The Cine-magic Series: Godzilla

The bright, spring sun shined over the mellow town of Ponyville. Everything was lively and dandy. Ponies were bustling about with all sorts of errands and agendas. It was just another fine day for the citizens of the bright, little town. All seemed peaceful, especially for a certain bright yellow pegasus.

Fluttershy was making her way through the town, intending on traveling to the market to purchase more carrots and other vegetables for herself and some of her animal companions. She felt to warmth of the sun seeping into her coat. It felt quite nice being out on such a beautiful day. Fluttershy felt that nothing could ruin her day.

"Hey, Fluttershy!"

"EEP!" The yellow pegasus squeaked and jumped into the air.

She turned around to see that it was just her best friend, Rainbow Dash, standing behind her with a smile.

"O-Oh, hello, Rainbow,” she composed herself and fluttered to the ground. "What brings you here?"

"Oh, nothing much,” Rainbow lazily flew around the yellow pegasus. "I just noticed you walking about and thought I'd say hi."

"Oh, well, thanks, and hello,” Fluttershy said.

"But, you know. I couldn't help but noticed you got scared from me greeting you," Rainbow landed to face Fluttershy.

"Well, you know I startle easily,” the timid pegasus responded meekly.

"Right, I know that,” the rainbow-maned mare affirmed. “But, I guess what I'm trying to say is that you seem to get scared more easily than before."

That was shocking news to Fluttershy. She had found that she was getting more timid and scared easily, and she couldn't figure out why.

"I..." Fluttershy sighed. "I know, and I don't know why."

"Is it because of the new friendship missions we've been going on?" Rainbow asked.

"I don't know," Fluttershy answered.

That seemed to be the most reasonable explanation. She still occasionally had nightmares of fighting of that dragon creature with Cloud and the others.

"Did something else happen that I'm not aware of?" Rainbow pressed on.

"I don't know. I really don't know, Rainbow," the animal caretaker said, raising her voice just a little too loudly.

Rainbow just gave an unsure look. Fluttershy, realizing that some other ponies around them were staring, hid her face behind her pink mane. After what felt like hours, Rainbow decided to speak up.

"Well, whatever it is, I just hope you can figure it out,” she soothed.

Fluttershy smiled graciously. However, she knew that Rainbow wasn’t exactly the soft type.

"Thank you,” the skittish mare said. “But if I may ask, why? You've never really had too much of a problem with my timidness. Outside of some...specific circumstances."

The cyan pegasus drew in a breath and sighed.

"I'm willing to admit this, that's an understatement, Flutters." Rainbow said matter-of-factly. "Secondly, I'm...kinda worried about you Fluttershy."

Rainbow hesitated on the last part. She never painted herself as being soft, especially to others. But, seeing her friends in distress, she knew she should make an exception.

"W-Worried? About me?" the butter-yellow mare asked.

"Yes,” the Element of Loyalty confirmed. “Ever since this period of time, you've also grown a lot more...what's the right word? Infrequent with us, I guess. Well, I mean to say is that you haven't been as active, especially with me and the girls."

"I guess I haven't hung out with you girls as much as of late," Fluttershy admitted.

"Yes. That's what I'm trying to say,” Rainbow said with concern. “And I'm not the only one who's picked up on this. The others are worried, too."

"I appreciate you and the girls' concern,” Fluttershy smiled. "I-I'm sure I'll get over this."

Rainbow didn't seem entirely convinced.

"Are you sure?" she asked.

Fluttershy hesitated for a second. Not even she was fully convinced with herself. But, she also didn't want to worry her friends even further than they already were.

"Yes, Rainbow,” she finally spoke. “I promise everything will be fine."

"All right. If you're certain,” Rainbow conceded. "Well, I'm off to Sweet Apple Acres. I agreed to help Applejack with watering her crops and whatnot."

"You mean you're forced to help her after you lost the bet between you and Applejack on who could drink to most cider without passing out,” Fluttershy smiled wittily.

"Ha, ha. Thanks for reminding me," Rainbow said dryly. "Perhaps humor is the medicine you need."

She leaned closer to Fluttershy's face, a cheeky smile on her face. Fluttershy stepped back bit, not out of fear, but to hide the bright, crimson blush beginning to coat her face.

