Truth or Magic?

by TheClownPrinceofCrime

Rating: everyone
Tags: Original Character, Mystery, My Little Pony: A New Generation, Other, Sunny Starscout, Mane 5, Crossover, Hitch Trailblazer, Dark, Alternate Universe, Sad
Length: 18465

Sunny faces a whole new dilemma; she encounters a dangerous challenge that may or may not shatter her entire world apart.

After one year of living a peaceful, magical life, Sunny Starscout rejoices as Equestria is once again back on its feet (or hooves). But the evil mastermind Axor is still relentless in his conquest of the multiverse. With the help of the villainous Toffee, Axor plans to unleash a world of pain and suffering upon the Mane Five—the painful “truth” of the Magic of Friendship.

NOTE: This happens after the events of “MLP: A New Generation”, after the events of the series finale of “Star vs The Forces of Evil”, and is an alternate sequence of events that occurred in MLP: Make Your Mark: Chapter 2 Episode 2 “Growing Pains”.

Published 2024-08-09 16:40:00 UTC
Last updated 2025-01-21 02:56:53 UTC

Doubts & Suspicions

“START!”

Hitch Trailblazer and Sunny Starscout launched their respective fireworks into the sky alongside two other ponies who launched theirs.

They anxiously awaited whose firework was gonna blow first. After the first ten seconds, the purple firework was extinguished within a puff of smoke—much to the disappointment of one of the players.

Five seconds later, the green firework went out prematurely as well; the other contestant hung his head in defeat. All that were left were two fireworks that have yet to explode.

Hitch and Sunny bit their lips as they anticipated who was going to be the lucky winner. Just before their fireworks could reach to the clouds, Sunny’s was taken out before it could reach its potential.

Thus, Hitch’s firework exploded in a blaze of glory. All the sparks formed into his happy face, motivating him to victoriously jump.

“Yes! Yes! Looks like luck is on my side!” Hitch boasted. Sparky the baby dragon happily clapped his hands.

“Ugh! How come I never win this game?! This is the tenth time I lose!” Sunny exclaimed.

“Sorry, Sunny. Guess today’s my lucky day, am I right? Haha!” Hitch chuckled.

“How about we play games that are actually skill-based? Then we’ll see how ‘lucky’ you are,” Sunny smirked.

“Oh, you’re on! Let’s start with…uh…Fruit Puncher,” Hitch suggested.

“Oh, that’s a good one! Let’s go!”

As both earth ponies were ready to begin, the announcer placed the timer on top of a ladder and set it for 45 seconds. After he blew the whistle, two other ponies threw three different types of fruit in the air.

“Remember, punching apples gives you points, and punching tomatoes will make you lose points!” said the announcer.

As time went, Hitch and Sunny quickly punched as many apples as possible while cautiously avoiding the tomatoes.

Forty-five seconds later, all the points from each side were calculated. Seeing that Sunny won just by one point, the announcer declared her as the winner of the game.

“Ah-ha! See? Told ya you wouldn’t be so lucky,” Sunny gloated.

“Alright, ya got me. Guess my luck charm ran out.”

“Well, you did pretty good though. Good game,” Sunny complimented, shaking Hitch’s hoof.

Later that day, the earth ponies left the amusement park and returned back home in Maretime Bay. Both of them were eating some Cotten candy while they were trotting together.

Then Hitch noticed some other ponies were trying to practice their earth pony magic. One of the mares grew some grass on the concrete while another made some flowers bloom.

Then a stallion tried to shoot some beams from his hoof which ended up growing three large trees on the ground. The trees then sprouted oranges on their branches, letting one of them fall. The stallion picked up the orange, happy with the literal fruit of his labor.

“It seems like everypony is actually getting the hang of it. They all look so…happy more than ever,” Hitch observed.

“Yeah, I know. It feels like yesterday everypony was living in fear and hatred. Now we have the magic of friendship again! Nopony will have to be afraid of each other anymore!” Sunny rejoiced.

“You’re right. Hey, Sunny, may I ask you something?”

“Of course,” Sunny nodded.

“Now, I’m not saying this to scare you or anything, but…have you ever wondered what would happen if, let’s say, um…our magic would go rogue?” Hitch asked.

“Go rogue?”

“You know, because we haven’t used our magic for so long. What if it becomes unstable and dangerous?”

“I don’t see how it could be a threat,” Sunny replied. “So far, everything seems to be working just fine.”

“Yeah, for now. One day, we may never find out what will go wrong until it will backfire on us badly. Huh, hopefully not too literally,” he chuckled.

“Don’t worry, Hitch. The more we keep ourselves united in friendship, the stronger our magic will be. Nothing can go wrong,” Sunny assured.

“Hmm, you’re right. Sorry if I got worried too much. I just want Equestria to be safe from any potential problems. That’s all,” Hitch sighed.

“You have nothing to be sorry for,” Sunny replied, smiling.

Then Hitch suddenly bumped against a random earth pony mare walking by.

“Oh, sorry, sorry! Didn’t see you there!”

“No, no, it’s alright, miss. Are you alright?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. Sorry, I was just wondering where my coltfriend went,” she said. Then she narrowed her eyes on Hitch. “Wait a minute, are you the sheriff of this town? You’re Hitch, right?”

“That’s me,” he proudly confirmed. “I…take it you’re not from here?”

“No, I’m from…(clears throat)…a far place. My name is Banana Bonanza. Nice to meet you, Sheriff,” she introduced herself.

“Likewise! This is my friend Sunny.”

“Hi, Banana! Welcome to Maretime Bay!”

“Thanks, Sunny. We’ve come to—,”

“There you are! I’ve been looking all over for you, ‘Anna! Why can’t you just sit down and wait patiently for once?” her coltfriend yelled out, running over to them. Then he noticed Hitch standing by.

“AYY, Hitch ol’ buddy!” the stallion greeted, hugging him tightly.

“Nice to see you too…Crimson…!” Hitch replied, trying to breathe.

“It’s been a long time, man! We should visit each other more often!” Crimson said, letting him go.

“Uh, you literally visited Maretime Bay last week,” Hitch corrected.

“I know, but each week feels like a whole new experience!” Then he noticed Sunny right next to Hitch. “Oh, I’m sorry, ma’am, where are my manners? I’m a close associate of his: Crimson Wool, by name. And you must be Sunny Starscout.”

“Yep, that’s me,” she nervously replied, shaking his hoof. “Wait, you know my name?”

“We’ve…heard that you brought the magic back to Equestria. We’re both so…(*ahem*)…grateful that you restored our homeland back to normal,” he explained.

“Yes, we thank you, Sunny,” said Banana, constantly shifting her eye contact between Sunny and Crimson.

None of the visitors noticed Zipp flying above them and spying on them with her binoculars.

“It wasn’t just me that helped bring the magic back; it was all of us,” corrected Sunny. “We brought the magic back together. That’s what Twilight Sparkle would’ve wanted.”

The moment Sunny drifted her eyes off to the side, Crimson strangely twitched his right eye once he heard the name drop. Banana firmly held her hoof on his shoulder, silently telling him to remain calm.

“Of course. Anyway, we’re here to take a tour around the place. And to see an old friend…again. Nothing more,” Crimson affirmed.

Suddenly, his head vibrated from a strange humming sound only he could hear. His heart started to beat faster the moment he recognized what that meant.

“Great! I was thinking we should go to—,”

“Actually, Hitch, on second thought…there’s something we have to attend to,” Crimson interrupted, motioning his marefriend to follow him.

“Really? But you just got here.”

“I know, but my…uh…boss won’t be happy if I’m late, y’know? Sorry for this late-minute change,” Crimson nervously smiled, trotting off.

“Oh, okay! I hope we see you again soon?”

“Of course! We’ll keep in touch, Sunny!” Banana confirmed, waving goodbye.

Hitch stood there confused as to why they left so abruptly. “Huh. He didn’t mention he had to work today. I thought this was his day off?”

“What does he do?” Sunny asked.

“Oh, he’s a tentmaker. Believe me when I say that he makes some of the absolute best tents in all of Equestria!” Hitch happily bragged. “The one I have feels like I’m in a motel and a restaurant at the same time.”

“Wait, I remember Izzy saying something similar! Only hers is like a bouncing house type of tent. He actually makes those tents?”

“Yes! He’s a genius! You should go to him and try out one of his tents. Trust me, it will make you think twice about going out camping,” Hitch winked.

Sunny grinned. “Well, I hope we can meet them again soon. He and Banana seem to be really nice ponies.”

“If they can spare the time,” said Hitch. “I’ve never seen them in such a hurry before.”

At that moment, Zipp landed before them and lifted the spy glasses off her eyes.

“Zipp?”

“I don’t know, guys. Something about them seems off. I’ve been keeping an eye on them for a while, and something tells me they’re—,”

She suddenly appears right behind Hitch and Sunny, bringing their faces closer to hers while the background turned dark. “—up to no good.”

“What the—? You can’t just spy on ponies! And Crimson would never keep a secret from me,” defended Hitch.

“This isn’t the face of somepony who is honest,” retorted Zipp, holding a picture of Crimson looking suspicious.

“Okay, first of all, that doesn’t mean anything because he hasn’t done anything that warrants suspicion. Second, you’re getting so worked up over nothing. He’s a good friend, and he’s always been upfront about everything.”

Zipp scoffs at him. “If you haven’t noticed, your ‘friend’ has been going in and out of Maretime Bay at least once a week with zero explanation. Even worse, the way he speaks to you guys seems like he’s insincere. I hate to break it to you, but he’s not what he appears to be.”

“Hey, I don’t eavesdrop on your conversations with Pipp or tell you how to make friends! Stop worrying about—,”

Once Sunny noticed the Unity Crystals were flickering in the Lighthouse, she broke up the fight between them.

“Guys, STOP! Let’s not argue over this, okay? Zipp, I get that you’re a detective and all, but that doesn’t mean you should stand between Crimson and Hitch’s friendship. For all we know, Crimson may be having a stressful time and is trying to make some time to hang out.”

Zipp took a deep breath. “I’m sorry, Hitch. I’m just trying my best to make sure we don’t encounter any potential villain who may try to steal our magic…since we just got it all back, y’know.”

“Hey, I totally get that. Even I myself have my own doubts about our newfound abilities. Just as I told Sunny, our magic may or may not lead to a…possibly dangerous scenario!” Hitch said, his voice echoing. “But hey, I’m just a little worried. No biggie!”

“Hmm, you might be up to something there. Wish to be my partner, Sheriff? I could use some extra eyes to make sure nothing is out of the ordinary,” Zipp proposed, putting her spy glasses back on.

“Haha, now you’re speaking my language!” Hitch chuckled.

As both Hitch and Zipp left together, Sunny wore an impressed look on her face. “That went better than I expected.”

Unbeknownst to Sunny, a pair of giant blue eyes glared daggers at her from the sky above. The fiery eyes then vanished into thin air before an evil cackle was uttered.

Later that same day, Crimson and Banana returned to their home. As the latter checked to make sure her bananas were all ripe and ready, the former sat on his couch while his heart was still beating fast.

“Why…? Why at this hour?!” he cried. Then he rushed to the washroom and washed his face for approximately five minutes. Afterwards, his heart then began to slow down and went back to its normal rhythm.

Breathing in and out three times, he dried his face and went back to the living room. “My master will speak with me shortly. Go to our bedroom and stay there until we’re finished.”

“Crimson, wait!” she pleaded, holding his face with her hooves. “Why are you doing this? Is this really worth it?”

Crimson sighed. “We’ve talked about this a dozen times already, ‘Anna. I had to make this deal with him so that Equestria won’t have to suffer from another alicorn tyranny again.”

“Why would you trust that guy?! How do you even know he’s telling the truth?”

“You should realize by now that Twilight Sparkle was evil! She used magic to bend everypony to her will! Do you understand why this Sunny Starscout is a possible threat? With her as a new alicorn, our lives are at risk!”

“You don’t know that!” Banana argued. “I’ve read all the books regarding Twilight—saying that she was the Princess of Friendship. She helped—,”

“Lies! ALL LIES! They wrote that horse spit to trick ponies like you into thinking that way,” interrupted Crimson. “But don’t worry, that will all change. My master will solve all our problems.”

“But—!”

