//------------------------------// // Everfree Trouble // Story: Spiders and Magic: Ultimate Showdown // by Masterob //------------------------------// It has continued to be a very strange set of events for Peter. From new enemies, to Gwen's return, and now he can add meeting a new Madame Web to that list. Unfortunately, he was currently faced with a new problem, for standing in his house at the moment was Sweetie Belle. The girl on her own wasn't the issue of course, rather what she was wearing. Seeing her with the symbiote on did not alleviate any of Peter's worries. He wasn't alone in this either, all his friends and family seemed concerned, along with Rumble who had arrived alongside Silverstream and the remaining two Crusaders. "So...Sweetie Belle..." Peter began. "That's a...really interesting suit you got." "Yeah, it's looks great, doesn't it?" Sweetie Belle said, showing it off. "The black really brings out my natural fur color, doesn't it?" "Yeah, it does," Peter nervously said. "You've got quite the eye for fashion." "I may have learned a thing or two from Rarity," Sweetie Belle said, gesturing to her very concerned sister. "Truth be told, it does go well with her soft tone," Bobby pointed out. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but Bobby, now is not the time to talk about fashion," Rarity said. "We have got bigger issues." "Hey she seems fine," Bobby said, then turned to his sister-in-law. "You are feeling fine, aren't you Sweetie Belle?" "Yeah, I feel fine, why do you...oooohhhh." It didn't take long for Sweetie Belle to realize the situation. "You're worried about the suit itself, aren't you?" "Honestly, yeah, I am," Peter said. "I don't blame you, I know you've had issues with this suit, especially after Venom showed up the other day," Sweetie Belle said. "But it's fine, I talked things over with the suit and we agreed that this would not lead to any trouble." "That's great Sweetie Belle, but it's not that simple," Peter said. "I thought I could handle the suit and it nearly took over my mind. It can do the same to you." "Told you he couldn't be trusted..." the suit said to Sweetie Belle. "Not now..." Sweetie Belle scolded, then focused on Peter. "It's great that you're looking after me, but I think I have this under control. Plus I really like this suit, I feel strong wearing it. I can even be like a sidekick to you." "I really don't know about this Sweetie Belle," Peter said. "Give it a chance," Sweetie Belle said. "I know I can get this suit under control. But I wouldn't mind having your help too, maybe you and the suit can be friends again." "It will never happen," the suit said. Sweetie Belle ignored her suit, focusing on Peter. "What do you say?" "Excuse me, Sweetie Belle, you're asking the wrong pony," Rarity said. "Peter may be nicer about this, but I'm not. You need to think this over!" "I did Rarity, I thought it over and I want to keep the suit on," Sweetie Belle said. "If there's going to be a fight soon, I want to do my part to help Peter. It'd be like I was a superhero!" "Sweetie Belle, this is not a game," Rarity said. "Being a superhero is very dangerous, just ask Bobby." "Hey Sweetie Belle can probably pull it off, the issue is more her suit than her abilities," Bobby said. "Who's side are you on here!?" Rarity asked. "Are you really telling me you're okay with Sweetie Belle wearing that...thing!" "It's a symbiote," Sweetie Belle said. "Klyntar," the suit corrected. "I mean Klyntar," Sweetie Belle said. "Whatever it's called, I don't think it's a good idea for you to wear it, so I demand that you remove it at once," Rarity said. "Huh? You can't 'demand' anything from me, you're not my mom," Sweetie Belle said. "Well when our parents aren't around, I am the authority," Rarity said. "I'm nineteen! I'm basically a grown mare!" Sweetie Belle said. "She's got a point," Bobby said. "Bobby!" Rarity scolded. "Look, I know you're worried, but I think we should give Sweetie Belle a chance with this," Bobby said. "She's a clever kid after all." "Bobby, did you forget the last time she was 'charmed' by a villain?" Rarity asked. "Hey, that was a long time ago, I'm not gonna make the same mistake twice," Sweetie Belle interjected. "I even set up some rules for my suit to follow, so we got this under