"Heh. Cya around, Flutters,” Rainbow took off towards Sweet Apple Acres.

"Bye, Rainbow," Fluttershy waved goodbye. "That was close."

She hated keeping it hidden, but she was too scared. Ever since the first met in Flight School, Rainbow and Fluttershy had been pretty much inseparable friends. But, as the years went by, Fluttershy's feelings slowly shifted into something else. At first, she didn't want to admit it, citing the fact the Rainbow likely didn't share the same feelings, but she couldn't deny it any longer. Fluttershy had a crush on Rainbow. She was willing to admit the she loved her. She loved that she was loyal, understanding, and, when she needed to, Rainbow could sweet, too. Sure, she was brash and overly-energetic, but Fluttershy always found it more endearing than most.

Ever since she came to terms with it, Fluttershy did her best to keep her crush on the cyan pegasus hidden, especially around Rainbow herself. Fluttershy still worried that Rainbow didn't reciprocate the same feelings for her. She also didn't want to risk ruining the friendship she already had with her. It was painful and she hated hiding it. She hated being so scared so much of the time, too.

No one liked being scared and Fluttershy was no exception. She hated to fact that she always got startle by the most miniscule things. Her getting scared by Rainbow Dash earlier was proof of that. At the very least, her friends didn't give her any grief over it, expect Rainbow, but Fluttershy knew that Rainbow's pushiness came from a good place and she didn't mean anything bad by it. Regardless, she hated being timid and nervous pretty much all the time. Of course, the were times where she was fearless, I mean she mouthed off a dragon for crying out loud. But, she really wished she was just more calm and relaxed in such situations, instead of cowering behind her friends. Oh, colt, she was mentally going off on a tangent. She needed to focus on what she needed to do at the moment instead of falling into needless poignance. It was a brand new day, and Fluttershy intended in being in a happy mood.

The purposive pegasus continued her journey through town, finally making it to the market. She scanned through the tents and stands, searching for Carrot Top's stand. Eventually, she found it and made her way over to it.

"Good morning, Carrot Top," Fluttershy greeted.

"Oh, jeez,” the yellow earth pony whispered to herself as she lifted her head over the countertop. "Yes, good morning...Flutter-shee."

Fluttershy looked at the carrot farmer with confusion. Carrot Top was usually in a good mood in the morning. Combined with the fact that she got her name wrong didn't sit well with the pegasus.

"Um, It's Fluttershy,” she corrected.

"O-Oh, right, Fluttershy,” the mare chuckled sheepishly, starting to sweat. "What brings you here?"

"I'm just need to purchase some carrots. If that's all right with you?" Fluttershy asked timidly.

"O-Of course,” the earth pony said a bit too quickly. "Uhh, here. Have some."

Carrot Top hastily shoved a hooful of carrots onto the countertop.

"Uhhh, four bits, please,” she said.

Fluttershy skeptically put four bits on the counter and scooped the carrots into her saddlebag. She could see Carrot Top was sweating.

"Um, are you okay, Carrot?” she asked worriedly. “You seem a bit off today."

"Yes, I'm fine," Carrot Top said sharply. "You can go now."

The farmer mare waved Fluttershy away. Fluttershy, deciding not to create a scene, quietly trotted away. However, she knew that Carrot Top was not being herself today. Maybe she wasn't feeling well or perhaps she didn't sleep well last night. Whatever the case, Fluttershy ultimately decided not to think about it for the time being. She had other things to do.

Later

Fluttershy was on her way back to her cottage, content with herself. She double-checked she had everything in her saddlebag. Carrots, cucumbers, onions, parsley, grapes, beets. Yep, that was everything. As she neared her home, Fluttershy remembered Rainbow's words from this morning.

"Well, whatever it is, I hope you can figure it out."

That stuck with her the most out of the rest of the conversation. She just couldn't figure out why she had gotten so jumpy and on-edge as of recently. The only plausible conclusion she could make was the new missions through the Friendship Map had brought out an increased sense of alertness and anxiousness. In her head, it made sense. She considered all the truly deadly situations she and her friends were put through: Fighting a half-god experimental being with magical powers, almost being sacrificed by a hunger-driven fish, dangling over a misty gorge to rescue somepony...or some-Tigger. They were all incredibly dangerous and Fluttershy and her friends barely scraped by those circumstances without getting killed.