Suddenly, a hologram appeared in the midst of the room. The dark figure with the red diamond-shaped hole on his chest looked down at Crimson with an evil smile. His presence alone caused the entire house to be filled with darkness.

“Go!” Crimson muttered, pushing Banana into the bedroom before closing it.

“Ahh, Crimson Wool. I see you were eager to see me again,” he grinned.

“I’m at your service…Lord Axor,” he greeted, bowing.

“Let’s just cut to the chase, shall we? As you’re already aware, I lost all the magic from my grasp thanks to those ponies and their…disgusting friendship,” Axor spoke, uttering the adjective with condescension. “But it’s all part of my plan. Equestria will only learn her lesson after she receives a smiting from the rod more than once.”

“Of course. But how will you accomplish this? You promised that you wouldn’t harm any of my fellow ponies,” Crimson reminded.

“Oh, don’t you worry a thing, my little pony. I won’t have to do anything…yet. See, I’m planning to send someone with incredible talent to your hometown. He will be assisting you shortly,” Axor informed.

“Really? Who will it be?”

“A distinguishable lizard who has a similar distaste for magic as you do. I can assure you, my friend, you’re gonna love that guy.”

“I see, master. But what about Sunny and her friends? What if this ally of yours isn’t strong enough to defeat them?” Crimson asked.

“We don’t need to defeat them. All we have to do is break them,” Axor replied, evilly chuckling.

Crimson looked at him confused.

“Honestly, your concerns are amusing but pointless. I have everything you need to make your life easier. Have faith in me, Crimson. I will make sure your precious world won’t be tormented by a follower of Twilight Sparkle,” Axor promised.

The earth pony then breathed a sigh of relief. Banana, however, cast a skeptical look at Axor while she hid behind the bedroom door.

“Thank you, my lord. Will I have a role to play in your plan?”

“You will, my dear boy. You will,” Axor smiled. The hologram then disappeared, bringing light back inside the house.

Banana then rushed out of the bedroom and hugged Crimson. “Please…don’t do this. I love you, Crimmy,” she said, crying on his neck.

“I’m sorry, ‘Anna. But it has to be done…for all of Equestria.”

Author's Note

Well, here we are now. The fourth entry into this Disney crossover multiverse saga. As my second G5 story overall, I hope this becomes a fun experience in writing these G5 characters into this whole new adventure.

Hopefully, you guys will enjoy this ride together, and let me know what you think in the comments below. See you all next time!

The Resurrection of Toffee

“Ah, strawberry-vanilla. It never disappoints! Thanks again, Sunny!” a unicorn thanked, drinking the smoothie.

“No problem! Enjoy!” Sunny smiled.

After the unicorn left, Sunny went back to the cabinet where all different flavors were held in stock. As she was double-checking, she noticed that there was no more banana flavor.

“Huh? I thought I had a surplus of that stuff? I’m pretty sure I refilled everything yesterday.”

Then she decided to look around until she noticed Banana Bonanza standing outside. “Hi, Sunny. Mind if I help?” she asked, carrying a wagon of ripe bananas on her back.

“Banana! It’s so nice to see you again!” Sunny happily welcomed. “And just in time too.”

Smiling, Banana stacked her bananas on the table and helped Sunny put each pair of the fruit into the blender one by one.

“I didn’t think you’d be back so soon. Is everything going well?”

“Yeah, uh….everything is fine,” Banana replied, sadly staring at the blender.

Sunny took notice of her eyes and laid her hoof on her shoulder. “Are you sure? Is Crimson doing alright?”

“Yeah, yeah, he’s doing great. His boss is…uh…*clears throat*…getting a promotion.”

“Really? That’s great!”

“Yeah, I’m really so…’proud’of him. I just hope he doesn’t get too carried away during this transition,” said Banana, resisting the urge to cry.

“Well, I’m happy he’s doing something amazing in his occupation. Hitch told me he makes tents for a living; that’s what he does, right?” Sunny asked.

“Correct,” confirmed Banana. “You gotta admire his brilliant skills. He’s been doing this business after his father passed away. I’m glad he’s upholding the family legacy.”

“If only he didn’t taint it with his dumb decisions,” she thought to herself.

“How long were you two together if I may ask?”

“About five years now. Our fifth year was the most special to me because the magic of friendship was restored,” Banana explained.

Then she started to slowly get emotional. “And Crimson—he’s an amazing stallion. He’s the sweetest guy I’ve ever known, and I am more than happy to be with him. Sometimes, I have this anticipation he would propose to me at any time.”

“Wow! I’m surprised he hasn’t yet since you’ve been together for this long,” commented Sunny.

“I know, right?! But…the thing is…I fear that his work schedule would…keep him from spending time with me. He’s gonna be busier than usual, and that…scares me a little,” admitted Banana.

Sunny gently hugged her and allowed her to quietly sob on her shoulder. “Hey, it’s gonna be okay. I’m sure he loves you too much that he won’t be working…too much. You get what I mean?”

“Yeah. I…um…I hope so too. Thank you for listening, Sunny.”

“What are friends for? Come, you can make some special banana smoothies with me if you want. I could use an extra hoof for one day,” Sunny offered.

Banana sadly smiled. “I would love to.”

River Butterfly heavily panted as he stood still on a small wooden bridge just outside the town. “How many times must I go on?! *cough* Don’t you think…*wheeze*…I’ve had enough already?!”

“Come on, River, you almost got this!” assured Globgor. “If you can run across the bridge without getting hit one more time, you’ll officially break your record.”

River stretched out his bruised arms and back which cracked half of his bones. Grunting in pain, the former Mewni king breathed in and out before getting ready to run.

“Well, if it’s all done in the name of brisk exercising, then so be it. But can you at least try not to release all those barrels at once?”

“Don’t worry, there won’t be too much of them this time,” replied Globgor.

River sighed in relief. “Thank goodness…”

“I’ll just send in the bouncing balls at the end instead,” Globgor smirked.

“Wait, WHAT?!”

“Aaaaaannd…GO!”

With the timer already set off, River ran across the bridge as fast as he could. Seeing the oncoming barrels, he carefully jumped over them without getting a scratch.

One after the other, River swiftly jumped over every obstacle. “Hey, I think I’m actually gonna make it. Haha, I finally got it!”

As he was getting close to the end, three large bouncing balls were released at the same time. River hopped on the first one which escalated his jump even further. Then he bounced over the next one with ease.

“That’s it, pal. You got this,” whispered Globgor, watching the timer.

But before he could focus his attention on the last ball, River saw a red-colored object fly across the horizon. Distracted, River bounced on the last ball at a wrong angle—launching him towards a tree beyond the finish line.

“River! River, are you alright?”

River lifted his head with a bat-bird’s nest on his head. Spitting out leaves, he set the nest back on its branch. “Oh, uh…it was nothing. That was definitely part of the exercise. Yeah, that was it,” he said, nervously grinning.

“Well, at least you finally broke your record! But that last bit wasn’t exactly what I had in mind,” said Globgor. “Trying to show off?”

“Didn’t you see that meteor flying down? That thing was so up-close!”

At that moment, the ground was violently shaken which threw both of them off-balance. “What the…?!”

“An Earthquake?! Is this the meteor’s doing??” Globgor asked.

“It can’t be a coincidence a falling meteor and an earthquake are both happening simultaneously,” replied River. “Hmmm, perhaps we should take a closer look.”

“Good idea. I always had a feeling something dangerous was gonna happen again,” Globgor suspected. “There’s always gotta be an interruption of harmony every single time.”

“Let’s hope it isn’t the case,” said River. Thus, both of them set out for the open landscape where they heard the noises.

Axor flew down from the sky and landed on the ground. Gazing his red eyes at the distant city of Earth-Mewni, he stared down at a piece of the log that had some weird goopy stains underneath. There, he pointed his sharp finger right at the log while evilly grinning.

He shot a red beam at the spot which caused the entire ground to shake violently; he stood perfectly still in spite of it.

A lizard-like skeleton slowly arose from the ground, and every single fiber of his bones grew a whole new skin. The body was given a formal suit, red tie, and a distinctive hairstyle before his face was formed.

Finally breathing oxygen once again, the resurrected figure looked around confused—unable to understand how he’s back up alive again. Then he took a look at his hand where he used to have a missing finger; seeing that he still had his finger fully intact, he grew a satisfied smile.

“Welcome to the land of the living, Toffee. I hope you had a peaceful slumber,” Axor greeted.

“This…is quite a surprise. I thought I was done for,” said Toffee, still processing what just happened. “You’re the one who brought me back, I presume?”

“Indeed! You see, I’m a guy who loves giving second chances to people. You, my friend, are the exceptional kind of villain I deeply respect the most. After all, you were always one step ahead of everyone,” Axor praised, circling around him.

Arching an eyebrow, Toffee crossed his arms. “And who are you exactly?”

“You can call me Axor. I have big plans for the multiverse…very big plans, and you will be playing two important roles.”

“Hmm, that’s cute and all, but I’m not interested,” Toffee replied, causally wiping off dust from his suit. “I’m a guy with simplistic tastes, and world domination isn’t one of them.”

Axor chuckled as Toffee was about to walk away. “Of course you are. I guess this means you’re overqualified for more ambitious duties that involve…magic.”

This caught Toffee’s attention as soon as he heard the last word. “Magic?”

“I’ve examined your history, and it would appear you have a strong hatred for that element. You even fought against a young girl who wielded some powerful magical wand.”

“Star Butterfly…” Toffee muttered, rolling his eyes.

“Now, I know what you’re thinking: you want your revenge on her after the way she destroyed you. I get it, and as much as I would love to see you rend her asunder, there are more pressing matters that require your area of expertise,” explained Axor.

“I fail to see how anything else is more important than a little payback,” Toffee sneered.

“Oh, but it is more important. Because there’s an intriguing world where every single inhabitant relies on friendship…as the greatest magic of all—a world where every creature possesses magic in many different ways.”

Toffee stood there silently surprised that there is yet another world out there that also possesses magic. Then he shook his head in disbelief and in disappointment.

“Go on.”

“That world inspires other worlds to be just like them. Mewni would not have reached to its heights of glory if it weren’t for Equestria,” Axor lied.

“Is that so? Hmm, that makes my desire for revenge even more important. Mewni will receive the consequences for its grave sins right here and now,” declared Toffee.

“HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!” Axor hysterically laughed.

Toffee stood as if he was offended by his laughter. “Did I say something humorous?”

“Believe it or not, Star already did the job for you, and you weren’t there to witness it! That’s a killer!!” Axor exulted.

“What?” Toffee replied, completely confused.

“Look around you, reptile. Earth and Mewni are now joined in marriage…so to speak,” Axor informed.

Toffee saw all the humans now co-existing with the Mewmans as well as every earth animal dwelling with the mystical creatures. Seeing all this made Toffee grow an impressed grin on his face.

“I must admit…I didn’t think she had it in her. Huh, it would appear she proved me right after all.”

“Precisely. But what if I told you they could get their magic back? The Equestrians I told you about are too generous and too friendly enough they’ll replenish anyone they deem fit,” spewed Axor.

“Is this really what I’m called to do? I’m back from the dead just to be an errand boy to clean up some dirty laundry? I know I was destined to do great things, but this has to be a joke,” groaned Toffee.

“Forgive me, but I thought that a man of your talents would be eager to demonstrate to the universe how magic is an ‘inferior’ concept that must be wiped out? Or perhaps your reputation is a little exaggerated?” Axor questioned.

Toffee glared at him for a moment until he realized what he was trying to do. Then he chuckled to himself. “You’re good, Axor. I thought I was the only one who was well-versed in reverse psychology.”

“I’m glad you noticed! So you are smart as your enemies once said you are. Then there’s no reason for you to refuse my offer?”

“I’m all ears.”

Axor pulled out a device where it shot a little hologram of Equus. “This planet contains multicolored ponies, and they just received their magic again after centuries of living their miserable lives magic-less. It was all thanks to this young earth pony: Sunny Starscout.”

Toffee wore a look of disgust at seeing the young pony with her horn and wings. The hologram played the scene with Sunny flying across Maretime Bay while laughing with joy. Her friends were happy with her as well.

“They were living their lives without magic?”

“Correct. One would think these ponies were already happy without magic before this girl came in and made their lives more difficult by bringing magic back,” Axor reasoned.

