Sora took out two shadows and leaped over a big one trying to grab him as he ran at Pete.

“Bring it!” Pete said as he ran at Sora.

“I will handle the Ursa heartless, you handle the rest,” Celestia strategized as she and the guards got ready.

“Got it-... wait, how do you know about-”

“Later go!” Celestia said as she took to the air and fired a beam at the bears who dodged while the guards ran forward.

“O-ok!” Twilight said and she ran forward and fired some blasts, taking out several soldiers.

“Hah!” Pete punched Sora sending him tumbling but Sora rolled to his hooves and fired lightning at Pete zapping him.

“YOW!” Pete yelped and he ran around Sora who tried to follow but was cut off by big ones.

“Out of the way!” Sora said.

Pete ran forward and gunned for Twilight.

“This ain’t good, with Celestia here the plans gone belly up! I need to take her student hostage, it’s the only way,” Pete said.

Twilight flew upwards a little and shot a beam taking out another soldier when she was scooped up from behind.

“AH!” Twilight yelped.

“GOTCHA!” Pete said.

“Hey! Let her go!” Donald demanded as he and Goofy turned towards him.

“Not a chance losers! Hey princess! Got somethin!” Pete called.

Celestia had just taken down an Ursa when she turned and saw this.

“Twilight!” Celestia called.

“Either leave now or the purple pony gets it,” Pete said.

“Tch!” Celestia could easily take him down but it would hurt Twilight in the process.

“Twilight!” Spike called as he ran over to help.

“Back off shrimp!” Pete kicked Spike away.

“Ah!” Spike yelped.

“Spike!” Twilight cried.

“Alright, that’ll be easy, either beat it or lose her!” Pete said.

“Hey Pete!” Sora called and he turned around seeing Sora smiling.

“Made you look,” Sora said simply.

Suddenly a beam from Celestia struck Pete from behind and sent him flying.

“WHOOAAAA!” Pete cried as he landed on his face while dropping Twilight.

“Twilight! Are you alright?” Donald asked.

“Yeah, thanks, sorry for that,” Twilight said.

“It’s fine,” Goofy said before he got in the way of a smaller Ursa trying to attack “Let’s get back to fightin!” Goofy said.

“Grrr… this is a disaster, I gotta warn Maleficent at the cave,” Pete said before he ran off.

“Cave?...” Twilight said having heard that.

“Get down!” Celestia said and she flew above Appleloosa and fired multiple beams down taking out the remaining heartless.

“Wow, she’s as strong as you said,” Sora said.

“That’s my teacher,” Twilight smiled and they grouped up after collecting themselves after the experience.

“Whew, everyone ok?” Sora asked.

“Yeah, sorry I wasn’t much help,” Spike said.

“It’s fine Spike, you did what you could,” Twilight assured him.

“Yes, thanks for your help Sora,” Celestia said.

“...How do you know my name?” Sora asked.

“Yeah, and the heartless,” Twilight asked.

“I’ve dealt with them before, but first we need to focus, Pete got away,” Celestia said.

“Where to?” Donald asked.

“I’m not sure,” Celestia said pondering what their next move should be.

“....The cave of harmony,” Twilight said getting an epiphany.

“What’s that?” Sora asked.

“A place where Equestria’s harmony magic resides,” Spike said.

“Why there?” Celestia said.

“It’s what Pete said that has me thinking,” Twilight said “He mentioned their goal is to make Equestria’s magic theirs, and he also mentioned a cave, It seems like a wild guess, but I think they may be intending to take the tree of Harmony for themselves,” Twilight said grimly.

“Then time is of the essence, we must hurry, Luna is in Canterlot making sure the heartless don’t enter so we’re on our own, guards,” Celestia said turning to them.

“Yes?” A guard said.

“Remain here to protect the citizens, I fear we may need you here,” Celestia said.

“Ok,” The guards took off.

“Meanwhile we must make haste,” Celestia said.

“Ok!” The others said and they followed her back to the train.

As the group took the train back Celestia was writing on a scroll the whole time.

“So, you're saying you’ve met the heartless before, how is that?” Sora asked.

“It was the heartless who turned my sister into Nightmare Moon, an evil alicorn, and it was only by putting her on the moon she was safe from being further corrupted, luckily I had help,” Celestia said.

“Who?” Twilight asked.

“A young mouse, with a keyblade similar to yours,” Celestia said.

“You mean the king?!” Donald and Goofy exclaimed.

“Yes,” Celestia said.

“King?” Twilight asked.

“King Mickey, he’s our leader, and he’s out there fighting heartless as we speak,” Donald said.