control." "This is not up for debate, Sweetie Belle," Rarity said. "Take that suit off, immediately." "I'm not doing that," Sweetie Belle defied. "I like this suit." "Too bad, I don't like it," Rarity said. "Now do as I say, and don't make me repeat myself!" "You can't order me around!" Sweetie Belle shouted, this making everyone in the room a bit uncomfortable. "Uh, ladies..." Peter tried to interject. "Maybe you should-" "I can and will!" Rarity said, paying little mind to Peter. "You will obey your big sister!" "No!" Sweetie Belle said, sticking her tongue out at Rarity. "Sweetie Belle, I won't tell you again!" Rarity warned. "Rares, chill," Bobby said. "I know you're worried but ordering Sweetie Belle around like this isn't helping." "You can't mean to tell me you're okay with this!" Rarity said. "She has an evil alien suit on her! The same alien suit that turned Peter into such a brute!" "Harsh, but true," Peter said. "Well, maybe it will work differently with Sweetie Belle," Bobby said. "Honestly though," Johnny began. "Rarity might have a good reason to worry. The fact that Sweetie Belle got this suit not long after Venom showed up is probably a bad sign." "Oh yeah, it could be sent to spy on us or something," Rainbow Dash said. "It's not," Sweetie Belle said. "Part of the suit just came off during that scuffle at the end." "You're too naive sometimes, Sweetie Belle," Rarity said, trotting over while readying her magic. "Now enough of this, if you don't remove that suit, then I will!" "Back off!" Sweetie Belle warned, taking a step back. "Don't make this difficult, young lady!" Rarity said. "Sweetie Belle, it might be better if you took that suit off, it could corrupt your mind," Twilight said. "You too, Twilight!?" Sweetie Belle asked. "It's for your own good," Twilight said, then turned to the fire hero. "Johnny, mind using your fire?" "You got it," Johnny said, generating some fire in his hoof. "Alright, Sweetie Belle, stand still and this will be a lot easier." "Johnny, get away from me," Sweetie Belle warned, backing away to the door. "I'm just gonna scare it off, you'll be fine," Johnny said. "Get back!" Sweetie Belle shouted, generating some magic. "I said get back!" She then sent off a magical shockwave that knocked everyone back, save for the kids as Peter was able to pull them away from danger. "Sweetie Belle!" Rarity shouted in anger. "We will not surrender to the likes of you!" Sweetie Belle shouted, her eyes glowing and her voice echoing a bit. Suddenly Sweetie Belle's head began hurting. "N-no! This is not...part of our deal!" "Sweetie Belle! Don't lose yourself!" Peter urged. "You're in control here, not the suit!" Doing her best to resist, Sweetie Belle shook off the control her suit had on her at the moment, her rage immediately being replaced by regret as she saw what she had done. "Oh no..." Feeling ashamed, Sweetie Belle made a dash out of the house, despite Peter trying to call out to her. "Sweetie Belle! Wait up!" "Sweetie Belle!" Rumble called as well. Despite his worry, he like everyone else was a bit shaken up by what had just happened. "Well that happened," Johnny said. "How the hell did she get that suit?" "This could be troublesome for us," Twilight said. "But I am a bit more worried about Sweetie Belle." "I'll go and have a word with her," Rarity said, about to leave. "No, let me," Bobby said. "If you try talking to her, one or both of you are gonna get angry again." "Excuse me?" Rarity said. "Are you trying to imply something?" "Rarity, you just bossed her around a second ago, clearly you're not thinking straight," Bobby said. "Let me have a word with Sweetie Belle." "...Fine, you go on ahead," Rarity said. "I'll be right back everyone," Bobby said, hurrying out the door. Gwen looked around awkwardly, "So...what does this mean for us now? Is she top priority or are we still going to discuss this whole 'Villains want to endanger the multiverse' deal?" "We should get on that, I'll trust Bobby to help out Sweetie Belle," Peter said, then focused on Gwen. "You and I should get back to what we were doing." "Sounds good to me," Gwen said, trotting into the kitchen with Peter. "I guess I should work on that letter with Spike," Twilight said, trotting away. Johnny rubbed his chin in concern, "I can tell things are