smiled. “Come on, I’ll make us some food.”

“O…Okay,” Feather Breeze gasped. “Thank you.”

Needless to say, after being woken up, Hitch and Zipp weren’t best pleased that Feather Breeze had been let out of the sphere. They were making Pipp very aware of this as she led them towards the kitchen.

“You should have come and gotten us straight away,” Hitch argued.

“There was no time for that,” Pipp defended. “I told you, she was dazed and confused. I wanted to help her straight away.”

“By letting her out when we have no clue if we can trust her?” Zipp frowned.

Pipp scowled with annoyance. “No, I helped her recover after she woke up. I listened to her. I made sure she knew she could trust us. Just like I know we can trust her.”

“At least she’s with Misty,” Zipp sighed. “We know Misty can hold her own.”

“And my word means nothing then?” Pipp scowled. “I told you. We. CAN! Trust her.”

Hitch let out a deep sigh. “Fine, Pipp. We can trust her.”

“Thank you, just don’t make her angry,” Pipp warned. “That’s what triggers her change into a Nirik.”

As Hitch and Zipp entered the room. They were surprised to find Feather Breeze and Misty were getting along like old friends.

“These are so good!” Feather Breeze gasped. “What were they called again?”

“Pancakes,” Misty smiled. “Our friend Sunny makes better ones though.”

“I…I’m so sorry she’s been taken,” Feather Breeze sighed.

“It’s okay,” Misty responded. “We’ll find the quarry. Then we’ll rescue her and all your friends too. And you really think Strawberry will be sent back?”

“Yes, I’m certain,” Feather Breeze smiled. “I…I remember the instructions, no wings, or horns. If her disguise drops as you say, she’ll be sent back to this area.”

“You’re certain about that?” Zipp said as she walked forward. “Hi, Zipp Storm. Pipp’s older sister who’s really wanting some answers right now.”

“I know you only have my word with no evidence to back it up,” Feather Breeze sighed. “But Kirin like me are honest creatures. I wouldn’t tell you lies; I promise. Please, ask me any questions you have.”

Zipp nodded as she got out her phone and put it on record. “So, just for my notes and understanding. Kirin change into Nirik when they get angry. Why?”

“Truthfully, I don’t know,” Feather Breeze admitted. “Although, as I said to Pipp, I think it’s a defence mechanism. It’s just a part of what it is to be a Kirin.”

Zipp nodded. “And Allura controls you when you’re a Nirik but not when you’re a Kirin?”

Feather Breeze sighed and shook her head. “No, Allura can control any creature with her purr. However, it affects some more than others. The Auroricorns, she puts into a trance, they believe things are different to what they actually are.

“She can only control most creatures when they are close to her. But further away, she can’t. That’s what happens when I’m a Kirin. But when I’m a Nirik, she has more control.”

Zipp nodded and looked at Feather Breeze understandingly. “What kind of control?”

Feather Breeze closed her eyes and grimaced. “It's like living in a nightmare you cannot wake up from. All our actions are governed by a series of instructions. The way the quarry works is disciplined to make those work. All the creatures do the same things, day in and day out.

“If specific things happen, like creatures start talking or act incorrectly. We have set responses. We have no freedom to change our actions. I’ve not been in the quarry for some time though. I’ve been on the Airships.”

Zipp blinked and couldn’t help gasping. “Airships? As in plural?

“Yes, there’s two airships that I know of,” Feather Breeze explained. “The captains are Violet Frost and Winters Breath.”

Pipp blinked and looked worried. “But you said Winters Breath was your leader.”

“She is,” Feather Breeze sighed. “I…I don’t think she’s under Allura’s control. She’s certainly not in Nirik form. But….But she issues us with orders aboard the airship. Orders that Allura’s purr forces us to obey.”

“Allura must be using the fact she has you all in her control as leverage,” Hitch frowned.

Feather Breeze nodded sadly.

“Okay, so how come you’re still affected by the purr when you’re so far away from Allura?” Zipp frowned.

“There are speakers throughout the ship,” Feather Breeze explained. “They emit the purr so that we hear it continually. I…I don’t know how they recreated it.”

“Okay, so is the airship continually flying around or has it landed somewhere?” Hitch asked.

“It lands when it’s time to go and, well, collect creatures,” Feather Breeze sighed.

“So, do you know where the airship lands?” Zipp asked.

Feather Breeze nodded. “It changes every time, and I can’t describe where it is, but I need to know for the teleportation spells. There’s a set of coordinates, etched into my mind. I can give them to you.” She frowned and suddenly looked worried. “If you don’t mind me asking a question, why do you need them?”

“Because if we’re going to find the quarry. We first need to find the airship,” Zipp explained. “Hopefully we’ll be able to track it to its destination.”

Feather Breeze’s eyes widened, and she looked at Zipp with concern. “Then we don’t have any more time to spare. We need to go. Now!”

“Why?” Hitch asked.

Feather Breeze sighed. “Because, if it hasn’t already, it will be leaving soon.”

Chapter Thirteen – Airship Intrusion

Although it was still a few hours until sunrise proper, the sun started making itself known as the Marestream streaked its way through the sky.

In the rear compartment, Misty and Izzy had both opted to take naps. Meanwhile, Feather Breeze sat, looking around with a mixture of panic and anxiety. “I...Is this thing really safe?”

“It’s completely safe,” Pipp reassured. “I guess you don’t like flying much.”

“I…I’m terrified of it!” Feather Breeze exclaimed. “Being trapped in my own mind aboard the Airship. It was horrible! I’d never flown before and I…I couldn’t find out what the noises were. Why things moved as they did. I saw things, but I couldn’t check what they were.”

“It’s okay,” Pipp reassured as she put a hoof around her. “I’m here and I’m not going to let anything bad happen to you. I’ll help you understand what’s happening if that makes you feel better.”

Feather Breeze grimaced before taking a deep calming breath. She let it out slowly before smiling thankfully at Pipp. “Thank you so much, Pipp.”

Zipp meanwhile was homing in on the coordinates that Feather Breeze had provided her with. She frowned as she stared intently at the instruments. “These better be right.”

“Err, Zipp,” Hitch gasped. “I think they are.”

Zipp looked up from the instruments and also gasped at what she saw out the windscreen.

The airship was so large that it towered above the trees of the woodland it had landed within. Hitch and Zipp could barely fathom how many creatures could be on board.

“Okay. Okay, Zipp. That’s close enough,” Hitch said worriedly.

“Oh, shoot! You’re right, we don’t want to be spotted.”

Zipp put the Marestream into a tight turn. Banking away before they got any closer.

In the rear compartment, the sudden turn caused everypony to go flying. Feather Breeze cried out in fear, wrapping her hoofs around Pipp tightly as they fell on the floor. “Nonono, help me!”

“ZIPP!” Pipp shouted crossly. “What are you doing!”

There was a crackling sound as the intercom came to life. “Sorry for the rough ride everypony,” Zipp said bashfully. “We’ve found the airship and are landing now.”

After they’d landed, Feather Breeze was still clinging tightly to Pipp. Her eyes were closed as she trembled with fear. “N...Never again. Never again.”

“Feather Breeze,” Pipp said softly as she rubbed her head reassuringly. “I’m sorry but we’re going to have to fly again if we’re going to follow the airship to the quarry. It’s not normally that rough, honest.”

Feather Breeze opened her eyes, gasping for breath as she tried to calm her nerves. “I...I know,” she admitted. “W...What’s the plan now?”

“We need to get close enough to plant a tracker on the airship,” Zipp said as she entered from the cockpit.

“A tracker?” Pipp blinked.

“Yeah,” Zipp said as she opened a draw and removed her drone. “I’ve spent most of my time modifying this thing. It’s got a mode that’s got epic battery life. All I have to do is get it on board that airship before it takes off.

“Feather Breeze, I’m sorry, I know you probably want to stay a billion miles from that airship. But I’ll need your help.”

“I...I’ll try,” Feather Breeze gasped as she finally let go of Pipp. “I don’t think we’ll be able to sneak on board though.”

“We won’t need to,” Zipp smiled as the drone started to hover. “I just need your help to guide it in.”

“Okay,” Feather Breeze nodded.

Suddenly, there was a loud clatter as Izzy emerged from a pile of stuff that she’d landed in. “Sorry we don’t have any pancakes today,” she said randomly before collapsing back into the pile and promptly falling asleep.

“Whatever you say, Iz,” Zipp laughed as she packed a saddle bag. “Everypony else should stay here. This is a stealth mission.”

“No, I’m coming with you,” Misty said suddenly. “If we’re spotted, I can get us away.”

“Good point,” Zipp admitted. “Come on then.”

With a series of nods, the three of them headed towards the door.

After they’d gone, Pipp checked her phone. She sighed and sat down as Hitch walked in. “Pipp? What’s wrong?”

“Hitch, I think we need to tell everypony that Sunny is missing,” she admitted. “I wanted us all to discuss it, but I don’t think there’s time. I’ve got a signal, enough to maybe do a low-quality livestream.”

Hitch sighed understandingly and sat down next to her.

“Queen Haven didn’t want ponies to panic,” he sighed. “But now, we’re just about to start our rescue mission. That’s going to give the families of those who are missing hope. I say you tell them, make sure they know that everypony needs to stay safe and alert.”

Pipp nodded with determination and readied her phone. She checked her mane and adjusted it a bit before starting the stream.

“Hey there Pippsqueaks! I know this is, like, super early for a stream and you are all probably in bed. I expect most of you will watch this later. Those of you watching now are likely wondering what gives. Well, what gives is I have an important update for you all. If I wait any later then I’ll be out of signal range.

“Yes, you heard that right! Ya girl is going off grid for a bit. My friends and I are just about to start the mission that will rescue Sunny and the other Earth Ponies that have gone missing.

“Yes, you heard that right too! Sunny Starscout is one of the ponies that has disappeared. I know there’s been a whole lot of speculation about that, and I wanted to put the record straight. The thing is, that doesn’t matter now. There’s a whole load of creatures that are in trouble. Not just Sunny and our fellow ponies. We’re determined to rescue them all.

“However, the threat has not passed! Please, please, please, follow the curfews like Queen Haven has asked. We are dealing with another powerful enemy here, one who can control others.

“Turns out the creatures that have been whisking ponies away are prisoners themselves, prisoners in their own minds! They’re controlled by this powerful enemy against their will. But, I’m confident that by working together we’ll rescue not only our missing friends but every other creature that’s in trouble.

“Wish us luck everypony, as soon as I’m back in signal range I’ll give you all an update. Pipp Pipp Horray!”

Pipp sighed as she tapped on her phone and ended the stream. She looked at Hitch with a hopeful expression.

“Not sure I’d have said that stuff about a powerful enemy, but I think that’s put the message across,” Hitch admitted. “Your cutie mark certainly seems to think so.”

Pipp blinked before looking back at her cutie mark to see it was glowing brightly.

Meanwhile, Zipp, Misty, and Feather Breeze were carefully making their way towards the airship. It was still dark and they daren’t use any light in case they alerted the Nirik.

“I thought you said there were two airships,” Misty gasped. “Isn’t that a big number three on its side?”

“Yes, there’s two that I know of,” Feather Breeze answered. “Number two, and this one, number three. I’ve no idea if there’s a number one.”

“Okay, that’s mildly concerning,” Zipp admitted as she pushed between two bushes. “Okay, super sneaky time. The clearing is just up ahead. Everypony whisper from now on.”

They carefully made their way towards the treeline of the large clearing the airship had landed in. Hiding within a group of bushes, they crawled forward until they could see out towards the airship.

From the bottom of its large underbelly, there were a series of large floodlights. These lit up the clearing and it was obvious that moving further from the treeline would be foolish. They kept in the shadows under the bushes and watched.

From an open hatch near the ships nose, four cables run down to a lift on the ground. One Nirik stood by this, guarding it.

One of the large sets of doors at the bottom of the airship was open. From it, five chains dangled downwards, each having a bell-shaped cage attached to the bottom. Around the cages, there were several Nirik. However, they weren’t the only creatures there.

Feather Breeze gasped and watched, wide-eyed, as a large Kirin paced back and forth in front of the cages. “W…Winters Breath.”

“Is that a good thing?” Misty murmured.

Zipp frowned as she started removing items from the saddle bag. Passing a pair of binoculars to Misty before looking through a pair herself. “It’s probably got something to do with the Pegasi in the cages,” she breathed. “And Strawberry of course.”

“Strawberry?” Misty gasped quietly.

As Misty looked through her binoculars, she saw Zipp was right. In the cage at the end of the row was an unconscious Strawberry. The other four however each contained a Pegasus.

Zipp zoomed her binoculars in on each one. She didn’t recognise the first three. But then, in the cage next to Strawberry, she spotted one she did. “They’ve got Minty Cloudstrike.”

“Who?” Feather Breeze whispered.

“Minty Cloudstrike is the leader of the Pegasus for Pegasi movement,” Misty murmured. “She’s been protesting against Earth Ponies being in Zephyr Heights.”

“Maybe Sunny will get to chat with her after all,” Zipp hissed as she readied her drone. “Feather Breeze, what’s my best way in?”

“Well, I’m honestly not sure,” Feather Breeze sighed.

“You never looked around or anything?” Zipp frowned. “Like checking doors were secured or carrying out maintenance?”

“No,” Feather Breeze sighed. “I was always on Situation Thirteen, so I was a guard. Checking things like that wasn’t part of the instructions.”

She groaned and held her head. “Oh, I hate this,” she said quietly. “T…The memories haunt me. All the things I wanted to do that I couldn’t. All the decisions I wish I could reverse.”

“It’s okay,” Misty whispered back. “There’s so many things I want to change in my past too. By helping us, you’re already making up for them.”

“Especially when you weren’t in control of them,” Zipp added quietly. “Are the Nirik on the ground all I need to watch for?”

“Honestly, the Nirik won’t be a problem,” Feather Breeze whispered. “It will be Winters Breath. I doubt that the Nirik will bat an eyelid at the drone. I mean, inside they’ll be screaming with curiosity, but they’ll not be able to do anything unless told specifically.”

“What? Really?” Zipp goggled.

“They’ll all be on Situation Thirty,” Feather Breeze explained with a grimace. “Watch for unauthorised creatures, capture on sight. There's a list of unauthorised creatures.”

“Okay, I’m going for it,” Zipp informed as she passed Feather Breeze the binoculars. “You can take these if you like. I’ve got my screen here.”

Feather Breeze watched in interest as the drone took off. It slowly climbed, staying out of the beams of light from the spotlights. Then it headed towards the top of the airship.

“I’ll take it over the top,” Zipp murmured. “There could be hatches up there.”

Feather Breeze looked at the binoculars in her hoofs with confusion. She wasn’t sure how to use them. Spotting this, Misty gave her a quick tutorial.

As Feather Breeze got the hang of the binoculars. She gasped as she watched Winters Breath inspecting Strawberry.

“We have waited too long already,” Winters Breath said to the closest Nirik. “We must send this one back. We cannot take a Unicorn.”

The Nirik blinked and cocked it’s head. Winters Breath looked down sorrowfully and sighed. “Query, did you see any ponies without horns or wings?”

The Nirik blinked, and after a moment, it shook it’s head.

“The Ponies have reacted so fast, it's getting harder and harder," Winters Breath groaned. "Query, have all Nirik returned.”

Again, the Nirik blinked. After a longer pause, it shook it’s head again.

Winters Breath’s eyes widened. She looked around the Nirik with concern. “Situation Ninety!”

In the bushes, Zipp gasped as she concentrated on her screen. “What’s happening?”

“W...Winters Breath has realised I’m missing,” Feather Breeze gasped. “She’s running roll call.”

“The Nirik have all lined up,” Misty informed as she watched through her binoculars. “This is your chance, Zipp.”

“Come around from the tail,” Feather Breeze advised. “Winters Breath is looking the other way.”

“Got it,” Zipp nodded as she piloted the drone.

Meanwhile, Winters Breath was working down the line of Nirik. Confirming who each of them was.

After reaching the end of the line, Winters Breath looked crestfallen as she looked around. “Feather Breeze?” she murmured.

She sighed and looked back to the Nirik. “Spring Flare, Situation One.”

One of the Nirik stepped forward, it cocked it’s head and looked intently at Winters Breath, ready to receive instructions.

Winters Breath produced a piece of paper. She looked at it before looking back at the Nirik. “Red pony with horn. Bind hoofs. Copy words from this onto its flanks.”

She held out the paper, the Nirik blinked and took it in its levitation.

“When complete,” Winters Breath continued. “Await further instructions.”

The Nirik blinked again before nodding. It then ran forward and started carrying out the instructions.

“Wait,” Misty gasped quietly. “Was that Strawberry they’re talking about?”

“Yes,” Feather Breeze murmured. “They are sending her to the city. I’m not there, so they can’t put her back where they got her from.”

“What was that about hoofs?” Misty asked.

“They’re making it look like she’s been a victim of an attack,” Feather Breeze sighed. “It has been done before. She will wake up, bound, dazed, and confused, and with slogans painted on her.”

Misty frowned as she watched the Nirik get to work on Strawberry. She could feel a growing urge to jump in and rescue her. But she held back. They couldn’t risk detection, there were too many others that were relying on them.

Meanwhile, Zipp had been busy. With Winters Breath distracted, she had managed to pilot the drone through the large hold doors. “I’m in.”

“Stay low,” Feather Breeze advised. “There are walls full of cages in there. There will be creatures within pretty much all of them.”

“And if they spot the drone, they could alert the Nirik,” Zipp deduced. “Any idea where’s best to hide the drone?”

Feather Breeze sighed and shook her head. “I’m not sure. Like I said, I was on Situation Thirteen when we were in the air.”

“And what was that again?” Zipp asked kindly.

“Oh, yeah,” Feather Breeze gasped. “Standard patrol of the hold. I’d walk a set route watching the creatures.”

Zipp nodded understandingly. “Okay, does Winters Breath come down to the hold?”

Feather Breeze shook her head. “No, I never saw her much. Only on the bridge.”

“Winters Breath,” Misty hissed. “She’s walking around and around looking for something.”

Feather Breeze gasped and looked through her binoculars again and gulped. “She’s looking for me.”

Winters Breath sighed as she walked further from the Nirik. Walking around in a circle as she watched the treeline.

Suddenly she heard a growl from the Nirik behind her. Turning around she saw they were all looking at her through narrowed eyes. Their manes flared dangerously as they began snarling.

“Fear not, I am not attempting to leave,” Winters Breath sighed as she walked towards the Nirik.

As she neared them, they all seemed to calm down. The one working on Strawberry finished and stood next to her expectantly.

Winters Breath noticed and headed over. She inspected Strawberry, ensuring her hoofs were all tightly bound together and that the slogans she’d prepared had been copied correctly.

“Your paintings were always so good,” she murmured.

The Nirik cocked it’s head in confusion whilst Winters Breath sighed sadly. “Spring Flare, Situation One.”

The Nirik cocked it’s head the other way, ready to receive instructions again.

“Stealth level maximum. Teleport this one to capture area Zulu,” Winters Breath instructed. “Leave it within a bush. Return to Alpha, alone.”

The Nirik nodded and there was a flash as it teleported away with Strawberry.

Winters Breath sighed as she turned around and looked up at the ship before waving a hoof. Suddenly, the five cages began rising into the airship.

With another heavy sigh, Winters Breath looked around again. “Feather Breeze!” she shouted. “If you are free, do not come for us. Doing so will just result in you falling into her paws again. There…There is no hope for us.”

Feather Breeze trembled as she watched Winters Breath and the other Nirik walk towards the lift. As they boarded it, the Nirik that had taken Strawberry appeared on the lift with a flash. Then, it began to slowly rise towards the ship.

“Feather Breeze,” Zipp hissed as she angled her remote. “This look good to you?”

Feather Breeze looked at the screen on the remote. Zipp had found a corner to hide the drone.

“I...I'm not sure,” she admitted unsurely. “I can’t see the walkways so, maybe?”

“Good enough for me,” Zipp responded kindly as she tapped on the remote. “There, it’s all set. Come on, let’s get back to the Marestream before it takes off.”

“But you heard her,” Feather Breeze murmured.

She gasped as Misty placed a reassuring hoof on her leg. “It’s okay,” Misty responded. “She doesn’t know you’re with us. She doesn’t know you have friends who are going to help you. She thinks you’ll recklessly run into that quarry alone. You won’t. We won’t. We’ll work out a way to save everycreature. Hoof to heart.”

“Hoof to heart,” Zipp smiled.

Feather Breeze gasped, blinking as she looked at her hoof. “Hoof to heart?”

It was a short time later that the three of them made it back to the Marestream. As they hurried on board, they found Pipp was on a video call with Queen Haven.

“…I just don’t think it was necessary,” Queen Haven sighed.

“Yes, it was necessary, Mum,” Pipp groaned. “It’s been like the worst kept secret ever. Ponies put two and two together when they didn’t see her. It was getting embarrassing. We’re about to go rescue her so it’s fine.”

Queen Haven sighed and was about to respond when Zipp suddenly jumped in. “Mom, you need to get somepony to search every bush in the park.”

“Whatever for, Dear?” Queen Haven gasped.

“For Strawberry Sunflash,” Zipp responded. “She’s been left there by a Nirik, bound and with Pegasus for Pegasi slogans painted on her flanks. We can’t let her be seen by anypony or it will cause even more trouble.”

“Oh, my hoofness, that’s awful,” Queen Haven gasped. “Yes, I’ll get Zoom and Thunder on it immediately.”

“Thanks, Mom,” Zipp smiled. “You need to know, the last ponies taken from ZH were Pegasi. Sounds like there weren’t any Earth Ponies for them to take. Minty Cloudstrike was there so I think they were members of Pegasus for Pegasi.”

“Oh, those silly fools,” Queen Haven sighed. “Are the Nirik likely to return to take other Pegasi?”

“They are,” Zipp confirmed. “We’re about to leave following the airship. Hopefully, we’ll be in touch soon but solving this is all going to take time.”

“What? NOW!” Pipp gasped. “It’s going like, right now?”

“Yep, right now and we don’t want to lose it,” Zipp confirmed. “Love you, Mom.”

With that, she hurried towards the cockpit.

Queen Haven let out a deep sigh. “It’s okay, Pipp, my darling. I’ll follow up on your stream. I’ll extend the curfews too.”

“Queen Haven,” Misty ventured as they felt the Marestream powering up. “I...I’m worried about Strawberry. Could you make sure she’s okay? Please?”

“I’ll have Zoom message Pipp as soon as she’s found,” Queen Haven reassured. “Don’t worry, Misty, I’ll personally ensure she’s okay and cared for.”

“Thank You,” Misty smiled. “S...She kind of failed after being really boastful. I’m worried about how she’ll take it.”

“I understand, Misty,” Queen Haven smiled. “Don’t worry, leave it with me.”

Pipp gasped as the Marestream lurched and took to the air. She looked back at the phone, sighing as she saw the already poor image deteriorating. “Mum, we’re going to get cut off. I love you.”

“I love you too, Pipp,” Queen Haven smiled. “Please, let Zipp know that I love her too and I trust you both. I know you will sav…”

Pipp sighed as the image suddenly froze. A few moments later it disappeared completely as the Marestream flew forward.

“So, that was your mother?” Feather Breeze ventured.

“Yes, Queen Haven, the ruler of Equestria,” Pipp responded sadly.9

“But that means...”

“Yes, Zipp and I are Princesses,” Pipp sighed. “I know what you’re probably thinking but it changes nothing. We’re going to that Quarry, Feather Breeze, and we’re going to rescue everycreature there. I’m confident we can do it, no matter what we face. We’ll do it together.”

Feather Breeze blinked; the words Winters Breath had said were ringing in her ears. Then she saw Pipps confident and unwavering expression and nodded. “Yes, together. We’ll do it together.”

Author's Note

9 - In this AU, a vote was cast to decide how the newly unified Equestria should be governed. Recognising Queen Haven as the ruler of all Equestria was the option chosen.

Chapter Fourteen – Sending Messages

When the high-pitched beeping sound awoke Sunny the next morning she immediately began hoisting herself from the mat. She was determined not to be caught eating as the Nirik entered this time.

Meanwhile, Sugar grunted as she shook her mane. She was longing to be able to brush it, the straps from the bridle were doing a number on it.

Then, she gasped as she saw Sunny. “Urm, Sunny, did you get hot last night?”

Sunny blinked with confusion. “It was a bit warm, yeah. Why?”

Sugar pointed at the side Sunny had been laid on. “Because I assume the advice on the bottle is, don’t get wet.”

Sunny turned her head and looked at her side. Patches of the dye had disappeared, and her normal orange coat was showing through. Gasping, she fiddled with the harness around her barrel. Sure enough, the areas under it had completely lost the dye as well.

“Well, I wasn’t going to let Pipp actually dye me black,” Sunny defended.

“Actually, I don’t blame you,” Sugar responded. “I don’t think I’d want to permanently change my colours for a disguise either.”

“I’m going to need to be careful,” Sunny sighed. “It was never supposed to last this long.”

They heard the low-tone beep, and Everypony immediately started trying to eat the horrid porridge.

Later, as they were ushered from the hut, Sprout realised Sunny was staying close to him. Then he spotted Sugar and smirked, keeping as close to her as he could.

As the ponies were split up, all three remained in the same group. Then, as they waited to be hitched to the carts, Sprout smiled as he realised his plan was going to be easier than he expected. Of the remaining carts, there was only one for a single pony.

As Sprout expected, Sugar started to move towards the one-pony cart. However, Sprout suddenly pushed Sunny into Sugar’s path and they collided. They both gasped and only just remembered to stay quiet and not alert the Nirik.

Sugar frowned at Sunny who looked back innocently and silently indicated towards Sprout.

Sugar scowled as she saw Sprout was already being hitched to the one-pony cart. Then, she realised Sunny was the only pony left that she could be paired with.

Suddenly a Nirik growled at them and pointed towards a cart. Sunny looked at Sugar and shrugged before moving into position.

Sugar frowned as she reluctantly moved towards the cart and stood alongside Sunny.

As they both headed away after being hitched up, Sugar groaned. “Looks like somepony really wanted us stuck together today.”

“Seems that way,” Sunny agreed. “Not too dissimilar to when we were at school. Why did Miss Butterscotch move you next to me again?”

Sugar snorted. “Because I kept winding Dahlia up.”

“Oh, that’s right,” Sunny smirked. “Sprout was winding me up too, so she swapped you both over.”

“Yeah, you kept getting angry with Miss Butterscotch when she took Sprout's side,” Sugar chuckled.10

“At least you didn’t try to change what I believed in,” Sunny responded.

“Only because I thought the arguments were silly,” Sugar admitted. “I thought History was boring, so I didn’t care.”

“Oh no, that’s not what I remember,” Sunny grinned. “You thought it was funny every time I argued with Miss Butterscotch in her History lessons.”

“Yeah, that’s because it was,” Sugar smirked. “You wound her up so easily telling her she was wrong all the time.”

"You never heard the conversations she had with my dad afterwards," Sunny chuckled.

They both started laughing. However, they stopped in their tracks as they suddenly heard a loud growling sound. They hadn’t realised they were getting close to a watchtower. Therefore, the Nirik stood at the top of it had heard them.

Gasping, they looked at each other, wide-eyed and slack-jawed as they realised, they were in trouble.

There was a burst of flame in front of them as one of the Nirik appeared. It’s eyes were narrowed and it’s flaming mane was large and threatening. It walked towards them slowly, hunched over with it’s head down in a threatening position. It’s eyes were narrowed as it bared it’s pointy teeth and snarled at them.

Then, Sunny suddenly remembered what she’d done the last time she’d spoken. She held her hoofs up submissively, staying silent and looking at the Nirik with an obedient, non-threatening expression.

Sugar gasped, looking at Sunny with confusion before she realised the Nirik was now staring straight at her. She glanced back at Sunny, then at the Nirik.

Finally, she copied Sunny, holding her hoofs up and looking as submissive as possible.

Both of them waited with bated breath as the Nirik stopped walking and watched them intently. It continued to snarl as it stood and waited to see what they were going to do.

Slowly, it’s flames began to diminish, and it eventually stopped scowling. It cocked it’s head and after a moment stepped to one side.

Sunny carefully lowered her hoofs and looked down at the ground, taking a submissive and nonthreatening posture. Sugar gasped and carefully copied.

The Nirik watched closely before finally gesturing with a hoof that they should continue. With silent nods, the pair carefully did so.

However, as they walked, they could hear something behind them. Therefore, after getting to where it was normally okay to start talking. Sunny raised her head and risked glancing back over the cart. She gasped as she spotted the same Nirik following them.

She immediately dropped her head again and indicated to Sugar they needed to remain silent. Sugar sighed and nodded understandingly. It seemed they’d had their only warning.

The Nirik continued to follow them for the rest of that morning. However, as the sun reached its highest point and the day was at its hottest, it disappeared.

It was Sugar who spotted they were alone again. Sighing with relief she couldn’t help smirking as she looked at Sunny. “That was close. It felt just like the time Miss Butterscotch found us passing notes.”

“Oh no, Miss Butterscotch only kept us back for an hour,” Sunny gasped. “That felt like we were walking on eggshells all day.”

They fell silent again as they passed another watchtower. Once they were clear, Sugar sighed as she looked at Sunny worriedly. “So, if you needed to. Do you think you could get away?”

“Why?” Sunny gasped. “I...I don’t want to leave you here.”

“Sunny, it’s boiling hot today,” Sugar groaned. “I...I can see your rainbow stripes starting to show through.”

“R...Really?”

“Yeah, on your fringe and where your bridle is pushing your mane down. You’re coat, it’s glistening too. I wouldn’t be surprised if the black is running off by the end of today.”

Sunny frowned and looked worried as they neared the central incline.

The day had been sweltering and, as Sugar predicted, the dye in Sunny’s coat had started running. By the time they entered the hut, it had completely disappeared from her back and her normal orange coat was showing through. Her sides weren’t much better, the dye was running down them in long streaks.

Sunny groaned in dismay; she’d hoped it would be cooler inside the hut but, if anything, it felt hotter. “O...Okay, nopony touch me. If you do, you’re going to get black hoofs.”

“More like grey, Sunny,” Sprout gasped. “It’s like you’ve got half the quarry stuck to you.”

“You don’t look much better,” Sugar frowned.

“Yeah, we’re all filthy,” Sprout sighed as he looked at himself. “What I would give for a nice shower.”

“Problem is, I look like a dirty orange pony,” Sunny groaned. “I’m supposed to be dirty black.”

“Sunny, seriously, could you get away?” Sugar asked worriedly. “If they recognised you, I mean?”

Sunny closed her eyes and grimaced. “I...I don’t know. I don’t know when I could try. We’re attached to carts most of the time. Besides, I don’t want to leave all of you!”

Suddenly, there was a scraping and grunting sound from the tunnel. Sprout hurried over and moved the mat. Then, the concrete plug started moving upwards, accompanied by a grunt.

“L...Little help,” Skysurf grunted.

“I’m here,” Sprout informed. “Lift it up more and then I can move it clear.”

Skysurf groaned as she pushed the plug harder. Finally, it was high enough for Sprout to push it and help her move it clear. Finally, Skysurf gasped with relief as Sprout pulled her from the hole.

“I thought you’d have moved that already?” she frowned. “What with one of you having magic and all.”

“I’m sorry, Skysurf,” Sunny sighed. “I daren’t activate my powers. I’ve got a bit of a problem.”

Skysurf gawped as she saw the state Sunny was in. “Oh, okay. I guess you’re normally orange then.”

“Yeah, she is,” Sugar answered. “The fake cutie mark is holding up though. Izzy’s done a good job there.”

“I think my wings might make it worse,” Sunny admitted. “I don’t want to rub them on it. Is it cooler in the tunnel?”

“It is,” Skysurf nodded. “Why?”

“Because I need to cool down to let the dye set again,” Sunny explained. “I can’t even lay down like this.”

“Get in,” Skysurf nodded. “I’ll try helping with my wings. They’re clipped so I can barely fly but I should still be able to help you cool down.”

When they arrived, both Thymus and Giselle found a Sunny-shaped blockage in the tunnel. However, she soon moved to one side to allow them into the hut.

Skysurf continued blowing cooling air down onto Sunny as they all gathered around the hole, surveying the situation.

“Yeah, that’s going to be an issue,” Giselle frowned with concern. “It’s been getting hotter and hotter hasn’t it.”

“It’s likely to get even hotter yet,” Skysurf sighed. “The weather here comes in waves. It gets hotter and hotter, then there’s a huge rainstorm before it gets cool again.”

“Which means if the heat doesn’t make you sweat it off, the rain will remove it,” Thymus sighed.

“You’re probably best off staying down there tonight,” Giselle suggested. “If you’re up here the heat will make you sweat again.”

Tentatively, Sunny placed a hoof on her coat. She sighed with relief as she found it was dry. “Well, it’s set so I’m coming up now. I’m going to message my friend, Misty. You won’t be able to hear, but I’ll relay what she says.”

Aboard the Marestream, Pipp froze as she suddenly felt a vibration. She whisked out her phone and gasped as she saw several notifications.

She unlocked it and frowned, whatever signal she had somehow received had already gone but a group of text messages had come through. As she read them, her eyes widened and she gasped. Then, she looked around for Misty. “Misty! Misty, you’ve got to see these.”

Misty blinked with confusion as she looked up from the spellbook she’d been studying. Pipp trotted over, holding her phone out so Misty could see.

Zoom
Your Highness, letting you know that we found Strawberry Sunflash safe and well. We ensured nopony saw the embarrassing slogans and escorted her to your mother.

Zoom
Messages below from Strawberry. Her Majesty needs to learn how to text!

Zoom
Thank you for asking your mother to send the Guards to find me. I don’t know what I would have done. I hope all goes well and you are all successful.

Zoom
Misty, I am so sorry. I should have listened to you, but I was my usual arrogant pig-headed self. I failed you completely. I hope you can forgive me, and I’ll be able to see you again soon.

“Can we reply?” Misty asked hopefully.

Pipp sighed and shook her head. “There’s no signal now. Honestly, I think we’re super lucky to have received these.”

Misty sighed and looked down sadly. “At least we know she’s okay.”

“Why are you so worried about her, Misty?” Pipp asked. “From what I’ve seen, she’s an arrogant pony who just wants to use you.”

Misty sighed and looked seriously at Pipp. “Yes, she’s the most arrogant pony I’ve ever met. More than Opaline even. But, unlike Opaline, Strawberry has a softer side. I’ve seen it. She can and does care, deep down.”

“Fair enough,” Pipp smiled as she placed a reassuring hoof on Misty’s shoulder. “Like you said, at least we know she’s okay and Zoom will know the messages have been received.”

“So, she’ll know too,” Misty grinned. “That’s good.”

Suddenly, Misty gasped as she felt a tingling sensation in her horn. “The messaging spell! It’s Sunny!”

“W...Well go to the cockpit and answer it there,” Pipp gasped. “Then you can relay it to all of us.”

What follows is a transcript of the messages. At either end, the two ponies relayed what was said to their relevant groups.

“Misty? It’s Sunny. I’ve got everycreature with me, so I’ll relay what you say to them.”

“I hear you, Sunny. I’m in the cockpit of the Marestream with the others so I’ll do the same. We’re following the airship right now!”

“Misty, that’s brilliant news! We’re all so relieved to hear that. Have you any idea how long before you’re here?”

“Zipp has no clue. Feather Breeze says it varies. She doesn’t know why, just that sometimes it takes longer.”

“Okay, we understand. Who’s Feather Breeze?”

“Oh, yeah. She’s the biggest news I have for you. She’s our new friend, I sort of rescued her…. Oh, haybiscuits, this is going to get complicated. I’ll try to tell you one thing at a time.”

“Okay, I’m ready.”

“So, Allura has an ability. She uses her purr to control the minds of others.”

“Okay, that sounds ominous.”

“The purr affects some creatures more than others. With you and your friends, she’ll have to be close for it to work. Like right next to you.”

“Right, okay. So, is everycreature different? Or does it depend on what you are?”

“Depends on what creature you are. Like the Auroricorns, they’re stuck in a trance. They believe everything is different to what it actually is.”

“Sprout says that explains a lot.”

“The biggest thing is the Nirik. They’re prisoners, Sunny, just like you all are. Allura is controlling their minds with her purr.”

“That…That’s awful. So, Feather Breeze is a Nirik?”

“Yes and no, Feather Breeze is a Kirin. But Kirin turn into Nirik when they’re angry. When they’re Kirin, Allura’s purr affects them less.”

“Okay, we see where this is going. They’re all trapped as Nirik then?”

“Yes, all the Nirik are wearing collars that stop them from changing back into Kirin.”

“So Allura keeps her control of them.”

“Exactly. Sunny, they’re trapped in their own minds. They have a series of instructions and can only obey them. They have no free will.”

“Misty, the Kirin aren’t the only ones with collars. The Changelings have them too, theirs stop them being able to use their abilities.”

“Zipp wants to know if they’re the only ones. Are there others?”

“Yes, there are, hold on... So, the list we have is. The Nirik, Changelings, Yak and Diamond Dogs. They all wear collars.”

“Zipp says the collars could be the key to rescuing all of you. Thing is, I kind of broke the one we have, getting it off Feather Breeze.”

“So does Zipp need one?”

“She says yes, as many as you could get.”

“Okay, Skysurf says she’s seen where they could be stored.”

“Good, Hitch says don’t do anything reckless.”

“Well, I’ll try... We’ll see if there’s anything we can do without getting in trouble.”

“Keep an eye out for speakers too. Feather Breeze says the purr is sent through the Airship on speakers. She doesn’t know how that works.”

“Thymus says he’s seen speakers at the digging sites.”

“Okay, all of you stay safe. We’re coming. When we arrive, we’ll coordinate and hopefully rescue everycreature, together.”

“Thank you, everypony. We’re all really grateful.”

Sunny sighed as she signed off the final message. She looked around at the worried faces of the gathered creatures.

“You didn’t say anything about your disguise,” Sugar frowned.

“I didn’t want to worry them,” Sunny admitted. “They’re coming as fast as the airship allows them to.”

Thymus looked thoughtful. “I suppose there isn’t much they can do about it currently. Once they are closer, then let them know. They need to be aware getting you out is a priority.”

“Yeah, maybe Misty could come and teleport you,” Sprout smiled.

Sunny blinked and looked confused. “Why should I be a priority?”

“Because we don’t know what will happen to you if Allura gets her claws on you,” Giselle responded. “Look, I like you, Starscout. You’ve got lots of guts sticking around like this. If I were you, I’d be jetting off ASAP. But you’re not, you’re staying here and helping.”

Sunny looked around, all the creatures were either nodding or smiling in confirmation. Many of the other ponies in the hut were doing the same.

“So, getting collars and the like,” Giselle smirked. “Where did you see them, Skysurf?”

“One of the watchtowers. A Diamond Dog’s collar got damaged. A Nirik went into a watchtower and returned with a replacement.”

“You want to get into a watchtower?” Sunny gasped. “How?”

“I don’t know,” Skysurf admitted. “First, we need information. Like how to slip away from our Nirik guards.” She sighed as she spotted Giselle’s excited expression. “Don’t get any ideas, Giselle. Just identify if there’s any loopholes we can exploit.”

“I’ve got a few ideas,” Giselle smiled as she crossed her forelegs. “I was stuck in confinement after my airship escape attempt. I only got a proper look at things today. I’ll review again tomorrow then check in tomorrow night.”

“Can it be any watchtower?” Sprout asked.

“Yeah, they might keep spares in all of them,” Sunny pointed out. “At least for the Nirik.”

“Could be worth trying to get into an easier one first,” Thymus agreed. “One that has fewer creatures around it.”

“Then we’ll keep an eye on which are less occupied,” Sprout smiled.

“We’ll take it carefully,” Sunny agreed. “Gather as much information we can and then we’ll plan how to do it.”

“Right, so is it time for food?” Sugar asked as a low-toned beeping sounded. “No, not that food!”

Thymus suddenly gasped. “Actually, that gives me an idea to help Sunny. Open the second hole and bring some of the porridge.”

Despite feeling confused, Sunny used her magic to move the mat and open the second hole.

Meanwhile, Sugar was more than happy to offer some of her porridge. “Here, what are you going to do? Cover her with it?”

“Well nearly, throw it in the hole,” Thymus instructed.

Sugar did so and Thymus started kneading the food into the grey soil. However, it wasn’t long before he frowned. “I need more, the runnier the better.”

“I’ve got it,” Sunny smiled.

She walked over to Sugar’s bowl, picking a large amount of the food up in her levitation before heading back to Thymus.

“Excellent,” Thymus said as Sunny brought it near the hole. “Hold it there and I’ll take as much as I need from it.”

Sunny waited and held the porridge whilst Thymus worked. Soon, he’d created a runny paste using the porridge and soil.

“I know this sounds awful,” he admitted. “But if we rub this onto your coat where the dye is failing it will cover your natural colour.”

“And will look like I’m dirty,” Sunny smiled before grimacing. “Yeah, it looks awful but if it stops me from getting identified then I’ve got little choice.”

With a nod, Thymus got to work again, slowly rubbing the paste into Sunny’s coat. She dismissed her powers as the others all started assisting too.

After picking up a hoof full, Sugar couldn’t help giving the concoction a sniff. “Well, at least it doesn’t smell.”

“Honestly, I think we all reek as it is,” Sprout laughed.

Eventually, all the areas of Sunny’s coat that had been orange were disguised again. She now looked like she was an especially dirty black pony.

“Thank you, everycreature,” Sunny said thankfully.

“No problem,” Sugar smiled. “Just so long that slop in there doesn’t taint the Apples.”

They all couldn’t help laughing as Sugar proceeded to grow an apple tree. However, as Sunny tucked into her apple, she had no idea that their efforts to conceal her would all be in vain.

Author's Note

10 - Miss Butterscotch is one of the teachers at the school in Maretime Bay. She was Sunny's teacher when she was a filly and is still teaching currently.
Not to be confused with Izzy's friend Snr Butterscotch!

Interested to hear what you think about the message transcript. Whilst the opportunity for character interaction was lost, I felt it was far to hard to follow what was being said.
Thoughts? :applejackconfused:

Chapter Sixteen – Confinement

After their wash, the Ponies were put back to work. They all went through the rest of the day in a state of shock and uncertainty.

That evening, after the door to their hut was closed and locked, there was pandemonium as they all started talking and shouting at once. Everypony was in a state of panic as they made their fears and feelings known after a day of keeping silent.

Sugar gasped and looked worriedly at Sprout. They both looked at the door before urgently turning back to the others.

“Hey. Hey! It’s okay!” Sprout shouted. “Quiet. Quiet everypony.”

“We don’t want the Nirik back in here,” Sugar added. “It...It’ll be okay.”

“How do you know that?” one of the others asked.

“Yeah,” another added. “Sunnys gone. We’ve no hope now.”

Sprout and Sugar shared a look of dismay.

“You seriously think we have no hope?” Sugar goggled. “Just because she’s the Element of Hope doesn’t mean we literally have none.”

“What would Sunny tell you?” Sprout added. “We’ve still got further than we have in ages. Her friends are on their way, and we’ve got our alliance friends.”

“Exactly, it’ll be fine,” Sugar added. “Whatever Allura’s done to Sunny will be nothing compared to what her friends do to Allura when they get here.”

The others all looked at each other. They still felt worried, but they knew Sprout and Sugar were correct. There was still hope.

Suddenly, they heard a knocking sound coming from the tunnel. Both Sprout and Sugar hurried over and moved the mat. Then, they helped Thymus remove the concrete.

As he emerged from the hole, Thymus looked around worriedly. “I saw Allura escorting an orange pony. I...” he paused, sighed and looked at them with a sad understanding expression. “Ah, I see. Sunny is no longer among us.”

“We all got washed this morning,” Sugar sighed.

“She should have tried to escape,” another voice said.

They turned around and saw that Giselle was emerging from the hole, quickly followed by Skysurf.

“She tried to escape, Giselle,” Sprout defended. “Allura stopped her.”

Sugar groaned and looked down. “Apart from when she hesitated. I saw her looking back at us. I could tell, she didn’t want to leave us.”

“Well, she’ll likely be in high-security confinement,” Giselle frowned. “It’s down on level one, there’s no way we’ll get her out.”

“Why?” Skysurf asked. “What makes it high security?”

“It's a group of small huts surrounded by a fence. Each hut is not only securely locked but the fence is guarded too,” Giselle explained. “Inside her hut, she’ll be locked in a cage. I expect they'll have classed her as a high threat. So, she’ll have other, well, obstacles too.”

“Yeah, we get the picture,” Sprout sighed.

“We’ll just have to leave helping her to her friends,” Sugar responded. “They’re the Guardians of Unity, they won’t leave her. All is not lost.”

Skysurf nodded and sighed. “This is a setback, but I agree, all is not lost.”

“Agreed, so our task is still to get into a watchtower,” Thymus reminded. “Regrettably, I can’t see how I will help. Changelings are continuously watched and monitored by Nirik.”

“Well, there’s an opportunity for us,” Giselle grinned. “After we've dug out the ore, Griffons and Hippogriffs fly it to the nearest incline. I’ve found a blind spot on one of the routes we can exploit.”

“But they track us,” Skysurf frowned.

“Yeah, and I’m up for testing that tomorrow,” Giselle smirked. “I’ll land in the blind spot and time how long it takes before they send a patrol to investigate. I’ll act like I’m fatigued.”

Sprout frowned unsurely. “How’s that going to stop you getting in trouble?”

“It happens all the time,” Skysurf admitted. “Our wings have been clipped to limit our range. We often end up having to stop.”

“Clipped?” Sugar frowned.

Skysurf spread her wings and pointed to her primary flight feathers. “They’ve trimmed these right back. They don’t generate anywhere near as much lift as they should.”

“It’s not permanent,” Giselle reassured. “We’ll eventually grow new feathers, and these naturally fall out.”

“But until they do, we have to work way harder to fly,” Skysurf explained. "For example, we can't glide."

“Okay, you test your loophole tomorrow, Giselle,” Thymus nodded. “Sprout, Sugar, any idea which tower we should try to access?”

“It wasn’t a normal day, was it?” Sugar sighed.

Sprout shook his head. “The towers all had extra Nirik. Hopefully tomorrow things will have calmed down. Giselle, where’s your loophole exactly? We’ll check the towers around there.”

“Ah yes, that would make sense,” Thymus admitted. “No sense saying we should access one on the opposite side of the quarry.”

They continued to plan long into the evening, determined that by the time Sunny’s friends arrived, they would have some collars to give them.

Elsewhere, Sunny groaned, her mind was full of fog. It wasn’t helped by her blurry vision which wouldn’t clear no matter how much she blinked. Her body was numb which made it feel like she was floating.

She’d felt like this for hours. However, finally, the brain fog was clearing, and she was slowly getting some feeling back. The first thing she noticed was a strange metallic taste in her mouth.

She realised it was something in her mouth, between her teeth and pressing down on her tongue. Her face felt strange too, like something was hugging it. She groaned again and noticed it sounded muffled.

As she continued to blink, her vision was starting to slowly clear, and she realised she was lying down. Then, she felt a tightness on her back but couldn’t work out what it was.

Finally, everything that had been swimming around in her head came into focus. Her vision cleared and Sunny gasped as she saw she was laying on a mat within a cage.

She tried to move but her forehoofs felt restricted. She looked and gasped again; they were locked together by grey metal shackles. There was a short chain between them which she hoped would mean she’d still be able to walk.

She awkwardly pushed herself into a sitting position. Blinking worriedly as she spotted something strange.

Slowly she brought her conjoined hoofs to her face. Gasping as she felt a metal muzzle, covering her mouth and nose. She quickly realised that what was in her mouth must be part of the muzzle.

She felt around her head, the bridle she had been wearing was gone. Instead, there was a new bridle with wider straps which held the muzzle in place.

Then, as she felt around, her hoof caught something. Looking upwards, her eyes widened.

My horn? How is it... Wait!

She remembered the tightness on her back and looked around. Her wings were still there too.

However, she couldn’t move them. There was a series of straps pulled around them, holding them closed against her back. Much like those she’d seen some of the Hippogriffs wearing.

Sunny frowned with confusion before trying to dismiss her powers. However, nothing happened, her horn and wings didn’t disappear.

What? Why can't I... I don't understand... She gasped as realisation hit her. A...Allura, she must have done something! Can I even use magic?

Desperately, she tried to use the messaging spell. The muzzle would stop her speaking, but she thought Misty must have tried responding. However, again, nothing happened.

Sunny’s eyes widened in horror. She tried using magic again, this time levitation. Again, nothing.

No, nonono... I can’t... Why can’t I...

She could feel her heart pounding in her chest as she struggled for breath and started trembling slightly.

Closing her eyes, she forced herself to take deeper breaths. Breathing slowly in and out through her nose.

That did the trick as she slowly started to feel calmer. Finally, she looked around and started taking notice of what else was around her.

Sunny’s cage was inside a small hut. The walls of this were all grey metal. It had a dark concrete floor and a white suspended ceiling. There were six square cages inside the hut and all the others were empty, Sunny was the only occupant.

The cages were arranged in two rows of three. Sunny’s was the middle of one of these rows. Therefore, one side of her cage was the metal-clad wall of the hut. Meanwhile, the cages on either side were in the corners of the hut, so two of their sides were walls.

Along one wall there were three alcoves, one within each cage. In each alcove, there were two bowls, like in the main hut. However, between the bowls, there was also a small groove.

The sides of the cages, which were not walls, were formed of open metal bars. The side opposite the wall with the alcoves had a cage door.

The cage doors led to a central aisle, the other side of which were the final three cages. Mirror images of those on Sunny’s side of the hut.

At one end of the aisle, there was a sturdy metal door. At the other end, there’s what appeared to be a control panel which was secured behind a glass cover. There were no windows at all, all the light being provided by a series of lights set in the ceiling.

Sunny let out a deep breath, she carefully got to her hoofs to try walking. Whilst the chain on the shackles was short, she found she still could slowly. She walked around in a circle before moving towards and investigating the bowls.

So? How am I supposed to eat with this contraption stuck to my face? She frowned.

Suddenly, there was a loud clunk from the door that made Sunny’s eyes widen in surprise. It was quickly followed by another and then a loud clicking sound of gears being turned.

Sunny frowned and turned towards the door as it slowly opened. Then, her eyes widened again as Allura entered with Twitch standing on her back.

“Ah, you’re up and about,” Allura grinned. “Had time to take stock of your situation? Trust me, you weren’t going anywhere before and certainly aren’t now.”

Sunny’s eyes narrowed as Allura came to a stop before her cage. Twitch jumped off and ran toward the control panel. He released the cover and then started pushing buttons.

However, Sunny’s eyes were on Allura as she stared back defiantly.

“Oh, is that the fire of hope that burns within you?” Allura sneered. “How lovely, we’ll see how long that lasts. It was so good of you to participate in our experiments earlier. Twitch assures me we’re ready to start accepting your Unicorn and Pegasus friends now. Did you have any questions?”

Sunny frowned and grunted before sitting down and pointing indignantly at the muzzle with a hoof.

Allura laughed as she looked towards Twitch. He pressed a button before giving a thumbs-up.

“Turn around, Starscout,” Allura smirked.

Sunny blinked before looking back at the alcove and the bowls. Above the small groove, there was now a green LED shining brightly.

“When the light is green, put your nose in the port,” Allura instructed.

Sunny looked back at Allura and narrowed her eyes again, unsure if she should trust her. Allura said nothing, she just smiled and waited.

With a sigh of resignation, Sunny got up and walked over towards the bowls. With a final sigh, she pushed the muzzle into the port.

There was a click as the muzzle locked into position. A feeling of mild panic suddenly shot through Sunny as she realised it was stuck.

However, there was another click as the LED turned yellow. Sunny felt instant relief as the muzzle released from the bridle and she was able to pull her face away from it.

“There, that wasn’t so hard, was it?” Allura cooed.

Scowling, Sunny spun around towards Allura accusingly. “What have you done to my magic?!”

“We’ve isolated it,” Allura smiled. “Isn’t that right, Twitch?”

Twitch folded his forelegs before nodding and making an 'uh-huh' sound.

“Despite his looks, Twitch is very clever,” Allura explained. “He’s specially designed your bridle and muzzle to keep you in check. Don’t even think of trying to break them, you won’t like the result. Now we can use them on all ponies, no matter what kind.”

Sunny’s eyes widened. “Wait. What do you mean, no matter what kind?”

“I already told you,” Allura grinned. “Thanks to your help, I can now recruit Unicorn and Pegasus ponies. I’ll need their help too if I’m to achieve my goal.”

Sunny sat down as her heart sank. “What goal?”

“Getting the Arora Ore of course,” Allura grinned. “Once it’s refined, Arora Ore is my ticket home. I need it to power the portal.” She smiled sweetly. “Any more questions?”

Sunny blinked, looking down as she processed the information. “Where’s home? Why do you need a portal to get there?”

“Home for Twitch and I is another realm,” Allura answered. “Somewhere completely different to this one.”

Sunny’s eyes narrowed. “Do you mean the human world?”

Allura laughed. “My, my, and here I thought you Ponies were naive. I’m impressed you even know of another realm. My home is not amongst the humans, but I do need to go there.”

Sunny frowned and cocked her head with interest. She was about to respond when, suddenly, Twitch began squeaking angrily and stomping a hind foot on the ground.

“You’re right, Twitch,” Allura smirked. “That is enough questions for now.”

Twitch jumped around and pressed another button on the control panel. Sunny gasped as she heard a buzzer behind her and looked around in confusion.

“That means it’s time to put your beauty mask back on,” Allura grinned.

“Why would I do that?”

“Oh, I think you're about to find out,” Allura smirked deviously.

Sunny gasped as she suddenly felt a pain in the back of her head. She leaned forward, placing a hoof behind her head and found there was a small box attached to the bridle.

“Ah, there’s your punishment,” Allura grinned deviously. “You know what to do. If you missed the buzzer, you’ll spot the light.”

Sunny blinked and looked back to the muzzle. The LED above it had turned red.

Suddenly, Sunny cried out as she felt the pain again. “What is that?!”

“Just a mild electrical shock,” Allura smirked evilly. “They’ll get more powerful and frequent. You know what to do.”

Sunny grimaced. Then with her eyes wide and panting with shock she got up and moved back towards the muzzle. She gritted her teeth and shook her head as she was shocked again. Then, scowling with reluctance, she pushed her nose and mouth back into the muzzle.

She closed her eyes, there was a click as the muzzle locked back into place on the bridle. Then a second click as it released from the port.

With the muzzle now firmly locked back into place, Sunny pulled her head back from the port. Then, she opened her eyes and turned around to look at Allura with an almighty scowl.

“Oh, don’t look like that,” Allura smirked before purring. “Just remember, you had a choice! Just remember, you didn’t have to!”

Sunny’s eyes widened as they flashed for a second. Thoughts suddenly forced their way into her mind. I have a choice... I didn’t have to...

She twitched, shaking her head as she blinked with confusion. Wait? What?

Allura smirked as Twitch jumped onto her back.

“If you behave yourself, you’ll be rewarded with sustenance,” Allura said before she purred. “Just remember, you have control.”

Sunny’s eyes flashed again, and she flinched. Another thought forced its way into her mind. I have control.

She shook her head in confusion, closing her eyes.

No, that’s not right, she argued. I had to! I didn’t have a choice. I don’t have control here.

Sunny gasped as she suddenly heard the door closing and looked up to see Allura and Twitch had already left. As she heard the door being locked, she blinked with confusion and sat down again.

She looked down at her hoofs and pulled on the shackles. Then she flexed her wings as much as the straps allowed.

She closed her eyes as she felt a huge void opening within her stomach. The same one she’d had when she had been on the airship but far, far deeper. She felt her heart sink into the void as her eyes widened with realisation.

I can’t do anything now. I can’t contact Misty. I can’t help the others. She closed her eyes and hunched over. Why didn’t I listen to Zipp and Hitch? I never thought something like this could happen. I’m completely helpless!

She took a deep breath as she opened her eyes, scowling with determination. No! I’m helpless now but there is still hope! My friends are coming and they'll rescue me.

Chapter Seventeen – Sinking Sunny

The following morning, Sunny was glad the light on the port turned green, allowing her to remove the muzzle. As food was dispensed, she grimaced at the grey, lumpy, sloppy porridge before she reluctantly started eating.

She’d had an awful night’s sleep. Her predicament had made it hard to get comfortable. Not that the hard mat made it any easier. At least the lights were turned off.

Somehow, the food was worse than what she’d been fed in the main hut. She struggled through it as fast as she could. Assuming she’d be in trouble if she didn’t finish it.

The buzzer from the muzzle suddenly sounded, making Sunny gasp. She looked at the food in dismay, she was only just over halfway through. “No! It’s not time yet!” she exclaimed. “The rule is I have to eat it all!”

She flinched and cried out as she felt a pain in the back of her head. Her eyes widened; she knew the shocks would get worse if she didn’t put the muzzle back on. Therefore, she reluctantly moved to do so.

However, a thought forced its way into her mind. I have a choice...

She stopped, blinking with confusion. “Wait, do I have a choice?”

She grimaced and grunted as she was shocked again. “What am I thinking? There’s no choice here, I have to put it back on!”

I have control... she stopped again. She looked at the muzzle, the food, the water and then back at the muzzle.

“Aaah!" she cried as she was shocked again. "I don’t have a choice!”

Sunny desperately thrust her nose into the muzzle. A few clicks later, she pulled away from the port with the muzzle locked in place.

I didn’t have to... What? No! I couldn’t keep getting shocked!

She sat down and looked at the ground with confusion.

I have a choice... What? No! I don’t have a choice here!

Her head suddenly twitched involuntarily.

I have control... What? No, I don’t! I’ve no control here!

She closed her eyes tightly and shook her head violently.

Why do I keep thinking these things? I had to! I have no control! I have no choice! I... I...

Her eyes widened as she looked down at her shackled hoofs. She brought them to her face and felt the muzzle, locked in place. She looked at her back and flexed her wings as much as the straps would allow them to.

She gasped as a feeling of helplessness suddenly overtook her. The void in her stomach made itself known again as she gulped and stared blankly at the ground.

There was a loud clunk from the door, followed by a second and a series of clicks. However, it barely registered with Sunny that it was being opened.

She finally turned around as she heard snarling behind her. Her eyes widened as she saw three Nirik standing outside the cage. One was standing at the cage door whilst the other two on either side were holding chains in their levitation.

As her eyes darted between them, they snarled as their fiery manes flared.

Why are they here? I have control... Aaah! No, I don’t! They do! What’s with the chains?

A feeling of dread welled within her as the middle Nirik indicated she should come closer. Gulping, Sunny slowly did as instructed and walked towards the Nirik.

As she neared the cage door, the Nirik stopped snarling. The middle Nirik’s horn glowed, and it grabbed Sunny’s muzzle with its levitation. Sunny emitted a muffled squeak and closed her eyes. Then, the other two Nirik swiftly attached the end of the chains to the bridle, on either side of her head.

Sunny gasped as she was let go. I don’t understand, what are these for?

Even if she could speak, she knew the Nirik couldn’t. Suddenly, she remembered what Misty had told her about them. She wondered if the Kirin inside even knew what was happening.

The two Nirik attached the other end of the chains to the bars on either side of the door. Sunny blinked as she realised her mobility within the cage was now reduced.

Wait? What’s going on? What are they doing to me?

As her anxiety over the situation increased, two of the stray thoughts were pushed to the forefront of her mind again.

I have control... How?! How do I have control here?!

I have a choice... No! They’re doing this to me!

She closed her eyes and fought back the thoughts, shaking her head as she stepped backwards. I have NO control here! I have NO choice of what’s happening to me!

Sunny gasped and her eyes widened as the two chains went taught. She looked worriedly at the Nirik, they had stopped snarling and didn’t appear worried over Sunny’s reaction. Wait, are they leaving me like this?!

Sunny got her answer as the middle Nirik moved towards the control panel. It pressed a flaming hoof on a reader and a small part of the glass panel opened. Revealing six leavers and buttons.

The two Nirik on either side of the cage door pressed on panels on the floor. Then, the Nirik at the panel pulled one of the leavers.

Sunny blinked as the door of her cage emitted a loud clunk before sliding upwards. The two Nirik calmly walked into the cage, stooping under the chains.

Sunny gasped as they both started checking her over. Ensuring everything was still secure and appeared to be comfortable.

Then, one checked her bowls and emitted a grunt towards the third Nirik at the control panel. The Nirik in question grunted back and pressed one of the buttons. Sunny couldn’t see, but she could hear a slurping sound as the remaining food and water were removed from the bowls.

The two Nirik then stood alongside Sunny and detached the chains from the cage. They grabbed them in their mouths before they led her from the cage and towards the door of the hut.

Oh? Are they taking me for a walk? Or, are they putting me to work?

Sunny blinked with surprise as she exited the hut into the bright sunlight. She couldn’t bring a hoof to shield them due to the shackles. The Nirik didn’t stop walking and she gasped as she was pulled onwards by the chains.

She risked glancing around. The hut she’d been in was part of a small group.

Giselle said about high-security confinement. She remembered. They must have a hut for each kind of troublemaker.

She wasn’t led far until they reached a one-pony cart. Sunny frowned as she was attached to it.

Ah okay, they are putting me to work! Are they going to escort me all day?

After hitching her to the cart. The Nirik continued to lead Sunny, two in front holding the chains with the third following behind.

They neared a gate in a fence that had two Nirik stood either side of it. They opened the gate as the group approached, allowing them to walk through.

I bet I couldn’t get through there on my own. That fence must go around the high-security huts.

They reached the bottom of an incline where there was a large pile of rock. Stood being loaded by a small group of Diamond Dogs was a large twin axle cart pulled by two Yak.

Those Diamond Dogs have shackles too. This must be the worksite for troublemakers. Wait, what are my escorts doing?

Sunny could only watch as the Nirik attached the end of the chains to the back corners of the Yak's cart. Forming a V shape from Sunny’s head.

Okay, I’m going to be stuck following the Yak then... Wait! Her eyes widened in realisation. I’m not even going to be able to steer myself!

Whilst the Diamond Dogs loaded her cart. The Nirik took one final look at her. They checked the chains were secure and the shackles weren’t too tight before walking off toward the nearest watchtower.

Oh, okay. No more... WOAH!

Sunny was yanked from her thoughts as the chains went taught. The Yak walked forward, and Sunny almost fell over as her conjoined hoofs struggled to keep up with the sudden movement.

As she followed the Yak, Sunny realised she had a problem. She was walking as fast as the shackles would allow her to. However, the chains from the cart remained taught. If the Yak moved faster, she wouldn’t be able to keep up.

Suddenly she heard a voice. “Is Pony okay back there?” one of the Yak said.

“Yak hope so,” the second Yak added. “If too fast, tell Yak. Yak have to be careful due to collar.”

Sunny grunted with realisation. Wait, I can’t tell you!

Sadly, the Yak didn’t realise Sunny was unable to respond.

“Why Pony no speak?” the first Yak grumbled.

Sunny’s eyes widened. Because I can’t!

“Maybe Pony is scared of Yak,” the second sighed. “Pony not seen Yak before.”

“No, Pony ignored Yak,” the first Yak sighed. “Yak hope Pony okay.”

With that, the two Yak fell silent again as they continued pulling the loaded cart.