“Wasn’t that many years ago? How is he still alive?” Spike asked.

“Time is a bit of an oddity to travelers like them, the flow is different in some worlds,” Celestia said.

“Gotcha,” Twilight said.

“Makes sense,” Sora said.

“Come, this is our stop,” Celestia said as they made their way off the train.

“Where is this tree of harmony?” Sora asked.

“Over this way, it’ll be faster if we fly,” Twilight said.

“Ahem,” Donald coughed as he, Spike and Goofy weren’t pegasi.

“I got you,” Celestia said, grabbing them in her aura.

“Whoa!” Donald and Goofy exclaimed as they lifted into the air.

“Alright, we must hurry,” Celestia said and with that, they took off.

The flight was short but they made it without any problems.

“This seems too easy,” Twilight said.

“You're right,” Celestia said.

“Whaddya mean?” Goofy asked.

“We didn’t meet any resistance in coming here, it’s almost as if-”

“Look out!” Celestia used a barrier to block a magic blast and they turned to see a dozen heartless coming out of the forest.

“Not good!” Spike said, backing away.

“It was a trap!” Twilight said as they got ready but Celestia got in front of them and spread her wings.

“I will handle them, go ensure the tree is safe,” Celestia said.

“Ok!” Sora said and they ran off.

“Will she be ok?” Donald asked.

“Celestia is capable, we need to- no…” Twilight paused at the entrance to the cave and they turned.

“What?” Sora asked.

“Look!” Twilight pointed and they turned and saw the tree but something was different, it had these five weird bulb-like things on the ends of the branches, like fruit hanging from the tree, and inside them.

Were her friends…

“GIRLS!” Twilight galloped over there.

“Look out!” Spike called and Twilight looked up and saw a bubble flying at her but she teleported in time avoiding it.

“Tch!” Twilight looked up and saw Maleficent descending.

“Hmmph, if it weren’t for that whelp I would have gotten you,” Maleficent said angrily.

“Hey!” Spike said.

“Maleficent!” Sora said getting ready.

“Give up! You can’t win!” Donald said.

“Come to save the tree hmm? You believe I am outmatched, little do you know, you’ve been played,” Maleficent said before a barrier came up on the cave exit.

“Huh?!” The group exclaimed turning around.

“The tree was never our goal, but as long as you’re here, you might as well be entertained,” Maleficent said as she waved her hand and suddenly the tree shook and darkness began to emulate from it.

“No… she’s corrupted the tree!?” Twilight said in shock.

“Not quite,” Maleficent said before she vanished with a laugh.

And the tree suddenly began a transformation.

The branches began to warp into crystal tentacles and the bulbs gained thorns.

And the cutie mark in the center became a heartless insignia.

“That’s not the tree, that’s a big heartless!” Twilight exclaimed.

“Then we’ve gotta fight it!” Sora said.

The tree roared as it swung one of the bulbs down like a giant hammer and the group scattered.

“Hah!” Donald fired several fire blasts at it but the tree blocked it with one of the bulbs containing Pinkie.

“Careful!” Twilight said.

“Sorry!” Donald called back before another bulb struck him sending him flying.

“Donald!” Sora exclaimed before he ran forward at the tree which slammed down several bulbs and he dodged around them before leaping at the insignia and striking it several times.

“Goofy!” Sora called as it swung down at him but Goofy blocked it with his shield.

“I’m coming!” Twilight called as she took to the air avoiding several swings from the tree and she fired several shots at the tree, hitting it and it growled as it flailed its arms around forcing everyone back.

Sora took to the air and deflected two swings from the tree heartless and he used thundaga to shoot at it and it hit the tree making it growl and it suddenly fired a beam from its insignia.

“Whoa!” Sora dodged it.

It fired the beam a few more times and one blast hit Donald and then Goofy.

“Oooowaaaah!” Goofy cried as he landed near Spike who was hiding.

“I can help too!” Spike cried and he tried to run out but Twilight landed in front of him.

“No Spike, stay put, I don’t want you getting hurt!” Twilight said before she took off again.

“....” Spike looked down.

“HAAAH!” Twilight flew at the tree and fired a big beam at it but the tree suddenly put her friends in front of it “NO!” Twilight used her magical grip to change the beam's course into a wall.

The tree then swung two bulbs at Twilight but Sora got in the way and blocked it… before they both got launched.

“AAAH!” They both cried as they were sent flying.

“Sora!” Donald cried and he prepared to heal them when a bulb smashed into him and knocked him into a wall knocking him out.

“No!” Goofy cried and he ran forward throwing his shield like a boomerang but the tree knocked it aside and then did the same to Goofy K.O-ing him as well.