going to be a lot more stressful now, I gotta make sure I keep an eye on Peter and Gwen, for Twilight's sake. I know Peter wouldn't try anything stupid but sometimes people need a bit of reassurance." Rumble himself looked to be at a loss, "Well this is going to put a damper on my plans." "What plans?" Rainbow Dash asked. "Forming a superhero group to help Peter out," Rumble said. "I have my group, but now I'm worried about Sweetie Belle, and I know her friends are too." "You shouldn't let that worry you, just focus on what you're doing," Rainbow Dash said. "I trust you're doing this for the right reasons." "Of course, to protect Equestria, and to lighten the load for Peter," Rumble said. "All of you too. I imagine you and Johnny would rather spend more time with each other and your daughter than fight villains." "Hey, fighting villains is kind of fun," Rainbow Dash said. "But, yeah, you're not wrong about me, Johnny and Firefly. Actually Johnny and I talked about having another baby. So once this is settled, we might go for it." "Wow, that'd be great," Rumble said. "Speaking of kids, I should probably head back to Silver's place, let the others know about Sweetie Belle." "You do that, we'll keep an eye on things here," Rainbow Dash said. "Before I go, I gotta ask," Rumble said. "Why was everypony gathered here? And who was that girl with the white suit?" "That's Gwen, she's a spider from another universe," Rainbow Dash said. "Gwen? Doesn't Peter know someone named Gwen?" Rumble asked. "His first girlfriend, who in his universe, was killed by The Green Goblin," Rainbow Dash said. "Oh right, I remember now, her name was Gwen Stacy," Rumble said, recalling the story. "Wait, hold on. So this Gwen is from another universe? And she has powers instead of Peter?" "That's the story," Rainbow Dash said. "There's other types of spiders too, Peter isn’t the spider hero in those universes, someone else is. There are all types of Spider-Men." "Well that's cool, a bit weird though," Rumble said. "I've always associated the Spider-Man and Spider-Mane name with Peter Parker. I don't think I can call anyone other than Peter by either name. It'd be like calling someone else by Johnny's hero name, or even Cap's hero name." "Hey, there were five ponies dressed as Mare-Do-Well, at the same time too," Rainbow Dash said. "Does that even count? My brother said it's because you were being obnoxious," Rumble said. "I wasn't obnoxious, I was saving ponies!" Rainbow Dash insisted, then pulled back. "But, I'll admit, I let the glory get to my head. Heroes don't do that, their priority is the safety of others." "I don't blame you, I was pretty arrogant myself recently," Rumble said. "Making friends with Silverstream helped get rid of that developing ego." "Friendship is Magic, little buddy, that's a constant fact in our world," Rainbow Dash said. "Seems like other worlds understand that too," Rumble said, then extended his wings. "I really should be going now. Catch you later." Rumble immediately flew off, leaving Rainbow Dash to herself. "Rumble's a good kid. But I really do hope he knows what he's doing. He's always been too eager." "Worried about Rumble?" Pinkie Pie asked. "Hm? Yeah, a little," Rainbow Dash said. "He wants to be a hero." "That's great, so long as it's for the right reasons," Pinkie said. "I think they are, he wants to be a hero for our sake," Rainbow Dash said. "Help us have more free time to be with our families and stuff. I say that's a great sign of being a hero." "That is sweet of him, but he has to remember that he has a family of his own," Pinkie said. "So that's more reason he can't be so reckless in this plan of his." "Oh yeah, you got a point," Rainbow Dash said. "Guess the rest of us shouldn't get too relaxed." "Let's focus on helping each other out, in addition to everypony else," Pinkie said. "Oh totally," Rainbow Dash said. In the kitchen, Peter and Gwen were still going over plans, though the boy seemed very distracted. "You alright Peter?" Gwen asked. "Are you still worried about that girl?" "A little," Peter said. "That suit is no joke, it caused me a lot of trouble back in the day." "I can imagine," Gwen said. "I know that suit can be a pain too." "Did you have to deal with it?" Peter asked. "Yeah, it started after I lost my powers