Sunny grunted as she struggled to keep pace. Then she twitched as, once again, the thoughts forced themselves to the front of her mind.

I have control...What? No! I don’t have any control at all! I can barely stop myself from being pulled over!

I have a choice... Why am I thinking this?! I’ve got NO choice here! None at ALL!

I didn’t have to... Wait! I… I didn’t have to be here! I could have listened to Zipp and Hitch!

Her eyes widened as she felt the chasm in her stomach again. I…I can’t… This is… Please, somepony, stop this.... Help me.

Elsewhere, Feather Breeze sat mesmerised as she looked out the cockpit of the Marestream. It was a beautiful day; the sky was a deep shade of blue and the few clouds around were light and fluffy. They seemed to float gracefully past as the Marestream made a sweeping turn following the Airship.

Pipp smiled as she sat beside her. “You see, it’s not so bad.”

“It...It’s not,” Feather Breeze gasped. “This is far better than the Airship. Seeing why we rock really helps.”

Zipp smiled as she levelled the wings. “Yeah, it’s how the Marestream turns,” she explained. “Putting the nose up makes us climb. Putting it down makes us descend.”

“And you do that by moving the wheel thing,” Feather Breeze said understandingly as she pointed.

"Exactly," Zipp grinned.

“Like when she fell asleep on it," Pipp smirked. "That made us go down."

Zipp rolled her eyes. “Har, har, Sis. Don’t worry, that won’t be happening again.”

“The Airship was always shaking,” Feather Breeze remembered. “I hated it because I could never find out why. This has been so smooth though. After the falling asleep incident that is.”

“Keeping it smooth is all down to the pilot,” Zipp grinned. “The Marestream can be fast and agile too. The airship has some pretty big propellers to power it along. At a guess, they’ll be the cause of the vibration.”

“So, what powers us along?” Feather Breeze asked.

“We’re using Prisbeam Power,” Zipp winked.

“Pr? Pris? What?” Feather Breeze blinked.

“This,” Pipp pointed to the lantern on the console. “This lantern contains a little bit of the Prisbeam energy which is given off by the Unity Crystals.”

“The Prisbeam is how the Crystals distribute magic to everypony,” Zipp smiled. “It allows me and Pipp to fly. Misty and Izzy to use their horns and Hitch to use his plant growing magic.”

“And Sunny to use her powers,” Pipp smiled. “Here, I’ll show you.”

Pipp whipped out her phone and opened the gallery. After a minute of flipping through, she found a photo of Sunny with her powers active. Her wings were spread wide, and she had a beaming smile on her face.

Feather Breeze gasped as she looked at the photo. “And this is your friend who we need to rescue?”

Pipp nodded. “Yep, she was taken from the city.”

“But how?” Feather Breeze frowned. “The instructions were no horns, no wings. She has both.”

“Yeah, she can turn her horn and wings off,” Pipp explained as she flipped to another photo.

Feather Breeze gasped as she looked at the image of Sunny without her powers. She was in her smoothie cart, grinning as she passed Misty a smoothie.

“We don’t have the best record when it comes to Ponies being bait,” Zipp sighed. “Two attempts and both times the pony has ended up being captured.”

“So, what are we going to do when we get to the quarry?” Feather Breeze asked worriedly. “I’ve been thinking about it and I’m worried. I’m worried I will turn into a Nirik and get taken over by the purr.”

“That won’t happen,” Pipp said reassuringly. “We won’t let it.”

“But you can’t stop it,” Feather Breeze sighed. “I start feeling angry thinking about the quarry, Pipp. All my friends and family are trapped there. I suppress it because I don’t think turning into a fiery monster would be a good thing to do right now. But I don’t think I’ll be able to when I’m in the quarry.”

“You won’t be in the quarry,” Zipp responded. “At least not straight away. First, we need to gather information. As much as possible. Then we’ll form a plan and part of that will be making sure you don’t get taken over by the purr again.”

“I don’t know how I can help with any of that,” Feather Breeze sighed.

“Well, do you know all these Situation numbers?” Zipp asked.

“Yeah, I do,” Feather Breeze frowned. “They’re etched into my memory, along with the instructions each one contains.”

“Then that’s going to be a massive help,” Zipp grinned. “We’ll find somewhere we can safely observe. Our camp needs to be a ways off from it though.”

“Then, if you feel angry you can come back to the camp and let it out,” Pipp gasped.

Feather Breeze smiled and nodded. “That reminds me of something. An old story that has been passed down generations of Kirin...”

Sunny couldn’t help feeling relieved when the Nirik eventually came and unhitched her from the back of the Yak’s cart.

The day had been sweltering and she’d had no respite from it. Water had been provided at the central incline where they unloaded. But with the muzzle locked in place, Sunny had been unable to drink it. Even though she’d tried.

Worse of all were the stray thoughts. They kept coming back, over and over and reminding herself they weren't true was getting to her. It was a continual reminder of just how dire her situation had now become. She’d tried ignoring them, but then they just kept repeating.

Allura smiled maliciously as she flew above the quarry and spotted Sunny being led into the confinement area by the Nirik. Sunny was looking down with sorrow-filled eyes as she tiredly trudged along.

Allura banked around and landed directly in front of the group. She held up a paw to bring the Nirik to a stop.

Sunny gulped before narrowing her eyes, looking up at Allura with an accusing scowl.

“I see you’ve still got some fire,” Allura smirked before she purred. “Just remember, there's no escape! Just remember, I'll capture your friends!”

Sunny’s eyes widened as they flashed for a second. She flinched and shook her head as new thoughts forced their way into her mind. There's no escape… She'll capture my friends...

Allura grinned deviously as she watched Sunny’s reaction. “Let’s see how long your hope lasts. From what I can see, you’ve had a miserable day and they’re never going to change.”

With that, Allura turned back to the Nirik. “Nirik! Continue.”

The Nirik all nodded as Allura spread her wings and flew away. Sunny blinked with confusion as she felt the chains going taught and she was ushered forward.

When they arrived back at the hut, Sunny found the process of putting her back in the cage was the reverse of taking her out. There wasn't a moment that she was able to move freely until the cage door was firmly closed.

After the Nirik had left, Sunny groaned as she sat down. Suddenly, her eyes widened as the thoughts that tormented her pushed through again.

I have a choice... No, not again! No, I don’t! I don’t have any choice here.

I have control... No. I have no control at all! I can’t decide anything for myself!

I didn’t have to... She grimaced and closed her eyes. I… I…. I didn’t have to play bait. I should have listened. Why didn't I listen?!

There's no escape… Her eyes widened as she looked around the cage. I… I can’t…. I really can’t! I can't escape! I’m completely helpless and it’s all my own fault!

She closed her eyes tightly as she began to tremble.

She'll capture my friends... Her eyes shot open in panic. T...They're coming and she...she'll... NO! Nonono! I can't warn them! They're going to all end up like me!

She closed her eyes again as she hunched over, struggling to breathe with her heart pounding in her ears.

No! No, please! Please, I… I can’t… Please, somepony, anypony, help!

Chapter Eighteen – Skysurf’s Plan

Skysurf grunted as she opened the access into the tunnel from the Hippogriff’s hut. Ignoring the commotion behind her.

“Skysurf, do you really want to risk it?” a sky-blue Hippogriff asked. “We’ve nearly got it all worked out.”

“I’m too busy to worry about it, Surfrider,” Skysurf frowned. “It all gets put out of whack when the Airship docks anyway.”

She looked into the tunnel, just in time to see Giselle hurrying through. “Hey, Giselle. Wait up!”

“No time,” Giselle beamed. “Hurry up, slowcoach.”

Skysurf grunted as she dropped into the tunnel and started following the excited Griffon. “Why the rush? What's going on?”

“Hurry up and find out!”

When she arrived in the Pony’s hut, Giselle practically bounded from the hole. Grinning as she saw that Skysurf was the last to arrive and they were all there. “We’ve got our loophole!”

“So, it worked then?” Sprout asked.

“You bet it worked,” Giselle beamed. “It took them ages to come looking. I was starting to think they weren’t going to bother.”

“Okay, so next thing is, do we have a target?” Thymus asked before turning to Sprout and Sugar. “Is there a watchtower they can access?”

Sprout nodded. “There is, but there’s an issue.”

“It’s three towers from your loophole,” Sugar grunted. “And there’s an incline in the way. I doubt you’ll be able to get around it.”

“Without help,” Sprout winked.

“Okay,” Skysurf said unsurely. “What do you suggest?”

Sugar snorted. “He thinks you’ll be able to ride in a cart. I keep telling him it won’t work.”

“No, it won’t,” Skysurf frowned. “They’ll see us inside the cart from the towers.”

“I never said in the cart.” Sprout winked. “Under it.”

“Oh, cling to the bottom you mean!” Giselle gasped.

“Finally, somecreature gets it,” Sprout grinned. “We pick you up and drop you off at the tower. Then we collect you on the way back and get you back to your blind spot.”

“Yes!” Giselle pumped the air with a clenched claw. “The plans coming together perfectly. When are we doing it? Tomorrow?”

“Not so fast,” Skysurf said as she folded her forelegs. “We need more planning here. Where are we boarding the cart? Who’s cart? How do we know there’s something to hold on to underneath it? How long will we be stuck at the tower before the ride back?”

Giselle scowled with annoyance. “Okay, there’s a few kinks. But I think we could still do it.”

“Nocreature said it wasn’t possible,” Thymus responded. “We just need to be careful.”

Skysurf nodded in agreement. “Leave it to me, I’ll find the answers to my questions tomorrow.”

“What!” Giselle exclaimed as she thrust her claws wide in exasperation. “But I...”

“Was seen getting fatigued in that area today,” Thymus cut in. “Skysurf is right, she should test it out.”

“You should try boarding a few carts,” Sprout suggested. “Check which will work best.”

“Agreed,” Skysurf nodded. “Leave it to me.”

“Which means we’re leaving it another day before we get the collars,” Giselle grunted.

Sugar sighed. “I hope we still get them before Sunny’s friends get here.”

“It will be fine,” Thymus said reassuringly. “I doubt they will have a way to move freely around the quarry. Truth be told, I am worried how they will contact us.”

“If they have magic, I’m sure they’ll have a way,” Giselle winked.

“Oh, they have magic,” Sprout nodded confidently. “Misty Brightdawn and Izzy Moonbow, they do.”

“Who?” Giselle frowned.

Sugar groaned with exasperation. “They’re Unicorns. Yet again, we’ll need to leave it to them.”

“Fair enough,” Thymus sighed. “Now, I must take my leave. My fellow Changelings are digging into the Diamond Dogs' hut tonight. I am hopeful of persuading them to join us.”

“Then you need to take some apples,” Sprout suggested. “Food will likely help.”

“Yes, a sample will do perfectly,” Thymus nodded.

Sometime later, after the other creatures had left, Sprout frowned as he watched Sugar giving out apples to the other ponies. When she’d finished, she spotted him staring and frowned back. “Problem, Sprout?”

“Yeah, I don’t get it.”

Sugar rolled her eyes. “That’s not exactly new. Dare I ask? What don’t you get?”

“What made you change?”

Sugar snorted. “I’ve not changed, don’t be so silly.”

“Deny it all you like,” Sprout smirked. “Before Sunny arrived, you wouldn’t have anything to do with escaping. Now though, you’re up to your flank in planning meetings.”

Sugar frowned and wrinkled her nose but didn’t respond.

“Okay, I’ll just have to assume it’s because Sunny will help you when we get home…”

“No.”

“No?”

“No, that’s not why I’m helping plan an escape,” Sugar sighed as she sat down. “I mean, it will be really nice of her. But no, I’m not helping because of that.”

Sprout smiled as he sat down beside her. “Then what changed your mind?”

Sugar sighed again. “Because… Because I wanted to… Well... Help Sunny.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, I started to remember our time at school,” Sugar admitted. “How we grew closer whilst we were sat together. It…It made me realise how much of a jerk I’ve been since.”

“Hey, we’ve all been jerks to Sunny since school,” Sprout admitted. “Well, apart from Hitch. I mean he was basically her only friend.”

Sugar looked down sadly and sighed. “I…I’ve found out how suddenly finding you have no friends hurts.”

Sprout couldn’t help but look utterly confused. Sugar groaned and looked up at the ceiling.

“I know Sunny’s got an awesome group of friends now. But I still feel awful for how I treated her. Then there’s the whole Alicorn thing.”

“No, I get how you’d feel bad about that,” Sprout admitted. “I know I do.”

Sugar smirked deviously at him. “Feel bad for smashing a giant machine into her home?”

Sprout groaned as he looked down and shook his head. “Never going to live that one down.”

“Nope.”

“Wait, back up,” Sprout frowned. “You said something about having no friends. But I thought you had lots of friends?”

Sugar groaned and scowled at the ground. “I… Um….”

“Don’t want to talk about it,” Sprout deduced. “That’s fine, I’m likely not the best at hearing this stuff anyway.”

Sugar let out a deep sigh. “No, I don’t have any friends back in Equestria. They left me in the lurch as my modelling career disintegrated around me.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah, and then Sunny starts picking up our old friendship. Almost like she knew I needed a friend.

“So, I thought, what the hay, I’ll help. I mean it’s not like I enjoy being here either. Only now she’s been taken away from us.”

“It won’t be for long,” Sprout replied firmly. “Her friends will be here soon.”

Sugar sighed again as her ears flattened against her head. “Yeah, and then where will that leave me?”

“Don’t be silly,” Sprout scoffed. “Sunny isn’t going to leave you in the lurch.”

Sugar frowned in thought. “Y...You’re right, I don’t think she’s the kind of pony who’d do that. I’m just... Well...”

“Hey, it’s fine, you’ve just got to remember things are going to get better,” Sprout reassured. “We’ll do what we can tomorrow to help Skysurf. Then we’ll hopefully be ready to enact our plan.”

Sugar sighed before looking at Sprout and nodding determinedly.

Zipp smiled as she watched the sun start to peek its way over the horizon. She’d long since realised sunrise and sunset were a nice distraction from the monotony of following the Airship.

She checked a display showing the route they’d taken. The line crisscrossed back and forth onto itself repeatedly. It had even carried out a great deal of backtracking. It was as though the captain of the Airship was purposefully trying to confuse them.

However, before she could figure it out, her ear twitched as she heard the door behind her open. She glanced around and saw Feather Breeze yawning as she walked into the cockpit.

“Morning, Feather Breeze. You’re up early.”

“Is it? I…I don’t know,” Feather Breeze groaned. “I just seem to suddenly wake up. I can’t sleep anymore.”

Suddenly, Feather Breeze gasped as she spotted the sky. It was lit up in deep reds and pinks by the sun as it rose over the horizon.

“Red sky at night, Pegasus delight. Red sky in the morning, Pegasus warning,” Zipp sighed.

Feather Breeze blinked with confusion. “What?”

“An old saying,” Zipp explained. “A red sky in the morning means bad weather is on the way. I think I see it too.”

Feather Breeze gasped again, staring open-mouthed out the window. Suddenly, over to one side, there was a flash in the far distance from a dark black cloud.

As she continued to stare at the contrasting scene before her. Feather Breeze couldn’t resist, she had to start singing. She hadn’t noticed Pipp had walked in behind her.

'Cause rainbows won't light up the sky
Unless you let it rain
And candles just won't glow until they're burned
No, you can't give up your laughter
'Cause you're scared of a little pain
It's a lesson that my village never learned

Oh, yes, 'cause rainbows won't light up the sky
Unless you let it...

Raaaaaaaain!

As she finished, Feather Breeze gasped as she heard clapping behind her. She turned around to see Pipps beaming wide-eyed expression.

“That was gorgeous,” Pipp beamed. “Where did you learn it?”

“I…It’s a song passed down the generations of Kirin. It’s linked to the story I told you yesterday.”

Pipp came closer and was about to respond when she suddenly gasped. Her eyes widened and she froze, staring blankly forward.

“Pipp?” Feather Breeze gasped as she waved a hoof in front of Pipp’s face. “Pipp? What’s wrong?”

Zipp glanced back worriedly. “Pipp? Sis? You okay?”

Suddenly Pipp took a deep breath and shook her head violently. “I…I’m okay.”

She hurried to the door to the rear compartment. Opening it before shouting through. “Misty! Misty, it worked! I got that loud and clear.”

“Wait, got what?” Zipp exclaimed.

A bleary-eyed, but smiling Misty appeared at the doorway. “A message,” she yawned. “I…I finally managed to work it out.”

She held up the spell book she’d gotten from Strawberry, still open at the page she’d been working from.

“There are more messaging variations,” Misty explained. “This one, allows me to message anypony or creature that I know. They know it’s me and hear the message in their mind.”

“And seemingly lock up as they receive it,” Zipp frowned. “Maybe a little warning? I thought something was really wrong with Pipp.”

“Aww, you do care,” Pipp giggled.

“I can only use the spell once a day,” Misty yawned again, blinking as she struggled to keep her eyes open. “N…Now I’ve got that version down. I can look at another that allows the other pony to respond.”

Pipp gasped worriedly. “Wait? Misty! Have you been up all night again?”

“Y…Yeah,” Misty admitted. “I just felt so close to getting it right. Old Ponish is so hard. I…I’m going to bed now though.”

“Oh, you definitely are,” Pipp smirked. “Come on, you’ve got to stop doing this to yourself.”

“I…I’ll try,” Misty yawned.

She turned around and headed into the back cabin with Pipp hot on her tail.

Much later that day, Sprout was pulling a loaded cart through the quarry. As a larger cart passed him, it kicked up a huge amount of dust and he coughed violently as he accidentally inhaled a lung full of it.

Shaking his head as he recovered, he gasped as he spotted Skysurf appear from where she’d been hiding at the side of the roadway. He frowned with confusion, he was sure he’d seen her there earlier that day. Why was she back again?

Then, as he neared her position, Sprout blinked with confusion as Skysurf hurried out of hiding and scurried under his cart. Hooking her hind hoofs over the suspension and grasping on with her claws.

Worriedly, Sprout looked around to check there were no Nirik nearby.

“What’s happening?” he hissed. “I thought you’d done your recon?”

“No, still at it,” Skysurf responded. “We need to know if it’s possible to hold on long enough to reach the tower. Is there somewhere before it I can hop off and keep watch?”

“I think so,” Sprout responded. “I’ll give you a signal when to drop off. Just don’t talk unless I do.”

“Understood,” Skysurf nodded.

As Sprout continued onwards in silence, Skysurf soon found another flaw in their plan. The dust being kicked up from Sprout’s hoofs and the cartwheels was stifling. However, she realised there would be no getting around it, they’d just have to endure it.

As they passed through a tunnel under one of the inclines, two unloaded carts crossed them going the other way. Sprout gagged at the dust again whilst, beneath the cart, Skysurf couldn’t stop herself coughing. Eyes widening, Sprout quickly covered for her, making it look like he was the one coughing.

Which turned out to be a good thing as a Nirik entered the tunnel. Sprout couldn’t help but sigh with relief as it continued on its way without batting an eyelid.

It felt like an age for Skysurf as she continued to hold on. Her forelegs felt like they were burning as she tried to hold herself close to the underside of the cart. Finally, she heard a bang on the cart as Sprout kicked out a hind leg.

Taking that as her signal, Skysurf immediately unhooked her hind legs and dropped to the ground. As the cart disappeared from above her, she looked around and grinned as she spotted a few piles of rock.

Flipping herself over, she darted to the piles and settled down between them. She couldn’t help grinning, she had a perfect view of the watchtower.

“I don’t care what they say about you, Sprout,” she muttered. “Your military training is spot on.”

Thymus grunted as Skysurf and Giselle helped him from the tunnel and into the Pony’s hut that evening. “Much appreciated, today was far too hot.”

“We were starting to think you weren’t coming,” Giselle pouted.

“Well, I have good reason,” Thymus smiled as he gestured to the hole.

The others watched as a dark grey Diamond Dog appeared. Easily hoisting herself into the hut she looked around with interest as she sniffed the air.

“This is Bingo of the Diamond Dogs,” Thymus smiled.

Bingo snorted and scowled. “Changeling promised good food,” she grunted. “Food that I do not see. How do you have it? Explain?”

Sprout smiled as he stepped forward. “Is there any particular vegetable or fruit you’d like?”

Bingo’s eyes widened with a mixture of confusion and surprise. “Banana? Y…You have bananas?”

“We will in a second,” Sprout grinned as he looked over towards Sugar.

Sugar groaned and rolled her eyes. “Apples are way better but, whatever.”

She raised a forehoof and Bingo gasped as it glowed green. Then, after Sugar tapped her hoof on the ground, a small Banana plant grew up from the second hole. The bunches of bananas quickly ripen from a green to a golden yellow.

Bingo watched in awe as Skysurf first picked a bunch of bananas before she started passing them out. Then her eyes widened to the size of dinner plates as Skysurf held one out towards her.

“Come on,” Skysurf smiled. “Trust me, if the apples are anything to go by these will be the real deal too.”

Bingo narrowed her eyes untrustingly as she leaned forward to sniff the banana. Then, her eyes widened as she gasped, quickly grabbing the banana with a paw. She sniffed it again before tentatively biting a small part from the end.

As she tasted the banana, she froze in surprise. Then she wolfed down the rest of the banana in excitement and joy. “Okay, Diamond Dogs in!”

“Glad to hear you are joining us,” Thymus grinned.

Bingo grinned with excitement. “What is the escape plan? Nirik are afraid of Diamond Dogs. They only have control due to evil collars.”

“Well, the collars are going to be key, and we need as much information about them as possible,” Giselle explained. “You say they’re evil, why?”

Bingo grunted as she took another banana. “They evil because they hurt us,” she growled. “We leave set areas, we are hurt. We don’t work, we are hurt. We do the wrong thing, we are hurt. Diamond Dogs would be free if it wasn’t for evil collars.”

“Interesting that you’re free to leave your hut then,” Skysurf pondered.

Bingo blinked, placing a paw near her collar worriedly. “Hadn’t thought of that.”

“More than likely, they don’t think you’d be able to escape your hut,” Thymus theorised. “The floor was certainly more resilient than the others.”

“So, what plans for collars?” Bingo asked hopefully. “Do you have way to get them off?”

“Not yet but there’s outside help coming,” Sprout explained. “Help that will be able to investigate the collars for us.”

“The Nirik aren’t actually against us,” Skysurf revealed. “The collars are trapping them.”

“They’re prisoners the same as we are,” Sugar sighed. “Forced to do things against their wills.”

“We just need to get into a watchtower,” Thymus explained. “Then gather examples ready for when help arrives.”

Bingo looked doubtful. “How do you know help coming?”

“Pony magic,” Sugar replied simply.

“The only issue being the pony with the magic is now in High-Security Confinement,” Giselle groaned.

Bingo’s eyes widened. “Marlowe came back from there today. He says there was sparkly pony with wings and horn.”

“Orange?” Sugar gasped.

“Yes, an orange pony with sparkly wings and horn,” Bingo grinned.

“That’s Sunny,” Sprout smiled. “She had contact with her friends. They’re following the Airship.”

Bingo sighed and shook her head. “He says she all chained up though. Doubt she able to help.”

“I’m sure her friends will find a way to contact us when they arrive,” Thymus replied. “Skysurf, was your day successful?”

Skysurf smiled. “Yes, yes it was.”

“I hope so,” Sprout frowned. “You spent a lot of time scouting and not much time working.”

Thymus looked at Skysurf worriedly. "I hope you didn't get into trouble."

“Don't worry about me,” Skysurf responded. “It's more important that I’ve worked out most of the kinks. Enough that we can act tomorrow. This is what we do..."

Author's Note

Feather Breeze is singing this version of 'A Kirin Tale': https://youtu.be/JZQGdH0tGMc?si=Sp4ve2j_fcAhWVhL

Chapter Nineteen – Watchtower Infiltration

Sunny grinned as she ran through a field of long grass, daisies and daffodils. It was a beautiful day, the sun beaming down from the glorious blue sky above her.

Running slightly ahead of her was Izzy. Her mane and tail fluttered in the wind as she galloped along. She looked back at Sunny excitedly as she began singing...

Up ahead is a sky growing dark
Where it leads is a big question mark
And I’m scared that I’ll end up
A pony gone missing from Pegasus-ing

Sunny beamed as she caught up to Izzy. They galloped alongside each other as they kicked up the seeds from a patch of dandelions.

But you’re not alone
You got a pony in your crew

Izzy beamed as she nudged Sunny in the side.

I do? Who?

Sunny grinned as she took the lead, following the path as it began to curve back and forth.

I'm lookin' out for you
When you're off track
I got your back
You can rely on me
I'm lookin' out for you

Izzy laughed excitedly as she put on an unnatural burst of speed and overtook. Sunny gasped and her eyes widened as she suddenly found she couldn’t keep up. The faster she tried to go; the more Izzy pulled away. “Iz, slow down!”

However, Izzy didn’t respond. The gap between the pair got wider and wider until, suddenly, Izzy screamed as she disappeared downwards. “SUNNNY!”

“IZZY!”

Wide-eyed, Sunny skidded to a stop at the edge of a black, seemingly bottomless abyss that had just swallowed her friend. Desperately, she looked around for Izzy. However, there was no trace of her. “No, nonono,” she panted. “Iz! IZZY!”

Without warning, the abyss grew larger, and the ground disappeared from below Sunny’s hoofs. “Woah!” she screamed as she plummeted into the blackness.

It felt like she was falling for an eternity. Then, she started floating, her hoofs treading thin air.

“Where am I?” she gasped as she looked around. “IZZY! Izzy, where are you?”

Suddenly, five spotlights turned on, one by one. Sunny’s eyes widened, and she gasped. “No. NO!”

Within each pool of light, there was a bell-shaped cage. Locked within each cage was one of Sunny's friends. Their forelegs were shackled, and each had a muzzle locked to their faces. Pipp and Zipp were wearing straps around their wings and Misty and Izzy had restrictors clamped around their horns.

None of them moved, they were all sat looking down forlornly. They looked as though they’d completely given up any hope of rescue.

Sunny gulped before narrowing her eyes with determination. “Hold on everypony, I’m coming!”

Desperately, Sunny tried to activate her powers. However, her eyes widened when nothing happened.

“What? No!” She grunted, closing her eyes as she strained with effort. “C...Come on, work!”

Suddenly, Sunny’s eyes shot open. She gasped as she found herself sitting in a cage. Her forehoofs were shackled and a muzzle covered her face. The cages containing her friends floated around hers, rotating around and around.

No! NO! Nononono!

Suddenly, Sunny gasped as Allura appeared. She was huge, towering over all the cages as she laughed maniacally.

“Just remember, you can’t escape,” the huge Allura sneered. “Just remember, I’ll capture all your friends.”

Sunny desperately panted for breath as she stared back at Allura with widened eyes. Suddenly, everything was engulfed in a bright white light.

Sunny screamed into her muzzle as her eyes shot open. She’d been awoken by the lights in the hut turning on and she lay on the mat, panting for breath.

It...It was a dream... I can’t escape... She gasped as her eyes widened in horror. NO! Please! NO! I can’t... I can’t

She struggled to breathe as she felt her heart pounding. Then, she desperately looked towards the port in the wall. Feeling a prang of relief as she saw the LED flick to green.

I have control… Yes! Yes, I do! I’m getting this thing off my face so I can breathe!

She scrambled to her hoofs and quickly moved towards the port. Shoving the muzzle in as soon as she arrived. A few clicks and she pulled her nose free, immediately taking a deep breath in through her mouth.

She sat down and began breathing deeply. In through her nose and out through her mouth. “I…I’m okay,” she gasped between breaths. “I’m okay.”

Suddenly, she gasped. Her eyes widened and she froze as she heard a familiar voice in her mind.

“SUNNY! I’ve learnt this new messaging spell. I’m sorry, it won’t let you reply, I'm working on that. Don’t worry though. Whatever’s happened, we’ll save you! It doesn’t matter how bad things might seem. We’ll find a way, I promise. Don’t lose your hope!”

Sunny shook her head as the message ended. She gasped again as a spark of hope ignited in her heart.

“Misty? Misty, is that really you?" Her head twitched.

She'll capture my friends... Her eyes widened in panic. “Misty, no! Don’t come, she’ll capture you all!”

Tears began falling from her eyes as her sides heaved in sorrow. The spark was seemingly snuffed out as a fog of despair descended within her mind.

“I…I can’t get away. T…They can’t save me. I…I don’t have any hope!”

Much later, Skysurf groaned as she felt Giselle pushing her from behind. “Will you stay still?” she hissed.

“I can’t, there’s no space,” Giselle whispered back. “You need to get closer.”

“We’re plenty close enough,” Skysurf grunted before gasping. “Get Down!”

They both flattened themselves between the rocks that they were hiding within. The Nirik that Skysurf had spotted walked past without noticing them.

“This isn’t good,” Giselle hissed. “I thought you said there weren’t many patrols.”

“There wasn’t this many yesterday,” Skysurf grumbled. “It’s okay, I see Sprout coming.”

Sprout was indeed approaching with a loaded cart behind him. He gasped as he passed the Nirik and couldn’t help feeling surprised as he spotted Skysurf emerge from the rocks and wave a wing. He glanced back to the Nirik before pulling in closer to the rocks and slowing enough for both Skysurf and Giselle to scramble under his cart.

“I was starting to think you’d abort,” he hissed.

“So was I,” Giselle grumbled.

Skysurf frowned. “It’s fine, just remember we’ve got a long time to hold on.”

“I’ve got it,” Giselle muttered. “You worry about yourself.”

“Sush,” Sprout hissed. “Don’t talk now unless I do.”

It was a while before Sprout finally started nearing the watchtower. Under the cart, Giselle couldn’t help grunting as she struggled to hold on.

The dust had been stifling and now her forelegs were starting to burn. Unsure how much longer she could hold on, she looked worriedly at Skysurf.

Skysurf nodded knowingly in response, she was feeling it too. However, they both felt relieved as they heard Sprout grunt.

The grunt had two objectives, firstly to let Skysurf and Giselle know they were close to the watchtower. Secondly, Sprout began putting on a show. Flicking his tail and making it look like he was being attacked by flies.

He veered off course and closer to the watchtower than normal. His actions being covered by the tail flicking and grunting, the Nirik above didn’t suspect a thing and carried on as normal.

Sprout tried and failed to suppress a grin as he neared the door of the watchtower before coughing loudly.

This was the signal for Skysurf and Giselle. They both quickly dropped from the cart and let Sprout continue on his way. Skysurf nodded towards the door and Giselle gave a confident grin in response.

They got up and started moving towards the door. However, just as they arrived, it suddenly opened.

They both froze, wide-eyed in shock, as they looked at the two Nirik that had just emerged. The Nirik meanwhile both stopped and cocked their heads. Seemingly unable to fathom how a Hippogriff and Griffon were stood before them.

Meanwhile, Sugar passed Sprout with an empty cart. He grinned before winking at her and nodding. She smiled in response, assuming all was going to plan.

However, as she got nearer to the tower. She spotted the situation that Skysurf and Giselle had found themselves in. Gasping, she broke into a gallop and barrelled down the small hill towards the watchtower.

The two Nirik narrowed their eyes and started to growl. Having seemly worked out their response to finding the two out-of-place creatures.

Giselle narrowed her eyes and prepared to pounce at the Nirik. She looked at Skysurf, indicating she should run.

However, Skysurf gasped as she spotted Sugar galloping towards them at breakneck speed. Desperately, she pushed Giselle up against the wall of the watchtower, out of the way.

The Nirik both blinked with confusion, cocking their heads again. They weren’t expecting Sugar to gallop between them. Let alone her cart to biff them up the backsides as it gamely followed along behind her.

Sugar continued to gallop as the two Nirik went flying into the air and landed in heaps someway away. They both quickly got up and gave chase, snarling loudly as their manes flared brightly.

Up in the watchtower, the two Nirik that were on watch hadn’t seen Skysurf and Giselle. However, they had seen Sugar galloping down the hill. Therefore they were already running down the stairs.

Skysurf and Giselle gasped as the door was flung open again. They stayed frozen against the wall as the two Nirik ran past after Sugar.

Panting, they looked at each other before Giselle pointed towards the door. Skysurf nodded in response, and they headed inside.

Inside the watchtower, the pair gasped at the racks of collars, bridles and straps that covered one of the walls. Opposite, there was a large set of grey control panels which were covered in buttons and lights. Straight ahead of the door were the stairs that led up to the top level.

Skysurf pointed to herself and indicated she was going to look upstairs. Then she pointed to Giselle and then at the racks. Giselle silently nodded and moved towards them.

Above each rack, there was an image of a creature. Giselle presumed they indicated what each collar was for and looked for the Nirik ones first.

Meanwhile, Skysurf carefully went up the stairs. She confirmed the floor above them was empty before quickly coming back down. “We’re alone.”

“Good, take a look at this,” Giselle responded quietly.

She held up one of the collars, showing Skysurf the back which had an illustration of a Nirik.

“At least we can’t get them muddled,” Skysurf winked.

“Yeah, look at the wing straps,” Giselle frowned as she pointed.

Skysurf blinked and looked at the straps, gasping as she spotted the illustration of a Griffon and Hippogriff above them on the rack. “I…I didn’t think they could be the same. I’ve not seen a Griffon wearing them.”

“Let’s grab at least one of everything.”

“Agreed,” Skysurf nodded. “But let’s be quick about it.”

Meanwhile, Sugar was still galloping as fast as she could. The cart bumped and banged along as she struggled to keep ahead of her pursuers. It was a massive burden and she was quickly starting to tire.

Her heart sank as she realised, there was no way for her to escape. It was only a matter of time until she would be caught. However, she grit her teeth as she pushed herself to keep running. Hoping an opportunity would present itself.

Unfortunately such an opportunity didn’t get a chance. Sugar gasped as one of the Nirik pulled out and ran alongside her.

She tried to speed up but the Nirik slammed into her side, pushing her from the hard-packed roadway and onto the rough and rocky verge.

The cart banged and clattered, its already abused wheels couldn’t take the additional punishment. There was an ear-splitting crack as they shattered and the cart instantly dived to the ground.

Sugar cried out as the cart became a massive anchor that roughly pulled her to the ground. Grunting, she tried to get up, but the Nirik were quickly upon her and pinned her down.

Puffing and panting as she lay on the ground, Sugar struggled against the Nirik’s grasp. However, she quickly realised she was going nowhere and stopped. Her fate was in the flaming hoofs of the Nirik now.

She closed her eyes, hoping that Giselle and Skysurf had been successful.

Back at the watchtower, Skysurf grunted as she hid the last of the collars. “Come on, Sprout will be here soon.”

“You need to take a look at this.”

Skysurf frowned as she turned and looked towards where Giselle was standing. She was looking at one of the large control panels on the other side of the room. As Skysurf walked over towards it, she noticed what looked like a tape player. It had two tapes, one slowly rotating whilst the second was not.

“This could be something to do with the purr,” Skysurf gasped.

“I bet it is," Giselle nodded. "I'm sure I saw speakers on the tower outside.”

Giselle reached towards the tape that wasn’t moving. However, Skysurf grabbed her claw to stop her.

“What?” Giselle blinked. “This could be critical to shutting down the purr.”

“I know but it’s too risky,” Skysurf sighed. “What with Sugar attempting a runaway. We don’t want her in more trouble.”

“Pfft, the Nirik will just put her in confinement,” Giselle frowned before gasping in realisation. “She…She saved us...”

“Exactly, Sugar sacrificed herself and that’s what makes taking that too risky.”

“How?”

“Hopefully, she’ll just end up in confinement. But if we take that then it might draw Allura’s attention. We can’t risk doing that to her.”

Giselle grimaced as she closed her eyes. However, she nodded and moved towards the door. Skysurf sighed and looked back at the wing straps. She sighed and ruffled her wings before following.

Chapter Twenty – Sugar Confined

Sugar sat scowling at the ground. She was in a cage in the corner of the high-security confinement hut, one furthest from the door.

She growled in annoyance. Chewing on the bit from the muzzle locked to her face as she wiggled her shackled forehoofs.

She didn’t understand, the consequences of her actions hadn’t even entered her mind. She’d immediately jumped into action when she’d seen Skysurf and Giselle in trouble. She hadn’t thought about what would happen to her until it was far too late.

Scowling, she lifted her conjoined hoofs. Studying the shackles, pulling at them and trying to work out how they’d come off. Quickly giving up, she placed her hoofs on the muzzle.

She felt it all over, soon moving onto the bridle that was strapped securely around her head. She tried to work out if they were two pieces, attached together, or were one piece. Once again, she soon gave up and sighed in resignation.

Not so long ago she’d have had nothing to do with escaping. Now, she’d sacrificed herself to ensure a mission related to it would succeed. She sighed, hoping it had succeeded. Hoping that Giselle and Skysurf were okay.

Suddenly, a loud clunk from the door of the hut made Sugar jump and let out a muffled squeak. She scowled again as she lifted her hoofs to the muzzle, as though she was reminding herself it was there.

A second clunk made her gasp and look at the door, wide-eyed. Then, as there was a series of clicks, she looked around worriedly before finally noticing the cage next to hers was open. Her eyes widened as she realised who should be in it.

The door swung open and a Nirik entered. Two more quickly followed, both holding chains in their mouths. Then, attached to the two chains, Sunny entered.

Sugar couldn’t help gasping as she saw Sunny for the first time since her confinement. Noticing the straps, muzzle and shackles. She blinked with confusion at how her powers were seemingly still active.

However, Sugar’s heart sank as she saw how sad Sunny looked. Her ears were drooped, and she looked sorrowfully at the ground as she shuffled along.

The Nirik led Sunny into the open cage before they turned her around. They attached the chains to the cage on either side of the door, holding her in place. Sunny didn’t make a sound, she continued to look at the floor through half-closed, despondent eyes as she waited.

Sugar watched as the Nirik proceeded to check Sunny over. Ensuring the harness around her barrel was still secure. That the shackles were not too tight or had been chafing. That the straps around her wings were comfortable and finally that the bridle and muzzle were still locked in place.

Finally, they left the cage and the third Nirik pressed the button on the control panel to close the cage door. It slid downwards into position with a loud clang. Then there was a clunk as it locked securely in place.

Sunny finally raised her head, but only so the Nirik could use their magic to remove the chains from her bridle. Then, silently, they removed the chains from the cage before all three walked out of the hut. The door immediately closed and locked behind them with another series of clicks and clunks.

Sunny looked down again and gave a deep sigh before she turned and shuffled towards the bowls in the wall of her cage. She hadn’t even spotted Sugar was there as she sat down in front of them.

Sugar blinked in surprise; she’d never seen Sunny like this. Even when one of her protests had failed, she’d always still had a spark of hope about her.

However, her eyes lacked any hint of that sparkling hope and optimism she was known for. Her body language was the same. Her ears remained flattened against her head, and she was hunched over. Looking down through half closed eyes.

Sunny sighed again as she stared at the port between the bowls. Then, her head twitched.

I can’t escape... She let out a groan of despair. YES! I know! I know that already!

She’ll capture all my friends... Tears welled in her eyes as she closed them and grimaced. Yes, and there’s nothing I can do! I can’t warn them!

Sugar scowled with annoyance. She couldn’t speak due to the muzzle and therefore couldn’t find out what was wrong with Sunny. She couldn’t help her.

After a moment, she decided she couldn’t watch any longer, she had to try and help. Therefore, she made a grunting sound, trying to get Sunny’s attention and let her know she was there.

However, Sunny didn’t respond. She continued staring at the port and LED light between the bowls as her stomach growled.

I have control... No! Stop tormenting me! If I had my way I’d have this thing off my face. I’m so hungry and thirsty!

I didn’t have to... Sunny closed her eyes tightly and trembled. I know! I know I should have listened. WHY DIDN’T I LISTEN?!

Sugar groaned, clearly Sunny hadn’t heard her and she needed a new tactic. She got to her hoofs and walked towards the bars between their cages.

Sunny’s ear twitched as she heard Sugar’s shackles clinking on the floor. She turned her head to look at the source of the sound and her eyes widened in surprise. S...Sugar Moonlight! H...How? Why?

Without breaking eye contact. Sugar sat down at the bars. She raised her conjoined hoofs, holding them out towards Sunny and pushing them through the bars. She looked to her hoofs, then to Sunny, then to her hoofs again. Wiggling her hoofs expectantly.

Sunny twitched again. I have a choice... However, she blinked with realisation. W...Wait! I DO have a choice! I know what Sugar wants to do and I want to do it with her.

Sunny rose to her hoofs and moved towards the bars before sitting down opposite Sugar. She raised her hoofs and placed them on Sugar’s before nodding.

Sugar inwardly smiled, she knew Sunny wouldn’t be able to resist, and she nodded gleefully.

They started playing a hoof-clapping game. One they’d last played when they were at school. The shackles and bars made it difficult, as did the fact they couldn’t recite the accompanying rhyme.

However, by taking it slowly, they soon got themselves into a rhythm. A rhythm that slowly started to get faster. The sound of hoofs clapping together filled the hut as they played for some time.

Sunny still felt awful, but the game was helping, she was enjoying herself. Then, out of the corner of her eye, she spotted the LED on Sugar’s port turn green.

Finally, I’m so hungry! I have control... YES! I do! I’m getting this thing off my face. Then I can finally eat something.

Sugar blinked with confusion as Sunny broke off the game. She didn’t understand, she thought Sunny had been enjoying it. She looked at her hoofs and then at Sunny with bewilderment.

Sunny made gestures with her hoofs. Pointing to her muzzle and then the port between the bowls in Sugar’s cage.

Sugar didn’t understand and blinked with confusion. Then she scowled with annoyance, she hated charades and wished they could just talk. She put her hoofs on the muzzle again, wiggling it and groaning.

Sunny grunted and shook her head. She doesn’t understand. She pointed a hoof to her muzzle and then at the port between her bowls. Trying to indicate that it would come off.

However, Sugar still didn’t get it. She grunted in confusion and tried to tell Sunny she didn’t understand by gesturing with her hoofs. However, the shackles stopped her from holding them wide enough. She scowled, shaking her head and growling as she banged her conjoined hoofs on the ground in frustration.

Sunny sighed and grunted to get Sugar’s attention. If I can’t tell you, I’ll have to show you.

Sugar frowned as she locked eyes with Sunny’s. Then Sunny held up a hoof and indicated that Sugar should watch her.

Sunny got to her hoofs and moved towards the port. She pushed the muzzle in and after a few clicks she pulled her face free. Sugar’s eyes widened in shock before she looked back at the port in the wall of her cage.

Sunny coughed as she tried to speak. “W...When the light’s green,” she coughed violently. “T...This is how they f...feed us.”

Sugar scrambled to her hoofs and hurried towards the port. She looked at it for a moment before pushing the muzzle in. There was a click as it locked into place and Sugar’s eyes widened as she realised it was stuck.

However, there was a second click as it released from the bridle and Sugar sighed with relief as she pulled her face free. “Thank hoofness,” she breathed.

She looked over to Sunny to see food and water had been dispensed into her bowls and she was already drinking.

“You should eat, Sugar. We don’t have long.”

“W...What do you mean?”

Sunny started eating as she responded. “There’ll be a buzzer. Then the bridle will start shocking you until you put the muzzle back on.”

Sugar frowned and looked at the grey, lumpy, runny porridge that was in her bowl and turned her nose up at it.

“I know,” Sunny sighed. “It’s worse than the food in the main hut. But it’s all we’ll get.”

Sugar sighed as she started to eat. Grimacing at the foul taste and pulling a face after she’d swallowed. “You’re not wrong, this stuff is vile!”

Sugar groaned as Sunny didn’t respond and just kept eating. “Sunny, are you okay?”

I can’t escape... Sunny grimaced, closing her eyes tightly.

“No. No, I’m not,” she said at last. “I...I should have listened to Zip and Hitch. I was already way in over my head when I was in the airship. Then, just as I thought there was a glimmer of hope, I got stuck in here. I can’t help anypony from here. I can’t even help myself.”

“That doesn’t matter,” Sugar said earnestly. “You helped plenty. Just knowing your friends are coming gave everycreature hope. Just by you being here, it...it gave ME hope.”

“But it shouldn’t!” Sunny exclaimed. “I’m not special!”

She groaned and looked at the floor. “Allura is strong. She...She’s done something to me. Made me think things. Things I have to continually fight against. I’ve realised how useless I really am. I was supposed to save everypony! Now my powers are gone, and I can’t even save myself!”

“Sunny...” Sugar gasped. “It’s going to be okay. We...”

“We really need to eat,” Sunny grimaced, cutting Sugar off. “Drink as much as you can too.”

Sugar blinked in surprise as she noticed how heavy Sunny’s breathing was. Her sides convulsed with each breath.

“Eat, Sugar,” Sunny urged. “Please. Whilst you have a chance!”

Grimacing, Sugar forced herself to eat. Fighting the urge to spit out the fowl-tasting food.

All too soon, Sunny’s muzzle buzzed. She sighed as she quickly sucked up as much water as she could. I have a choice... Oh for… NO! NO, I DON’T!

“Remember, Sugar, we have to,” she sighed. “No matter what Allura makes you think.”

Sugar gasped as she saw Sunny push her nose into the muzzle. “Wait! I don’t understand!”

However, it was too late. Sunny pulled back from the port with the muzzle once again locked in place. She stepped back from the bowls, the remaining food and water now beyond her reach. Then, she sat down, her bottom hitting the ground with a resigned flump.

Sugar looked at her worriedly. However, Sunny urgently makes a circular motion with a hoof. Seemingly urging Sugar to hurry.

Sugar scowled and resumed drinking. However, it wasn't long before her muzzle started buzzing. “So, that means I have to put it back on?”

Sunny grunted, nodding urgently.

“What happens if I don’t?”

Sugar almost immediately got her answer. She gasped in surprise as she felt a pain in the back of her head. Her eyes widened as she shook her head wildly.

Sunny grunted again, pointing urgently towards Sugar’s muzzle.

“I...I get it,” Sugar panted. “I’m doing it!”

She grimaced as she felt the pain again. Growling, she shoved her nose into the muzzle.

There were the same two clicks as it locked into place and then released from the port. Panting as she pulled her head backwards with the muzzle locked in place, Sugar sat down.

She scowled as she looked at the floor, realising they couldn’t talk to each other again. They were stuck playing charades, she hated charades. Especially when their hoofs were locked together as well.

She growled as she pulled at her shackles, boiling rage building within her. Then, she thrust her head to the ceiling and closed her eyes. Letting out a muffled cry of anger as she did so.

She took deep breaths as she resumed looking downwards. As she started to feel calmer, Sugar opened her eyes before turning to look at Sunny. Her eyes widened as she saw Sunny was hunched over and looking despondently at the ground, her eyes glistening with fresh tears.

Sugar blinked with concern as she got to her hoofs. She grunted as she walked to the bars. Pushing one of her hoofs through as far as it could go and bringing her body close.

Sunny blinked as she looked up at Sugar, seeing her outstretched hoof. Sugar wiggled it, indicating for Sunny to come closer.

Her eyes still glistening, Sunny got up and moved towards Sugar. Bringing her body close to the bars as well.

Sugar sighed as she pulled Sunny into a one-hoofed hug through the bars, rubbing her back comfortingly. Sunny let out a sigh before pushing her own hoof through the bars and hugged Sugar back gratefully.

Sunny closed her eyes. I’m not sure why you’re here, Sugar, but I’m glad you are.

I didn’t have to... She gasped as her eyes opened in realisation. Wait, Sugar didn’t have to either! She didn’t have to be in here. She could have just behaved and stayed in the main hut.

I have a choice... Her eyes narrowed. Exactly, everypony always has choices they can make. There aren’t many in here, but we still have them.

I have control... Exactly! There are things we CAN control! These thoughts, I’ve let them beat me, I won’t anymore!

Suddenly, memories of how she’d helped pull the creatures together resurfaced. Pushing through the fog of despair as it got thinner. Sugar’s right, I did help.

A weight lifted from her shoulders, she let out a deep and shaky breath as she felt a whole lot better. My friends are coming. I just have to hold out. They’ll rescue me, they’ll rescue us!

She’ll capture all my friends... Sunny couldn’t help chuckling to herself. Huh, Allura wishes! She doesn’t know what they can do. I do!

She rubbed Sugar’s back gratefully. Thank you. Thank you, Sugar. I still have hope!

Meanwhile, Sugar groaned. She wished they’d had more time to talk. Now, they were trapped in silence again. She hadn’t even been able to tell Sunny how she had gotten there.

Then, she felt Sunny sighing and even start chuckling. She sighed and closed her eyes as she felt Sunny rubbing her back.

It’s okay, Sunny. Sugar thought. We’ll get through this. Together.

Elsewhere, Giselle grinned as she climbed from the tunnel and into the Pony’s hut. However, as she got up, she gasped as she found Sprout stood scowling directly in front of her.

“Where’s Sugar?” he demanded. “What happened? She was supposed to be your way out for a quick abort. I’ve been told she was being chased by Nirik. Now she’s not here!”

Giselle gasped and looked around. Thymus and Bingo were there but there was no sign of Skysurf. She held her claws up in defence. “Well, the thing is. I dunno what happened to her exactly.”

“You must know something!” Sprout shouted. “She passed me just after I dropped you off, just as planned. Tell me what happened!”

“She saved us,” another voice said.

They watched as Skysurf appeared from the tunnel.

“Saved you?” Thymus gasped. “Did something go wrong?”

“Yeah, two Nirik came out just as we got to the door,” Giselle explained.

“We wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for Sugar,” Skysurf sighed. “She came charging in and run the Nirik over with her cart. Then she led them away.”

“Last we saw, she had four of them hot on her heels,” Giselle added. “So, like I said, we dunno exactly what happened to her.”

Sprout sighed as he sat down dejectedly. “Well, she’s not here so she’ll be in confinement with Sunny then.”

“That would be a good assumption,” Skysurf nodded.

“Please, tell us you were successful?” Thymus groaned. “Give us some good news.”

“Thanks to Sugar, of course we were,” Giselle smiled as she produced the collars and straps that she’d been carrying.

Skysurf nodded as she did the same. “Sugar didn’t sacrifice herself in vain.”

The others gasped and helped lay them all out so they could inspect them.

“So, we have a few Nirik ones,” Skysurf explained. “Then one of each for Changelings, Diamond Dogs, Yak and the various straps that we’re all wearing.”

Bingo grunted as she pointed to the multiple sets of bridles. “What are these?”

“Those are interesting,” Giselle frowned. “They’re all for ponies.”

“Wait, what?” Sprout gasped as he took a closer look. “Well, there’s one the same as we’re all wearing. But what are these?”

He held one up. The straps were thicker than the rest and had a box attached.

“Turn it over,” Skysurf instructed. “You said there’s different types of Pony. It will tell you which it’s for on the back.”

Sprout gasped as he looked at the back of the bridle. There was an image of a Unicorn and even the name written underneath.

“Wait, so this is for Unicorns?” he blinked. “Then...”

He picked up another bridle, gasping as he saw it was for a Pegasus. The straps weren’t as thick, and the box was smaller.

Bingo grunted impatiently. “So, what is the plan now we have these?”

The others all looked at each other.

“We wait,” Thymus sighed. “We’ve done what we needed to do.”

“We need the Airship to dock,” Skysurf nodded. “Then Sunny’s friends need to contact us, somehow. Then we pass these to them.”

“Will they even know she’s not with us?” Giselle groaned.

“I’m sure they’ll know something has happened,” Sprout replied. “I know them, they won’t just be coming for Sunny.”

“There was one other thing in the watchtower,” Skysurf remembered.

Giselle gasped. “The tapes!”

“Tapes?” Thymus blinked.

“You mentioned speakers, Thymus,” Skysurf reminded. “The watchtower had them too.”

“Inside, there’s this huge piece of equipment,” Giselle explained, holding her claws out for emphasis. “Part of it was a tape player thing. It had two tapes; one was turning whilst the other wasn’t.”

“I think those tapes must have recordings of the purr,” Skysurf pondered. “Or at least something that controls the equipment that makes it.”

“Well, we know the source,” Sprout frowned. “Allura.”

“But how is a purr important?” Bingo sniffed crossing her arms.

“Allura uses it to control others,” Sprout explained. “I saw her use it on Sunny. Allura purred into her ear, and she stopped fighting back. She had this blank expression and just walked off.”

“The Nirik are held against their wills too, Bingo,” Thymus reminded. “Trapped in their own minds following instructions given to them by Allura’s purr.”

“Explains a lot,” Bingo grunted. “If there’s nothing else. Give me my Bananas and we’ll meet again tomorrow night.”

Sprout sighed as he moved towards the second hole and proceeded to grow a Banana plant. “You can take all of these then,” he told Bingo. “Then the rest of us will have apples if that’s okay with you.”

“Fine,” Bingo sniffed. “Apples don’t agree with Diamond Dogs.”

With that, Bingo loaded herself up with Bananas before jumping down into the tunnel.

“Bingo!” Thymus called. “Find out how the tunnel to the Yaks is going won’t you?”

“YES! Will do that!” Bingo called back from halfway down the tunnel.

As Sprout swapped the Banana plant for an apple tree. Giselle frowned and crossed her forelegs. “Do we really need the Yak? The Diamond Dogs haven’t exactly been helping.”

“Only because there is nothing for them to help with currently,” Skysurf responded. “We could need them when it comes to actually escaping.”

“Agreed, Bingo joined us too late in the planning process to help infiltrate the watchtower,” Thymus said before sighing. “I hope the Airship gets here soon.”

“It’s not normally this long between dockings,” Skysurf agreed. “I hope they don’t know they are being followed.”

The creatures could only agree as the apples were distributed.

Chapter Twenty-One – Sugar n Sunny

As yet another morning dawned, the Marestream continued to make its way through the sky trailing the Airship. Hitch grinned as he watched the sunrise from the controls.

The previous night had been somewhat hairy. Strong winds and heavy rain had battered them continuously. As a result, nopony had been able to sleep. Let alone Feather Breeze who’d needed to be comforted all the way through.

Now, however, Hitch didn’t care that Zipp hadn’t relieved him. All was calm as the sun pushed its way above the layer of cloud that was below them.

However, it didn’t last as Hitch realised he couldn't see the Airship in the distance anymore. Frowning with concern, he checked the tracking display and gasped. He hadn’t speeded up, but the distance to the airship was going down.

“Okay,” Hitch blinked as he started slowing the Marestream down. “They’re going slower for some reason.”

However, Hitch frowned as the distance continued to decrease. He slowed the Marestream down further but became more and more concerned.

“It's like they’re hovering. Wait, the Marestream can hover. Err, how did it do that again?”

He frantically looked over the controls. But having only ever landed the Marestream once, under Zipp's watchful eye, he quickly realised he was out of his depth.

“Zipp! ZIPP!” he shouted. “Agh, where’s the intercom button? ZIPP! I need you!”

Misty was wide awake in the rear compartment, her sleep pattern was all out of whack from too many all-nighters. She sighed as she continued studying the spellbook, getting nowhere fast.

Her ear twitched as she heard Hitch’s frantic voice. Then, she gasped as she realised the motion of the Marestream felt strange.

“Zipp!” Misty shouted as she leapt to her hoofs. “Zipp! Somethings wrong!”

Misty hurried over to where Zipp was still sound asleep. With her shouting not working, Misty shook the sleeping Pegasus violently. “Zipp! Wake up! Hitch needs you!”

“Huh, whazzat Mom?”

“No. Misty! Hitch needs you in the cockpit.”

Zipp gasped as her eyes flung open. Suddenly, they both felt a weightless feeling.

“What’s happening!” Misty cried.

“We’ve stalled!” Zipp shouted as she scrambled to her hoofs and towards the cockpit.

As Zipp struggled into the cockpit, Hitch turned frantically towards her. “ZIPP! What do I do?”

“Push the nose down!” Zipp instructed.

“But we’re falling!” Hitch cried. “We don’t want to go down more!”

“We’re going too slowly,” Zipp informed as she struggled over. “We need more speed. Push the nose down!”

Hitch gasped and pushed the wheel forward, then moved out of the way as Zipp arrived so she could take the controls.

As the Marestream pitched downward, the air rushing over its wings quickly saw them creating lift again.

Then, Zipp pulled back on the controls hard and the Marestream bucked as it lurched upwards. Before long it burst up out of the clouds.

Hitch sat panting as Zipp brought the Marestream level and began checking the displays.

“I...I don’t know what happened,” Hitch gasped. “The Airship. It started slowing down or something. I couldn’t maintain the distance. Why did we start falling?”

“We stalled,” Zipp explained as she turned the Marestream around. “That’s what happens if you go too slowly and there’s not enough air running over the wings.”

“But what about hovering?” Hitch blinked.

“That’s a different mode,” Zipp explained pointing to a leaver. "You select it here."

"The only one I didn't look at," Hitch groaned before looking down dejectedly. “I’ve lost the Airship, haven’t I?”

“No, I don’t think so,” Zipp replied as she continued to check the tracking display. “If anything, I think it’s descending vertically.”

Suddenly, there was a crash as Misty fell through the door into the cockpit. “Is it over?”

Zipp gasped and reached for the intercom. “Attention everypony. The Airship started descending, and it caught Hitch off guard. I think this could be it! Everypony to the cockpit."

One by one, the others all came into the cockpit. Suddenly, the Marestream burst out of a cloud and before them was the quarry.

“Oh, my hoofness,” Pipp gasped.

“It’s humongous,” Izzy blinked.

“There are hundreds of creatures down there,” Feather Breeze sighed. “All the Auroricorns, all the Kirin, Hippogriffs, Griffons, Diamond Dogs, Yak and Ponies.”

Pipp put a hoof on Feather Breeze’s reassuringly. “It’s okay, we’ll all play our part to save them all.”

“Hoof to heart,” Feather Breeze smiled.

“Okay, time to make sure we’re not spotted,” Hitch gasped.

“Yeah, that rainbow trail of ours can be pretty obvious,” Zipp admitted.

Zipp banked away and back into the clouds, bringing the Marestream around on the other side of a mountain that overlooked the Quarry. Then, she started scanning for a suitable landing site.

Meanwhile, Izzy gasped as she sat down worriedly. “It’s so big, how are we supposed to find Sunny?”

“It’s not just Sunny we want to rescue,” Misty reminded. “We’re going to save everycreature there.”

“Oh, yeah,” Izzy blinked. “But how are we going to do that?”

“We’ll work it out, Iz,” Hitch reassured. “Feather Breeze, what happens to the creatures now the Airship has landed?”

Feather Breeze sighed. “They’ll be discharged from the ship. They’ll lower the cages and start sorting them.”

“So, they go to different parts of the quarry?” Pipp asked.

“Not really, but each kind of creature is kept separate,” Feather Breeze explained. “To begin with they need to be fitted with equipment. Like the ponies need their harnesses for pulling carts. I...I’m so glad I’m not seeing their worried and scared faces. It tore me up, not being able to help them.”

Finally, Zipp spotted a landing site. “Hold on everypony. We’re landing now.”

Skilfully, Zipp brought the Marestream down into a small clearing. It was near the peak of a large tree-covered mountain, on the other side of what overlooked the Quarry so they wouldn't be seen.

Sighing, Zipp finally shut the Marestream down before turning to the others. “One thing is clear. We need to be careful and take our time.”

“Agreed,” Hitch nodded. “No more rushed plans. Everything needs to be well thought out and executed. We need to coordinate with the captured creatures.”

Misty sighed worriedly. “I can’t get my head around the messaging spell though. The one that would let others respond. There’s part of the incantation that I just can’t read.”

“Then first we need surveillance,” Hitch responded.

“We’ll gather as much intel that we can,” Zipp agreed. “Then we can work out if there’s a way for the creatures to leave messages for us or something.”

“So, you’re going to watch?” Izzy asked.

“For the moment, yes,” Zipp nodded. “Why?”

Izzy grinned. “Then I have something you’re going to need. Come on!”

The others could only look at each other in confusion as Izzy suddenly bounded out of the cockpit.

By the time they caught up to her, Izzy was standing outside the Marestream. Held in her hoofs was what looked like a large black Frisbee.

“Come on! Come on!” Izzy giggled. “You don’t want to miss this.”

“Izzy, this isn’t the time to play catch,” Hitch frowned.

“We’re not, silly,” Izzy grinned. “You’re going to need this to hide.”

“What?” Zipp blinked looking at the others who all looked just as confused.

Izzy laughed as she threw the ‘Frisbee’ in the air. It suddenly expanded and by the time it landed it had become a domed hide. Covered in branches and leaves so that it appeared to be a bush.

“Ta-Daa,” Izzy grinned as she skipped on the spot. “It’s a pop-up hide.”

“Oh, Izzy!” Pipp exclaimed. “Why didn’t you warn me?! I COULD HAVE FILMED THAT!”

“Oh, don’t worry,” Izzy grinned. “It pops down just as quickly.”

Zipp couldn’t help looking confused as she inspected the hide. The branches and leaves on the outer surface were very effective. She couldn’t even work out where you would see out of it.

Izzy beamed as she opened a flap so Zipp could see inside. Zipp gasped, there was more than enough space for three ponies to sit comfortably. “I...It’s incredible, all these branches of foliage, how’d they fit inside when it’s collapsed?”

“Probably best not to know,” Misty blinked.

Izzy smirked as her cutie mark glowed. “That’s a trade secret. I did start trying to make suits that would make anypony super sneaky. Then I remembered Misty can turn invisible, there’s nothing more sneaky than that. Then I realised we’d likely need to hide, so I thought this would be better than hiding under a bush. It’s waterproof and machine washable.”

“It’s perfect, Iz,” Hitch grinned. “So, Zipp. Shall we go put it to use?”

“Definitely,” Zipp smiled as Izzy collapsed the hide. “Feather Breeze, could you come too? You’ll be able to tell us what we’re looking at.”

“O...Okay,” Feather Breeze gasped. “J...Just please help me if I get upset.”

“Don’t worry,” Hitch reassured. “We will.”

“And whilst you’re gone, we’ll set up camp,” Pipp beamed.

“Okay, just nothing fancy,” Zipp frowned. “This isn’t a Bridlewoodstock glamping trip.”

Pipp’s eyes widened. “But...”

“Sis, we may need to leave quickly. We can’t spend ages untangling the Marestream. Anything you put outside it might need to be left behind.”

Pipp sighed in resignation. “Okay, fine. I promise we won’t go overboard.”

“Don’t worry,” Izzy beamed. “Leave it to me!”

Hitch and Zipp rolled their eyes as they looked at each other worriedly. However, Misty looked back at them reassuringly.

“I’ll keep an eye on them. My head’s spinning from the spellbook as it is.”

With that, Hitch, Zipp and Feather Breeze set off for the top of the mountain.

Elsewhere, Sunny sat looking at the LED above the port, staring at it intently through sorrowful eyes.

From her cage, Sugar couldn’t help sighing. She thought Sunny had seemed better last night after their hug. However, she’d woken up to find Sunny crying and realised she’d clearly taken another nosedive into despair.

She racked her brain, trying to work out what to do. However, Sunny hadn’t seemed the least bit interested in another hoof-clapping game. Everything else Sugar could think of was foiled by the muzzle, the shackles or the simple fact they were locked in separate cages.

Suddenly, Sunny grunted as the LED turned green. She shoved the muzzle into the port, seemingly desperate to get it off. Sugar gasped and hurried over to do the same. Neither noticed a panel in the ceiling above the control panels opening and two eyes watching them from the darkness.