This made Toffee groan in frustration. “What a shame. There’s always gotta be someone who thinks they know what’s best for people. What do you want me to do about it?”

“You must go to this planet, find out what weaknesses they have, and exploit them.”

“Ahhhh, I can prove to them how magic does more harm than good. Then they’ll have no choice but to get rid of it once and for all.”

“Now you’re getting it,” Axor evilly smiled. “Once you have completed your assignment, you’ll have a place within my soon-to-be-kingdom. You’ll become my right-hand man, and you’ll have the privilege of harnessing even greater power.”

“Please, that won’t be necessary. I’m already content with my own capabilities. Regardless, I accept your proposal,” responded Toffee.

Using his right hand, he shook Axor’s hand. Then a red bolt charged right into Toffee’s hand, and his own shadow went right unto Axor’s feet.

Axor wickedly chuckled. “Perfect. I’m sure these ponies will be no match for your skills.” He opened a portal with his sharp finger for Toffee to enter through.

Then Axor looked up at the sky with his chest burning with his fiery red energy. “Oh Sunny Starscout, if only you knew the truth…”

Just as the portal closed, River & Globgor stood there surprised at what they witnessed. “Why do I have a feeling we just witnessed a new evil arising?”

“Globgor, you have every right to feel that way. Moon is definitely not going to like this. We have to warn them!”

“Agreed. Come on!”

Several humans were riding on dragon-cycles on the road; the motorists proudly wore their sunglasses while the dragon-cycles breathed fire.

“OH YEAH! Let’s rock on, baby!!”

Other humans rode on giant spiders who were visibly annoyed by them constantly poking their eyes; they kicked them off them and webbed them up.

Multiple gophers emerged from the ground, and they had a couple of unicorn horns as well. They snuck into a few fast food restaurants and snatched some fries & hot dogs before they escaped.

A restaurant manager chased some of them away while he threw a tray at them. “YOU’RE GONNA PAY FOR THAT! NO ANIMALS ALLOWED!”

Moon and Eclipsa Butterfly stood side by side as they both kept watch over the whole city. The latter held her baby Meteora in her arms.

“It seems like both Mewmans and Humans are getting used to each other more easily now,” Eclipsa observed.

“It would seem so. I’m still a little surprised both worlds haven’t completely fallen apart…yet,” said Moon.

“Mmm, that’s unlikely to happen. But from the looks of it, they are all getting to know each other which is quite an improvement,” noted Eclipsa.

“Of course. *sigh*”

Eclipsa looked at her with concern. “Is everything alright, Moon?”

“Yes, yes, it’s that…I’m still shaken that magic is gone…for good. And we—we’ve—,”

“….been living off of magic for generations?”

Moon sadly nodded. “Yes. Nonetheless…*inhales*…there was no other choice. It was tough, and I couldn’t be more proud of my daughter for making such a call.”

“Indeed. Thanks to her, we are living in a new age of peace and harmony…but without the magic. Whatever new challenges we face, we’ll face them together…as a family.”

“Couldn’t have said it better myself, Eclipsa,” smiled Moon.

“We got trouble, honey!” River & Globgor shouted at unison. They ran up to their wives with sweat dripping on their faces.

“Ugh, that is enough running for one day,” panted River.

“River?”

“Globgor, dear, what’s the matter?”

“WE JUST SAW—!” Both husbands looked at each other surprised.

“Ahem, you go first.”

“No, please, you go first.”

“Come on, man, don’t be so humble. After YOU.”

“This was your idea to go check it out, so you go first,” insisted Globgor.

“Why can’t both of you tell us what’s wrong?” Moon suggested, annoyed.

“Alright.”

“Fine by me.”

“We were just having the manliest activity in the beautiful sunny day when suddenly…” River started.

“…something came down from the sky and shook the ground where we were standing!” Globgor finished.

“And then…something worse happened! We saw that evil-looking dude resurrect that lizard man—Toffee!” shouted River.

Moon widened her eyes in shock, and she felt the sudden urge to drop to her knees. “T-Toffee? What??? No…this…cannot be!”

“Toffee? Why does the name sound familiar? You know him?” asked Eclipsa.

“Know him?! I have a terrible history with him! He’s the reason why my mother is no longer with us, and…I almost lost my daughter to that monster,” replied Moon, pained anger arising in her voice.

“He did WHAT?!” River exclaimed.

“I thought for sure he was truly dead. Why…? Why is this happening now of all days?” Moon mumbled, trembling with sorrow.

“He sounds like a truly evil creature. And who was that other guy who brought him back?” Globgor wondered.

“Can you describe him?” Eclipsa requested.

“Well, he seems to be dark-skinned, wears some kind of formal attire, has beady red eyes, and a weird diamond-shaped hole in his chest,” River explained.

“Seriously? Tell me that guy is a villain without actually telling me,” Eclipsa deadpanned.

“Why…would any sane person ever want to bring that abomination back to life…?” Moon uttered, tears dropping down.

“Perhaps he called someone for backup—a long overdue backup—so they can plot their revenge. *Gasp* Our entire civilization could be in danger…again!” River panicked.

“But what will he gain from all this?! All our magic is already gone, and he wasn’t even responsible for it!” Moon angrily cried.

“What must we do?” Globgor asked, holding his wife and child in his arms.

Moon stared at her hands and glared at them. Then she looked back up. “I will inform Star about this. When Toffee returns, we shall be ready for him. River, gather as many people as you can and prepare them for battle.”

“Right away, dear!” River saluted. But just as he was about to run again, he felt cramps on his right leg. He stopped himself as he winced from the pain.

“Biscuits, I forgot! No more running today!”

“Allow me to lend a hand,” offered Globgor, growing bigger. He lifted River unto his shoulder and took him where he needed to go.

“Moon, are you sure about this?”

“I know how dangerous Toffee is. Whoever that other villain is, he could give him a much more lethal power we’ve never known if he has the power to raise the dead,” replied Moon.

“I gotta say, Moon, you really have a talent in making enemies,” commented Eclipsa.

Moon looked at her with an unamused expression.

“No offense.”

“None taken,” said Moon, rolling her eyes.

Fruitful Thorns

As Sunny and Banana Bonanza were wrapping things up, Hitch and Zipp both arrived at the smoothie stand at the same time.

“Hey, guys!” Sunny waved.

“Sunny! There’s something you should check out,” said Hitch. “Zipp & I made a surprising discovery which…may or may not raise any red flags.”

“Oh, really? Hmm, I wonder what it is…,”

“Uh, mind if I come along? I’m rather curious myself,” Banana volunteered, nervously smiling.

“Sure, Banana!” Sunny nodded.

Zipp mischievously grinned as that moment gave her an idea. “Of course you can. After all, some ponies like you may know a thing or two about certain…anomalies.”

“What…?” Banana asked, genuinely confused.

“Come! You gotta see this!” hurried Hitch, running off first. The others followed him & Zipp to the location of said discovery.

As they arrived on the spot, the sheriff and the detective revealed a 6-inch thorn with three little red dots in the middle thereof. There was even a little red kindling flame on top of the thorn. Zipp tried to blow it, but the flame was not extinguished.

“While we were patrolling, we happened to find this little sucker in this poor mare’s front yard,” explained Hitch. “The weird part is that the flame wouldn’t stop kindling!”

“Do you know how many times I tried to blow it? It’s becoming a thorn on my side!” Zipp added, trying not to giggle. “Get it?”

“That was so corny,” Hitch muttered, rolling his eyes.

“Wow, I’ve never seen anything like it before,” said Sunny, gazing at the thorn. “I wasn’t aware earth ponies can conjure such a thing.”

“Me neither. Say, Banana, did something like this ever happen to you? Would you know anything about a strange unnatural phenomenon existing at a time like this?” asked Zipp, narrowing her eyes on her.

“How should I know? This is the first time I’m ever seeing this,” replied Banana.

Hitch pulled Zipp by her tail and whispered in her ear, “Zipp, we literally talked about this. Interrogating ponies randomly will get us nowhere.”

“Ugh, fine. I’ll try my best to make her feel comfortable,” sighed Zipp.

“Good,” Hitch nodded, releasing her tail.

Banana took another good look at the thorn and suddenly felt a cold touch of darkness emitting from the thorn. Fully realizing who created it, she started to panic. Thus, she had to think of an idea that can serve as a distraction.

“It’s getting a little late, and my shift is about to start. Say, why don’t you all come with me and see the Banana Factory?”

“The Banana Factory? Never heard of it before. Is there actually such a thing?” Zipp doubted, arching an eyebrow.

“I literally work there. I make banana-based food,” Bonanza replied, annoyed by her skepticism. “Plus, rarely anypony has heard about it because my boss has a thing for secrecy for some reason.”

“Ah, so he’s a pony who likes to surprise folks with his special banana treats? I can respect that,” approved Hitch.

“So do you want to come and see?”

“Actually, Banana, we would love to. I’m eager to see what it looks like,” accepted Sunny.

“So am I. The fact that there’s actually a fruit factory is quite remarkable even if we haven’t seen one before,” added Hitch.

“I don’t know about that,” Zipp still doubted.

“Hey, Zipp, would you mind taking charge of the town for a while? This is something I wouldn’t want to miss either. We’ll be back. Lead the way, Banana!”

Zipp groaned as they watched them leave Maretime Bay.

Hitch smirked as he heard her murmur to herself. “That will keep her busy for a while,” he thought.

The trio then walked across a narrow path that lasted for about five miles. Eventually, they crossed over a nearly-hidden bridge which led to the entrance of the Banana Factory.

“Here it is: the place named after a fruit that handles the only fruit I’m named after,” Banana revealed. Then she got close to Sunny and Hitch’s ears, “Seriously, that’s what my father said to me verbatim. That’s literally how I was raised into this business.”

“Huh, that’s no surprise. But I actually am surprised that a fruit factory actually exists! Especially one for bananas,” said Hitch.

“Wow! Mind if you give us a tour? I’d love to see how all this operates!” requested Sunny.

“It would be an honor,” smiled Bonanza. “Follow me.”

As they entered the building, several of Bonanza’s coworkers saw them approaching. The stallions greeted them warmly and tossed banana-based confetti into the air.

“Welcome, friends! Nice to see you as well, Bonanza!” said one of them. “You’re just in time!”

“I wasn’t expecting you to bring some new friends here, but hey, we’re always glad to see visitors here!” another added.

“Izzy would love to live in a place like this,” whispered Hitch.

“Thank you, Endocarp, but is this really necessary? All this extra—,”

“Confetti? Balloons? Nah, we just love welcoming ponies with open hooves into our factory. Besides, today is a special day for all of us,” informed Endocarp.

“What special day?” Bonanza asked.

“Today, we process all the remaining pairs of bananas into warp cannons. The boss wants it done by tomorrow morning.”

“Epicarp’s right. It’s for a special occasion he’s planning for us as a way to thank us for all the hard work we’ve been doing.”

“Really? Mr. Pulp didn’t tell me about that the last time we’ve had our meeting,” said Bonanza, scratching her head.

“Well…uh, last minute decisions do happen, y’know,” Endocarp noted.

“Hmmm, alright then. Well, I’m just gonna give my friends a quick tour before I begin my shift. Try not to spill any substances…again,” said Bonanza.

“Say less, ma’am! Hope you folks learn something!” smiled Epicarp, waving at Sunny & Hitch.

After the trio left, the two associates then looked at each other with grins on their faces. “Let him know they’re here.”

During the tour, Bonanza trotted to every section of the factory where all the other workers manufactured bananas into so many different ways: banana chips, banana bread, banana donuts, banana cereal, banana pudding, banana milk, and much more.

Sunny couldn’t help but feast her eyes on all the banana-based foods with a look of awe. Hitch however looked concerned while he resisted the urge to vomit.

“Hitch, seriously?! Come on, look at all this! Can you imagine having everything based on one of the best fruits ever? I would love it!”

“Actually, Sunny, I don’t even want to imagine this because it’s insanely unhealthy!”

“What?? How exactly is that unhealthy? You do know all the healthy benefits that come from bananas, right?”

“Bananas if they’re eaten as they are? Yes. But consuming every single food product based on one fruit is just…weird. You need to have a variety of flavors so that it can be more enriching. You should already know this by now,” Hitch argued.

“I’m well aware of that fact, Hitch. But think about the results that can come if we use all this stuff to replace junk food. Everypony’s well-being will be improved!”

