SLAM!
Twilight scrambled to her hooves and sprinted. All the way, she tried to block out what her eyes were seeing. No – this can't – this isn't –
As she got closer, it became harder and harder to deny. The huge wall in front of her looked transparent, but frighteningly real.
When she reached the edge, she skidded to a halt and touched a hoof to the glassy surface. It was official, now. Ponyville was sealed off from the world, and she was locked outside.
Loser. Leaves. Ponyville. Forever! Words she had barely registered at first were now sinking in uncomfortably fast, as she looked up at the giant, foreboding dome.
From the inside, Spike, Rarity, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Pinkie and Fluttershy came running up to meet her. A rush of hooves, heads and claws hit the glass; it didn't budge. It was like they were trapped in a gigantic fish bowl.
Twilight looked at her friends. Hurt, anger and confusion played across their faces, an accurate reflection of the jumble of emotions running through her own head. For a while they just stared at each other in shock, nopony knowing what to say. What did you say to a situation like this?
She opened her mouth, but stopped herself just before a stream of hesitant stutters could come out. Nonono, that won't do. As fuzzy and incoherent as her memories of the past hour were – it had all happened so quickly! – it was clear that something very, very bad was going on. That meant her friends needed reassurance now, hope, not helpless blubbering.
Brain, send words to mouth. Something, anything. Improvise.
She laid a hoof on the glass where Spike's claw was. 'It's okay, guys,' she said. 'I'll figure something out. Just... take care of each other. And keep an eye on Trixie. There's something strange about her!'
Gee, ya think? a voice at the back of her mind snarked. But there was no time to second-guess herself now. She needed to get away from this madness, away from Trixie, before she exploded.
She turned, and set off at full gallop. If anyone called after her, she didn't hear it. Only at the edge of the Everfree Forest did she stop to catch her breath. 'What... what just happened...?' she panted.
=========================
A cool drizzle came down over Canterlot, so light that it felt more like falling mist. Clockhoof stood alone on one of the big wooden platforms of the city's railway station. She wondered if Princess Celestia had raised the sun at all today; if so, it was well hidden behind an impenetrable cover of clouds. Then she remembered – Celestia was out of the country. State visit to Saddle Arabia. Apparently Luna wasn't doing a very good job filling in for her sister.
Clockhoof smiled faintly. It was deathly quiet; all the passengers were huddled inside, in the waiting rooms and the station buffet, enjoying tea, sandwiches and the heat of the fire. Not that they had any reason to come out. There were no trains due for half an hour. The Royal Equestrian Railway Company prided itself on many things, but frequency of service was not one of them.
Some would call her an eccentric for being out here by herself, but that didn't bother her. She enjoyed a little solitude every now and then. Besides, a stationmaster's job involved a lot of sitting around the station with hardly anything to do anyway. She might as well get some fresh air in the process.
She idly strolled down the platform, listening to the creak of the soggy planks under her hooves. Her eye fell on a puddle, a remnant of the morning's heavier rains, and she paused.
From the puddle, a unicorn mare in her late forties looked back at her with a skeptical frown. Her coat was a dull blue, somewhere between the colour the sky was right now, and the colour it ought to be.
She pondered that for a moment. Who was she, really, to decide what colour the sky was supposed to be? Maybe grey was the natural colour of the sky over Canterlot; one would certainly be forgiven for assuming that... She gave a small chuckle. Look at you, getting all philosophical over nothing. It was a stupid thing to think about – but then what else was she supposed to do with her spare time? Read books? Play Solitaire? She had already finished the day's Canterlot Citizen.
Her thoughts were interrupted by a shrill whistle from afar. A train – but there were no trains due. This meant trouble. Good, she thought, a little trouble never hurt anypony. And it'll give me something to do.
Two minutes later, a hissing, steaming behemoth pulled into the station. Clockhoof clenched her teeth at the high-pitched scream of the brakes as the giant metal tube on wheels ground to a halt, gushing steam on all sides. Then she grinned. On or off schedule, there was nothing quite like the sight and sound of a heavy steam engine coming to a stop.
The deep red colour of this particular engine, and the midnight blue of the passenger cars behind it, told her it was a train of the Great Eastern line, which stretched to Baltimare, Fillydelphia and beyond.¹
The Great Eastern wasn't due for several hours.
Suddenly, she remembered a telegram from the Fillydelphia stationmaster she'd gotten earlier that day. Something about a line blockage at Ponyville. She hadn't given it much thought; Ponyville was pretty small and out of the way. A blocked line there wouldn't really affect any part of the rail network she needed to concern herself with. It was nothing her colleagues in the Eastern Sector wouldn't be able to handle – or so she had thought.
The train driver and the firepony jumped out of the engine and came trotting up to her. The two stallions looked nervous, a little frightened even. Maybe this problem in Ponyville was more serious than it had seemed. Well, the town was notorious for attracting danger and mayhem...
'Easy now, colts,' Clockhoof said as the stallions reached her. 'What's the matter? Something to do with Ponyville, I assume?'
The driver's eyes were wide as he spoke. 'In all my years on the Great Eastern, I've never seen...'
'It was scary!' the firepony shouted. 'The whole town...'
The driver nodded in agreement. 'Evil,' he said. 'Dark, evil magic.'
'All right, all right.' Clockhoof held up a hoof. 'Full sentences, please. You saw something at Ponyville. Something evil and scary. Any specifics on what it was?'
The driver took a deep breath and tried to calm himself. 'There was some kind of bubble over the whole town,' he said, still trembling. 'It was huge, like somepony had taken away the sky over Ponyville and replaced it with that.'