briefly, so I had to cut a deal with Matt Murdock," Gwen said. "Oh you know Matt?" Peter asked. "Yeah I'm familiar with The Kingpin," Gwen said. Peter's eyes widened in disbelief, "I'm sorry, he's what!?" "Is he not The Kingpin in your world?" Gwen asked. "No, he's a lawyer," Peter said. "He's also Daredevil but I should keep that to myself for now." "Oh right, different possibilities," Gwen said. "Miguel said he's also Daredevil in another realm, but I probably shouldn't mention that right now." "But still, if you had experience with the suit, you know why I'm worried," Peter said. "I know but, the suit just brings out our desires more than anything, and so long as her intentions really are pure, she should be fine," Gwen said. "Sweetie Belle's a good kid, and definitely does not have my emotional baggage," Peter said. "Still, she has some desires, I'm afraid the suit will make her act on it." "Well, also consider that when I had the suit, I was mostly alone," Gwen said. "I take it you were alone too." "Yeah, I had a tendency to keep people at arm's length," Peter said. "Even more when I had the suit." "That could be another thing," Gwen said. "Make sure she's willing to keep others close, maybe it will negate things." "I plan to keep her close, and I trust that Bobby and her sister will too," Peter said. "I just really hope she doesn't end up like Eddie Brock." "She won't," Gwen said. "And I'll be there to help, as much as I can." "Thanks Gwen..." Peter started chuckling to himself. "Man, I can't believe that I'm actually talking to you again. There's so much I wanted to say. Probably doesn't matter since this is a different you so a lot I have to say might be pointless." "I get it, you really miss my other self," Gwen said. "For years I thought it was my fault that you died, that I didn't rescue you properly," Peter said, thinking over that night. "The Green Goblin threw you off of a bridge, and I tried catching you with my web. That was dumb, and it's why I thought you died. Of course the whiplash would have killed you." "You were just trying to help," Gwen said. "I got you killed," Peter said. "Sorry, not you. A version of you." "I get what you mean," Gwen said. "Later I found out you were already dead when Goblin threw you, he just made it seem like it was my fault," Peter said. "Actually, he didn't even know I blamed myself, hence why he confessed. He wanted me to know he was the reason for my pain." "What a sick bastard," Gwen said. "Regardless, you should not have been in danger, so the blame still falls partially on me," Peter said. "I failed you, just like I failed your father, and my Uncle Ben." "Peter...I know I'm not that Gwen, and I can't speak for my father or your uncle, but if it's any consolation, I would not have blamed you," Gwen said. "You came to rescue me, but I know from experience that sometimes, no matter how hard you try, you can't save everyone. I had to learn that the hard way too." "You did?" Peter asked. "I never told you what happened to you in my universe," Gwen said. "But...you died. In my arms." Peter's eyes widened in disbelief, "I...I died? How?" "You were a great mind Peter, but you weren't always respected, and you wanted to feel special," Gwen said. "So you created a serum that would turn you into a lizard creature." "Wait, I was The Lizard in your universe?" Peter asked. "You know The Lizard? Who is he in yours?" Gwen asked. "Doctor Curt Connors," Peter said. "He's not dead though, actually he's been working on turning over a new leaf. He's gaining control of his powers." "Wow, so Curt Connors is the Lizard huh? Interesting," Gwen said. "But, back to what I was saying. You became the Lizard, but it was too much for your body to handle, and in the end, the transformation killed you. I was devastated because, well...you meant a lot to me. You were my best friend, and I thought one day, we could be more." "...Gwen, I'm so sorry to hear that," Peter said, taking her by her hoof. "I know it's not easy, but that's why we have to keep trying, so we can prevent the bad things from happening to other people. It's what drives me. I never want anyone to feel the pain I felt when I lost my uncle, or when I lost you." "I don't want anyone to feel that way either," Gwen said, gripping Peter's hoof. "So, I'm