“I may not be an expert on healthful living, but even I can tell that eating fruit-based foods all the time can get boring. You know there are some ponies are allergic to this stuff, don’t you?”

“Alright, look, I just—,”

“Uh, guys? Shall I continue this tour? I want to introduce you to my boss if that’s okay with you both,” interrupted Bonanza.

Sunny and Hitch then nodded and ceased their argument. At the end of the tour, Banana Bonanza led them to a locked door behind the blue pipe which made her scratch her head.

“Why is the door all chained up? Is Mr. Pulp doing alright?” she asked herself.

She tried to buck the door open, but the chains were too strong. Sunny activated her alicorn power through her horn & wings and cast a spell on the chains that made them turn into dust.

“Thank you, Sunny,” Bonanza smiled.

“No problem!”

As they opened the door, they discovered that Mr. Pulp was surprisingly not in the office. Instead, they found an open letter on his desk filled with an unusual handwriting.

“To all my faithful servants,

I am pleased to announce the second phase of my master plan. We shall override the sour and glorify the sweet. In due time, this whole town will be greeted with a delicious treat they’ll never forget.

Yours truly,

Your One True Master!”

Bonanza shook her head in utter disbelief and confusion after she read the letter out loud. Sunny and Hitch were rather arching their eyebrows at the select use of words within the letter.

“Overriding the sour? Glorifying the sweet? What the heck does that even mean?” Hitch wondered.

“And why did he call himself ‘master’?” Sunny added, tapping her chin.

“That’s the thing! Mr. Pulp never talked or wrote like this! He’s not the kind of pony to call any of us ‘servants’, and if he wanted to make this strange announcement, he would’ve done so publicly,” Bonanza stated.

“Wait, you’re not saying that—,”

“Something terrible is happening. I just know it. Why would he leave this open note behind a locked door? Why isn’t he here today?! None of this is making any sense!”

Hitch then started to get somewhat worried. “Yeeeeeaaah…maybe leaving Zipp behind was a bad idea…now that I think about it…”

“He’s in trouble. You have to help me look for him!” Bonanza pleaded.

“Don’t worry, Banana. I, Hitch, and our friends will do everything we can to look for your boss. You have our word.”

“Took the words right out of my mouth,” Hitch concurred.

Bonanza hugged them and took the letter with her. “Thank you so much! I gotta notify my associates. Hopefully, they can help too!”

After she left, Sunny and Hitch exited the office and idly stared at the blue pipe. “Zipp is gonna have the time of her life figuring this out.”

“I know she will. She has been pretty uptight lately, and now I’m starting to see why. Honestly, I’m a little worried she may be right,” admitted Hitch.

“Right about what?” Sunny asked.

“About…y’know…that maybe…Banana may have something to do with this…?”

“Hitch, come on, she is just as worried as we are. If she was as suspicious as Zipp thinks she is, she wouldn’t be trying to help us directly, would she?”

“Hmm, I see your point,” Hitch nodded.

“Whoever is out there messing with us won’t know what will hit them. Together, we will solve this mystery! No matter what it takes!” declared Sunny.

Hitch chuckled and shook her hoof. “Well put, Sunny. Well put.”

The duo were, unfortunately, unaware of yet another little black thorn just imbedded right on the spot where the letter was initially seen. The red flame kindled the moment they closed the door shut.

Crimson sat on his bed while his heart was rapidly beating. He couldn’t even blink or move an inch as his mind was vastly overloaded with anxious thoughts.

After about twenty minutes of intense silence, he finally got out of his bed and walked into the kitchen. He poured some apple juice into his cup before he drank it.

“No need to worry. Whoever that guy is—I’m sure he will be pleasant to work with,” he assured himself.

Then as he trotted back to his bedroom, he spotted Toffee casually reading a newspaper on his bed.

“What the—?!”

“You have a nice home, Crimson. Well-organized too. Seems like you are as efficient as he said you are,” Toffee stated without looking at him.

“What…? How do you—? Wait a minute, you’re the one who—?”

“…was summoned by your master? That is correct,” Toffee confirmed, taking a sip of his coffee. “He told me everything about his plan and how the two of us will play an important part in it. Today is your lucky day, my friend.”

“Getting rid of the magic? Yes, of course. Then Lord Axor must’ve told you of the reason why I hate it.”

“Funny enough, he wanted you to tell me your story,” replied Toffee, ripping out a piece of the newspaper that showed the picture of Sunny in her alicorn form. “I like stories.”

“Twilight Sparkle, the late Ruler of ancient Equestria, enforced friendship on everypony with the magic of friendship itself. She was an evil tyrant who showed no tolerance for a free spirit,” Crimson explained.

“Thankfully, Providence saw it fit to put an end to her prevaricating machinations. All magic was wiped out and—,”

“Then a pony called Sunny Starscout restored all the magic many years later, didn’t she?” Toffee finished.

Crimson looked at him with a surprised look. “You know that?”

“Again, your master told me. And believe me, it didn’t sit well with me either because magic…” Toffee took another sip of his coffee and threw away his newspaper. “…is problematic.”

That made Crimson crack a smile. “Glad we can agree on that. But Lord Axor would want us to be subtle about this. We have to make sure none of them figure out what’s going to happen.”

Toffee finally stood up and straightened his necktie. “Fortunately for you, I have an idea where we can start first.” He raised his left fist where two of his fingers glowed green. “An utterly…nasty idea,” he added, slightly grinning.

Icey Screams

“Weeeeeeee!! Hehehehehehe!” Izzy squealed, sliding down through large vines.

The happy unicorn then got on top of the largest vine with her hooves while she was still in motion. As she got closer to the lower branches, she jumped off the vine and playfully jumped from branch to branch.

Three earth ponies were just finished sprouting the vines from the ground with their magic. At that moment, each one of their vines grew tiny flowers all around them. The branches also blossomed with all sorts of fruits such as apples, oranges, blueberries, and raspberries.

The earth ponies were satisfied with their fruitful results…until Izzy bounced on one of the fruitful branches and propelled herself into the air—causing the fruits to fall on their faces.

An apple dropped on Posey’s head; a few seconds later, a pile of apples and oranges fell on Posey. She popped her head out of the pile, annoyed at Izzy. “Hey, watch it!”

Izzy then landed on the ground while she was already eating a bowl of fruit salad. She happily trotted off in Maretime Bay with a pillar of strawberries stacked on her head.

The earth pony stallions wiped off the sweat from their foreheads as they finished their work with their plant magic.

“That should do. These vines should last for a whole week if we’re lucky.”

“I don’t know about you guys, but this magic feels so good! We can do anything with this stuff!”

“I know, right? It feels weird, but it’s still cool we can do magic just like the unicorns. I wonder if we can soon fly like the pegasi.”

“I dunno about flying. I think I’ll just stick to earth pony magic.”

Suddenly, they heard a twig break.

“Shh! You hear that?”

As they were looking around, they heard strange footsteps which sounded as if someone was about to approach them. Then just as they all turned right behind them, Toffee appeared before them with his hands behind his back.

The stallions took a step back, terrified at the presence of a bipedal lizard. “WHAT THE HECK ARE YOU?!”

Toffee breathed out a yellow smoke right into their faces, forcing them to cough. Then they got really sleepy and fell on the dirt unconscious.

Ignoring their snores, he pulled out his fingers and touched the vines with them. “Sleep tight, gentlemen. I have some important work to do,” he said, grinning.

His fingers injected a dark green ooze within the vines which made it grow thorns all around them.

Meanwhile, Izzy was drinking her smoothie and saw Pipp streaming live with her phone. The latter was doing this while standing in front of a large tree that was glowing bright yellow.

Izzy gazed at the sight of the beautiful tree. “Wooooooooow. Pretty tree! And it’s starting to grow ice cream?”

The yellow tree branches sprouted ice cream and dropped them unto the cones which were carried by its roots. The roots then gave one to Pipp.

“You saw that, pipsqueaks? An ice cream-sprouting tree! That makes it even better!! Who would’ve guessed we would all need something like this in our lives?” Pipp said, showing her audience the dropping ice cream.

Izzy caught a falling vanilla-flavored one and saw it had a smiley face on it.

“Aww, this ice cream cone is happy! If the ice cream is happy, then so am I! And if I’m happy, then my whole day is happy!” she said, jumping in the air with happy ice cream cone faces in the pink background.

However, neither Izzy nor Pipp noticed the dark green vines sneaking their way past them; they seized the helpless roots and poisoned it with their ooze. As a result, the infection spread from the root system all the way to every single part of the tree.

Thus, the branches started to change its bright color…into an unhappy one. Everything became dark green, and the ice cream suddenly stopped falling from its branches.

“Don’t you just love it when this day keeps getting better and better? I hope this never ends, especially when I have my favorite chocolate chip…🎶flavoooor🎶,” sang Pipp, licking her ice cream.

Just as Izzy was smiling back at her joyous treat, a dark green slimy sorbet landed on her cone. Izzy was taken by surprise at first, but she just casually shrugged it off. She licked it, tasted its flavor, and her pupils shrunk a bit—instantly overwhelmed by its strange taste.

“Hey, this tastes just as good! Hmm, I wonder why it stopped smiling though. Wait, did I forget to say thank you?! Silly me! Thank you, tree, for giving me this—huh?”

The sorbet opened its white eyes and stared curiously at Izzy. It jumped off its cone and walked just a few inches closer to her hind legs. Then it sat down and started to grow a candle on its head.

“Aw, for me? Thank you, little guy! Wait, it’s not even my birthday yet which is only two months away. Eh, I’ll blow it anyway. What can go wrong?” Izzy grinned.

But before she can blow it, the candle was already halfway melted until the flame reached down to the sentient sorbet. It then trembled and started to beep rapidly.

“What the—? Where is this coming from? Ugh, why is this so slimy now?” Pipp said, spitting out the gooey texture.

At that moment, the first sorbet exploded—launching Izzy right against a house. Then Pipp’s sorbet exploded as well, splashing all its gooey contents all over her face. The pegasus screamed as she saw her face on her phone’s camera which was still streaming live.

“WHAT. IS. HAPPENING?! Uh, uh, I mean, uh, gotta go, pipsqueaks! There’s been…uh, some unexpected changes which I’m not gonna get into. BYE!” Pipp finished, quickly ending her stream.

“Izzy, what’s going on?! Why are they—?” Another sorbet landed on Pipp’s mane. “AAAAHHHHH!! GET IT OFF! GET IT OFF!!”

Izzy immediately bucked the sorbet off her hair before it exploded in the air. “Is it just me or is this stuff getting more weird?”

“Oh, you think? I really couldn’t tell that a bunch of disgusting gooey stuff exploding everywhere is SUPER weird! Thanks!” Pipp sarcastically remarked, her left eye twitching.

Suddenly, the corrupted vines opened their mouths and ferociously roared at the ponies. Terrified, the ponies ran for their lives which just left Pipp & Izzy standing together—surrounding by approaching sorbet creatures.

“How did this all happen? Ice cream is supposed to be sweet, delicious, and fun! Not explodey! Wait, it does explode your brain though,” said Izzy.

That’s when she suddenly got brain freeze. “Grrrrr…had wa-a-a-a-ay too much…ice cream…”

Pipp and Izzy hugged each other as they braced themselves for the next explosive impact of the vines’ chilling rampage. However, Zipp swooped down and delivered a swift dropkick to the tallest vine. It roared in pain as Zipp landed down in heroic fashion.

“Mind if I crash the party?”

“Zipp!” both ponies shouted, happy to see her.

“So it looks like Hitch was right about one thing so far,” said Zipp, kicking the persistent sorbet creatures away from her. “Something went wrong with the earth pony magic!”

“How do we stop these things?” asked Izzy, casually eating a random sorbet creature.

Pipp looked at her with disgust. “Izzy, how can you eat that? Don’t you see how slimy—?”

This gave Zipp an idea. “Wait a minute. Izzy, you’re a genius! We just have to eat our way through these vines until they’re done for!”

“Do we have to? Seeing a bunch of gooey ice cream walking around is making me want to throw up!” whined Pipp, wanting to gag.

“It’s the only way to stop them from destroying Maretime Bay. Come on! We can do this!” encouraged Zipp.

The vines again roared at them while they spewed out all the sorbet monsters; even worse, the corrupted tree did likewise.