'It glowed red when we came near, as if it was trying to warn us off,' the firepony added. 'Well, that was a bluff we weren't gonna call. The thing looked mighty scary!'
'That it did,' the driver said. 'I hit the brakes. Took her a lot of screeching and hissing, but the old girl managed to stop in time.' He gave a nod towards the engine.
'I see,' Clockhoof said. 'So you came back here?'
'We put her in reverse, went back to Fillydelphia, and said we were terribly sorry, but we weren't going any farther today,' the firepony said. 'We let those folks get off who wanted to, then turned her around and came back here at full steam. Not much use in stopping at any towns in between.'
Clockhoof nodded. 'Makes sense.' So the passengers on this train were those whose destination had been Ponyville or farther, and who hadn't opted for Fillydelphia as the next best thing.
They were slowly coming out of the train by now. A small crowd formed on the platform – about fifty ponies, she estimated. She heard angry murmurs, and saw the occasional hoof pointing her way. Best to come to them before they came for her.
'You two did a good job. Go on inside and take a break,' she said. 'I'll handle this.'
'Thank you, ma'am.' The two stallions turned and walked away.
Clockhoof took a deep breath, then walked over to the crowd of disgruntled passengers and cleared her throat. The murmurs died down as fifty pairs of eyes turned to look at her.
'All right, everypony, I'm terribly sorry about this. From what I've heard of it, this issue isn't quite the kind of thing the Railway Company is equipped to deal with. However, we will do what we can. First off, is there anypony who will be needing emergency lodgings?'
There was a silence. No hooves were raised. Then again, that made sense: those without a place to stay in Canterlot had probably gotten off at Fillydelphia when they had the chance.
'All right. Now, I think the least we can do is offer you all a cup of coffee or tea on the house.'
The murmurs started again, not quite as angry anymore, but still far from happy. Clockhoof understood it all too well; a cup of tea was a small comfort after wasting most of a day in a train that had stopped just short of your destination. Still, it was something.
'Just present your ticket at the counter and it'll be taken care of,' she continued. 'And of course you'll get refunds on your tickets – just ask for a compensation form at the service desk. But first, I think you might like to go inside and warm up for a bit.' She led by example, walking towards the station buffet.
A bell clanged loudly as she threw the door open. Coming out of the cold March air, it felt tropically hot in here. She quickly scanned the room. It wasn't exactly deserted, but there were more than enough of the small round tables left for the small herd that was following her.
The two fillies behind the buffet counter looked up at the bell's sound.
'Jasmine, Olivia, there's been a... situation at Ponyville,' Clockhoof said. 'Free tea for everyone with a Great Eastern ticket farther than Fillydelphia. Or coffee, if they prefer.'
'Got it.' Jasmine gave a firm nod. Olivia went to fill one of the large kettles behind her.
As the passengers of the Great Eastern trickled into the buffet, Clockhoof headed for her office. Jasmine, Olivia, and the ponies from customer service could handle the passengers from here on out; she had other things to do. First of all, she had to get that big hunk of metal out of her station before the Manehattan Express came in. And later, when her shift ended, it would be time for one of her more obscure duties as a railway employee. That glowing glass dome over Ponyville sounded like something the Royal Guard needed to know about.
=========================
Yeah, great, now you bring out the sun.
As the cab hobbled along through the streets of Canterlot, Clockhoof squinted against the flood of red light from just above the horizon. She had pulled down one of the carriage's flimsy sunshades, but that might as well have been a clear glass plate for all the good it did.
With a frustrated sigh, she turned to the side. Words from twenty years ago echoed through her mind, words she had spent long hours memorising. The Oath of the Civil Service.
'That I shall keep watch for threats, open or suspected, to the security of Equestria or the sovereignty of the Crown,' she droned, 'and that I shall report any such threats to the Royal Guard immediately.' The last clause in the Oath was mostly seen as an outdated formality. It wasn't as if the average Canterlot bureaucrat regularly stumbled on dastardly schemes to poison Celestia's tea. Still, it was a part of her job. Might as well get it over with.
As dormant as the clause was most of the time, she figured it was very convenient for the Guard. In peacetime, the Guard was mostly based in and around Canterlot, with only a minor presence in the more remote areas. The railways and the Royal Mail were a handy extra set of eyes and ears.
Clockhoof was shaken out of her thoughts as the cab pulled to a stop. 'We're here, ma'am,' the driver grunted.
'Yeah, thanks.' She climbed out and drew her purse from her saddlebags. Ten kilometres into the suburbs, against the low-hanging sun... the poor colt had earned a big tip. 'Here you go,' she said as she floated the bits over to him.
The stallion nodded his thanks and went off. Clockhoof turned around and found herself facing a large, off-white stone gate. Two earthpony soldiers stood in front of it, looking exceptionally bored. A wooden sign announced the building's purpose:
GRISLEY FIELD BARRACKS
Base of the 55th Earthpony Regiment
Commanding Officer: Col. Morning Star
As she stepped closer to the gate, the guards stood up a bit straighter. 'Name and business,' one of them said.
'Clockhoof. I'm the stationmaster at Canterlot Central, and I have a few things to report to Colonel Morning Star.' She got out her Railway Company employee card and levitated it in front of the soldier's muzzle. 'He's my official contact within the Royal Guard.'
'Uh, that looks all right, I guess,' he said. Clockhoof suppressed a chuckle at the puzzled look on his face. Clearly, he wasn't too well-versed in the fine print of the Oath of the Civil Service. 'The colonel's office is through the courtyard, turn right, down the hallway and... oh, well, you'll find it. There's signs and everything.'