Sunny gasped with relief as she pulled her face from the muzzle and exercised her jaw.

“Sunny,” Sugar gasped as soon as her muzzle was released. “What’s wrong? I thought you were better last night?”

“I...I thought so too,” Sunny sighed sorrowfully. “But... But then I had another nightmare.”

“Another nightmare?” Sugar said worriedly. “How many have you had?”

“Every night I’ve been in here,” Sunny groaned. “Last night was the worst. It was Maretime Bay Day, everypony was enjoying it at first but then everypony started disappearing, one by one. Including you and Sprout.

“When I found you all, I got trapped in some sort of spell. I couldn’t move or speak or do anything.” She sighed closing her eyes. “Then Allura appeared and whisked you all away again. Saying you were all hers. That’s when I woke up.”

Sugar frowned, unsure how to respond. However, Sunny sighed and gave a thin smile. “I know, it’s kind of silly. It’s just a dream, it wasn’t real.”

“Yeah, I don’t know what to say,” Sugar admitted. “But I do know one thing.” She grinned, as she struck one of her trademark catwalk poses. “I don’t think even I could make this outfit look good.”

Sunny couldn’t suppress a chuckle. It feels so good to laugh. She sighed, looking at Sugar gratefully. “Sugar, why are you here? I don’t think for a second you would have gotten into trouble just to join me.”

Sugar sighed, looking down. “No, I didn’t.”

“Well, come on then. What did you do?”

Sugar groaned. “I stopped Skysurf and Giselle getting caught. Well, they had been caught already. I just gave the Nirik somepony else to chase.”

Sunny’s eyes widened with curiosity. “How’d they get caught? What were they doing? What did you do to make the Nirik chase you?”

Sugar couldn’t help smiling. “They were outside the watchtower they were infiltrating. I think the Nirik came out at the wrong time and caught them. I kind of ran the Nirik over with my cart.”

“The collars!” Sunny gasped with realisation. “S…So did they get in? Did they get them?”

Sugar sighed, shaking her head. “I don’t know. I hope so. I hope they got them.”

Sunny looked thoughtful as her cutie mark flickered. “I hope so too,” she smiled.

I can’t escape... Sunny rolled her eyes. Oh, woken up have you! Yes, I know, and it doesn’t matter, we’ll get through this.

Sunny looked anxiously at the bowls. Wait! Where’s the food and water? She looked over towards the control panel at the far end of the hut.

Meanwhile, Sugar closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “Sunny… I…I need to apologise.”

Sunny frowned and looked confused. “W…What for?”

“For how I treated you after we finished school,” Sugar said as she looked at the ground. “I’ve been a complete jerk.”

“W…Wait, I don’t blame you for that,” Sunny said earnestly.

Sugar’s eyes widened with surprise. “You…You don’t?”

Sunny shook her head. “No, how could I? You had a well-paid job at CanterLogic. You couldn’t risk that by being friendly towards me. Not with all the things I did at the showcases. Phyllis would think you were involved.”

“But what about the whole Alicorn thing? I…I completely blanked you when you mentioned being at school together. I…I…” Sugar sighed sorrowfully. “I didn’t want to look bad in front of Rosedust and Lily, or… what’s her name?” She groaned. “You see! I can’t even remember the name of the Unicorn we were with either. I was such a stuck-up idiot!”

Sunny’s eyes widened and she gasped knowingly. “Opaline.”

“No, I thought it was Marcy, or Minty, or something like that,” Sugar groaned. “I can’t even remember what her cutie mark was.”

“That’s because she didn’t have a cutie mark,” Sunny explained. “That Unicorn, it was Misty.”

“Y…You mean your Misty!” Sugar’s eyes widened in disbelief. “Wait, wait, what? How? B…But Misty’s mane is a completely different colour!”

“Yeah, because Pipp and Izzy dyed it for her,” Sunny explained. “The whole Alicorn thing. Misty told me later; that it was one of Opaline’s plans.”

Sugar blinked repeatedly as she tried to process the information. She frowned, looking down and shaking her head.

“No, that still doesn’t make how I treated you any better,” she decided. “Sunny, I completely ignored our previous friendship.”

“I…I know,” Sunny sighed. “But I still don’t hold it against you. If anything, it helped me figure out more about my powers.”

Sugar looked gratefully at Sunny, feeling a weightlifting from her shoulders. “Thank you, Sunny,” she breathed. “I’ve been hoping to ask, did they do something to your powers?”

“Yeah, this bridle,” Sunny sighed as she tapped it. “Allura said it’s isolated them. I can’t even turn them off. Did you see Allura when you were brought in here?”

Sugar shook her head. “No, only Nirik. They put all this stuff on me then left me in here. I wouldn’t have known how to get food if it wasn’t for you.”

Suddenly, there was a beep. They both looked around in confusion before food and water were finally dispensed. Sunny gasped and immediately started drinking.

“Sugar, drink as much as you can. We won’t be able to drink the water they give us at the inclines.”

“O...Okay,” Sugar said absently. “Sunny, are you doing okay now?”

Sunny sighed as she continued to drink. “Better, the thoughts are still trying to torment me though. I’m sure that’s why I’m having nightmares about everypony being captured.”

“Sunny, it won’t happen,” Sugar said reassuringly.

“I...I know,” Sunny admitted. “Allura’s trying to break me with these thoughts. I...I know this sounds awful, but, I’m kind of glad you’re here.”

Sugar took a mouthful of the food. Her cheeks bulged as she almost spat it back out. It took her a moment, but she eventually managed to swallow it. “Oh, that’s even worse than yesterday,” she groaned, taking a mouthful of water before finally answering. “It’s fine, Sunny. I’m glad I’m not in here on my own too.”

Sunny gave a small grateful smile before she began eating too. “I find it’s best to eat than drink,” she advised. “It washes the taste away.”

Unsure how much longer they’d get, silence descended as they both concentrated on eating and drinking.

Which turned out to be a good thing as, not long later, the buzzer from Sunny’s muzzle sounded. “NO! NO! That’s not fair! It’s not even enough time to drink all the water.”

Sunny grunted as she felt the pain in the back of her head. She growled with annoyance before moving to put her muzzle back on before she could be shocked again.

Meanwhile, Sugar snarled as her muzzle sounded its buzzer. “It’ll be designed like this on purpose. We won’t let it beat us, Sunny! We can, and will, get through this!”

With her muzzle already locked in place, Sunny blinked with surprise as she watched Sugar push her nose into her muzzle.

Sugar’s right. That's why I’ve never finished the food and water. We’re not supposed to! It’s all a mind game! I can’t escape... Hold on? Is that it now? Nothing about control anymore?

Suddenly, Sunny and Sugar looked around as they heard a clunk from the door. Followed by a second and a series of clicks as it unlocked. Sugar looked worriedly at Sunny, clearly unsure what was happening.

Shoot! I didn’t explain anything! Sunny gasped. I…I suppose we were talking about other things.

After the door swung open, five Nirik entered. One heading straight towards the control panel whilst the other four split up. Two standing at each cage, carrying chains.

Sunny couldn’t help blinking with surprise. Two each? Are we really that much of a threat? Wait, are they giving us the same cart or separate ones?

Sunny looked at Sugar and nodded towards the cage doors. Come on, Sugar. Make it easier on yourself.

Sugar looked at Sunny with confusion. Then at the two Nirik standing on either side of the door to her cage. Then she watched as Sunny moved towards her cage door and raised her head.

Frowning, Sugar remembered the previous evening. Sunny had been brought into her cage on the end of two chains. Sighing, she copied Sunny, moving towards the cage door and raising her head. Then she remembered Sunny mentioning water and presumed they must be being put to work.

However, she still wasn’t ready for the two Nirik to attach chains to the bridle on either side of her head. Blinking, she took a step backwards and grunted as she realised the other end of the chains had been attached to the cage. She looked at Sunny, realising the same thing had been done to her.

I’m sorry, Sugar. Sunny sighed to herself. If only I’d had enough time to explain.

Sugar gave a muffled squeak as the cage doors opened. She could only watch with widened eyes as the Nirik entered her cage and started checking her over.

It wasn’t much longer before Sunny and Sugar were being led from their hut. They both looked around with surprise, there were puddles of water everywhere and everything looked wet.

Sunny blinked in confusion. I didn’t hear rain last night. At least it feels cooler now.

Meanwhile, behind her, Sugar couldn’t help feeling worried. However, she quickly remembered that Sunny had gone through all this on her own.

As they were led away, Twitch appeared from a small door in the back of their hut. He watched them go before smiling with satisfaction as he hopped away.

They didn’t have to go far to where two carts were waiting, and Sunny frowned with surprise.

There’s the one I had yesterday but where did the other one come from? Oh, it’s for two ponies, we must be working together. I can’t escape… She rolled her eyes. Yes, yes, yes, I know that! Wait, what’s that sound?

Sunny and Sugar both looked up and gasped. Emerging from the clouds was one of the Airships. It made a loud roaring sound as it descended and docked with the metal spires on the level below.

Sugar blinked, she was sure she’d just seen a glimpse of a rainbow through the clouds. However, she was roughly pulled from her thoughts by the Nirik escorting her. They brought her alongside Sunny and began hitching them to the cart.

Please. Sunny closed her eyes. Please, let this mean we don’t get stuck following the Yak.

After they’d been hitched to the cart, two of the Nirik disappeared. The other three took the chains in their mouths and started to lead Sunny and Sugar from the Confinement area.

Sugar glanced at Sunny, indicating where the Airship was docked.

I know Sugar. Sunny nodded excitedly. The Airship is here and Misty said they were still following it. She closed her eyes. I can’t escape… Again? Yes, I know. But my friends are near, I can feel it. She’ll capture all my friends… She wishes! They’re too clever! I trust you everypony, I know you’ll save us.

Soon enough, they came towards the work site. Sunny couldn’t help feeling happier as she saw the Yak weren’t there. However, her heart sank as the Nirik held them back and took them to one side. No! They’re waiting for the Yak!

Sunny frowned as she tried to look back to see if the Yak were coming or not. However, the chain between her and the Nirik kept going taught, preventing her from being able to see.

Eventually, the two Yak came lumbering along with their huge cart. As they passed, Sunny looked at them hopefully.

Please. Please let them see our muzzles and realise we can’t talk.

The Yak looked at each other with concern. One of them certainly looked like they had taken a good look at the two ponies.

Then, as the Yak stopped to be loaded, the Nirik moved Sunny and Sugar into position and attached the four chains from their heads to the back of the larger cart. The Nirik formed a W shape with the chains, between their heads and the corners and middle of the rear of the cart.

Sugar looked around with concern as the Nirik gave them both a final check before walking away. She looked at Sunny, then gave an experimental tug on the chains between herself and the cart in front of them. Realising they would hold them directly in line behind the Yak.

Sunny nodded, then lifted one of her conjoined hoofs and waggled it back and forward at the extremes of what the shackles would allow her to move.

Unsure what Sunny was getting at, Sugar frowned and looked down at her conjoined hoofs in confusion.

Oh well, you’ll know soon enough, Sugar. Sunny sighed.

As soon as both carts were loaded, the Yak started to move. Sugar grunted as she was nearly pulled off her hoofs. Sunny was more prepared but couldn’t stop herself from being yanked forward.

As they walked along the sodden path. Sugar finally realised what Sunny had meant. She was walking as fast as her shackles would let her. But the chains between her and the larger cart remained stubbornly taught. She looked at Sunny and saw she was in the same situation.

As they both struggled onwards, Sugar couldn’t help feeling thankful her hind legs weren’t shackled as well. Just concentrating on moving her forelegs as fast as possible was bad enough.

Eventually, as they continued to struggle, they heard a voice.

“Did Yara Yak see? There two Ponies today?”

“Yara saw. Yara also see Ponies have things on faces. Think Ponies not able to speak.”

“Yakov check. Ponies? Can Ponies speak?”

Sugar and Sunny both frowned and glanced at each other.

“Yakov Yak silly. How Ponies respond if can’t speak?”

“Ponies did not respond. Means Ponies can’t speak.”

“Yara admit, that make sense.”

The Yak both stopped talking as they neared and then walked past a watchtower. Sugar closed her eyes, clearly struggling to stop herself from being pulled over.

Eventually, the Yak started talking again.

“Yara worried. How Yak check speed right if Ponies can’t speak?”

“Yakov not sure. They need to make noise, somehow.”

Sunny’s eyes widened. Why the hay didn’t I think of this before?! I can’t escape… Ah, that’ll be why!

Quickly, Sunny kicked out with one of her hind legs. Banging her hoof on their cart repeatedly.

“Ah, Yara Yak hear Pony banging. Bang once for yes. Two for no.”

Sunny inwardly grinned as she banged once more on the cart. Sugar couldn’t help sighing with relief as she continued to struggle.

“So, Ponies, Yakov wonders if speed okay? Yak can’t go too fast due to collar.”

Sunny banged twice on the cart.

“Speed not okay! Yakov, Yara Yak worried, Yak can’t go faster.”

“Pony, is speed too fast?”

YES! Yes. It’s too fast! Sunny gasped as she banged once.

“Speed too fast! Yakov, we slow down. Will see what happens.”

“Yakov agree. We go at minimum speed. Will speed up if collars shock Yak. Ponies bang three times if too fast, okay?”

Sunny banged once on the cart again, letting the Yak know they understood.

Then, as the Yak slowed down. Finally, it felt like they weren’t about to be pulled over. Finally, everything was much, much easier.

As Sugar looked at her gratefully, Sunny couldn’t help sighing with relief. I can’t believe how much better things suddenly are!

Chapter Twenty-Two – Developments

It took them some time but Zipp, Hitch, and Feather Breeze finally reached the summit of the mountain that overlooked the Quarry. However, they found it was covered in trees and the view was obscured.

Therefore, they started to make their way down the other side of the mountain, until they found the forest stopped abruptly. Ahead, was open mountainside with no trees or bushes at all, that stretched all the way down to the quarry.

“It’s like the trees just disappear,” Hitch gasped.

“I…I think that’s Allura’s doing,” Feather Breeze frowned as she held a hoof to her head. “I…I sort of remember helping cut trees down.”

Zipp said nothing as she quickly threw Izzy’s hide into the air, and it ‘popped’ up ready for them to use. “Got to hand it to Iz, she’s a genius when it comes to creative stuff. Quick, everypony inside before we’re spotted.”

As they settled down inside the hide, Zipp finally took a good look at the area surrounding the Quarry. “She’s created an open barrier. There are watchtowers in the middle. Anypony trying to cross it will be spotted.”

Hitch frowned as he handed out sets of binoculars. “So, it’s not just the area of the quarry she’s destroyed.”

“No, it’s not,” Feather Breeze sighed. “It’s the countless lives of the creatures she’s enslaved as well.”

“It’s okay, Feather Breeze,” Zipp reassured. “We’ll help them.”

Feather Breeze gulped as she raised the binoculars to her eyes. “I…I know we will, together.”

Zipp got her phone out and put it on record before she started looking through the binoculars too. Then, she began to narrate what she could see.

“So, day one. Overview. The Quarry is set into the side of a mountain opposite where our camp and hide are located. It appears to be a large horseshoe, set around a lake in the centre.”

“The main buildings are at the bottom of the quarry,” Feather Breeze advised. “Known as Level Zero.”

“Okay, and it then works its way into and up the mountainside,” Zipp continued. “There’s…. ten more levels.”

“L…Level One is the confinement level,” Feather Breeze sighed. “That’s where your friend Sunny will be. I’m sorry, it’s changed since I was last in the quarry. There are more huts within the fenced area. I don’t know which she will be in.”

“That’s fine, Feather Breeze,” Hitch reassured. “You can only tell us what you know. On the… sixth level, there’s a lot of buildings, do you know what they are?”

Feather Breeze nodded. “Those are the main huts. Where all the creatures are taken every night.”

“There are watchtowers scattered all over the place,” Zipp gasped. “There are inclines between the levels. One in the centre is running from the bottom level right to the top.”

“That’s the spoil incline,” Feather Breeze explained. “Where all the rock goes. At the top, Diamond Dogs push the trucks to be tipped on a spoil heap on the other side of the mountain.”

They spent some time watching the quarry, continuing to narrate what they could see. However, Feather Breeze was soon starting to struggle.

“Okay, so pulling carts on Level Nine are mainly Hippogriffs and those strange Unicorns,” Zipp narrated. “Feather Breeze, what were they again? A-roar something?”

However, Feather Breeze didn’t respond. Hitch lowered his binoculars and gasped. Feather Breeze was shaking.

“I…I can’t look anymore!” she shouted. “All my friends! My Family!”

She just about resisted the urge to throw the binoculars. However, Hitch gasped as her eyes turned white, her teeth sharp and pointy. She let out a cry of rage as she tried to keep a hold of herself.

Suddenly, she grunted. Her ears twitched as she appeared to be fighting with herself. “H…Help me get away!” she exclaimed. “I…I don’t want…” Her body twitched as convulsions ran through her. “H…H…Help!”

Quickly, Hitch and Zipp abandoned surveillance and hurriedly grabbed Feather Breeze. Pulling her from the hide, they retreated into the woodland until they found another clearing.

Feather Breeze let out a cry of agony as she erupted into flames. Hitch and Zipp looked at each other worriedly, unsure what to do.

As the flames dissipated, they sighed with relief, Feather Breeze was her normal self. She collapsed to the ground, her eyes filling with tears as she began crying despondently.

“Feather Breeze,” Hitch gasped as he hurried to her. “Are you okay?”

Feather Breeze hiccoughed as tears ran down her nose. “No…No, I’m not,” she gasped. “I couldn’t take it, seeing them all trapped down there. My fellow Kirin and all the other creatures. I felt so much anger.”

Hitch sat down in front of her, taking both her forehoofs in his own as he pulled her into a sitting position. He looked into her eyes calmly. “It’s okay,” he reassured. “We’re here, and together…”

“…we’ll save them, I know,” Feather Breeze sighed. “It…It’s not just that though.”

“It’s not?” Hitch asked worriedly.

“I…I could feel it,” Feather Breeze groaned as her eyes welled with more tears. “I could feel the purr, pulling at me as my anger rose. As I got closer to transforming into my Nirik form. It was pulling at me. Urging me to revert to Situation Ninety.”

“Winters Breath used that before,” Zipp gasped.

Feather Breeze nodded. “Rollcall. To go to Level Zero and line up in front of the main barracks. Where all the Nirik go when we’re not on duty.”

“How?” Hitch gasped. “How could you feel it from here?”

“I…I don’t know,” Feather Breeze sighed. “I…I’m sorry. I don’t think I should go nearer again.”

“Well, it would help if we were more supportive,” Hitch frowned. “Instead of being concerned about surveillance, we should help you overcome your anger.”

“You’re the best hope we have at figuring out a rescue plan,” Zipp agreed. “We still need your help, Feather Breeze. We need to remember to help you too.”

“O…Okay,” Feather Breeze nodded. “I’m coming. J…Just keep holding me, Hitch. Keep me in check.”

“Will do,” Hitch smiled.

Elsewhere, Winters Breath couldn’t help feeling worried as she walked through a long wooden-panelled corridor. Around her walked four Nirik. Two in front and two behind. She was well aware she was being escorted. “Oh, I wish you could explain what’s happening my dear ones. You’ve clearly been tasked with taking me somewhere.”

She looked up at the intricate panelling on the walls. The marks where pictures had once been hung were clear to see. Despite all her time free from Allura’s purr, she couldn’t remember this exact corridor.

Finally, they came to a large set of double doors which were being guarded by two more Nirik. They both grunted and moved aside as the doors opened.

As she was escorted into the room, Winters Breath couldn’t help gasping in shock. It was some sort of laboratory, there was equipment all over the place.

Some was very large and freestanding. Equally, there was lots of smaller things sitting on countless benches. Either components or full devices, Winters Breath wasn’t sure.

What she could tell though was some appeared intact whilst most were in pieces. Either in the process of being repaired, constructed or modified.

The biggest piece of equipment was at the far end of the room. A large round gateway on top of a raised platform which resembled a stage. There was a ramp which led from the gateway to the edge of the platform and down to floor level.

The gateway was made from metal rodding which formed a frame. Within the frame, there were many components, some of which appeared to be missing. Countless wires of multiple colours ran between these. Some were neatly routed between the rodding. However, lots spilt out and hung loosely. The gateway was therefore either in the process of being built or modified.

On either side of the large gateway, there were huge glass cylinders. Two on each side. They ran from the platform to the ceiling. Each contained a light pink liquid which was bubbling continuously.

Winters Breath followed the Nirik until they reached the bottom of the ramp. They stopped and she watched as they all turned to face her. Their eyes narrowed and looked like they were ready to pounce should she try to move away.

Presuming she’d reached her destination, Winters Breath looked around the room, seeing no sign of Twitch or Allura. She looked at the Nirik, each one in turn. Then, she gasped and looked up at the gateway worriedly.

“Impressive isn’t it.”

Winters Breath gasped and looked upward towards the voice. She spotted Allura, sitting on a round plinth that was suspended from the ceiling.

Allura jumped, spreading her wings and gliding down to land before Winters Breath. Her tail flicked casually as she smiled cordially. “So, Captain. Care to explain why your arrival was so late?”

Winters Breath gulped, she’d long since learned not to take Allura at face value.

“I was enacting your protocol, Allura. W...We lost somepony.”

Allura’s eyes narrowed dangerously as she looked Winters Breath in the eye. “You lost somepony? You mean one of your followers is missing?”

“Y...Yes, Allura,” Winters Breath stammered. “Feather Breeze, she didn’t return from her capture mission.”

“Interesting, and instead of Earth Ponies. You bring Pegasi!”

Winters Breath gulped as Allura maintained eye contact and snarled angrily.

“T...There were no Earth Ponies. The Pegasus Ponies were all that were found.”

Allura took a step back, looking down at Winters Breath with disappointment.

Winters Breath gulped again, almost cowering under Allura’s gaze. She twitched as thoughts suddenly flashed in her mind. The Kirin are expendable... She closed her eyes and grimaced. The Kirin are Allura’s to control...

Allura couldn’t help grinning. “I see you’re remembering your place at least. So, you enacted evasive protocols on your return?”

“Y...Yes,” Winters Breath gasped. “We didn’t detect anycreature following. B...But I was cautious as per your orders.”

Allura nodded in approval as she turned away casually. “Good. And you are very, very fortunate. Twitch has perfected the method that will ensure Pegasus Ponies remain in check. We will fit out the four you provided and use them as the final test.”

“I didn’t doubt Twitch’s ability,” Winters Breath said as she bowed.

However, Allura spun around, snarling in anger. “Don’t you presume he has the time to correct your mistakes!”

Winters Breath gasped, wide-eyed she dropped to one knee, looking at the ground in submission. “I presume nothing, Allura,” she said desperately. “I...I know you want more ponies to help expand the quarry.”

Allura growled dangerously as she walked around Winters Breath. Studying her intently as she continued to look down obediently.

“If I didn’t need the Captain of Airship Three to have autonomy you’d be under my full spell like the rest of your kin,” Allura reminded. “However, you clearly need a little more incentive for you to perform correctly.”

Winters Breath gasped and looked at Allura fearfully. She watched as Allura turned and walked away. Her eyes flicked towards one of the Nirik, then back at Allura.

Allura turned back and smirked maliciously as she stepped on a lever at the side of the raised platform. There was a clunk and then a rattling sound as part of the floor to one side opened.

Winters Breath gasped as a bell cage rose from the floor and her eyes widened. Sitting inside the cage, looking at the ground, was a light-yellow Kirin. With dark green scales and a bright red mane and tail.

Winters Breath raised a hoof towards the cage in shock. “S...Spring Flare?” she breathed.

Spring Flare’s ear twitched and as she looked up her eyes widened. However, a muzzle over her nose and mouth prevented her from responding. She didn’t move either, on account of the rigid shackles locked around her fetlocks. One pair bound her forehoofs and another her hind legs. Connected to the centre of these was a chain, running from one to the other.

“You should know by now that I keep a close eye on the Airships,” Allura growled. “You insult me by thinking I wouldn’t find out you’d tampered with your daughter's collar, allowing her to revert. Allowing her freedom! Allowing my hold on her to be BROKEN!”

“I...I...” Winters Breath cowered.

Allura walked towards her, snarling dangerously.

“Just remember, you are MINE to control,” she purred. “Just remember, you follow MY rules.”

Winters Breath gasped as her eyes flashed and her head twitched.

I am Allura’s to control... I follow Allura’s rules...

Allura smirked triumphantly as Winters Breath grimaced and tears welled in her eyes.

“Your dear daughter will be spending her time in solitary confinement,” Allura snarled. “She’ll not move. Even being allowed to eat will become a luxury for her. You know what will happen if you defy me again!”

The Kirin are expendable... Winters Breath gasped, her eyes wide with fear.

“It looks like you understand,” Allura smirked triumphantly.

Winters Breath grimaced. Then, after a moment, she sighed and bowed. “I thank you for your leniency, Mistress. What are your orders for Airship Three’s next tour?”

“Wise choice,” Allura smirked. “A standard tour will suffice. However, I have one request. Add both Unicorns and Pegasus Ponies to your capture list.”

Winters Breath couldn’t help gasping as she looked up, her eyes widening in surprise.

Allura smiled knowingly. “Yes, as I said, you are most fortunate. Ensure the Unicorns are fitted with suppression bridles when captured. They have already been added to your ship inventory.”

“Understood, Mistress Allura,” Winters Breath sighed.

“Good, you leave immediately and take these Nirik with you. Nirik! Situation One. Escort Winters Breath directly to her bridge. Once there, Situation One Hundred and Three.”

The Nirik all nodded and immediately began ushering Winters Breath from the room.

Gasping, Winters Breath got one last look at Spring Flare as she was escorted away. As the door closed, Spring Flare looked worriedly at Allura, her eyes glistening.

Allura smirked as she turned towards Spring Flare and began purring. “Just remember, you are MY prisoner forever. Just remember, nocreature can save you.”

Spring Flare gasped as her eyes flashed and her head twitched. I am Allura’s prisoner forever... Nocreature can save me... Her eyes widened as tears welled within them.

“Excellent,” Allura sneered. “I’m glad you appear to understand your situation. Soon, you’ll help me find that dear sister of yours. Until then, get used to your new home.”

Allura grinned deviously before moving back to the leaver and pressing on it. Spring Flare gasped as the cage shuddered before it started lowering into the darkness below.

That evening, there was a great deal of tension in the Pony’s hut. The four Pegasi newcomers all stood together in a corner. Shell-shocked and worried after their first day in the quarry. They stood in silence, seemingly not at all interested in talking to the Earth Ponies.

Sprout had just finished opening the tunnel when he was tapped on the shoulder. “Sander, what’s up?”

“Sprout, somepony needs to do something,” Sander sighed. “They’re just stood there.”

“I know, Sander. I know,” Sprout sighed.

“I wish Sunny was still here with us,” Sander groaned. “She’d know what to do.”

Sprout sighed and shook his head. “I know, you’ll have to leave it to me.”

Sander looked dumbstruck. “You? But…”

“I know, I know, but I’m in the Equestria Guard now,” Sprout responded. “I uphold its values of Unity between the pony tribes.”

With that, Sprout made his way towards where the Pegasi were standing. Trying to look as non-threatening as possible.

“Hi, I’m Sprout Cloverleaf. I’m a private in the Equestria Guard. Look, I know this is a massively stressful and worrying situation but don’t worry. We’ve got an alliance going with the other creatures. We’re working together to escape.”

A frowning and visibly shaking Minty Cloudstrike stepped forward. “That’s all well and good but we’ve been violated.”

She turned and showed Sprout her wings which had been tightly strapped up and immobilised. “Isn’t this what you Earth Ponies want? Pegasi that are unable to fly? That’s the whole reason I started the Pegasus for Pegasi movement. To protect and preserve our Pegasus rights and history!”

“Wait, you’re Minty Cloudstrike, aren’t you.” Sprout groaned. “Shoot, why couldn’t Sunny have still been here.”

“Sunny?” Minty gasped. “As in Sunny Starscout? Was she here? Did she escape?”

Sprout shook his head. “No, she hasn’t escaped. She was here with us until her cover got blown. Now she’s stuck in confinement.”

Minty blinked with confusion, looking at her three followers who looked equally baffled. “So, she’s not able to help us?”

“Well, no,” Sprout admitted. “But...”

“Then how do you expect us to escape?!” Minty exclaimed before sitting down in shock. “We’re really trapped here, aren’t we? I...I thought it was only Earth Ponies being taken. I THOUGHT WE WERE SAFE!”

The other Pegasi looked equally worried and not at all happy with the situation they’d found themselves in.

Sprout frowned, trying to find a way to lighten the mood. Then, his eyes widened, and he smiled as he remembered something.

“So, funny story, Sunny actually thought it was you lot from Pegasus for Pegasi behind the disappearances,” Sprout revealed. “So, you’ve got something in common. She wasn’t expecting a Nirik to poof her away either.”

Minty blinked with shock. “I...I don’t know if I should be honoured our movement was linked to the disappearances or mortified.” She looked thoughtfully at the ground. “C...Can I ask you something? Aren’t you worried about your Maretime Bay traditions being lost and forgotten?”

“Well, no, not really,” Sprout said as he rubbed the back of his head. “I suppose there’s been a whole lot of stuff to get used to. But I’m really not the pony to talk to about this stuff. You really need to speak to Sunny about that.”

“Oh yeah, just speak to one of the greatest protesters ever,” Minty groaned. “One who actually managed to be listened to and be taken seriously.”

“Wait, wh...”

Suddenly, Sprout gasped. His eyes widened and he froze in place. The others looked at each other worriedly. They called his name and shook him, but he didn’t respond.

Finally, after a few tense moments, Sprout gasped, shook his head violently and put a hoof on his forehead. “Whoa.”

“What was that?” Minty gasped. “Will that happen to all of us?”

“No, no it won’t,” Sprout grinned. “Trust me, we’ll escape. The Guardians of Unity aren’t that far away and are here to help us. I’ll explain when the other creatures get here. Minty, you can join us if you like.”

Minty took a step back in shock. “Oh, no, no. I’m not going to be any use.”

“Sure, you will,” Sprout smiled reassuringly. “I bet your friends there think so.”

Minty turned and looked at the other Pegasi, they all looked at each other and nodded.

Gulping, Minty turned back to Sprout. “F…Fine, if they want me.”

With a sudden influx of new arrivals, it was sometime before all the creatures made it to the Pony's hut. Bingo was the last to arrive and bounded effortlessly from the tunnel.

“This better be worth it,” she grunted. “I’ve got territory to defend and my status to maintain!”

“Oh, trust me, it will be,” Sprout grinned. “Although, I want to introduce you all to Minty Cloudstrike first. It seems that Allura has set her sights on Pegasus Ponies now.”

Sprout raised a hoof towards where Minty was stood to one side. “Oh! Err. I…I don’t want to intrude.”

“Come forward, Minty,” Thymus smiled. “This is your hut. You can join us if you like.”

Minty gasped and moved forward timidly. “W…Well, I’m the leader of a protest group. We... Well...”

Skysurf frowned. “Are you the disgruntled Pegasus Ponies that have been protesting against the unification of your kind?”

Minty gasped, not knowing how to respond as she stood wide-eyed and open-mouthed.

“Yeah, they know how Sunny got here,” Sprout clarified.

“Don’t worry, your business is your own,” Thymus smiled. “All we wish is to escape and you are welcome to help or leave the planning with us.”

Minty looked at them unsurely before she took a deep breath and her eyes narrowed with determination. “Thank you, I’ll accept your invitation. So, yes. I’m Minty and I’m the leader of the Pegasus for Pegasi movement. I’ll not say any more about that though, it’s irrelevant here. What were your names?”

Sprout smiled as he pointed to each creature in turn. “So, we’ve got, Skysurf the Hippogriff, Giselle the Griffon, Thymus the Changeling, and Bingo the Diamond Dog.”

“It is, well, nice to meet you all,” Minty nodded.

“Yeah, be better under nicer circumstances wouldn’t it,” Giselle agreed. “I see they chose to strap your wings.”

“Yeah, I feel so violated,” Minty sighed as she looked at her wings. “Even before our flight returned, wings were an important part of Pegasus body language. Now I feel stifled like I cannot express myself properly.”

“You’re not alone, they do that to many Hippogriffs too,” Skysurf sighed. “I’ve become one of them.”

Skysurf moved so the others could see her wings which had been securely strapped up.

“What!” Giselle gasped. “How? Why?”

“They rotate us when the Airship docks,” Skysurf explained. “There are many Hippogriffs here and they don’t need all of us mining and flying the ore. Especially as more and more Griffons arrive.”

Giselle’s eyes widened and she looked mortified.

“I knew they’d mark me as needing to have my wings strapped,” Skysurf continued. “What with the number of times I ‘stopped’ in the blind spot. I’ll be with you ponies tomorrow, pulling carts.”

“No, no we have to get them off somehow,” Giselle blinked as she moved towards Skysurf.

“Giselle, it’s okay,” Skysurf responded holding up a claw to stop her. “I’ve worn them before. Trust me, there’s no way for us to get them off.”

“Very sorry for you but could we get to the point?” Bingo grumbled. “The Airship is here, is the help here too?”

“Yes, they are,” Sprout smiled. “Sunny’s friend, Misty Brightdawn, she messaged me.”

The others all smiled and looked at each other as Giselle danced with excitement. “Okay, okay, what did she say?”

“Most importantly, they’re here,” Sprout smiled. “They set up a camp on the mountain opposite the quarry. Something about a hide too.”

“Sounds like they’ll be watching the quarry,” Skysurf nodded approvingly. “I know that’s what I’d do first. Try and understand what’s what from afar.”

“I think that’s what they’re doing, they’ve already spotted Sunny and Sugar,” Sprout nodded. “They’ll work out how to receive messages from us. Misty said something about being brave, but I don’t understand.”

“Well, I think this is exciting news,” Thymus smiled. “Sadly, it sounds like it’s still a waiting game for us. But hopefully, we’ll soon be able to deliver our spoils to them.”

“Spoils?” Minty frowned.

Skysurf nodded. “Giselle and I managed to acquire examples of the collars and straps they are using on us.”

“Hopefully, they’ll work out their secrets,” Thymus explained. “A way to deactivate them or get them off would be useful.”

“If we had tools, I bet we’d be able to do something ourselves,” Giselle pondered.

Skysurf frowned. “There are no tools for us to get so that’s not an option.”

“Using our natural abilities to complete tasks is clever,” Thymus agreed. “It means none of us need tools.”

“Good point,” Giselle sighed. “We wait then.”

“Sunny’s friends need to be careful, just like we do,” Skysurf sighed.

“Being careful sounds sensible,” Minty agreed. “I wish I’d been more careful. I’ve led three of my friends into this situation.”

“We need patience,” Thymus advised. “We’ve waited this long, a little longer will not hurt us.”

The others could only agree.

Meanwhile, Sunny and Sugar had been playing their hoof-clapping game. However, they stopped when they spotted the LED on their ports turned green and both eagerly headed to remove the muzzles again.

Sugar gasped with relief as she pulled her head free. “Sunny! Did you see the rainbow?”

“W…What?” Sunny croaked before coughing.

“As the Airship was landing,” Sugar smiled. “I’m sure I saw a rainbow in the clouds. It was just a flash, but it looked like…”

“The Marestream!” Sunny exclaimed excitedly before she coughed heavily.

“Sunny,” Sugar said with concern.

“I…I’ll be okay,” Sunny coughed again. “I just need some water.”

Their bowls started filling with food and water as if on cue. Sunny immediately started drinking, even before the bowl was full.

“My throat gets so dry with that thing stuck to my face,” she grumbled. “I…I can’t believe how much better things have become since you got here.”

“Better?” Sugar gasped. “Today was awful!”

Sunny couldn’t help laughing. “Well, yeah. But it was better than it has been. Actually being able to communicate with the Yak, getting them to slow down. That was a massive improvement.”

“Oh!” Sugar blinked and looked down in thought. “No wonder you’ve been so depressed. I still found it hard after they’d slowed down.”

“Like you said, Sugar, we’ll get through this,” Sunny said with determination as she held a hoof to the bars.

“Yeah, we will,” Sugar smiled as she returned Sunny’s hoof bump. “Together.”

“Together,” Sunny grinned.

They both concentrated on eating and drinking, well aware they likely didn’t have much time. Then, Sunny’s head twitched.

I can’t escape… But my friends will rescue me.

She’ll capture all my friends…Sunny couldn’t help chuckling as her cutie mark glowed, clearing the last of the fog from her mind. Still here? She wishes. I still have HOPE!

Chapter Twenty-Three – Misty’s Plan

Misty frowned as she followed Hitch through the trees and undergrowth. It was early morning, and they were heading towards the hide.

“So, how come Zipp didn’t come back to camp last night?” Misty asked.

“She wanted to keep an eye overnight,” Hitch sighed. “I suggested we take watches, but she wouldn’t have it.”

“I think Feather Breeze was glad you helped her back,” Misty pointed out. “She looked pretty frazzled.”

“Yeah, she’s been getting really worked up,” Hitch groaned. “Truthfully, I’m not feeling at all happy right now either. But we’re here and I know we’ll find a way to help everycreature.” He sighed. “It’s just...”

Misty blinked with confusion as Hitch trailed off. “Just what?”

“I’m worried about how we’ll get messages from the creatures,” Hitch admitted before sighing again. “We need to make some progress and yesterday felt like it was just a series of dead ends. I know you’ve been working really, really hard too. But that’s another thing that worries me, you’re working too hard.”

Misty sighed and looked at the ground as she walked along. “I...I’ve admitted defeat.”

Hitch blinked with confusion. “Defeat?”

“The messaging spell,” Misty clarified. “This morning when I woke up, I decided enough was enough. I can’t make the next step right now. I need to look up old ponish and I don’t have enough translations with me.”

Hitch frowned with thought before looking back and smiling. “It’s okay, Misty. I know you’ll get your head around it eventually. We’ll find another way.”

“Y...Yeah, we will,” Misty said as they arrived at the hide.

She frowned, she'd already had an idea. However, it was one she knew Hitch probably wouldn’t like.

Elsewhere, the lights in the confinement hut suddenly turned on, flooding it with light.

Sunny grunted as she awoke with a jolt. She’d had yet another bad dream and she groaned as she rubbed her eyes. I’m going to have to accept it. I’ll keep having these dreams until I’m out of here.

She grunted as she found another source of discomfort that morning, she’d rolled over onto her side during the night. Normally, that wouldn’t be a problem, despite the hard mat, she’d been sleeping on her side in the main hut without any issue.

However, with her wings strapped up and immobile, she’d found lying on her side painful. Therefore, she’d been sleeping on her belly, using her forelegs as pillows. By moving in her sleep, she’d inadvertently slept on her left wing for some time, and it felt numb.

She grunted in discomfort as she struggled to her hoofs. Pins and needles shot through the wing making her wince. With the straps, she couldn’t move it to find relief. I need to massage it or something, but what could I use?

Sugar blinked drowsily as she heard the bars of her cage rattling. Looking up with half-closed eyes she saw Sunny was rubbing her wing on the bars with a pained expression on her face. Worriedly, Sugar struggled to her hoofs and moved towards the bars.

Sunny grunted, rubbing the wing wasn’t helping and the pins and needles worsened. Then, she realised Sugar had arrived and looked like she wanted to help. Please, Sugar. Please work out what I need.

Sugar frowned as Sunny grunted and her wing twitched within the straps. She glanced towards the port, but the LED remained red. She groaned, they were still stuck playing charades, she hated charades.

She inspected the straps, assuming they were too tight. However, she couldn’t see how they were buckled nor how to release them. She sat down and carefully gave the straps a gentle tug to see if there was a way to adjust them.

Sunny frowned. Well, that’s not exactly what I need but... OUCH!

Feeling a sharp pain in the back of her head, Sunny flinched and growled into her muzzle. Closing her eyes, she shook her head violently.

Sugar gasped as she pulled her hoofs back in shock, looking between her hoofs and the straps with wide eyes. She’d heard Sunny’s bridle shock her and knew it was because she’d been fiddling with the straps.

She was expecting Sunny to be upset. Or at least to move away from the bars so she couldn’t do any more harm. Therefore, she was surprised when Sunny leaned in closer and resumed rubbing on the bars.

It’s okay, Sugar. Sunny thought. I didn’t expect that either. Please, I still need your help here.

Sugar glanced over to the port again and groaned, the LED was still red. She looked back at Sunny and suddenly realised, she wasn’t rubbing the straps, she was rubbing between them.

Tentatively, Sugar raised her hoofs towards the wing, stopping just short of touching it. She wasn’t at all sure how a wing worked, let alone one that appeared ethereal. Therefore, she was more than a little worried about doing more harm than good.

However, Sunny nodded enthusiastically and moved so Sugar’s hoofs were nearer the muscles. Then, she made a circular motion with her head. Come on, Sugar. Just there, rub there.

Sugar gulped and placed her hoofs on the wing. Her eyes widened in surprise; the feathers felt so soft. So much that she couldn’t help running her hoofs down them.

She shook her head and moved her hoofs back to where Sunny wanted them. Then, she started to massage the wing's muscles. Feeling how real it felt, she had to remind herself that Sunny’s wings could disappear.

Sunny couldn’t help letting out a sigh of relief as the pins and needles disappeared. She let Sugar continue massaging and rubbing until she noticed the LED on the port turn green. She grunted and gestured towards it.

Sugar stopped what she was doing and frowned. Then, she looked towards the port and realised what Sunny meant.

They both headed towards their respective ports. Feeling relieved as, after a few clicks, they pulled their faces free.

“Thank you, Sugar,” Sunny breathed. “That wing was hurting so much.”

“It...It was?” Sugar gasped. “I thought it felt so, well, real.”

“Yeah, I suppose it’s strange really,” Sunny admitted. “They feel just the same as every other part of my body.”

Sugar looked thoughtful as food and water were dispensed into their bowls.

“Do you think they’re going to become real? Like flesh and bone real?”

Sunny frowned thoughtfully as she chewed a mouthful of food. Finally answering after she’d swallowed. “I’ve not really considered it. I mean, I’ve felt more and more comfortable with them and having them feels right. They don’t surprise me anymore, I can feel when they’re going to appear and stop them if needed.”

“Well, if you do become a full flesh and bone Alicorn. I don’t think it could happen to a better pony,” Sugar smiled.

Sunny blinked with surprise before smiling gratefully. “Thank you, Sugar. That means a lot.”

Sugar only smiled as they both continued eating and drinking, fully aware their time to do so was limited.

Meanwhile, Hitch and Misty had arrived at the hide to find Zipp was already half asleep. They didn’t get much out of her before she eventually moved to one side and fell asleep completely.

As they watched the quarry, Misty frowned as she looked through the binoculars. She flipped to an empty page in a notebook and began making notes.

Hitch was also looking through his binoculars. Knowing that Zipp would want notes, he narrated the movements into a recorder as the creatures were brought from their huts. The Nirik worked through each hut, one by one, and took the creatures off to their various work sites.

After some time, Misty looked at Hitch and then at Zipp who was snoring away.

“We should do something with her,” Hitch frowned.

“I could teleport her back to camp,” Misty suggested. “Do you think she’s fast asleep?”

Hitch blinked and looked at Zipp, he gave her a gentle poke with a hoof before smiling. “Yeah, I’d say she’s fast asleep now. She won’t notice.”

“Okay, back in a flash,” Misty replied as she put her binoculars down.

She moved over to Zipp’s sleeping form before carefully touching her with a hoof. As her horn glowed, there was a flash and they both disappeared.

Hitch frowned as he picked up Misty’s notebook and looked through the scribbled notes. His frown deepened the more he read, and he couldn’t help groaning. “You gotta be kidding me. There’s got to be a better way than that.”

He put the notebook back and resumed looking through his binoculars.

A couple of minutes later there was another flash as Misty reappeared. “I left her with Pipp.”

Hitch smiled and nodded. “That’s good. She’ll likely have a few words when Zipp wakes up.”

“Yeah, she wasn’t best pleased to hear Zipp had stayed up all night.”

“Says the one who’s been staying up the longest,” Hitch winked.

Misty looked down sadly. “Yeah, I’m going to try to avoid that now.”

“If Zipp wants round-the-clock surveillance we need to set up watches,” Hitch explained before groaning. “It’s no good. I can’t see any way that those pulling carts would be able to leave messages for us. I just saw a pair of Hippogriffs getting in trouble for stopping.”

“Stopping?” Misty said as she resumed her previous position.

“Yeah, the carts only stop to be loaded and unloaded. The problem then is they’re watched continually. There’s no chance for them to leave anything.”

Misty nodded understandingly and looked back through her binoculars. “What about the creatures digging?”

“No good, they’re watched even more closely. The Griffons when they’re flying the ore could maybe do something.”

“Okay, so where do we set a drop like that up?” Misty asked.

Hitch frowned as he watched the Griffons closely. “N…Not sure,” he admitted.

Hitch and Misty continued to watch the Quarry for some time. Paying close attention to the Griffons as they flew the ore from the digging sites to various inclines. However, their quest to find a suitable drop site was difficult and they made little progress.

Eventually, Hitch groaned and shook his head in defeat. “I...I’ve seen your notes, Misty.”

Misty squeaked as her eyes widened in horror. “No, no, I don’t... err...”

“Do you really think teleporting down there yourself is a good idea?”

Misty looked down and traced a circle on the floor with a hoof. “H...Honestly, thinking about it makes me massively nervous. But, if I’m in the hut with them I’d be able to discuss so much. I think it would be a huge asset to planning their rescue.”

Hitch sighed and nodded. “You’re right, it would speed things along massively. It would make everything so much more dynamic. We’d be more like one team than two.” He groaned and shook his head. “So, I’m almost afraid to ask. How do you want to do it?”

Misty gasped and her eyes widened in surprise before she picked up her notes. Almost dropping them as she fumbled through the pages. “W…Well, I can’t teleport straight into the hut, at least not right away. I need an understanding of where things are inside.” She looked down nervously. “I…I need to get closer, like a lot closer.”

Hitch gulped. “So, how will you get closer?”

Misty gulped nervously. “By teleporting in somewhere I won’t be seen and sneaking to the door with my invisibility spell. Then, I can just teleport to the other side of the door.”

“Okay, but why couldn’t you teleport straight to the door from here?”

“Because I need to appear and then turn invisible,” Misty said before sighing. “I’ve tried multi-casting. I’m invisible when I start the teleport. But when I reappear, I’m not invisible anymore. I need to practice it more.”

Hitch blinked. “Right, but what about teleporting straight to the other side of the door?”

Misty grimaced and looked down. “I’m not quite that good with teleportation yet so there are safeguards to the spell I use. I could easily end up on the outside of the hut, not inside.”

Hitch frowned, not looking at all happy and Misty grimaced nervously.

Eventually, Hitch groaned and shook his head. “As much as I don’t like this idea of putting you in danger. I think it’s going to be our only way.”

Misty nodded. “I know, I’m not exactly happy either. I…I just…”

Hitch placed a reassuring hoof on Misty’s shoulder. “It’s okay, Misty,” he smiled. “We’ll work together to make a plan. Hopefully Zipp can get involved too.”

“Thanks, Hitch,” Misty smiled. “First thing I need is a safe place to teleport into. The gaps between the huts on that level are too large.”

“Okay, let’s see,” Hitch frowned as he picked up his binoculars.”

Sadly, finding a suitable place for Misty to teleport to turned out to be harder than expected.

On Level Six, the huts the creatures slept in were positioned side by side in a long row. However, the space between each hut was wide and open with no cover. The space between the rear of the huts and the cliff face up to the next level was also very wide.

Set away from the huts to one side, there was what looked to be a large storage shed with two pitched roofs. It was turned through ninety degrees to the accommodation huts with two sets of doors at either end.

The carts used within the sixth level were stored between it and the huts. However, this area was just as open and there were two watchtowers overlooking it.

No matter where they looked, there wasn’t enough cover anywhere for Misty to appear without being spotted.

Eventually, Hitch suggested getting different viewing angles would help. Therefore, Misty carefully teleported them to different spots around the treeline. On their third attempt, they found what they were looking for.

“There,” Hitch said at last. “What we thought was a storage shed, it's actually two, side by side.”

“Is it?” Misty gasped as she looked through her binoculars.

“Yeah, there’s a narrow alleyway between them,” Hitch smiled. “Perfect for you to appear in.”

Misty looked with interest. Sure enough, the shed was two separate buildings, each with a pitched roof. There was an alleyway between them which was long and narrow.

“It's perfect, especially if I aim right,” Misty smiled. “Wait, are there any lights in there? How will I see to teleport down there when it’s dark?”

“I didn’t think you needed line of sight,” Hitch frowned.

Misty sighed. “I...I want this to be completely accurate. The safeguards I mentioned ensure you don’t appear inside something. I don’t want to be pushed out of the alley when I appear.” She closed her eyes and took a deep breath to steady her nerves. “I...I’m going down there now.”

Hitch’s eyes widened in shock. “Wait! You’re doing WHAT!”

“I’ll come straight back,” Misty defended.

“Hold on…” Hitch gasped.

However, Misty didn’t reply. Still looking through the binoculars, her horn glowed, and she disappeared with a flash.

Hitch looked around in utter shock. Gasping, he went to look through his binoculars but almost dropped them. They danced in his hoofs for a moment before he finally brought them to his eyes.

His heart was pounding as he finally saw Misty had successfully arrived in the alley. There were a few boxes littered around and he watched worriedly as she started moving them. She created a pair of small walls, shielding her arrival point from either end.

“Come on, Misty,” Hitch said to himself. “That’s enough, get out of there.”

Suddenly, Hitch gasped as he spotted a Nirik walking towards one of the storage sheds. It stopped at the door, as though it had heard Misty moving things around.

Hitch’s eyes widened. “No, Misty! Get out of there! Oh, haystacks! Why didn’t we get radios or something!”

Hitch’s heart almost stopped as the Nirik suddenly started walking towards the end of the alleyway. However, it seemed like Misty had heard something as she suddenly froze and disappeared.

“What? Where?” Hitch gasped.

The Nirik looked down the alleyway. However, it didn’t see anything and continued on its way. It walked towards and stopped at the door of the second storage shed. Then, after a moment, it continued walking and disappeared around the opposite side of the shed.

Seconds later, Hitch practically jumped out of his skin as Misty reappeared beside him.

“MISTY!” He shouted. “That was way, way too close!”

“I’m sorry, Hitch,” Misty sighed. “I don’t think the Nirik would have seen me. There was a crate between me and it. I went invisible to be sure.”

Hitch breathed a massive sigh of relief. “I suppose it will be easier for you when it’s dark. Still nearly gave me a heart attack though.”

“Sorry,” Misty said bashfully.

Hitch let out another sigh. “It’s fine, Misty. Just some more warning next time,” he winked. “Let’s head back to camp and get something to eat. We need Zipp’s help to plan the rest of it out.”

“Okay, err, should we?”

Hitch groaned. “Yeah, it’ll save walking.”

Misty nodded as her horn glowed and they both disappeared.

Zipp groaned as she slowly awoke from her slumber. She grumbled to herself before turning over and pulling the soft covers tightly around her.

Then her eyes shot open, and she quickly sat bolt upright. “Where the hay am I?”

She looked around, gasping as she realised, she was in the rear cabin of the Marestream. Sat upon a soft camp bed that had been set up along with three others. “H...How?”

“Oh, you’re awake?” Pipp said as she stood at the door. “Just in time for food, you should see what Feather Breeze is cooking. It smells gorgeous.”

Zipp looked around in bewilderment. “But, when? How?”

Pipp rolled her eyes. “Oh, Misty teleported you here. She said you fell asleep." Her eyes narrowed. "And that you'd stayed up all night."

“No, no I have to get back!” Zipp said in dismay as she pulled off the covers. “ I have to keep watch. I could be missing crucial information.”

Pipp scowled as Zipp scrambled to her hoofs and started towards the door. She stood resolutely in the way.

“Pipp!? Out the way,” Zipp grumbled.

“You’re not going back to the hide. Not until you’ve eaten.”

“There’s no time, Pipp. We need a way to get messages from the captured creatures.”

Zipp tried to push past her sister. However, Pipp pushed back resolutely.

“We’ll work that out,” Pipp said earnestly. “Have you seen our camp?”

“What?” Zipp gasped as she tried to get through Pipp’s blockade again.

“Have you seen our camp!” Pipp frowned as she pushed back again.

Zipp scowled as she took a step backwards. “Of course not.” She spread her wings. “I’ve been too busy keeping watch over the quarry.”

Pipp scowled back at her sister. Opening her wings and preparing to defend the doorway.

“You don’t want to do this, Pipp,” Zipp scowled. “You know how this sort of thing always ends.”

“No, I don’t want to do this,” Pipp admitted. “But I will because I’m looking out for my sister!”

Zipp blinked with surprise. However, her eyes narrowed again as she stared her sister down.

Silence fell as the pair stared at each other, their knees bent and wings spread ready to pounce.

After what seemed like an eternity, Zipp bounded forward. Pipp reacted, shouting as she leapt forward too.

They were about to collide when they both found themselves frozen in mid-air, held tightly in a magenta magical aura.

“Stop fighting!” Izzy said earnestly from the door. “You’re both coming out here and having some of this wonderful food that Feather Breeze is making.”

The siblings both began struggling, flailing their hoofs and wings wildly. However, they couldn’t escape Izzy’s magical grasp.

“Iz, let me go,” Pipp gasped. “I’m on your side!”

“Iz, no fair,” Zipp growled. “I need to get back to the hide.”

However, Izzy was having none of it. She floated the pair of them out the door and into the outside area of the camp.

Zipp gasped, it was the first time she’d seen the campsite. The wing of the Marestream had been extended and beneath it was a kitchen. It extended out from a hatch in the side of the Marestream. Clearly designed to quickly fold away.

From the wing, a large piece of brown canvas had been attached. It extended forward and covered what looked like a sitting area.

There was a set of seats which had all been cut from logs in the shape of armchairs and a sofa. There were even a couple of log tables between the seats. They were positioned around a fire pit which had clearly been burning the night before.

Feather Breeze was stood at the hob watching with interest. She had a wooden spoon in her hoof as she slowly stirred the contents of a large pan as it bubbled away.

Izzy sighed as she lowered the two sisters onto separate log seats. “You're both going to sit here. Are you both going to sit nicely or do I have to get really creative?”

The two sisters' eyes widened, and they looked worriedly at each other. Neither wanted to find out what Izzy meant.

“Iz, I’m on your side,” Pipp reaffirmed. “I’m not going anywhere. I just don’t want Zipp to Zipp off!”

“Oh, she’s not Zipping off,” Izzy grinned knowingly.

Zipp wiggled and let out a groan of resignation. “Fine, I’ll stay here and stop arguing."

“You promise?” Izzy smirked as she got uncomfortably close to Zipp and looked her in the eye.

“I...I promise,” Zipp nodded.

“Good,” Izzy grinned before turning to Pipp. “And you’re not going to try fighting anymore?”

“Iz, if I had magic like you, I wouldn’t need to try fighting her,” Pipp groaned. “It never ends well for me anyway.”

“Then why even bother?” Zipp frowned.

“Because if I didn’t you would be back at that hide now.”

Zipp sighed and looked down. “Fair point.”

Suddenly, there was a flash as Misty and Hitch appeared.

“Okay,” Izzy said brightly. “Just behave or I’ll sick Misty on you!”

“Wait? What now?” Misty gasped. “What’s going on?”

“Nothing,” Zipp groaned as she rested her head on a hoof. “Iz is just playing mother.”

“She was breaking up a fight,” Feather Breeze clarified. “It’s been ages since I’ve seen siblings fight like that. I’m glad it didn’t come to blows.”

Pipp looked down thoughtfully as Izzy got a set of bowls ready.

“Feather Breeze, do you have any siblings?” Pipp ventured. “I’ll totally understand if you don’t want to talk about it.”

Feather Breeze closed her eyes and grimaced. Pipp gasped worriedly, hoping she’d not upset her.

However, after a moment, Feather Breeze let out a deep sigh and opened her eyes. “I have a brother and a sister. Both of them are much older than I am. I was effectively an only child. The siblings I remember are my best friend, Spring Flare and her sister Summer Bloom.”

Misty gasped. “Spring Flare, wasn’t she...”

“...at the Airship,” Feather Breeze answered. “Yes, she was. Winters Breath, our leader, she’s Spring Flare’s mother.”

The others all looked at each other worriedly. However, Feather Breeze looked at them reassuringly as she ladled the contents of the pan into the bowls. “We’ll save them. We’ll save your friends, we’ll save my friends and my family. Along with everycreature in the Quarry.”

“Together,” Pipp beamed.

She tried to get up but squeaked when she found she couldn’t. She looked down and gasped as she spotted a magical aura between her and the seat. She wiggled and confirmed it was holding her firmly in place.

“IZ! Don’t you trust me!? I’M ON YOUR SIDE!”

Izzy giggled as her horn glowed. Pipp gasped with relief as she felt herself being released. She jumped up from the seat before spinning around to check her bottom and tail.

“It’s okay,” Misty smiled. “It’s magic glue. I found and taught Izzy the spell.”

“It’s super useful,” Izzy beamed. “It sticks two items together no matter what they are. Then when it releases, it leaves nothing behind. I use it all the time when planning out my projects.”

“I knew I wasn’t going anywhere the moment you put me here,” Zipp grumbled. “Wait! Hitch, Misty! Who’s watching the quarry?”

“Nopony right now,” Hitch admitted. “I keep telling you. If you really want somepony watching it all the while, then we need to set up watches. We need a chance to rest.”

“Yeah, I suppose you’re right,” Zipp sighed. "I...I just didn't want to miss anything and maybe got a little obsessive."

"A little?" Pipp frowned.

Zipp sighed. "Okay, more like a lot."

Feather Breeze began passing out the bowls of stew with her magic. Misty gasped and grinned excitedly. "Thanks, this smells brilliant."

Hitch smiled and nodded as he took his. "When we've eaten we'll head back. We need your help with something, Zipp."

“O…Okay,” Zipp frowned as she accepted her bowl and looked at the stew unsurely. However, after one bite she couldn’t help feeling glad she’d been made to stay. “Wow, this is awesome. What’s in it?”

Feather Breeze smiled happily. “I’m glad you like it, it’s made from the fruits of the forest. Different kinds of tree bark, mushrooms, berries, and leaves. It’s an old family recipe.”

“We double-checked, everything is safe for Pony consumption,” Pipp winked.

“It's brilliant,” Misty grinned having already finished. “Is there more?”

“Lots more,” Feather Breeze laughed as she ladled another helping into Misty’s bowl.

Chapter Twenty-Four – Medium Sneaky Misty

As the sun sank below the mountains, darkness slowly descended over the Quarry.

Misty was going over a set of diagrams and instructions in the hide. Meanwhile, Hitch and Zipp watched the last of the Yak being ushered into their hut. They were the last creatures to be locked in for the night.

“Not long now,” Hitch frowned. “How are you doing, Misty?”

Misty’s eyes widened and she let out a nervous squeak. “I…I’m buzzing with nerves,” she admitted as she nervously adjusted the straps on her saddlebag. Then, she closed her eyes as she let out a deep, shaky breath.

Zipp put a reassuring hoof on her shoulder. “If you do everything we discussed you’ll be fine. We’ve got this planned out to the last detail.”

"Yeah, we're really well prepared, not like the other missions we've done recently,” Hitch winked. “It’s not too late to change your mind though."

With her eyes still closed, Misty took another deep calming breath. Letting it out slowly before she opened her eyes and looked at her friends with determination. “No, I really think this is the only way. Once I’ve been in the hut I won’t have to sneak around anymore. I’ll be able to teleport straight in.”

“That’s the spirit, Misty,” Zipp smiled. “I still can’t believe you’ve already been down there.”

“Me neither,” Hitch confessed. “But it was a good idea, it’s all set up for her now.”

“Yeah, we’ve covered the variables too,” Zipp pondered. “I’m glad I did all the reconnaissance last night.”

Misty gave a small smile as she gave the plans one last look. “I’m glad you both agreed to this. I don’t think I could have come up with such a detailed plan on my own.”

“It didn’t take long too,” Zipp winked. “Feather Breeze confirmed there’s no anti-magic stuff. They use it all the time so can’t go without it.”

“Allura doesn't expect anypony to come from outside then,” Hitch said before frowning. “Misty, if you’re going, then you should go now that it's dark enough. You don't want to spend all night in the hut.”

Misty squeaked as her eyes widened. She hadn’t expected her call to action to come so soon. However, she took another deep calming breath and nodded. “Okay, if anything happens, I’ll teleport back here.”

“Good luck,” both Hitch and Zipp said before Misty’s horn glowed and she disappeared.

There was a flash between the two storage sheds as Misty appeared in the alleyway. Safely hidden behind the two piles of crates and other discarded detritus that she’d built earlier that day.

She let out a deep shaky breath to steady her nerves as her heart pounded. She knew that was the easy part, the hard part was just beginning.

Gulping, Misty’s horn glowed again, and she turned almost completely invisible. The only thing that anypony would be able to see was her eyes. Despite this, she was still very nervous and worried. “I…I can do this,” she whispered to herself. “J…Just follow the plan. I…I can remember the plan, right? Right.”

She gulped and let out another deep breath before she started making her way down the alleyway. When she reached the end, ahead of her was the area where the carts were stored. She’d need to cross this to reach the nearest hut.

Two watchtowers looked out over the carts. One near the cliff face to the next level above. While the other was near the cliff edge to the level below. Both had searchlights which moved across the carts in a pattern.

Despite being invisible, Misty knew she’d still leave a shadow. Feather Breeze had told her that wouldn’t be a problem. However, she still wanted to be careful and avoid the lights if possible.

However, her first challenge was the Nirik who were on patrol. She needed to wait until they’d passed before risking moving out into the carts.

Up in the hide, Hitch and Zipp were watching like hawks through their binoculars. However, they weren’t getting on very well.

“We should have had radios,” Hitch groaned. “We don’t know what’s happening.”

Zipp sighed. “If all looks normal then everything is going to plan. They seem to be very reliant on electronics so they might detect radios.”

Hitch groaned. “We won’t even see where she is. She’ll be invisible. Not like when she went down there earlier. I could at least keep an eye on her.”

Zipp shook her head. “Which wouldn’t have helped if she got into trouble.”

“Yeah, but it made me feel happier,” Hitch smirked.

“We just need to trust Misty,” Zipp sighed. “If only Izzy had the same abilities as Misty. Then she could help.”

“No, Izzy’s fine as she is,” Hitch frowned. “Misty works herself hard enough.”

“You know why she does that, don’t you?”

Hitch groaned. “To make up for her time helping Opaline.”

“Yeah, I don’t think she’s fully forgiven herself.”

Hitch sighed and could only agree.

Back in the Quarry, Misty gasped as a Nirik walked past the end of the alley. Desperately, she closed her eyes to make sure she wasn’t seen.

However, with her eyes closed, she couldn’t see what was happening. Therefore, her invisible ears twitched back and forth as she strained to hear what the Nirik was doing.

Suddenly, she heard its hoofsteps stop. Barely daring to breathe, she kept still and waited. Finally, she heard the steps again as the Nirik continued its patrol.