Izzy was the first to get inside one of the vines; she started to munch as much sorbet as she could. Zipp & Pipp followed suit and did likewise within the other vines.

After a few seconds, the corrupted vines started to yelp in agony and then collapsed together in the center of the town. All the sorbet creatures eventually stopped marching and exploding moments after the vines crashed.

Their destruction resulted in the tree being free from their infection. The sorbet reverted back to ice cream, and the root system was restored back to its healthful state.

The three ponies emerged from the messy debris and shook off the creamy slime. They saw every other pony covered with the remains of the sorbet, murmuring among themselves.

“That was so close…and disgusting!” Pipp groaned.

“Eh, I thought it was yummy! And I’m getting no brain freeze this time. Hmm, weird,” Izzy remarked, licking up every piece of the sorbet from her own hooves.

“I don’t know what just happened, but something clearly went wrong. Earth pony magic is supposed to be safe; I’m getting to the bottom of this,” said Zipp, flying off.

Sunny and Hitch were each holding signs of ‘Mr. Pulp Missing’ as they were about to enter Maretime Bay.

“I hope nothing terrible happened to him,” said Sunny.

“Me too. From what Bonanza told us, he seems like a nice pony. Do you think somepony is responsible for his disappearance?” Hitch asked.

“No idea. I can’t imagine anypony wanting to kidnap him…or worse!” worried Sunny.

“I hope not. ‘Cause nopony messes with any friend of our friend! If we’re lucky enough to catch him, he’ll regret the day he decided to—WHAT THE?!” Hitch exclaimed.

Looking at his direction, Sunny widened her eyes in shock at the chaotic aftermath as they just walked into the town. Half the homes were covered in slime, dark green sorbet was splattered all across the street, and so much property was destroyed.

Then they saw everypony ganging up on the three earth ponies who were initially responsible for the growth of the vines. Curious, Sunny and Hitch walked through the crowd and stood beside the shaken stallions.

“What’s going on, everypony?” Hitch demanded.

“Those guys did this! They created all this mess!” a mare angrily shouted.

“Those nasty bomb thingies destroyed my wagon! Do you have any idea how long it took for me to build it?!” another pony roared.

“Our ice cream is ruined!” a filly cried.

As they all proceeded to utter more of their furious grievances, Sunny gently pushed the ponies back from tearing the terrified stallions to shreds.

“Everypony, stop! Can you at least let them explain their side of the story?” Sunny suggested.

Breathing a sigh of relief, one of the stallions stepped forward. “Listen, folks, I swear by my grandad’s wooden cane we have nothing to do with this mess! We have no idea what just happened or how any of this happened!”

“We don’t even remember what happened here!” his comrade added. “All we remember is we were just finishing our gardening of the vines until—until some creature came by. That was it.”

The ponies then murmured and wondered who that creature was.

“What creature? What did it look like?” Hitch asked.

“Well…I’m not exactly sure,” replied the first stallion.

“You have to do better than that. Think! Every detail matters. You all saw what it looked like, didn’t you?”

“Wait…I think I do,” the second stallion spoke up. “I’m pretty sure that creature was wearing…some sort of suit attire. He looked like a lizard, a tall one, and he somehow put us to sleep.”

“A tall lizard? Hmm, we’ve never heard reports of a creature like that before,” noted Hitch. “Is there anything else we should know of?”

“Sorry, Sheriff, that’s all we got. Honest,” answered the third stallion.

“Alright then. Okay, everypony, this is officially a crime scene! Nopony walks around this area until we complete our investigation,” Hitch ordered.

Once everypony left, Sunny once again looked at the ground—still trying to process what just happened.

“I don’t believe it. I never thought this would ever happen…”

“I knew it! I knew earth pony magic would mess up one day!” shouted Hitch. “I feared it would go rogue, and what just happened? It went rogue!!”

“No, somepony did this. What if those ponies are right? What if there is a creature responsible for this?” Sunny wondered.

“If they blacked out during this incident, then it’s hard to take their account seriously. For all we know, they were experimenting with their magic too long,” argued Hitch. “If this keeps happening, then I will have to take some drastic measures.”

“No, there has to be more clues to this! Something just doesn’t seem right! I know somepony is behind this. We just need to figure out who it is,” replied Sunny.

“Funny, I was just about to say the same thing!” said Zipp, descending from above.

“Zipp, we could really use your detective skills right now! There was—!”

“Don’t worry, Sunny, I know. In fact, Izzy & Pipp saw the whole thing as well. Believe it or not, Izzy is having…too much fun at the moment.”

“Heh, classic Izzy,” Hitch muttered.

“So there’s word of a lizard beast running loose? Huh, now things are getting interesting. If it’s the culprit, then we better track it down before it hurts somepony,” Zipp advised.

“Wait, hold on. I think there’s something we’re completely ignoring: if this creature is responsible, then how did it manage to create all this ice cream or…whatever they are…out of those plants? How did it manage to corrupt earth pony magic?”

This made both Hitch & Zipp silent in thought for a few moments. “That’s…a very good question, Sunny. Looks we got a mystery to solve!”

“Hopefully, we find some answers. There’s no time to waste!” urged Hitch.

A Curious Banana

Crimson just finished his afternoon walk around the woods. After he went back inside his house, his girlfriend was seen pacing back and forth with sweat on her forehead.

Concerned, he ran to her and tried to calm her down. “Babe, what’s wrong? Are you alright?”

“Yes—well, no actually. My boss is missing, and I’ve been looking everywhere for him! I’m worried something bad happened to him!” she fearfully replied.

“Mr. Pulp? But…that’s not possible. He’s a strong pony despite his age,” doubted Crimson. “How do you know this?”

“There was this open letter sitting right on his desk. Look!” replied Bonanza, showing him the letter she and her friends discovered earlier. “Read it.”

Crimson read the letter silently; just as he read the last sentence, his pupils shrunk in fear. He immediately realized who was truly behind his disappearance which caused him to drop the letter.

Reading his reaction, Bonanza narrowed her eyes on him and drew close to his face. “Your master was behind this, wasn’t he?”

“No…no, no, it’s not him. It’s not him. He promised me. H-he promised he wouldn’t hurt anypony,” Crimson stuttered.

“I told you he couldn’t be trusted! I don’t care what reason or purpose he has for you, but he’s using you!! Tell him to bring my boss back this instant!!” Bonanza yelled.

Suddenly, Axor appeared in front of them. The two earth ponies trembled before his presence, making him sadistically grin in response.

“Master…! I’m…I-I-I-I am here to serve you…” Crimson stammered, shaking in fear.

“Hey, hey, relax, my friend. No need for fear. After all, I’m only here to clear up any confusion in the air,” smiled Axor. “I’ve heard rumors that a certain employer of yours is…missing, Ms. Bonanza?”

Banana looked surprised that he was much taller than what the hologram usually displayed him to be. Trying to muster as much bravery as she could, she firmly nodded in reply.

“Y-yes. I know for sure you were responsible for his disappearance, and you have no right to take him away from us! What do you want with him?!”

“Me? Kidnapping someone? Why, that is quite ludicrous! I would never go that far, my dear. In fact, kidnapping someone is utterly heinous, if I say so myself,” Axor denied, acting so dramatic.

“You lie. This letter sounds nothing like him, and I’m quite certain you had something to do with it. Where is he?” Bonanza demanded.

“Hmmm, if I were to make a wild prediction, Mr. Pulp will be coming right to this house just about…now!” Axor predicted. Just as he had finished his sentence, Mr. Pulp opened the door wide.

Bonanza looked at him in shock and saw that there was no sign of any foul play on his body. He stared back at her with an emotionless expression, but he nevertheless cracked a little smile.

“Mr. Pulp! You’re okay! I was so worried!” Banana exclaimed, hugging him tightly. Then she remembered whom she was embracing. She broke the hug herself, blushing in embarrassment. “Sorry.”

“I deeply apologize for worrying you so much, Ms. Bonanza. I was in a rush to get some urgent business done, so I had no time to let any of you know in advance,” explained Mr. Pulp.

“It’s okay, Sir. But I want to ask you about this letter left on your desk: did you actually write this? And your office was locked with chains for some reason; don’t you usually leave it open during business hours?”

“Ms. Bonanza, don’t worry about it. I’ve put you through enough stress long enough today, so let me make it up to you when we get back to work. What do you say?” Mr. Pulp suggested.

Sighing, she nodded. “Sure, I guess. I’m just happy you’re safe & sound.”

After they both left the house, Crimson turned back to see a smug Axor with his arms crossed. “See, Wool? I always keep my promises. You have nothing to worry about.”

“In that case, I ask for your forgiveness. For a moment, I doubted your sincerity.”

“All is forgiven, my boy. And I see that our pal Toffee is making history at the moment,” said Axor. “While he continues to shake their nest, I want you to follow these instructions. This is the part you’ll play for my plan.”

He handed to him a pink note with detailed instructions written in cursive.

“Now, I must go ahead and make sure your girlfriend & her employer are safe back inside their factory. Gotta keep my promises!” Axor smiled, disappearing.

After Crimson opened the note and read the first two paragraphs internally, he looked on with uncertainty at first. But as he read the last two, he seemed more relieved. Still, he sadly looked down at the floor.

“So be it.”

As Bonanza and Mr. Pulp arrived at the factory, the workers closed the front doors. The mare looked around and saw all the warp cannons filled with bananas at every station.

“Seems like everything is on schedule. Excellent. Maretime Bay will receive these wondrous gifts in no time,” smiled Mr. Pulp.

Suddenly, Bonanza narrowed her eyes on him. “That reminds me…when was the last time you ordered any cannons? I recalled you saying that you would order a dozen blenders to turn bananas into liquid form. What changed?”

“I simply had a change of heart, Ms Bonanza. Nothing to be concerned about,” he waved off.

“Hold on a minute…” Bonanza muttered, realizing something even more strange. She then glared daggers at him. “You saw that two-legged creature, didn’t you? You didn’t even acknowledge his presence as if he wasn’t there.”

Then she took two steps closer to his face. “I will ask my questions again: did you write this letter? Why were your doors chained?”

“I…don’t think…”

“And you have never addressed me as ‘Ms. Bonanza’. You always prefer to call me by my first name,” she growled.

Mr. Pulp then closed his eyes and shook his head. “Ah, sweet little Banana. Seems like you haven’t heard the saying…”

He motioned Endocarp & Epicarp to enter his office. “…curiosity killed the cat.” Both stallions then grabbed her and slammed her to the ground. She struggled to get both ponies off her, but they were much stronger than her.

“Hey! Let me go!! Ahh!”

She took a quick look at their eyes and noticed that they were red. She even noticed Mr. Pulp having the same red eyes as well, causing her pupils to shrink in fearful realization. “Let me go! Let me go! What’s going on?!”

“Sorry, Ms. Bonanza, but we can’t have you ruin our master’s plan. It’s too risky to let you roam around free after seeing too much.”

“No! This isn’t like you, Mr. Pulp! He did something to you! To all of you! Whatever it is, you have to fight it!” Bonanza pleaded.

Axor then teleported in their midst; Mr. Pulp & his employees bowed before him as he walked toward a captive Bonanza. “Surprise! Surprise! Pretty interesting set-up, don’t ya think?”

“You!! You monster!! How could you do this to these innocent ponies?! Why are you mind-controlling them?!”

“Geez, I’ve never encountered a pony who asks so many darn questions until now. Who do you think I am? A Wikipedia page? And here I thought humans were an incredibly obnoxious species,” Axor groaned, rolling his eyes.

“Stop playing games with me, Axor! I demand answers!” Bonanza angrily shouted.

“Well, if you must know, I’ll tell you the one thing that will answer all your questions. You ready? You wanna know what it is?”

Bonanza instantly nodded.

He loudly breathed in for about three seconds. Then he suddenly leaned forward to her face and laid her hand on her cheek. “I like to make clues. It adds excitement to the mystery. That’s all. Just want to have some fun.”

Banana widened her eyes so hard a vase can be heard breaking in the background. As her right eye was twitching, her face was boiling red hot with anger. “Are. You. KIDDING ME?!?”

Axor mockingly laughed in response. “It’s cute that you flesh bags think that I answer to any of you. All that you need to know is that I have much bigger plans of which I’m very excited to execute soon.”