Soon enough, Clockhoof stood in the doorway to Morning Star's office. The old colonel sat at his desk. It had been ages since she'd last seen him, but he still looked as she remembered him: same dark purple coat, same scruffy beard, same stocky build.²
Across from him sat another, much younger stallion, with an ochre coat. A sergeant, if Clockhoof had to guess, or perhaps a lieutenant.
'Sky Four,' Morning Star said.
'Miss.'
Clockhoof cleared her throat. 'Good evening, Colonel. Am I interrupting something?'
Morning Star looked up at her. 'Ah – Miss Clockhoof!' He turned to his opponent. 'Lieutenant Black Tail, dismissed. We'll finish this game in a moment.'
'Sir.' The lieutenant saluted and quietly left the room.
Morning Star shoved the Battlecloud set aside and gestured for Clockhoof to take a seat. 'Now, what can I do for you?' he asked. 'It's been a while since I saw you here, I must say.'
She sat down and put her saddlebags beside her. 'Things have been quiet on the lines,' she said. 'Not today, though. There was a line blockage at Ponyville.'
'Ponyville...' Morning Star chuckled softly. 'Well, that's a first.'
'My thoughts exactly. Which is why I thought you should see this.' She reached into her saddlebags and pulled out a clipboard with a few sheets of paper. 'I had the crew on the Great Eastern write some quick reports on what they saw. Apparently there's some kind of dome over the whole town. I have no idea what it is or what's causing it, but it scared them a lot.'
'I see,' Morning Star said. He frowned as he skimmed the reports. 'I'll send out a company to find out what it is tomorrow. Probably just some kind of magic experiment gone wrong. Twilight Sparkle does live there, after all...'
Clockhoof raised an eyebrow. 'Then why send out a full company to check?'
'Well, it gives them something to do, doesn't it? My stallions are rotting away in these barracks. Every room is spotless, all the equipment has been painted three times over... Really, I'd go with the whole regiment if I could get away with it.'
Clockhoof smiled. 'Well, I'm glad I could provide you with a mission, then.'
'Yes, thanks a lot for that. Where would we be without the railways?' He chuckled. 'Now if you'll excuse me, I have a game to win.'
=========================
Black Tail woke up to the clanging of a bell. It was a sound that told him to haul his flank into the courtyard, and make sure all of his soldiers did the same, or there would be hell to pay.
'Seriously?' he groaned. The 55th hadn't bothered with roll call in weeks. He hadn't exactly mourned the decline of this long-standing military tradition.
He buried his muzzle in his pillow and briefly hoped the noise would just go away, but the bell kept clanging relentlessly. Whatever bright-eyed young recruit had been sent to ring it was really enjoying himself.
With a deep sigh, Black Tail dragged himself out of bed and stumbled to his closet.
He fumbled with his armour. It felt awkward and heavy after not wearing it for so long. Once he was properly stitched in, he went down the hallway to his company's dorms. They'd heard the bell just as clearly, of course, but it was his responsibility to make sure they all actually got up.
He knocked on Platoon 1's door. 'C'mon guys. Roll call.' The chorus of annoyed moans and groans that came in reply didn't give him a lot of hope for the platoon's turnout. 'I know, I know. It wasn't my idea, either.' He sighed and moved on to Platoon 2. It was going to be a long morning.
By some miracle, the entire company eventually managed to turn up to roll call more or less on time. Black Tail yawned, and idly ran a hoof through the dewy grass of the courtyard. Now that he was awake and on his hooves, he didn't feel so bad. It was chilly out, but there was a lot more sun than he'd seen in a long time. He absently listened to the murmurs of the soldiers behind him.
'What the hell?'
'Did someone lose a bet to the colonel?'
'Did Saddle Arabia invade while we were sleeping?'
'Maybe this is a joke and they'll let us go back to bed in a minute.'
'Boy, I sure hope so.'
'Atten-TION!' The booming voice of Silver Derby, the lieutenant-colonel, instantly silenced everypony else. 'Roll call! A Company!'
Lieutenant Hazel Strike stepped forward and saluted. 'Fully present, sir!' he said with a little too much enthusiasm for Black Tail's taste.
Silver Derby returned the salute and nodded. 'Good. B Company!'
Black Tail walked up and saluted. 'Fully present, sir.' But don't ask me how.
When roll call was finished, the only absences were three corporals from E Company who'd been drinking the night before. They were in for a hard time. Black Tail didn't envy Heavy Tread, E Company's commanding officer, either.
'At ease!' Silver Derby shouted. 'Now, all lieutenants are to meet the colonel in his office at nine.'
The colonel was calling an officers' meeting? That didn't happen a lot. It was probably for some stupid formality – a report from one of the Guard's many internal committees, or a policy memo from the High Command. Or maybe Morning Star just wanted to set up a Battlecloud tournament.
'Also, all troops are to remain in full armour until further notice,' Silver Derby went on. 'Lieutenant Heavy Tread, if you would kindly inform your three sleeping beauties that they just volunteered for kitchen duty for the coming month?'
Heavy Tread saluted. 'Sir.'
Black Tail raised an eyebrow. Full armour? Was Princess Celestia coming for a visit or something?
'Right, that will be all. F and G Company, dismissed. Off to breakfast you go. The rest of you, wait your turn.'
'Now, you may wonder why I called you all here,' Morning Star said.
Black Tail and his fellow lieutenants were lined up before the colonel's desk, uneasy glances darting around the room.
'I have received a report!' Morning Star said, a hint of a grin appearing on his face. He got out a clipboard and theatrically slammed it on his desk. 'A threat to the security of Equestria or the sovereignty of the Crown, as reported to me under the Oath of the Civil Service! Apparently all of Ponyville is encased in some kind of magical dome. A most dire situation!'