After a few moments, Misty risked opening an eye. She sighed with relief as she saw the coast appeared to be clear. Therefore, she started to move from the alley, watching the lights and getting ready to hurry across to the nearest cart.

However, another Nirik suddenly approached from the opposite direction, straight towards her!

Barely managing to keep herself from squeaking in surprise, Misty flung herself back into the alleyway. She landed roughly on the floor and kicked up a cloud of dust. Covering her head with her hoofs, she closed her eyes.

She couldn’t stop trembling as she tried desperately to stay quiet and maintain concentration on the invisibility spell. Barely able to hear the Nirik over the sound of her beating heart.

When the hoofsteps stopped, she held her breath.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the Nirik started walking again. Its hoofsteps got quieter and quieter before they finally disappeared completely.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Misty’s nerves were all over the place. Still trembling, she uncovered her eyes and carefully got to her hoofs. She wanted to abort and find another way.

However, she thought about Sunny, Sprout and then Feather Breeze and her family. “They’re counting on me,” she whispered.

Taking another deep breath, Misty tentatively poked her head out of the alleyway and confirmed there were no more surprises. The Nirik were both walking away on their route around the outside of the carts.

Gulping, Misty waited for the spotlights before hurrying out from her cover. Carefully, she picked her way between the rows of carts. She had to stop and take cover multiple times to avoid the searchlights. However, she made good progress.

Finally, she scrambled under a cart. Ahead of her was an open area before the side of the hut. However, before moving on, she needed to wait for the two Nirik from before as they continued their patrol.

This time, she could see them approaching, walking in the middle of the gap between her and the hut. Gulping, she closed her eyes and listened.

The hoofsteps of the Nirik slowly approached and then passed her hiding place. Eventually getting fainter and fainter as they walked away.

Misty opened her eyes and breathed a sigh of relief. She frowned; her invisibility spell was working well and she started to wonder if she needed to be so scared. However, she quickly reminded herself to be careful.

She extracted herself from under the cart and carefully hurried to the side of the hut. Pressing herself up against it and closed her eyes as a searchlight passed over her.

She waited a moment before cracking open one eye. Sighing with relief again, she quickly made her way along the side of the hut towards the front.

Reaching the corner, she once again had to wait. She knew multiple Nirik were patrolling back and forth along the front of the huts. Therefore, she had to wait for the Nirik to arrive and turn around before proceeding.

However, when the Nirik walked out from behind the corner it still took Misty by surprise. Gasping, she closed her eyes and listened hard.

Fortunately, it seemed the Nirik hadn’t spotted her two floating eyeballs. It stood in place for a moment before turning around and walking back the other way.

Hearing its retreating hoofsteps, Misty carefully opened her eyes again. Seeing the Nirik had disappeared, she poked her head around the corner. Sure enough, it was walking away from her along the front of the huts.

Gulping, she narrowed her eyes and decided, she wanted this experience to be over as soon as possible. Therefore, she walked out and followed the Nirik. She knew doing so was risky. However, Zipp had told her it was the fastest method.

As she passed the door, Misty glanced up at the picture of a Yak above it and resisted the urge to let out a groan. Quickly reminding herself that next one would be the Diamond Dogs hut, then the Changelings. Only after that came her destination, the Ponies hut.

Her invisibility spell was giving her more confidence, she just needed to be as quiet as possible. However her heart was pounding, she just wanted to get there so it would all be over.

Back in the hide, Hitch and Zipp were still watching through their binoculars. Suddenly, Zipp gasped as she saw something.

“What is it?” Hitch frowned as he frantically scanned the area.

“I spotted her,” Zipp smiled. “Just in front of the Yak’s hut.”

“Really?” Hitch gasped as he focused on the hut in question. “I don’t see anything.”

“It was as she passed the door. I spotted her shadow from the light above it. Then a glimpse of her eyes.”

“Okay, so next one is the Diamond Dogs,” Hitch said as he refocused his binoculars. “Yes, I saw her. No eyes, but a definite Misty shaped shadow.”

“Wait, that’s really fast,” Zipps eyes widened. “Is…Is she following the Nirik?”

“Seems so, she’s being really brave,” Hitch blinked. “She must want it over and done with as soon as possible. Where did you hear about following somepony like that?”

Zipp grimaced, bringing a wing up to her face. “A video game.”

“A…A video game,” Hitch gasped.

“I didn’t think she’d choose that method. I thought she’d take it slower.”

“Zipp, Misty’s probably never seen a video game thanks to Opaline, let alone played one. She won’t know you can just reset if you make a mistake.”

Zipp groaned, she knew it was too late. They could only watch and try and keep track of Misty.

Meanwhile, Misty was making good progress. However, ahead she could see another Nirik was walking towards her. She knew she’d need to do something to get out of it’s way.

Therefore, as she neared the Changeling’s hut she didn’t continue along the front. She moved towards the side of it instead.

Pressing her back to the side of the hut, she listened hard as she looked through the corner of her eye.

The two Nirik passed each other between the Changelings and Ponies huts. Therefore, it was a little while before the approaching Nirik finally emerged from around the corner.

Misty immediately closed her eyes and her invisible ears twitched as she listened. She could barely breathe as the hoofsteps slowly got fainter and fainter.

Finally, she cracked open one eye and breathed a sigh of relief. The Nirik had once again carried on without seeing her.

Feeling even more confident in her invisibility spell, Misty moved to the corner and peeped around it. She couldn't help smiling as she confirmed the Nirik were both continuing their patrols.

With her eyes fixed on the door of the next hut, she made her way out from the corner. There was nothing else in her way now.

In the hide, Zipp and Hitch were starting to worry. They hadn’t seen evidence of Misty passing in front of the Changeling hut and had lost her.

“Where is she,” Zipp worried.

“Maybe she stopped,” Hitch pondered before he gasped. “Of course, to let the oncoming one pass!”

Zipp’s eyes widened. “THERE!”

“Yeah, I saw it too,” Hitch grinned. “A shadow at the door of the hut.”

“Okay, just one left. Never thought I’d get this worried about somepony else doing something.”

Hitch laughed. “And you’re supposed to be the brave one.”

Zipp couldn't help smirking playfully. “And you’re the one who’s supposed to look out for our wellbeing. To talk us all out of doing silly things like this.”

“Yeah, well, it didn’t stop Sunny did it,” Hitch sighed.

“Hey, we’ll save her,” Zipp reassured.

“I know,” Hitch smiled. “Wait! By the door to the Ponies hut. I can see her shadow there now!”

“She’s made it then,” Zipp grinned.

They both watched the door intently. However, they gasped as there was a blinding flash which forced them to pull their binoculars away from their eyes.

“Ah, that was bright,” Hitch gasped as he blinked rapidly.

“Tell me about it,” Zipp grumbled as she rubbed her eyes. “At least we know she made it.”

Hitch put the binoculars to his still watering eyes. He quickly scanned the area around the huts and breathed a sigh of relief. “No reaction from what I can see. We're lucky they didn't spot the flash, it was way brighter than we expected.”

“It’s the binoculars,” Zipp explained. “They amplified it.”

“Well, all we can do is wait some more,” Hitch smiled. “Misty did so well. I never thought she had it in her.”

“I think she can be pretty sneaky,” Zipp smiled. “She just gets massively nervous. Planning it all out must have helped.”

Hitch nodded in agreement as they continued to watch and wait.

Meanwhile, inside the Ponies hut, the creatures had gathered as normal. However, Bingo was far from happy.

“So, we have no message?” she grumbled. “Then what’s the point of meeting.”

“We could get a message anytime, Bingo,” Thymus sighed. “Also, we ought to get to know each other better. We’re in this together and should know more about our allies.”

Suddenly, there was a commotion at the other end of the hut. They turned to look and saw the ponies were all gathering near the door. Clapping, hoof stomping and cheering.

Eventually, the creatures all gasped as the crowd of ponies parted and a blue unicorn was ushered towards them. She was panting but had a beaming smile on her face as multiple hoofs patted her on the back and welcomed her like a hero.

“Misty!” Sprout gasped as he hurried to meet her. “Misty? Is that really you?”

“Y…Yeah, it’s me,” Misty gasped. “I…I made it, I actually made it.”

“So, this is what you meant about being brave,” Sprout beamed as he put a hoof around Misty’s shoulders. “Come and meet the others.”

As Sprout escorted Misty towards the other creatures, they all looked at her with shock and bewilderment.

“Is it a new prisoner?” Bingo frowned with confusion.

"It's too late for that," Skysurf blinked. "Besides, I didn't hear the door."

Minty shook her head. “No, she’s not a prisoner like us."

“W…What?” Giselle gasped in shock. “If she’s… How?”

“Hold on, hold on,” Sprout grinned as he waved a hoof. “Introductions first, this is Misty Brightdawn. She’s one of Sunny’s best friends and one of our Guardians of Unity. She’s the one who’s been messaging us. She’s here to help us.”

“She’s the most powerful Unicorn in Equestria,” Minty added. “She’s made headline news for the things she’s accomplished.”

Misty gasped and couldn’t help blushing profusely. “P…Please, j…just call me Misty.”

“Well, it is very good to meet you, Misty Brightdawn,” Thymus smiled. “You must be very brave to come here yourself.”

“I…I don’t feel brave,” Misty admitted before gasping as she sat down. “My heart’s still pounding. H…Hold on…”

The others looked confused as Misty reached into her saddlebag and produced a recorder. “Zipp suggested I record what we discuss. I’m not going to remember it all.”

“Sounds sensible,” Thymus nodded with a smile. “Presumably, you’ll get told what you’ve omitted to tell us too.”

Misty only nodded before she started the recording and set the recorder down.

“Come on, everycreature,” Sprout beamed. “Introduce yourselves to Misty and her friends. Bingo, would you like to go first?”

Bingo looked dumbfounded but managed to find her tongue. “Y…Yes. I am Bingo of the Diamond Dogs. There are members from many packs here and that makes it difficult to maintain our status. So, am not the highest-ranking dog, but I was chosen to represent us.”

“I’m Skysurf and I represent the Hippogriffs of Mount Aris and Seaquestria. I’m the personal guard of Princess Coral Cloud. We were on our way to Equestria to meet your Queen Haven and were ambushed. Coral Cloud was targeted specifically, and I was captured whilst I was protecting her.”

“I am Thymus the Changeling, and I am one of our hive’s guards. Sworn to protect the hive from any threat. Therefore, I was captured in an operation to identify what was happening to my fellow Changelings. Generations ago, the Changelings underwent a metamorphosis thanks to the friendship we forged with pony kind. I'm honoured to be meeting so many ponies now, Equestria has been isolated for too long.”

“Giselle of Griffonstone, I don’t have any fancy titles or anything. I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time and saw a fellow griff get captured. I couldn’t stand around and do nothing so ended up getting caught myself trying to stop the Nirik from getting away.”

Minty was stood to one side, seemingly not wanting to get involved. Therefore, she looked surprised when everycreature looked expectantly at her. She raised a hoof and pointed at Sprout. “Wait, he should go first. He’s been far more involved in this than I have.”

“Oh, my friends and I know Sprout already,” Misty smiled. “Honestly, I think I know who you are, but…”

Holding up a hoof, Minty sighed and stepped forward. “I’m Minty Cloudstrike. I got myself and three of my friends caught because I was stupid and didn’t follow the Queen’s curfew.” She let out another deep sigh. “You probably know I’m the leader of Pegasus for Pegasi.”

“Yeah, we saw you on TV,” Misty confirmed.

Minty groaned and looked down. “C…Could we maybe not talk about Pegasus for Pegasi? I don’t think it’s really relevant to this situation.”

“Sure,” Misty smiled. “We’ll save all of that until we’ve gotten everycreature out of here.”

Minty sighed and nodded but said nothing more.

Suddenly, Giselle bound towards Misty excitedly, making her squeak in surprise. Giselle got uncomfortably close and hopped up and down on the spot. “So, you’re, like, the most powerful Unicorn,” Giselle beamed. “What magic did you use to get here?”

“W…Well, mainly teleportation,” Misty squeaked. “I…I turned invisible too, but it was still really nerve-racking.”

“Invisible!" Giselle’s eyes widened in excitement. "You really turned invisible, can you show us?”

Misty blinked with confusion. However, her horn glowed and, sure enough, she turned completely invisible.

Giselle squeaked with excitement, “That’s amazing!”

However, Misty suddenly opened her eyes and made Giselle squeak in shock. She skittered backwards in surprise and almost fell over. Much to the amusement of the others.

Misty gasped as she reappeared. “S…Sorry.”

Giselle placed a claw over her pounding heart and panted for breath before smiling. “Not your fault. I just wasn't ready to see two floating eyeballs. Why aren't they invisible too?"

Misty shrugged bashfully. "I don't know, that's just how the spell works."

"Sort of makes sense, how would you see if they were?" Thymus pondered. "I have a question about teleportation. Sunny mentioned you can take a few with you?”

Misty frowned in thought before responding. “I think I’ve teleported up to five others before, I’m not honestly sure. Magic is still so new and I’m learning all the time. I…I’m sorry it took me so long to sort out a messaging spell. I’m still so bummed I can’t get the responding one to work.”

“Hey, I think coming yourself has more than made up for it,” Sprout replied. “It’s a good job too, we’ve got something for you.”

“Y…You have?” Misty blinked.

Skysurf helped Sprout reveal the second hole. Then, they removed the collars, bridles and straps from where they'd been hidden.

“Giselle and I successfully infiltrated one of the watchtowers,” Skysurf informed. “We took these and were hoping you’d be able to work out their secrets.”

Misty grinned. “Well, I won’t but I know a pony who will. Zipp will be so pleased, she was kind of bummed after I destroyed the one that Feather Breeze was wearing.”

“Feather Breeze?” Thymus questioned. “Isn't that the Nirik you captured?”

"More like rescued," Misty nodded. "She's a Kirin... But, I suppose she’s a Nirik too." She paused and sighed. "I'll go over what I know. Y...You see, Kirin transform into Nirik when they get angry. Allura uses her purr to take over their minds. For some reason, it works way better when they’re Nirik than when they’re Kirin.”

“I think I remember,” Skysurf frowned as she held up one of the collars. “These somehow lock them in Nirik form so the purr works on them."

“It will be similar to ours,” Thymus said as he tapped his collar. “They stop Changelings using our natural ability to change form. Not unless they want us to.”

“Sill silly to think a purr controls creatures,” Bingo sniffed.

"Of course it would seem silly to a Diamond Dog," Giselle grinned.

Bingo grunted but nodded in agreement.

Misty sighed. "It affects some creatures more than others. Like the Auroricorns, it affects them the most. This whole quarry, it used to be their home. Before Allura came and took control of them with her purr.”

“I…It did,” Giselle gasped.

“Feather Breeze told us,” Misty nodded before frowning. “Well, she told Pipp first, but she told the rest of us later."

"So, what happened to the Kirin?" Thymus asked.

"Allura used the Auroricorns to lure them into a trap," Misty sighed. "Their leaders are friends and Allura used that against them. All the Auroricorns and Kirin are here, every single one of them. They're all under Allura's control."

Sprout frowned. "The Auroricorns don't seem to be under anycreatures control though."

"But they do act strange," Skysurf pointed out. "It's like they don't know where they actually are."

"Exactly, they're in a trance," Misty sighed. "Thing is, there's got to be someway that Allura doesn't have to keep purring."

"Actually, there was something we saw in the watchtower,” Skysurf smiled.

“A piece of massive equipment,” Giselle explained. “Took up one side of the room at least. Buttons, dials and switches all over it. Along with a tape player thing with two tapes.”

“We think the tapes might be what control the purr,” Skysurf added.

"I'm glad this is all being recorded," Misty smiled. "Zipp's a brilliant detective. She'll work all this out."

“In that case you should know, Nirik are afraid of us Diamond Dogs," Bingo grunted. "They use our collars to keep control. You get these off, or turned off or something. Then we’ll be able to fight the Nirik.”

“You shouldn’t need to fight them,” Misty revealed. “As soon as I removed the one from Feather Breeze. She transformed back into a Kirin and passed out. When she woke up, she wasn't under Allura's control anymore.”

“So, turn off Diamond Dogs collars and we’ll take the collars from the Nirik,” Bingo said confidently.

“Or turn them all off,” Thymus countered. “Turn off every single collar and we’ll be free to help the Kirin when they pass out.”

Giselle snorted. “Yeah, but how would you do that?”

Silence fell as the creatures all looked at each other unsurely.

“They must have a way to charge them,” Minty said suddenly before gasping as all eyes turned towards her. “W…Well, they’re clearly electronic. They have so many flashing LED’s on them. So, they must have a battery.”

“See, you are useful,” Sprout reassured.

“Well, I just know electronics is all,” Minty replied before gesturing to the collars. “I…I assume it’s Princess Zipp who’ll be looking at these?”

“Yeah, it will be,” Misty smiled before squeaking as Skysurf rounded on her.

“One of your friends is the Princess of your Kingdom?!” Skysurf barked. “Why would you let her come with you?”

“Because she’s a Guardian of Unity,” Sprout defended. “Bet her sister’s there too.”

“Y…Yeah, Pipps back at camp,” Misty confirmed.

“T…Two Princesses!” Skysurf goggled. “You have… two... here?”

She sat down, looking completely baffled.

Misty frowned. “It’s not that big a deal. If we end up needing to use the Elements, they have to be with us. They only work when we’re all together.”

“I…It’s just Coral Cloud is always under my protection,” Skysurf sighed. “I took the beam that was aimed at her. I’m just glad she’s not here.”

Giselle suddenly grunted uncomfortably and looked very worried. “Err, Skysurf, I hate to worry you. But she could be.”

Skysurf turned and looked dumbfounded at Giselle. “What do you mean? She’s not here, I would know if she was here.”

“Did you check High-Security Confinement?” Giselle said worriedly. “When I got here, I was put straight in there.”

“N…No, but…” Skysurf gasped before shaking her head. “No, she couldn’t be. I…I’m sure she wasn’t on the Airship.”

“But she could have been in a different bay,” Thymus pointed out. “I hate to say it, Skysurf, but Giselle has a point. After her escape attempt on the Airship, she was taken away.”

"Yeah, I was hauled off and put in a cell," Giselle said worriedly. "Then when I got here I was escorted straight to Confinement."

“Give me a description,” Misty offered. “We’ll look for her as we’re watching.”

“No, she’ll be locked in a hut,” Giselle answered.

“Sunny isn’t,” Misty responded. “I’ve seen her out pulling a cart alongside Sugar Moonlight. I…I think I also saw at least one Hippogriff like you pulling a cart on that level too.”

“She’s light pink with a yellow mane and tail,” Skysurf responded. “There is only one Hippogriff that I know of that should be in confinement.”

“Okay,” Misty nodded. “I’ll make sure we keep an eye out. Don’t worry, if she is here then…”

“…Yes. But it will mean I’ve failed,” Skysurf said earnestly. “I’m supposed to protect her. I…I…I’m…”

The others all looked on worriedly as Skysurf trailed off. She groaned, looking more and more concerned before closing her eyes and shaking her head. “It’s not at all professional, but, we’re best friends,” she admitted. “We’ve spent so long together that we’ve grown closer than we should."

She looked down, the pain and worry evident on her face before jumping as Giselle placed a claw on her shoulder.

“Hey, if she’s here then she’ll escape like the rest of us,” Giselle reassured.

“Leave it with me,” Misty recommended. “If I see her, I'll let you know straight away. I'll be able to message you directly now we've met properly."

"Yes but Coral isn’t allowed out much, if at all," Skysurf groaned. "The trip to Equestria, it’s further than she’s gone in a long time and she was so excited. Her mother will never let her out the castle again, especially if she's here." She groaned again. "I'm sorry, none of that helps does it."

"If we know she's here then we can factor getting her out into our plans," Thymus reassured.

Misty nodded. "Yes, leave that with me, I'll make sure to mention it to Zipp. I have a question though; how did Sugar end up with Sunny?”

“She saved Skysurf and Giselle,” Sprout answered. “They got caught on their way into the watchtower and she provided a distraction.”

“I’d say it was more than a distraction,” Giselle said as she folded her forelegs. “She ran them over with her cart!”

"She sacrificed herself," Skysurf sighed. "She saw we were in trouble and acted."

“O…Okay,” Misty gasped. “I didn’t realise she had that in her.”

"Same as you then," Sprout smirked. "I didn't realise you were brave enough to actually break into a prison to speak to the prisoners."

Misty blinked and looked at Sprout with surprise. "I...I didn't think of it like that..."

“Very good but we need to get back to our huts before lights out,” Bingo grunted suddenly. “The other Dogs will be wanting their bananas before then.”

“Well, I can’t think of anything else of importance to discuss,” Thymus admitted.

“Well, before I go. I’ve got some writing materials for you,” Misty said as she unpacked her saddlebag. “Zipp thought it would help. Allow you to write things down or draw out plans.”

“Yes, that will be a big help,” Thymus smiled.

Misty smiled as she passed paper and writing implements to Thymus before she packed her bag with the collars, bridles and straps. Putting the recorder in last before she closed the flap securely.

“I’ll be back tomorrow night,” Misty smiled. “Now I’ve seen the inside, I’ll be able to teleport straight here.”

“Until tomorrow night then, Misty Brightdawn,” Thymus smiled. “Please, thank your friends for being here to help.”

“I will,” Misty smiled. “Don’t lose hope, we’ll help you all escape.”

With a final round of smiles, waves and a few nods from the creatures. Misty’s horn glowed and she disappeared with a flash.

“Oh, thank hoofness,” Minty groaned. “Was it only me who had visions of her not being able to teleport away?”

Sunny sighed as she lay on her mat. They’d had their food for the evening and now she was contemplating getting some sleep, despite the lights still being on. If only we didn’t have these things stuck to our faces. She scowled. Then we could sit here talking.

However, she gasped, and her eyes widened. She froze as a familiar voice filled her mind.

“Sunny, I’ve got important news for you. We’re here! We’ve set up a camp and have been watching the quarry from a hide that Izzy made. We’ve seen what they’ve done to you and Sugar. Don’t worry, we’ll save you!

"I’ve actually been to see Sprout and your other friends in the Pony hut and we've made lots of progress. Tell Sugar that, thanks to her, Skysurf and Giselle were successful. I’ve just delivered a saddlebag of collars, straps and stuff to Zipp. She’s already heading back to camp to get started on examining them.

"Hang in there, we will save you. I promise, hoof to heart!”

Sunny gasped as tears of joy welled in her eyes.

Oh, Misty, I can’t believe you actually went to the hut! She shook her head and blinked away the tears. Oh yeah, she can’t hear me. Doesn’t matter, I can’t believe it! They're here! They're actually here! I can’t wait to tell Sugar tomorrow.

Finally feeling like she could get some sleep. Sunny sighed as she lowered her head onto her forelegs and closed her eyes. I can feel it now. Things can only get better, it's only a matter of time.

Chapter Twenty-Five – Campsite Comforting

It was morning and Sunny couldn’t help but feel happy. Her dreams the previous night had been filled by her friends, but they hadn’t been nightmares. The first time since being in Confinement that she’d not had one.

After seeing the LED turn green, Sunny pushed her muzzle into the port and couldn’t help grinning as she pulled her face free. “Sugar, Sugar, you’ll never guess what happened last night. Misty messaged me!”

Sugar looked excited as she also pulled her face from her muzzle. “She did? Are they here?”

“Yeah, they are,” Sunny beamed. “Even better. Misty, she was so brave, she’s visited the hut!”

Sugar’s eyes widened as she gasped. “W...What? With Sprout and the others?”

“Yes,” Sunny giggled. “You need to know, Giselle and Skysurf, they were successful.”

Sugar’s eyes widened with excitement. She grinned and bounded up to the bars, ignoring the food and water that were being dispensed into her bowls. “You mean they got the collars!?”

“Yeah, and it was thanks to you,” Sunny beamed. “Thanks to your sacrifice.”

Sugar blinked and looked down as her ears drooped. “T...That’s what I don’t get,” she confessed. “I sacrificed myself, and I don’t know why. I don’t understand why I did it.”

“Because you saw two friends in trouble,” Sunny replied knowingly as she came closer.

Sugar blinked, looking very confused. “B...But they’re not my friends.”

“You’re more like friends than you realise.” Sunny smiled. “Not best friends, but the shoots of friendship are still there. They may wilt and die, but they could easily grow big and strong too.”

Sugar frowned, looking quite unsure. “I...I don’t know.”

Sunny smiled as she pushed a hoof through the bars and placed it on top of one of Sugars reassuringly. “Just wait and let whatever happens happen.”

Sugar’s frown softened, she lifted her hoof and held onto Sunny’s gratefully. “O…Okay, I will.”

After a moment or two, they moved back towards their bowls, both knowing they had little time to eat and drink. However, Sunny knew she didn’t need to say anymore as Sugar's unsure expression continued to soften as she thought things through.

Elsewhere, Izzy was keeping herself busy around the camp, cleaning up after breakfast. Suddenly, she heard shouting from the Marestream and frowned towards her puppet friend, Senor Butterscotch, who was sitting on a chair. “They’d better not be fighting.”

Just as Izzy was going to investigate, the door to the Marestream opened and Pipp came tumbling out. Landing indignantly on her bottom with an ‘oof’.

“And stay out!” Zipp shouted from inside as the door closed.

Pipp growled in annoyance as she picked herself up and rubbed her aching bottom.

Izzy couldn’t help smirking as she trotted over. “What did you do?”

“Nothing!” Pipp exclaimed. “I was only trying to help.”

“So… hindering then,” Izzy grinned as she cocked her head to one side.

“No, no, definitely helping,” Pipp gasped as she frantically waved her hoofs toward Izzy. “Or trying to.”

Izzy narrowed her eyes and smirked, clearly not at all convinced.

Pipp groaned and looked down. “Okay, maybe I was being more of a hindrance. But she wasn’t giving me anything to do!” She sat on one of the chairs and groaned. “Ugh, it’s so boring just hanging around here. There’s no signal!”

“You could go to the hide,” Izzy suggested.

“But there’s already three of them there,” Pipp grumbled.

Izzy blinked before putting a hoof on her chin. “Oh yeah, maybe I should have made the hide bigger?”

Suddenly, the door to the Marestream opened and Zipp appeared. “IZ!” she shouted. “Could you come give me a hoof?”

“Oh, okay,” Izzy said brightly and skipped towards the door.

“W…Wait?” Pipp gasped. “You want Izzy’s help but not mine!”

“Yeah, she's more careful than you!” Zipp growled as Izzy entered the Marestream. "You stay out!

Pipp groaned as the door closed. The others were at the hide, so now she was completely alone with no phone signal.

However, she wasn’t alone for long, there was a flash as Misty and Feather Breeze appeared.

Pipp gasped, Feather Breeze’s eyes were completely white, her teeth sharp and pointed, and her mane was on fire. She was trembling as she struggled to stop herself transforming further.

To one side of the campsite, in an open area of the clearing, there was a patch of burned grass. Quickly, Feather Breeze ran and stood on it.

Closing her eyes, she roared in anger and anguish, letting out the cartload of bottled-up feelings she’d been holding onto. As a result, she erupted in a burst of flames which streaked upwards and into the sky.

Misty and Pipp couldn’t help looking at each other worriedly.

“W...What happened?” Pipp gasped.

“We… Well… Sort of saw Spring Flare,” Misty sighed.

Pipp’s eyes widened. “Her best friend? But...”

Pipp trailed off as the flames around Feather Breeze dissipated revealing her full Nirik form, puffing and panting as she growled in anger. Taking a deep breath, she thrust her head skywards and screamed in anger. “I have to save her!”

She started to gallop towards the Quarry. However, Misty was too fast, her horn glowed, and wisps of magical energy appeared around Feather Breeze’s hoofs that rooted them to the spot. She growled and began violently struggling, pulling this way and that, but finding no way to free herself.

“NO! Let. Me! GO!” Feather Breeze roared. “I can’t leave her like that! I...I need to, HELP HER!”

“No, we won’t let you go and get yourself captured,” Misty said resolutely.

With a look of concern, Pipp hurried to Feather Breeze and placed her hoofs on either side of her head. She held it still so that she could look her straight in the eye.

“Feather Breeze, look at me,” Pipp said calmly as her cutie mark started glowing. “It’ll be okay. I’m confident everything will be okay. We’ll save Spring Flare. We’ll save Winters Breath. We’ll save everypony. I know we will. I’m confident we will by working together.”

Feather Breeze panted for breath as she looked into Pipp’s calming eyes. Slowly, her struggles started to lessen.

“We’ll save them,” Misty reassured. “But we’ll only do it by working together. By coming up with a plan and implementing it, together.”

“Not by recklessly running into the Quarry in a blind rage,” Pipp added as she lowered her hoofs. “Take your time, Feather Breeze. We’re here for you.”

“We’ve got you,” Misty smiled. “Hoof to heart.”

Misty’s cutie mark began to glow as she raised a hoof and placed it on Feather Breeze’s chest, over her heart.

Feather Breeze gasped as she suddenly felt a whole lot calmer. She continued panting for a while before finally erupting in flames again and returning to her Kirin form. “I...I’m so sorry.”

Misty smiled as her horn glowed again, the wisps of magic disappeared, freeing Feather Breeze’s hoofs.

Feather Breeze gasped as she sat down, she closed her eyes tightly, tears welling in them. “I...I’m sorry... I could... I couldn’t...”

Pipp said nothing, she moved forward and pulled Feather Breeze into a hug. One that Feather Breeze gratefully received and returned as she cried.

“It’s okay. You have nothing to be sorry for,” Pipp consoled.

“B...But...” Feather Breeze stammered as she cried into Pipp’s shoulder.

“Pretty sure I got you out before you burned the hide,” Misty smiled. “It wouldn’t matter anyway. Izzy would fix it.”

“It’s more important that we don’t lose you,” Pipp sighed, ignoring how wet her shoulder felt. “As Misty said, we’ve got you. You can count on us.”

Feather Breeze sniffed. “T...Thank You, I...I don’t...”

“We know, you wouldn’t know what you’d do without us,” Pipp smiled. “But, I thought you’d seen Spring Flare at the Airship. Has something else happened that’s upset you?”

Feather Breeze said nothing, she continued crying into Pipp’s shoulder as she nodded.

“Want to talk about it?” Pipp ventured.

This time, Feather Breeze shook her head.

“Can I talk about it?” Misty asked as she rubbed Feather Breeze’s back.

Feather Breeze took a deep breath, looking over her shoulder at Misty, she nodded.

Misty sighed. “Spring Flare isn’t in her Nirik form anymore, she’s a Kirin again. We saw Allura escort her from one of the buildings. She’s all chained up though, so much she can barely walk.”

Feather Breeze grunted as she finally pulled back from Pipp’s embrace and wiped her eyes. “I...I know what’s happening. Allura is using Spring Flare as more leverage against Winters Breath.”

Misty frowned with confusion. “But Allura had all the Nirik filing past her, what was that for?”

Feather Breeze shook her head sadly. “Allura’s using her to look for Summer Bloom.”

“Her sister,” Pipp remembered.

Feather Breeze nodded as she sniffed. “I know Nirik all look the same to you. But, being a Kirin, I can tell who’s who and so can Spring Flare.”

“But why would Spring Flare identify her sister?” Pipp gasped as she looked towards the Marestream. “If it was me, I wouldn’t. I’d say none of them were Zipp.”

Feather Breeze let out a deep sigh. “Allura will be using her purr, forcing Spring Flare to answer truthfully.”

Pipp and Misty looked at each other worriedly whilst Feather Breeze frowned and looked down thoughtfully. “A...Actually, maybe this is for the best.”

“What do you mean?” Pipp said worriedly as she put a hoof around Feather Breeze’s shoulders comfortingly.

“Spring Flare is free from Allura’s control. If she finds Summer Bloom then she’s likely to be freed too. Sure, their physical freedom will be reduced. But...But I think I’d prefer that over being a prisoner in my own mind.”

“It doesn’t matter what Allura does,” Misty frowned. “We’ll save them.”

Feather Breeze wiped her eyes again and nodded. “We will, I...I just keep needing to be reminded.”

“Don’t worry, we’ll keep reminding you,” Pipp smiled. “You can count on us.”

Suddenly, there was a loud bang which made everypony jump in surprise. Gasping, they turned and looked in horror as smoke began pouring from the Marestream's open windows.

“ZIPPPP!” Pipp cried in dismay.

Before any of them could react further. The door opened and Zipp and Izzy came running out. Their eyes were streaming and they were coughing violently.

“Izzy?!” Misty gasped.

“Zipp!” Pipp cried desperately as she ran towards her sister.

Zipp held up a hoof as she continued coughing. “I...It’s okay... W....We’re...okay.”

Despite her reassurances, Pipp flung her hoofs around Zipp and squeezed tightly. Zipp’s eyes bulged as she felt the air being forced from her lungs.

“Are you sure?!” Pipp exclaimed as tears welled in her eyes. “Are you sure you’re okay? I...I thought...”

Meanwhile, Izzy sat down, her eyes were streaming and she continued to cough as Misty and Feather Breeze ran towards her worriedly.

“Izzy? Are you okay?” Misty gasped.

“I...I will be,” Izzy grunted as she blinked rapidly. “Gosh, that stings. Not like getting an eyeball full of glitter though. Now THAT stings!”

Misty couldn’t help chuckling as she gave Izzy a grateful hug.

“I’ll check her over,” Feather Breeze reassured. “I know how to deal with fire related injuries.”

“O...Okay, I’ll go and check the Marestream then,” Misty nodded as she broke off the hug.

Meanwhile, Pipp was still hugging Zipp tightly. “P....P...Pipp!” Zipp gasped as she frantically hit her sister on the back with a hoof. “C...Can’t breathe. L...Let go!”

Pipp gasped as she finally loosened her grip on her sister. She stepped back worriedly as Zipp coughed and gasped for air violently.

“I...I’m fine,” Zipp said at last. “It’s only a bit of smoke.”

Pipp looked towards the Marestream and gasped worriedly as Misty hurried inside.

However, the smoke was already lessening and Misty soon reappeared in the doorway. She smiled as she came out holding a smoking component in her magic. “It’s all fine inside,” she confirmed. “I mean, there’s no fire so it’s all good.”

She headed towards the patch of burned grass and placed the component on it. Meanwhile, Feather Breeze had finished checking Izzy over.

“Izzy will be completely fine,” Feather Breeze reassured.

“Oh thank hoofness,” Pipp gasped. “Could you check Zipp next?”

“I’m fine,” Zipp grumbled.

“Zipp, please,” Pipp said worriedly. “I want to know that you’re okay. Do it for me, please?”

“It’s just a precaution,” Feather Breeze smiled.

“Fine,” Zipp groaned before letting Feather Breeze check her over.

It wasn’t long before Feather Breeze looked at Pipp reassuringly. “She’s fine, Pipp,” she smiled. “They both got lungful’s of smoke and their eyes will sting for a bit but they’ll be fine.”

“So, what happened?” Misty asked.

Zipp couldn’t help chuckling. “We kind of made a breakthrough.”

“It just blew up in our faces,” Izzy laughed before thrusting her hoofs out wide. “Poof!”

“And you’re sure you’re okay?” Pipp asked worriedly. “Zipp, I’m sorry for being a pest earlier. I...”

“Pipp, we’re fine,” Zipp reassured. “I’m sorry for throwing you out before. I know you’re going mad with nothing to do here. Let me explain this breakthrough...”

That evening, Thymus and Bingo were the last to arrive in the Ponies hut.

Giselle couldn’t help crossing her forelegs and smirking good naturedly. “You’re late.”

“We’ve been speaking to the Yak,” Thymus revealed. “They’re not wanting to participate in the planning process. However, they say that if there is a role for them to play then they will do it.”

“Their collars are restrictive,” Bingo sighed. “More so than mine.”

“It seems they stop them straying from the official paths,” Thymus explained. “The speed they walk at is also kept under control.”

“They do anything that could help, they’ll get shocked,” Bingo added.

“We need to tell Misty,” Skysurf frowned.

“I’ve written it all down,” Thymus explained. “I’ve identified everything that the collars stop them from doing.”

“He’s done same for Diamond Dogs,” Bingo added. “And his own.”

Thymus held up three pieces of paper which all contained writing. He passed them to Minty who looked surprised. “This is in common ponish!”

“Of course,” Thymus smiled. “We used to have close ties with Equestria. Common Ponish has long been taught to young Changelings.”

Giselle laughed. “It would be no use to Misty and her friends if they couldn’t read it.”

“This is really comprehensive,” Minty commented. “I wish I could see inside these collars. See what made them tick.”

“You’re really into electronics then,” Sprout commented.

Minty couldn’t help smiling. “Yeah, I did electronics at college so I have a pretty good understanding. But I know Princess Zipp does too.”

“How?” Sprout frowned.

Minty sighed. “I worked as a cook in the castle. Sometimes, Princess Zipp would be working on some project and I'd bring meals to her. I even helped her a few times.”

“Oh, cool,” Sprout grinned.

Suddenly, there was a flash from the corner of the hut. They all looked around to see Misty had appeared.

“Yay, that worked perfectly,” Misty beamed as she got the recorder out. “That was so much easier than last night!”

“Welcome, Misty Brightdawn,” Thymus smiled. “We have some information about the collars for you.”

Minty held out the papers and Misty smiled gratefully as she took them. She gave the first one a scan before her eyes widened. “Oh, yeah. I’m sure Zipp will be really grateful for this. She’s already stripped one of the Nirik collars down.”

“She has?” Giselle gasped.

“Yeah, and this should help her try and identify some of the components she’s found,” Misty said as she rummaged in her saddlebag. “Ah, here it is.”

She pulled out a notebook and held it out to Minty. “Zipp told me to give this to you, Minty. She wants you to give these a once over and note down any observations you have.”

Minty blinked with surprise as she took the notebook and flipped to the first page.

Misty couldn’t help smiling. “So, the first thing you’ll see is they do have a battery.”

“Okay, so how do they charge?” Minty frowned as she continued looking through the notes. “I bet they don’t plug them in each night.”

“Well, they don’t do that to yours,” Sprout frowned.

Minty gasped, holding a hoof to the back of her head and feeling the small box on the back of her bridle. One she had forgotten was there.

“They don’t take them off,” Bingo added. “Had the same one since I got here.”

“Same,” Thymus nodded. “I’ve worn the same one since I woke up on the airship.”

Minty frowned as she continued looking at the notes. “Princess Zipp says it's wireless charging. I agree that the components she’s found are consistent with that. But, I don’t see any evidence of charging mats anywhere.”

“Zipp has a theory,” Misty answered. “That it's long-range charging.”

“Long-range wireless charging!” Minty gasped as she flicked through the notebook. “No way, that’s not possible.”

“Well, that’s what she said,” Misty shrugged. “I can go get her if you’d like.”

“NO!” Skysurf exclaimed. “You are not putting your Princess in danger like that.”

“It’s okay, Skysurf,” Giselle soothed.

Misty’s eyes widened as she gasped in dismay. “Oh, yeah, Coral Cloud!”

“You didn’t message,” Skysurf said worriedly. “I…I assume that means you didn’t see her.”

Misty sighed. “I...I’m sorry, something else happened so I wasn’t watching all day. I saw two Hippogriffs pulling a cart on Level One, but they didn’t match your description. Hitch didn’t mention seeing her but... I’m sorry, I forgot to ask.”

“T...That’s okay,” Skysurf sighed. “No news is good news.”

Misty frowned as her insides started to churn. “I’ll keep looking for her,” she said at last. “I’ll make up for making you wait.”

“It’s fine,” Skysurf reassured. “Like I said, no news is good news. I can still hope that she’s not here.”

Misty sighed, and an uneasy silence fell between them all. However, it wasn’t long before Bingo grunted with annoyance. “So, is there any other news? Can we do anything?”

Misty gasped and nodded. “Tomorrow, keep an eye out for anything that could be an emitter. Something that could be charging the collars. Zipp’s experimenting but having one would help her massively.”

“That’s still not going to be it,” Minty scowled as she continued looking through the notes. “But, I agree with what Princess...”

“Just Zipp,” Misty interrupted. “Just call her Zipp.”

“...With what Zipp is saying,” Minty nodded. “If the collars could be overloaded somehow so that they fail. Then everycreature will be free.”

“Sounds dangerous,” Bingo gasped as she put a paw to the collar around her neck.”

“She did tell me to make it clear she needs to carry out more experiments,” Misty reassured. “That’s why she needs an emitter.”

“Well, the equipment inside the watchtowers was quite large,” Skysurf pondered. “It would make sense if it was doing more than broadcasting the purr.”

Minty scowled and grunted. “Any emitter will be on the outside of the towers,” she advised. “Not that it’s going to be possible.”

“We’ll take another look at the towers tomorrow,” Sprout nodded. “I’m not going to understand what anything is. But I can still see what’s there.”

“Many eyes make light work, we should all check every watchtower we see,” Skysurf advised. “We already know they have speakers.”

“Misty, you mention bringing somecreature else with you,” Thymus remembered. “I wonder, could Feather Breeze accompany you? I am curious to meet a Kirin.”

Misty took a deep breath and shook her head. “I don’t think that would be a good idea. Feather Breeze struggles with her anger every time she looks at the Quarry. She slowly starts her Nirik transformation. Our hide is a long way from the Quarry but she still feels the purr pulling at her.”

“So, if she transformed whilst here, she’d be under its spell again,” Skysurf sighed.

“Seems I’ll have to wait to satisfy my curiosity then,” Thymus nodded. “I certainly wouldn’t want to jeopardise her safety.”

“Yeah, we’re all looking out for her,” Misty smiled. “I’d take you to our camp for a little bit but... Zipp worries there’s tracking circuits in your collars. She’s taking one of those apart next.”

“Makes sense with what they do,” Bingo groaned. “Evil collars shock Yak if they stray from the path.”

“That might not be tracking,” Minty frowned. “There could be something buried in the side of the path that the collars detect.” She flipped through the notebook again. “I do agree with Zipp though. One of the components in the Nirik collars looks very suspicious. It could be either emitting or receiving.”

“Any ideas what yours does, Minty?” Thymus said suddenly. “I just realised, I haven’t got anything for Pegasus Ponies on my notes.”

Minty blinked with confusion. “I...I don’t know. I mean, I can’t fly anyway because of these straps. I...I’ve certainly not been shocked by it.”

She looked over to her three fellow Pegasi who all shook their heads.

“Well, you couldn’t fly before magic returned,” Sprout pondered.

Skysurf brought a claw to her chin in thought. “It could be a failsafe then. Prevent you accessing your magic if you manage to get the straps off.” She frowned. “But that makes little sense. You won’t get the straps off, it’s not possible.”

“Well, we were always taught that Pegasus Ponies could control the weather,” Thymus said thoughtfully. “Maybe that could be what they are worried about? Twitch and Allura I mean.”

Misty shook her head. “Zipp tried that. She can’t do anything with clouds. She just goes through them.”

“Wait! You mean she can’t walk on them,” Giselle gasped.

Misty shook her head.

“Darn,” Giselle groaned. “I always wanted to see that.”

Suddenly, Sprout’s eyes widened as he gasped. “Wait! I just remembered. Sunny said something about the straps. That they’re done up with magic or something.”

“Well, that could be it then,” Thymus nodded. “Minty’s bridle is to make sure her magic is isolated, and she can’t inadvertently remove the straps.”

“Then why even bother with straps?” Minty frowned sourly.

“Because your wings could be used as weapons,” Skysurf responded. “I’m trained to use mine as such if needed.”

“Surprising they don’t have shock collars on us then,” Giselle commented as she stretched her wings.

“It will be a mental thing too,” Thymus theorised. “You are certainly upset your wings have been restrained, Minty Cloudstrike.”

Minty sighed and nodded. “Y...Yeah, I don’t actually care that I can’t fly, I’m no good at it anyway. I just always used my wings to express myself. There’s so many things I can’t do without them.”

“You’ve become an Earth Pony,” Bingo said suddenly. “Sprout doesn’t have wings to express himself.”

Minty’s eyes widened in shock. She looked at Sprout who only shrugged.

“Well, we know what to do,” Thymus said. “Misty Brightdawn, thank you for coming. Thank you to your friends too. Also, Feather Breeze, she should know I hold nothing against her and her fellow Kirin.”

Skysurf nodded. “Agreed, we hold nothing against the Kirin. I hope to meet her at some point. She is brave if being close to the Quarry is risking her safety.”

“Hear! Hear!” Giselle grinned.

“What they said,” Bingo nodded.

“I’ll make sure she knows,” Misty beamed. “I...I think that’s all I need to tell you. Zipp will need her notes back though, Minty.”

“Of course,” Minty nodded. “If you could hold on a moment though. I just want to review a few bits here and make some notes that might help.”

“Sure, I can hold on for a bit,” Misty smiled.

“Well, the rest of us should probably take our leave if there’s nothing more for Misty?” Thymus suggested.

Misty looked around expectantly but only saw shaking heads.

“Okay, I’ll sort the food supply then,” Sprout smiled. “Bingo, one banana plant coming up.”

Whilst she waited for Minty, Misty watched as Sprout provided the creatures with their food before they left. She couldn’t help chuckling, he’d clearly improved his control of his magic.

She had just packed the recorder away when Skysurf came over, clearly about to leave.

“Thank You, Misty,” Skysurf smiled. “You are brave coming here each night.”

Misty nodded before sighing. “I’m sorry about Coral Cloud. I’ll try and do better tomorrow, I promise.”

“I know you feel bad but it's okay,” Skysurf reassured. "I couldn't exactly do anything if she was here anyway. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Bye, Skysurf,” Misty sighed.

As she watched Skysurf disappear down the tunnel, Misty couldn’t help frowning as an idea formed in her mind. She looked over towards Giselle as she received her supply of Apples and started walking towards her.

“Laters,” Giselle waved as she turned towards the tunnel.

“G...Giselle, wait, could I have a word?” Misty asked.

“Sure,” Giselle smiled. “What’s up?”

“I...I know this may sound really, really stupid,” Misty sighed. “But... If I wanted to get into the Confinement area. What do you know about it that will help?”

Giselle’s eyes widened but she grinned enthusiastically. “Better get your notebook out...”

Sunny and Sugar were both sat looking at each other on either side of the bars. Their hut was filled with the sounds of hoofs clapping as they once again played their game.

However, Sugar grunted as Sunny suddenly missed one of the claps. Her eyes widened as she realised Sunny had completely frozen.

Sunny’s eyes were wide as she heard a voice in her head.

“Hi, Sunny. I hope you are doing okay. Zipp has one of the Nirik collars stripped to its components. She’s hoping to find a way to overload them. So the creatures are going to look out for anything that could be an emitter that charges them.

“I’m sorry, there’s nothing more I can update you on. Don’t worry though, its going to take some time but we won’t give up. We’re going to save you! Hoof to heart!”

Sugar sighed with relief as Sunny finally started moving again. She gasped as he saw Sunny's sparkling eyes, once again full of hope and optimism.

Sunny placed a hoof on her heart before holding the other out to Sugar.

Sugar blinked with confusion. Once again, the muzzles prevented them from communicating, she hated charades.

However, she copied Sunny. Placing a hoof over her heart and the other on Sunny’s.

Sunny beamed behind her muzzle. We’re going to be okay, Sugar. I know it will take time but we’re going to get out of here. Hoof to heart!

Chapter Twenty-Six – Misty’s Lament

It was the middle of the night and the inside of the Marestream was in complete darkness. In the rear cabin, Zipp, Pipp, and Feather Breeze were laid in their camp beds, snoring away peacefully. However, whilst Izzy and Hitch were both asleep in the cockpit, the last camp bed was empty. Even the bedsheets and covers were missing.

Misty groaned as she hung her wet bedsheets on a washing line that she’d strung above the campfire. Sighing, she sat down and grimaced before looking sorrowfully into the flames.

“Even when she’s supposed to be gone, she haunts me,” she scowled. “Well, I'll show her. I’m not going to waste this time. I’m going to make use of it by practising.”

She stood up and closed her eyes before taking a deep breath to help herself focus. However, before she could start, she felt a tingling sensation in her horn that made her eyes widen in shock. “W...Wait, it couldn’t be!”

Desperately, Misty’s horn glowed as she activated the messaging spell she’d taught Sunny. However, it wasn’t her voice she heard.

“Misty? It’s Strawberry. Please, I know it’s late, but I’ve been working so hard on this spell. When you get this. If…If you get this. P…Please let me know if it’s worked this time.”

“Strawberry!” Misty gasped in surprise before she grinned.

Taking a calming breath, Misty’s horn glowed as she activated the spell to respond. “Strawberry, it’s Misty. You’ve done it! I got that loud and clear.”

“OH! Oh, thank hoofness! I was starting to think I’d never get this spell to work. Misty, I’m so sorry, I was so conceited and overconfident when you were trying to teach me before. I’m so sorry that I let you all down. That I let you down.”

Misty smiled. “It’s fine, it all worked out in the end. I was so glad to read the message saying you were okay after what they did to you.”

“M…Misty, I…I don’t deserve that.”

“Of course you do. You’re my friend so of course I’ll worry about you.”

“I’ve got way more to learn than I ever thought. I…I couldn’t even escape the bindings they put on me. R…Right, so what’s happening now? I’m still at the castle so can update Queen Haven for you. Are you at the Quarry?”

“Yeah, we’ve set up a camp nearby. We’ve got a hide set up too and we’re working on a plan to rescue everycreature. I...It’s just taking some time.”

“Okay, you need to know, something big is happening with the Hippogriffs. Their Queen arrived at the castle yesterday. She was very upset that her daughter wasn’t here.”

Misty gasped as her heart sank. “If you mean Princess Coral Cloud then her delegation was attacked by the Nirik. Tell them that her guard, Skysurf, is one of the many captured Hippogriffs in the Quarry. We’ve not been able to confirm if Coral Cloud is here yet. I…I’m going to try and find out.”

“O...Okay, I’ll let Queen Haven know. P...Please, be careful.”

Misty smiled, “I will, I’ll message you with updates from now on.”

“Okay, I’ll be waiting. Be careful, Misty.”

Misty sighed as her horn stopped glowing and she looked around the campsite. “T…That settles it then,” she murmured. “I have to get into that Confinement area.”

Meanwhile, Izzy let out a groan as she turned over for what felt like the hundredth time. Grunting, she tried to get comfortable but grumbled as her ear picked up a sound and twitched on impulse.

She ignored it, keeping her eyelids clamped shut. However, her ear twitched as it picked up the sound again. Groaning she opened her eyes and grumbled, “W…What is that?”

She pushed herself up off the bed and looked around the cockpit. Hitch was still sound asleep, his bed pushed as far into the corner as it would go, ensuring he was away from the two mares.

Izzy looked towards Misty’s bed and gasped, it was empty. Misty wasn’t there and neither were her covers.

“W…Where?” she gasped as her head shot back and forth before she gasped dramatically. “She’s been pony-napped! Wait, why would they take her covers?”

Suddenly, Izzy’s ear twitched as she heard the same noise again, one she realised was a familiar voice coming from outside. Her eyes widened and she started shouting, “I’m com…”

Izzy's shouting made Hitch snort and Izzy, not wanting to wake him yet, immediately clamped her hoofs over her mouth, mid-shout.

“I’m coming, Misty,” she said far quieter before hopping out of bed. She took a few steps before she gasped and froze. “Oops, better make sure my place is saved. It’s jinxie if I don’t.”

Quickly, she retrieved Senor Butterscotch from where he’d been sitting on the control desk and put him in her bed. After tucking him in snugly, she carefully exited the cockpit and headed through the Marestream.

Eventually, Izzy stepped out of the Marestream and spotted the fire was burning away. Then she saw Misty’s sheets dangling from the washing line. However, she couldn't see Misty anywhere. “Huh, I could have sworn…” she gasped dramatically again. “She really has been pony-napped!”

Just as she was about to go back inside and wake everypony, there was a flash as Misty appeared next to the fire. She had her back towards Izzy and, after looking down at herself, let out a groan of despair before sitting down with a ‘flump’.

“It’s no good,” Misty groaned. “It’s still not working reliably.”

Grinning, Izzy skipped towards Misty gratefully. “Misty! I thought something bad had happened to you!” she gushed. “What’s not working?”

Misty’s eyes widened and she squeaked with surprise. She tried to both get up and turn around at the same time, losing her balance and ending up in a heap on the floor.

Izzy gasped and offered Misty a hoof. “S…Sorry, guess you didn’t know I was here.”

“O…Oh,” Misty gasped as she took Izzy’s hoof. “N…No, I didn’t.”

Izzy smiled as she helped Misty up. “So, why are you out here? Why are your sheets hung up?” she gasped. “Wait! What’s not working? I thought you’d said you weren’t going to stay up late anymore!”

“I…I’m not,” Misty blinked. “Well… I… Err…”

“Misty?” Izzy said worriedly. “Please, tell me what’s wrong.”

Misty closed her eyes and sighed. “I had a nightmare,” she admitted. “S…Some of the things that are happening. What I’ve seen. They reminded me of Opaline. Of some of the things she...she..."

“Oh, Misty,” Izzy gasped worriedly as she pulled her into a hug. “A…And the sheets?”

“They were kind of covered in sweat,” Misty admitted as she returned the hug gratefully. “So, I hung them up over the campfire to dry. Oh! But I have some other news too. Strawberry, she’s learnt the messaging spell.”

“But I thought you couldn’t learn it?” Izzy blinked.

“Oh, not that one. The one I taught Sunny.”

“Oh, that messaging spell,” Izzy chuckled. “There’s so many.”

“Yeah, there kind of are,” Misty chuckled lightly. “I spoke to her for a bit but my sheets are still wet. So, I thought I’d practice multicasting the invisibility and teleporting spells.”

“Oh, and will it work?”

“It kind of is now, just not reliably,” Misty sighed as she broke off the hug. “I’m sorry for waking you, I’ll move further away. I promise, when my sheets are dry, I’ll go back to bed.”

“Wait, Misty, do you want to talk about your nightmare?”

Misty grimaced as she looked down and closed her eyes. “N...Not really.”

“But, sometimes, talking about them helps,” Izzy sighed. “I had lots of nightmares after the fire. Eventually, Alphabittle found out and convinced me to talk about them. Sleeping got better after that.” 11

Misty sighed as she looked at Izzy gratefully. “O…Okay, getting a load of stuff off my chest sounds good. But I…I kind of don’t want the others to know.”

“Okay, so let’s go to the hide,” Izzy nodded seriously as she held out a hoof. “Don’t worry, you can count on me. We’re family.”12

Gratefully, Misty nodded and took Izzy’s hoof. Her horn glowed and, with a flash, they both disappeared.

Much later, after the sun had risen, Misty, Pipp, and Hitch sat in the hide, watching the Quarry.

Misty scowled as she looked intently through the binoculars, making notes in her notebook. Hitch frowned as he glanced at it, noticing how it looked much fuller than previously.

However, his attempts to keep an eye on what Misty was doing were thwarted by Pipp who was sitting between them. She’d not visited the hide and her first experience was an eye-opener. “So, the Ponies are all pulling carts of this ore stuff?”

“No,” Hitch groaned. “The Ponies are pulling carts of stone and rock. The stuff they don’t want. The Griffons and Hippogriffs are flying the ore in baskets to the shorter inclines.”

Pipp blinked and she gasped as realisation hit her. “Oh yeah, you said the smaller inclines are taking stuff down and the big central one is taking stuff up.”

“Pretty much,” Hitch grumbled. “Can you focus on watching now, please? I’m trying to help Misty look for Coral Cloud.”

“But I’ve not seen Sunny yet, where is she?” Pipp pouted.

“On Level One,” Hitch sighed. “I don’t think you should look for her though. You won’t like seeing how chained up she is.”

Pipp went silent as she looked through her binoculars. However, it wasn’t long before she let out a cry of dismay. “Sunny! Oh, Sunny what have they done to you!”

Hitch couldn’t help groaning. “Pipp, I told you that Sunny was all chained up.”

“Yes, but… but…” Pipp cried as her bottom lip trembled. “What even is that thing on her face?”

“A muzzle,” Misty murmured absently. “She won’t be able to speak.”

Pipp's eyes widened in shock. “She can’t even speak! Oh! I can’t stand it! MISTY! Can’t you just teleport down there and rescue her already?”

Misty’s eyes widened and she squeaked in surprise. “N…No, I can’t… I can’t do that.”

“Why?” Pipp wined.

“Because if she did then Allura would know we were here,” Hitch explained. “That would put rescuing Sprout and the others at risk. Let alone Feather Breeze’s family and friends.”

Pipp gulped, she closed her eyes and took a deep breath to calm herself. “Y…You’re right. That was selfish of me.” Her eyes narrowed with determination. “We have to rescue all of them. Every. Single. Creature.”

“Exactly,” Hitch smiled.

“Pipp, could you keep an eye out for Coral Cloud?” Misty asked. “She’s a light pink Hippogriff with a yellow mane and tail. She’d likely be in Confinement like Sunny so look for her on that same level.”

“Okay,” Pipp nodded. “I bet she’ll be all chained up the same then.”

“Yeah, probably,” Misty sighed.

"Okay, let's see then," Pipp said as she resumed looking through her binoculars.

As silence returned, Misty continued making notes. Hitch frowned as he watched out the corner of his eye, trying to make out what she was writing. However, he was starting to get a good idea of what she was doing.

A short time later, Pipp cried out again. “Wait! Where are they taking Sunny?”

“What do you mean?” Hitch frowned as he turned his full attention back to the binoculars. “It’s not even lunchtime yet, she should be out pulling the cart with Sugar Moonlight until dusk.”

“Sugar Moonlight?” Pipp frowned. “You know I keep thinking she did something, but I can’t remember what.”

“Sugar Moonlight was one of the Filly Four,” Misty blinked. “You can’t remember her?”

“Oh! I remember Sugar,” Pipp gasped. “But the Filly Four haven’t been heard of in ages. That’s what I couldn’t remember.”

“Okay, okay,” Hitch gasped as he scanned the level with his binoculars. “Where’s Sunny exactly? I can’t find her at all now.”

“Oh, she’s walking down a narrow path all the way to the left,” Pipp directed. “She’s got chains between her and two Nirik. Same for Sugar.”

Hitch spun around and trained his binoculars in. When he eventually found Sunny and Sugar he gasped. “That’s the trail to Level Zero. What’s happening? Misty, are you seeing this?”

Misty gasped and abandoned taking notes. She zoomed her binoculars in and quickly found Sunny and Sugar. “Y…Yeah, I see them.”

“Did the creatures say much about Level Zero?” Hitch asked. “I know that's where all the main buildings are but Feather Breeze doesn't know what they are."

“They’ve not mentioned it,” Misty sighed. “But from what we’ve seen they don’t spend much time down there. Only the Nirik.”

“And Allura,” Hitch gasped.

“Oh, no, nono,” Pipp wined. “Oh, my hoofness, they’re taking them to see Allura, aren’t they.”

All three could only watch as Sunny and Sugar were escorted inside the largest building on Level Zero. Located in the middle, right next to the lake.

Pipp looked at Hitch desperately. “What can we do?”

“There’s nothing we can do,” Hitch sighed. “Apart from waiting until they come out.

Misty groaned in frustration. “But we still won’t know what happened. Why couldn’t I have gotten that stupid message spell to work?! Then I could have found out!”

“But it looks like you’re planning to find out,” Hitch sighed.

Misty squeaked and looked back at Hitch in shock. “I...I don’t know what you mean?”

“Misty,” Hitch sighed. “You’ve been making notes all morning about getting into the Confinement area.”

Pipp gasped as she looked at Misty in shock.

“N...No I haven’t,” Misty stammered, looking worried. “That’s silly, Hitch. HaHaHa. T...There’s no way, no. There’s no way I could do something like that.”

“Yes, there is, Misty,” Hitch said calmly.

“You are doing what you always do when you’re trying to lie about something, Misty,” Pipp sighed.

“No. No, I’m not,” Misty gasped. “Wait, what do you mean?”

“We’re your friends, Misty,” Hitch smiled.

Pipp nodded. “We know you and pick up on things like that.”

Misty sighed and looked down in defeat. “Okay, yes,” she groaned. “I’ve been working out how I’d sneak in and check ALL the huts in the Confinement area.”

She picked up her notes and passed them to Hitch.

“Misty,” Pipp sighed as she pulled her into a hug. “You don’t have to lie to us. Just tell us.”

Misty groaned as she returned the hug. “I’m sorry, I...I just didn’t want to be told not to. I...I...”

“Want to look for Coral Cloud,” Hitch frowned as he checked the notes. “You’ve got it written here.”

“Y...Yeah. Yeah. That’s it. That’s totally it.” Misty gasped. “You haven’t met Skysurf. She’s so worried that Coral Cloud is here. I...I just want to help her. When Feather Breeze needed help yesterday, I forgot all about it.”

“Who is Coral Cloud anyway?” Pipp blinked.

“She’s the Hippogriff's Princess,” Misty explained. “Skysurf is her personal guard and best friend. She’s actually really surprised you and Zipp are here.”

“Hey, where you all go, we go,” Pipp grinned.

“Oh, there's something else," Misty groaned. "I'm so stupid, I should have told you already. Strawberry has learnt the messaging spell, the one that I taught Sunny.”

“She has,” Hitch blinked. “What did she have to say? Have you told Zipp?”

“I mentioned it to Zipp but she was distracted,” Misty groaned. “It’s even more important we find Coral Cloud now. Her mum, the Queen, is in Equestria with Queen Haven. I’m not sure why but she was upset Coral Cloud wasn’t there.”

“Oh, don’t worry, I bet mum will be keeping her happy,” Pipp smiled. “You’ll have to message Strawberry when we’re all around."

Hitch frowned as he passed the notes back to Misty. “Okay, that plan actually looks pretty solid.”

“What!” Pipp gasped looking shocked. “You’re letting her do it! But… But…”

“Y...Yeah,” Misty blinked. “I thought you’d stop me. That’s why I didn’t say anything.”

Hitch took a deep breath. “Misty, seeing you will be a huge morale boost for Sunny. Finding Coral Cloud has just been made a higher priority too. I…I’m also nervous…”

“Nervous?” Misty blinked.

“Nervous that you’re going to need to do a lot more down there than you realise,” Hitch sighed. “Zipp is talking about overloading the collars. Whatever solution she finds will involve doing something down in that Quarry.”

“And I’ll have to do it,” Misty gasped as her eyes widened.

Hitch nodded. “Yeah, being able to turn invisible means you should be able to get almost anywhere without issue.”

“B...But... But I’m clumsy,” Misty babbled as she started panting for breath. “I’ve got four left hoofs. I’ll... I’ll....”

“You’re not clumsy all the time,” Hitch reassured. “You got into the Ponies Hut without issue.”

“Wait! No, there was issue!” Misty gasped. “Lots of it! You...You just couldn’t see it.”

“And neither could the Nirik,” Hitch reassured. “Misty, from up here, nothing looked out of place that night. You navigated around all the patrols expertly.”

Pipp gasped. “B…But, Hitch, you really think sneaking into the area with the highest security is the best way to build Misty’s confidence?”

“It’s just a step up from sneaking into the main huts,” Hitch explained. “Going down there now, in the middle of the day. That’s way riskier. There’s lots of creatures walking around and lots more Nirik then at night.”

“A…And you think she’s going to need to do that?” Pipp asked worriedly.