"It's not like I haven't put myself in danger before,” she said to herself

Being an Element of Harmony, Fluttershy always put her life on the line whenever something really bad came up in Equestria. Tirek's invasion, Nightmare Moon's return, the Everfree Forest overgrowth. Bottom line was, Fluttershy had put herself in dangerous situations before, even before the multi-dimensional travels. So, why was she getting more panicky as time went on. Maybe it was because those situations were in different worlds instead of Equestria. Unfamiliarity could become a catalyst for fear and uncertainty. Fluttershy knew that, and she supposed that was the explanation to this unforeseen fear increase.

Fluttershy then began to ponder what she could do to correct such qualms. Perhaps she should go into therapy.

BUMP

Fluttershy stepped back in surprise and in pain. She had gotten so distracted with her thoughts that she hadn't realize she was already at her cottage. She had bumped her muzzle against the front door.

"Oh. These thoughts are really eating away at me," she thought to herself as she rubbed her nose.

No matter, she was back home now. She opened the door and was swiftly greeted by some of her animal companions. Birds, mice and even Angel Bunny same to greet her.

"Hi, Angel,” the yellow pegasus greeted. “Uh, hello to you, too, Constance. Hey, Mr. Mousey, how are you feeling?"

The animals all greeted her kindly.

"Oh, and Angel,” Fluttershy pulled a hoof-ful of carrots out of her saddlebag. “I did promise you these like you want."

Angel impatiently tried to nab them, but Fluttershy was quick to lift them out of his reach.

"Ah, ah, ah. This is for later,” she asserted.

The white bunny grumbled in annoyance. Fluttershy smiled in reassurance, he would get the carrots. Just not now.

"Now, what else did I plan on doing today?" she said to herself as she place her saddlebag on a table.

Gathering veggies at the market was really the only errand she had to do today. The mare figured she could tend to her flower garden out back and then, after that, meet up with Rarity at the spa as they often do. Today seemingly summed up to be a laid-back day for Fluttershy. She was happy with that. It was bright, sunny day today, and she was going to spend it fittingly.

Fluttershy groggily opened her eyes, allowing them to refocus. She realize a number of things wrong. For one, she no longer felt the comfort of her bed, instead, her body was met with cold, rough ground. There was also the sound of crackling and snapping, at least that what it sounded like to her. The confused mare propped herself up, trying to make sense of the indescribable situation.

As her eyes adjusted, she realized with horror what was making the crackling sound: Fire. Fire all around her, burning along the ground and around gigantic buildings.

"W-W-What is this?” Fluttershy questioned. “Where am I?"

Fear began to boil deep within her. A primal sense that told her that she was in mortal danger. But, she didn't know how to react. Fluttershy was frozen in place and unable to fulling comprehend what was happening. Where was everypony else? Where they all gone? Where was this place? Why was it on fire?

Then, all of a sudden, screaming began reverberating throughout the burning enviroment. Screams of panic, anguish, and pain. It only frightened Fluttershy further. She instinctively took to the air in an attempt to escape this place.

"I need to get out of here!" she cried out.

But, no matter where she went, all she could see were burning buildings and wreckage strewn across the melting streets. Then, as if the situation coulnd't get any more terrifying, a massive stomp resonated from, what seemed like everywhere. The sheer air displacement rattled the poor pegasus to her core. Fluttershy lost balanced and tumbled onto the rubble-covered road. She held her aching head and sat up on her rump. She had intended on taking off again, now more determined to escape upon learning of the possibility of something big roaming around, But her eyes landed on something that made the mare's blood run cold.

A creature of sorts, the even dwarfed some of the buildings was quickly stepping through the area, tearing down buildings in it's wake. It was hard to make out through the dust and smoke, but Fluttershy concluded it's shape closely compare to a bat. It's head was long and smooth, and had a ominous, orange glow that made up it's slitted eyes. Fluttershy's mouth hung wide with horror as she watched the creature let out a demonic screech. Suddenly, a much larger shape rammed into it, setting at tumbling toward Fluttershy's direction.

"Eeep!" Fluttershy shrieked.