Wait, that means... a mission. Something to do. Black Tail never liked it when Morning Star hammed it up like this, but at least the message was a hopeful one.
'Now, of course, this warrants a thorough investigation. I intend to send a full company to Ponyville, to find out what evil has befallen it.' With a sigh, the colonel finally dropped the act. 'In other words: what is it this time,' he deadpanned.
There were a few chuckles, then Hazel Strike put on a broad smile. 'Well, this looks like a job for A Company,' he said.
'Hey, you know just as well as anyone that those letters don't mean a thing!' Long Shot growled. 'When was the last time G Company got picked for anything?'
Luna's horn, not this crap again. Black Tail had to keep himself from facehoofing in front of the colonel. Hazel by himself was bad enough; Hazel plus Long Shot was a stupid argument waiting to happen.
Not that he didn't want the mission for B Company. It would be great to get out of this dull Canterlot suburb for once, and his soldiers could use some action. But to fight over it like foals in the schoolyard...
Hazel opened his mouth for a retort, but Heavy Tread was quicker. 'Um, anyone wanna draw lots?'
Black Tail gave a sigh of relief, grateful for the intervention. 'Sure.'
Morning Star looked more than a little amused at the display. 'Very well.' He pulled out a deck of cards from one of his desk drawers. He rifled through the deck a bit, then held out seven cards, face down. 'Ace of hearts wins.'
One by one, they drew their cards.
'And... turn,' Morning Star said.
Black Tail found himself staring at the Statue at Harmony in Manehattan. The image took up half of the card, with a flipped version on the other half. That was just decoration, though. The important part was the big red heart in the middle.
'Huh,' he said. He threw the card back on the colonel's desk. 'Guess I win.'
'Good, that's settled, then,' Morning Star said. He put a hoof on the clipboard with reports, and pushed it towards Black Tail. 'Read these, and read them well. Find out what's causing this mess, and how we can get rid of it. I want B Company ready to go by noon.'
'Yes, sir.' Black Tail saluted and grabbed the clipboard.
'Well, that will be all. Dismissed!'
Heavy Tread raised a tentative hoof. 'All of us, sir?'
Morning Star turned to him with a frown. 'You're off the hook this time, Heavy Tread,' he said sternly, 'but don't let it happen again.'
'Sir.'
Black Tail blinked a few times as the group filed out of Morning Star's office. A mission! After more than two months of sitting around at base and finding increasingly pointless ways to pass the time, he was going to do actual Guard stuff again. Sure, he was going to a backwater town to check on a problem that would in all likelihood sort itself out – the military equivalent of getting a cat down from a tree – but at least it was something.
'You're a lucky stallion,' Heavy Tread said, snapping him out of his thoughts. 'Be sure to send us back a picture with the Element Bearers.'
'Heh. Will do.' Black Tail chuckled. 'They'll be ever so grateful once we save their town from the Mysterious Glass Dome of Doom.'
'Definitely. Hey, good luck!'
'Thanks.' Black Tail turned a corner and headed for the mess hall. He threw the double doors open with a wide swing. As expected, most of the soldiers were still hanging out here. The long tables were full of stallions, talking, playing cards, some of them finishing the last crumbs of breakfast.
He cleared his throat and put on his best officer-voice. 'B COMPANYYYYYYY!' he shouted. 'Kits! We're going on a field trip.'
=========================
Unlike the palace gardens, higher up in the city, the Canterlot Gardens were open to the public. On the first day of spring, the public didn't need to be told twice. Foals were running around everywhere – playing hoofball, going down slides, climbing trees. Their parents were bathing in the sun, most of them with a cold drink and a cheap novel within leg's reach.
Shining Armour smiled as he took in the sights. It was a welcome change from the wet, gloomy days of late winter.³
A bulky orange shape appeared in the air on the edge of his vision. The pegasus swooped in towards him, taking a sharp turn with an ease that belied decades of Air Guard experience. 'Hello, Helmet Blade,' he said.
'Hello, lad,' Helmet Blade said as he landed. 'Sorry I'm late. Had to sign a few promotions.'
'No problem. Who was getting promoted again? A couple of new Air Commodores, I heard?'
'Four of them. Three came fresh from the Academy,' Helmet grunted. 'I'm telling you, Shining Armour, I'm not liking these new "Senior Officer" courses at all. A wing commander straight out of the classroom, I could handle, but an Air Commodore! If they keep this up, in ten years you'll have fresh graduates sitting on the High Command!'
Shining Armour frowned. 'Yeah, the Academy has been getting ahead of itself, I guess. Anyway, we're on break. Let's walk for a bit.' He set off down the gravel path through the Gardens.
'Yes, of course.' Helmet nodded, and fell in next to him. 'It was a fine idea, spending our lunch break here. The Gardens are beautiful on days like this.'
'Yeah, it's really nice.'
'So how have you been, anyway? It's been a while since we got a chance to talk.'
'Oh, I'm fine. Mostly.' Shining Armour chuckled. 'Call me crazy, but I still don't like it when Celestia's out of the country.'
Helmet grinned. 'Not a fan of Luna, eh?'
'Oh, she's all right. She can be a little intimidating sometimes, is all.'
'Aye, she's a little less subtle about the whole "sovereignty" thing than Celestia. Can't deny that it works, though. She commands a lot of respect, for somepony who's only been back among us for... how long's it been now, four years?'
'Five,' Shining Armour said. 'And you're right, she's doing impressively well.' Luna might not be the most pleasant company, but he'd be damned if he didn't respect her. She was his Princess and his sovereign, a Supreme Guardian of Harmony, as much as Celestia was. It was something he couldn't have imagined ten years ago, but the thought felt almost natural now.