“I do,” Hitch nodded.

Misty was gasping for breath, trying to calm herself down. “O...Okay.... Yeah... I...I think your right and to do that I’ll need to trust more in my invisibility spell.” She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Her eyes narrowing with determination. “I can do it. I’ve just got to trust myself.”

“But... But... But...” Pipp stammered.

“Pipp, the patrols overnight are way more predictable,” Hitch explained. “We do need to know more about what’s in those huts in the Confinement area as well.”

Pipp took a deep breath. “Okay, okay, I understand. I know you wouldn’t be agreeing to this if you didn’t think Misty could do it.”

“Thanks, Pipp, Hitch,” Misty sighed. “I didn’t think about needing to go down there in daylight. Yeah, even thinking about that makes me way more nervous.”

Hitch held the notebook up and passed it back to Misty. “That’s why you need to do this. Although, let’s speak to Zipp before you implement it.

Misty nodded as she took the notebook. “Yeah, I’ll feel a lot happier if she looks over it too.”

“Okay,” Hitch smiled. “Why don’t you teleport yourself back to camp and speak to Zipp? Get her to come here if you can.”

“I’ll come with you,” Pipp suggested. “Zipp may need some convincing to stop what she’s doing.”

“Thanks, Pipp,” Misty smiled.

“I’ll keep an eye out for Sunny,” Hitch reassured.

Elsewhere, Zipp frowned as she updated a case board in the back of the Marestream. She’d just pinned a note saying ‘Coral Cloud’ to the board and run a red thread to a photo of the Confinement area.

She took a step back and groaned. Picking up her phone, she began making notes. “Well, Coral Cloud complicates things. We know next to nothing about the Confinement area. There could be any number of creatures in there that don't come out and work.”

She looked at a photo of one of the watchtowers and sighed. “The inside of the watchtowers too. The equipment Skysurf and Giselle saw, it could be the key and I know nothing about it!”

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door of the Marestream that made Zipp growl with annoyance. “Iz! I thought I said I didn’t want anything!”

“It’s not Izzy,” Pipp’s voice said from the other side of the door. “She’s not actually here.”

Blinking, Zipp headed to the door and opened it to find Pipp and Misty standing on the other side. “Sis? I thought you were at the hide?”

Pipp held out Misty’s notebook towards Zipp. “We were, but we need you to help Misty with this.”

Blinking, Zipp took the notebook. She scanned the open page and gasped. “I...I was literally looking at this. Misty, I agree, we need to know more about the Confinement area. Like who’s trapped in there and how we get them out.”

“S...So can you come and help with checking out the plan?” Misty asked hopefully.

“W...Well...” Zipp blinked unsurely. “I was kind of busy.”

“Please, Zipp,” Pipp gasped. “You literally just said we need to know more about the Confinement area.”

“I’d feel way happier if you did,” Misty admitted. “I’m worried I’ll mess it up.”

Zipp smiled reassuringly. “I don’t think you will, even with just a glance this looks pretty good. But, let me just grab my notes. I’ve got other things I ought to discuss with you.”

She disappeared inside the Marestream as Pipp and Misty grinned at each other. “Well, that was easier than expected,” Pipp smiled.

“Y...Yeah,” Misty gasped worriedly. “What other things does she want to talk about?”

“Probably what we were discussing,” Pipp suggested. “Misty, you’ve got this. I know you do. You just need a little bit of confidence. You’re amazing.”

Misty closed her eyes and took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. “I’ve got this.”

“Yeah you do,” Pipp grinned. “You’re the pony, Misty!”

“Of course she is,” Zipp grinned as she reappeared. “I’m ready.”

Misty opened her eyes and held out a hoof which Zipp took in her own.

“Thanks, Pipp,” Misty smiled as her horn glowed and the pair of them disappeared with a flash.

A short time later, Pipp sighed as she sat in the seating area. Once again, she was alone and had nothing to do.

“Pipp?” Izzy blinked as she approached the camp with Feather Breeze. “We thought you were at the hide this morning?”

“Well, Misty kind of needed both Hitch and Zipp to help her with something,” Pipp explained.

“Oh,” Izzy said brightly. “Are they working on her plan?”

Pipp blinked with surprise. “Y…You know?”

“Yeah,” Izzy beamed. “I spoke to her about it last night after she… Err… Actually, I kind of promised I wouldn’t talk about that part.”

Pipp smirked. “I suppose it’s okay for sisters to have their secrets.” 13

“Wait, Misty and Izzy are…” Feather Breeze blinked. “But Misty told me she was taken from her family when she was young.”

“She was,” Izzy sighed. “But when my parents were lost in a fire her dad, her actual dad, Alphabittle, took me in. He’s more like an uncle to me but now the three of us are like a family.”

Feather Breeze nodded understandingly. “I just hope we’re able to save my family soon,” she admitted. “I know getting the plan ready takes time though. I...I just wish I could help more. If only there was some way to stop the purr affecting me.”

Pipp frowned as she tapped her chin. “Well, maybe there could be. Ooh, let me have a think about that and get back to you!”

With that, Pipp hurried inside the Marestream, leaving Feather Breeze and Izzy to look at each other with confusion.

Author's Note

11 - In Marking the Generations, we learnt that Izzy's Father was Alphabittle's best friend and therefore Izzy had always thought of him as her Uncle. Therefore, when both her parents were lost in a house fire he immediately took her in, caring for her for the last few years needed before she could live on her own.
12 - After Misty reunited with Alphabittle. Both her and Izzy now share a sisterly bond. Even though they aren't actually Sisters.
13 - Important to note, Queen Haven and Alphabittle haven't yet fully informed their respective daughters of how their relationship is developing. That's one for a future story to handle!

Chapter Twenty-Seven – A Deal with the Leopard

Sunny and Sugar were confused as they obediently walked down corridor after corridor within the building. Not that either of them had much choice due to the chains running from their bridles to the Nirik that were escorting them.

Sunny frowned as she gave up trying to track where they were going. Are they trying to confuse us? I’m sure we’ve been down here already.

Eventually, they started walking down a long wood-panelled corridor. Sugar couldn’t help feeling surprised, it looked very out of place compared to the rest of the corridors. It reminded her of some of the studios she’d been to for photo shoots.

They neared a doorway that was being guarded by two Nirik. As they approached, both stood to one side and opened the door, allowing them to be escorted inside.

Sunny and Sugar both gasped as they entered the laboratory. Their eyes darted around the various items of equipment that were scattered around the room.

Eventually, they were brought in front of the platform with the round gateway atop it. The four large cylinders of pink liquid, two on each side, bubbled slowly. The Nirik stopped at the bottom of the ramp that led up and into the gateway. Forcing Sunny and Sugar to do the same and they looked up at it with a mix of awe and confusion.

Unlike when Winters Breath had seen it, no wires were dangling from the gateway. They’d all been tidied away, and any missing parts had been fitted. In some areas, thin metal had even been fitted to cover the inner workings and frame.

Sunny and Sugar both gasped as Twitch suddenly appeared near the top, seemingly tracing a wire. With great agility, he climbed along the thin pipework. Somehow managing to hold on despite how fast he was moving.

Finally, he came to the end of the wire. Unplugging it and plugging it into a port next to the one it had just come from. Then, he dropped from the gateway doing a backflip in the air before landing perfectly on all four paws.

“Impressive, isn’t he,” a voice said.

Sunny gasped as she recognised the voice. Looking upwards she spotted Allura as she looked over the side of her suspended pedestal. However, Allura’s eyes narrowed when saw Sunny wasn’t alone.

Sugar looked up and locked eyes with Allura. Her eyes widened as she felt a chill run through her spine, making her shiver.

Scowling, Allura jumped from the pedestal. Spreading her wings, she glided gracefully down to the platform before glaring at Twitch angrily. “Why does Starscout have a friend with her?!”

Twitch blinked and made squeaking noises at her.

“She what!” Allura growled. “Then, why was she put in the same hut as Starscout?”

Twitch began squeaking angrily back at Allura. His hind paws banging on the floor for emphasis. In the background, Sunny and Sugar looked at each other worriedly.

Allura’s eyes widened, and she snarled in rage, “THEN STARSCOUT SHOULD HAVE...” She caught herself before looking down and taking a deep breath. “Fine,” she spat. “Fortunately for you, we can use this to our advantage. You know what to do with her.”

Twitch growled before smiling and nodding. He hopped towards Sugar before squeaking and pointing to the Nirik that escorted her. He waved a paw, indicating they should follow him.

To Sugar’s horror, the two Nirik nodded and started to follow Twitch as he hopped away. She gave a worried look at Sunny before the chains went taught and she was forced to follow.

Sunny could only watch helplessly as Sugar was escorted from the room. She looked back at Allura and, against her better judgment, scowled at her.

“Don’t you give me that, Starscout,” Allura growled. “You’re supposed to be depressed and feeling hopeless! Clearly, just having a friend nearby has rejuvenated you.” She suddenly smiled invitingly. “However, do not worry about your friend, you’ll be seeing her again shortly. I have a task for you. Nirik, come! Situation Fifty-Five.”

Sunny blinked as her escort Nirik walked forward and up the ramp. She squeaked as the chains went taught and forced her to follow. When they reached the top, Sunny gasped as they attached the chains from her bridle to eyelets in the floor.

“Nirik, Situation Fifty-Six!” Allura commanded.

The Nirik bowed before they started walking away. Leaving Sunny chained to the floor at the top of the ramp.

Wide-eyed and panting, Sunny took a step backwards. However, the chains soon went taught and she could go no further. I…I don’t like this. I’m completely helpless. What’s she going to do with me?

“Aww, do I scare you, Starscout?” Allura sighed. “You wound me. After all, you did stand up to Opaline and I’m nothing like her!”

Sunny blinked with surprise. How does she know that? Her eyes narrowed. She’s trying to get in my head.

“Oh, don’t worry,” Allura smiled sweetly. “I told you. I’m from another realm. My only wish is to get home. That is what this glorious machine you see before you is for.”

Sunny frowned, she wasn’t sure what to think. Here she was, chained up, muzzled and powerless. However, Allura seemed so honest. She just wants to get home. Wait! No. This is a trap! It has to be. She was trying to break me. She just admitted it!

Allura suddenly grinned as Twitch came hopping into the room. He nodded and held up a paw, giving a tiny thumbs up.

“Get over here you idiot!” Allura growled. “This one-sided conversation is getting tiresome.”

Twitch grunted in annoyance, leaping up onto one of the tables and grabbing something. He barely stopped, immediately continuing over the table and jumping down.

He scurried up the ramp and Sunny squeaked with surprise as he jumped onto her back. Desperately, she started bucking, trying to throw him off.

“STAY STILL!” Allura roared. “Don’t you make me use my purrsuasion on you! Don’t you want that muzzle off?”

Sunny stopped bucking as her eyes widened in surprise. However, she flinched as she felt Twitch patting her on the shoulder.

She spotted his forepaw was holding what appeared to be a remote control. It had a small screen at the top and a series of buttons below that. He placed it up against the box on the back of her bridle and immediately started pressing buttons.

Sunny gasped, there was a click from her muzzle as it released. She opened her mouth, letting it fall from her face. It landed on the floor with a clatter and bounced towards Allura who smiled as she picked it up.

Sunny’s eyes narrowed into a scowl. “Where’s Sugar? What have you done with her? What do you want?”

Allura smirked as she studied the muzzle. “How would you like to never wear this thing again?”

“Where’s Sugar Moonlight?” Sunny demanded. “I’m not silly enough to think I’d get something for nothing. I know you want something.”

Allura blinked before smiling sweetly as she walked towards one of the walls. “How very perceptive of you. I think we’ve much we can discuss. Although, to put your mind at ease...”

Allura nonchalantly pushed down on a leaver with her tail. Sunny gasped as a section of the floor and wall rotated and revealed Sugar.

She was sat inside a clear ovoid-shaped tank which slid into the room. It had multiple pipes attached to the top with a larger drain in the bottom. Sugar was glancing around, looking very worried and confused. When she saw Sunny, her eyes widened. She got up and banged her forehoofs on the tank desperately.

Sunny’s eyes widened before she glared accusingly at Allura. “What have you done to her?”

“Nothing. Yet!” Allura smiled. “You just have control of her fate.”

Sunny snorted as her glare turned into a scowl. “I’m not playing your mind games.”

“Oh, but it’s true,” Allura said sweetly. “If you behave then no harm will come to her. If you don’t then, she’ll get a bath.”

Sunny blinked and looked towards the tank and the multiple pipes at the top. “A bath?”

“Yes, this tank is part of the Ore refining process. A bath in any of the ingredients it mixes would be quite an unpleasant one,” Allura smirked. “So, you had better behave yourself.”

“Behave? As in do what you want?” Sunny growled defensively.

“Oh no, this is where we make a deal,” Allura grinned. “You don’t have to do what I want. You can choose not to, but then nothing will change.”

Sunny frowned. “What do you mean?”

“If you choose not to help me, you’ll put this muzzle back on and both of you will go back to work.”

“Okay, and if I help you?”

“Then you choose what you want, and maybe I’ll give it to you,” Allura smiled. “Within reason of course. I’m not going to let you go!”

Sunny frowned. She closed her eyes in thought and took a deep breath. “Before I decide, what help do you need?”

“Your assistance,” Allura smiled. “Like I’ve said multiple times. My only wish is to return home. I don’t want power or anything like that. However, it seems to get my wish I need your help.”

Sunny scowled. “You still haven’t told me what. What help do you need?”

Allura beamed excitedly. “Ah, getting down to business. Okay, before you is my ticket home. Well, Twitch’s too, I wouldn’t leave him after all the hard work he’s put in.”

Twitch squeaked appreciatively.

“Of course I care you idiot,” Allura snapped before smiling back at Sunny. “The whole point of this Quarry is to mine the fuel for this gateway, Arora Ore. However, before it will work, we need a special ingredient and that’s where you come in!”

Sunny’s eyes widened in horror and she tried to take a step backwards. However, she squeaked as the already taught chains wouldn't let her.

Allura laughed. “Oh, no, no. I’m not feeding you into the machine. We need your magic!”

“My magic?!” Sunny echoed defensively.

“Yes, specifically teleportation. We just need you to fire a teleport beam at the gateway whilst it’s active. Twitch will do the rest.”

Twitch began squeaking, tapping the ground with a paw.

“Oh, stop it you imbecile,” Allura growled. “She doesn’t understand you.”

Twitch growled in annoyance, banging a hind paw on the ground.

“I’m not your translator!” Allura spat back. “You know I don’t understand this stuff. I can’t explain, even if I wanted to.”

Twitch continued squeaking in annoyance, pointing a paw at Allura and wagging it accusingly.

Sunny looked between them with confusion. She glanced towards Sugar who clearly had no idea what was going on at all.

“Okay, okay,” Allura snarled. “Starscout, Twitch says it’s ‘calibration’. Whatever that is. He needs you to fire a teleport beam at the portal whilst it’s active. He’ll do all the complicated stuff, as always. He tells me that it WON’T take all your magic.”

Twitch folded his forelegs, looking more satisfied.

“O...Okay,” Sunny said slowly. “One problem, you’ve taken my powers from me.”

“Which is why I’m not sour about your friend rejuvenating you,” Allura smirked. “We’ll let you have your powers back for this. But! Turn them on me, on us, and she’ll be the one in peril.”

“And these chains?” Sunny scowled as she swished her head and rattled them.

Allura blinked, clearly taken aback. “What about them?”

“If Sugar is your insurance, why keep me chained?” Sunny said sweetly. “If you want me to help you. Let me have my powers and ability to move around so I can.”

“Done,” Allura smiled. “Let’s shake paw and hoof on it.”

Allura held out a paw and started moving towards Sunny. However, Sunny smirked.

“Oh no, that’s just so I can help. I still want something for doing it.”

Allura stopped, her face fell, and she blinked as she lowered the paw. After a moment she chuckled. “Well played, Starscout. Name it.”

Sunny couldn’t help grinning, finally feeling like she was the one on top.

“Okay, first you said about not wearing the muzzle anymore. I’d like that very much, but Sugar doesn’t wear hers either.”

“Done,” Allura smiled.

“Next,” Sunny smirked as Allura’s face fell again. “My powers, I know you’re not going to let me keep them when I’ve done this for you.”

“That’s very astute of you,” Allura nodded.

“But I’ll turn them off. Then you make this bridle thing isolate them again.”

Allura looked at Twitch who looked thoughtfully at Sunny. He squeaked and suddenly bounded up onto her back again, making her squeak with surprise. Taking his remote and placing it at the back of the bridle.

“Twitch says he would like to test that,” Allura sighed as she walked towards Sugar. “He’s going to give you control of them again. Remember what I said about your friend here.”

“You don’t need to remind me,” Sunny muttered uncomfortably.

As Twitch pressed buttons on his remote, Sunny gasped. A surge of energy shot through her body as the connection to her powers was restored. Quickly, she dismissed them, her horn and wings both disappearing in a flash.

Allura looked at Sunny questioningly.

“Take the chains off,” Sunny muttered.

“We’ve not shook on it yet,” Allura reminded. “Let Twitch finish his test.”

Twitch squeaked as he pressed more buttons on his remote.

“He says try your powers,” Allura smiled cordially.

Sunny grunted. “Which is why I need the chains off. I need to be able to move, I’ll likely jump in the air when they activate.”

Allura scowled and was about to reply when Twitch squeaked. He grabbed one paw onto Sunny’s bridle and swung to the side of her head.

Sunny gasped and closed one eye in discomfort. However, she resisted the urge to move.

Twitch held his remote towards where the chain was attached to Sunny’s bridle. It disconnected, falling away with a clatter.

Before Sunny could react, Twitch had swung back and over to the other side of her head. She gasped as the second chain fell away.

“Thank you,” Sunny sighed. “Now, please get off my back before I try this.”

Twitch nodded and jumped down. Looking at Allura who scowled angrily at him.

Meanwhile Sunny sighed, she couldn’t feel her powers again so knew the bridle was working. However, she also knew her word wouldn’t be enough for Allura, she had to try.

She closed her eyes as she tried to activate her powers. However, nothing happened. She grunted and grit her teeth as she tried as hard as she could, lowering her head and arching her back as she strained. As she expected, nothing happened.

After a few moments, she let out a deep breath and looked back at Allura. “Satisfied? They’re isolated again, there’s no need for me to have my wings strapped up. I can’t use them if they’re turned off.”

Allura snarled. “Fine, I agree. Can we shake now?”

Sunny narrowed her eyes. “Not yet, these shackles.” She lifted a hoof and pulled at the shackles. “Take them off, both of us. I’ve just shown you, I’m powerless. I’m no threat and neither is Sugar. There’s no need for us to walk around shackled.”

“Yes, there is,” Allura snarled. “You both tried to escape! You tried to fly away, and she galloped halfway along a level! The shackles are warranted so no, you can’t have them off. I’m tired of this now so I’ll tell you what else I’m not allowing.

“You’re both staying in the confinement hut and you’ll both continue to work on Level One. When you’re being taken from your cage to your cart, you’ll both be escorted exactly like you are now. We’re not changing your food or water either.”

Sunny sighed as her ears drooped with disappointment. However, she gasped as she realised something. “Then you’ll let us work without having to follow another cart? No more being chained to the back of the Yak?”

Allura sighed. “Done. Also,” she raised a paw in the air. “I promise, I won’t use my powers of purrsuasion on either of you. Satisfied?”

Sunny smiled and nodded.

Allura let out a deep breath. “You have no idea how much this means to me. So, no more muzzles. Your powers will be isolated after you’ve deactivated them. You remain shackled and stay in the confinement hut. You’ll be escorted to and from your cart. However, you get the freedom to work on Level One alone. Finally, I won’t use my powers on you.”

“And all that goes for both me and Sugar Moonlight,” Sunny smiled brightly as she raised a hoof. “In return, I’ll fire a teleport beam at your portal for as long as you need.”

“Agreed,” Allura walked forward, raising her paw and clasping it around Sunny’s outstretched hoof. They shook paw and hoof up and down before Sunny sighed and looked at Twitch expectantly.

Twitch blinked and looked confused.

“She needs her powers back you idiot,” Allura growled.

Twitch gasped and jumped onto Sunny’s back again. Holding his remote to her bridle he quickly made the required adjustments. Then, he passed it over the straps for her wings, removing them before hopping off.

Sunny took a few steps back from them. Then, closing her eyes, she smiled as she easily reached out to her powers. She jumped a few feet in the air as her horn and wings appeared with a bright flash.

She sighed as she spread her wings and floated down to her hoofs. She flexed her wings gratefully, revelling in the feeling of freedom and smiling contentedly.

“Don’t get too used to that,” Allura growled. “Twitch! Get on with it!”

Twitch stuck his tongue out at Allura before he hopped away. He went down the ramp and towards a large control panel where he started pressing buttons.

Meanwhile, Allura smirked and resumed her position next to a very worried-looking Sugar.

“It’s okay, Sugar,” Sunny reassured. “I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”

Allura chuckled. “Lovely sentiment but I’m afraid she can’t hear you.”

Sunny's face fell and she scowled sourly which earned another chuckle from Allura.

However, Allura’s mood quickly flipped as she scowled towards Twitch. “Hurry up you idiot!” she growled. “You’re so annoying.”

Twitch stuck his tongue out again, this time blowing a raspberry at her.

Allura snarled but her expression softened as a humming sound started.

Sunny gasped as the sound got slowly louder and louder. Then it began rising and falling in pitch as the gateway powered up.

Pink and blue lights began flashing around the gateway from the various components. Meanwhile, the pink liquid in the cylinders on either side of the gateway began to bubble violently. All the while, Twitch adjusted dials, switches and nobs.

Sunny blinked, looking down at her shackles. Feeling worried, she spread her wings and began to hover just off the ground.

Allura’s eyes narrowed as she placed a paw over a lever dangerously.

“I’m not going anywhere,” Sunny reassured. “Just getting ready. I’m not going to let anything happen to Sugar.”

“Good,” Allura spat. “I’m just getting ready too. Don’t worry, Twitch can activate this tank as well if needed!”

Twitch squeaked and there was a flash from the gateway as it suddenly opened. Sunny gasped at the swirling pink and blue vortex within the gateway. It looked so violent and uninviting.

Suddenly, Twitch raised a paw and Allura grinned. “Now!” she shouted. “Do it now!”

“W...Wait, what’s the destination for the teleport?!” Sunny gasped.

“It doesn’t matter!” Allura growled urgently. “Do it! NOW!”

Sunny blinked with surprise. She looked at the wall at the opposite side of the room and used that as a destination point.

She focused on the portal and on her chosen destination. Then, her horn glowed, and she fired a golden orange beam at the portal.

However, it didn’t hit the portal, it stopped short and formed a small ball as the magical energy split apart into hundreds of smaller beams. These tried to streak away from the portal but were pulled back into the centre. Each traced a huge arc in the air which curved around and together made a huge flower shape.

The golden aura of Sunny’s magic swirled around within the vortex, combining with it. Slowly, the pink and blue colours began to combine as well. As they did so, the centre of the vortex started to turn purple.

“That’s it!” Allura shouted, a hint of excitement in her voice. “Keep going! You can do it!”

Sunny grunted as she slowly descended. Landing and leaning forward she grunted in effort and discomfort. Worry and doubt grew in the back of her mind as she remembered who she was dealing with.

“Keep going, Starscout!” Allura shouted. “You’ll still have your magic after this! I promise! I know it’s tough, but… Please, just keep going!”

Sunny grunted, Allura sounded so genuine. However, she reasoned that stopping would only make things worse. Allura could easily pull her leaver and harm Sugar!

Sugar could only watch from her tank as the purple area in the vortex grew larger. No, Sunny! STOP! They’re draining your powers!

She glanced at Allura, her paw still hovering over the lever. She looked up at the pipes in the top of the tank. Then down at the drain below her. WAIT! Sunny’s only letting them do this to rescue me!

Eventually, the swirling vortex was completely purple. Twitch grinned as he watched the dials and gauges excitedly. Finally, he squeaked as he threw his paw in the air.

“That’s it!” Allura shouted excitedly. “Stop, Starscout! STOP!”

Sunny gasped as she cut the beam, she immediately fell to the floor and lay panting heavily.

Allura forgot all about threatening Sugar as she bounded towards the portal. After looking up at it, she smiled with joy before turning towards Twitch. “Twitch! You clever, clever thing! Please tell me what I think I already know!”

Twitch nodded enthusiastically before squeaking and pressing buttons.

Allura grinned. “I know. I know. But it’s working! That means we’re almost home!”

Sunny grunted as she pushed herself into a seating position. “Almost? What do you mean, almost?”

Allura’s smile faded as the humming sound started to reduce. She looked back at the portal as it slowly closed. There was a small flash from the centre as the last of the purple vortex disappeared. She sighed deeply and looked down sorrowfully. “We need more ore.”

Sunny gasped as she realised, the four cylinders were empty. None of the pink liquid was left. “H…How much more?”

Allura looked at Sunny with sorrowful eyes. “A lot, that’s all you need to know.”

Sunny blinked and looked down sadly. Then, she gasped as she spotted her muzzle at Allura’s paws. Glancing back at Allura, she grabbed it with her levitation and pulled it away from her.

Allura laughed. “Don’t worry, Starscout. We have a deal and you’ve done your part. It’s time for me to do mine.”

She walked over towards Sugar. “Once your powers are off and isolated as promised, I’ll let your friend out.”

“And you’ll remove her muzzle?”

Allura nodded. “You should know, that once I’ve made a deal, I keep to it.”

Sunny looked at the muzzle again and smirked. She threw it upwards and fired a beam from her horn. The muzzle exploded and disintegrated.

Allura laughed heartily. “I can tell you enjoyed that. Now, please, we’ve had such a nice conversation. Don’t make me do something you’ll regret.”

Sunny narrowed her eyes before she dismissed her powers. Fully aware she had no idea when she’d be able to use them again.

“I’m glad we have an understanding,” Allura sighed thankfully.

Sunny studied Allura carefully before squeaking in surprise as Twitch leapt onto her back. She resisted the urge to buck him off as he started making his adjustments.

“Don’t think we’ve forgotten,” Allura smirked.

Sunny scowled. “No, just some warning of the sudden back invasion would be nice!”

Allura laughed as Twitch squeaked and jumped down from Sunny’s back, making her grunt.

Smiling, Allura opened a panel below the tank and pulled a lever. Sugar looked wide-eyed as the tank suddenly split apart.

She fell out and tumbled onto the floor, landing in a heap. Groaning, she began getting up before squeaking in fear and laying down again as Allura loomed over her.

“You have a very good friend in Starscout, she looked out for you,” Allura growled. “Stay exactly where you are and let Twitch deal with your muzzle.”

Sugar blinked with confusion as Twitch hopped over. Then, she squeaked with surprise as he jumped onto her back. He put his remote on her bridle and started making adjustments.

Sugar gasped as she felt the muzzle suddenly release and fall from her face. She looked at it with surprise before looking up at Allura worriedly.

Allura smirked as she picked up the muzzle. “You won’t need this anymore.”

Both Sunny and Sugar watched, wide-eyed, as a wintery blast erupted from Allura’s paw. They gasped as the muzzle was encased in ice.

Allura smiled wickedly as she easily crushed the muzzle with her paw. Shattering it into hundreds of pieces which fell to the ground and started melting away.

“There, no more muzzles,” Allura sniffed.

Twitch grinned as he jumped from Sugar’s back and allowed her to stand. She didn’t say anything though as she skittered back from Allura worriedly.

Allura’s eyes narrowed. “Both of you can return to work now. NIRIK!”

Sunny and Sugar gasped as the four Nirik seemingly appeared from nowhere and walked towards them. Each holding a chain in their levitation, ready to escort them away.

Allura gave a nod of respect towards Sunny, “Thank you for your help, Starscout. I won’t forget it...”

However, Allura growled with annoyance as the Nirik all stood, their heads cocked to one side. “Ah, it seems some reprogramming is needed.”

“Reprogramming?” Sunny gasped.

Allura shot Sunny an irritated look, making her gasp and clamp her mouth shut. “Get out of my sight,” Allura growled. “Nirik, Situation One. Escort these two ponies to their cages. Provide a high-security escort.”

The Nirik all nodded and walked forward. Two heading to Sunny and two towards Sugar. They attached chains to their bridles on either side of their heads before leading them away.

As she left, Sunny looked back at Allura. She couldn’t help feeling things had gotten way more complicated.

After being securely locked back in their cages, Sugar gasped as the door to the hut was closed and locked. She looked at Sunny with a mixture of concern and confusion. “S…Sunny! W…What happened? That…That machine looked like it was sucking your magic away!”

Sunny smiled. “I made a deal.”

“A…A deal?” Sugar blinked. “But, that tank thing. The way Allura held her paw over that leaver. You did what you did to save me! Why?!”

Sunny’s smile broadened. “You’re my friend, Sugar. I wasn’t going to let anything happen to you.”

“B…But you have friends,” Sugar gasped. “Y…You…”

Sunny couldn’t help chuckling. “Stop, let me explain what was happening. I made a deal with Allura, but your safety wasn’t part of it. She needed me to use my powers, so you were her insurance.”

Sugar blinked and she gasped in realisation. “So, if you tried anything to hurt them…”

“They’d hurt you,” Sunny nodded. “I wasn’t going to let that happen.”

“So, what’s this deal?” Sugar asked worriedly.

“Allura needed me to help them. That machine, it’s a gateway, their way home.”

“Their way home?”

“Allura and Twitch, they’re from another world. Sort of like the Night Market is in another world. The gateway needed calibrating, or something, and they needed a teleportation spell to do it.”

Sugar blinked. “And you gave them it. Why?”

“Because I was hoping they’d leave and we’d all be free,” Sunny admitted before sighing. “But, it doesn’t seem that way. They need more of the Ore.”

Sugar looked at Sunny worriedly. “You said you made a deal. What deal?”

Sunny grinned. “Well, mostly what you can see. No more muzzles! My powers are isolated, but now they’re turned off so no more wings getting uncomfortable at night. And, no more being stuck behind the Yak!”

“Well, I suppose helping them can’t really hurt. Especially as it’s made things more comfortable for us.” Sugar smiled happily before frowning. “Wait, what about these shackles?”

Sunny shook her head. “I tried but Allura wouldn’t allow it. She’s not going to force thoughts on us though.”

“But what about the ones she’s already given you?”

“They’re gone,” Sunny beamed. “You helped me overcome them.”

Sugar blinked with surprise before smiling. “So, what now? We’re back in here early.”

“I think Allura’s got to change all the Nirik’s Situation things,” Sunny pondered. “I wish I could talk to my friends and tell them what’s happened.”

“Well, if it’s a waiting game, there is something we could do,” Sugar smirked.

She sat against the bars and raised her hoofs. “We can finally play with the rhyme! Let’s see how fast we can go!”

Sunny beamed as she sat down and raised her hoofs. She clapped them against Sugars before they both started reciting the rhyme and clapping their hoofs.

Later, Misty, Hitch, and Zipp all frowned as they looked through their binoculars as they sat in the hide. All three were watching as Sunny and Sugar were making their way along Level One, pulling their cart.

“Sitrep,” Zipp said into her phone. “Sunny and Sugar Moonlight appear to be under less security than before. They have no muzzles and can carry out their work freely without being escorted by the Yak. However, they are still shackled, and they were escorted from their hut to their cart like previously.”

“Sunny’s powers,” Misty said suddenly. “They’re not active anymore. Her horn and wings aren’t present.”

“Good spot,” Zipp smiled. “Something has clearly happened whilst they were in that building. Sunny may have information about Allura that could be vital to our rescue plan. The reasons why they were taken from the building to their hut and then eventually put back to work remain a mystery.”

She closed her phone, stopping the recording.

“So, lots of reasons for you to get into the Confinement area tonight, Misty,” Zipp frowned. “The plan is solid now.”

“All you have to do is implement it,” Hitch agreed. “You’ve got this, Misty.”

Misty took a deep breath. “Y...Yeah, I think so. No! I know so! I can do it! Agh, but it’s ages until nightfall and I’ll get all nervous again.”

“Don’t worry,” Hitch smiled. “We’ll give you as many pep talks as you need.”

“For sure,” Zipp winked.

Author's Note

So I've been agonising over the rhyme that Sunny and Sugar could use for their game.

I'm rubbish with poetry and rhyming and I decided not to use a well known one for copyright reasons. However, the one I envisaged them using was A Sailor went to Sea. The movements of the equivalent hand clapping game would work, despite the bars that are between them.

Any thoughts or suggestions are welcome.

Chapter Twenty-Nine – Super Sneaky Misty, Part Two - Searching

There was another flash between the piles of building materials as Misty appeared. She looked down at herself and groaned, she was visible. “So, why’d it work last time?” she muttered. “Good job I didn’t trust it!”

She reactivated her invisibility spell before she started to make her way back towards the huts. This is going to take ages! Why don’t I appear invisible when I teleport like I want to? Heck, why can’t I just appear inside each hut?! She grimaced. I bet Starlight would. I’m so stupid, I’ll never be like her.

She sighed as she reached the wall of the hut, heading the opposite way than what she’d done the first time. No, I’m not stupid, I can’t afford to slip up and get caught. Her eyes narrowed with determination. I have to do it this way. Starlight got so good because she practised, so that’s what I need to do.

She groaned as she came to the corner. Checking around it for the patrolling Nirik before continuing. I’m not staying up all night practising though. I’m done with feeling tired! I’ll get there eventually.

Misty knew exactly where she needed to be to teleport into each of the huts, it had all been planned out. She also knew which order she ought to visit them in. She had watched the creatures that were in Confinement and seen which hut the Hippogriffs were being kept in. Therefore, that was the one she was aiming for first and crept into position to teleport.

Misty appeared inside the hut with a flash. Immediately, she looked down at herself and groaned, she was visible again. She looked around the hut, it was laid out exactly the same as Sunny’s. Six cages, three on each side.

Only two of the cages were occupied, by the pair of Hippogriffs that had been out pulling a cart. They were wearing shackles and muzzles, and their wings were strapped up. They looked back at Misty with surprise before a glimmer of hope began to appear in their eyes.

Misty sighed, she had inadvertently given Sugar false hope and knew she needed to explain quickly. “H...Hi there, err...” she sighed again as she struggled to find the words. “I’m sorry, you’re probably both hoping I’m here to rescue you. Well, I sort of am but I’m afraid we’re not ready yet.”

One of the Hippogriffs, a red-coloured male, nodded understandingly and brought its conjoined claws to its eyes. Holding them like a set of Binoculars and looking around.

Smiling, Misty nodded. “Yeah, I’m on a reconnaissance mission. Don’t worry, I’m part of a group working to free everycreature. We won’t leave you behind.”

The second Hippogriff, a light green female, lifted its claws and made a heart shape with them.

Misty nodded and, feeling safe, grabbed her notebook from her saddle bag. On a crudely drawn map of the confinement area, she made some notes about the hut.

She looked up at them again and frowned before trotting forward. “Please, do you know if Princess Coral Cloud is here, in the Quarry? She’s missing.”

The two Hippogriffs looked at each other before shaking their heads sadly.

“Thank you,” Misty sighed. “Don’t lose hope, I promise that we will rescue you. I’m sorry, I can’t stay any longer or help you more right now.”

The two Hippogriffs nodded understandingly, and Misty looked down with a heavy feeling in her heart. Her horn glowed and she first turned invisible before she teleported away.

When she appeared back within the piles of materials, Misty looked down and grumbled quietly to herself. “Okay, this time I’m invisible. Great, now if only there was more consistency!”

She gasped as a searchlight passed over her and instinctively ducked down, despite the fact she couldn’t be seen. Frowning, she set off to repeat the same process as before.

She sneaked into position and teleported inside the next hut. When she appeared, Misty found it was full of Diamond Dogs and she couldn’t help feeling relieved that she was still invisible.

Each of the six cages had more than one of them inside it. Whilst they were shackled, they weren’t muzzled. As a result, they were extremely rowdy and loud. After a quick count, she teleported away, feeling very glad she hadn’t needed to speak to them.

However, when she eventually appeared in the following hut, she looked down and groaned, she was visible. She sighed and looked up to see one Yak locked in a cage in the corner, but it didn’t look at all surprised.

“Yes, only one silly Yak here,” it said sagely. “Carry on Pony. Do not waste your breath. You have much to do.”

Misty blinked with surprise before making her note and leaving.

Her arrival in the next hut went unnoticed, it was very full and overcrowded with Griffons. Unlike the Diamond Dogs and the Yak, as well as their shackles they were all wearing muzzles, and their wings were strapped up.

Misty checked and saw she was invisible, and the Griffons were too distracted to notice her floating eyeballs. Therefore, she took her count before teleporting away.

A little later, Misty appeared in the penultimate of the smaller huts. She gasped at the three strange creatures she found locked within the cages. Immediately, they looked straight at her and when she looked down at herself, she saw why, she was visible again.

Frowning, she looked up at the creatures and her frown changed to a look of confusion. They were unlike anything she’d seen before, one even had three heads of different animals.

All the creatures were heavily chained up and wore muzzles over their faces. However, Misty wasn’t even sure if they could speak anyway.

After a few moments, she suddenly realised. “Are you Changelings?”

The creatures all nodded.

Misty sighed and looked at them sadly. “I know you’ll be hoping I’m here to rescue you. I’m sorry, I’m only on a reconnaissance mission right now. But my friends and I, we’re working hard on an escape plan. Now we know you’re here, I’ll make sure you’re rescued. I promise. Please, don’t lose hope.”

The Changelings all nodded, and, with an even heavier heart, Misty turned invisible again before teleporting.

She appeared back within the material piles and checked; she was still invisible. “T...This is getting too much,” she whispered. “This was a mistake; I hate dashing their hopes!”

However, she took a deep breath and frowned with determination. Wait, we can’t help them if we don’t know they need help! I still have a job to do, I can do this!

Sneaking her way past the Nirik patrols was almost getting too easy now. Therefore, it wasn’t long before Misty appeared inside the last of the smaller huts.

She gasped in surprise; it was completely different inside to the others. Instead of having six cages with open bars. She found herself in a narrow metal-lined corridor. On either side, there were six strong-looking doors which she assumed led to cells.

Misty glanced down to check, she was still invisible and decided to stay that way. Taking a deep breath, she tried to be as quiet as possible as she approached the first door.

She frowned as she spotted a sliding hatch at around eye height. However, as she got level with the door, she gasped as she felt a strange sensation in her horn. It was like a tingle, but a whole lot stronger.

Grunting, she lifted a hoof to her head. However, when she saw it, she gasped and looked at it with confusion, it was visible. “What? I...I didn’t...”

As she put two and two together, her eyes widened, and she squeaked in shock and horror. “N...No, nono! My magic!”

Overwhelmed with fear and horror, Misty turned and desperately hurried towards the door of the hut. She didn’t notice the sensation in her horn disappear as soon as she was no longer level with the cell doors.

She raised a hoof to the door, hoping that somehow it would be unlocked. However, she froze and blinked with surprise. She couldn’t see her hoof; it was invisible again.

Gasping, she finally realised she couldn’t feel the sensation in her horn anymore. She looked down and double-checked, sure enough, she was completely invisible. “O...Okay, what’s happening here?”

Panting with fear and anxiety, Misty walked back towards the cell doors. As soon as she was level with them the sensation returned. She looked down, confirming the spell had failed and she was visible again.

Then, she took a few steps back. The sensation disappeared and she once again turned invisible.

“O...Okay... Okay, it’s okay,” she panted. “It’s something to do with these cells. Oh, my hoofness, I’m so lucky it didn’t affect this whole corridor! I should go.” She gasped as her eyes widened. “No, wait! This could be where they’re keeping Coral Cloud. I...I have to look... I have to be sure.”

Deciding not to change anything, Misty kept her spell active before moving forward towards the cell door. Once again, she felt the strange sensation as she got close. Ignoring it, she raised a hoof and slid the hatch downwards.

Misty gasped as she looked inside. It was a small metal-lined cell. The light inside was dim but she could still see a light-yellow Kirin was sat huddled in a far corner.

Ignoring the sound of the hatch, it looked despondently at the ground over the muzzle strapped to its face. It didn’t move at all due to the two pairs of heavy rigid shackles locked around its hoofs.

“Spring Flare!”

Hearing her name, Spring Flare finally looked up and gasped. Seeing Misty at the door, her eyes widened in shock and disbelief.

“D...Don’t worry, Spring Flare,” Misty reassured. “Feather Breeze, she’s free. I freed her. That’s why she didn’t return to the airship. She’s helping me and my friends, we’re going to save everycreature.”

Spring Flare didn’t try to move, she continued to stare at Misty with a look of disbelief.

Misty sighed and looked down sadly. “I’m sorry, I can’t rescue you right now. Even if I wanted to. Don’t lose hope though, we’re going to save everypony, everycreature. I promise!”

With that, Misty slid the hatch back into position. She grimaced as her heart ached that she could do nothing more.

Meanwhile, Spring Flare blinked. W...Was that real? Are they really going to save us? Save me? She mentioned Feather Breeze, is she really free? Could she… Her head twitched. I am Allura’s prisoner forever... Nocreature can save me...

Her eyes welled with tears. No, no it wasn’t real. My mind is playing tricks on me. Nopony knows I’m here, not even Mum. She thinks I’m still under Allura’s lab. I’m going to be stuck here forever, nocreature can save me.

Meanwhile, Misty was carefully making her way to the next cell. As soon as she moved so she wasn’t level with the doors her spell returned. “I’d better not hang around,” she muttered. “I don’t want this effect to become permanent.”

Quickly, she worked through the cells. Each one was occupied by a single creature, a large Changeling, an old female Griffon, a Yak and a Diamond Dog.

Each wore muzzles and had rigid shackles locked around their forelegs. They looked despondently at the ground, seemingly devoid of hope. It broke Misty’s heart, however, she dared not hang around in whatever aura or field was stopping her magic. They didn’t see her, so she moved on.

Finally, she came to the last cell. She slid the hatch open and gasped. Inside, there was a Hippogriff, light pink with a light-yellow mane and tail.

She was looking down despondently as she sat against one of the walls. A muzzle covered her beak whilst her claws were locked together by a pair of rigid shackles. Her wings were strapped up too, but her hind hoofs were free.

“H…Hi, are you Coral Cloud?” Misty asked.

The Hippogriff gasped as her head shot towards the door. Her eyes widened hopefully as she nodded excitedly.

Misty sighed. “I...I’m really, really sorry. I bet you’re hoping I’m here to rescue you?”

Coral Cloud blinked and nodded slower, visibly looking less hopeful.

Misty sighed as she felt her heart sinking lower. “I...I’m sorry, I’m only here on reconnaissance right now. I can’t rescue you right away. You’re going to have to hold on a little longer.”

Coral Cloud blinked but nodded. She tried to move her claws to gesture but the shackles stopped her. She scowled and shook her conjoined claws up and down with frustration, as though she had just remembered she was restrained. Then she grunted before pulling on the muzzle with annoyance.

Misty groaned. “I...I’m sorry, I know you can’t speak, and I… I can’t help you right now. But don’t worry. My friends and I are going to rescue everycreature. I know Skysurf, I’ll let her know you’re here. Now I’ve found you, I’ll make sure you’re rescued. I promise.”

Coral Cloud’s eyes lit up and she nodded.

“Don’t lose hope. We’ll help you; I promise.”

Coral Cloud nodded again, this time almost as excitedly as the first time.

Misty gave a reassuring smile. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

Finally, she slid the hatch back into position. Sighing, she stepped clear of the cell door.

Looking down, she felt some comfort that her invisibility spell had reactivated. Grimacing, she teleported away.

Back safely amongst the building materials, Misty lay down as tears welled in her eyes. “Those poor, poor creatures,” she sniffed quietly. “Maybe I should have done all this then gone to see Sunny? She would have cheered me up.”

She looked down at her hoofs and realised she had appeared invisible again. “Wait. T…This feels different?”

Slightly worried, she dropped the invisibility spell and breathed a sigh of relief as she became visible again. She reactivated the spell and moved towards the hut. Then, just to be sure, she teleported back to the materials. Wait! I…I think I’ve got it! It feels easy now like it should do. Okay, I’ll check the last one.

Feeling slightly happier, she took the notepad from her saddle bag and scribbled some hurried notes next to the previous hut. Then, she remembered her promise to Skysurf and concentrated on the messaging spell.

Skysurf, it’s Misty. She sighed. I’ve found Coral Cloud. She’s in High-Security Confinement like we’d feared. I just have one last hut to look in. I’ll be back soon.

After finishing the spell, she took a deep breath. “J...Just one more. I’ve got to check that big one.”

With a deep breath she started what she thought would be the last infiltration of the night.

Misty hurried towards the large hut, straight towards the corner. She wanted to be finished and she’d started easily bypassing the Nirik patrols. Therefore, instead of carefully walking, she started to run.

As she did so, she started thinking about the fastest way to get line of sight of the door. Therefore, when she reached the corner, she didn’t stop to check, she ran straight around it.

Misty squealed as she collided with a Nirik. Her invisibility spell dropped as they both spun around together and ended up in a tangled heap on the floor.

Gasping and wide-eyed in terror, Misty desperately untangled herself from the Nirik. Getting up she skittered backwards, falling over herself again in desperation to get away. Landing on her bottom, she squeaked again before looking around desperately.

For some reason, the nearest watchtower was in complete darkness. Meanwhile, the Nirik didn’t move, its eyes were closed, and it lay completely still.

Misty sat panting, wide-eyed, as she looked at the Nirik with concern. She was ready to teleport away, but something told her to wait. She gasped, realising its collar was sparking.

Suddenly, it erupted in flames and transformed back into a Kirin, making Misty jump. However, it still didn’t move, it lay completely still with its eyes still closed.

Misty froze as conflicted thoughts spiralled in her mind. Finally, the urge to escape overcame her curiosity and concern for the creature before her.

Her horn glowed and she teleported away, just before another Nirik walked around the corner behind her. Upon seeing the Kirin, it began growling, running forward as its mane flared.

In the hide, Zipp, Hitch and Izzy had been anxiously keeping watch. However, due to Misty’s invisibility spell, they kept losing sight of her. Despite Hitch and Zipp’s reassurances, Izzy became more and more worried.

Then, when Misty ran into the Nirik, it was Izzy who spotted it happen. “No! Nononono!”

“Izzy?!” Hitch gasped as he lowered his binoculars. “What is it?”

“She’s been caught!” Izzy wailed. “She…She… I don’t know, one moment this Nirik was walking along. Next, it’s on the floor with Misty!”

“Where?” Hitch said as he raised his binoculars.

“The biggest hut, right-hand side corner,” Zipp advised, already watching intently.

Hitch trained his binoculars in. “I see her. I think she’s okay, the Nirik isn’t moving. Wait, it's just turned back into a Kirin.”

“What can we do?” Izzy gasped.

“Nothing,” Zipp sighed. “We can’t do anything."

“Don’t worry, Iz, she's teleported out of there,” Hitch advised.

Misty appeared behind the hide with a flash, gasping for breath as tears began to well in her eyes.

Almost immediately, Izzy came running out of the hide and flung her hoofs around her. “Misty! Oh, Misty! Are you okay?”

“I...I knew it! Misty cried. “I’m a clumsy idiot! I’ve ruined everything! Those poor creatures, they’ll never be rescued now!”

“You don’t know that,” Izzy gasped as Misty cried into her shoulder. “I’m so glad you’re okay. I thought…”

“Yes… Yes, I do,” Misty sobbed. “They’ll know we’re here now!”

“I don’t think they do,” another voice said.

Misty looked towards the hide and saw Zipp standing at the door. “Misty, from what I’ve seen. The Nirik just think their friend’s collar malfunctioned.”

“R…Really?” Misty gasped. “But, the one I ran into…”

“Wait, is that what happened?” Izzy gasped. “I mean, I saw that Nirik go flying and then you appeared on the floor with it. I thought it had caught you!”

Misty grimaced as tears continued to trickle down her cheeks. “No, I was stupid. I just ran around the corner without checking. I ran straight into it.”

“But you were invisible,” Zipp smirked.

“Y…Yeah,” Misty nodded. “Up until when we collided.”

“Okay, and it transformed back into a Kirin,” Zipp recalled.

Misty nodded. “It’s collar was sparking. I think I damaged it.”

“Exactly, they just think the collar malfunctioned,” Zipp reassured. “They’ve made no attempt to search for anycreature.”

“T…They haven’t?” Misty gasped.

“They haven’t, they don’t suspect a thing,” Zipp smiled. “I think it's because of these Situation things they're following. They didn't see any evidence of anycreature. Therefore, they just fetched a new collar and then took the Kirin away. I think we’re in the clear.”

Misty let out a sigh of relief as she blinked away her tears. However, she still looked down sorrowfully. “I’m so sorry. I got careless, I put everything at risk. I…I failed…”

Izzy blinked. “But you can’t have failed, you were down there ages.”

“Did you see Sunny?” Zipp asked.

“Y...Yeah,” Misty sniffed.

“Really?” Izzy beamed. “Is she okay?”

“Yeah, she’s doing okay,” Misty reassured. “I...I’ve got a recording of all the information she’s got for us.”

“Awesome,” Zipp grinned. “And Coral Cloud?”

“I found her,” Misty sighed. “Spring Flare too, they’re both locked in cells. The hut they're in looked like Solitary Confinement. I’ve got notes about it and all the other small huts and creatures trapped in them as well. There were so many.”

“Then you haven’t failed,” Zipp grinned.

“But I didn’t get into the biggest hut,” Misty groaned. “I was on my way there when I ran into that Nirik.”

“That’s fine, we’ll just have to factor that into our plans,” Zipp smiled reassuringly. “Most importantly, you saw who you needed to. You completed your primary objectives.”

“Yeah!” Izzy danced on the spot. “So what if you didn’t get inside the biggest hut? I bet it’s just some silly storeroom anyway.”

Misty looked at Izzy with a dumbfounded expression. Then she looked at Zipp’s reassuring smile. It took her a moment to process but she eventually gave a small smile in return. “Thank you,” she sighed. “I...I needed to hear that. Those poor, poor creatures. We need to save them!”

“Don’t worry, Misty. We will,” Zipp winked.

“Yeah, we will!” Izzy agreed.

Suddenly, Hitch’s voice came from inside the hut. “ZIPP! Get in here!”

Frowning, Zipp turned and headed inside the hut. Izzy and Misty gave each other inquisitive looks before they headed to the entrance and poked their heads inside.

“Zipp, I’ve just seen Twitch,” Hitch explained as Zipp approached.

Zipp gasped and quickly grabbed her binoculars. “Really? Where?”

“The Confinement Area, that watchtower that I said was in darkness,” Hitch described. “He’s gone inside.”

Zipp swung her binoculars around to look at something at the far right before looking back at the Confinement Area. Just in time to see the lights in the watchtower lighting up.

Izzy and Misty looked at each other. Both were completely confused and had no idea what was going on.

“Okay, he’s coming out,” Hitch frowned.

“Keep an eye on him,” Zipp instructed. “Looks like he’s fixed that tower and hopefully he’s done for the night.”

She turned around towards Misty with a hopeful look on her face. “I know you’ve probably had enough sneaking,” she sighed. “But there’s a golden opportunity to get into a watchtower that I think Twitch is working on.”

“Wait, is that why you wanted me to watch for him?” Hitch blinked. “But the tower looks like it’s all fixed now and Misty needs to get back to the creatures in their hut.”

“It’s not that tower,” Zipp clarified. “It’s one on Level Five, all the way to the right. It’s still in darkness and there are no creatures around it at all. Where’s Twitch heading?”

“Down to Level Zero,” Hitch advised. “I’ve lost him in amongst the buildings.”

“Then he’s not gone back to this tower,” Zipp frowned as she wafted a piece of paper. “It’s got all the things that Skysurf noted down here. It’s a golden opportunity to get vital information.”

Hitch groaned, “You say everything is vital information! Misty’s just had a close call.”

However, Misty took a deep breath and narrowed her eyes. “Okay, I’ll do it.”

“Wait, what?” Hitch gasped. “You don’t have to.”

“Yeah, you’ve done so much already,” Izzy added worriedly.

“We need to get the rescue plan sorted,” Misty said resolutely. “The creatures I saw in Confinement tonight. They need us. Sunny, Sugar, Coral Cloud, Spring Flare and lots of others. Then there’s Sprout, Minty, Skysurf, Giselle, Thymus, Bingo and the others as well.”

“Misty, come take a look,” Zipp offered. “Level Five, the watchtower furthest to the right in the area they’re digging.”

Misty nodded and walked towards the hide opening. She picked up the binoculars and looked through them. It took her a few moments, but she soon found the watchtower Zipp was talking about. “I see it, there’s no Nirik around it at all,” she sighed. “Like you said, it’s a golden opportunity.”

“So, let’s go,” Zipp smiled.

“Wait, what does that mean?” Izzy gasped.

“Whoa, whoa, you are not going too!” Hitch exclaimed.

Zipp looked at him firmly. “Yes, I am. It would massively speed up my analysis if I could actually see this equipment. There’s no Nirik there, it’s safe.”

Misty frowned as she lowered the binoculars. “Okay, but don’t let go of me unless I tell you. I can’t get us both out quickly if we’re separated.”

Zipp nodded and placed a hoof on Misty’s shoulder. Her horn glowed and they both turned invisible.

“Ahhh! They’re doing it!” Izzy gasped.

“Close your eyes,” Misty advised.

Hitch looked around in horror, “Whoa, wait! Hold on! Don’t just...”

However, Zipp closed her eyes and there was a large flash as both Misty and Zipp disappeared completely.

Chapter Thirty – Super Sneaky Misty, Part Three - Discovery

On Level Five there were multiple digging sites. The one right at the far end of the level had three watchtowers, one of which was in complete darkness. It was this one that Misty and Zipp appeared at the door with a flash.

Misty couldn’t help but double-check they had appeared invisible. Seeing they were, she sighed with relief before glancing around to ensure the coast was clear. However, Zipp still had hers closed and frowned with confusion. “What’s happening?” she whispered.

“Shhhh!” Misty hissed as she tried the door. “The doors locked. Hold on.”

Zipp’s frown deepened. “What? What’s going on?”

However, Misty didn’t listen. She concentrated on teleporting them inside the watchtower and they both disappeared in a flash.

After they appeared inside, Misty looked around nervously. However, it was pitch black and she couldn’t see a thing.

“Misty, what’s going on?” Zipp growled.

“We’re in the tower. I don’t think anycreature’s here, it’s too dark.”

Zipp opened her eyes and squinted through the darkness. “Yeah, it’s way too dark. Are you sure we’re alone?”

“I think so, the door was locked,” Misty frowned. “Just a second.”

She cut the invisibility so she could focus on a luminescence spell. Her horn glowed and the room was immediately lit up.

Zipp grunted as the bright light filled her vision, blinking and rubbing her eyes as they adjusted. When she finally looked around, she couldn’t help gasping. “T...This is perfect!”

The inside of the tower was laid out the same as the one Giselle and Skysurf had infiltrated. Opposite the door were the steps up to the observation area which extended into the middle of the room. To one side of these were the racks of spare collars, bridles and straps. To the other was the same equipment that Skysurf and Giselle had seen.

However, the equipment was dismantled, the exterior panels were removed from all over it. Cables hung out of these, and components were left strewn all over the floor. There were baskets of cables, parts, connectors, screws and bolts positioned to one side.

Zipp surveyed the scene, looking like all her Whishintine’s had come at once. “Misty, this is perfect. It’s just what I need.”

She took her hoof from Misty’s shoulder, making her flinch. “I...I said...”

“Misty, I need my hoofs to examine this,” Zipp said softly.

Misty took a deep breath. “Yeah, and I suppose the doors locked. I’m going to check upstairs.”

“Maybe keep an eye out from up there,” Zipp suggested. “I’ll be as quick as I can.”

Zipp donned her visor and whipped out her phone. Then she began taking photos and documenting everything she saw. Meanwhile, Misty gulped as she started toward the stairs, she couldn’t help feeling worried.

Inside the casing, unbeknownst to either of them, a component was sparking away.

Misty frowned as she neared the top of the stairs, she wasn’t taking any chances. She carefully peeped over the top to check and breathed a sigh of relief, there was nocreature there.

She walked up the rest of the stairs and positioned herself above the door before settling down to keep watch. However, after a short while, her eyes widened in realisation. “Anycreature could see me from down there!”

Her horn glowed and she turned invisible, instantly feeling safer. “I need to be careful. I hope Zipp will be quick, I still want to go back to Skysurf and the others.”

Misty sat keeping watch for what felt like ages. Eventually, she decided she needed to check on Zipp and made her way back down the stairs.

She dropped her invisibility as she reached the bottom and frowned. “Zipp, how much longer?”

“Not much,” Zipp smiled. “Misty, this is the key to the collars and the artificial purr.”

Misty sighed. “I know, I…I just want to get back to the creatures. They’re waiting for me.”

“Yeah, I get that,” Zipp said as she took another photo. “But I can’t rush this, I’m sorry.”

Misty watched as Zipp continued tracing wires and documenting. She contemplated leaving her to it and going to see the creatures. However, she shook her head, she couldn’t risk leaving Zipp behind.

She frowned and moved towards the racks of straps, collars and bridles. Her eyes widened as she spotted the Unicorn bridles and went to take a closer look.

Suddenly, her hoof hit something large and hard, making her stop. Frowning, she looked down and blinked with confusion, it was a large plain green binder. Picking it up, she opened it and gasped. “Zipp. Zipp, look at this!”

Zipp was busy tracing a wire, her ear twitched but she didn’t react to Misty’s voice.

“Zipp,” Misty gasped as she hurried over. “You need to see this!”

Zipp finally paid attention as Misty held out the binder, its open pages showing a set of technical drawings. Her eyes widened in shock and surprise. “This....This...”

Quickly, she snapped a photo of the page before she set the binder down and began flipping through. Her eyes almost popped out with delight. “Misty, do you know what this is?”

“Well, I assume it’s diagrams of this equipment,” Misty blinked before shaking her head. “It makes no sense to me.”

“It is, but it’s so much more,” Zipp breathed. “There are diagrams of everything that’s here. I mean everything. This control equipment, the emitters that Skysurf mentioned in her note, the bridles, the straps. Literally, everything that has to do with these watchtowers and keeping control of the creature’s abilities and magic.”

Zipp was shaking, everything she needed had just been served to her on a silver platter. However, her face fell as she realised there was a problem. “It’ll take me ages to copy all this. T...There isn’t time.”

“You won’t need to,” Misty gasped. “There’s a spell, one Starlight used to copy the textbooks at the school. I mean, I wasn’t there but Sunny told me about it.”

Zipp’s eyes lit up with hope. “Do you know it?”

Misty shook her head. “Not quite, but it’s one that Starlight’s messages said I needed to learn. I have cast it, but I can’t without rereading the incantation.”

“Okay, but how does that help?” Zipp blinked.

Misty smiled. “I thought you were a detective? I have the book back at camp. I’m sure I can do it.”

Zipp’s eyes lit up. “W...Well let’s go! We’ll take this but if you can’t do it quickly then we’ll have to bring it back.”

“Don’t you want to look at this more though?” Misty said as she gestured to the equipment.

“With what I’ve got, I won’t need to if I’ve got these diagrams as well,” Zipp beamed.

“Okay, but first I have to revisit the creatures,” Misty frowned.

“But there’s not much time,” Zipp gasped.

“Exactly!” Misty replied hotly. “It’ll be lights out for them soon and I am not leaving them worried about me until tomorrow night.”

Zipp groaned. “Fine, you’re right.”

“To save time, you’re coming with me,” Misty replied as she held out a hoof. “Hold onto me.”

Gasping, Zipp closed the binder and put her phone away. Then, clutching onto the binder, she grabbed Misty’s outstretched hoof. With a flash, Misty teleported them away.

Neither of them had noticed the component inside the casing as it continued to spark away.

Inside the Ponies Hut, the creatures sat and waited worriedly.

They had already gone through all the notebooks, some more than once. After that, they’d started chatting about themselves, what their homes were like and their families. However, that had started getting them down and they’d given that up too.

“It’s ages since she messaged,” Skysurf fretted. “Somethings happened to her.”

“It has been some time, but we shouldn’t just assume the worst,” Thymus advised.

“But it all makes sense now,” Skysurf groaned. “Queen Skystar knew the disappearances were getting worse. That’ll be why she sent Coral Cloud with the delegation heading to Equestria, she wanted to make sure she was safe. It must have gotten so bad she’s gone to Equestria herself, only to find Coral Cloud never made it.”

“Which only means your Queen is safe,” Sprout reasoned.

“But for how long?” Skysurf growled. “If it’s gotten so bad she had to leave Sequestria…”

“Surely long enough for us to be rescued,” Giselle reassured.

“The castle in Zephyr Heights is impenetrable,” Minty frowned.

“Just like Seaquestria is supposed to be,” Skysurf sighed before groaning. “I’m sorry. I…I just feel responsible for Misty putting herself in danger like this. I hope she’s okay.”

Suddenly, there was a large flash which made them all gasp. After shielding their eyes, they were surprised to see both Misty and Zipp standing before them.

“I’m sorry it’s taken so long,” Misty blurted. “Something else came up and this is a really quick visit to say all’s fine.”

Thymus blinked in shock. “W...Wait, Misty Brightdawn, please, who is this with you?”

Sprout smirked. “That would be Princess Zipp.”

“W...What!” Skysurf gasped as her eyes widened in horror.

“NO!” Zipp said hotly as she pointed at Skysurf. “I presume you’re Skysurf. Look, don’t start going on about how Princesses shouldn’t be here. From what I’ve heard, Coral Cloud longs for the freedom I enjoy. If you’re truly her best friend that’s what you would want for her.”

Skysurf blinked and looked at Zipp with shock. After a few moments, she groaned and looked down sadly. “Y...Yeah, I do,” she admitted. “Queen Skystar, she’s really protective. Please, how did you convince your mother you could have your freedom?”

Zipp sighed. “Well, it sort of just happened to be honest. It helps that I’m living with my friends. I think that puts her mind at ease.”

“Along with you being a Guardian of Unity,” Minty pointed out. “That’s a huge help. It’s good to see you again, Zipp.”

“Huh, you remembered then,” Zipp smirked. “It’s nice to see you again too, Minty.”

“So, why made us wait?” Bingo grunted. “Will be lights out soon. I’m glad I already took bananas to the other Dogs.”

“That’s my fault,” Zipp admitted. “I spotted an opportunity. Long story short, we found this in one of the watchtowers.”

She held out the binder and flicked it open to a random page.

As the creatures leaned in to look, most looked confused. However, Minty’s eyes widened, and she gasped in shock. “T...Th...That’s...”

“Yeah, it’s the drawings and diagrams for everything to do with the watchtowers and the collars,” Zipp smiled. “Misty’s going to make us a copy with a spell.”

Minty held out her hoofs hopefully. “C...Can I?”

Smirking, Zipp handed her the binder and she quickly began flipping through it. The more she looked, the more her eyes widened and the more excited she got. “Zipp, with this you’ll be able to build your own version of the collars and the charging equipment. You could create a testbed!”

Zipp sighed and shook her head. “Thought of that but it would take ages out here. I don't have everything to hoof.”

“Then go back to Equestria,” Minty urged.