She leapt behind a pile of twisted metal and concrete. She curled up into a ball and winced as the monstrous creature collided with the ground. It felt that the entire world shook on contact. Then, there was silence, aside from the sound of the raging flames. Gathering enough courage, Fluttershy slowly and fearfully stepped out from the pile of rubble. She looked back, where the creature had landed. It was struggling to get up. Fluttershy wondered if she should help it.

"What would I even do? There's no way I'd be able to lift it up myself,” she thought to herself.

Then came another stomp and this one sounded a lot heavier. Fluttershy's pupils shrunk to the size of pinpricks. She had forgotten the being that shoved the other creature down. She turned and, well she didn't think she could get anymore scared than she already was, but that turned out to not be the case as she began to shake.

The second was much larger than the first one. It was bulkier and was bipedal unlike the first creature. It's body shape was more comparable to a lizard if it was standing upright. And, Fluttershy didn't know why, but she felt it's eyes boring down straight into her soul. Then, it let out a mighty roar.

The sound was deafening. Fluttershy covered her ears and squeezed her eyes shut, but it did next to nothing to muffle the horrific sound. She felt that her head was about to explode, the roar was so loud. Tears began welling up in her eyes, both from pain and fear. Whatever these beings were, they were not Equestrian. The mortified mare opened her eyes and was greeted with the creature still standing there, but something was changing about it. Its back began to glow a bright blue. It traveled up it's back where it stopped just below the head. Then, the creature opened its mouth which was also beginning the glow blue.

Fluttershy's ears flattened against her head in dread. She knew what was about to happen. Unfortunately, before she could do anything, the creature unleashed a great bout of blue, fire like energy surged out of it's mouth.

"AAAAAAAHHHHHH!" Fluttershy let out a blood-curdling scream as she was bathed in fire.

“…AHHHHH!”

Fluttershy reeled from her covers, screaming. She stopped when she realized she was back in her bed, in her cottage. Her body was drenched in sweat and tears, her heart was racing, and she was hyperventilating. Fluttershy worked to calm herself down. She slowed her breathing and did her best to relax. It was all just a bad dream. A really, really bad dream. But, at the same time, it felt so real to her, like she was actually in that situation. More importantly, though, why did she have a nightmare like that? Fluttershy couldn't think of anything that would happen to her that would cause her brain to form something so horrific.

The distraught pony let out a sigh. No way she was going to able to fall asleep again, not with all the nightmarish sights and sounds still fresh in her head. She begrudgingly got up from her bed, intending on heading to her kitchen.

"Perhaps a cup of fresh tea could help calm myself down,” she quietly whispered to herself.

Celestia's bright, ethereal sun rose above the horizon, bathing the lands in light. The incoming morning light seemed to act as a starter for the town of Ponyville. Ponies began leaving their homes and the town was buzzing with activity. However, despite the new wave of livelihood throughout the town, there was one inhabitant who wasn't in the best of ways.

Fluttershy watched the light stream through the curtains of her windows. Since the nightmare, the poor mare was unable to get a wink of sleep. She was exhausted, her eyes had dark circles underneath them, and she had no motivation to do anything. But, that last part, she knew, could not go unexplained. Whether she truly wanted to know or not, she needed to know why such a horrible nightmare had occurred, and why she was the one to have it.

If she was going to figure out the truth of her nightmare, there was only one mare that could help her. However, said mare resided all the way in Canterlot, and Fluttershy was not too keen on travelling all the way there, especially in her condition. Thankfully, she knew another way to get into contact with the pony she needed. The tired, but determined Fluttershy left the comfort of her cottage and headed for her destination with the intention of getting to the bottom of this.

As the demure mare made her way through the town, she noticed some of the ponies watching her with concern. They could clearly see the dark circles under her eyes, as well as distraught look on her face. Some would ask if she was okay, to which Fluttershy would respond with something around the lines of, "I'm okay." or "Yeah. Just a little tired." and end it there. She had a specific place to be and she was going to get there, despite having to hide her nervousness and shyness from the others, even if she wasn't very good at it...at all.

"I need to get to Twilight's and found out what that nightmare meant,” Fluttershy said to herself to stay focused.