'She's an inspiring figure for the troops, too,' Helmet said. 'I don't think there's a stallion in the Guard who wouldn't jump in a fire for her.'
Shining Armour smirked. 'Well, there'd better not be. The Oath of the Royal Guard is pretty clear on that point.'
Helmet jabbed him in the withers. 'Oh, you know what I mean,' he laughed. 'Anyway, I'm glad she's back. Think about it: when Celestia still ruled alone, a bunch of bureaucrats from the Civil Service would take over whenever she was away...'
'Oh, yeah, I remember that! She could never leave for more than two weeks, or we'd get buried in protocols and budget cuts. Luna saved us from that, at least!' They shared a laugh.
'So anyway, this business with the Academy,' Shining Armour said after a moment. 'You want to call a High Command meeting over it? We could send them an official letter...'
'Yeah, that wouldn't hurt,' Helmet said. 'But let's get some lunch first, I'm starving.'
=========================
Black Tail's flank was getting sore from the hard wooden bench pressing into it. Whoever had written that rail travel was 'the most graceful and civilised form of transport known to ponykind' had clearly never been on a troop train.
Across from him, on another bench, sat B Company's four sergeants. He'd called them all into the last carriage for a briefing – as far as possible from the engine's roar.
'Right, so here's the deal,' Black Tail said. 'From what they've handed me, there's some kind of dome over all of Ponyville. Probably magical. Our first order of business will be to check if the thing's still there.
'In case it isn't,' he went on, 'I've prepared a cunning strategy. It involves marching into Ponyville, having a beer, and coming up with an excuse why we absolutely can't return to base until tomorrow afternoon.'
There were broad grins all around. 'Gets my vote,' Bold Move said.
Flashblade raised a hoof. 'Wait, can I propose an amendment? After that last step, can we add the consumption of several more beers?'
Black Tail grinned back. 'Don't get your hopes up yet, guys. We've still got to plan for the possibility the dome is still there. In that case, our job is to figure out where it came from, and how we're going to send it back there.' He reached into his kit bag and pulled out a map of Ponyville and its surroundings, which he'd marked with a few crosses and arrows. 'Bold Move, Flashblade, I want you to take the northern approach, here.' A long arrow arched towards Ponyville. 'Stay behind these hills so you can't be seen from the town until you're actually there. When you reach the dome, split up. One platoon goes west, another goes east. Snakedrop, High Spirit, same deal from the south. Snakedrop meets Bold Move here, on the western edge, High Spirit meets Flashblade in the east. I'll stay back at the train with HQ, here.' He pointed at another cross. 'Meet me there once you've run into each other. Any questions?'
'Seems clear enough,' High Spirit said. 'What do we actually do, though? We just take a look at this dome-thing from up close and report our findings?'
'Sort of, yeah. Well, more of a look through it than at it, really. Try to find out what's going on inside. It would be great if you could talk to some of the townsponies through the dome, but for all we know it's a perfectly soundproof wall.' He paused. 'Or the entire population has been turned into zombies, in which case this is going to be an interesting report.'
The train ground to a halt a few kilometres outside Ponyville. Black Tail jumped out onto the pebbles. 'Right, everyone out!' he shouted. With a clatter of doors, hooves and armour, stallions began to pour out of the train.
Black Tail looked around him. High, rolling green hills stretched out to either side of the tracks, as far as the eye could see. The sky was bluer than he'd seen it in months. In the distance, a brook rushed by. An idyllic picture, really.
It was also very convenient: as long as they kept a reasonable distance, they couldn't be seen from the town. Of course, that worked the other way around as well. 'Somepony run up that hill and tell me if the big scary glass dome is still up,' he shouted. Three soldiers stepped out of the crowd and started making their way up. 'And tell the crew to kill the engine. We can do without a giant plume of steam giving us away.'
Of course, if anypony in Ponyville was actively keeping watch, they'd have seen the plume from the approaching train long ago. Still, they were going to be here for a while. It didn't feel good to have a big, shining "LOOK OVER HERE" beacon up all that time.
'Kill it, sir?' Corporal First Watch said. 'It's going to take an awfully long time to steam up again if they do that...'
Black Tail put a hoof to his chin. 'Point. Just tell them to turn it down as low as possible.'
It didn't take long for the soldiers he'd sent up the hill to come gallopping back down. 'Lieutenant, sir, the dome's still there!' one of them shouted.
'It's huge,' another added. 'You'd better come take a look.'
Black Tail sighed internally. Guess we won't be visiting any cafés around here after all. 'All right, show me.' He trotted towards the hill, the three soldiers following close behind.
When he reached the top, his eyes flew wide.
The dome was giant. It was at least two kilometres across, enough to encase the entire town, and easily three hundred metres high in the middle. Buildings stood under it like dollhouses. Thunderclouds swirled around near the top, dark and menacing. Ponyville looked like it belonged not in the green and pleasant fields around it, but in the Everfree Forest beyond.
'Celestia's feathers...' he said softly.
The dome began to glow, faintly at first, but then quickly rising to an ominous bright red.
This wasn't a prank. This wasn't an accident. This was unicorn magic, powerful and terrifying unicorn magic. Black Tail found himself wishing he hadn't won that card draw.
The red glow faded again. Come on, stallion up, he thought, and turned to face the soldiers. 'Right, looks like we've got our work cut out for us,' he said. 'Let's go.'
=========================
A low rumble of thunder sounded overhead as Applejack trotted through the outskirts of Ponyville. She turned a corner onto one of the roads leading out of town, and got a clear look at the forcefield that was now her cage.