gonna try hard not to let it happen." "I'll be there to help," Peter said. "Plus, it sounds like we both could use this second chance. I couldn't protect my Gwen Stacy, but I'll have your back." "I couldn't protect my Peter Parker, but I won't fail again," Gwen said. "Especially for the sake of your family." Peter could almost tell her heart churned a bit after saying that, "Gwen, remember this. If something is concerning you, don't be shy to admit it. Can you promise me that?" "Yeah, I'll try," Gwen said. "Just do your best," Peter said. "You can also try talking to Twilight, she's great with others." "She's...really pretty," Gwen said. "And your daughter, she's beautiful." "She gets it from her mother," Peter said. "Wanna come see my son?" "I'd like that," Gwen said. "I bet he's as handsome as his father." "Eh, his looks probably came from Twilight too," Peter said. "Clearly she's the source of this family's beauty." "Don't sell yourself short, Peter," Gwen teased. "Eh, story of my life," Peter said. Meanwhile a bit further away, Sweetie Belle was seen scolding her suit, "I told you to keep things under control! If you do something like that again, I'll get rid of you myself!" "We only wished to protect you," The suit said. "I don't need to be protected from my sister!" Sweetie Belle shouted. "I could have handled talking to her alone!" "We did not intend to cause any trouble," the suit said. "Just...don't do that again. I like having you on but I need you to not endanger my friends or family, especially my sister, my brother-in-law and Peter. And don't even think about doing something that might endanger my niece!" Sweetie Belle said. "Please, can you do that for me?" "We shall try," the suit said. "Yo, Sweetie Belle!" Bobby called, getting her attention. "Bobby?" Sweetie Belle said, seeing her sister's husband gliding over on his ice bridge. "Hey squirt," Bobby said, stopping just before her. "You feeling alright?" "I'm fine, thanks," Sweetie Belle said. "I'm really sorry about what happened, I didn't mean to cause any trouble." "Hey no one's hurt, and that's all that matters," Bobby said. "Still, you did give us quite a scare." "I had it under control, then Rarity startled me and...I lost control of myself," Sweetie Belle said. "The suit was just trying to protect me, but I let it know not to do something like that." "Do you really think you can control this suit?" Bobby asked. "Remember, it messed with Peter before, and it messed with Luna too." "I know it did, but I want to trust it," Sweetie Belle said. "Plus, if I can use it's power well, I can go along with Rumble's superhero plan. I can protect ponies just like you and Peter do." "You seem adamant about this," Bobby said. "I respect that. Honestly, I think you can pull it off, you just need to be careful and practice the proper control." "You really think I can?" Sweetie Belle asked. "You're not just saying that to make me feel better, are you?" "Eh, maybe a little, only because I know how bad that suit can be," Bobby said. "But, Peter did mention that he was going through some hard times back when he first wore the suit. Seems like it happened with Luna too, she was like lonely or something." "Luna's had troubles in the past, ponies find her creepy or they still remember Nightmare Moon," Sweetie Belle said. "But we all know that ponies here are incapable of letting go of a grudge." "Some of them definitely are," Bobby said. "Still, you're pretty pure hearted, at least compared to Peter and Luna." "Kind of weird to say," Sweetie Belle said. "Luna's not so bad, she's even helped me out in my dreams. Plus Peter's one of the nicest boys I know." "No disrespect to them, mostly Peter, but they have their issues," Bobby said. "The most that's probably happened to you was you running around with those villains, especially that creep Vega. So maybe you can handle the symbiote better, just remember to stay focused." "I will, thanks for being there for me Bobby," Sweetie Belle said, giving a hug to the ice hero. "I love you." "Love you too, sis," Bobby said, returning the hug. After breaking off, Bobby had one more thing to wonder, "Say...no one's been giving you trouble because of Gallus, have they?" "Not that I know off, after I got home from the Tournament, I spent time in bed, mainly