Normally, if she even had a nightmare, she was try her best to forget about and move on with her life. However, there was something about this nightmare in particular that disconcerted her. The most prominent thing being that it involved things that she had never seen, heard, or even thought about. On top of that, having a nightmare so graphic didn't seem fitting for somepony as timid and kind as her. And thirdly, the creature that tried to kill her, it was nothing Fluttershy had ever seen before. It first, she thought it was a dragon, but when really thinking about it's structure, it was much to burly to be a dragon, and it didn't have wings either. With all that spread out in her mind, Fluttershy knew there had to be some kind of explanation to this nightmare beyond it just happening.

She would get her answer soon. She could see Twilight's castle in the distance. The resolved pegasus quickened her pace to the castle. She would find her answers even if she had a bad feeling about it. Once she was there, Fluttershy knocked on the door and waited patiently for somepony to answer it. Or, in this case, somedragon since it would be Spike that would answer the door.

"Good morning, Fluttershy,” the baby dragon greeted politely.

"Good morning, Spike,” Fluttershy greeted back. "Is Twilight available?"

"Oh, well," Spike hesitated for a second. "She's actually talking with Princess Luna about something. I don't know what, but it seemed kind off serious.

"Princess Luna is here? Could that mean she already knows what happened to me?" Fluttershy thought to herself.

"Actually, I needed to talk to Princess Luna about something, too, which is why I came to Twilight,” Fluttershy said quietly.

Spike nodded, but his attention wasn't on what Fluttershy was saying. He saw the dark circles under the mare's eyes, she mane was a bit unkept, she just looked greatly fatigued.

"Um, are you okay, Fluttershy?" Spike asked worriedly. "You look like you haven't slept in a week."

"Yeah...about that..."Fluttershy said solemnly. “I have a lot to unpack, but I really want the Princess to hear about, too. Could you, if you can, let me see Princess Luna? If that's alright with you."

"Of course, Fluttershy. Follow me,” Spike let the mare in and led her to the main library room where Twilight and Luna were discussing something.

Spike opened the door to reveal the two princess's talking with each other, and, like Spike has said, Luna was indeed their in all her nightly, ethereal beauty: Dark cerulean fur, a flowing mane that resembled the starry night sky, and the night-themed regalia that seemed to glow like moonlight. The two princess turned, seeing the dragon and pegasus at the doorway.

"Ah, dearest Fluttershy, it seems that you have come at a crucial time,” Princess Luna spoke first.

"Crucial?" Fluttershy wondered curiously. "You know of the nightmare I had last night?"

"Yes, and I have reason to believe theirs more meaning to it than any other dream," The Night Princess said gracefully. "I assume that is the reason you wanted to come to Twilight?"

"Y-Yes, your majesty," Fluttershy said bashfully.

"Luna told me of how she was unable to enter your dream while you were asleep, Fluttershy,” Twilight stated softly. “From what she's been able to share, it sounds pretty serious."

"Potentially,” Luna clarified. "But, Twilight is right, the strange nature of your dream had gatekept me from intercepting or interfering."

"That would explain why you didn't show up,” Fluttershy said to herself. "But, that means you didn't see what happened, did you?"

"No, unfortunately, I was unable to see what had transpired,” Luna spoke solemnly. "However, that's the reason why have travelled here to speak with Twilight and be able to help you in understanding the meaning of this unforeseen nightmare. To do that, You may have to explain what happened in your dream."

Fluttershy frowned slightly. She didn't want to think of the horrible nightmare she had last night, much less talk about it. However, seeing as it may lead to the answers she needed, perhaps it was best to let it all out.

"O-Okay. I'll tell,” the yellow mare said hesitantly.

And so, Fluttershy explained her nightmares, from the burning buildings, the two titanic creatures fighting, and the second creature burning her to death. After, Fluttershy's explanation, the room fell silent. Twilight and Spike were both horrified and sympathetic for the pegasus for having to go through something like that. Princess Luna, on the other hand, was carefully mulling over Fluttershy's dream description in her head.

"No wonder you look so under the weather,” Twilight place a hoof on the fatigued mare's shoulder. "Maybe it would be best if you lied down for a while, Fluttershy."

"Really, Twilight, I'm fine,” Fluttershy said, not sounding very reassuring.

"No, you're not, Fluttershy,” the Princess of Friendship spoke firmly. "You're clearly distraught over this and it's taking a toll on you and your sleep schedule."

"It may become more of a problem than that, dear Twilight,” Princess Luna declared.