The field had a blue glow to it, but it wasn't a natural colour – not the blue of clear water or the blue of a sunny sky. Then again, nothing about this whole situation was natural. If anything, the forcefield looked a fainter shade of the coat of the pony who'd put it up.
Applejack had to fight the urge to scream with rage at the thought of Trixie. She settled for clenching her teeth and stomping a hoof. She had to keep a clear head now, focus on what she was here for: finding Rainbow Dash.
Given the time of day, Dash would probably be taking a nap in her favourite tree, right here on the edge of town. As Applejack walked up to the tree, she could already hear Dash snore. She smiled. Well, that guess had struck true, at least. Now to wake her up gently...
Suddenly, there was a flash as a bolt of lightning struck the tree. Applejack heard a 'Yeeowch!', a lot of rustling branches, and then the dry thud of pony hitting ground.
Quickly, she gallopped around to the other side of the tree, where Dash was sprawled out under the thick branch she'd fallen from. 'You okay, Rainbow?'
'Huh? AJ? Oh, yeah, I'm fine,' Rainbow Dash said. She shook an angry hoof at the forcefield. 'Dammit, Trixie! Kicking Twilight out and trapping Ponyville under this stupid force-thing wasn't enough, huh? Now you gotta take the perfect napping tree and hit it with lightning?'
Applejack gave a sympathetic wince. 'Can't you and the other pegasi clear those dark clouds?' she said.
'We've tried. Trixie won't let us. I swear, there's no reasoning with that creep.' Dash huffed. 'I mean, what are these things even for?'
'Probably just to show off how evil and scary she is.'
'Yeah, I guess.' With a grunt, Dash rose to her hooves. 'What are you doing here, anyway? I don't think you came to watch me nap. And if you did,' she grumbled, 'you're out of luck.'
'Well, I'm trying to get the girls together,' Applejack said. 'I was thinking we should have a little chat about Trixie, and what we're gonna do about her. I mean, sure, Twilight might be back tomorrow to kick her flank, but... well, you know, can't hurt to be prepared and all.'
'Yeah, guess you've got a point there.' Dash sighed. 'Let's go find the others.'
Suddenly, a group of uniformed stallions came into view from behind a warehouse, marching along the edge of the forcefield.
Applejack stared at them, dumbfounded. 'Huh? Is that... the Royal Guard?'
Rainbow Dash blinked a few times, then broke into a huge grin. 'Haha, they're coming to save us! Thank Celestia! Twilight must have gotten a message through. I knew she could do it!' She leapt into the air, wings flapping wildly.
The column stopped, the soldiers talking to each other, pointing in their direction. Applejack was grinning too, now. 'They've seen us. Let's go meet them.' She and Dash gallopped off, quickly closing the distance to the edge.
As they approached the soldiers, several pairs of eyes widened. In their murmurs, Applejack picked up her own name, Dash's, and a good few mentions of the Elements of Harmony.
The stallion at the head of the group cleared his throat, and the murmurs died down. 'Lady Applejack, Lady Rainbow Dash,' he said with a courteous bow. 'I'm Sergeant Flashblade, of the 55th Earthpony Regiment. We're here as a scouting party, to find out what's going on with this... dome here.'
Applejack's face fell. Looks like we're not gonna get rescued today.
'Oh, drop the "Lady" already.' Dash rolled her eyes. 'And you wanna know what's going on? Our town got taken over, that's what's going on! Some stupid unicorn thinking she's hot stuff because she's got a magical gizmo around her neck.'
'I, um, I see,' Flashblade said. 'And you and the other Element Bearers couldn't stop her?'
'We're trying our best,' Applejack said, 'but she beat Twilight! At magic! Whatever's making her so strong, it ain't natural.'
Flashblade's eyes widened. 'This unicorn... she defeated Twilight Sparkle, Bearer of the Element of Magic?'
Two sad nods came in reply.
'Right,' he said, visibly struggling to look calm and professional. 'Where is Twilight Sparkle now, if I may ask? It would be a great help if I could speak to her...'
'Your guess is as good as ours.' Applejack sighed. 'Trixie ran her out of town. Haven't heard from her since.'
'Oh, swell...' Flashblade muttered. 'Ahem. This... Trixie, you mentioned she had a, um, "magical gizmo"? What is it exactly?'
Dash shrugged. 'Dunno. Some kinda amulet. It's got pegasus wings on it, and a unicorn's ho–'
'WHAT IS GOING ON HERE?' a loud voice screeched from behind them. Applejack turned to see Trixie, all dolled up in her stupid cape and hat, trying her best to look intimidating. 'What's this, now? The Royal Guard? Ha! Trixie would keep her muzzle out of this if she were you. You stand no chance against the GREAT and POWERFUL TRIXIE!' She stomped a hoof on the ground, like it would make her name sound scarier.
Flashblade glared at Trixie. 'We're – we're not here to fight you,' he said. He raised a trembling hoof at her. 'But we'll come back, and then we will be. Oh yes, we will be.'
Trixie let out a short, sharp laugh. 'Pfah! I doubt that,' she sneered. Her horn began to glow with red light. 'Now get out of Trixie's sight before she gives you all a little demonstration of just how Great and Powerful she really is!'
A nod from Flashblade to his soldiers, and the whole platoon was on its way, leaving Applejack and Rainbow Dash alone with Trixie. Some of the stallions looked back over their withers, faces hard and determined, trying to say: We'll be back. We promise.
'Oh, girls,' Trixie cackled. 'Looks like you're out of luck. The Royal Guard will not interfere with Trixie's beautiful plans for Ponyville!' With an exaggerated swish, she turned to head back into town. 'Now if you'll excuse Trixie, she has a Town Hall to redecorate.'