As he teleported away, Toffee walked into the room and condescendingly looked down on her. “A meddler, huh? You are aware that my new partner is a very busy man, right?”

Bonanza was taken aback by the presence of a lizard monster. “What the heck?? Who are you?!”

“Wow, he was right about you. Asking too many questions will only get you into more trouble, my dear. And for that, you’ll be considered…hmm…’missing in action’…so to speak,” Toffee said, extending his right hand to her.

Right after the brainwashed stallions released her, Toffee’s green ooze slowly spread around her body. She panicked and cried out for help while Toffee and the others coldly stared at her.

The ooze then covered her terrified face, leaving behind a shed tear from her eye. Afterwards, Toffee and the stallions left the office and closed the door shut.

The other workers readied the warp cannons; each one was filled with bananas, and all the employees were standing by as the cannons were activated.

“Stay put until Lord Axor gives the word,” Mr. Pulp commanded his employees. “The time is now.”

“Not yet, my little friend. He told me he’s going to have a little heart-to-heart to a certain new alicorn first,” informed Toffee. “From what he told me, it’ll be…worth it.”

Confronting Toffee

The Mane Five were sitting together in their Brighthouse as a board filled with pictures stood in front of them. Hitch was pacing back and forth while Zipp was scrutinizing every picture—mostly on a pic of Crimson.

“So let’s do a quick recap for a moment,” said Hitch. “Banana’s boss is missing, Maretime Bay had a sour taste of ice cream monsters running around, and a pair of ponies who just so happened to be out cold during the incident claim they were attacked by a lizard beast. Did I miss anything?”

“I think so, yeah.”

“Same.”

“That’s it.” Sunny, Pipp, & Izzy all concurred.

“Something tells me they’re all connected somehow. If what those stallions said is true, then this could mean only one thing: the lizard monster orchestrated every single one of these crimes,” explained Zipp.

“Zipp, come on, there’s no evidence a lizard creature is committing these crimes. For all we know, Mr. Pulp is getting old & forgot what planet he lives on, and those stallions could have spoken a false testimony since their memory is faulty!” Hitch argued.

“Oh, Hitch, you know darn well a detective like me doesn’t accept answers like that. Based on what you and Sunny shared with us earlier, I’ve come to the conclusion that the lizard creature kidnapped Mr. Pulp…”

She drew closer to Hitch’s face with dangling keys. “…as a distraction.”

“Distraction?” the others simultaneously repeated.

“Yes! If he is responsible, then he wanted us to catch us off-guard by kidnapping that poor guy while his real plan is to corrupt our magic with…whatever sort of power he has,” Zipp expounded. “He’s obviously no ordinary lizard. He’s a criminal mastermind who clearly has a thing against magic.”

“Wooow, this makes so much sense!” Sunny spoke.

“Aaaaaaannd where is the source of this ‘evidence’ of yours, hmm?” Hitch asked, arching his eyebrow in doubt.

“Eye witness testimony, Sheriff! I mean, those guys were pretty sincere about their recollection of the incident. It’s always—,”

“Oh, sure. Real convincing proof right there,” Hitch sarcastically remarked. “It’s not like it’s the worse kind of testimony to rely on or anything.”

“Hitch, your sarcasm isn’t helping anypony,” Zipp scolded.

“Neither is your so-called proof of this catastrophe we’re facing!” Hitch retorted.

Sunny then frowned at him. “Hitch, come on. You shouldn’t be dismissive of a possible answer to all our problems. What if Zipp is right?”

“I don’t rely on ‘what ifs’, Sunny. I rely on solid evidence so that I know what has to be done,” replied Hitch.

“Isn’t that what you are doing?” Zipp retorted, arching an eyebrow. “You think magic is going crazy when there’s little evidence to the contrary. If our magic IS going haywire as you say it is, then why hasn’t it done so last year?”

“Well—um, I…uh…”

“You would think that it would explode in our faces the very moment the magic of friendship was restored to us,” Zipp explained. “But no, it had to wait a full year before things could go wrong. Does that make any sense to you…Sheriff?”

“Ohhhh, this is getting 🎶goooood🎶!” said Pipp.

“Took the words right out of my mouth,” Izzy grinned, hoof-bumping each other.

“I…haven’t really thought of it like that,” said Hitch, confused.

“And?”

“Now that I think about it, it could be possible that there is more to this dilemma than meets the eye,” mumbled Hitch.

“Ahhhh, so you agree with my hypothesis?” Zipp asked, smirking.

“I still have my doubts, but I am more than willing to investigate further evidence on this case.”

“Hehe, you know Hitch—always headstrong with his line of reasoning,” Sunny giggled.

“Clearly,” replied Zipp, rolling her eyes. “But hey, it’s a start at least.”

Suddenly, Crimson opened the front doors. The Mave Five turned to see him walk right inside their dwelling with a somber look on his face.

“Crimson! Again, hello to you, my dude!” Hitch shouted, trotting downstairs.

“I heard everything that happened out there, and I fear that things may get worse from here on out,” Crimson stated, looking down at the floor.

“Don’t worry, Crimson, everything will be alright. Zipp seems to have uncovered this case despite Hitch’s…reasonable doubts. But they’re still working on it,” informed Sunny.

Crimson’s eyes were half-widened until he relaxed and cleared his throat. “Why…that’s comforting to hear.”

“Zipp thinks there’s an evil lizard beast trying to get rid of our magic! If he’s real, then we’ll give him a sweet taste of justice…with a cherry on top!” Izzy added.

“Whoever he is, he better not create those horrible ice cream monsters again. They’re giving me nightmares already!” Pipp shouted.

“Pipp, it’s only been a few hours,” reminded Zipp.

“That’s beside the point!!”

Then Crimson turned his attention to Sunny. “Listen, as much as I am…pleased to see you are doing well, I still think that the worst is yet to come. That’s why I’m asking you to hide somewhere safe,” Crimson advised.

“But…our Brighthouse is somewhere safe,” Sunny objected.

“No, you would be an easy target if you remain here. If what your friend says is true, then you are in even greater danger. I’ll lead you to a distant city where you’ll be safe.”

“Are you sure? I can take on that lizard creature with my alicorn powers easily! It won’t stand a chance!” Sunny proudly assured.

“Yeah, Sunny can take on anything life throws at her!” Izzy added, quickly dodging a burnt toast popping out of the toaster. “Like that.”

However, Crimson appeared slightly agitated at the confidence boost. Thinking quickly, he grew a sly grin and then nodded his head in acceptance.

“Very well, then. I trust you know what you are doing,” he said.

“But we appreciate your help though! I can always count on you for support,” smiled Hitch.

Crimson chuckled at the remark. “Yes…of course…” Then he exited the Brighthouse. When no one was looking, he took out his sign and a marker from his back.

“So how are we gonna find this lizard creeper?” Pipp asked.

“Yeah, it could be crawling anywhere!” Izzy added.

“Hmm, that’s something I haven’t figured out yet,” Hitch admitted.

“Don’t worry, I’m sure we’ll find a way soon,” said Sunny.

Zipp casually took a look outside the window and saw a sign pointing towards a particular direction. Narrowing her eyes, she flew outside and read the direction thereon.

“Guys, it seems like we won’t have to look far. Our mysterious culprit is apparently interested in us finding him,” she said, showing them the sign.

The others walked out of the Brighthouse and read where the sign wanted to take them. “The creature is at Zephyr Heights?!” Hitch exclaimed.

“Oh no! Everypony could be in danger!” Pipp cried.

“That monster made a big mistake going there,” Hitch growled. “If that thing harms anypony, ooooh-ho-ho-ho…it’ll wish it were never born.”

“Come on, everypony, let’s save the magic of friendship!” declared Sunny.

The Mane Five then left Maretime Bay and went on their way to the city of Zephyr Heights. Unbeknownst to them, Axor’s blue eyes gazed at them as they departed.

His eyes then turned back to red, and he teleported right outside the Brighthouse. As he opened the front doors wide, he breathed in and exhaled the fresh air before he cracked his knuckles. “Right on schedule, ladies. Right on schedule.”

As they arrived in Zephyr Heights, they looked around to see if their suspect was in sight. Zipp narrowed her eyes straight ahead and noticed that there was a slime ball on the pavement.

Quickly trotting to it, she picked it up with her hoof and tasted it. “It’s the same sorbet that ransacked Maretime Bay earlier! This villain must be close by!”

Her friends followed her lead as they searched across the streets of the city. But before they could proceed further, they spotted Queen Haven standing outside the palace between her guards.

“Mom?!” Zipp & Pipp spoke in unison.

As the Mane Five reverently approached her, Pipp ran forward and hugged her. “Mom! I’m so glad you’re okay! Listen, things are getting waaaay out of hoof right now. There’s some creepy lizard wreaking havoc out there, and it will—Mom?”

Queen Haven did not move or respond to Pipp’s words. In fact, none of her guards standing next to her moved an inch either. Confused, Pipp waved her hoof in front of her which still didn’t faze her.

“Mom? Mom! Are you alright?” Zipp asked, worried.

Zipp then attempted to move her body, but Haven was surprisingly too strong to move out of place. This forced the sisters to move their mother with all their might but to no avail.

“What the heck?! Why does she feel like a statue?!” Pipp groaned, pushing hard.

Then they finally gave up. Panting in exhaustion, they each tapped the helmets of the guards—still completely motionless.

“Uh-oh…are you guys thinking what I’m thinking?” Izzy asked.

“Somepony must’ve done something horrible to them!” Sunny fearfully replied.

“Oh really? I was thinking they were playing some kind of mannequin game, but that could be it too,” Izzy clarified.

“Whoever is responsible for this will have to answer for all this chaos!” Zipp exclaimed.

“That…would be me,” an ominous voice called out.

Thunderous clouds covered the sky, every tree transformed into a monster, and every building was instantly covered with growing vines.

The Mane Five remained close to each other and witnessed the chaos unfold before their own eyes. Just when they thought they have seen everything, Toffee emerged from the darkness behind them—calmly smirking at them.

“Admiring the scenery, are we?”

The Mane Five widened their eyes in shock and gasped at the sight of their suspect. “It’s…it’s YOU!!” Sunny shouted.

“Sorry for what happened to her royal highness. Couldn’t risk her spoiling my…surprise party if you will,” said Toffee. “She’s lucky she’s temporarily in suspended animation.”

“I don’t believe it. You’re actually real?!” Hitch yelled, flabbergasted in disbelief.

“Oh. My. Gosh!! You look creepy, and you’re somehow dressed so formally! That’s even 🎶scarier🎶!” Pipp acknowledged.

“Yoooooouu…are far from what I imagined you would look like,” Zipp admitted.

“Hey, did you get a haircut? It looks nice on you,” Izzy complimented.

Toffee could only chuckle in amusement at their different reactions. “The name’s Toffee, and I’ve come here to free you from all your magical burdens. Don’t worry, it will be a quick and painless process. You’ll thank me later.”

“Magical burdens? What are you talking about? You’re the one who was corrupting earth pony magic, right?” Sunny asked.

“Hmmm, ‘corrupt’ is a rather strong word; I prefer the term ‘liberation’. You see, your magic is nothing but an imprisonment. This whole ‘magic of friendship’ is something only cowardly liars would express,” Toffee scoffed.

“So you are behind this! You tried to make our magic look bad just so Hitch could make it a taboo!” accused Zipp.

“Zipp, I know what you’re gonna say next. ‘I told you so!’ If you’re thinking about rubbing it in my face, forget it,” said Hitch, annoyed.

“I wasn’t thinking about it,” replied Zipp, darting her eyes back and forth. “…I think.”

“I tried to show you ponies that this magic does more harm than good. Magic doesn’t make you friends; it makes you slaves. From what I’ve observed, you let this power make all the choices for you…isn’t that right, Sunny Starscout?”

Sunny looked at him surprised. “How do you—?”

“A little birdie told me. He told me everything about you, my dear. Believe me when I say that I despise everything about you; you enforced your arbitrary philosophy on your so-called friends and expect them to walk in your footsteps—or hoof steps, in your case?” Toffee challenged, circling her.

“That’s not true! I would never force them to be my friends! Friendship is a choice and—!”

“Don’t make me laugh,” Toffee interrupted. “Your magic is anything but a choice. Your Unity Crystals are proof that you have no free agency on your own. Ha, and you are protecting them with your very own lives.”