“No!” Sora cried before he got up and deflected another swing from the tree and Twilight put up a barrier as the tree hit it repeatedly.

“We can’t-” Twilight said

“No we can!” Sora said as he glanced at Spike and he nodded.

Spike nodded as well and he ran forward.

“Spike! No!” Twilight cried.

“Trust him!” Sora said before he jumped out of the barrier and ran at the tree and he dodged several swings but when it swung down again at him Sora dodged and pinned the tentacle down.

“Now!” Sora cried and Spike looked to him and saw Sora pointing at the tentacle, getting the plan Spike ran over and jumped onto the tentacle and Sora got off as the tree raised its tendril into the air and swung him around trying to get him off.

“Hey! Over here!” Sora called as he galloped around and the tree growled before firing beams at him.

He dodged into the air and it shot a limb forward and pinned Sora against the wall.

“NO!” Twilight cried.

Sora suddenly smiled.

“Gotcha!” Sora said before he raised his hand and his keyblade vanished.

The tree raised its other bulbs to smash him when it heard Spike give a battle cry and it looked up and saw the small dragon descending… keyblade in hand and he slashed it downwards and split the front of the tree down the middle.

The tree screeched in pain and let go of Sora who took back to the air and Spike threw the keyblade upwards.

“NOW!” Spike called and Sora caught the keyblade and plunged it into the tree’s heart insignia.

It cracked and began fracturing before the tree heartless screeched as the bulbs dissipated dropping the other elements to the ground.

Sora jumped back and saw the tree screeching some more before it lurched forward and disappeared, and a heart flew away, revealing the real tree of harmony.

“We did it!” Spike cheered.

“Yeah, thanks to you Spike,” Sora said.

“Heheh, thanks,” Spike said.

“Girls!” Twilight cried as she ran to them and checked their pulses, they were alive thankfully she turned and saw Spike approaching.

“Spike… you did it!” Twilight hugged him.

“Thanks, Twilight, I think I’m ready to fight now,” Spike said as she set him down.

“Let me help us first,” Sora said before using healaga to heal everypony.

“Whew… my head,” Donald said as he got up.

“Gwarsh, that tree packs a punch,” Goofy said as the two made their way over to the group.

“Well now that that is fixed, let us get moving, my friends need a hospital,” Twilight said… before a glow overcame the area and they turned to see a light in front of Spike.

“Huh?” Spike said before he saw something manifest out of the light…

A keyblade.

It was designed to look like it was made of fire but the flames were colored green and purple.

“Whoa… is that your keyblade?” Spike asked.

“No Spike, I think that’s yours,” Sora said with a smile.

“My… keyblade?... Wow,” Spike said as he grabbed it and he could feel it the moment he touched it, it was his, he swung it around and laughed.

“I got one!” Spike cheered.

“Looks like we have another keyblade wielder, this is good,” Donald said.

“Should we tell his majesty?” Goofy asked.

“Later, for now, we need to help my friends, and solve this problem,” Twilight said still feeling proud of Spike.

“Alright, let’s go find Celestia,” Sora said as they gathered up her friends and carried them out.

As they got outside they saw Celestia standing there looking a little tired but she saw them she trotted over.

“Was the tree alright?” Celestia asked.

“Yes, but we had to deal with a heartless posing as the tree," Twilight said.

“I see you’ve found the other elements, this is good, let us get them somewhere safe,” Celestia said before they went back to Ponyville.

It showed them in the hospital and the others were laying in beds.

“They just need to rest and they will be well,” Celestia said.

“Yes, but what of Maleficent and Pete? Why take us on this long goose chase?” Twilight asked.

“I’m not sure, I-” Celestia paused when Spike burped up a letter and he looked at it.

“It’s from Luna to you Celestia,” Spike said handing it to her.

Celestia opened the letter and as she looked at it her eyes widened.

“What does it say?” Twilight asked.

“....This was their game all along…” Celestia said with chagrin.

“What?” Twilight asked.

“We need to go to Canterlot and gather our resources, the Crystal Empire is in peril,” Celestia said.

“What?” Sora asked.

“Sombra and an army of heartless have taken over the Crystal Empire!” Celestia said.

“No…” Twilight said in horror.

“We must go to Canterlot and assess the damage from those who escaped, I fear we’ve fallen into their trap,” Celestia said.

“Alright, let’s go,” Twilight said and they left.

Spike looked down at his new weapon and gripped it tightly, he wasn’t going to hide anymore! It was time he face his problems head on.

And so the group made their way out of the hospital, ready to face their next endeavor.

Author's Note

It's the moment you've all been waiting for and also an awesome boss battle