“Wait, don’t you go sending our help away,” Giselle gasped. “We need them.”

“Yeah, we’re not leaving you,” Zipp frowned.

“Zipp, your notes say you want to overload the collars by fitting a device to the charging equipment,” Minty said seriously. “We worked it out, there’s hundreds of watchtowers all over the Quarry.”

Zipp blinked, her mind processing the information. “You’re right, I’ll never make enough devices out here. I…I need to go back to Equestria.”

“My dad’s company, Cloudstrike Industries,” Minty frowned. “Tell your Mum to requisition the development lab. It has everything you’ll need to build a test bed and then manufacture the devices.”

“But it took ages for them to get here,” Sprout gasped. “It’ll take ages for them to get to Equestria and come back.”

Zipp tapped her chin. “Actually, it won’t. The Airship was zigzagging all over the place, to the point it was going back on itself. The Marestream is way faster than it too. If I get an early enough start I might even do it by late evening!”

“So, you are aiming to overload the collars and bridles,” Skysurf frowned. “It sounds dangerous.”

“Yeah, which is why testing would be the best thing to do,” Zipp confirmed. “If done exactly right we’ll not only be able to free all of you, but we’d also free all the Nirik as well. Then we’d only have the Auroricorns and Allura to worry about.”

“This is sounding extremely positive,” Thymus smiled. “However, I feel we’ve kept you long enough. You need to copy this binder and return it before it’s missed. Thank you, both of you, for your continual efforts.”

“Yeah, let’s get this done,” Zipp nodded to Misty before looking back to the creatures. “It’s real, real nice to be able to put faces to the names and voices on the recordings.”

“Skysurf,” Misty gasped. “Before I go, I did see Coral Cloud.”

“I got your message,” Skysurf nodded. “Is she okay, did you speak with her?”

“I spoke to her, but she was wearing a muzzle so she couldn’t reply,” Misty sighed. “She couldn’t even gesture with her claws. They were locked in these rigid shackles that stopped her from moving them much. But I reassured her we’d get her out. She seemed excited to hear that.”

“Thank you, Misty,” Skysurf nodded. “That means a whole lot.”

“I’ll have to tell you all more about the Confinement area tomorrow night,” Misty sighed.

“That’s not an issue,” Thymus smiled. “Thank you for coming back and letting us know you are okay. We’ve made some progress.”

He held out the notebooks and recorder. Gasping, Zipp took them gratefully before helping Misty pack them into her saddlebag.

Bingo groaned. “So, we’re helpless now until you return?”

“Appears that way,” Sprout admitted.

“Well, we could prepare our plan,” Skysurf frowned. “What we do when Zipp turns off the collars.”

“That’s a good idea,” Zipp smiled as she closed the saddlebag. “We have no idea what your strengths and weaknesses are.”

“Yeah, we don’t want to be running in circles,” Giselle grinned. “We need a plan of what to do.”

“Then that is what we’ll spend our meetings doing,” Thymus nodded. “Like when the best time to do it would be.”

“Yeah, I’ve got theories, but you guys are the ones in the know,” Zipp winked.

Suddenly, the lights in the hut turned off and plunged them all into darkness.

“That’s everycreature's cue to leave,” Thymus sighed. “Misty, Zipp, thank you again for all you are doing.”

Zipp nodded. “Don’t worry, we’ve got this. When I see you again, I promise, you’ll be free creatures.”

“I should be back tomorrow night,” Misty added as she held a hoof out towards Zipp. “Zipp, we’ll nip to the hide first. I want to make sure Hitch and Izzy know we’re okay.”

“Oh! O...Okay,” Zipp blinked as she took Misty’s hoof.

With a round of farewells, Misty and Zipp both disappeared in a flash.

Pipp and Feather Breeze were sat on the wood carved chairs around the campfire, waiting worriedly. However, it was too warm for a fire and having nothing to do was driving Pipp mad.

“I...I can’t take this anymore!” she exclaimed as she held her hoofs to her head. “There’s nothing to do out here with no signal!”

Feather Breeze didn’t reply, her eyes were closed as she breathed deeply, meditating.

Pipp groaned and lent back in her chair. She sighed as she looked up into the darkness, wishing she’d downloaded an offline game or something.

Suddenly, there was a large flash as Misty, Zipp and Izzy appeared. Immediately, Pipp and Feather Breeze jumped up and hurried towards them, a look of hopeful excitement on their faces.

“How’d it go?!” Pipp exclaimed. “Did you see Sunny?”

“I...I’m almost afraid to ask, Spring Flare?” Feather Breeze stammered.

“Wait, where’s Hitch?” Pipp gasped as she held her hoofs to her mouth worriedly.

“He’s still at the hide,” Izzy grinned.

“Yeah, he’s just keeping watch,” Misty smiled. “I...”

“Hold on,” Zipp interrupted. She stepped forward, still clutching the binder. “Misty, get your spellbook. We’ve wasted too much time already! We need to get this copied.”

“O...Okay,” Misty gasped. “But...”

Zipp’s expression softened. “I’m real sorry, Misty. I know you want to update everypony but there’s no time. We really need to get this back before it’s missed.”

Misty nodded, dropping her saddlebag to the ground before hurrying towards the Marestream. Meanwhile, Zipp turned to her worried Sister and Feather Breeze.

“I’m sorry guys, lots started happening after Misty stopped her infiltration,” she sighed. “We found this binder of diagrams and drawings. It’s imperative we get it copied and back to where we found it before it’s missed.”

“So, she didn’t...” Pipp groaned.

“No, no, she did,” Izzy gasped. “She saw Sunny and Spring Flare.”

“Yeah, sorry,” Zipp said worriedly. “Misty was successful. There’s just no time for us to go over it now. She’s made notes and recordings though.”

Pipp sighed thankfully whilst Feather Breeze looked up at the trees with a small smile. “At least we know where Spring Flare is.”

Suddenly, Misty skidded to a stop with a spellbook held in her levitation. “Okay, hold the binder up,” she instructed. “I’ll make three copies as that’s the minimum this version of the spell will do.”

Zipp nodded and held the binder up. Then, Misty took a moment to re-read the incantation before taking a deep breath.

She narrowed her eyes as she focused on the binder before shooting a beam of magic at it.

It immediately began to glow before three beams of magic shot out of it. Each beam ended in a flash above Pipp, Izzy and Feather Breeze. All three looked up in shock and awe as copies of the cover appeared.

Then, the binder began rotating, and copies of the pages started firing from it and into the three copies. Each was slowly filled until eventually the covers slammed closed.

The original and three copies then floated downwards towards the four of them. Zipp grabbed the original whilst Pipp, Izzy and Feather Breeze each grabbed a copy.

Misty gasped as she wobbled on her hoofs for a moment. However, she shook her head and quickly regained her balance. “Okay, getting tired now,” she admitted. “Do they look right? Please say they’re right.”

Zipp hurried over to the others and they quickly looked through the copies and the original.

“We’re all good,” Zipp beamed as she held out the original. “Go for it, Misty.”

“O...Okay,” Misty grunted as she took it. “Back to the tower to put this back. Then to the hide to pick Hitch up and then back here. Somepony had better have some supper ready for me because I’m going straight to sleep after that!”

Most of her friends couldn’t help chuckling as Misty closed her eyes and her horn glowed before she turned completely invisible.

However, Zipp’s eyes widened as she gasped. “Wait, Misty, don’t just...”

However, Misty didn’t hear her. There was a flash as she disappeared.

Misty appeared inside the watchtower with a flash. However, she instantly knew something wasn’t right. She felt insanely hot and there was a very, very strong smell of burning.

She opened her eyes and squeaked in horror. The inside of the watchtower was on fire, the flames erupting from the equipment that Zipp had been inspecting.

She began coughing and coughing as she struggled to breathe in the smoke-filled air. She closed her eyes as she stepped backwards. Her invisibility spell failed, and she dropped the binder to the ground. She backed into a corner, with the stairs between her and the raging flames.

Feeling her bottom hit the wall, she opened her eyes again. Her mind raced as she desperately looked for a way out. However, the stairs were blocked, as was the main door. Her eyes stung from the smoke, and she was forced to close them again as they began streaming.

There was the sound of something breaking and falling. However, Misty paid no attention to that, her lungs felt like they were on fire. She struggled to breathe, coughing and coughing in the thick acrid smoke.

Her mind was a jumbled mess, she wanted desperately to escape but she couldn’t focus. Gasping, coughing and wheezing, her legs buckled from below her and she fell to the ground.

She thought about Hitch, he’d be watching and unaware she was in trouble. Finally, there was a flash before her world went black.

Chapter Thirty-One – Leopards have Claws

Twitch coughed as he extracted himself from the remains of the burned-out tower. He’d spent the best part of the day slowly sifting through the debris, trying to work out why the tower had caught fire the night before.

His fur was covered in black ash and soot, and he looked exhausted. He carried the binder in his forepaws, now looking very charred and burned. Grunting, he set it down amongst the other bits he’d salvaged and attempted to open it.

He sighed as page after page disintegrated to ash in his paws. Watching as the remains fluttered away on the small amount of hot breeze that blew through the Quarry.

Suddenly, his ear twitched as he heard a voice. “TWITCH!”

Twitch’s eyes widened as he looked skywards and spotted Allura swooping down directly towards him, her eyes narrow and her mouth curled into a snarl.

He squeaked in shock as she landed on top of him, causing him to fall over backwards as she pinned his forelegs down with her forepaws.

She snarled with anger as she looked him directly in the eye. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

Twitch grunted as he tried to free himself from Allura’s grasp before he squeaked back at her desperately.

“Don’t give me that!” Allura growled. “You’re supposed to check the reports we extract from the Nirik! That’s. Your! JOB!”

Twitch’s eyes narrowed as, despite his compromised position, he growled at Allura. Then, he squeaked angrily back at her, one of his hind legs banging down on the ground.

Allura gasped as her eyes widened in realisation. She stepped backwards, releasing Twitch and allowing him to stand.

“Y…You’re right,” she gasped. “You’ve been working on the gateway.”

Twitch grumbled as he tried to dust himself down. However, all he succeeded in doing was smearing the dirt into his already soot-filled fur. He scowled before squeaking back at Allura angrily.

“Yes, there’s strange anomalies in the reports,” Allura scowled. “One concerns me greatly; a Hippogriff and Griffon being seen out of position. Just when that pony, Sugar Moonlight, made her escape attempt.”

Twitch’s eyes widened. He began squeaking and grunting again, tapping a hind paw with concern.

“Yes, I’m going to have to make life difficult for everycreature for a while. I know you don’t like it. But I have no choice. Unless you’ve found something?”

Twitch sighed and shook his head as he reached down for one of the burned components. He squeaked and grunted as he showed it to Allura. Trying to explain everything was too burned.

However, Allura blinked and shook her head. “Oh, stop it you idiot,” she snarled. “You know I don’t understand your technical nonsense. I’ll take your word for it. I want the Nirik to enact Situation Ninety-One tomorrow morning.”

Twitch gasped as his eyes widened. Blinking in shock he began squeaking and grunting again.

“Yes, I’m sure,” Allura interrupted. “Look, I’m sorry I’ve left so much to you. I’ll find the Hippogriff and Griffon. I know which creature to start with.”

With that, Allura spread her wings and took to the sky. Leaving a very concerned Twitch behind.

Knowing exactly where to go, Allura flew quickly over the Quarry towards the High-Security Confinement area.

As she got closer, she couldn’t help grinning as she spotted that the door to Sunny and Sugar’s hut was open. She glided down, landing as she reached the doorway before entering the hut.

Inside, Sunny and Sugar were both in their cages, waiting for the Nirik to close the doors and remove the chains.

“Nirik. Pause!” Allura commanded.

Hearing the command, the Nirik all immediately stood to attention and froze in position. Meanwhile, Sunny and Sugar shared a worried glance, completely taken by surprise at Allura’s sudden arrival.

Eyes narrowed, Allura strode past the Nirik and entered Sugar’s cage. Smirking as she approached her with purpose. “So, have anything you want to tell me?”

“N…No,” Sugar gasped as a chill ran down her spine.

She took a step backwards, but the chains between her bridle and the cage went taught and held her in place. Stopping her from escaping as Allura got uncomfortably close to her.

“Oh?” Allura smiled sweetly. “Nothing to tell me about your escape attempt? About how a Hippogriff and Griffon were involved?”

Sugar blinked, desperately trying to hide her surprise. “I…I don’t understand.”

Allura smirked as she took a step backwards, allowing Sugar a little more breathing room. “Oh, don’t take me for a fool. Your escape attempt wasn’t anything of the sort, was it? It was a distraction!”

Sugar’s eyes widened as she gulped. However, her eyes suddenly narrowed as she pulled a quizzical expression. “What are you talking about?”

Allura snarled with rage, baring her teeth as she leapt forward. Slamming her paws into the chains, she made Sugar squeak with surprise as she pushed down on them. “I TOLD YOU! Do not take me for a fool!”

“I…I don’t know what you mean!” Sugar grunted as she struggled to hold Allura’s weight.

“Leave her alone,” Sunny shouted desperately. “She told you she doesn’t know.”

Allura swung her head towards Sunny as she snarled. “Stay out of this, Starscout.”

“But she doesn’t know what you’re talking about,” Sunny protested, her chains rattling as she tried to move closer.

“Oh, I think she does,” Allura sneered crossly. “I think she knows far more than she’s letting on.”

Allura pushed down on the chains again, raising herself up so that she towered over Sugar.

Sugar grunted as the weight pushed down on her bridle. Gritting her teeth she looked up at Allura with defiance. “I. Don’t. Know!”

Allura snarled. “A Hippogriff and a Griffon. Spotted far from where they should have been just as you started your little escape attempt. Does that ring any bells?”

Sugar grunted again, closing her eyes and gritting her teeth. Her neck and legs screamed under the pressure. However, she didn’t want to see what would happen if she dropped to the floor. “NO! No, it doesn’t!”

“See,” Sunny interjected. “She doesn’t know anything.”

Allura snarled with rage. “QUIET, STARSCOUT!”

Growling as she turned back towards Sugar, Allura sneered as she leaned in closer to Sugar’s ear. “You are lucky.”

“Lucky?” Sugar grunted as her legs quivered under the weight.

“Lucky that Starscout included you in her deal,” Allura snarled. “I don’t go back on my deals.”

“I don’t feel lucky,” Sugar groaned. “I…I don’t even know what hoppo or griffy things are.”

Allura growled as she jumped backwards and off of the chains. Sugar immediately gasped with relief, staggering slightly as the pressure released.

However, Allura advanced back towards her threateningly, scowling and snarling in rage. “Fine, play this game,” she sneered. “Thanks to you, the lives of every creature in this Quarry are about to get a whole lot harder. Yours especially!”

Before either Sunny or Sugar could respond. Allura reared upwards and her forepaws glowed a light blue before she slammed them both into the ground. There was a flash of blue energy from the impact which rippled under Sugar’s hoofs.

Sugar cried in shock as shafts of ice suddenly erupted from beneath her. They rapidly grew upwards and around her body, forming a large spiky mass of ice which enveloped her.

Sunny gasped; she could only watch as Sugar was almost completely encased, the only part visible being her face. However, the ice had formed a cup, pushing her chin upwards and holding her head around the base of her neck.

Sugar grunted as she was forced to stare at the ceiling, gritting her teeth as she tried to move. However, despite her efforts, the ice held her firmly. All she could move were her ears, mouth and eyes.

“Final chance,” Allura snarled. “The Hippogriff and the Griffon, what do you know about them?”

“I…I don…. Don’t know anything,” Sugar wheezed.

“Then stay like that!” Allura growled in annoyance as she turned towards the cage door. “There’s worse coming if you don’t tell me what I want to know.”

Still snarling in anger, Allura paused as she reached the door to the hut. “Nirik! Continue.”

With that, as Allura disappeared, the Nirik continued their normal routine. Closing the cage doors and then removing the chains before finally exiting the hut.

As the door was locked, Sunny hurried towards the bars with a look of concern on her face. “Sugar! Sugar, are you okay?”

“I…I think so,” Sugar wheezed before grunting. “B…But I can’t move.” She grunted again as she gasped for air. “It…It’s so tight. I…I can barely breathe.”

“Sugar,” Sunny gasped worriedly.

She pushed herself against the bars, poking one of her conjoined hoofs through. Grunting as she stretched as far as her shackles would let her. However, it was nowhere near far enough to reach Sugar.

Scowling, Sunny tried pushing her other hoof through the bars to gain more reach, groaning as she tried to maintain balance.

“S…Sunny stop,” Sugar wheezed. “Y…You’ll get stuck. I…It’s o…only ice. It’ll m…melt, right?”

Sunny frowned as she pulled her hoofs back, the bars rattling as she clanged the shackles against them. She studied the ice intently, bobbing her head around as she looked at it from multiple angles.

“I think it is already,” she said at last. “I don’t know how long it will be though. Wait, there is something else I could try.”

Sugar’s eyes widened as Sunny rose a hoof, immediately realising what she was about to do. “S…Sunny don’t,” she wheezed urgently. “W…We need to keep E…Earth Pony magic a secret, remember.”

Sunny gasped with surprise, “B…But…”

“S…She could come back a…anytime,” Sugar reasoned before taking a deep and shaky breath, her teeth chattering together. “W…Well at least I’m not hot anymore,” she smirked before pausing for breath. “I…I did it again. I…I just protected them w…without even thinking about it.”

“You knew it was the right thing to do,” Sunny reasoned as she lowered her hoof.

Sugar gave a weak smile. “Y…Yeah, I…I know. They’re my friends.”

Sunny sighed as she sat down, a feeling of dread building inside her. “I don’t think Allura is going to leave you alone now.”

“I know,” Sugar breathed. “I…I just hope your f…friends rescue us soon.”

At the camp, preparations for the Marestream to leave were underway. A tent had been pitched and others had been laid out ready to be put up. The camp kitchen was also no longer attached to the Marestream, nor were any of the tarpaulin rain covers.

Izzy was laid on one of the carved wooden seats, her normal jovial and excitable personality seemingly completely gone. She let out a long sigh as she stared gloomily at the dormant firepit, it being too hot to light a fire.

Nearby, Pipp groaned as she stirred a pot of clover soup, which bubbled away on the hob. It was nothing fancy, she didn’t much feel like doing fancy.

She glanced towards the Marestream and the cockpit windows. Not that she could see anything through them as the inside was filled with smoke.

Suddenly, Izzy let out another long and overdramatic sigh which made Pipp grunt and scowl in annoyance. She took a deep breath, trying to remind herself of the situation before she continued stirring. However, she was unsure how much longer she could stand Izzy’s continual over-the-top moping.

Then, as Izzy flipped over to her other side, she let out another long and melodramatic sigh. Flopping her legs around dramatically for increased emphasis.

It was the last straw for Pipp, she cried out with anger as she pulled the wooden spoon out of the soup before slamming it against the metal kitchen worktop. The sound of the impact rang throughout the camp making Izzy jump and fall to the floor.

“Izzy, will you quit the sighing already?!” Pipp shouted. “It doesn’t make any difference!”

Izzy’s eyes widened as she lay gasping in shock on the floor. However, her eyes narrowed as she jumped to her hoofs defensively. “I…I can’t help it!" She thrust a hoof towards the Marestream. "How…How would you feel if it was Zipp lying in there and there was nothing you could do to help?"

Pipp gasped and grimaced as she stared at the splatter of soup that now covered the worktop. “I'd feel the same as I do now,” she answered. “If things keep going as they are between Mom and Alphabittle, then…”

She trailed off as Izzy blinked in surprise, her mouth opening in astonishment. “Wait, what are you saying?”

“Mom has been seeing a lot of Alphabittle,” Pipp explained. “Like going to his tearoom, a lot. Inviting him to the castle, a lot. Zipp suspects something is going on between them.”

Izzy gasped. “And Zipp’s never wrong.”

Pipp couldn’t help chuckling. “Almost never wrong.” However, she sighed as she grimaced again. “She just hasn’t had a chance to look into it properly.”

Izzy gasped again, holding her hoofs to her mouth. “Th…That means…”

“Misty,” Pipp groaned. “If they get married, she’d be my new sister.”

“But I’d be too!” Izzy exclaimed before looking less certain. “I…I mean, almost. Alphabittle, he’s all the family I’ve had for so long! I…I…”

She trailed off as tears welled in her eyes. Gasping, Pipp forgot the soup completely, putting the spoon down and hurrying to Izzy.

“Iz! I’m so sorry!” she gasped in dismay. “I completely forgot how close you are to Misty. How Mom and Alphabittle being together would affect you too!"

She flung her hoofs around Izzy, holding her close as she began crying into her shoulder.

“I…I’m sorry too,” Izzy gasped between sobs. “I…I know moping around isn't helping. I just can’t lose somepony else like this. I just can’t!”

Pipp let out a sigh as she held Izzy tightly. “It’ll be okay, Feather Breeze said she knew what to do. She’s helping her.”

“I…I hope so,” Izzy sniffed. “I really, really do.”

The pair said nothing more as they continued hugging each other, both hoping that whatever Feather Breeze was doing in the cockpit was working.

Chapter Thirty-Two – A Freezing Ultimatum

The following morning, Zipp and Hitch sat in the hide watching intently as the Griffons were escorted from their hut. However, both quickly realised this was no normal morning.

“Wait, they’re not splitting them up,” Hitch blinked. “They’re escorting them somewhere in one big group.”

“Something has to be up,” Zipp agreed as she stared through her binoculars. “Where are they taking them?”

They continued to observe as the Griffons were all escorted down towards Level Zero.

Hitch frowned in confusion. “Maybe they’re being taken to the wash?”

“I dunno,” Zipp grumbled. “I’m sure they went the other day.”

Their confusion grew when the Hippogriffs and the Ponies emerged from their huts and were escorted down towards Level Zero.

Zipp scowled into her binoculars as she watched, “Yeah, this isn’t normal at all.”

Hitch gasped as he lowered his binoculars and looked worriedly at Zipp. “You don’t think Allura could be onto us?”

Zipp frowned as she lowered hers and looked back at Hitch. “I’m not sure,” she admitted. “I’m sure Twitch didn’t find anything in the watchtower. But this can’t be good.”

Sprout felt the same way as he followed the others down the trails towards Level Zero. The burned-out watchtower and the fact they hadn’t seen Misty the previous night filled him with a sense of dread.

Eventually, he and the other Ponies were ushered into a pen. As he looked around, he quickly realised it was the one where they’d first met Allura.

Sure enough, he spotted Allura standing on the pedestal that overlooked all the pens. Her eyes were narrowed as she surveyed the scene before her, watching intently as all the creatures arrived.

Then as his eyes followed the pedestal down to the ground, Sprout did a double take. Stood at the base of the pedestal were Sunny and a very tired and dishevelled-looking Sugar. However, they weren’t alone, they were both escorted by two Nirik which held chains connected to their bridles.

As the creatures all waited, a low murmuring sound started rising from the pens. Sprout gasped as Minty suddenly whispered in his ear. “What’s going on?”

“Quiet,” Sprout hissed. “You’ll get us in trouble.”

Minty scowled as she looked around before her eyes widened with excitement. “Is that Sunny Starscout over there?”

“Yes,” Sprout whispered crossly. “Now stop. Allura’s looking agitated enough as it is.”

For once Sprout was correct, Allura’s scowl deepened as she looked around, her ear twitching in annoyance.

“SILENCE!” she roared. “The next creature I hear whispering will feel my wrath!”

A hushed silence fell, and a feeling of foreboding emanated from the creatures as they all anxiously waited with bated breath. Whatever was going on, it was clear Allura was serious.

As the last gate was locked, Allura scowled as she looked over and addressed all the creatures.

“It seems some of you take me for a fool!” she bellowed, her voice echoing around the entire Quarry. “I’m aware that things have been happening outside of the routine and I know there are at least a Hippogriff and a Griffon that are working against me. I’m going to give you a chance to come forward. Let yourselves be known and nothing will happen.”

She paused as she eyed up the Hippogriffs and Griffons. Slowly, the muffled sounds of whispers once again filled the air.

“SILENCE!” she thundered, baring her teeth in anger. “Well, now you’ll all find out what happens when you cross me! From this point onwards, your food rations will be halved! No more water will be provided at the digging or unloading sites. Anycreature found slacking will be dealt with.”

Cries of dismay rippled throughout the crowds of creatures. Allura growled and was about to get the Nirik to silence them when a voice shouted out. “Nocreature knows what you’re talking about! You’re paranoid!”

Allura’s eyes bulged as she let out a snarling roar of anger, whirring around towards the Griffons. “Nirik! Situation Fifty, bring the one who said that to me!”

She snarled as she watched two Nirik pull Giselle from the crowd of Griffons before preparing to jump from her pedestal.

However, as she looked down to do so, she spotted how Sunny and Sugar reacted. A look of surprise crossed their features before they both worriedly looked at each other.

“Interesting,” Allura smirked before finally jumping.

She plummeted towards the ground, waiting until the last moment to flair her wings and land gracefully. Her eyes narrowed as she glanced towards Sunny and Sugar, interested to see their reactions if she did so.

She wasn’t disappointed, as soon as she looked in their direction, they both gasped and stood bolt-upright in surprise before trying to look as innocent as possible.

Satisfied, Allura looked towards where Giselle was being extracted from the pen, her lips curling into a sly smirk. “Very interesting, time to set an example.”

Giselle grunted as the two Nirik held her aloft in their levitation. She struggled in vain, flailing her legs and wings as she was brought towards Allura. Then, she was deposited on the ground at Allura’s paws, grunting as the Nirik pushed down on her back, forcing her to kneel.

“You’re chasing shadows,” Giselle grunted boldly. “No creature would dare oppose you.”

“Really, yet here you are talking back to me,” Allura sneered as she leaned in towards Giselle’s ear. “Let’s see what you know.”

Giselle’s eyes widened as Allura began purring. She grunted, narrowing her eyes and grimacing as she resisted.

Feeling the resistance, Allura’s eyes widened in surprise. She leaned in closer, intensifying her purring as she fought against Giselle’s defences. Probing and pushing as she tried to force her powers into her mind.

Giselle gritted her teeth as her body trembled and convulsed with effort. Then, she closed her eyes as she let out a cry of exertion.

Eventually, Allura gasped as she gave in. Panting, she took a step back in surprise before snarling in annoyance. “How?! How dare you resist! You MUST be hiding something!”

Giselle gasped as she fell to the floor in a heap and lay panting as she recovered. However, it wasn’t long before her eyes narrowed, and she looked up at Allura with defiance. “I’m not hiding anything, no Griff would ever let anycreature into their mind like that!”

Allura growled and snarled in rage, lifting one of her paws towards Giselle’s forehead as it began glowing blue. “Very well, this is what happens to creatures who resist!”

Giselle blinked with confusion as she looked at the paw. Suddenly, a blast of icy wind erupted from it, making her shriek in surprise. She tried to escape, jumping up as the icy wind bombarded her but she was far too slow.

A layer of blue-tinted ice formed around her entire body in seconds. Completely encasing her from head to tail and freezing her in place like a statue.

Inside, Giselle couldn’t breathe, see or hear. She grunted as she desperately tried to free herself, the layer of ice groaning and even began to crack from her efforts.

However, Allura was ready for this. She continued her icy bombardment, walking around and blasting the icy wind from multiple angles. It didn’t take long for her to create a huge cube of blue-tinted ice with Giselle trapped inside.

Still smirking, she lowered her paw and walked around, admiring her work and revelling in the reaction of shock from all the creatures.

However, it wasn't a feeling that Sunny shared, she scowled at Allura crossly before shouting boldly, “How is she supposed to breathe in there?!”

Suddenly, her anger was replaced with confusion as her Nirik escorts both snarled as they turned towards her. Their horns glowed as they both fired beams of magic at her.

Sunny gasped, she had no way of preventing the beams from hitting her. She cried out as sparks of magical energy rippled through her coat from the impacts, and grunted as she fell to one knee. She grimaced as she panted, slowly recovering from the onslaught.

“Thank you, Starscout, but I haven’t finished yet,” Allura sneered before smiling sweetly. “Although I knew I could rely on you to demonstrate what will happen if anycreature speaks from now on.”

The sound of whispers rippled through the creatures again as Allura leaned in towards the block of ice. She took a deep breath before blowing into it and melting a small amount to form a tube.

She kept blowing until the tube finally reached Giselle’s nostrils. She put her ear to the tube and a vile smirk crept onto her lips as she heard Giselle's desperate shallow gasps for breath.

Grinning, she turned towards the pens again. “Let this be a lesson not to cross me! This blue ice is special. It won’t melt, no matter how hot it gets. So, she will not hear, see, speak or move a muscle. Not until I want her to!”

Allura couldn’t help smirking wickedly as she surveyed the faces of the shocked and worried creatures. Seemingly revelling in the reaction before turning and looking pointedly at Sugar. “However, if those planning to escape come forward or are identified I may reconsider!”

Sugar met Allura’s gaze, ignoring the chill running down her spine. Despite her tired and bloodshot eyes, she looked back with silent defiance.

Beside her, Sunny silently rose to her hoofs. Scowling at Allura as she backed Sugar's decision to remain silent and defiant.

Slowly, Allura’s face contorted into a snarling scowl before she let out a howl of rage. “FINE! Nirik, Situation Fifty, bring Sugar Moonlight to me!”

Sugar gasped as her two Nirik escorts roughly pulled her forward. They brought her alongside Giselle’s ice block before attaching her escort chains to the ground. Unable to get away, she eyed up the ice expectantly. “Do your worst, Allura,” she muttered. “I can’t help you.”

Allura sneered crossly as she scowled at Sugar, “Oh no, you’ve helped plenty!”

She raised an accusing paw towards her before readdressing the creatures. “Know this, everything that is happening is Sugar Moonlight’s fault. She knows those I seek. However, her continual silence is the cause of your upcoming suffering.” She snarled as she strode towards Sugar. “But it is nothing compared to the suffering you’re going to endure.”

Sugar said nothing and closed her eyes. Fully aware she was powerless to stop whatever Allura was about to do.

This time, Allura raised both paws and slammed them together. There was a flash of white and blue as they collided before they began glowing an intense light blue. Then, she pointed both of them at Sugar before unleashing two blasts of icy wind at her.

Sugar took a deep breath as the icy winds hit her. Whereas Giselle was covered in a thin layer of ice that Allura then filled out into a block. This time, the winds instantly formed a large block of blue-tinted ice, completely trapping Sugar inside.

When she’d finished, Allura growled with annoyance as she glanced towards a dismayed-looking Sunny. “I only do this part for you, Starscout.”

Sunny couldn’t help sighing with relief as Allura began blowing into the ice. As she did with Giselle, she created a tube that ran to Sugar’s nose, allowing her a passage within which to breathe.

Stepping away, Allura scowled towards Sunny before she flared her wings and flew back up to her pedestal. After landing, she turned to address all the creatures one final time.

“If the Hippogriff and Griffon that are working against me come forward, everything will return to normal!” she shouted. “Let what has happened to the two creatures below be a warning. Step out of line and the same fate will befall you! I told you all before, you belong to the Quarry. The only way to leave is to quarry enough Arora Ore so that I can! Nirik! SITUATION FIFTY-SIX!”

With that, the Nirik opened the pens and began escorting the creatures back to work, ensuring they walked past where Sugar and Giselle had both been frozen.

Up in the hide, Zipp and Hitch had been watching with bated breath through their binoculars. They’d seen and heard everything and turned to each other in dismay.

“We need to step it up,” Hitch gasped. “We need to put an end to this.”

Zipp sighed. “Yeah, but I need to get back to Equestria to make the devices to overload the collars and stop the purr.”

“And Misty’s in no condition to move,” Hitch remembered. “She’s stuck in the cockpit whilst Feather Breeze treats her.”

Zipp groaned. “Exactly.”

Misty beamed as she looked around the Brighthouse kitchen. She was with all her friends, crowded around the table as they made pizzas together.

The middle of the table was covered in bowls of ingredients, tomatoes, olives, onion, and at least three kinds of grated cheese, to name only a few.

Positioned around the edge of the table were seven Pizza bases, all well in the process of being filled with various ingredients by the pony standing behind them.

Sparky was overjoyed, he whooped and hollered as he jumped from bowl to bowl, eagerly tasting each of the ingredients.

“Sparky, No!” Hitch said sternly. “You need to save room for your pizza!”

Sparky looked at Hitch with a mischievous expression. Sticking out his tongue and blowing a raspberry before picking up one of the bowls and running off with it.

“Sparky! Come back,” Hitch cried in dismay as he ran after the little dragon.

After watching Sparky leading Hitch on a merry chase around the room. Sunny and Izzy looked at each other in amusement before they both started laughing.

Meanwhile, Zipp gasped as Pipp leaned over the top of her pizza to grab one of the bowls. “Oh no you don’t!” she cried as she pushed her sister away.

Pipp laughed as she overbalanced, her flank landing with a ‘flump’ on the floor. “What am I supposed to do when you keep hogging all the clover!”

Misty giggled at her friends’ antics as she happily sprinkled chopped mushrooms on her pizza. That done, she set the bowl down before surveying the other ingredients, unsure what she wanted to add next.

“Aww, no anchovies,” a disappointed-sounding voice said. “You know they were my favourite.”

Misty gasped and looked around desperately for the source of the voice. She looked back at her friends, but they suddenly seemed to be moving in slow motion. Then the whole room started turning grey as though the colour was draining out of it. Her eyes widened in horror as everything started feeling oddly distant, “W...What’s happening?!”

“Aww, poor little Misty is all alone. Just like when we met!”

Misty gasped in horror as she finally recognised the voice. “O...Opaline!”

“You’ve only just remembered me? I’m shocked! How could you forget me so quickly after all I did for you.”

“You did nothing for me!” Misty shouted crossly. “You’re not really here.”

“What do you mean?” Opaline’s voice said sweetly. “I rescued you. I took care of you. I raised you.”

Misty’s eyes narrowed. “NO!" she yelled as she stamped a hoof on the floor. "You didn’t rescue me. You abducted me! You never cared for me. You used me!”

“I never used you, Misty. You never let me, you never got anything right! You’re a failure!”

Misty's eyes widened in horror. “W...What. N....No....I...”

“You’re useless, Misty. You can’t get anything right. Even the simplest thing! You're USELESS!”

Misty cowered as she desperately gasped for air, her eyes wide in horror.

“You can’t get anything right, Misty. You’re a failure. A screw-up!”

“No! No, I’m not!” Misty gasped as she desperately looked towards her friends for support.

However, they continued to move in slow motion as they laughed and joked happily together. Seemingly completely unaware of Misty’s plight.

“You don’t belong with them.”

Misty gasped again before anger slowly started building inside her and she narrowed her eyes with determination. “Yes. I. DO!” She shouted. “They’re my friends! They believe in me!”

“I believe in you too, Misty,” another voice said softly.

Misty gasped as she recognised the voice and looked around desperately. “Feather Breeze?”

“No! She doesn’t believe in you. Nopony does!” Opaline’s voice yelled desperately.

“Yes, I do,” Feather Breeze said as she suddenly within a halo of light.

“Feather Breeze,” Misty gasped. “I...Is that really you?”

“NO! NO, IT’S NOT!” Opaline’s voice roared.

“It is and it isn’t, but that isn’t important,” Feather Breeze smiled. “You saved me, Misty. Now, I’ll save you. Take my hoof, come back to us.”

Misty blinked with confusion; she didn’t understand. However, she walked towards Feather Breeze’s outstretched hoof.

“NO!” Opaline’s voice yelled desperately. “You’re a screw-up, Misty! You’re useless! You can’t get anything right!”

“You’re not real,” Misty said calmly. “And neither is any of this.”

Feather Breeze smiled and nodded as Misty took her hoof.

A blinding light suddenly emitted from their hoofs, engulfing them both. Then, Misty’s world went black.

Chapter Thirty-Three – Awakening

Sometime the following day.

Inside her icy prison, Sugar had lost all track of time.

All she could hear was a continual echoing sound that amplified her breathing. She couldn’t see either, having closed her eyes against the winds as they buffeted her.

Her entire body was stuck fast, she couldn’t even wiggle and had long since given up trying. At least having had the experience previously, she’d held her breath when Allura froze her. It meant she at least had room within which to breathe.

Initially, she’d been scared, however, the ice was nowhere near as cold as she expected. It was not even as cold as the grey ice Allura had used before. Eventually, Allura had added a second tube to her rear and that had alleviated another major worry.

Therefore, a strange sense of calm slowly overcame her. With nothing else to do, her mind had begun to wander. Would Sunny sink into another depression now she was alone? Did Allura think Giselle was the Griffon she was looking for? Was Giselle even okay in her icy prison? Would Allura ever leave her alone or would she be forced to reveal all?

Suddenly, she thought about Lily and Rosedust. Where were they? How were they doing? She started thinking about their friendship, had it really all been a lie?

Memory after memory of the good times they’d all shared flashed in her mind’s eye. They were laughing whilst enjoying milkshakes. Posing for selfies as they grew their social media following. They were going to see movies together.

Then, Lily appeared before her and the last words she’d said filled her mind. “But you’ve been a great friend, Sugar. I honestly really like you and I’m sorry I can’t help you. If our friendship ends here, I’ll understand.”

She couldn’t help wondering, that maybe their friendship wasn’t completely dead after all.

Deep inside her, a spark of hope suddenly ignited. If she could reconnect and reconcile with Sunny after all this time, she surely should be able to reconnect with Lily. Maybe even Rosedust if she really tried.

Despite a small part of her mind trying to say it was silly, she ignored it as she tried to work out how to rekindle her lost friendships.

Elsewhere, another pony was also lost inside their mind.

However, Misty was lost because her mind was filled with inky black darkness. Suddenly, there was a flash, and the darkness slowly began to move and shift as though it was fog. A fog that slowly receded to let in the light.

She groaned as feeling and sensation started to return. She could barely breathe, her windpipe and chest felt tight and restricted.

As the brain fog continued to clear, she noticed there was a smell tickling her nostrils. It was strange, it sort of stung and soothed them at the same time.

She took a deep wheezing breath and instantly regretted it. The stinging sensation shot up her nose and down her windpipe into her lungs. However, the soothing sensation quickly followed. Numbing the pain and somehow making it easier to breathe.

From that point, each breath she took was followed by the same. A stinging, quickly followed up by a soothing sensation. Slowly, she found that breathing got easier and easier.

Eventually, the black brain fog cleared, and she groaned as she slowly tried opening her eyes. However, once again, she immediately regretted her actions. Her eyes were filled with bright light, making them sting, forcing her to close them again.

She coughed and wheezed, shifting slightly and finally realised she was lying in a bed with a set of soft covers pulled over her. A feeling of confusion rushed through her; she couldn’t remember going to bed.

Suddenly, she remembered the watchtower and the fire, and a raft of desperate questions filled her mind. Where was she? Was she hurt? Did her friends know where she was? Did they know what had happened?

Grunting, she tentatively tried opening her eyes again, only to find the light still stung them. However, she was desperate to know where she was and began blinking it away.

As her surroundings finally came into focus, a feeling of relief washed over her. She was in the cockpit of the Marestream, lying on her camp bed just in front of the main console.

All around her were saucers, cups, pots, pans, anything that wouldn’t burn easily. From all of them, there were trails of fine grey smoke which wafted lazily upwards and filled the room.

Wheezing, she looked to one side and spotted Feather Breeze. She was sat with her hind legs crossed and her forehoofs pressed together in a praying position. Her eyes were closed as she breathed deeply whilst her horn was glowing.

From her horn, a magical aura rose and mixed with the fine smoke. Swirling it around and around the cockpit.

Misty gasped in awe at how peaceful it looked and instantly regretted it. She coughed and coughed as her lungs began to burn, sitting up as she struggled to breathe.

Hearing her, Feather Breeze’s eyes shot open. Seeing Misty was awake she began redirecting the smoke with her magic. “Breathe the aromatic smoke, Misty. It will help.”

Misty gasped again as the aromatic smoke wrapped around her head. She couldn’t stop coughing and, despite Feather Breeze’s assurance, her eyes widened as she inhaled a concentrated dose.

However, the burning sensation in her lungs lessened as it was soothed by the magical smoke. Almost immediately she finally stopped coughing and breathing got a lot easier.

“That’s it, Misty,” Feather Breeze soothed. “Breathe it in deeply. It will help.”

Misty nodded as she sat in the bed, doing as Feather Breeze instructed. She closed her eyes as she alternated between breathing deeply in through her nose and mouth.

Slowly, she found breathing got easier and easier. Eventually, she picked up the courage to try speaking.

“W...Wh...What...” she croaked hoarsely before another coughing fit overcame her.

“It’s okay. It’s okay, Misty,” Feather Breeze reassured as she made the aromatic smoke gather thicker again. “You’ll likely have many questions but try not to talk now. Lay down and let the healing process continue. Trust me, I’ve been where you are. You have to take it slowly.”

Misty grunted as she lay back in the bed. She trusted Feather Breeze but her mind was racing, what had happened? All she could remember last was the burning watchtower and being trapped inside it.

She breathed deeply again, letting the aromatic smoke do its work. Then, she looked over to one side and spotted her phone resting on the console.

Grunting, she reached out and grabbed it. Unlocking it, she felt some relief that she hadn’t cracked the screen again. Surprisingly it had plenty of battery, so she opened an app and started tapping away.

Feather Breeze frowned with confusion. She had no idea what Misty was doing.

She gasped as Misty held up the phone and a robotic voice started speaking. “Feather Breeze, thank you. Please, what happened? How did I get back here?”

Feather Breeze blinked with confusion. She looked at Misty quizzically as Misty waved her phone and pointed at herself.

“T...That’s you making that voice somehow?”

Misty nodded and pointed to her phone.

Feather Breeze sighed as she shook her head. “I’m not used to these phone things of yours. Okay, the first most of us knew was when Hitch came struggling into camp with you on his back.

“He said sometime after you left with Izzy the tower caught on fire. You suddenly appeared in the hide, covered in black soot and barely breathing.”

Misty blinked before frowning. She closed her eyes and grimaced before tapping into her phone again.

After a few moments, the robotic voice said, “I remember appearing inside the tower and finding it on fire. I can’t remember escaping though. Does Hitch know how?”

Feather Breeze shook her head. “He said there was a flash behind him and when he turned around you were lying on the floor.

He couldn’t wake you, so struggled all the way back with you laid on his back. I realised what had happened as soon as he mentioned the tower being on fire. So, I started my treatment right away for you.”

Misty gave a small smile and began tapping again, “And that’s what all this smoke is?”

Feather Breeze smiled. “Yes, this is a treatment for smoke inhalation that my kind has been developing for generations. When you turn into fiery monsters when you get angry, you soon learn how to deal with the after-effects of fires.

“Since we arrived, I’ve been foraging for the required ingredients, just in case.” She gestured around the cockpit with a chuckle. “We had to improvise with the burning holders though. Now, don’t forget to keep breathing deeply for me.”

Misty nodded and took another deep breath through her nose. Then with a look of concern, she began tapping away on her phone again, “I assume our cover is blown now. I’ve messed up enough times. I’m such a screw-up.”

Feather Breeze shook her head. “No, you are not a screw-up, Misty. None of this is your fault. You had no way of knowing the tower was on fire.”

Misty frowned as she tapped away again. “But I should have gone to the hide to check before going to the tower.”

“Probably,” Feather Breeze sighed. “But you made the decision based on the information you had. Zipp was quite insistent about the urgency. Many would have done the same.”

Misty nodded before taking another deep breath through her mouth. However, her eyes widened as her throat stung and she began coughing. Then, her lungs felt like they were on fire as the coughs got more and more forceful.

Despite Misty’s violent coughing, Feather Breeze didn’t look at all concerned. She helped her rise into a seating position before holding a pan under Misty’s mouth with her magic.

Misty closed her eyes as the coughing got increasingly violent. Suddenly she began coughing up a watery black liquid which Feather Breeze caught in the pan.

As quickly as it had started, the coughing stopped, and Misty sat panting with her eyes closed. Before she could see the contents of the pan, Feather Breeze removed it and set it well out of the way.

Eventually, Misty took a deep breath and sighed, suddenly feeling a whole lot better. She opened her eyes and looked at Feather Breeze who smiled back at her. “So, how do you feel, Misty?”

Misty reached for her phone which lay on the covers. However, Feather Breeze held a hoof out to stop her. “No, no. With your own voice now.”

Misty took a few deep breaths, as though she were checking before she couldn’t help grinning. “A whole lot better. Breathing doesn’t sting anymore.”

Feather Breeze smiled. “Then this stage of your recovery is complete. However, your lungs are still nowhere near healed. Don’t push yourself or you’ll undo it all. Trust me.”

“I do still feel a bit breathless,” Misty frowned thoughtfully before a look of concern spread across her face. “You said you’ve been where I am, does that mean you got hurt?"

Feather Breeze nodded. “Yes, Spring Flare and I, we both did.” She closed her eyes and sighed. “When we were young, we built ourselves a hide. We found the biggest tree we could and then hollowed out the inside. We loved that hide so much, we spent hours and hours there. Then, one morning we were playing at the hide when we got into an argument.”

Misty gasped. “And you turned into Nirik!”

Feather Breeze let out a deep regretful sigh and nodded slowly. “We did, it was one of the first times our parents weren’t nearby. So, we didn’t know how to control our flames.” She paused as she sighed again. “Before we knew what was happening the tree was on fire. Our anger quickly vanished and so with it did our Nirik forms. We managed to escape the flames but were overcome by the smoke and if it hadn’t been for Summer Bloom, we would have perished. When I woke up, Winters Breath was tending to us both like I have you.”

“And the tree?”

“Became ash. For every young Kirin, learning how to control our flames is important. Also learning how to hold back our Nirik form when needed.”

“But why not stop yourselves from turning into Nirik altogether?” Misty frowned. “There must be a way.”

“That is easier said than done,” Feather Breeze chuckled. “We’ve found that learning to live with our Nirik forms is the best way. In our village, there are specific areas for us to use when we need some time as Nirik. We hold it back until we’re in one of those areas.” She chuckled again shaking her head. “Of course, the resulting release of anger and emotions is often far bigger than it would have otherwise been. You’ve witnessed that.”

Misty nodded understandingly before smiling gratefully. “Thank You, Feather Breeze. Thank you for caring for me.”

“It’s not a problem. Just remember, you need to take it nice and easy for now.”

“No more Sneaky Misty then,” Misty sighed before her eyes widened. “Wait! How long has it been?”

“It’s been a couple of days.” Feather Breeze answered before thinking.

Misty’s eyes widened in horror, and she immediately started trying to get up. Feather Breeze gasped and quickly moved to block Misty’s progression. “Please, Misty, no,” she said worriedly. “You’re in no condition. You have to rest.”

“B...But I’ve held everypony up,” Misty gasped desperately as she panted for air. “Zipp could be back in Equestria by now! But she’s not because I’ve been lying here in her cockpit.”

Calmly, Feather Breeze took Misty’s hoofs in her own. She held them comfortingly as she looked Misty in the eye. “You needed to be in here so my aromatherapy magic would work. Zipp’s more concerned about you, just like everypony else.”

Misty sighed as she settled back into the bed.

“Thank you, Misty. Take deep breaths again,” Feather Breeze instructed as she got back into her meditation position.

Misty nodded, taking deep breaths of the aromatic smoke whilst Feather Breeze's horn glowed. Her magic mixed with the smoke again and directed it towards Misty.

However, as she continued to take deep breaths, Misty sat scowling downwards clearly not at all happy.

After a while, Feather Breeze couldn’t help sighing. She knew there was only one way that she would cheer Misty up. “Okay, Misty, come on. Let’s go and see what everypony is up to. Then you’ll see they’re more worried about you than anything else.”

Misty’s mood perked up immediately. “O...Okay,” she smiled gratefully as started carefully getting up.

Outside the Marestream, Pipp, Hitch and Izzy were busy pitching large brown tents. However, it seemed Izzy’s definition of pitching a tent was adding her creative touch to the two that were already up.

Her cutie mark was glowing brightly as seemingly hundreds of leaves, twigs and various other items from the forest floated around in her levitation. She was singing to herself as she attached them to the tents.

🎶“This goes here, and that goes there.
But now they’re all upside down!
So they'll all come off and turn around.
Now Misty’s smile won’t be a frown!”🎶

Meanwhile, Pipp and Hitch were struggling to pitch the third tent. Pipp grunted as she held a guy line between her teeth. Pulling as hard as she could whilst Hitch tried desperately to hammer the tent peg in.

“Remind me, why didn’t we do this before?” Pipp grunted through her clenched teeth. “Then I'd not be doing it now!”

“I dunno,” Hitch smirked. “You set up the camp.”

“Oh, yeah,” Pipp mumbled as she scowled. “Well, hurry up already! My teeth are going to pop out and I need them to sing… and to smile… and to talk… oh, and to eat!”

Hitch couldn’t help chuckling. “Interesting it’s in that order.”

“IZ!” Pipp groaned. “Come help, please!”

“In a minute,” Izzy sang absently as she waived a hoof.

“It’s okay, Pipp,” Hitch smiled as he kept hammering. “I'm glad we managed to get Izzy out of her funk, let her be creative. I’ve got this.”

However, he suddenly let out a howl of pain as the hammer missed the tent peg and hit his hoof, bending the peg over in the process.

“Oh, that smarts!” he gasped as he waved his hoof up and down.

“Urm, could we maybe not have another invalid to go along with me?” a voice said.

“MISTY!” Izzy squealed happily as she spotted her standing by the door with Feather Breeze.

Misty squeaked as Izzy suddenly dropped everything she’d been holding in her magic and started galloping towards her. However, Feather Breeze was ready and grabbed Izzy in her levitation, lifting her from the floor before she could hit Misty with a full-force hug.

Izzy squeaked in surprise, her legs flailing as she reached out desperately to hug Misty.

“Not so fast,” Feather Breeze frowned. “Misty is at a very delicate stage of her recovery. You can hug her, Izzy, but please be gentle.”

Immediately, Izzy froze and smiled happily. “Oh, okay. A soft hug it is!”

With a nod from Misty, Feather Breeze returned Izzy’s hoofs to the ground. In response, Izzy was as good as her word. She beamed as she carefully put her hoofs around Misty and hugged her gratefully. “I’m so glad you’re okay. I was so worried, and it wasn’t even your fault.”

Misty sighed carefully, “Are you sure? I just feel like such a screw-up.”

Misty turned and found Hitch was next in line to hug her, having quickly forgotten his smarting hoof and the tent. “We’re sure and you’re no screw-up, Misty,” he reassured. “I’m glad you’re okay.”

“Thanks for helping me back here, Hitch.” Misty sighed as she returned his hug. “But I am a screw-up. I’ve put everything in jeopardy so many times now.” She sighed again as they broke off the hug and looked down forlornly. “I should have gone back to the hide before going to the tower.”

"Somepony? Anypony? HELP!”

Hearing Pipp's voice, they all gasped as they looked towards the tent. She was still holding onto the guy line, her eyes closed as she strained with effort. However, her hoofs kept slipping as she desperately tried to keep the tent from falling. “P…Please, somepony!” she wailed again through her clenched teeth as she desperately flapped her wings. “HITCH! IZ! ANYPONY!”

Hitch gasped in shock and dismay, “Oh shoot, Pipp! I completely forgot!”

He was about to hurry back to her, but Izzy skipped forward and intervened. Her horn glowed and the bent tent peg was wrenched from the ground. A replacement floated out of a nearby pile and jammed itself in the ground before the guy line finally tied itself off around it.

“You can let go now, Pipp,” Izzy beamed. “Izzy to the rescue!”

Gasping with relief, Pipp let go of the guy line carefully and eyed it suspiciously as she stepped away from it. It was clear she had been on the receiving end of others that had given way that day. “Th...Thanks, Iz,” she gasped. “Could you maybe help with putting up the last tent before you decorate this one? I am so going to need a hooficure after this!”

“Oh, I thought they were all done already,” Izzy blinked before looking towards the last tent and smiling broadly. “Sorry, I’ll totally help with the last one.”

As Izzy happily trotted towards the last tent, Pipp couldn’t help sighing and shaking her head. She fluttered over to Misty and ensured she was third in line to carefully hug her. “Aww, Misty. I’m so glad you’re up and about already. I was so worried it would take weeks. Well done, Feather Breeze.”

“It’s nothing really,” Feather Breeze smiled. “Every Kirin learns how to treat the effects of fire. Like I said to Misty, it’s a treatment that has been developed by generations of Kirin. Some say they even see visions of those giving the treatment before they wake up.”

Misty couldn’t help sighing. “I...I just feel like a complete screw-up.”

“Misty, you’re not,” Pipp gasped as she rubbed Misty’s back reassuringly.

“I told you, you were just unlucky,” Feather Breeze added.

“Yeah, there’s no reason why you’d have done anything differently,” Hitch smiled reassuringly.

Misty looked down sadly as she broke off the hug, clearly not feeling the same way.

“Hey, don’t do that to yourself,” Pipp gasped. “What would Sunny say?”

Misty sighed knowingly. “The same as you?”

“Exactly,” Pipp smiled reassuringly. “So please stop beating yourself up and concentrate on getting better.”

“We’ve listened to the recording from Sunny by the way,” Hitch smiled.

“Ooh! Yas!” Pipp grinned. “She sounds way more upbeat than I would be locked up like that.”

Hitch couldn’t help groaning. “With what’s going on, I don’t know how upbeat she’ll be now.”

“Wait, what?” Misty blinked.

“Oh,” Hitch gasped. “Err... It…It doesn’t matter. Like Pipp said, you need to get better.”

Misty said nothing, but she frowned pointedly at Hitch as her breathing slowly got more laboured.

“Hitch, please, fill both of us in,” Feather Breeze requested. “It’ll only make Misty worry if you don’t.”

Pipp shook her head, “Yeah, you’ve put your hoof in it there.”

Hitch sighed. "Yeah, okay. Well, it all kicked off yesterday morning..."

Hitch reluctantly explained how Allura had gathered all the creatures and set about searching for a Hippogriff and Griffon. That she'd reduced the creature’s food and water supplies until she’d found them. Then, he mentioned how Giselle had shouted out and Allura had blamed Sugar before freezing both of them in ice.

When he’d finished, Misty groaned and shook her head. “Poor Giselle and Sugar, we have to get them out of there, all of them,” she said resolutely. “I…I need to get better.”

“Then you need to rest,” Feather Breeze recommended.

“Y…Yeah,” Misty panted. “I…I just remembered something though.”

Pipp frowned as Misty waved her closer before whispering in her ear. She couldn’t help beaming and clapping her hoofs in excitement. “Oooh! Yas, we can totally do something like that!”

“Wait, what?” Hitch blinked.

“Shush you,” Pipp frowned waving a hoof. “This is between me and Sunny via Misty. Besides, you left me hanging on a guy line!”

“Sorry, Pipp,” Hitch sighed. “Let’s give Izzy a hoof and get the last one done together.”

“Yeah,” Misty wheezed as she pointed with a hoof. “You…You won’t need to.”

They all looked in surprise at where Misty was pointing. Izzy stood beaming in front of the tent she’d just put up all on her own. “Finished!” she beamed. “Now to make this place sparkle!”

Pipp and Hitch could only blink in shock and dismay.

“It took us five times as long to just put one up,” Hitch gasped.

Misty couldn’t help chuckling, but the chuckles quickly gave way to wheezing coughs.

“Okay, Misty. You need to go and lay down and rest,” Feather Breeze instructed firmly as she held her steady and rubbed her back. “I told you; you need to take it carefully.”

Misty nodded as the coughing subsided, continuing to wheeze. “O…Okay,” she rasped. “H…How…”

“How long?” Feather Breeze guessed. “That will depend on you. You must take it carefully and keep resting. Today you need to stay within the smoke but tomorrow you’ll be fine to sit or lay anywhere.”

“Wait, so you won’t need the Marestream tomorrow?” Hitch gasped.

“As long as she rests,” Feather Breeze nodded.

“O…Okay,” Misty coughed. “G…Going to rest now... P…Possibly even a nap. Z...Zipp needs the Marestream. I...I can’t keep everycreature w...waiting a...anymore.”

“Well, I’m going to start preparing a stew,” Feather Breeze winked. “So don’t sleep too long. I’ll make sure you get some.”

Misty smiled and nodded before heading back to the cockpit.

“Feather Breeze,” Izzy smiled as tears gathered in the corners of her eyes. “Thank you. Thank you so much.”

Feather Breeze shook her head and waved a hoof, “It’s nothing.”

“No. No, it’s not nothing,” Izzy insisted. “I lost my parents in a fire. I couldn’t bear losing Misty to one too. Thank you. Thank you for saving her.”

Feather Breeze gasped as Izzy pulled her into a grateful hug. She couldn’t help smiling as she returned it.

As they eventually broke off the hug, Feather Breeze smiled knowingly. “You’re welcome, Izzy. Now, I’d better get started on that stew.”

“And whilst you do that, I’m going to go and let Zipp know,” Hitch smiled. “She’ll want to make arrangements if she’s going to leave tomorrow.”

Chapter Thirty-Four – Recovering Reunions

Zipp carefully entered the Marestream, feeling hopeful. She paused at the cockpit door, remembering to knock before opening it.

The aromatic smoke stung her eyes and throat as she entered, and she started coughing. Once she recovered, she gasped as she noticed Misty was still lying in bed, and she was worried that she had woken her.

However, Misty smiled happily back at her. “Hey, Zipp. I’m sorry for the trouble I’ve caused.”

“Hey, Misty,” Zipp smiled knowingly as she shook her head. “Look, there’s no need for that, yeah? You haven’t caused any trouble. I’m really glad you’re going to be okay.”

Still smiling, Misty carefully sat up and held out her hoofs for a hug. Initially, Zipp hesitated but leaned in and gratefully hugged Misty back carefully.

After a short hug, Misty smiled expectantly. “So, what’s the plan?”

“Straight down to business then,” Zipp smirked. “Well, I’ve checked with Feather Breeze. Tomorrow, I’m heading back to Equestria. I’ll get the overload devices designed and manufactured.”

“As long as I rest now,” Misty nodded.

“Yeah, but I kind of need you to do something,” Zipp grimaced, feeling she was asking more than she should.

However, Misty’s eyes widened hopefully, “Do what? I’ll help any way I can.”

“Message Strawberry,” Zipp replied seriously. “Tell her we’re coming and that we need Mom to requisition Cloudstrike Industries. Specifically, their development lab.”

“Oh?” Misty groaned before breathing the aromatic smoke deeply. “I...I’ll try,” she added worriedly.

“I checked with Feather Breeze,” Zipp reassured as she placed a hoof on Misty’s shoulder. “She said you’ll be fine to use your magic.”

“It’s not that,” Misty sighed as she shook her head. “I...I need to rest but...”

“You’re worried she’ll have lots of questions,” Zipp realised. “Don’t worry, I’ll stay and help, make sure you’re not drawn into a huge conversation.”

“Okay,” Misty smiled before she took another deep breath of the smoke. Then her horn glowed as she began the spell.

A short time later, Feather Breeze couldn’t help grinning as Zipp and Misty emerged from the Marestream. “Oh good. I was about to send somepony to come and get you, the stew is ready.”

Misty grinned excitedly as she eagerly watched Feather Breeze ladle a large portion into a bowl. "Yay," she beamed as she accepted the bowl. "I hadn't realized how hungry I was."

“Well, you have been asleep for over two days,” Zipp chuckled as she poked Misty in the shoulder playfully.

Misty froze just as she was about to put the first spoonful of stew in her mouth. Gasping, her eyes widened, and she looked at Feather Breeze in horror. “Wait, you didn’t make this just for me, did you?”

“Don’t worry, Misty,” Feather Breeze smiled knowingly as she passed Zipp a full bowl. “I made it because I wanted to. But I knew you’d appreciate it.”

“We all do,” Zipp winked before heading to sit down. “Come on, let’s relax and enjoy this.”

One by one, the others each came over and gratefully accepted a bowl of stew from Feather Breeze. She smiled as she finally took a portion for herself and headed towards the campfire seating area.

As she sat down, she looked around the gathered ponies happily. “I...I want to say thank you,” she sighed. “Thank you for accepting me.”

As the others looked at each other in surprise, Pipp gasped and asked, "What's brought this on?"

“Yeah, why wouldn’t we accept you?” Izzy blinked worriedly.

Feather Breeze took a deep breath and sighed, “Because when we met, I was the evil creature that was stealing away your friends.”

“But you weren’t,” Pipp reasoned. “When you woke up, you were scared and confused. I was confident you weren’t a threat.”

Feather Breeze gave a small smile. “Exactly, you immediately listened to me, Pipp. You all did.”

“But that’s because you helped,” Hitch argued.

“Yeah, you answered our questions without hesitation,” Zipp added. “We wouldn’t have found the Airship without your help.”

“And you’re still helping,” Izzy grinned excitedly. “You’re doing everything you can to help.”

“I know and I want to keep helping,” Feather Breeze sighed as she closed her eyes, sighing again before looking seriously at Zipp. “When you leave tomorrow, I’m coming with you. Making an overload device is one thing but you will need to test it. You need a willing test subject.”

Pipp’s eyes widened in horror as she nearly choked on a spoonful of stew. Coughing, she banged a hoof on her chest as she forced it down the correct way.

Finally, she looked at Feather Breeze in panic as she gasped for breath. “NO! You are not going to be a live test subject! Tell her, Sis!”

Pipp looked towards Zipp for support but gasped in surprise at her sister’s thoughtful face. “Sis?” she said slowly. “Zipp? You’re not seriously considering...”

Zipp sighed as she looked at Pipp calmly. “I...I don’t like it either,” she admitted before turning towards Feather Breeze. “But it would make sure that the solution works.”

Pipp harrumphed as she crossed her forelegs, looking away from her sister in disgust.

“Pipp,” Feather Breeze sighed. “Please, I have to.”

“Why?” Pipp spat. “You’ve put yourself at risk so much already.”

Feather Breeze sighed again as she looked down sorrowfully. “For Spring Flare, for my family, for all the Kirin and other creatures.”

Izzy gasped, putting her bowl down and moving to put her hoofs around Pipp’s shoulders. “For Sunny.”

“We’d all do the same, Pipp,” Hitch pointed out.

“Yeah,” Zipp sighed as she shook her head. “I’d totally do everything I could to help you, Sis. For any of you.”

Feather Breeze grimaced as she shook her head. “Each night, I…I feel the weight of helping them on my back. That it’s my responsibility and there’s nopony else who can help them. I…I know that’s not right, but I still have this burning desire to help them in any way I can.”

Pipp gulped as she looked out into the forest with a pained expression on her face. She closed her eyes, gritting her teeth in pain and worry.

Eventually, she took a deep breath and turned back towards Feather Breeze. “You’re right,” she sighed. “I’ve no place trying to stop you, Feather Breeze. I want to do everything I can as well, so I’m coming too.”

“How will you help by coming?” Zipp frowned with confusion before gasping as her eyes widened in realisation. “You just want a signal, don’t you!”

“No!” Pipp cried hotly as she scowled back at her sister. “If Feather Breeze is going, she’ll need to meet Mum. Plus, I want to be there for her if you’re going to use her as a test subject.”

Hitch shrugged. “Well, there isn’t really anything Pipp can do if she stays here.”

Izzy beamed as she rubbed Pipp on the shoulder reassuringly, “Yeah, I’ll look after Misty.”