Then Sunny looked at him even more confused.

“You don’t know the whole story, don’t you? Yet you call yourself a savior. Poor little pony—so blind to the truth,” mocked Toffee.

“Sunny, don’t listen to him! He’s trying to mess with your head!” Hitch warned.

“Yeah! We can take him down together!” Izzy agreed.

“And we can save our home together too! Seriously, this doomy gloomy shenanigans is creeping me out!!” Pipp complained.

Sunny then regained her confidence and activated her alicorn powers. “If you want to get rid of our magic, you’ll have to go through us first, Toffee! We won’t let you harm Equestria on our watch!”

“And please make it hard for yourself. I won’t be so kind with you after what you did to our mom!” Zipp angrily growled.

However, Toffee casually yawned to himself. Cracking his neck, he raised his hands and his fingers glowed green. They morphed into two different weapons: a buzzsaw on his left hand and a mace on his right hand.

“I intend to make it hard…for you,” he evilly smiled.

The Painful “Truth”

Crimson returned to his home while he was wearing a satisfactory smile. “That was easy. Here I thought I was gonna play a bigger role but oh well. ‘Anna, I’m home! Did you prepare any banana bread yet?”

To his confusion, he received no answer from her. “Babe, are you home?” Again, he heard nothing. He rushed to the bedroom, and she wasn’t there.

“Hmm, she usually returns home from work around this time. Is she working late?” he asked himself. “I gotta check in.”

He left the house and trotted his way to the secret banana factory. As he entered the front doors, he was greeted by Mr. Pulp and the rest of his associates.

“Ah, Mr. Wool. A pleasure to see you. What can I do for you?”

“Mr. Pulp, is my girlfriend still working here at this hour? I was worried that—,”

“She’s fine…for now. She’s occupied at the moment, so you will have to check back later,” Pulp replied.

“But can’t I just check on her really quick before I go? We haven’t spoken to each other all day, so I just want to make sure she’s doing alright. That’s all,” said Crimson.

Pulp and the other workers looked at each with blank stares until they turned their attention back towards Crimson. Pulp stepped out of his way and pointed his hoof toward his office.

“She’s in there.”

But before Crimson could take a few more steps forward, Pulp laid his hoof on his shoulder with beaming red eyes. “By the way, Lord Axor left a message for you.”

Crimson then gazed at him with a surprised look. Endocarp and Epicarp likewise emotionlessly stared at him with red eyes—not blinking even once.

He was not given time to process this situation as he heard a haunting beeping sound coming from Pulp’s office. Gulping, he slowly trotted to the area while he continuously looked behind his back.

As he entered the office, he saw a large monitor hanging in the air all by itself. That was where he saw a red dot in the middle of the screen making that sound. At that moment, something horrible caught his left eye—the frozen green statue of his girlfriend.

“No! ‘ANNA!!!”

He grabbed her head and saw a tear frozen solid on her cheek. “What happened to you?! Babe?! Babe, can you hear me?! Who did this?!”

Then the monitor played itself and showed a video of Sunny laughing like a maniac. Crimson looked on in horror as he watched Sunny transition to her alicorn form and shoot magical beams. Then she evilly laughed again before she morphed into a monstrous beast.

The monitor was automatically turned off. Crimson stared at the floor in shock; after he wallowed himself in emotional pain for about 90 seconds, his sadness quickly shifted to anger.

“I knew she was trouble from the start, but this—she’s gone too far now. Twilight Sparkle’s evil seems to flow in her veins. For that…she will pay for this,” growled Crimson.

Then he rushed out of the office and walked past Pulp without turning his face. “Tell our master that I’ve been notified of his message. Tell him…I will have a word with the town of Maretime Bay.”

The Mane Five stood their ground while Toffee raised his mutated arm weapons in the air. He swung his mace at them, but the ponies jumped out of its way.

Sunny activated her alicorn mode and cast multiple spells directly at him. However, Toffee opened his chest so the magical beams could fly through him; then his chest formed back into its place.

Pipp witnessed this with a look of disgust. “You’re made of goo?! Yuuuuccck! How can you live with yourself?!”

Toffee sliced a humongous chunk of ground where he and Sunny were standing on in a circle. Afterwards, the ground flew high up above the city—dropping dozens of rocks and debris down below.

“Watch out!” Izzy alerted.

Sunny’s friends were able to immediately move out of harm’s way before any of them were struck by the debris. Then they looked up to see their dearest friend alone with their deadly adversary.

“We have to help her!” Hitch shouted. Sparky squealed in agreement.

“She’s an alicorn, remember? She can beat him easily!” Izzy reminded.

“She’s right! Sunny can do this! We have to trust her!” added Zipp.

“What if she can’t?! If that guy can disable magic so easily, then Sunny will be in big trouble!” Hitch argued.

“Well, I’m sure Sunny can still defeat him regardless…right???” Pipp replied, worried.

Back at the hovering piece of land, Toffee condescendingly chuckled at Sunny.

“What’s so funny?” Sunny demanded.

“This is just too easy. Easy enough that it’s laughable,” sneered Toffee.

“Nothing about this is laughable, Toffee. I won’t back down so long as the magic of friendship still remains,” said Sunny, recharging her horn.

“Doubtful,” Toffee scoffed. After he smashed the ground with his glowing tail, the green aurora-like beams skipped across the pavement right towards Sunny—ready to strike her in an instant.

The empowered alicorn flew up again and shot more magical beams at the villain; the latter grabbed each of the beams, drained them of their magic, and then tossed them aside as if they were garbage.

Toffee raised his eyebrow at her, silently judging her combat abilities.

Groaning, Sunny lunged straight at him with her horn raised. But then he nonchalantly stepped away to the right mere seconds before Sunny could impale him on impact. He stretched out his arms quite casually and did a few pushups.

Sunny panted for a moment before she could think of another idea. Ten seconds later, she generated a massive ball of pure magic and bucked them into the air as if it was a soccer ball.

Toffee didn’t even bother looking behind him since he was randomly reading a book. Just in the nick of time, he grabbed the magic ball with his left hand and popped it with his fingertip…without even looking.

Sunny dropped her jaw at the way he dismantled it with unnerving ease. “How are you doing this?! I tried everything!”

“How about calling for backup?” Zipp called out. Sunny looked up to see her & Pipp carrying Hitch & Sparky while Izzy was levitating herself with her own magic before they all safely landed.

“Guys!”

“We won’t let you do this alone, Sunny. We’re with you till the end!” Hitch declared. The others nodded together.

Sunny smiled back at them with confidence. “Thanks, guys. I couldn’t have asked for better friends.”

As they all stood by her side, Sunny glared at the unfazed Toffee. “This is your last chance, Toffee. It’s not too late to surrender.”

“And there’s no way you’ll stand a chance against all of us!” Hitch added.

“Trust me, Sheriff, you’re only brave now because you’re hiding behind your friends. You would whimper in fear without them,” Toffee grinned.

“What?! No, I wouldn’t—! Well…well, I might be a little…”

“Your taunts won’t work on us, monster! So why don’t you give up now?” Zipp interjected.

“No. I’m here only for her; the rest of you are distractions,” answered Toffee.

“You’re not laying one claw on her—not on our watch,” Zipp defied, glaring daggers.

“This is so sad,” Toffee sighed. “You’re fighting tooth and nail for a pony who has no idea how corrupt this whole ‘friendship’ shtick is. And honestly, I truly pity you.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Of course you don’t, Sunny. Because you lack the ability to think critically enough about what you’re preaching,” Toffee stated. “Do you honestly believe that these ponies are friends with each other because they’re sincere about it…or because of the bewitching magic?”

The Mane Five stood there completely confused as to what he was referring to. Sunny, on the other hand, shook off her confusion and powered up her horn. “Whatever it is you’re trying to do, it won’t work! It’s over for you!”

Toffee shook his head at that remark. “Seems like I can’t reason with crazy.”

Sunny hovered over him just as she was fully charged up. At that moment, she blasted her massive magical beam at the unimpressed lizard. The ground on which he once stood exploded on impact, leaving a huge cloud of smoke from the crater.

Sunny opened her eyes and saw that he was already gone. She looked left & right, and there was no trace of him whatsoever on any part of the fractured landscape.

A few moments later, the massive piece of land started to fall from the sky. Sunny used her telekinesis to stop it from falling and slowly lowered it to a safer area beneath. The mutated creatures then ceased to exist, and every frozen guard outside the palace regained motion.

Queen Haven was also unfrozen, and she immediately screamed at the sight of the destruction’s aftermath. “WHAT JUST HAPPENED?! That was utterly horrifying!!”

“Mom!”

“You’re okay!”

“*Gasp* Zipp! Pipp! Thank goodness you’re alright!” Haven shouted, embracing her daughters.

Sunny, Hitch, Sparky, & Izzy got off the rocky platform and noticed that the storm was still in motion, sending off its wrathful thundering and lightning.

“I’m so glad it’s all over! I thought I lost you both for a second,” said Haven.

“We’re glad you’re okay too, Mom. I had no idea what happened to you, but you were completely frozen. What happened?” Zipp asked.

“It’s…it’s hard to explain. I couldn’t move or talk…although I was fully aware of everything that was happening around me. That was so…unsettling,” Haven recalled, shivering in fear.

“Well, you won’t have to ever experience that again now that Toffee is gone,” said Pipp.

“Toffee? That’s the creature’s name?”

“I know, right? Who names himself after a hardy sweet? Hey, wait a minute, I remembered I had some toffee this morning! Heh, pretty weird coincidence, I guess,” Izzy giggled.

“None of us will worry about him anymore,” added Hitch. “Sunny took care of that with her timely alicorn power! Right?”

“I…can’t say for certain. There was barely any trace of him on that rock, so he must’ve survived the blast somehow and jumped off,” replied Sunny.

“Well, thank you for your help regardless, Sunny. I’ll have my entire kingdom under heavy security going forward until that monster is gone for good!” declared Haven.

“Sounds like a plan. Come on, guys, we gotta get back to Maretime Bay fast before it starts to rain,” said Sunny.

Later that evening, they all returned back to town. But before they could even set their sights on their Brighthouse, an angry mob was approaching them. The Mane Five then looked to their right and saw another mob approach them as well.

“Uh, is it just me or do they look angry for some reason?” Izzy wondered.

“No, Izzy, it’s not just you. Hold on, are those my pipsqeaks?!” Pipp called out, seeing her own fans among the angry crowd.

Mr. Pulp and his associates were at the center of both angry mobs. He stared coldly at Sunny as he was slowly trotting towards her. “It seems like we have a rogue alicorn in our midst.”

“What’s going on, everypony?”

“You know exactly what’s going on! You froze an innocent pony with your magic!” Poesy accused.

“You’ve turned evil!”

“Explain yourself!”

“What?? What are you talking about? I’ve never done that to anypony! Where is this all—?”

“Don’t play dumb with us, Sunny! We know what you’re up to!” Posey angrily interrupted. “You were pretending to play nice until you can get a chance to strike! Admit it!”

“Sunny would never do such a thing! It’s not in her nature to do something that terrible!” Hitch argued.

Then Endocarp and Epicarp carried a large green rock that contained Bonanza still frozen inside. The Mane Five gasped at the unsightly scene.

“What the—?! Is that Banana Bonanza?!” Hitch shouted, utterly shocked.

“It can’t be!” Sunny yelled out.

“Ah, so you do know her,” observed Pulp. “Then there was surely a reason you did this, right?”

“What evidence do you have to prove that she was the one behind this?” Zipp challenged.

Pulp motioned his associates to present the footage that was discovered in the factory. There, Sunny watched a scene of herself sadistically chuckling while she was blasting at everything and morphing into a monstrous alicorn.

Her friends looked on in horror with their jaws dropping.

“This…is not me! THAT’S NOT ME!” Sunny pleaded.

“And that doesn’t prove anything! Banana isn’t even shown in this footage, so this is hardly evidence!” Hitch retorted.

“This was Toffee’s doing! He has to be the one responsible for this!” Zipp shouted.

“Who?”

“The supervillain we confronted at Zephyr Heights; he was the culprit behind the chaos that occurred in this town with the monstrous ice cream and vines! No doubt he’s trying to frame Sunny for all his crimes.”