The others turned to her in confusion and apprehension. By how the princess put it, it sounded more serious than any of them could of presumed.

"What do you mean by that, Princess Luna?" Spike asked.

The Night Princess cleared her throat.

"When I first discover Fluttershy's nightmare, I was unable to enter it,” the night-themed alicorn explained. “However, it had this...unique energy to it, of sorts. It was an energy that was foreign to Equestria, and upon hearing of what the dream contained, I can only come to one conclusion."

Twilight, Fluttershy, and Spike leaned in to hear what Luna had to say.

"Fluttershy's dream was not just a dream, but a vision, as well,” the princess declared.

A chorus of gasps echoed through the room.

"A...A-A vision?" Fluttershy stammered.

"Yes,” Luna confirmed. “Judging from the nature and the energy of the dream-slash-vision, it seems somepony or something had given that to you. For one reason or another.”

"Wow, that's weirdly cool," Spike said, which earned a judgmental glare from Twilight.

"But...But, why have Fluttershy receive the vision?” the violet alicorn asked. “Why not me or you, or even Celestia?"

"I am unsure, dear Twilight," Luna said. “That is something we may never know. However, one thing of for certain, from the description Fluttershy has shared, it appears that her, and perhaps your other friends, are needed somewhere beyond Equestria."

"Like, in a different world?" Spike asked.

"Call it tuition, but I think that is the case,” the Princess of the Night responded.

Fluttershy gulped. If her nightmare was anything was go off of, which was definitely the case, she knew this would be a terrifying mission.

"U-Um, d-do I have to go on this m-mission?" she stammered.

"Well, the vision was targeted at you,” Twilight hypothesized. “If you were the one to receive, it would imply you have some vitality in this new mission."

"Are you really that scared of it?" Spike asked with concern.

"Y-You didn't see what I saw in that nightmare, Spike,” Fluttershy trembled. “It w-w-was terrifying, e-even beyond w-words."

Then she remembered what she told herself yesterday. She wanted to stop being so scared all the time. But, this something else entirely. those two creature were beyond terrifying for her. Even now, she didn't think she could muster up the courage to enter a world that inhabited them. But, at the same time, their was clearly a sense of urgency from the vision. Seeing the burning buildings was evidence enough.

Fluttershy sucked in a breath. She could be scared, but she could also do the mission. Being scared didn't exactly stop her from any missions before. Then again, those missions consisted of problematic relationships and dark ulterior motives, not a giant, fire-breathing monster.

"But, I suppose a mission is a mission,” she conceded.

Spike patted Fluttershy back to comfort her.

"We'll be okay, Fluttershy,” the purple dragon soothed. “We'll protect you. How bad could it be?"

"But, wait, why didn't the Cutie Map alert us?” Twilight asked. “That's what it did with the prior missions."

"I'm afraid I don't have an answer to that, Twilight," Luna said earnestly.

"Maybe the map didn't pick up on it,” Spike suggested. "If what Celestia said is true, there's a lot of different worlds out there."

Twilight pondered for a second. That was definitely in the scope of being a possibility. Though, now after everything that has come to light, the map thing was really important right not. Fluttershy received a vision from somewhere, and that place clearly needed help.

"Spike, go get the others,” she said firmly.” We've got another friendship mission on our hooves.”

"On it," Spike saluted and raced out of the room to fetch the rest of the Mane 6.

"Princess Luna, thank you for your help," Twilight thanked.

"It is my pleasure, Twilight," Luna bowed. "I believe I’ve done all I can do. Now, it is all up to you and your friends. To that, I wish you luck."

"Thank you, Princess,” Fluttershy said happily.

"Anything to help the Elements,” the night Princess said. “Now, I must return to Canterlot."

The three mares shared a final goodbye before the cerulean alicorn left the castle to return to Canterlot. That left Twilight and Fluttershy by themselves.

"I suppose we should head to the Cutie Map while we wait for the others," Twilight proposed.

"Good idea," Fluttershy said quietly.

The pegasus and alicorn made their way down the hall toward the Cutie Map room.

"Um, Twilight, where's Starlight?" Fluttershy asked.

"Oh, she's with Sunburst and Trixie,” Twilight answered. “They're having a little get-together."