“And I’ll watch the Quarry,” Hitch winked.

“Okay, okay,” Zipp sighed as she put her hoofs up in defence. “I’m sorry, Sis. You’re right, if you come too then you can look after Feather Breeze. Plus it will help with the whole Queen of the Hippogriff’s being in Equestria thing too.”

Pipp smiled as she patted Izzy on the hoof gratefully. She got up and moved over to Zipp, putting a grateful hoof around her. “It’s settled then, thanks, Sis.”

“Err, can I ask something?”

Everypony looked towards Misty as she licked her bowl clean. “When you come back, could you bring Strawberry with you?”

Hitch’s eyes widened. “What? Seriously?”

He gasped in shock as Misty shot him a scathing glare.

“Misty,” Zipp sighed as she shook her head. “I’m kind of with Hitch. She wasn’t exactly much help before.”

“Yeah, she was just arrogant and let herself get caught,” Pipp frowned unsurely. “We don’t want her getting in trouble.”

“We should give her a chance,” Izzy argued. “I bet she feels awful.”

Misty closed her eyes and sighed before looking down sorrowfully. "I…I know she didn't do that well," she said, pausing for breath. "B…But if you get these devices made... W…Who's going to fit them?"

Zipp’s eyes blinked in shock. As she looked at Misty, a worried expression crept onto her face.

“E…Exactly,” Misty panted. “I…I might not be... be...”

“Misty,” Hitch gasped worriedly. “It’s okay, we get it.”

Zipp let out a deep sigh. “I’ll speak to her,” she offered.

“T…Thanks, Zipp,” Misty said, smiling as she held her empty bowl out to Feather Breeze. “C…Could I have seconds?”

“Of course, Misty,” Feather Breeze smiled as she took the bowl in her magic and got up to refill it.

However, Izzy's expression was one of concern and worry as she gazed at Misty. "You sound really bad. Maybe you should go back to the cockpit?"

Misty smiled and nodded in response before gratefully taking the refilled bowl. Then, panting and wheezing, she gave her friends a reassuring smile before heading back inside the Marestream.

After she vanished, Izzy remained motionless, her face showing concern and worry as she gazed at the door.

“Izzy,” Feather Breeze sighed as she put a hoof around her comfortingly. “Trust me, she’ll be fine. She’s doing very well.”

“Are you sure? Like really, really sure?” Izzy blinked unsurely. "Her breathing sounded so bad."

“I am, she’ll make another step forward overnight,” Feather Breeze reassured. “I’ll make sure of it.”

“But will she be ready for when we get back?” Pipp sighed.

“That will remain to be seen,” Feather Breeze admitted sadly. “It depends on how much she rests.”

As they enjoyed the last spoonfuls of stew, their expressions shifted to concern. Eventually, each of them turned to gaze worriedly at the cockpit.

Elsewhere, Sunny was stood waiting for her cart to be unloaded. She grunted as she lifted a hind hoof and wiggled it around, scowling in annoyance at the sound of chains rattling.

That morning, the Nirik had fastened a new pair of shackles around her hind hoofs. On their own, they weren’t much of an issue. However, an additional connecting chain had also been added.

First, it was linked to the pairs of shackles, connecting them. It then ran up to her bridle, connecting beneath her chin. This restricted her movement, if she lifted her head too high, the chains became taut, making walking nearly impossible.

She furrowed her brow in confusion; it made no sense. She didn’t understand why she had suddenly been fitted with these extra restraints. They only slowed her down, restricting the number of trips she could make with her cart.

Absently, she lifted her hind hoof and wiggled it around again as she continued to wait.

By the time the cart was empty, three Nirik had arrived and were waiting for her. With a nod of acceptance, Sunny waited for them to attach their escort chains to her bridle before they started leading her away.

It wasn’t long before they had deposited her cart and arrived back at her hut. However, Sunny blinked with surprise and confusion as they reached the door, it was closed.

She had never seen the door being opened from this side before and watched with interest as one of the Nirik approached. It opened a panel in the door and revealed a pad, which it pressed and held with a hoof.

Panels opened on either side of the door and revealed another pair of identical pads. As they were outside the first Nirik’s reach, the two remaining Nirik moved towards these pads and pressed them.

A loud clunk surprised Sunny, making her jump. She looked around worriedly before she shook her head with relief. It was only the door starting its unlocking sequence.

Eventually, as she was brought inside, Sunny gasped at what she found.

Sugar was asleep in her cage, her sides rising and falling peacefully as she lay on the mat. Her hind hooves twitched, making the new shackles around them jingle. She’d also been fitted with a connecting chain like Sunny’s, running from her bridle down to her forehoof shackles and then to those around her hindhoofs.

A feeling of relief washed over Sunny, and she couldn’t help grinning. She had been so worried about Sugar, and it felt like a huge weight had just been lifted from her. However, as she was brought into her cage, she suddenly noticed Sugar wasn’t the hut’s only occupant.

In the cage next to hers, nearest the door, Giselle was lying on the mat.

She had a muzzle locked over her beak, connected to a bridle. Pairs of rigid shackles were also locked around her claws and paws, a chain connecting them together. Meanwhile, her wings were also restrained by a set of straps.

Sunny frowned. She wasn’t sure if she was asleep. Her breathing sounded raspy, but it was hard to tell if that was because of the muzzle or something else.

It wasn’t long until the Nirik left, and Sunny gasped and grinned with excitement. However, she wasn't sure who she was most worried about. Her head darted back and forth as she looked between Sugar and Giselle with wide eyes.

Suddenly, a beeping sound made her jump. She cried out in surprise and skittered backwards in shock. Her hind hoofs got all caught up in the shackles and chains, tripping her up and making her fall. She landed on her bottom, but momentum made her head and forelegs carry on, causing her to flip over herself.

She landed with an ‘oof’ on her back, and she lay on the ground groaning and shaking her head slightly. Then, her ear twitched as she heard something being dispensed in the bowls above her head.

Looking up at them, she gasped, her food bowl was being filled with something white and granular, like rice. Quickly picking herself up, she looked disbelievingly at the bowl. Sure enough, it was full of hot, steaming rice. Blinking in disbelief, she glanced toward the bowls in Sugar and Giselle’s cages; they were filled with the same thing.

Tentatively, she picked up a small amount in her mouth and swirled it around to confirm before chewing. Her eyes widened in surprise as she did so; it was definitely rice, and it tasted delicious.

As she swallowed, Sunny’s ear twitched as she heard grunting. Looking over, she smiled as she saw Sugar was awake and slowly rising from the mat.

“S...Sunny?” Sugar grunted as she rubbed an eye with a hoof. “I…Is that you?”

“Yeah, I’m here,” Sunny grinned. “Sugar, our food. It’s not the normal slop, it’s rice!”

Sugar groaned as she turned to look blearily at her bowl. Seeing the rice, her eyes widened slightly. Then, without another word, she struggled to her hoofs and towards the bowls. Seemingly fixated on the food.

Sunny gasped. It was only then that she realized how exhausted Sugar looked. Worriedly, she glanced back towards Giselle. Although her eyes were open, she didn't seem awake. She looked at Sunny through half-closed eyes, as if she had no clue where she was.

“Giselle?” Sunny breathed as she pointed towards the bowls. “Come on, food.”

Giselle grunted, as her stomach made a grumbling sound. She groaned as she slowly rose to her claws and looked towards the bowls drowsily.

“That’s it,” Sunny coaxed. “It’s food. You must need food.”

Giselle grunted again, looking at Sunny with confusion.

Sunny blinked before gasping understandingly. She looked towards the port between the bowls and smiled. “The port, Giselle,” she pointed with a hoof. “The light above it is green. You can get the muzzle off.”

Giselle blinked and grunted again as she shook her head, as though she were shaking out the cobwebs. Scowling, she finally struggled to her feet and awkwardly moved towards the port.

When she arrived, she didn’t need any further instruction. She pushed the muzzle in and after a few moments pulled her beak free. She gave Sunny a weak, thankful smile before she began eating.

Sunny beamed as she looked between her two friends before gasping and looking at her bowl. The rice looked a whole lot more appealing than their normal food and she quickly began tucking in.

Her mind was racing with questions to ask Sugar and Giselle, but she knew they needed food so didn’t interrupt. The rice was too good anyway and she wanted to finish it before it could go cold.

Eventually, Giselle grunted as her muzzle began buzzing. Sunny looked over worriedly, but Giselle seemingly knew what that meant and pushed her beak back into the muzzle.

With it locked back in place, she groaned as she left what remained of her food and water and headed back towards the mat. Groaning again as she lay down and promptly fell asleep.

Meanwhile, it took ages for Sugar to finish. After doing so, she moved back towards her mat as well. Laying down awkwardly, she let out a sigh of relief as she got as comfortable as she could.

“Sugar?” Sunny gasped worriedly. “Are you…”

“As good as I can be,” Sugar interrupted with a small smile. “I ache all over. R…Really tired too.”

Sunny moved closer to the bars, grimacing as her chains clattered off the floor. “Have you both been stuck in the ice since yesterday morning?”

Sugar groaned as she shifted on the mat. “Yeah, we have. I….I really needed that food.”

Sunny frowned as she looked down in thought, her ears drooping. “You should rest. I’ll save my questions for later. I’m just glad she’s not done something else to you. To either of you.”

Sugar groaned as she closed her eyes. “Twitch… I…I think he spoke to Allura. He looked concerned when she freed us. C…Checked us over and everything.”

Sunny looked away and sighed, she couldn’t help herself. “So, Giselle? Does Allura know?”

“Not sure,” Sugar admitted without opening her eyes. “She didn’t stick around.”

“Okay,” Sunny nodded. “Try and sleep. Tomorrow, if they put us both to work, I’ll try to take the weight off you.”

Sugar didn’t respond and Sunny watched worriedly as she didn’t move, save for her sides rising and falling. It wasn’t long before a light snoring sound could be heard which made Sunny smile. “Goodnight, Sugar.”

Unbeknownst to any of them, up in the ceiling a set of eyes had been watching. As Sunny lay down to rest, Twitch smiled with satisfaction as he replaced the ceiling panel before quietly leaving.

Thymus grunted as he made his way through the tunnel, finally seeing the exit just ahead. However, he sighed as he reached it, not at all confident about climbing out on his own. Groaning, he closed his eyes as he panted for breath and slumped against the side of the tunnel.

“Thymus, we were starting to think you wouldn’t make it.”

Thymus groaned as he opened his eyes before looking up to see Skysurf above him, holding out a claw. “S…Sorry. I must admit I’m not feeling good.”

“Well, don’t leave me hanging,” Skysurf gasped. “I’ll help you up.”

Thymus nodded as he took Skysurf’s claw. She grunted with effort as she readily pulled him up and into the Pony’s Hut. He looked around and saw Sprout and Minty were watching worriedly.

“No Bingo?” Sprout frowned worriedly.

Thymus shook his head. “No, she’s decided not to take the risk anymore. I’m going to keep the Diamond Dogs updated.”

Grunting, he sat down and looked around, panting. Sprout, Minty, and Skysurf all exchanged worried glances.

“The heat,” Thymus groaned. “And lack of water, it’s getting to me. To all the Changelings.”

“It’s got to be hard work digging the rock,” Minty nodded.

“It is,” Thymus sighed. “We’re all getting dehydrated.”

“Don’t worry, we’ve got you,” Sprout gasped. “We were just working out which fruit had the most water.”

Thymus watched as Sprout quickly used his Earth Pony magic to grow a small pear tree, laden with juicy pears which quickly ripened to maturity. Grinning, Sprout immediately picked one and gave it to Thymus who smiled thankfully.

"He tried melons but didn't get on so well," Minty explained as she gestured to a pile of shrivelled watermelons.

Sprout grunted as he ignored her. “We’ll bring plenty through to the other huts later."

“Thank you, although that’s not the only reason why I’m late,” Thymus revealed. “Misty Brightdawn sent a message.”

“She did?” Sprout gasped. “W…What did she say? What’s happening? Where is she?”

“Calm down, Sprout,” Skysurf frowned. “Give him a chance.”

Thymus gave a small smile. “Well, the first thing is, Zipp and a few of her friends are headed for Equestria tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow?” Minty scowled. “You mean they’re not there now?”

“Yeah, I thought that was why we hadn’t seen her,” Skysurf blinked. “Did she say why?”

Thymus sighed. “The tower that caught on fire. That’s the one they got the binder from. Misty, she…”

He trailed off as he started coughing hoarsely. Skysurf gasped, putting a claw around him to steady him.

“S…Sorry,” he wheezed. “Misty, she got caught in the fire when she returned the binder. She’s said she’ll be okay, but it’ll take time.”

Sprout frowned, sitting down as he took in the information. “O…Okay,” he said after a moment. “So, where does that leave us?”

“Waiting,” Skysurf groaned as she closed her eyes. “We’re stuck waiting for Princess Zipp to return from Equestria with her solution for the collars.”

“All while Allura is hunting us,” Minty scowled before shaking her head in dismay. “What was Giselle thinking?”

“Only she knows,” Sprout grunted as he folded his forelegs.

Skysurf and Thymus looked at each other worriedly, neither knowing what to say.

Misty groaned as she sat in her bed in the cockpit of the Marestream. She’d just about managed to send her message to Thymus but doing so had taken it out of her. Despite that though, she couldn’t sleep.

“Can’t sleep?” a voice said suddenly.

Misty was surprised to see Feather Breeze standing in the doorway, holding a steaming cup in her levitation. She shook her head sadly and then closed her eyes, holding her hooves to the side of her head. "I... I can't," she wheezed. "I feel so tired, but my mind won't turn off."

“I thought as much,” Feather Breeze smiled as she levitated the cup towards her. “Here, this tea will help. I see some of the aromas have stopped too. I’ll see to that.”

Misty blinked as she accepted the cup gratefully. Blowing on it, she took a sip and sighed with contentment as the hot liquid hit her tastebuds.

As she sipped away, Feather Breeze went around the various saucers, cups, pots and pans. Before long the aromatic smoke was starting to fill the cockpit again.

Smiling, Misty returned the empty cup to Feather Breeze. “Th…Thank you…,” she yawned as she stretched. “…Feather Breeze.”

“That’s perfectly fine, Misty,” Feather Breeze smiled as she helped her get comfortable.

“S…See you in the…the morning,” Misty yawned as she struggled to keep her eyes open.

Feather Breeze couldn’t help grinning as Misty’s eyes finally closed and she drifted off to sleep. Silently, she settled herself down into her meditation position before taking a deep breath and closing her eyes. Her horn glowed as her magic mixed with the aromatic smoke again, wafting it around and around Misty’s bed as she slept.

Chapter Thirty-Five - Departure

Preparing the Marestream for departure hadn’t taken long. However, Zipp frowned as she worked through the pre-flight checklist, walking around and ticking items off after she’d inspected them. Being careful to ensure everything was ready.

Meanwhile, Misty gasped as Izzy pulled her towards one of the tents.

“Come on, Misty,” she beamed. “I wanted everypony to have their own special tent, so I decorated this one just for you. Ta-daaaaaa!”

Misty’s eyes widened as she looked at the tent. The edges were adorned with a pattern created from leaves, twigs, pinecones, conkers, and various other items foraged from the forest. Above the entrance flap, there was a collage depicting Misty herself.

Izzy laughed, “No way anypony can get mixed up now.”

“It’s wonderful,” Misty breathed in awe.

“Hold your gasps,” Izzy giggled, waving a hoof. “You need to see inside too before you run out of them!”

Misty stared as Izzy hurried towards the flap, holding it aside and gesturing for her to enter.

As Misty entered the tent, her eyes widened in awe again. Above her, woven into the canvas, there was another collage. Once again made from items foraged from the forest, it depicted all of her friends. Quickly, she realised that as she was laid in bed it would almost be like they were there watching over her.

Izzy grinned. Even though Misty didn’t respond, the tear in her eye revealed exactly how she felt.

“It doesn’t stop there!” Izzy beamed. “I spoke to Feather Breeze and together we made this.”

Her horn glowed as she levitated a golden incense holder out from under the camp bed and placed it in the middle of the tent.

“But, Feather Breeze said we didn’t have one of these,” Misty blinked as she inspected the holder.

“We didn’t,” Izzy smirked. “Not until I made it with transfiguration. I designed it specially so that anything burning inside can’t light the tent on fire too.”

Misty couldn’t help but give Izzy a sideways glance. She wasn’t sure what she could have made the holder from, but she quickly set that aside and smiled back gratefully. “Thank you. I don’t know if I deserve all this.”

“Course you do,” Izzy smiled. “You’ve worked so hard, and it was the least I could do. You’re practically my half-sister and I’ll do anything I can to help you recover.”

Misty smiled happily as she flung her hoofs around Izzy gratefully.

Izzy giggled as she joyfully returned the hug. “Come on, we don’t want to miss them leaving.”

Misty only nodded in reply before the pair headed out of the tent.

With all checks complete, Zipp, Pipp and Feather Breeze stood before their friends ready to give their final farewells.

Feather Breeze smiled as she levitated a basket towards Misty. She took it gratefully and looked inside before looking at Feather Breeze in confusion.

“These are incense sticks and leaf tea bundles,” Feather Breeze smiled. “Izzy helped me with them. You should burn one of the sticks each night as you sleep. They’re not as powerful as the therapy you’ve been getting, however, they’ll still aid your recovery.”

Misty nodded gratefully before lifting one of the bundles and inspecting it hopefully. “And are these the tea you gave me last night? It worked really well.”

Feather Breeze nodded gleefully. “Stir them in boiling water for five minutes. Then, strain the water into your cup. You don’t want to drink the leaves, throw them away.”

“O…Okay,” Misty gasped. “You…You really shouldn’t have gone to so much trouble.”

“Misty, I know it feels like you don’t deserve it. But trust me, I would do this for anypony,” Feather Breeze reassured her. “However, you do deserve it, you rescued me and you’ve worked so hard to help everycreature.”

Misty blinked before giving a grateful smile. “Thank you, Feather Breeze. Thank you so much.”

“You are very welcome, Misty,” Feather Breeze smiled. “To fully regain your strength, you will need to follow my instructions.”

Misty nodded gratefully before blinking in surprise as Pipp and Zipp both approached. She gasped as they lifted their hoofs around her and hugged her tightly.

“You take care,” Pipp smiled as she closed her eyes. “Concentrate on getting better.”

“Yeah, don’t worry about us,” Zipp grinned. “From what I can tell, we should be in Zephyr Heights by early evening.”

Misty blinked in confusion before closing her eyes and enjoying the hug. Despite it being unexpected, especially from Zipp, it felt right somehow.

“Hey, no fair!” Izzy gasped as she hurried over.

“Get in here then,” Zipp laughed as she held out her hoof nearest Pipp.

“Yeah,” Pipp grinned as she also held out a hoof. “Hurry up, Iz.”

Izzy grinned as she wrapped her hooves around Pipp and Zipp, all of them laughing as they hugged each other tightly. They eventually broke off the hug, and Hitch stood nearby smiling.

“Oh, come here you,” Pipp smiled as she hurried over to hug him. “Don’t you dare think you are missing out!”

Hitch couldn’t help chuckling as he returned the hug. “I’m not, just don’t be gone too long.”

“Don’t worry, Sheriff,” Zipp smirked as she waited for Pipp to finish before giving him a hoofbump. “We won’t be.”

Izzy couldn’t help herself. She skipped over towards Feather Breeze and held her hoofs out wide. “Don’t leave me hanging.”

Feather Breeze gasped and awkwardly accepted Izzy’s hug. “T...Thank you, Izzy.”

“I didn’t want you to feel left out.”

“It just feels… kind of wrong,” Feather Breeze admitted.

“Hey, everypony deserves a hug,” Misty gasped as she joined in. “Especially when you’ve been helping me so much.”

Feather Breeze nodded thankfully and sighed contentedly. “I don’t know what I would have done without you all,” she admitted.

“Right, everypony all hugged out?” Zipp asked.

Izzy pushed out her bottom lip, “I guess so.”

“They can’t spend all morning hugging,” Misty smiled. “But I’ll have another.”

“Yeah, you will,” Izzy beamed as she gave Misty a tight squeeze which made her eyes bulge.

“Okay, that’s too tight,” she gasped.

Laughing, Zipp, Pipp and Feather Breeze finally made their way towards the Marestream.

“Come back as soon as you can!” Izzy hollered as she let go of Misty.

“The sooner you’re back, the sooner we can finally rescue everycreature,” Hitch smiled.

“Good luck!” Misty said as loud as she dared. “I hope it all goes well.”

Pipp and Zipp paused at the doorway, turning back to their friends and waving.

Pipp beamed. “We’ll be back as soon as we can.”

“Yeah, we won’t be gone long,” Zipp winked. “Keep an eye on everything for us.”

Feather Breeze sighed before she gave a small grateful smile. “I…I haven’t felt like this in so long. Goodbye, for now, my friends.”

With that, all three entered the Marestream. When they appeared in the cockpit, Hitch, Izzy and Misty stood and waved as the Marestream powered up.

Pipp and Feather Breeze spotted them and waved back as the Marestream began to lift into the air. Zipp smiled at them but didn’t wave as she kept her hoofs on the controls.

The Marestream gracefully climbed into the sky. As soon as it was clear of the trees, it turned around before shooting off and almost immediately disappeared out of sight.

Below, the three ponies looked at each other before sighing and heading off in different directions.

In Zephyr Heights, Strawberry Sunflash sighed as she sat at her writing desk. The sun had risen and it looked like it was going to be a glorious sunny day. However, she didn’t much feel like going outside.

By normal castle standards, her room was extremely plain. Just a bed, a set of drawers, a writing desk, bookshelves and a window. There were no elaborate drapes, paintings, or anything else. It looked more like a dungeon than the actual dungeon.

However, this had all been by request. Strawberry didn’t feel like she deserved any of the finer things the castle had to offer her. Politely turning down the room until it had been stripped back to basics.

Unusually, she was wearing a simple brown dress. Wearing clothes was rare in modern Equestria but she wasn’t wearing it for fashion, she was wearing it out of necessity.

Her head rested on a hoof, the leg for which was propped on the desk as she studied a book. Oddly, this wasn’t a spell book, although a pile of these was sat by the side of the desk.

Instead, it was a history book. One of many that had been recovered from the old Canterlot Library recently. Letting out a deep sigh, she placed a hoof on an image that depicted an amber Unicorn with a streaky red and yellow mane and tail running towards a mirror. She sighed again. “What would you do?”

Suddenly, she gasped. Her horn was tingling, and she knew what that meant. Desperately, she activated the messaging spell and listened intently as Misty’s voice played in her mind.

“Morning Strawberry. Zipp, Pipp and Feather Breeze have just taken off. Zipp said to tell you they expect to be back by late evening.”

Strawberry’s eyes widened in surprise. “Misty! Y...You sound so well. Much better than when you messaged yesterday.”

“I’ve not long woken up from one of the best night’s sleep I’ve had. I still need to take things carefully though and I’ve done so much this morning already. I...I can’t keep speaking for long.”

Strawberry smiled thankfully as she felt like a weight was being lifted from her.

“Oh, thank hoofness. I...I won’t keep you. But, I... I...”

She trailed off, looking down at the book unsurely as her horn stopped glowing.

However, she jumped in surprise as her horn immediately began tingling again.

“Strawberry, it’s okay. I’m sorry I couldn’t answer your questions last night. I kind of need your help.”

Strawberry gasped. “My help?”

“Yeah, I need you here,” Misty paused, and Strawberry frowned as she heard her gasping for breath. “I need you to help me. When Zipp and the others get back here. I...I won’t be able to do everything on my own.”

Strawberry blinked disbelievingly. She looked down at the book again, staring at the image as her eyes widened and her breathing got quicker and quicker.

Her horn tingling again snapped her back to reality with a squeak. She hadn’t even realised she’d stopped concentrating on the spell and shook her head as she activated it again.

“Strawberry? Did you get that? Are you okay?”

Hearing the concern in Misty’s voice, Strawberry grimaced. “I...I don’t know if I c...can.” She gulped before taking a deep breath. “Misty, I failed you. I was a stuck-up arrogant hothead. How could you give me another chance like this?!”

“Because I know that inside you have a kind heart. Strawberry, please. I know you’ll be able to help. I just need you to do something.”

Strawberry closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “Name it, Misty.”

“Learn Teleportation. Find the spell in Glimbursts Volume Two. That’s the one that Starlight taught me. It’s actually more about focus than actual incantations though. Use an orange... focus on it... then on…. Then on somewhere within l…line of sight.”

Strawberry gasped as Misty suddenly sounded more and more breathless. She grimaced as conflicting thoughts spun in her mind. She was desperate to learn but her concerns for Misty grew ever stronger.

“Thank you, Misty, I’ve got that volume here. I…I’ll give it a try. Please, don’t push yourself anymore.”

“Y....Yeah, my lungs feel like they’re burning. I…I’m going to rest now. S...Speak to... you soon.”

“Thank you, Misty,” Strawberry sighed as a tear welled in the corner of her eye.

After ending the messaging spell, Strawberry hunched over as she stared at the image again. Focusing hard on the pony before taking a deep breath and closing her eyes.

When she opened them, they were narrowed with determination. She let out a deep sigh before getting up from the desk and heading towards the door. She knew Queen Haven would want to hear the latest news so she could make arrangements.

Chapter Thirty-Six – A Hippogriff Meeting

Freed from the constraints of following the Airship, Zipp could finally unleash the top speed of the Marestream. Coupled with a more direct route, this meant that while the trip to the Quarry had taken several days, the return flight to Equestria was completed by the early hours of the following morning.

However, the three of them found there was little time to rest. Shortly after sunrise, they waited in a small room to be called into the throne room.

Zipp frowned in frustration; she was eager to get to work. However, Queen Haven had insisted that they be introduced to the Hippogriffs. With a sigh, she settled onto a luxuriously padded sofa and tried her best to wait patiently.

Feather Breeze sat on the same sofa. On the outside, she looked calm and collected as she stared straight forward. Conversely, inside, she was a bundle of nerves, which Pipp wasn’t helping.

Pipp had never felt so nervous before entering the throne room and wasn’t afraid to show it. She paced up and down the room, her hoofs threatening to wear a groove in the expensive-looking carpet.

“This is all messed up,” she gasped as she continued to pace. “This is our house! We should be in the throne room having them announced to us. Not the other way around!”

“Pipp, will you quit with the pacing?” Zipp groaned. “We’re the ones returning, remember, and, we’ll be introducing a new guest to Mom.”

She gestured toward Feather Breeze whose eyes widened as she suddenly released a deep shaky breath. “P...Please!” she exclaimed. “I don’t know if I can handle this. I’m the first Kirin in Equestria for generations and now I’m officially meeting Hippogriffs too. I...I shouldn’t be the one here, it should be Winters Breath. Or Spring Flare! She always handles this stuff so well. I’m…I’m not important enough!”

Gasping with concern, Pipp finally stopped pacing and hurried to Feather Breeze. Placing a hoof on her shoulder and looking at her reassuringly. “You’re here because you’re our friend. You’re here because you’re helping us rescue the rest of your kind.”

“Yeah, I’d say that makes you pretty important,” Zipp smiled. “We’ll look out for you. All this is pomp and circumstance. It’s the stuff I hate most about being a princess. Mom promised we’ll be done quickly so we can get to work.”

“All we need to do is go in, say hello, and then we’ll be done,” Pipp smiled.

Feather Breeze chuckled nervously, “Says the one who’s been wearing out the carpet.”

Pipp couldn’t help laughing back but didn’t get a chance to respond as there was a knock at the door. There was a click as it opened and revealed Zoom. “Your Highnesses, Miss Feather Breeze, everything is ready. This way, please.”

Gesturing with a hoof, Zoom stepped back to leave the doorway clear. Meanwhile, Zipp looked at Feather Breeze and Pipp reassuringly. “It’s okay, we’ve got this.”

Pipp meanwhile took a deep breath before smiling. “Yeah, it’s the waiting that’s the hard part. Come on. Showtiiiime!”

Feather Breeze closed her eyes and took a deep, calming breath. When she opened them, Zipp and Pipp stood at the door, waiting for her. She noticed Pipp’s reassuring smile and recalled when she woke up after being a Nirik for so long. Pipp had helped her then, and she knew she would be there for her again now.

Feeling determined, Feather Breeze got up from the sofa and followed Zoom and the two Princesses from the room.

Meanwhile, Strawberry was in her room. She was kneeling on the ground with her backside wiggling in the air. In front of her was an orange that she was staring at intently, scowling with concentration. Suddenly, her horn began to glow, and she fired a beam of magic at the fruit.

However, when the beam hit it, it washed over and dispersed into nothingness, leaving the orange sitting where it was, not even a mark remaining.

Strawberry gasped as she stood up, her eyes widening in dismay. She gulped and started panting as she desperately looked around for the spell book. It wasn’t far away, sitting open on the dresser nearby.

Still panting, she sat down as she levitated the book into her hoofs. Then, her eyes narrowed as she re-read the spell incantation, studying it intently.

After a moment, her eyes widened with a mixture of disbelief and dismay. “I...I don’t... I don’t understand!” she gasped as she began panting again. “I…I’m sure I’m getting it right. So... why? Why won’t it work?!”

Her eyes began to well with tears. However, she closed them tightly and willed them to stop, grimacing as she did so.

She sat gasping with her eyes closed for a moment before breathing a shaky sigh and opening them sadly. “I…I can’t let her down.”

She took another deep breath as she decided she had no choice. Her horn glowed and she cast the messaging spell. “M...Misty, I’m sorry. I know you need to rest but…” She let out another sigh. “I...I need your help… please?”

Elsewhere, Pipp, Zipp and Feather Breeze were walking down a corridor towards the throne room, following Zoom and Thunder. Zipp and Pipp followed directly behind the two Guards whilst Feather Breeze nervously walked behind them.

As she did so, she couldn’t help admiring the sudden change in Pipp. Moments before she had been a ball of nervous energy. However, now an aura of confidence was spilling off of her. From the expression on her face to the way she walked. She wasn’t sure, but it even looked like Pipp’s cutie mark was glowing.

As they neared the large ornate double doors to the throne room, a fanfare started playing and there was a thud as they began to open. Pipp couldn’t help giving her mane a final flick, making sure it was falling just right. Zipp meanwhile rolled her eyes before looking over her shoulder to give Feather Breeze another look of reassurance.

On the other side of the doors stood two lines of Guards. They created a corridor that led to the pedestal at the far end of the room, where Queen Haven was already seated on her throne. On one side of the pedestal, were two Hippogriffs.

The female Hippogriff standing closest to her had a light fuchsia coat and a cyan mane and tail. On her head sat a simple golden crown.

Standing next to her was a larger dark blue male Hippogriff with a silver mane and tail. He scowled down at the three of them as though he owned the place.

After walking through the door, Zoom and Thunder both sidestepped, leaving the way clear for the threesome to pass between them. As they did so, Zoom cleared her throat, “Announcing the returning Princesses, Zephyrina Storm, and Pipp Petals. With their accompanying friend, envoy of the Kirin, Feather Breeze.”

As the fanfare continued, they walked towards the throne as the Guards all stood to attention and saluted in unison.

Meanwhile, the male Hippogriff watched them like a hawk, silently judging them as they approached. As he locked eyes with Feather Breeze she felt a chill run down her spine.

The fanfare finally ceased as they reached the foot of the pedestal. Then, the Guards gave one last salute before they turned in unison and began marching out of the room. However, Zoom and Thunder stayed behind, standing by the doors as they closed with a loud thud.

Finally, with a beaming smile, Queen Haven addressed her daughters.

“Oh, Zipp, Pipp, my darlings,” she beamed. “I know you’ll be tired as it’s only a few short hours since you got back, but I’m so happy to see you. Please, allow me to introduce our guests. This is Queen Skystar the Fifth, ruler of Seaquestria and Mount Aries and Admiral Seasurge of the Royal Hippogriff Navy.”

Both Princesses followed protocol, bowing their heads and dropping to one knee in reverence before standing again.

“Thank you, Mother,” Pipp smiled. “It’s an honour to meet you, Queen Skystar.”

“Thank you, Mom,” Zipp smirked. “Queen Skystar, it’s great to meet you.”

Queen Skystar smiled as she took a step forward and bowed towards them. Behind her, Admiral Seasurge’s eyes narrowed crossly.

“Princess Zipp, Princess Pipp,” Queen Skystar smiled. “I am honoured to meet you both at last. Your mother has spoken highly of you. I am overjoyed at the news that you have not only found my daughter and missing subjects but that you and your friends are currently working to help them as well as your own.”

Queen Haven grinned, “Please, Zipp dear, who do you have with you?”

Zipp rolled her eyes and gave a cocky smirk before sidestepping and holding out a hoof. “Allow me to finally introduce you to our special friend, this is Feather Breeze.”

“Oh wonderful,” Queen Haven smiled as she clapped her hoofs together with glee, “I’ve heard your name so many times, Feather Breeze. I’m so pleased to meet you properly at last.”

Feather Breeze gulped, bowing her head and dropping to one knee as she had previously been instructed. “T…Thank you, Your Majesty.”

“Oh, my dear, please don’t worry about the formalities,” Queen Haven grinned. “Just call me Queen Haven.”

Feather Breeze’s eyes widened as she gasped and looked from Pipp to Zipp for confirmation. Seeing their smiles, she gulped and with a small smile nodded nervously.

In the background, Admiral Seasurge let out a small growl of annoyance. However, Queen Skystar didn’t notice it as she looked at Feather Breeze curiously.

“Please, forgive me, Feather Breeze,” she sighed. “I…I admit, I have not met one of your kind before. What kind of creature are you again?”

Feather Breeze gasped as she looked into Queen Skystar’s inquisitive eyes. “I…I…I’m…” she stammered before gasping and bowing again, unable to respond.

Queen Skystar gasped as she held a claw to her beak, worried she’d upset her. However, Pipp stepped forward with a smile. “Feather Breeze is a Kirin,” she explained quickly before sighing as she shook her head. “Please excuse her, she’s really, really nervous about meeting two Queens. She kind of has no choice. Sadly, she’s the only one of her kind who is free.”

“The rest of the Kirin are trapped in the Quarry,” Zipp continued as she puffed out her chest importantly. “The same Quarry that the Earth Ponies and Pegasi are being held. Along with Griffons, Changelings, Yak, Diamond Dogs and your fellow Hippogriffs, including Princess Coral Cloud.”

Queen Skystar's eyes widened with surprise, and she turned to look at Admiral Seasurge worriedly.

Meanwhile, Pipp gasped as she realised Feather Breeze was still bowing. She grinned nervously as she carefully tapped her on the shoulder and indicated she ought to stand.

Feather Breeze’s eyes widened as she gasped and looked up at Pipp. She gasped again as she stood, nervously glancing towards Queen Haven, whose reassuring smile began to put her at ease.

However, she grimaced upon seeing Admiral Seasurge's scowling expression as he whispered something to Queen Skystar.

Eventually, Queen Skystar regained her composure and turned to face them. “I admit, I am overwhelmed by this news. I heard you had found my little Coral, but…” She swallowed hard, holding her claws to her beak. “T...The idea that she’s a prisoner.” She closed her eyes and took a deep breath to steady herself. “Thank you. Thank you for finding her and helping to save her.”

Feather Breeze couldn’t help gasping again as Queen Skystar smiled warmly at her. “Feather Breeze, I have heard much about your kind through legend,” she smiled. “However, much like the Ponies of Equestria, it has been generations since Hippogriffs and Kirin have interacted directly. I...I hope we will have the opportunity to spend time together.”

Feather Breeze gulped, still unable to find any words she nodded nervously.

Picking up on her nervousness, Queen Skystar smiled back reassuringly before turning to Queen Haven with a warm smile. “Truly, it seems I am even more in your debt, Haven.”

Suddenly, there was a grunt from Admiral Seasurge as he cleared his throat. “If I may, Majesty. If they would divulge the location of this Quarry, then I and my remaining forces will depart, post haste. We will rescue your daughter and our fellow Griffs, there is no need to further burden our gracious hosts.”

Queen Skystar closed her eyes and let out a withering sigh before turning to her Admiral. “I appreciate your input, Seasurge, however as you rightly infer, we are guests here. I do not wish to interfere with their mission.”

Admiral Seasurge’s eyes widened before he scowled. “Majesty, I honestly cannot see how you can expect two Princesses to accomplish this?”

“Seasurge, it is not my decision,” Queen Skystar replied simply.

Admiral Seasurge’s scowl deepened and he ruffled his wings angrily. “Do you question my ability?”

“I know your tactics have thus far failed to protect us,” Queen Skystar scowled. “I also know how few of your forces remain. We are in no position to become aggressors.”

“Respectively, you have no idea what you are up against.”

Admiral Seasurge’s eyes bulged as he glowered at Zipp, “What was that!”

Zipp scowled as she met Admiral Seasurge’s glare. However, before she could respond, Queen Haven cleared her throat.

Gasping, all eyes turned toward Queen Haven as she stood up from the throne and spread her wings. She looked down at Admiral Seasurge with a questioning expression before her face relaxed.

“Admiral Seasurge, I understand your desire to help your kind. However, please do remember whose throne room this is. After all that has happened to you, we should work together on this.”

“Yes,” Queen Skystar nodded in agreement. “I would much prefer that.”

“But Majesty...” Admiral Seasurge insisted.

“No!” Queen Skystar exclaimed, cutting him off with a wave of her claw. “Seasurge, I know you are proud of our Navy and feel asking for help shows weakness. But we both know your forces are severely depleted. We cannot do this alone.”

“Exactly,” Queen Haven nodded as she folded her wings. “It takes strength to know when to ask for help.”

Admiral Seasurge scowled before letting out a sigh of resignation. “Yes, Majesties. I agree.”

Queen Skystar smiled happily, “Thank you, Seasurge.”

Queen Haven nodded and turned towards Zipp with a warm smile. “Zipp, my darling. I know you have a plan, but could you explain more about the Quarry?”

“Surely it is not but a simple Quarry?!” Admiral Seasurge exclaimed.

“No, it’s not,” Feather Breeze gasped, finally finding her voice. “It’s a prison!”

“Yeah, it’s far more complicated than you would expect,” Zipp sighed before opening her phone. “Okay, let’s start with the Airships...”

Elsewhere, Strawberry was once again staring intently at the orange. However, this time when the beam of magic hit, it immediately disappeared with a flash.

Gasping, Strawberry whirled around and looked towards the door. On the floor, exactly where she’d pictured it, was the orange.

Her eyes immediately lit up with joy and trembling with excitement she activated the messaging spell again.

“Misty! I did it! T...Thank you so much. I...I can’t believe I was overlooking something so obvious. Focus on the item, not the incantation!”

“I said you could! Your disguise spell is way more complicated than teleporting. I still haven’t got it down yet!”

Strawberry gasped as tears filled her eyes. “O...Okay, so what’s next?”

“Teleporting yourself. Only within line of sight,” Misty grunted. “I...I’m sorry... I...I need to rest.”

Strawberry’s eyes widened in horror. “M...Misty!” she gasped. “I’m so sorry! I knew I shouldn’t have contacted you.”

“Don’t be silly. Y....You needed help. It’s okay I...I’ll rest now. Speak to you soon, say hi to Pipp, Zipp and Feather Breeze for me.”

Strawberry sighed again as she shook her head. “Thank you, Misty. I will.”

As she finished the messaging spell, Strawberry gasped as her eyes widened in horror.

“Wait! The throne room! Oh... haystacks, I completely forgot!”

Desperately, she ran towards the door. Opening it with her magic before galloping away down the corridor.

In the throne room, Admiral Seasurge scowled as he studied a map of the Quarry. Finally, he let out a frustrated growl before a deep sigh of annoyance. “Alright, Princess. I agree, a frontal assault won’t work. What is your plan?”

Zipp just about suppressed a grunt of irritation before flicking to another note on her phone. “Okay, first you’ll need to understand something about the Guards.”

Admiral Seasurge snorted. “We know all there is about those monsters.”

Pipp scowled, “No, you...”

However, she was interrupted by a sudden loud banging on the doors which caused everycreature to turn towards them.

Scowling, Zoom opened one of them and stuck her head through. A few moments later, she stood back and allowed a nervous-looking Strawberry to enter and hurry her way towards them.

Pipp and Zipp looked at each other questioningly. They recognised her but there was something about her, other than nerves, that they couldn’t quite put their hoofs on.

Strawberry gulped nervously as she finally arrived and bowed. “Your Majesties,” she said, smacking her lips together to combat the dryness in her mouth. “Your Highnesses,” she gasped as she bowed toward Pipp and Zipp. “I’m sorry for being late. I was working on my teleportation spell and completely lost track of time.”

“Oh, Strawberry my dear, it is quite alright,” Queen Haven smiled as she waved a hoof dismissively. “How was it going? Have you mastered teleportation?”

Strawberry blinked with surprise as she stood, she hadn’t expected Queen Haven to be interested. “W...Well not quite. I’ve managed to teleport objects now and Misty says I need to try teleporting myself next. I...I wouldn’t have been able to get so far without her help.”

Admiral Seasurge frowned as he looked at Strawberry questioningly. “And you are?”

Strawberry gasped and bowed again. “A…Apologies, I’m Strawberry Sunflash. I…I was previously helping the Princesses with their mission.”

Queen Skystar smiled and nodded. “I remember you, Strawberry. I’m grateful for the news you brought the other night. Haven told me you had a lucky escape from the Nirik.”

Admiral Seasurge cocked an eyebrow inquisitively before glancing at Feather Breeze. “Really? Would you care to tell us about it?”

In the background, Zipp scowled in annoyance. She was about to cut in before spotting Queen Haven glaring at her. Begrudgingly, she held her tongue.

Strawberry didn’t notice, gulping she nodded and gestured towards Pipp and Zipp. “I’m indebted to the Princesses. I was captured by the Nirik, but they let me go. If the Princesses hadn’t ensured Queen Haven dispatched her Guards to search for me. I...I dread to think what would have happened.”

Admiral Seasurge’s frown deepened again. “We have lost many to the fiery monsters, the Nirik.”

Queen Skystar gasped and looked at her worriedly. “Oh, Strawberry that sounds awful. Please, what happened?”

“I woke up in a bush with no idea where I was,” Strawberry sighed before grimacing. “I couldn’t move, my hoofs were bound together. I…I tried to free them with my magic. I pulled and tugged, trying to find one of the ends of the rope. B…But nothing worked. I don’t know what I would have done if the Equestria Guard hadn’t come to find me.”

Admiral Seasurge grunted. “So, why did they let you go?”

“I…I don’t know exactly,” Strawberry gasped.

“Because they weren’t interested in taking Unicorns,” Zipp interjected.

“And how do you know that?” Admiral Seasurge scowled.

“We were in the bushes, watching as they made their plans to release her,” Zipp retorted, scowling back.

Admiral Seasurge’s eyes lit up with interest. “Ah, so who was with you, Princess? Your sister?”

Zipp bristled with annoyance, “No, Pipp wasn’t there. But Feather Breeze and our friend Misty were.”

Admiral Seasurge grinned confidently. “So, how did you meet the Princesses, Miss Feather Breeze?” he queried as he moved towards Feather Breeze threateningly. “How did you escape the Quarry? It sounds like quite the impossible task.”

Feather Breeze gasped and shook her head. “No, I was rescued.”

“Really? How?” Admiral Seasurge asked as he advanced further. Glaring down at Feather Breeze he rose to his full height and spread his wings.

Gasping, Feather Breeze took a step backwards as her eyes widened in horror.

“Stop it,” Zipp snarled in annoyance, putting herself between Feather Breeze and Admiral Seasurge. Spreading her wings protectively she glared at him. “Leave her alone.”

“Seasurge!” Queen Skystar gasped. “What is the meaning of this?!”

“Merely precautionary,” Admiral Seasurge responded calmly. “I don’t take kindly to threats being brought before my Queen.”

“What threat?” Pipp gasped.

“The evil creature that stands in our midst,” Admiral Seasurge scowled. “Miss Feather Breeze has clearly misled you all about the obvious truth. I seriously question whether that is even her real name, if she has one at all.”

“Seasurge!” Queen Skystar shouted in dismay. “Please, do not make a fool of me here.”

“I am not! I am merely looking out for your safety, Majesty,” Admiral Seasurge growled as he raised a claw and pointed accusingly at Feather Breeze. “Do not take me for a fool. You’re a Nirik! You cannot cover it up by swapping the name around. Drop the act, you dangerous monster!”

“I...I’m not a monster!” Feather Breeze cried as she gritted her teeth.

“The Kirin are prisoners!” Pipp cried in dismay.

“Let me explain!” Zipp shouted in annoyance.

Queen Haven scowled, banging a hoof down crossly. “Admiral…”

“No!” Admiral Seasurge snarled. “You Ponies have all been deceived by her! The Nirik are behind all of this. How can they be prisoners when they are the Guards? The kidnappers. The aggressors! THE MONSTERS!”

“STOP IT!” Feather Breeze bellowed as she suddenly erupted in flames.

Everycreature gasped and took a step back, shielding themselves with hoofs, wings and claws.

The flames dissipated as quickly as they had appeared, revealing Feather Breeze had transformed into her Nirik form. She scowled at Admiral Seasurge, snarling with rage.

“I knew it!” Admiral Seasurge cried triumphantly. “She’s one of them! GUARDS!”

Zoom and Thunder had already reacted to the burst of flames. Running towards Feather Breeze with wings wide and ready to fight. However, they both gasped and suddenly skidded to a stop.

“What are you doing?!” Admiral Seasurge bellowed angrily.

“Carrying out my order,” Queen Haven said from behind him.

Admiral Seasurge gasped and turned to see Queen Haven holding out a hoof and looking stern.

“Guards! Stand down!” she ordered before rising from her throne. “Admiral Seasurge, you forget your place. I already know that Feather Breeze isn’t a threat.”

“S...She isn’t?” Queen Skystar gasped, fear evident in her voice.

“No, she isn’t,” Pipp said reassuringly. “She’s a victim. All the Kirin are.”

“How?” Queen Skystar blinked.

“I’ve been trying to get to that!” Zipp scowled in annoyance. “But somecreature kept stopping me with his questions.”

Suddenly, Feather Breeze moved towards Admiral Seasurge. Scowling and snarling with anger. “I’m a Nirik because of you!” she shouted angrily. “Your inability to wait and listen. Your arrogance and continual superior attitude. This is not. Your! THRONE ROOM!”

Admiral Seasurge gasped. His eyes widened as he took a step back in surprise. “Y...You speak?”

“Of course I do!” Feather Breeze snarled. “So maybe you should be quiet and listen?!”

Queen Haven nodded understandingly, “Indeed, please dear, we’re all ears.”

Feather Breeze nodded and stood panting allowing her anger to subside. Suddenly, she erupted in flames again and returned to her Kirin form. Closing her eyes she sat down, her bottom hitting the floor with a ‘flump’ before she looked down and let out a deep calming breath.

“You are right, Kirin and Nirik, we’re the same,” she sighed as a tear trickled down her nose. “But my family, my friends, everypony, their minds are being controlled. Forced to do things even though they don’t want to. That’s what makes them prisoners. Prisoners in their own minds.”

Queen Skystar gasped, pushing Admiral Seasurge to one side. “That…That sounds horrific. Were you the same?”

Feather Breeze nodded. “I...I was,” she looked at Strawberry sadly. “I’m the one who captured Strawberry.”

“I...I don’t understand,” Strawberry gasped disbelievingly. “How can you be the Nirik that captured me? My...My spell. It didn’t work!”

“It didn’t but Misty stepped in,” Zipp explained. “She rescued her.”

Strawberry sighed and looked down shamefully. “Of…Of course.”

“Feather Breeze helped us find the Airship,” Pipp continued as she put a reassuring hoof around Feather Breeze’s shoulders. “We followed it and that’s how we found the Quarry.”

“Freeing the Kirin is the key to rescuing the other creatures,” Zipp revealed.

“But how?” Queen Skystar breathed.

"Don't worry, we can explain," Zipp smiled. “The leader of the Quarry, Allura, her purr can control the minds of others. For some creatures it barely affects them, for others, it takes over their minds entirely.”

“As a Kirin, Allura’s purr isn’t as potent,” Feather Breeze sighed and shook her head. “But as you’ve just seen, when angered we Kirin turn into Nirik.”

“When they’re Nirik, Allura takes over their minds,” Pipp continued. “Inserting instructions that they’re suddenly forced to abide by.”

“It’s an awful feeling,” Feather Breeze groaned as she shook her head. “I could see everything that was happening but couldn’t do anything about it. The thoughts and instructions, they take over completely.”

Queen Skystar gasped, a look of worry on her face. “S…So what stops you from changing back into Kirin again?”

Feather Breeze sighed. “We’re forced to wear collars which trap us in Nirik form.”

“That’s how Misty rescued her,” Pipp revealed. “She spotted the collar and removed it. Deactivating the collars is the key to rescuing everycreature and Zipp’s worked out how.”

“Again, I’ve been trying to get to that,” Zipp scowled. “But somecreature was more interested in asking pointless questions.”

Admiral Seasurge gasped as he felt the claw of Queen Skystar on his shoulder. He looked at her disapproving face and sighed.

“A...Apologies,” he breathed. “Everything that has occurred is quite embarrassing. The number of Hippogriffs taken is significant. Being forced to leave our home and seek shelter here.” He closed his eyes and shook his head. “I wanted to atone for my errors, but I wanted to do so alone.”

Queen Haven smiled reassuringly. “There is no shame in asking others for help if you need it. I’ve already told you we will assist in any way we can.”

“Look, we have a plan,” Zipp smiled. “We just need to make the equipment to execute it.”

“Disable the collars and all my fellow Kirin will be free,” Feather Breeze nodded. “They will all revert to Kirin and pass out, like I did.”

Admiral Seasurge blinked with confusion, “Pass out?”

“Yes, when her collar was removed, Feather Breeze passed out,” Pipp explained. “She woke up early the following morning as I kept watch over her. I knew straight away she wasn’t a threat.”

Queen Skystar looked at Admiral Seasurge, seemingly thinking the same thing.

“So, how will you extract them and the other creatures from the Quarry?” she asked.

“And transport them back to their home kingdoms?” Admiral Seasurge added.

Pipp blinked and looked at Zipp, expecting her to have the answer. However, she was surprised to see her sister looking confused.

“W...Well,” Zipp foundered as she rubbed the back of her head with a hoof. “We can count on the creatures in the Quarry, the prisoners that is. We’ve been able to contact them. They were going to plan the best way to get everycreature out.”

"But that still leaves transporting many creatures over long distances," Admiral Seasurge nodded understandingly before a small smile appearing on his beak. “Please, allow my forces and I to assist. I know we can help ensure everycreature makes it home safely.”

Zipp frowned in thought before her expression softened and she nodded thankfully.

“Then it's settled,” Queen Haven grinned as she smiled thankfully at Zipp.

Chapter Thirty-Seven – Cloudstrike Industries

Feather Breeze gasped as she followed Pipp and Zipp through the busy streets of Zephyr Heights. Her eyes widened with fascination at the bright lights, billboards, and large screens adorning the high-rise buildings.

As they walked, Feather Breeze began to lag behind the Princesses, her curiosity and looking at everything slowing her down. Fortunately, Pipp glanced over her shoulder and noticed she was falling behind. Grinning, she stopped to let her catch up before walking alongside her.

“Hey, Feather Breeze. You okay?” she asked as she placed a reassuring hoof on her shoulder.

“I...I never saw it like this before,” Feather Breeze admitted before gasping up at a billboard for McWing’s. “It’s amazing. You’ve really lived here all your life?”

“More or less,” Pipp beamed. “Zipp and I lived in the castle until recently. So, I suppose you could say so. Do you like Zephyr Heights then?”

“It…It’s amazing,” Feather Breeze replied as she gazed around. “The Kirin, we’ve nothing like this. Our village, it’s tiny in comparison.”

“Well, maybe once this is all done, I’ll give you the grand tour,” Pipp winked.

Feather Breeze gasped before grinning. “I’d like that, Pipp. I’d like that a lot.”

They soon arrived at a tall building with large letters on its exterior proclaiming it to be Cloudstrike Industries.

As they entered, Feather Breeze gasped as she looked around the impressive entrance plaza. Ponies were everywhere, bustling about, hurrying to meetings and appointments, darting through doors, up and down stairs, and into lifts.

She couldn’t help but spin around, trying to take in everything, feeling very much like a Kirin out of the forest. Everything was made from white marble. From the walls and pillars that held up the upper floors, to a set of curving staircases and a series of planters within which various ferns were growing.

Pipp giggled at her excitement, staying close and making sure she kept out of trouble.

Meanwhile, Zipp made a beeline for a large, curved wooden reception desk. A grey Pegasus Mare was sat behind it, busy typing on a computer. However, her eyes widened in surprise as she spotted who was approaching.

“Princess! I…I thought…” she gasped before her eyes narrowed as she checked the computer screen. “Oh! It…It seems they’re expecting you! Please, give me a moment. I’ll get some entrance passes made up for you and get one of the Technicians to come and escort you.”

As the mare desperately got to work. Zipp snorted as Pipp appeared alongside her, a knowing look on her face.

“Okay fine,” Zipp sighed. “Being a Princess sometimes has its perks. But only sometimes!”

“Whatever you say, Sis.”

It wasn’t long before they were following a lab-coated Pegasus stallion, he escorted them through the building and eventually entered a large room. “Here you are, Princesses. The jewel in the crown of Cloudstrike Industries, the Development Lab.”

Zipp smiled broadly as she surveyed the equipment around her. There were several 3D printers of various sizes, laser cutting machines, etching machines, and vacuum formers. There was a group of expensive-looking computers too, each having multiple screens.

Quickly, she realised everything she needed to design and create the overload devices was here. “Th…This is perfect.”

“If you don’t mind me asking, what is it that you need our lab for?” the Technician frowned. “We’ve had no end of trouble removing all our top-secret prototypes for this. All we know is you want to make something.”

Zipp smiled. “Don’t worry, it’s not something for any silly videos or other shenanigans.”

“Hey!” Pipp scowled. “My videos are not silly!”

Zipp couldn’t help smirking as she produced her copy of the binder from a saddlebag along with some drawings. “We need to design, make and test a device that’s going to help us rescue hundreds of creatures,” she announced.

“Creatures that include Sunny Starscout and the Earth Ponies and Pegasi that have gone missing,” Pipp added.

The Technician’s eyes widened. “Okay, say no more. Let’s get to work.”

Each day, Pipp, Zipp, and Feather Breeze returned to Cloudstrike Industries. With the assistance of a group of Technicians, they made lightning progress on the designs and soon started assembling the test bed.

However, Queen Haven wanted Strawberry to accompany them and, despite her initial reservations, Zipp eventually agreed. Initially surprised, Strawberry eagerly jumped at the opportunity to help and soon found herself running all sorts of errands as the work continued.

Feather Breeze, however, felt more like a spare wheel. She couldn’t help much due to her lack of technical knowledge and worldly understanding. Soon she was reduced to watching as others worked, waiting for when she would be needed.

It was approaching lunchtime and Feather Breeze watched a machine with a mixture of confusion and interest. She had no idea what it was doing, other than cutting lines into a round board covered in a copper-coloured material. She didn’t understand the purpose of the lines either, but its movements were strangely hypnotic as it left green tracks in the copper surface.

Sighing, she pulled herself away from it and headed towards Pipp, who was sitting at one of the computers.

However, Pipp was deep in concentration. She had a set of headphones on her head and was studying three large monitors intently. Her hoofs darted around, making movements with the mouse and tapping away at the keyboard.

Suddenly, she scowled and banged repeatedly on the keyboard in frustration. “Ugh! Why isn’t this working?! Grrrr! Stop being so awkward!”

Grimacing, Feather Breeze decided not to interrupt her. Instead, she walked away from the computers and towards where the testbed was being assembled. However, she couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed by the large piece of equipment. She remembered being told it was like an early computer but didn’t understand.

All she knew for certain was what she could see, Zipp helping a group of Technicians as they worked on a large grey box with two tape players in the centre. With many flashing lights, knobs and switches which were arranged in columns down its top half.

Meanwhile, The bottom half was open, allowing the Ponies access to work inside, installing complicated-looking boards along with cables and wires that looked like spaghetti.

Feather Breeze sighed again before stepping backwards in surprise as she heard something above her. Gasping, she looked upwards and saw two Pegasus Technicians were busy with one of the emitters. They were attaching it to a scaffold frame which represented the exterior of the watchtowers.

She couldn’t help frowning, feeling sure she could help hold it in position for them. However, she remembered how she’d already failed at helping and decided better of it. Instead, she shook her head and left them to it.

She walked to the spot where she would stand during the tests, positioned in the centre of a large red circle painted on the floor, a short distance from the scaffold. She took a deep breath as she looked around and spotted where her friends would be standing.

This was behind a much smaller console and set of monitors over to one side. However, there were numerous empty holes of different sizes all over it and she assumed there was much more work to do.

Suddenly, she frowned, something didn’t look right. She cocked her head before advancing towards the console, holding out a hoof expectantly.

Sure enough, her hoof hit something hard. A large transparent screen positioned between the control console and the red circle. “So, she is listening to me,” she murmured.

As she thought about it, her stomach began churning with worry. Zipp wanted to replicate the artificial purr, to test if the ‘disk’ shut it off successfully or not. Closing her eyes, she grimaced. She didn’t like the idea at all and had started worrying about what could go wrong.

“Feather Breeze? Are you alright?”

Feather Breeze gasped and spun around to find a concerned-looking Strawberry behind her, numerous brown paper bags and white cups of various sizes held in her levitation.

“I…I honestly have no idea,” Feather Breeze stammered. “But it’s nothing for you to worry about.”

Strawberry looked surprised before frowning as she looked around the room. “S…So, how’s everypony else?”

Feather Breeze gasped, grimacing at how she’d sounded. “T…That’s what I mean,” she replied quickly before shaking her head sadly. “I…I don’t know. Zipp is putting things together, I think. And I have no idea what Pipp is doing, especially with those things over her ears.”

Strawberry frowned as she looked towards Pipp. Spotting the headphones on her head, she turned back to Feather Breeze, tilting her head in confusion. “How do you not know what headphones are? They had those in ancient Equestria.”

Feather Breeze blinked. “Did they?”

Strawberry gasped. “I…I’ve been doing some research,” she explained hurriedly. “T…Trying to reconnect with my ancestors.”

Feather Breeze sighed and gave a small smile. “They probably did, and I know many Kirin moved to Equestria in the past. But” – she gestured to everything around the room – “all of this is completely alien to me.”

“So, your village doesn’t have electricity then?” Strawberry blinked.

Feather Breeze frowned and looked confused. “Well, we…”

Suddenly, the sound of Pipp’s voice cut her off. “Is that Strawberry? It is! Oh, thank glitter. Did you get my Hay Burger?!”

Strawberry and Feather Breeze both turned to look at Pipp. She had spun her chair around and was holding her hooves out toward the paper bags, clapping them together. Her eyes were wide with hope, and a large, goofy grin spread across her face. Strawberry wasn't quite sure, but she could have sworn she saw literal stars in her eyes.

“Oh! Yes,” Strawberry gasped as she levitated one of the bags and drinks towards Pipp. “One double haypounder with cheese and extra mayo, large fries and extra-large banana shake.”

“Eee he he he!” Pipp squealed with happiness as she accepted the food, her hind hoofs wiggling up and down with delight. “Thankyouthankyouthankyou.”

Hearing her sister, Zipp turned and spotted Strawberry. “Oh, food’s here everypony!” she announced before flying towards Strawberry. “Let’s eat now, then we’ll start on the control system.”

Strawberry grinned as she handed out the bags and cups, remembering each pony's order without a mistake. Finally, she returned to Feather Breeze and placed the last two bags and cups on a nearby table with a smile.

“Here you go,” she said brightly. “I know you didn’t know what to get. So, I went with what Pipp suggested you try.”

Feather Breeze nodded unsurely as she inspected the bag and cup, “T…Thanks.”

Strawberry smiled knowingly, “Here, let me help. We never had McWing’s in Bridlewood until recently, so I know what it feels like to try one for the first time.”

Zipp watched as Strawberry opened Feather Breeze’s paper bag and took out a burger and fruit bag. She frowned before sitting down next to Pipp. “They seem to be getting along,” she murmured.

Pipp glanced back at Strawberry and Feather Breeze with confusion. “Yeah, they do,” she beamed. “Aww, adorbs, Feather Breeze looks so confused at her McWing’s. Oh, and Strawberry’s helping her, that’s so awesome!” She quickly spun around in her chair before holding up her phone and taking a few photos.

Zipp smirked. “Well, if you’ve never even heard or seen anything like it before…”

“What! Really?” Pipp gasped dramatically before frowning as she turned back to her screens. “Okay, you have a point. So, come on miss broody. What do you really think about Strawberry?”

“Yeah, she’s changed,” Zipp nodded. “The arrogance is gone, but…”

“Ugh, you’re not worried about what’s replaced it are you?” Pipp groaned. “Lighten up, Sis. She’s done nothing but help us.”

“Yeah, I know. I just…” Zipp let out a sigh. “I just don’t like how it seemed she was using Misty before, you know. I…I think it’s going to take me some time.”

“Well don’t take too long,” Pipp grinned as she grabbed her milkshake and took a big swig. “You know Misty wants her on the Marestream with us.”

“I know,” Zipp groaned.

“Look, Detective. Put your instincts to one side,” Pipp advised. “It’s not like she’s working with some evil Alicorn!”

Zipp snorted. “Har Har, Pipp. Very funny.”

Pipp couldn't help but let out a snort of laughter before she grinned sheepishly at her sister.

Meanwhile, as she consumed her burger, Feather Breeze studied Strawberry intently. Eventually, she let out a sigh as she put the burger down.

“Don’t like it?” Strawberry asked worriedly.

Feather Breeze gasped. “Oh, nono, it’s fine. “It’s, err, quite different to what I’m used to.” She paused and frowned before sighing again. “Strawberry, I’m… I’m sorry.”

Strawberry blinked with confusion, “What for?”

“For earlier, when you asked me how I was. I…I didn’t mean it like that.”

“I know and it’s fine,” Strawberry smiled. “It’s clear you feel completely out of your comfort zone here. I do too to some extent, Zephyr Heights is completely different to Bridlewood. I’ve just had more time to adjust.”

Feather Breeze nodded as she rubbed the back of her hoof. “T…There’s something else too. I’m sorry for capturing you.”

“B…But I thought that wasn’t your fault,” Strawberry gasped. “Everything you’ve said about the mind control. How can you feel responsible?”

“The same way you feel responsible for letting everypony down.”

Strawberry’s eyes widened as the fry she had in her hoof fell to the ground. “W…What?”

Feather Breeze sighed as she looked down. “I…I see it in your eyes. You… You feel like you failed everypony.”

Strawberry closed her eyes and grimaced. “I failed myself as well,” she admitted. “I was arrogant. It made me blind to how… how useless I really was. Misty, she…”

“She sees something in you,” Feather Breeze nodded understandingly.

Strawberry sighed as she opened her eyes, fiddling with her dress. “I don’t see why.”

Feather Breeze took a deep breath, thinking for a moment. “I…I don’t…” she sighed again. “I’m sorry, Strawberry. I’m not sure. M…Maybe bringing this up was wrong. I’m sorry, again.”