“I find that hard to believe. The footage speaks for itself,” Pulp said, arching his doubtful eyebrow.

“Toffee could’ve fabricated it with some immaculate editing skills. I mean, from the looks of it, he seems to be a pretty dang good 🎶editor🎶,” replied Pipp.

“Not helping…” Zipp muttered.

“Sunny was with us the whole time, so there’s no way she could’ve done this!” Hitch explained.

“Is that so?” Pulp doubted. Then he took a look at his watch.

“We will investigate this matter later. I have a meeting scheduled for today. Have a good rest of your day…Sunny Starscout,” he said with a look of contempt.

After they left, Sunny started to shed tears. Her alicorn form disappeared, and she fell on her knees with a look of despair.

“I don’t understand. Why is all this happening…? What did I ever do wrong?”

“None of this is your fault, Sunny. Everything is gonna be fine,” Zipp assured.

“Are you sure? Because based on everything that happened today, I feel like I’m—I’m cursed,” she stuttered, sniffing.

“Don’t let them get to you. They don’t know you like we do,” Pipp said, giving her a comforting smile.

“When did Toffee create this fake footage from the banana factory while simultaneously create chaos in Maretime Bay?” Zipp wondered.

“Perhaps he can be in two places at once? Oh, I think he teleports like a unicorn!” Izzy guessed.

“Hmm, that might explain it. But I still have an itching feeling that Crimson might be involved. But hey, it’s just a theory! I could be wrong,” Zipp clarified, irritated by Hitch’s judgmental stare.

“On a serious note, I have a suspicion that he had some help. But if not Crimson, then who?” Zipp wondered.

The storm was still in motion all across Equestria; a few drops of rain fell on some residents, forcing the angry mob to leave the Mane Five alone.

“Geez, the weather wasn’t even that hot today, and there’s a storm?! *dramatic sigh* Let’s just hope this day ends on a high note. Right, Sunny?” Pipp said before she noticed that Sunny was already gone.

“Sunny?”

“Where did she go?”

“Sunny!”

Sunny went back inside the Brighthouse just before the rain started to pour in full force. Her head was bowed as she trotted across the room and sat on one of the chairs.

She glanced at a picture of her dad holding her as a foal and smiling happily. Then she shed even more tears at the fond memories she made with him.

“I wish you were here, Dad. I don’t know what to do anymore.”

She fell on her face and covered her head with her own mane. But just before she could cry even further, her eyes caught a red light. The light could be seen on the floor, and it darted away to the kitchen.

“What the…? Where is that coming?”

Curious, she got back up on her hooves and followed the red light. It then went straight upstairs to where the elevator can be found, and she found it right inside.

Suddenly, the elevator activated itself and took Sunny up to where the Unity Crystals were. The red light then disappeared right before the balcony, leaving Sunny puzzled.

“Okay, this is getting weird. What just—ah!”

Axor was standing right behind her with an evil smile on his face, lightning flashing in the background. “Hi there, little pony. Feeling alright?”

“Whoa! Who are you?! Where did you come from?!” Sunny demanded, backing away.

“Oh, I’m sorry, forgive me for my lack of manners. My name is Axor, a visitor to your hometown. Don’t worry, I’m not gonna hurt you…” he replied, trying not to grin too hard.

“H-h-how can I trust you? Are you a friend of that Toffee guy?! Those red eyes of yours are making me uncomfortable! What are you here for?!” Sunny angrily demanded with blood-shot eyes.

“Wow. My first time coming here, and I already feel unwelcome because I’m judged for my looks. Is that how you treat ponies who did nothing wrong to you?” he asked.

Sunny took a deep breath and sat down. “You’re right. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to yell at you. I’m just stressed out from today’s catastrophes.”

“No hard feelings, my dear.”

“But next time, try not to sneak into ponies’ houses while they’re away. It leaves a bad first impression,” advised Sunny.

“My apologies,” said Axor. “I am an inter-dimensional traveler who has discovered a serious problem with your country. I’m a problem solver, and I’m here to make things right.”

“You are? So…you know about…?

“Oh yes, my friend. I’ve heard about the infamous deeds of Toffee and what he’s been trying to do to your…magic,” replied Axor.

“I don’t understand why he hates magic so much. What could’ve possibly compelled him to terrorize our communities?!” Sunny shouted.

That’s when Axor grew a large devious smile. “I believe it has something to do with your legacy.”

Sunny titled her head in confusion. “What?”

“You see, there’s something you are woefully ignorant about, and I’m here to enlighten you on this…heartbreaking topic. It could answer all of your problems.”

Sunny sighed. “Well, if it can help me understand why I feel so cursed today, then fire away. I’m listening.”

Axor cleared his throat. “Toffee is a creature who is motivated by trauma; he was physically mutilated by magic, and he swore an oath that he will one day get rid of it.”

“If you’re wondering if he had something to do with freezing Banana Bonanza, it’s actually true. He did freeze her, but ONLY out of self-defense. He’s a sensitive guy, and Banana was attacking him because he looks like a monster.”

“But…Banana is a kind pony. She would never do that…right?”

“Looks aren’t everything, dear. And Toffee wasn’t framing you for anything; that footage you watched earlier was an illusion of what you will become…if you don’t amend your arbitrary beliefs,” explained Axor.

Sunny then looked at him with a frightful expression.

“Oh yeah. Toffee isn’t really the bad guy here…if you see things from his perspective. And frankly, he’s right. The Magic of Friendship has done nothing but harm to your own people for countless generations, and its dangerous effects have warped the reality of your senses.”

“What?! But how? Friendship is what unites everypony and binds them together in peace! Twilight Sparkle understood that which is why she became the Princess of Friendship!” Sunny defended.

“What if I told you she wasn’t exactly what you think of her? What if I told you…she was the villain?” Axor informed, secretly grinning.

“No…no…that’s not true. D-don’t say that, please,” Sunny weakly responded. “I-I don’t like where this is going.”

“Then I’ll just show you instead,” he replied, raising his right hand. His sharp finger fired a panoramic shot of ancient Equestrian society ruled under Twilight.

Sunny saw herself surrounded by ponies of the past generation. She saw the changelings, yaks, hippogriffs, dragons, and griffons all gathered together at the palace in Canterlot. Suddenly, they fought with the ponies and hurled every single hateful word towards each other.

Sunny could only watch, scared at both the realism of the scene & the toxic behavior from both sides.

“Twilight created the Unity Crystals in order to enforce friendship on everyone. Because of her arrogance and hatred of non-ponies, she felt like it wasn’t enough. Thus, she did the unthinkable: complete annihilation.”

Twilight transformed into the tyrannical Gloam Fall and vaporized all the terrified non-ponies beneath her. General Feisty stood behind her, enjoying the fiery sight of destruction.

“Her darkness consumed her, and she became a far worse tyrant than any of her adversaries could ever dream to achieve. Like all the alicorns before her, she was evil to the core,” Axor finished.

They both wickedly laughed together until the flashback disappeared, leaving Sunny in complete shock & disbelief at what she saw.

“Now you understand the full truth, my friend. Those Unity Crystals were forged by evil…and you have defended them with your life,” Axor continued.

“This…can’t be. This…was all a lie…?”

“Your people were living their best lives separated into different races until you came along and continued your role model’s legacy. That’s why they’re turning against you now. Twilight’s brainwashing is wearing off, and they now realize what you will become if you don’t stop.”

“So…Twilight was never good? At all??”

“Nope.”

Sunny then fell on her knees. “So…throughout my entire life…I was idolizing a monster. A psychopath. The one whom I thought was a hero—Toffee was right. The magic of friendship…IS corrupt.”

Axor triumphantly smirked.

At that moment, she angrily glared at the Unity Crystals. “How could I have been so stupid?! It’s no wonder why everything bad is happening! None of this would’ve happened if those accursed crystals were NEVER found!”

“Sprout wouldn't have destroyed my old lighthouse, and…I wouldn’t have put Maretime Bay in danger last year if it weren’t for those crystals. They. Ruined. Everything,” she growled.

“There’s only one way to redeem yourself, my dear. The one thing Twilight herself could never do—renounce them,” Axor suggested.

Sunny grabbed a picture of Twilight Sparkle looking happy and smiling on everyone. Shedding tears again, she angrily ripped it to pieces and tossed them out the balcony. “I don’t deserve to be up here. I’ve…been so dumb.”

Then she looked back at Axor. “I want nothing to do with any of this anymore. Get rid of them if you want…”

She grabbed the Unity Crystals and handed them over to Axor. “Well done, Sunny. You’ve made the right choice.”

Sunny nodded her head. “Thank you.”

Axor sinisterly chuckled. “Oh no, my dear…thank you.”

Once he said this, he thrusted the crystals into his chest where the diamond-shaped red hole was centered. All of Equestria’s magic was corrupted into his image, and all three crystals changed into darker colors. He maniacally laughed as he did this.

The rainbow shattered into tiny atoms and so were all the stained glass windows of the Brighthouse. Sunny then looked at him with shock & utter confusion. “What are you doing?!”

“Doing something useful with these crystals, of course! You look exhausted, my dearest Sunny. Why don’t you flush down your sorrows…ALONE?” Axor taunted.

He opened a portal to a void of darkness and threw Sunny therein. Sunny tried to activate her alicorn powers, but it didn’t work. Fully realizing why that was the case, she screamed through the void until the noises were mere echos. Then…she was gone.

Closing the portal, Axor gazed at his newfound power and relished the lively feeling throughout his veins. “Yes…YES…YEEEEEEEEESSSS!!! The Equestrian Magic is mine once again! And this time, I won’t lose it again.”

“With this new power, I can finally give this accursed place a whole new makeover!” Axor exulted.

He gathered every one of the little thorns he scattered across Maretime Bay and held them high above the Brighthouse with his telekinesis. Then he impaled the roof with those thorns, blowing out the red flames within them.

“I think Sunny ran back inside the Brighthouse. She must be really upset!” Pipp said.

“At least she’ll be safe there. We can’t afford to let those ponies bother her with baseless accusations,” stated Hitch.

“Man, what an eventful day! I wonder what else can go wrong?” said Izzy.

Suddenly, the whole Brighthouse exploded with red flames flying everywhere. The explosion was so loud it shook the entire town, and it was loud enough to silence the storm.

“WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT?!” Hitch screamed.

Out of nowhere, a massive new structure arose from the ashes of the Brighthouse which managed to cover much more ground than both its previous buildings ever could.

The Mane Five & Sparky shrunk their pupils in terror at the sight of a new building. “Is that…the Brighthouse?” Pipp asked.

“Well, it was,” Hitch corrected.

It was now a 1,250 foot tall clock tower surrounded by a fortress. The clock itself was red, the hour hand was shaped like a sword, and the minute hand was shaped like an arrow.

“This…is so not good,” said Zipp, gulping.

Toffee and Crinson looked up to see Axor’s new handiwork in full display which left them completely surprised.

“That’s the signal,” said Pulp. His workers launched the bananas from their warp cannons. The bananas transformed into a massive puffy purple cloud, covering all of Equestria like a dome.

“What…is this??” Toffee asked.

“Is this what he had in mind? Did I…make the right choice?” Crimson worried.

As for Axor, he laughed psychotically and did a backflip on the rooftop of his new tower. “The time has come! Magic is mine, Sunny is gone, and Twilight’s failure is now complete! Now the multiverse will finally feel what it’s like…to have an unhappy ending!”

His red eyes burned bright as the darkness covered the land.

TO BE CONTINUED…

Author's Note

The saga has now reached to yet another hiatus. This was quite a lot of fun to write, and I’m sure you guys got a lot of enjoyment reading this whole story. If I’m being honest, this might be my favorite series to write so far out of all the series I’ve written over the years.

The way I’ve been writing this series gave me a different vibe somehow, and it feels so…unique in a way I can’t adequately describe. Maybe it’s because I’ve gotten better with my writing over the years, but that’s just me.

With that said, thank you for reading this story—both the commenters and the silent readers. I appreciate you both.

Lastly, the sequel will be the final installment of this series, and it’s going to be just as dark as the Amphibia crossovers. I can’t say for sure when it will be released, but it will definitely be posted by summer time.

In the meantime, I’ll be taking a break from making stories until late March when I’ll be making at least one or two one-shots before the big story comes out.

Peace out, folks!