because the suit was bonding with me or something," Sweetie Belle said. "I haven't been out in public much." "Well...if anyone tries talking shit, let me know, and I will set that pony straight," Bobby said. "I'm not letting you take any heat over a mistake you made when you were younger." "I'll be fine," Sweetie Belle said. "Anyway, I should head home." "Your parents' home? Or with me and Rarity?" Bobby asked. "Well, I was going to my actual room," Sweetie Belle said. "Should I go to my sister's Boutique?" "For now, she might want to see you later," Bobby said. "I'll make sure she cools off first." "Alright, sure," Sweetie Belle said. "See you in a bit," Bobby said, gliding back to the Golden Oaks Library. "See you then," Sweetie Belle said as she made her way to the Boutique. "It should be fine, I hope." As she got close, she spotted a familiar pony, that being First Base as he was knocking on the door to the Boutique. "Hello? Anyone inside?" "First Base?" Sweetie Belle asked, getting his attention. "Oh, Sweetie Belle, just the pony I wanted to see," First Base said, then noticed something unusual. "Nice suit, is that new?" "Oh this?" Sweetie Belle asked. "Yeah, it's a long story." "It looks nice," First Base said. "Thanks, so why did you want to see me?" Sweetie Belle asked. "To say 'sorry'," First Base said. "I did injure you the other day with that Buckball." "Oh that? It was an accident, I'm not even mad," Sweetie Belle said. "I know you weren't," First Base said. "Your sister seemed disappointed though. But your brother-in-law, oh boy..." "Bobby's just protective of me," Sweetie Belle said. "Super protective," First Base said. "But that's understandable, you're family to him after all. It's good that he looks out for you." "Yeah, I love him a lot," Sweetie Belle said. "Anyway, do you want to come inside for a bit?" "Me? In there?" First Base asked. "Yeah, you came all the way here, might as well make yourself comfortable," Sweetie Belle said. "I'm okay with it, but would your sister be?" First Base asked. "She's all about Generosity," Sweetie Belle said. "Plus I do live here, some of the time at least. I switch between here and my parents' house." "That's neat," First Base said. "Bobby wants me to wait here for a bit," Sweetie Belle said. "So you can join me. I never really got to know you despite going to the same school as you. You seem like a nice colt too." "I appreciate that," First Base said. "If you're really okay with it, and your sister, or brother-in-law, won't be mad, then that's fine with me." "Excellent," Sweetie Belle said, leading the boy inside. "Come on in." "Right behind you," First Base said, following the girl. Meanwhile Rumble had arrived back at Silverstream's house, quickly heading inside to greet his friends. "Hey! I'm back!" "Oh good, did ya tell Peter about Sweetie Belle?" Apple Bloom asked. "Yeah, turns out everyone was there too," Rumble said. "Your sister, her friends, and their husbands." "Ah take it that includes Rarity?" Apple Bloom asked. "Yeah, she was not happy," Rumble said. "She did not want Sweetie Belle wearing the suit and...let's just say Sweetie Belle stood her ground and things could have gotten bad. Thankfully Peter was there to keep the situation under control. "That's good," Apple Bloom said. "How is she doing?" Smolder asked. "She ran off after an argument with Rarity," Rumble said. "Bobby went to calm her down, I think I saw them on the way here, so he's got this under control." "So he's not totally useless then," Smolder said. "Smolder..." Silverstream scolded. "But I did see someone else at the Parker-Sparkle place," Rumble said. "Another spider!" "What do you mean, another spider?" Apple Bloom asked. "I saw another Spider-Man, except this was a girl," Rumble said. "She's from another dimension where she got powers instead of Peter." "There's more?" Scootaloo asked. "Not too surprising, remember that story Peter told us once? About how he saw some other spider powered folks?" Apple Bloom said. "Uh...I think so," Scootaloo said. "This is kind of confusing, when you say other worlds, what does that mean?" Dinky asked. "Like Capcom? Or other planets?" "It is kind of confusing, ain't it?" Apple Bloom said. "But according to Peter, they're just alternate realities of his world." Gabby