They watched her go. 'Don't you just wanna beat that mare to a bloody pulp?' Dash growled once she was out of earshot.
'Luna knows I do,' Applejack hissed between clenched teeth. In fact, I wouldn't mind running after her and giving it a shot right now.
With a pure effort of will, she calmed herself down. 'Just gotta wait until the Guard gets back in force. When they're done with her, she's gonna regret the day she was born.'
=========================
Shining Armour sat at his desk, pondering over the right words to write to the Royal Guard Academy.
He flicked on his desk lamp; the light from outside was getting dimmer. It was tempting to just call it a day and go home to Cadance, but he'd promised Helmet he'd draft up a letter for the meeting. Getting everyone to agree on the contents would go a lot quicker if they had a basic draft to work from.
It has recently come to our attention that many graduates of the new Senior Officer program have gone on to high positions in several regiments, especially in the Air Guard. While we appreciate your commitment to the education of Equestria's officer corps, we feel these graduates may lack the necessary experience to...
He sighed. Too formal. Too Civil Service.
Look, we don't care what kind of fancy new teaching methods you've come up with. Taking fresh graduates and basically making them deputy colonels is a stupid idea and you know it.
This time, his sigh sounded more like a groan. This wouldn't work, either. The letter was going to the Academy with the seal of the High Command on it; usually, that was enough to shock any institution within the Guard into swift obedience, even if the message stepped on a lot of toes. Still, if he wanted to avoid any kind of petty tug-of-war further down the road, he had to be polite.
Besides, it wasn't like the Academy took all the blame for this. They enthusiastically pushed their graduates, sure, but in the end it was the regiments who accepted these newbies into their highest ranks. Perhaps certain colonels needed a stern talking-to, as well...
No, he berated himself. This is what you said you'd change when you got this job, remember? Be reasonable. Play nice.
In light of recent developments concerning the Senior Officer program and its graduates...
With a grunt, he rose from his seat. This was no good, either.
He walked over to one of the high windows of his office. As annoying as the job was sometimes, being the Captain of the Guard had its perks. One of those was an office in Canterlot Castle – one with a view.
Right now, the sunset and the Canterhorn combined to make that view a pretty breathtaking one. Caps of snow shone golden in the twilight; down at the mountain's base, the trees, most of them still bare of leaves, took on a grey, sombre tone. And then there was the sun itself, a ball of pink slowly sinking below the horizon, while small clouds of orange and purple swirled around it.
Shining Armour grinned. Screw it, he thought. There are bigger things in this world than that stupid letter. Without turning away from the window, he started sweeping papers off his desk with his magic, floating them into his saddlebags.
Once he'd packed everything up, he threw open the door and stepped out into the marble hallways of the castle.
Just as he finished locking up, he heard hoofbeats coming towards him. Fast, worried hoofbeats. He looked up to see Red Moon, one of the generals, coming down the corridor at a brisk trot.
'Shining Armour!' he said. 'You've got to see this. There's trouble in Ponyville. Big.' He levitated a few papers out of his saddlebags and floated them before Shining Armour's muzzle. 'A scouting party was sent there yesterday. Here's their report.'
On the front page was the word "SUMMARY," followed by a convenient set of bullet points. 'Ponyville taken over by unicorn sorceress calling herself Trixie,' Shining Armour muttered. 'Entire town encased in large forcefield. Trixie's power apparently drawn from magical amulet. Twilight Sparkle exiled from Ponyville, current location unkno– what?!'
He reread that last point. There it was, spelled out clearly, staring him in the face: Twilight was missing.
Send ten regiments, he wanted to say. Have them scour every nook and cranny within fifty kilometres of Ponyville. All leave suspended until Twilight is found.
He couldn't, of course. That was really the worst thing about his job. All the forms, all the stupid internal politics, all the pointless formalities paled next to this: he had the full power of the Royal Guard at his command, and he wasn't allowed to dedicate all of it to finding Twilight.
He let out a deep sigh, and nodded to Red Moon. 'This is Crown-level business,' he said. 'I'll go find Princess Luna.'
As he walked through the hallways, he skimmed the report's other pages. There were statements from citizens. There was a map of Ponyville, with a big red circle showing how far the forcefield reached. There were elaborate descriptions of the mysterious amulet that seemed to be powering it all.
None of it really came through, except for that one bullet point on the front page. Twilight Sparkle exiled from Ponyville, current location unknown.
Luna gazed into the sunset from one of the many balconies of Canterlot Castle, taking a moment to admire her own work.
As sunsets went, she was quite satisfied with this one. It wasn't like one of Celestia's sunsets, of course. Celestia understood the sun, moving it forward with an elegance that just seemed to come naturally to her. Luna couldn't hope to match that.
After all, even after a thousand years of practice, Celestia's moonrises were no match for hers, either.
Luna smiled faintly, then yawned. She'd forgotten how much work it was to rule alone. Hopefully, Celestia would come back soon and ease her burden.
Her smile immediately vanished when she heard hoofbeats approaching from inside the castle. The 'click-clack, click-clack' on the stairs translated into 'more work, more work' in her mind; after all, nopony would come here just to admire the sunset with her. That was one of the downsides of being a Princess.
The hoofbeats reached the balcony. A throat was cleared. 'Your Highness.'
A stallion's voice. It sounded fairly young – but then again, everypony was young by Luna's standards. It wasn't the heavy rumble of old generals, the weary deadpan of civil servants, or the smooth, practised tone of the castle staff. No, her visitor sounded more nervous, more insecure than that. Odd – most ponies were nervous around a Princess of Equestria, but anypony who could approach her here should have seen her often enough to feel a little more comfortable.