Strawberry sighed as she looked back across the table at Feather Breeze, trying to remember what she had looked like at the construction site. Then she remembered when Feather Breeze had transformed in the throne room. “W…Why do Kirin turn into Nirik again?”

“When we’re angry.”

“So, every time you feel anger?”

Feather Breeze nodded. “I become a Nirik. I think it’s a natural defence mechanism. But I’ve never been given an exact reason. It’s just part of being a Kirin and something we’ve learned to deal with.”

Strawberry gave a small smile. “Better not make you angry in here then, there’s too much expensive equipment.”

Feather Breeze frowned with thought as she looked towards the red circle. “Yeah, I’d rather not. Not until we’re ready for the testing at least.”

Strawberry’s eyes widened in realisation. “Is that why you’re here?”

Feather Breeze nodded before looking worried.

“That’s… That’s really brave,” Strawberry sighed before taking a sip of her milkshake.

Feather Breeze sighed as she looked away. “I…I suppose it is. But I…I’m…”

“Worried?”

Feather Breeze gasped as she turned back, “Yes.”

Strawberry took a deep breath and gave a small smile. “Do what I didn’t… Trust in others.”

Feather Breeze frowned, considering. Eventually, she nodded and gave Strawberry a small smile.

Deciding to change the subject, Strawberry smiled as she pointed with a hoof, “Tried the shake yet?”

Feather Breeze looked confused before examining her cup and the straw that was sticking out of it. Carefully, she placed her lips around the straw and sucked out the contents, her eyes widening in surprise.

“Chocolate milkshake,” Strawberry smiled. “I wanted to get you a smoothie, but Pipp says Sunny’s are better.” She let out a sigh of regret. “I really need to try one of those.”

Feather Breeze took another big suck of milkshake, holding the cup with both hoofs to steady it. Eventually tearing herself away from it, she placed it down and returned to her half-eaten burger. “There’s something I don’t understand,” she said as she picked the burger up. “Very few Ponies I’ve seen wear clothes, yet…”

Strawberry gasped before letting out a deep sigh. “It…It’s to cover up my flanks.”

Feather Breeze froze, mid-bite, as her eyes widened.

“I…It’s fine,” Strawberry added quickly, shaking a hoof. “It’s not your fault.”

Feather Breeze pulled her burger away, chewing as quickly as she could before gasping as she swallowed. “Th…The slogans! They’re…”

Strawberry bit her lip. “Not exactly…” she admitted. “I tried washing them out. But they wouldn’t budge. So, I’ve had my coat shaved off.”

Feather Breeze gawped. “So, under the dress….”

“Yeah…”

Feather Breeze grimaced, looking guiltier than ever.

Strawberry scowled. “No, don’t do that to yourself. You couldn’t do anything to stop me from being captured. Your mind and body weren’t your own.”

“B…But I could have changed things earlier!” Feather Breeze gasped. “I…I should have run for help… I shouldn’t have tried to…” She huffed, hanging her head as tears welled in her eyes.

Strawberry blinked with confusion and worry, completely shocked and unsure of what to say.

However, after a moment, Feather Breeze let out a deep sigh. “S…Sorry,” she groaned still looking down. “I…I was part of the first group that was captured by Allura. There….There was a moment when she lost control of me. A moment that I could have run, gone and warned our village. I didn’t. I tried to rescue Spring Flare and… and…”

“We’ll save them.”

Feather Breeze gasped as she looked up at Strawberry.

“We’ll save them,” Strawberry repeated determinedly. “I’ll do everything I can to help.”

“Thank you, Strawberry,” Feather Breeze smiled as she wiped away a tear from her eye. “I…I think I’m starting to understand what Misty sees in you. Speaking of, how’s your teleporting going?”

Strawberry blinked and looked down guiltily. “It…It kind of isn’t. I’ve gotten so busy helping here.”

Feather Breeze nodded understandingly. “Then why don’t we help each other?”

“Of course! You know how to teleport,” Strawberry gasped.

“Sort of,” Feather Breeze admitted. “I could when I was under the mind control but now…”

“Say no more,” Strawberry grinned. “We’ll work on it together.”

Feather Breeze grinned before nodding and returning to her burger.

A few days later, the watchtower control unit had been completed and the overload device, a thick round disk the size of a saucer, was attached to its side.

Additionally, in the centre of the red circle, a large, grey padded chair, resembling one typically found in a dentist's surgery, had been bolted to the floor. Everything was ready for the tests to begin, apart from one thing.

Feather Breeze stood with a look of determination on her face as Pipp and Zipp busied themselves around her, attaching electrodes and routing wires all over her body.

“Are all these necessary?” Pipp frowned as she placed a headband full of electrodes around Feather Breeze's head.

“Of course,” Zipp frowned as she routed the wires, “We need to keep track of her vital signs. We can’t take anything to chance.”

“It’s fine, Pipp,” Feather Breeze reassured before taking a deep breath. “Is that everything?”

“For the moment,” Zipp nodded before gesturing towards the chair with a hoof.

Feather Breeze nodded grimly before walking towards the chair and sitting on it. Placing her back against the reclined backrest and her hoofs on the rests.

Zipp nodded reassuringly at Pipp before they both began strapping Feather Breeze down with padded velcro straps. A few around each leg and a couple of wide ones around her barrel.

Feather Breeze sighed as she watched Pipp’s grim expression. “Pipp, please. I wanted to be strapped down like this.”

“Better to be safe,” Zipp nodded as she started plugging the wires into the chair. “We don’t know what will happen with the purr.”

“Yeah, exactly,” Pipp scowled.

As Pipp fastened the last strap, Feather Breeze gave her a reassuring smile. “Pipp, I trust you. I trust Zipp, and I trust Strawberry.”

“I know,” Pipp sighed. “Ready?”

Feather Breeze nodded before taking a deep breath and lifting her head to allow Pipp to attach a collar around her neck.

“You still don’t have to do this you know,” Pipp groaned as she adjusted the collar.

Feather Breeze sighed before looking at her with determination. “Yes, Pipp. I do. We need to be sure the disk will work. We need to be sure it will help us save everycreature. To save Spring Flare.”

“To save Sunny,” Zipp nodded.

“Ugh, yeah, you’re right,” Pipp groaned. “But it doesn’t mean I have to like it!”

“You comfortable?” Zipp asked as she plugged the last wire in. “Nothing chafing or digging in?”

Feather Breeze gave an experimental wiggle before nodding. “As comfortable as I can be. I’m ready.”

“Strawberry, we all good?” Zipp asked as she glanced over towards Strawberry, who was standing behind the control console.

“Yes, everything seems to be coming through over here,” Strawberry confirmed as she looked at the monitors. “I’ve run through the diagnostic checks you gave me. Everything is ready.”

“Okay,” Zipp nodded. “Remember, I have no idea if the purr is going to do anything. It relies on a recording, and I only got a rough one on my phone.”

“Ugh, it took ages to clean that up,” Pipp muttered.

“I understand,” Feather Breeze nodded. “We need to know if the disk shuts it down or not.”

“Not only that,” Zipp smirked as she looked at Pipp.

Gasping, Pipp smiled as she turned to pick up something before reaching for Feather Breeze's ears.

“What are you doing?” Feather Breeze gasped as she felt Pipp placing something in her ears.

“I’ve been working on these earbuds,” Pipp winked. “If they work, they should protect you from the purr.”

Feather Breeze’s eyes widened. “R...Really?”

“We hope so,” Zipp smiled. “We’ll know shortly.”

Feather Breeze let out a deep breath as she gave another wiggle. Finally, she relaxed into the chair and nodded. “Okay, I’m ready.”

“Sweet,” Zipp smiled. “Let's do this. Everypony in position.”

Feather Breeze could only sit nervously as Pipp, Zipp, Strawberry and the Technicians moved into their positions for the test.

“Power levels are good,” one Technician reported.

“Fire suppression systems are on manual control,” a second added. “We won’t be getting any unwanted alarms.”

Strawberry frowned as she checked the screens in front of her. “Err, vitals normal?”

Zipp smiled at her reassuringly. “It’s okay, Strawberry. You’ve gone over them plenty of times. You’ve got this.”

“Yeah, you do,” Pipp grinned reassuringly.

“O...Okay,” Strawberry sighed. “Vital’s normal.”

Zipp nodded as she placed her hoofs on the control desk before her. Everything was set up, so all the controls were at her hoof tips. “Okay, Feather Breeze. I’ll activate your collar first, you ready?”

Feather Breeze leaned her head back before taking a deep breath and closing her eyes, “Yes.”

“Okay, here we go,” Zipp said as she pressed a button.

The string of LED lights on Feather Breeze’s collar started flashing and she grunted as a strange sensation rippled through her body.

Suddenly, her eyes shot open, and she cried out as her body convulsed before there was an eruption of flames.

The flames dissipated to reveal Feather Breeze had transformed into her Nirik form. However, her expression wasn’t the normal one of snarling anger, it was wide-eyed shock.

“Feather Breeze?” Pipp gasped. “You okay?”

Feather Breeze didn’t respond. She grunted again as she struggled involuntarily against the straps.

“Strawberry, vitals?!” Zipp demanded.

“I...I...” Strawberry gasped as she watched her screen through wide eyes. “T...They’re all over the place.”

“Okay, I’m aborting,” Zipp decided as she reached for a button.

“N...No!”

Zipp froze, just before her hoof touched the button.

“I...I’m okay,” Feather Breeze grunted through gritted teeth. “It’s j...just…. Gah! T...This feels so wrong. Uaah! H...Hurry!”

“V...Vitals are stabilising,” Strawberry gasped. “I…I think.”

“Zipp,” Pipp gasped worriedly.

Zipp pulled her hoof back from the button and reached for another. “Okay, we’re continuing. Activating the purr... Now!”

Her hoof pushed the button and the tape in the watchtower console started turning. There was the sound of something powering up before everypony’s ears twitched, as though there was something they couldn’t quite hear.

However, in her Nirik form, Feather Breeze could hear it perfectly. Her ears twitched and she grunted as suddenly a mix of jumbled-up words forced their way into her mind.

“...Situation...receive...target...escort...instructions...obey...patrol...routine...prisoner...Allura...”

Her eyes widened as she froze completely, her mind unable to process what she was thinking.

“…Eighteen…airship…patrol…hut…corner…obey…prisoner…Twitch...confinement…capture…”

“Her heart rate is through the roof!” Strawberry cried. “I…I don’t think she’s breathing!”

“Sis, abort!” Pipp cried desperately.

“NO!” Zipp shouted urgently. “It’s just the purr working. Activate your earbuds. Shut it out!”

Pipp gasped and nodded, quickly pressing a button on the console.

Feather Breeze inhaled a lungful of air as her body convulsed again, the straps straining to hold her in position. Her head slammed into the headrest before she sat gasping for air with her eyes closed.

“Feather Breeze?!” Pipp shouted worriedly.

After a few worrying moments, Feather Breeze finally raised her head. “I...I’m okay,” she said hoarsely. “T...That was, different.”

“I said the purr wasn’t the actual recording,” Zipp said in relief. “I assume it wasn’t the same?”

Feather Breeze shook her head. “No, it was not.” Her ears twitched and she gasped. “Wait, what’s that sound?”

“Music,” Pipp beamed. “The buds are working.”

“Yeah, the purr is still going,” Zipp grinned. “Trust Pipp to use music to cancel it out.”

“Hey, it’s only on low,” Pipp snorted indignantly. “I thought it’d be way better than random white noise. She can still hear us can’t she?”

Feather Breeze frowned, listening hard before blinking in surprise. “Th…That’s going to take some getting used to,” she admitted before taking a deep breath and looking at Zipp with determination. “Okay, next!”

Strawberry grinned. “Vitals are all good.”

Zipp winked back at her. “Cheers, Strawberry. Okay, so the disk should shut off the purr. But...”

“You’ll need to turn the bud things off,” Feather Breeze realised before taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly. “Okay, I’m ready for it.”

Zipp nodded. “Strawberry, keep an eye on her blood oxygen levels.”

“Got it,” Strawberry nodded.

“Okay,” Zipp frowned as she hovered her hoofs over two buttons. “Pipp, get ready to shut the collar off. But on my mark, turn off the earbuds.”

Pipp nodded, frowning with concentration as she also hovered her hoofs over two buttons.

“Now!”

Pipp nodded and pressed the button under her left hoof whilst Zipp watched Feather Breeze like a hawk.

Feather Breeze grimaced and let out a snarling grunt as the music in her ears stopped. She shook her head violently, closing her eyes as she gritted her teeth. However, she was powerless as her mind was overtaken again. She froze, eyes wide as she stared straight ahead into nothingness.
“…Prisoner...watch...patrol...airship...capture...contain...”

“Her breathing’s stopped,” Strawberry reported. “Blood oxygen hold... No! It’s starting to fall.”

“Okay, we need to be quick then,” Zipp nodded as she pressed the button under her left hoof. “Purr countermeasures activated.”

There was a low humming sound from the disk, and they watched Feather Breeze intently.

However, she continued staring straight ahead with her eyes wide and barely breathing.

“Blood oxygen still falling!” Strawberry shouted urgently.

Zipp gritted her teeth in annoyance. “Pipp, be ready to shut the collar off if this doesn’t work!” She ordered before slamming her right hoof down on the next button. “Collar countermeasures activated.”

Pipp and Strawberry both gasped and watched Feather Breeze in surprise, unsure what to expect.

However, if anypony had been expecting something dramatic from the collar, they were disappointed. It emitted a low pop before the LED lights went out.

Feather Breeze’s reaction to that was more impressive. She was engulfed in flames again. When they dissipated, she had returned to her Kirin form, her head back against the chair.

Her eyes rolled back in her head as she let out a sigh and her head lolled to one side.

“Vitals!” Zipp ordered.

“T...They’re all over,” Strawberry gasped. “Wait, no it’s okay. Her heart rate is stabilising, she’s breathing again. I...I think...”

Zipp nodded before she started towards Feather Breeze. However, Pipp was well ahead of her and was already by her side.

“Feather Breeze,” Pipp gasped worriedly as she undid the velcro. “Speak to me.”

As Zipp and Strawberry arrived and started undoing straps, collars, wires and electrodes, Feather Breeze let out a grunt as her nose twitched.

“Feather Breeze?” Pipp gasped.

Feather Breeze grunted before her eyes finally fluttered open. “W...What? D...Did it work?”

“Almost,” Zipp sighed as they helped her up. “The collar deactivated perfectly.”

“But the purr didn’t,” Strawberry sighed. “Is that an issue if the collars don’t work anymore?”

Pipp groaned at her sister’s expression. “Yes and no.”

“We could have issues with the Auroricorns if the purr is active,” Zipp sighed.

“I...It’s not the same,” Feather Breeze grunted as Pipp and Strawberry helped her stand. “I...I don’t think it’s a f...fair test. A...Also, Allura could just purr at them d...directly.”

“So we’ll have trouble anyway,” Pipp frowned. “Zipp, we can’t delay this.”

Zipp scowled. “I know we can’t.”

She walked away, scowling before sitting at one of the computers and studying the screen.

“Zipp? Pipp gasped. “Sis?”

“This was a success,” Strawberry said suddenly as she waved a hoof. “All of this, in a few short days. It’s remarkable.”

Zipp sighed. “I...I just...” she groaned before taking a deep breath and sighing again.

She headed towards the watchtower console and pulled the disk from the side with a loud clunk. “We’re going into production,” she announced. “Once these disks are complete, we’ll fly back to the Quarry.”

“We’ll stop Allura,” Feather Breeze huffed. “We’ll rescue everycreature once and for all!”

“Yeah, we will!” Pipp beamed holding out a hoof.

“For sure,” Zipp smiled as she placed her hoof on her sister’s.

Feather Breeze only smiled as she placed her hoof atop the Princesses. All three nodded and looked expectantly at Strawberry whose eyes widened.

“W...Wait! Am I...” she gasped.

“Yeah, you’re coming with us,” Zipp smirked.

“We won’t be able to do it without you,” Pipp beamed. “So, get your hoof in here already.”

Strawberry gulped and lifted her hoof towards the others. She hesitated slightly before taking a deep breath and finally adding it to the pile.

“Ready?” Pipp grinned. “We’ll all do our part!”

Together they thrust their hoofs in the air and shouted, “HOOF TO HEART!”

Chapter Thirty-Eight - Icy Surprises

Sugar felt much better after a full night's rest, which was fortunate because the next day, she joined Sunny, pulling a cart of stone waste along Level One. However, a surprise awaited her when she returned to the hut.

Giselle sat in her cage scowling as, for the hundredth time, she inspected the rigid shackles that were locked tightly around her claws. She grunted as she turned them this way and that, trying to get a good look at them from all angles.

However, this was easier said than done. She could rotate her claws within them, but independent movement in all other directions was impossible. Her right claw was forced to follow her left, permanently separated by the same amount by the rigid bar between the shackles.

Eventually, she gave up, letting out a grunt as she slammed her claws into the ground before her, just missing her conjoined hind paws. She snarled in annoyance and frustration. Spending so much time alone each day was starting to get to her.

She hadn't realised how late it was, and the sound of the hut door unlocking made her grunt in surprise. She glanced worriedly towards Sugar's cage before attempting to stand.

However, the rigid shackles made every movement difficult, and she growled in annoyance as she struggled to get up. Desperately, she tried to reach the cage door. But she had to hop, first with her claws and then her hind paws.

Just as she reached the door, Nirik entered with Sugar. With wide eyes, Giselle grunted urgently through her muzzle at her and tried to gesture with her claws.

It was clear that Giselle was trying to communicate something, but Sugar couldn't understand what. Confused, she could only stare at Giselle questioningly as she was led toward her cage.

Desperately, Giselle continued to gesture at Sunny as she was escorted by. However, if anything, Sunny looked even more confused than Sugar had.

Giselle scowled at her conjoined claws, clenching them into fists and pulling against the shackles in frustration. Even when Sunny and Sugar were there, the muzzle locked around her beak prevented her from talking to them. She realized it was why she was in the same hut as them; it was another way for Allura to get into her head.

Sunny and Sugar could both see Giselle was frustrated, but they could do little until the Nirik left. They offered no resistance as the Nirik performed their usual routine, both hoping they’d be gone soon.

They stood obediently as the cage doors began sliding down into position. However, as Sugar’s cage door slammed shut, a white rune suddenly appeared below it and glowed brightly.

Sugar's eyes widened as a spark of white energy suddenly shot from the rune and travelled through the floor toward her, leaving a trail behind it. Her instinct was to step back, but the escort chains still attached to the cage held her in place.

As the spark approached her hooves, another rune appeared, glowing brightly as the spark struck it, resulting in a bright flash.

Two sparks of energy shot out from the rune, forming a circle around Sugar and activating five more runes. Each glowed brightly before emitting another bright flash.

A sheet of white ice suddenly formed from the runes. Sugar gasped, but she had no time to react before it had grown up and around her hoofs, instantly freezing them to the floor up to her fetlocks.

She looked down in dismay before giving an experimental tug and confirmed her hoofs were completely stuck. Desperately, she looked up at the Nirik, but they didn’t react. They removed the escort chains before leaving as if nothing had happened.

As the door to the hut closed, Sugar grunted and started struggling, pulling this way and that as she tried to wrench her hoofs free of the ice.

Giselle let out a frustrated growl as Sunny gasped and hurried to the bars separating her from Sugar.

“Sugar?!” she gasped worriedly. "What happened?"

“My hoofs are frozen. I…I can’t… I can’t move!” Sugar wailed in panic, continuing her struggles. “Sunny, I’m stuck. Gaha! I’m completely stuck!”

Sunny looked down at Sugar’s trapped hoofs in dismay. “Why?” she blinked. “Why do this? What does it do differently to freezing you completely?”

Sugar grunted again as she continued to pull and twist in desperation. Eventually, she gave up, panting and looking down in dismay before frowning as she realised something. “Wait, I'm stuck, but I've also got more movement. How will I sleep like this?!”

Sunny was about to respond when there was a loud clanging sound from Giselle’s cage. They both turned and watched in dismay as Giselle repeatedly slammed her muzzle into the bars.

Sunny gasped and hurried across her cage. “Giselle! Stop it!” she cried anxiously. “Doing that’s not going to help!”

“Giselle! Listen to Sunny!” Sugar cried desperately. “Please, don’t hurt yourself.”

Giselle pulled her head back and froze. She stood, panting for a moment before letting her hind legs collapse from under her. She fell to the floor and rolled onto her side, moaning into the muzzle in despair.

“Giselle,” Sunny gasped as she placed her hoofs up against the bars. “Allura was here, wasn’t she?”

Giselle closed her eyes and slowly nodded.

Sunny sighed. “You knew she’d done something but couldn’t tell us.”

Giselle opened her eyes before looking at Sunny sorrowfully and nodding again. Wiggling her claws in the shackles and moaning into the muzzle.

Sugar shook her head, “It doesn’t matter.”

Sunny blinked as she looked back at her. “What doesn’t?”

“It doesn’t matter if Giselle is wearing a muzzle,” Sugar scowled. “You wouldn’t have been able to tell me anyway, Giselle. The Nirik would have stopped you.”

“She’s right,” Sunny nodded as she looked reassuringly at Giselle. “As soon as you started speaking. The Nirik would have fired their magic at you.”

Giselle sighed into the muzzle and slowly struggled to stand.

Looking at her calmly, Sunny pushed her hoofs through the bars. “Take my hoofs.”

Giselle blinked with confusion.

“Giselle, take my hoofs,” Sunny nodded.

Giselle nodded slowly, struggling closer before sitting so she could raise her conjoined claws and take Sunny’s hoofs.

“This wasn’t your fault,” Sunny said as she looked Giselle in the eye. “Muzzle or no, there was no way you could have warned Sugar.”

Giselle took a deep breath as she closed her eyes before slowly nodding.

Sunny gave a small smile. “I know it’s hard, but my friends are still out there. They’re still going to save us and everycreature. We just need to give them time.”

Sugar sighed as she pulled against the ice. “Yeah, I just hope I have enough time to give them.”

Fortunately for Sugar, the white ice eventually melted. However, by the time she was able to sleep, the majority of the night had passed.

Each night when her cage door closed, the same thing happened. The runes appeared and created ice that trapped her in place. She tried all sorts of things. However, even if her hoofs didn’t get frozen the chains from her shackles did.

As the days went by, the lack of sleep started catching up with her in a big way. She tried everything she could think of to rest more, but nothing worked. She was still exhausted the next morning.

It was around midday and Sunny and Sugar were waiting for their cart to be loaded. The sun was at its highest, beating down on them with all its might.

Sunny sighed as she looked out over the lake in the middle of the Quarry. It was insanely hot, but she could see dark clouds gathering on the horizon, just above the trees of the distant mountains.

She scowled, feeling conflicted, rain would be a relief from the heat and the dust. But she wasn’t relishing the thought of being drenched and trudging through mud.

Meanwhile, Sugar leaned into the harness that attached her to the cart, using it for support. She felt exhausted from so many consecutive nights of little sleep, and the heat wasn't helping. Before long, she was struggling to keep her eyes open.

Sunny’s ear twitched as she suddenly heard somepony snoring. She glanced around in confusion before gasping as she realised it was coming from Sugar.

Desperately, Sunny looked around and spotted a Nirik standing nearby, keeping watch as the team of Diamond Dogs loaded the cart. Grimacing, she shook Sugar violently, knowing it was only a matter of time before the Nirik noticed.

However, Sugar had fallen into a deep sleep and Sunny’s desperate attempts to wake her weren’t working. Suddenly, she let out an extra loud snorting snore that made Sunny wince.

Hearing her, the Nirik’s eyes narrowed as it turned to investigate. Spotting Sugar was asleep, it scowled and snarled before firing a beam of magic at her.

Sugar was violently awoken by the beam. She cried out in pain as sparks of magical energy rippled through her coat, her body trembling and convulsing.

Sunny’s eyes widened in dismay, feeling entirely responsible for what was happening.

After a few seconds, the Nirik cut the beam and, seeing Sugar was awake, grunted with satisfaction. It turned back towards the Diamond Dogs as they loaded the cart and spotted one leaning up against the pile before hurrying away to deal with it.

Sugar gritted her teeth, panting as she recovered from the onslaught before sighing with resignation. She smiled weekly at Sunny before gasping as they were given the signal to leave.

Sugar was running on adrenaline as they left the loading area. However, this soon started to fade, and before they even made it halfway, she let out a groan of exhaustion. “S...Sunny, I...I’m sorry. I…I can’t...” she groaned softly.

“It’s okay,” Sunny hissed reassuringly. “I’ve got it.”

“B…But…”

“It’s okay, leave it to me,” Sunny whispered determinedly. “I’ll get us to where we can stop.”

Sugar let out another groan as she struggled to keep her eyes open. Before long, her hoofs began to drag along the ground as she strived to keep moving.

Alongside her, Sunny grunted as she felt the weight of the cart increase. Soon, she was pulling the loaded cart unaided, but her eyes narrowed with the determination to ensure Sugar wasn’t punished again.

However, it seemed everything was against her. The cart was heavy, and the heat was oppressive. Beads of sweat glistened in Sunny’s coat and the dust they were kicking up from the trail stuck to it, making her more and more uncomfortable.

Then, the trail started to climb.

She gritted her teeth as she struggled to heave the heavy cart up the gradient unaided. Suppressing another grunt of exertion, she desperately tried to hide she was struggling from Sugar.

Suddenly, Sugar’s head drooped forward, and she began to snore as her hooves gave out beneath her. Feeling Sugar’s weight pull her sideways, Sunny gasped before grunting as she leaned in the opposite direction to prevent Sugar from collapsing completely.

“N…No. Can’t stop here,” Sunny grunted. “T…The Nirik will come. C…Come on.”

However, Sugar was a deadweight strapped to Sunny’s side as her hooves dragged along the ground. Sunny knew if Sugar's body hit the ground too, she'd become an anchor and stop the cart completely. Determined to ensure that didn't happen, Sunny leaned the other way as hard as she could but each step of her hoofs became increasingly more difficult.

“C...Can’t stop here,” Sunny grunted as her legs began to burn. “G...Got to get... get to the top. We…We can s…stop then.”

Sunny struggled on for a while but before she could reach the top, her legs gave out from under her. She gasped as she collapsed to her knees, Sugar’s inert form hitting the ground with a soft thud.

Sunny puffed and panted as she stared at the ground, a feeling of defeat washing over her. However, she scowled and shook her head. “No. I won’t...” she grunted softly. “I won’t let Sugar get hurt again.”

She attempted to stand but gasped when she realized she couldn’t. Sugar lay on the ground, and despite her efforts, Sunny couldn’t lift her using the cart harness alone.

Grunting, she tried reaching out with a hoof. But the chains between her shackles went taught and she couldn’t reach, not if she wanted to stand up as well. Panting, she looked back where they’d come and groaned as she spotted two Nirik were already galloping towards them.

Sunny reached out with both hoofs and started shaking Sugar. Lightly to start with but then with increasing violence. “Sugar,” she said as loud as she dared. “Sugar, you have to wake up.”

However, Sugar’s snores continued as the Nirik galloped ever closer.

“Sugar!” Sunny winced as she shook her violently.

Finally, Sugar let out a snort as she awoke with a start. “W...Wh...What?”

“You have to get up,” Sunny hissed. “Quickly.”

Sugar looked around in confusion for a moment before realising what was happening. Grunting, she nodded and both of them struggled to their hoofs. Then, without a word between them, they resumed walking.

Seconds later, the two Nirik arrived. They overshot, skidding to a halt, snarling and eyeing the pair suspiciously before walking alongside them.

Sunny and Sugar shared a worried glance. Seemingly they weren’t off the hook yet and suddenly it felt like they were in for a long afternoon.

Their fears were realised when the Nirik stopped them at the next watchtower. One of the Nirik went inside and reappeared with two escort chains, keeping one and passing the other to its partner.

Sunny and Sugar gulped as the two Nirik connected the chains to their bridles under their chins, at the point the chains from their shackles connected.

Grunting, the two Nirik started walking, pulling the chains roughly. Sunny and Sugar both gasped as their heads were pulled upwards by the escort chains attached to their chins. As a result, the chains to their shackles went taut and made it harder to walk.

Sunny grunted as she pulled her head downwards against the escort chain. However, feeling her pulling, the Nirik escorting her looked back over its shoulder and snarled warningly.

When the Nirik escorting Sugar also looked back and snarled, Sunny reluctantly raised her head again. Snorting, both Nirik finally calmed down and turned to look where they were going.

Sunny and Sugar eyed each other worriedly, it really was going to be a long afternoon.

The two Nirik escorted Sunny and Sugar for the rest of the afternoon, ensuring they couldn’t slow down or stop anywhere.

Therefore, by the time they were taken back to their hut, Sugar was exhausted, and everything had become a blur. She didn’t even realise she was in her cage until she heard the door slam closed.

She shook her head and gasped, then looked down, expecting to see the white ice frozen around her hoofs. However, she blinked in confusion; there was no ice in sight. As the Nirik removed the escort chains and began to leave, she lifted her hooves one at a time, confirming that they were free.

As the door closed, Sugar could barely contain her excitement at the possibility of finally being able to sleep. She turned towards Sunny with a huge grin on her face. “Sunny! I’m free! The ice it…”

However, she trailed off as her excitement evaporated and she stared in surprise at what she saw.

Sunny stood in her cage with thick, blue-tinted ice encasing her legs up to just below her knees. Her eyes were wide, and her mouth was agape as she panted in shock.

“No, nonono,” Sugar blinked in shock and dismay. “This is… No… How?”

Sunny didn’t respond, she shook her head before gritting her teeth and grunting as she began struggling, thrashing her body this way and that as she tried in vain to free herself.

Sugar gasped and hurried towards the bars, shaking her head as she tried to stay awake. “Sunny! Sunny stop. It won’t work!”

Sunny didn’t listen, she gritted her teeth and grunted as she continued desperately thrashing around. Concentrating on her forelegs, she swung her head and barrel left and right as she pulled as hard as she could.

“Sunny! SUNNY, STOP!” Sugar cried urgently, closing her eyes and panting with exhaustion. “Please!” she gasped. “You’ll just hurt yourself if you carry on like that!”

Sunny closed her eyes and let out a final bellowing cry of anguish. Finally stopping her futile escape attempts she lowered her head and stood puffing and panting with exhaustion.

Eventually, she licked her lips. “Sugar, I…I’m sorry…. I’m stuck too,” she panted before opening her eyes and looking sorrowfully at Sugar. “I can’t…”

She trailed off as her eyes widened in surprise. “Wait, your…”

“Yeah, I’m free,” Sugar sighed. “There wasn’t any ice this time, Allura must have changed it. Were there runes under your cage door?”

“I…I’m not sure,” Sunny puffed as she shook her head. “I didn’t pay attention until a big one appeared right underneath me. Before I knew what was happening, the ice had caught me.” She looked towards Giselle’s cage. “Giselle, did…”

They both let out a gasp as they finally realised, Giselle wasn’t there…

Elsewhere, Skysurf grunted as she lifted herself from the tunnel. Picking herself up she looked around. Noticing Thymus had already arrived, she nodded in approval.

“It’s not getting any easier, is it?” Thymus groaned.

Skysurf shook her head. “No, it’s not. Is there news?”

Minty sighed with disappointment, “If you're having to ask then there’s been nothing.”

“How long is it going to take?” Sprout grunted. “It’s been days since Zipp got to Equestria.”

Thymus let out a sigh as he sat down and panted. “It will be as long as it takes, I suspect. Did you see the clouds building?”

“Yeah, it won’t be long until the rain comes,” Skysurf grimaced. “I’m not looking forward to my wings being waterlogged. I can’t spread them with them strapped up like this.” She sighed. “I suppose it will be better than the heat though. Did you see the Airship land?”

The others all looked at each other with confusion.

“I’ll take that as a no. It was getting dark when I saw it, I was being escorted back to our hut from one of the higher levels. They will likely wait till tomorrow to offload.”

“Yay, more prisoners,” Minty groaned. “I hope Princess Zipp hurries up.”

Suddenly, there was a flash from the corner. Gasping, the creatures all looked, hoping it meant Misty was joining them.

However, what appeared wasn’t Misty. It was a box. A wooden box that had been decorated with leaves, twigs and other forest items in a repeating pattern around its entire exterior.

They all looked at each other with confusion, surprise and bewilderment. Finally, Sprout walked forward towards it and reached out a hoof.

“W…What are you doing?” Minty gasped, her eyes wide with surprise.

Sprout scowled, “Well we know where it’s come from.” He pointed at the box. “This is Izzy’s hoof work.”

“Who?” Skysurf blinked.

“One of Sunny’s other friends,” Sprout said rolling his eyes. “She made Sunny’s fake cutie mark, remember?”

Without another word, he opened the box and gasped.

“W…What is it?” Minty blinked.

“What’s inside?” Skysurf scowled as she moved forward.

Sprout reached inside and withdrew something. Turning as Skysurf reached him, he passed her a piece of paper and held up a binder for the others to see.

“That’s the binder they found in the tower!” Thymus blinked.

“But….But how’s it here?” Minty stammered in shock.

Skysurf smiled as her eyes darted back and forth, reading the letter. “It’s not the one you think it is,” she beamed. “It’s a copy, one of three that Misty made. It’s for you to study, Minty.”

Sprout blinked as he reached inside the box again and withdrew a pile of blank paper. “And this?”

“It’s for us to use to communicate with them,” Skysurf explained. “Misty says here that whilst she’s too weak to teleport herself. She’s enchanted this box so she can retrieve anything inside it. Each morning, when she’s at her strongest, she’ll take anything left inside.”

“Excellent,” Thymus smiled. “We have our channel of communication back again.”

Minty snorted. “Which would be fine if we had something to say.”

Skysurf grinned brightly. “We can work on that, we’ve got an assignment. Plus, there's even more good news..."

Chapter Thirty-Nine

Sunny groaned, her voice heavy with fatigue, as a shrill beeping pierced through the fog of her uneasy slumber. Blinking drowsily, confusion swept through her; all she could see was the floor as her head hung wearily. Eventually, she realised she was standing up and quickly spotted the layer of blue-tinted ice that still ensnared her legs, its smooth surface shimmering in the artificial lights within the hut.

“I told you it wouldn’t melt.”

Sunny raised her weary head with a heavy groan, the chain still dangling from her bridle clinking as she did so. She caught sight of Sugar, standing against the bars between their cages with wide, anxious eyes.

“Did you manage to get any sleep?” Sugar asked worriedly.

Sunny let out a disappointed sigh, her shoulders slumping as she spoke. "A little," she admitted softly, her voice cracking with fatigue. "Not being able to lay down really didn't help at all."

Sugar nodded understandingly, “At least you’ve got more support than I had. If I fell asleep, I couldn’t keep standing.”

Sunny closed her eyes as she grimaced and looked away. “Is that supposed to make me feel better?”

A gasp escaped from Sugar's lips as she stared at Sunny in surprise. She grimaced before looking down and walking away from the bars, the chains of her shackles clattering on the floor and echoing around the hut.

Guilt suddenly pierced Sunny like a needle popping a balloon. Letting out a gasp, she looked worriedly back towards Sugar’s cage, gasping again when she saw Sugar had moved away and strained to see where she’d gone. “Sugar? Sugar, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it like that.”

Looking at the wall at the back of her cage, Sugar sighed. She was about to respond when her bowls filled with rice and water.

Gasping in realisation, she looked towards the bowls at the rear of Sunny’s cage, confirming they were also being filled, and then looked at Sunny, who stood with her bottom towards them, her legs trapped in the ice.

A look of concern flashed across Sugar’s face. “Wait. H…How are you going to eat?”

Sunny blinked, looking behind her at the bowls, then tugging one of her forelegs, confirming there was no way she could move to reach them. “I…I don’t know,” she admitted, her voice laced with concern.

Sugar's heart raced as she blinked anxiously, the worry in her eyes deepening. Suddenly, her eyes widened with realisation and with a scowl of determination, she moved across her cage towards Sunny, her chains clinking and rattling with urgency.

Sunny watched with utter confusion, “Sugar?” she blinked. “What are you doing?”

Sugar didn’t respond. A look of fierce determination was etched on her face as she lifted her right hoof as high as the shackles allowed. She closed her eyes, focusing intensely and channelling her energy. Slowly, her hoof began to radiate a vibrant green light, and she looked at Sunny with grim determination.

Sunny's heart raced as she watched what Sugar was doing. Her eyes widened in horror, a mixture of disbelief and fear gripping her. "Wait! No! Sugar, don’t!" she shouted, her voice trembling with urgency as it echoed around the hut. “Remember what you said when I was going to use Earth Pony magic before? We can't let them find out about it!”

“That was different,” Sugar responded resolutely. “The ice I was stuck in melted, but this blue ice doesn’t.” She grimaced as concern pierced her chest. “I can’t leave you like that. You need to eat!”

Before Sunny could protest further, Sugar repeatedly tapped her hoof firmly on the ground, using her Earth Pony magic.

However, no green patterns appeared on the floor like usual. Instead, no sooner had the magical energy left Sugar’s hoof than it curled upwards and was absorbed into the shackle locked around it.

Sugar’s eyes widened as she gasped in horror. She tried again and again. Then, desperately, she tried her left hoof over and over. But no matter what she did, the same thing happened.

“They know,” Sunny gasped softly, her face paling in horror. “Th…They know about Earth Pony magic.”

“No!” Sugar exclaimed. “No! They can’t. They can’t know. This has to be some coincidence. They’d have these things locked around everypony’s hoofs!”

Sunny frowned as she considered, playing things out in her mind. “That…That is true,” she said at last. “But we don’t know exactly what’s happening in the main hut.”

Sugar grimaced, her bottom hitting the floor with a resigned flump before sighing. “We also don’t know what your friend's plans are.”

“Exactly,” Sunny nodded. “All we know is what’s happening now. And what I know is you need to eat.”

Sugar gasped, looking up at Sunny with a shocked expression. “N…No. Not when you can’t!”

“Sugar,” Sunny sighed as she shook her head. “You have to. The Nirik will come for you soon. If you don’t eat, you won’t be able to pull the cart. I…” She grimaced as she looked down at the ice. “I won’t be there to help you.”

Sugar closed her eyes, her face screwing up in anguish before she let out a deep sigh of resignation. “Fine,” she said softly. “But only because you told me to.”

Sometime later, long after the Nirik had come and taken Sugar away to work, Sunny furrowed her brow as she examined the ice in more detail. Its surface was smooth and unblemished; not even a crack had formed from the struggles she’d exerted on it. The bluish hue made it challenging to discern the details of her hooves and lower legs.

It was odd; whilst she was sure it was ice, it didn’t feel cold, at least not now. She wiggled again, and a soft sigh escaped her lips as she confirmed that her lower legs were still completely trapped, frozen in place and offering no sign of movement at all.

She grimaced as her stomach made a loud gurgling noise before scowling. "No, I can’t give up," she muttered, her voice filled with determination.

She tugged at her left foreleg with all her strength, trying to pull it from the ice’s grasp. Grunting and groaning, she pushed herself harder, her determination evident as she gritted her teeth and grimaced. The sounds of her struggles echoed throughout the hut, a testament to her efforts. With each movement, the ice creaked ominously, teasing her with the promise of freedom. However, every tug was met with stubborn resistance, and the ice continued to hold her in its unyielding grip. As she continued her battle, a feeling of frustration pulsed through her with every failed attempt to break free.

“Ugh!” she cried out, a mix of frustration and urgency in her voice. “Come ON!”

In her desperation, she forgot to focus on freeing just one leg. She began to thrash around wildly, the ice creaking and groaning in protest once again. Sensing the possibility of freedom, her eyes widened in determination, glistening with both fear and hope as she shifted her weight from one leg to another, searching for leverage. Still, the ice refused to yield.

Her stomach growled loudly, reminding her of the hunger she longed to satisfy. Panting heavily, she paused, her heart racing as she prepared for another attempt. The flicker of hope that kept her fighting against the frozen bonds ignited her spirit.

“Please…. just let me go!” she cried desperately, her voice resonating throughout the hut.

She fought fiercely, pouring every ounce of energy into her struggle. Her eyes were shut tight, her face twisted in a determined grimace. Her head swung wildly from side to side, her body twisting and turning relentlessly as she battled against the ice that held her captive.

However, despite her determination, she found no success. The ice creaked and groaned but continued to confine her in its vice-like grip. Eventually, a throbbing ache began to creep into her muscles, and her lungs ached for air. Exhausted, she finally ceased her struggles and released a bellowing cry of despair, dropping her head in dismay as she started to pant.

"It's... It’s no use. I... I can’t... I can’t get free,” she huffed, her voice filled with despair.

As her stomach growled once more, it intensified her feeling of frustration and hopelessness, and an old wound reopened into a familiar bottomless void. Unable to move, she panted in despair, her gaze fixed on the floor as she gradually lost track of time.

Finally, something pulled her from the ravine of despair. Her ear twitched; she could have sworn she had just heard a creature sneeze.

Frowning, she raised her head and looked at the ceiling, carefully inspecting the area above the control panel opposite the hut door. A soft gasp from that area seemed to confirm her suspicions, and her eyes widened as she noticed a hole in the ceiling—one she was sure she had not seen before.

“W...What?”

Suddenly, a louder gasp of surprise echoed from the hole, followed by a creature scraping and scrabbling around as if trying to escape now that it had been discovered.

“No, please don’t go!” Sunny shouted in desperation. “Please, if you can, help me!”

Her plea echoed around the hut, carrying the weight of her despair and the hope for a saviour. However, it appeared it had fallen on deaf ears as the sounds suddenly ceased, and Sunny turned her ears this way and that, straining to listen.

Hearing nothing, her heart sank at the realisation that she was once again left alone in her predicament. However, there was a soft grunt, and moments later, Sunny gasped in surprise as the missing ceiling tile suddenly plummeted from the hole.

A tiny grey paw quickly followed as though it was trying to grab the tile back again. But the tile was already well out of reach as it rushed towards the floor.

The tile hit the floor with a loud clattering sound, bouncing around before eventually coming to rest. Above, the paw clenched into a fist and shook in frustration, accompanied by intelligible grumbling sounds.

“Please!” Sunny begged, her voice full of pain. “I’m completely stuck here! I can’t even reach the food.”

There was a sullen sigh from the hole before the paw retreated. Sunny’s eyes widened, and she gasped with dismay as she realised the creature was leaving.

“Please, Twitch!” Sunny shouted in distress.

She gazed anxiously up at the hole, the likelihood that Twitch still wouldn’t assist her at the forefront of her mind.

However, there was a groan, and after a moment, Twitch poked his head through, looking at her with a sullen expression. He sighed and shook his head sadly.

“Please,” Sunny pleaded softly, tugging fruitlessly at her left hoof to emphasise her situation.

Twitch closed his eyes and grimaced. He shook his head again and was about to retreat, but Sunny’s stomach suddenly growled loudly. He gasped and looked back at Sunny as she grimaced, her face screwing up as she doubled over in discomfort.

He gritted his teeth; he knew he couldn’t leave her like that. Letting out a groan, he suddenly dropped headfirst from the hole, gracefully somersaulting in the air before landing on all four paws.

Sunny’s eyes widened as she gasped with surprise, and a grateful smile spread across her face. “Thank you, Twitch. Thank you," she gasped thankfully.

Twitch scowled as he rose to stand on his hind legs. He huffed at Sunny, placing his forepaws on his hips as he made grumbling noises at her.

He closed his eyes and sighed deeply before turning towards the control panel. He released the cover and started tapping away, his paws darting across it with speed and precision.

Sunny could only watch with curiosity before an electronic-sounding voice made her gasp in surprise.

“Sunny Starscout, I am sorry. I cannot release you. However, I cannot just leave you to suffer, either.”

Sunny gasped again as she caught sight of Twitch, who was gazing at her with a severe expression, his usually playful demeanour replaced by a look of concern.

“I understand,” she replied, her voice tinged with disappointment as she nodded. “I’m grateful for any help you can give me. Thank you for not leaving me.”

Twitch nodded thoughtfully before turning back to the panel. His paws danced around the controls again as he sent commands into the hut’s systems.

Sunny gasped in surprise as her cage door emitted a loud clanging sound before it started opening, screeching as it lifted into the air. She glanced back at Twitch just in time to see him retrieving a metal bowl from a hatch beside the control panel.

Sunny gasped as Twitch turned around to reveal the bowl was full of hot steaming rice. He walked towards her, carefully balancing on his hind legs as he carried the bowl before setting it down in front of her.

She stared at the bowl in shock and disbelief before looking up at Twitch uncertainly. He leaned against the metal doorframe and nodded with a reassuring smile.

Sunny didn’t need a further invitation. She flashed him a grateful smile before she began eagerly tucking into the rice. It was plain, but that didn’t matter; it still tasted wonderful, and she struggled to hold herself back.

Twitch smirked as he watched, a feeling of satisfaction welling within him before he shook his head and sighed. He retreated towards the control panel and began tapping away at it again.

“Starscout, Allura is doing to you what she has done before, to another.”

Sunny froze, mid-bite, as her eyes widened in surprise. She hastily chewed her mouthful of rice, raising her head from the bowl as grains clung stubbornly to her nose. Desperately, she swallowed before finally responding. “She has? Who?”

Twitch snorted as his paws tapped away again, shaking his head casually. “That is not important. What is important is your friend; she will have an impossible choice to make soon.”

Sunny grimaced before looking down at the ice, a feeling of worry piercing her heart before she sighed. “I see. It’s going to grow then.”

Twitch groaned as his paws tapped away, crafting his response. “It will; each night, you will be enveloped further. You should know Allura wasn’t always like this. She wants to save Alturo.”

“Who?”

“Her brother, he’s trapped in a different realm. Allura’s wish, my wish, is to save him and then return home.”

Sunny gasped as she noticed Twitch suddenly stiffen. He let out a soft huff and wiped away a tear with his paw before he began tapping a response again. “Allura has changed; the longer she stays here, the colder she becomes.”

“Then let me help!” Sunny exclaimed in exasperation. “My friends and I, we’re the Guardians of Unity. Let me contact them and use our magic to help!”

Twitch let out a regretful sigh as he tapped his response. “We tried that and were betrayed. That is what set Allura on this path. She doesn’t even want to listen to me anymore.”

He groaned in despair as he jumped away from the control panel and back towards Sunny’s cage.

She gasped and desperately finished the last few mouthfuls of rice, wolfing them down with satisfaction, only to look up and see Twitch was waiting for her. He gave a small smile as he nodded and retrieved the empty bowl before pottering back to the control panel.

Sunny took a deep breath, relishing the feeling of having a full belly as she gathered her thoughts. She reflected more deeply on Allura's past words and remembered moments when she sounded genuinely sincere.

Suddenly, a feeling of conflict rattled through her. Her friends were nearby and must have brought the elements with them. What should she do if she was about to use them against Allura?

As she tried to figure things out, a clanging sound startled her. She looked down and saw Twitch had filled the bowl with water and placed it in front of her again. She smiled gratefully as she raised her head to look at him.

“Thank you, Twitch. If I get the chance, I promise I’ll do what I can to help you get home.”

Twitch snorted, leaning against the cage door frame as he folded his forelegs before shaking his head and scowling in disbelief.

“I’m serious,” Sunny gasped. “You keep looking out for us despite what Allura could do to you.”

Twitch groaned as his expression softened before he nodded acceptingly. He waited for Sunny to finish drinking before finally retrieving the bowl and returning to the control panel.

He put the bowl away before his paws danced around the controls for one final time.

“Thank you, Sunny Starscout. But I would not want to leave without Allura. Despite what she is doing here, she is still my best friend.”

Sunny nodded understandingly before gasping as her cage door suddenly began screeching. It slid downwards into place and emitted a loud clunk as it locked. Her eyes darted back towards Twitch as he closed the control panel and picked up the errant ceiling tile.

“Thank You, Twitch,” she sighed gratefully. “I feel much better now. Thank you.”

With a nod, Twitch suddenly leapt for the ceiling, bouncing off the wall and disappearing into the opening. Just moments later, the tile slid back into place, sealing off the secret hiding place again.

As Sunny glanced around, the silence of the hut enveloped her like a heavy blanket, and she realised that, once more, she was all alone. The echo of her own breaths filled the air, a reminder of the solitude that being trapped had given her.

She closed her eyes and sighed despondently before muttering, “They’ll come. I know they will. It won’t be long.”

Dark, angry rain clouds surged across the sky like an endless conveyor belt. The strong wind buffeted the trees around the camp, their branches creaking and groaning in protest as their leaves shook, trying to escape the onslaught.

Standing at the campsite, Hitch, Misty, and Izzy gazed up with a mix of eager anticipation, bubbling joy, and pent-up excitement. However, the sway of the trees and the occasional leaf breaking free and dancing through the air wasn’t what captivated their attention.

The Marestream hovered above them, rocking and rolling like a ship at sea as it fought against the wind. Finally, it began its descent into the camp. With care, Zipp guided it down between the swaying branches, some of which seemed to reach out as if trying to snatch the Marestream away. However, all of them missed, and the Marestream continued its rocky descent until, at last, the wheels touched down. Its wings folded up and out of the way before the door opened.

Izzy cried out with joy before rushing forward. She couldn’t contain herself as she giggled and laughed joyfully toward the door.

Unfortunately for Pipp, she was the first to appear. No sooner had the Pop Princess’s hoofs touched the ground than she was swept up in Izzy’s tight embrace.

Balancing on her hind legs, Izzy spun around and around on the spot, swinging Pipp around helplessly. “Yay! You’re here. You’re really here, so now we can rescue Sunny. And everypony. And everycreature! AAAAH!”

“Iz...Iz...” Pipp squeaked desperately, gasping as the air was squeezed from her lungs. “Izzy... Can’t... Can’t breathe! Izzy!”

However, Izzy didn’t listen. She was too busy laughing and spinning around in joy.

“Izzy!” Zipp laughed as she set hoof outside the Marestream. “If you don’t stop, she won’t be able to... Ahhh!”

Before Zipp realised what was happening, Izzy spun around and grabbed her as well. Now, both sisters found themselves trapped in a tight Izzy hug that threatened to crush their lungs whilst Izzy continued to whirl around, laughing joyfully and making the princesses' heads spin.

“Iz...” Pipp gasped.

“Izzy...” Zipp groaned.

As the first spots of rain began to impact the ground, Misty and Hitch watched with bewilderment for a few moments before locking eyes. They shared a knowing smile before Hitch started walking forward with confidence. “Okay, Izzy. I think... What!”

Hitch was suddenly frozen in his tracks, his eyes widening in astonishment at the two Nirik that had just materialised before him in a blinding flash. They were both staring at him with narrowed eyes, snarling and growling menacingly as their horns flared.

Izzy gasped in horror and quickly released her hold on the two princesses. However, they both fell to the ground in a daze, causing Izzy to trip over them. As a result, all three of them ended up in a tangled heap of legs and wings on the floor.

Meanwhile, Misty stood frozen in place, her eyes wide with shock as disbelief washed over her. Her breath caught in her throat, and every muscle in her body tensed with fear and astonishment. She wanted to run but could already feel a tightening in her chest, a reminder that she still wasn’t fully recovered.

However, she was pulled back to reality as one of the Nirik stepped towards Hitch. Its head low as it growled intimidatingly at him, making the Sheriff gasp and take a step backwards.

Seeing her friend in danger, Misty gasped and violently shook her head. Knowing she was the only one who could help Hitch, she put her concerns to one side. Her eyes narrowed with determination, and with a deep breath, she ran forward.

As the Nirik continued its advance, Misty’s eyes narrowed as she spotted the collar strapped tightly around its neck. Knowing removing it would release the unfortunate Kirin trapped within Allura’s mind control, her horn flared as she carefully aimed, curving her approach to find a better angle.

However, just as she found the right angle and was about to shoot her beam at the collar, the Nirik's eyes and cheeks bulged as it tried to hold back a snort of laughter. It struggled for a moment but couldn’t hold it in and quickly erupted into full-blown laughter, collapsing onto the floor, unable to contain itself.

Gasping, her eyes widened in surprise as Misty skidded to a halt and looked at Hitch in bewilderment. He looked back at her with equal amounts of confusion before they both advanced carefully towards the Nirik, who continued to laugh uncontrollably.

“Okay?” Hitch blinked with confusion as Misty reached him.

Suddenly, the Nirik emitted a bright white flash, which made them both wince and look away. Blinking, their vision cleared to find the Nirik had turned into a laughing and grinning Strawberry. Panting, she carefully rose to her hoofs before dusting down her brown dress.

Misty’s eyes widened in shock and bewilderment. “Strawberry?” she gasped. “Is? Is that you?”

“Y…Yeah, I’m sorry,” Strawberry puffed with a massive grin. “It...It wasn’t...”

“It wasn’t her idea,” the second Nirik said as it raised a hoof and tapped on its collar.

The Nirik was engulfed in a whirlwind of flames, which made Hitch, Izzy and Misty all gasp in astonishment. As the flames diminished and disappeared, they revealed a very worried-looking Feather Breeze. “It wasn’t mine either.”

“It was mine!” Pipp shouted with glee as she finally sprung to her hoofs after untangling herself from Zipp. “We got you!”

She grinned as she practically danced her way over to Misty, her eyes sparkling with excitement. She enveloped her in a warm, thankful embrace, draping a comforting hoof around her shoulder. "Oh, Misty. Eee, he he he! You look so well. How are you feeling?" she asked, her voice bubbling joyfully.

Misty smiled as she gratefully returned the hug. However, the sudden exertion began catching up with her, and she started to puff lightly. “B... Better, but I’m not…” she huffed. “Not quite there yet.”

Pipp gasped with concern, “Y...You’re not?”

“By evening, she’s too worn out to do anything,” Hitch sighed before smiling as he spotted Zipp approaching.

“Got anything to report, Sheriff?” she smirked, holding up a hoof.

“Don’t worry, Detective,” Hitch winked as he returned the hoofbump. “I’ll catch you up on everything shortly.”

Meanwhile, Izzy had also picked herself up off the floor and spotted Feather Breeze standing awkwardly nearby. She hurried over, a look of curiosity on her face. “How did you change like that? I thought you had to be angry. You must have gotten really skilled.”

Feather Breeze shook her head, “No, it’s not me, it’s this.” She sighed as she pointed a hoof at the collar still strapped around her neck. “Zipp made it, especially for me. I can turn it on and off when I like.”

Izzy blinked with confusion as she cocked her head. “Why?”

“Pipp worked out how to protect her from the purr,” Strawberry smiled.

Overhearing, Misty gasped before hurrying towards Feather Breeze, a look of hope twinkling in her eye. “W...Wait,” she breathed. “How?”

“An inbuilt MP3 player,” Zipp grinned. “Pipp’s created a playlist that counteracts the purr.”

Misty let out a gasp as her eyes widened hopefully. “Does that mean that you’ll...”

A small smile crept onto Feather Breeze’s face as she nodded. “Being forced to change is not pleasant. But it will allow me to help distribute the disks.”

Misty let out a squeak of joy before flinging her hoofs around Feather Breeze and holding her tightly. “T...Thank you,” she wheezed, tears welling in her eyes. “I...I...”

Misty's voice faltered, her breaths coming in shallow gasps as she fought to draw in air. Panic flickered in Feather Breeze’s eyes as she quickly wrapped her hoofs around her. “Misty?”

“I...I’ve over... over...” Misty huffed as she struggled for breath.

“You’ve overdone it,” Feather Breeze sighed knowingly. “Don’t worry. Rest now, and I’ll give you my full treatment again tonight.”

Misty nodded as she continued to gasp. “I...I want... wanted to do some r...reading... anyway.”

“Come on then, Misty,” Izzy beamed thankfully. “I’ll help you.”

“Me too,” Pipp grinned before laughing nervously. “This is kind of my fault, after all. We’ll both make sure you’re comfortable.”

Misty nodded and gave Feather Breeze a grateful squeeze. Still huffing and puffing against the tightness in her chest, she leaned on Izzy and Pipp as they guided her towards her tent. Pipp raised a wing to protect her from the raindrops that were falling heavier and heavier.

Feather Breeze nodded thankfully and turned towards Strawberry before Zipp called for her from the Marestream’s doorway, Hitch by her side.

“Feather Breeze,” Zipp called urgently. “Can we have a word?”

Strawberry glanced around, her heart racing with confusion as she realised, to her dismay, that everypony had scattered in different directions, leaving her alone. A strong gust of wind suddenly penetrated the camp, and she shivered as cold raindrops were blown into her face. “I suppose I’ll light a fire before this rain gets any worse then...”

The rain soon fell in a torrential cascade, drenching the Quarry. The once-dry grey dust transformed instantly into thick, slippery grey mud. Deep puddles gathered, reflecting the sober sky above, the surface shimmering as heavy droplets impacted it.

Despite the relentless rain and mud, Sugar was forced to press on with her labour, hauling heavy carts of rock across the Quarry. She blinked rapidly to clear the water from her eyes. Her saturated mane, clinging to her coat, glistening with droplets. Her tail was saturated, too; it hung limply and trailed through the muck, the filth sticking to it relentlessly.

Her red hooves were almost completely hidden under a layer of thick, grey mud, making each step through the muck feel exhausting. The shackles around her legs were also encrusted with filth, the mud seeping into the links of the chains, adding to the weight she bore. Each movement became a struggle against the relentless rain that continued to pour down.

By the time she was escorted into the hut, Sugar was exhausted. Finally feeling the relief of being out of the rain, she glanced towards Giselle’s cage, her heart sinking as she found it was still empty. Her heart sank further as she locked eyes with a grim-faced Sunny, seeing her legs were still held tightly in the blue-tinted ice.

Sunny felt increasingly anxious as she observed the three Nirik carry out their usual routine. A mud trail streaked across the floor as they escorted Sugar into her cage. Once she was secured inside by the escort chains, they retreated before the cage door began its descent.

There was a loud clanging sound as the cage door closed and locked into place. An icy blue rune immediately appeared directly below it, emitting an ominous glow which intensified in brightness.

Sunny could only watch helplessly as the rune emitted a flash and a spark of icy blue magic shot through the floor towards her. Another rune activated, splitting the spark into two and sending them off in different directions, quickly encircling her trapped form and activating multiple additional runes.

A feeling of dread welled within Sunny as the runes all began glowing ever brighter. She knew what was next, and with a deep breath, she raised her head as high as the chain from her bridle would allow.

All six runes encircling her suddenly flashed, emitting more sparks of magic which spiralled inward toward the ice around her legs. The once-still surface began to shimmer with an ethereal glow as the massive rune concealed beneath it sprang into action. An unsettling symphony of creaks and cracks filled the air as the ice began to grow relentlessly. Further encasing her legs in its unyielding embrace, its crystalline form crept upwards with an almost sentient determination, finally halting its advance as it reached halfway around her barrel.

Sunny stood as still as a statue, panting in shock as the loud thud of the hut door closing finally brought her back to reality. She blinked rapidly before shaking her head and finally inspecting her new predicament.

“Sunny?! Are you okay?”

Sunny glanced towards Sugar, who had moved as close as she could, pressing her mud-encrusted hoofs against the cage bars—a look of concern etched on her face.

Sunny grunted, wiggling as she tested how much movement she had lost. “I...I’m not sure,” she admitted as she twisted her shoulders. “Being stuck like this, it’s driving me potty!”

“Bet you’re hungry too.” Sugar grimaced before sighing as she looked towards the bowls at the rear of Sunny’s cage, well out of her reach.

“Actually, no,” Sunny gasped. “I had a visitor…”

Sugar listened intently as Sunny explained about Twitch’s visit, gasping in shock at his assistance and kindness.

“Well, at least it seems he’s on our side,” Sugar said at last.

Sunny sighed. “I think Allura would be too if we could convince her that we’ll help her. We have magic now! I’m sure we could send her home with the Elements.”

Sugar’s eyes widened in disbelief, and a frown creased her forehead as she stepped back. "Sunny, just look at yourself!" she exclaimed, her voice heavy with concern. "Can’t you see what she’s doing to you?"

Sunny gasped, her eyes widening as she looked down at her trapped legs. She wiggled again to confirm that she was still trapped in the ice's unforgiving grasp.

Sugar let out a regretful sigh, her shoulders slumping slightly. "You remember, don’t you? You already tried to help her, and it didn’t make any difference." Her voice tinged with both sadness and frustration.

“No, it did,” Sunny replied firmly, then sighed in regret as her head drooped. “It just didn’t give the immediate result I was expecting.”

An uneasy silence descended between them. Sunny looked down at the patch of floor in front of her while Sugar rested her head against the bars of her cage. Both contemplated the situation and what was likely to come next.

Finally, Sugar grimaced and let out a groan. “This is all my fault,” she said softly, her voice filled with a sense of responsibility. “But I know what I have to do.”

Sunny blinked before gasping as she raised her head sharply to look pointedly at Sugar. “No, don’t say anything,” she said firmly.

“But Giselle won’t mind if I told Allura she’s the Griffon,” Sugar reasoned. “Allura already has her.”

“But she’ll want to know who the Hippogriff is as well,” Sunny countered with a frown. “If you only give her half of what she wants to know, she’ll make things worse, not better.”

“But, Sunny!” Sugar exclaimed urgently. Her voice filled with concern as she anxiously looked at the ice trapping her friend's legs. “That ice isn’t going to stop there. Twitch said it will keep spreading and…” She grimaced. “And it won’t be long before it covers you completely.”

“I... I know,” Sunny stammered, her voice trembling slightly. She took a deep breath, then shut her eyes tightly, a grimace spreading across her face.

Sugar grimaced as she rested her forehead against the bars, staring sorrowfully at the floor. “She’s making me choose between you and them.” Closing her eyes tightly, she felt a wave of anguish wash over her, tightening her stomach. “I… I can’t let this happen to you.”

“No.”

Sugar's eyes widened in surprise as she gasped. She lifted her head, surprised to see Sunny looking back at her with hope in her eyes and determination spread across her face.

“Don’t tell her, at least not yet,” Sunny instructed firmly. “If we’re not rescued soon, Misty will come to see us. I know she will. She’ll deal with this.”

Sugar blinked with confusion. “But it’s been ages,” she reasoned. “How? How can you still have hope like this?”

Sunny laughed lightly, “Because I always have hope. Hope that my friends will come through for me. Even when I sunk to my lowest, you were there.” She smiled brightly. “Have hope, Sugar.”

Sugar sighed deeply before shaking her head and giving a small smile. “Fair enough, hope it is, Sunny.”

Author's Note

So, I have an important announcement.
I've been working on the final chapters, but I’m not completely satisfied with the story as it stands. As you’ll see from this chapter, I've been focusing on improving my writing based on feedback I've received from various sources. There is, therefore, a marked difference in style, and I think it's jarring.

I’ve made a decision: I will be rewriting the entire story, which I have already started. I’m incredibly pleased with the changes I’ve made to the Prologue, and I assure you it will be worth it.

This time, I plan to follow some advice and write most, if not all, of the story before I start posting the updated chapters. I need to review the site’s rules first to determine how I will share this. One thing I am sure about is that I will be changing the title since the whole "Arora" concept, which seemed like a good idea at the time, really doesn’t pay off.

So, the story's status is now on Hiatus. However, I will keep all updated in my blog as I make progress with the rewrite.