"Oh. Doing what?" The pegasus asked further.

"Well, from what Starlight told me, Trixie bought this new card game,” the friendship princess explained. “I think she said it was called Uno or something.”

"Oh, I see,” the timid mare said.

The two mares made it to the map room. From there, they waited for the rest of their friends to arrive.

"Uhmm, Twilight?" Fluttershy asked nervously.

"Yes, Fluttershy?" Twilight said.

"I don't mean to sound doubtful or anything, but...what could we even do against those monsters?" the worrisome pony asked. "I mean, I saw them first-hoof, I don't even know how we would be able to do anything to them."

Twilight didn't answered immediately. Truth be told, she didn't exactly know what they could do. From how Fluttershy described it, it sounded downright apocalyptic. Still, she knew something could be done.

"I really don't know, Fluttershy,” she finally said. "But, we're the Elements of Harmony, and we've been able to do some pretty impossible things. I mean, you stared down a dragon once. If you could do that, I have no doubt in my mind you could do it to those creatures, as well. It's likely the reason you received the vision."

"Huh, I didn't think of that," Fluttershy admitted. "Maybe you're right, Twilight."

Being reminded of the dragon stare-down gave Fluttershy a tiny confidence boost. Her Stare could potentially set those creatures straight. But, then she remembered she tried the Stare on both Sephiroth and that dog in Tom and Jerry's world and it didn't affect either of them. What if...

Before she could think about those growing concerns, the door flew open revealing Rainbow, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie, and a worn out Spike.

"Spike explained what happened with Fluttershy and Princess Luna," Rarity said with concern. "Is the poor darling all right?"

"For the most part," Twilight turned to the exhausted pegasus.

"Y-Yeah. Even now, it still feels a little surreal,” Fluttershy said.

"Don't worry, Fluttershy,” Rainbow wrapper a hoof over her the mare’s shoulder. “Whatever creatures we have to go against, they'll have to go through me before they can even think of laying a hoof, or hand, on you."

She spoke with such confidence and bravado, it actually made Fluttershy a little bit better. The feeling of Rainbow’s hoof on her soft neck caused Fluttershy to blush like mad, but she covered her face with her mane to hide it.

"Yeah, We've got each others' backs," Spike wheezed.

"Don't worry, Fluttershy,” Pinkie said. “There's no way we're going to get killed off. The narrator wouldn't allow it."

The others all looked at the pink mare with bewildered and unsettled looks.

"Pinkie, why would you say something so...unhinged?" Rarity asked.

"Oh, don't worry. I'm sure HE knows what I'm getting at,” The party pony stared at no-pony in particular.

Though she was staring at someone. Just not anyone in their plane of existence. The young being could feel the mare's expectant eyes drilling into his soul.

One if these days she's going to be the death of me. I just know it.

"He, he. You're so funny, Mister Narrator," Pinkie said quietly, so that nopony could hear her.

"Well, 'nough bout that,” Applejack changed the subject. “If this visions of yers is that serious, we should prolly get a move on."

"Sounds like a plan," Twilight turned to the Cutie Map.

Concentrating her magic, her horn began to glow brightly. She concocted up the spell and aimed it at the map. Like last time, the portal began to form on top of the table. Soon, it enveloped it and consumed the map and chairs. Now laying on the floor, the portal glowed welcomingly.

"Well, let's get this party started," Rainbow immediately dove in.

"Yee-haw!" Applejack leapt after her with Rarity and Pinkie following up.

"Hearing of how Fluttershy described how dream, I kind of nervous of what will greet us on the other side,” Spike admitted to himself.

"I'll protect you, Spike, I promise," Twilight softly, wrapping a wing around him.

The baby dragon smiled, feeling safer with Twilight.

"You coming, Fluttershy?" the alicorn asked.

"Y-Yeah, you go on ahead,” the hesitant mare insisted. “Don't wait on me."

Twilight was concerned for Fluttershy, but she thought it best not to push it. The alicorn simply nodded, and she along with Spike jumped into the portal. Fluttershy was now the only one yet to enter. She was still pretty scared of what was to come, but she knew her friends and whoever else in that world was likely counting on her. She drew on a deep breath and jumped into the portal. Maybe this mission won't be as bad as she would think. They were all in for one monstrous adventure.

To be continued