As familiar as the voice sounded, she still hadn't determined exactly to whom it belonged. She decided to take a little gamble. 'What is it, Shining Armour?'
No awkward pause, no hesitant correction. Luna smiled inwardly at her small triumph. Being able to say the first words without looking the other pony in the eye – it was one of those thousands of little things that made a sovereign ruler sovereign.
'Sorry to disturb you, Your Highness, but there is something you need to see,' Shining Armour said.
'I will be the judge of that,' Luna said calmly, finally turning to face him. 'Show me.'
Shining Armour floated over the papers he was carrying in his field, and Luna began to read.
She barely raised an eyebrow as she read the summary on the first page. After all she had seen in her thousands of years, very little could faze her anymore. A unicorn had gone mad and taken over a small town... well, a small contingent of Royal Guards should be able to take care of that. Or she could fly to Ponyville herself and set things straight.
There was one point, however, that caught her attention. Trixie's power apparently drawn from magical amulet.
That was unusual. Amulets that could boost a unicorn's power were very rare, and most of them could not be wielded properly without complicated arcane rituals. Luna started turning pages, skimming for a further description of the amulet in question.
A small sense of unease crept into her mind as she progressed through the report. Surely it couldn't be...? She turned another page, and froze.
The drawing was primitive, full of crooked lines and grossly skewed proportions, but she immediately recognised the Alicorn Amulet.
She turned to Shining Armour. 'Call in your generals,' she said, her voice flat but resolute. 'Now.'
=========================
Luna walked into the War Room, closing the doors behind her with a quick flicker of her horn. It had been ages since she'd been here.
Her hoofbeats on the room's wooden floor echoed loudly. The walls were covered in wooden panels as well, but they were largely obscured by maps of Equestria, the world, and various continents. The closest resemblance that came to mind was a geography classroom at a prestigious university.
In the middle of the room, there was a large oval table, at which Shining Armour was seated with his six generals: the earthponies Steelburn, Strongblood and Iron Sword, the unicorns Hail Fire and Red Moon, and the pegasus Helmet Blade.
Two chairs were notably larger than the others: fit for alicorns, for Princesses. Luna took one of them; the other remained conspicuously empty. It was the first time since her return that she attended a High Command meeting without her sister.
'Good evening, gentlecolts,' she said as she sat down. She half-expected the generals to respond with a chorused 'Good evening, Princess Luna,' like a class of foals greeting their teacher; fortunately, they did no such thing.
Instead, there was Shining Armour's formal welcome. 'Your Highness, we are honoured by your presence. The Guard is at your service.'
'Thank you, Captain Shining Armour,' Luna said with a graceful nod. She noticed that several pages from the scouting party's report, including the sketch of the Amulet and the map of Ponyville, were already laid out on the table – a convenience she appreciated. 'You have all been called here because of the situation in Ponyville. We have no time to lose, so I shall get straight to the point. This –' she tapped a hoof on the crude sketch '– is the Alicorn Amulet. An artefact of dark magic. It is powerful, it is dangerous, and it must be stopped.'
Iron Sword spoke up. 'I was unaware our intelligence had progressed to that stage already.'
Luna raised an eyebrow. 'And yet it has. Everything in this report is consistent with the workings of the Alicorn Amulet. There can be no doubt.'
'How can we be so certain?'
Luna considered her reply for a moment. Would she glare at him? No, that would be a bit much; the other generals seemed to be doing enough glaring already. She settled on a disappointed sigh, and that little edge to her voice that was usually enough to quell all dissent. 'General Iron Sword, I would ask that you trust your Princess's expertise on the matter of ancient magical artefacts.'
'Well, yes, of course, I –' Iron Sword stuttered. He recovered surprisingly quickly, though: 'Apologies, Your Highness. I just wanted to be sure. It wouldn't do to take a rash decision based on incomplete evidence, after all.'
There was a brief silence, then Shining Armour gave an annoyed sigh of his own. 'Now that that's out of the way, let us find a solution to this crisis as quickly as possible. Your Highness, what are your orders?'
'Unicorns and earthponies,' Luna said. 'A large force, preferably a full regiment of each. The forcefield will be strong, but it will come down if sustained physical and magical attacks are combined. How soon, by your estimation, could you have such a force in Ponyville?'
The generals began to murmur among themselves. They suggested regiments, discussed train capacities and travel times. Luna did not listen to these details with particular intent; she merely waited for a definite answer.
Soon enough, nods of agreement around the table signalled the discussion had reached a conclusion. Helmet Blade cleared his throat. 'We can send the 14th Unicorn Regiment and the 55th Earthpony. They could be there at dawn on the day after tomorrow, at the earliest.'
Luna nodded. 'Very well. Are there any volunteers to lead this mission?'
A brief silence, then Strongblood spoke up. 'I will do it.' He sounded firm, confident. Good.
'Excellent. General Strongblood, you are now in charge of...' Luna put a hoof to her chin. What would she name this mission? Her eye fell on the map of Ponyville, with the red ring indicating the forcefield's extent, and suddenly she knew. 'Operation Ring of Fire. Now, this is very important: once you manage to destroy the forcefield, capture and restrain Trixie. Make no attempt to kill her, destroy the Amulet, or remove the Amulet from her neck. Instead, send for me.'
'Yes, Your Highness.'
'Then I think we are done for the evening. Go, gentlecolts, and make haste. There are many orders to be given tonight.'
The generals rose from their seats, saluted, and walked out of the room. Luna was left alone at the table, a small grin making its way onto her lips. Whoever Trixie was, in two days she would wake up to the sound of two Royal Guard regiments pounding on her precious forcefield. Operation Ring of Fire was underway.