turned to Laura, "Are you familiar with this stuff?" "A little, I don't dabble with multiverse shenanigans too much though," Laura said. "Unless you count Time Travel, even then that's something Logan's experienced more than me. But I can confirm our world has various versions of itself." "Does that mean Equestria has alternate realities?" Dinky asked. "Probably," Rumble said. "Who knows, in some realities, maybe one of us is Spider-Mane. Or Spider-Mare." "That would be awesome," Scootaloo said. "Maybe in one reality, I get to live a normal life without having been a lab experiment," Laura said. "But that's just me reaching." "Hey yer life here is pretty normal," Apple Bloom said. "Normal as it can get," Laura said. "Normal's boring," Scootaloo said. "People and ponies need excitement in their lives." "I'm good without the excitement," Sandbar said. "I prefer things to be chill." "To each their own," Scootaloo said. "But aside from that, what do we do now?" "Well, we continue our superhero plans," Rumble said. "There's a lot to go over, like...should we have hero names? Or maybe uniforms. Either individual looking or a matching group. Also we should decide on a base of operations, either here, my place, or somewhere else." "Ah would suggest the old Crusaders Treehouse, but ah don't think we can fit," Apple Bloom said. "Come on, we're not that much bigger, are we?" Scootaloo asked. "The pony number shouldn't be a big deal either, I used to host the Rainbow Dash fan club there. Actually, I still do from time to time." "Scootaloo, that works for colts and fillies, but fact is, we ain't little no more," Apple Bloom said. "We're all fully grown now." "Your carefree days as a kid are long gone," Laura said. "Welcome to adulthood, main task, Responsibility." "Peter's specialty," Dinky said. "Man...where did the time go?" Scootaloo wondered. "Being an adult aint so bad," Apple Bloom said. "Yer still independent too. Rumble and I are the ones who are married and have a kid." "Which is awesome by the way," Rumble said. "Being married to your true love is like heaven after all." "Well ain't you sweet," Apple Bloom said, kissing Rumble on the cheek. "Mah precious Sugar Pie." Rumble bashfully looked away, "Geez hon, way to make me feel awkward." "Hey it's just us, you know we won't judge," Dinky said. "You're both pretty lucky, I'm still looking for a guy," Laura said. "Weren't you eyeing Tender Taps?" Scootaloo asked. "I've thought about it, and he is handsome, but he also seems too nervous for me to date," Laura said. "Give him a chance, just keep throwing hints and he'll look yer way," Apple Bloom said. "Wasn't he asking mares out at the Gala?" Dinky asked. "Yeah, he asked me out too, but stupidly I turned him away," Laura said, rubbing her head. "Guess I'm the nervous one here. I have a lot of...emotional baggage on me and I'm afraid to burden Tender Taps with it." "Ah get it, Rumble and ah have our own baggage, but we support each other nonetheless," Apple Bloom said. "Ah bet he's great at handling it, and can make you feel happy." "I'm just not good at being emotionally vulnerable, I don't know how other girls do it," Laura said. "It just isn't natural to me." "Of course it is, you're a girl after all," Dinky said. "We girls specialize in that. It helps attract the guys who just want to make us feel loved and in return, we give that love." Laura turned to Rumble, "How did it work for you two? Either of you nervous?" "I was, because I had three girls crushing on me," Rumble said. "Oh yeah, you had Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle eyeing you too," Silverstream said. "I'm surprised you're all still friends," Laura said. "Well yeah, me and mah friends love each other enough not to let a boy ruin it, even a sweetheart like Rumble," Apple Bloom said. "And he did give each of us a fair chance, it stung at first that he chose Apple Bloom but I got over it," Scootaloo said. "In hindsight, it makes sense. Apple Bloom was nicer to him longer than me or Sweetie Belle. Plus I just wanted to make out with Rumble more than anything, not a good reason to date somepony." "Seems good enough to me," Dinky said. "So...what did you two do when you dated?" Laura asked. "Well...we spent time with each other, saw movies, went to the park, bucked apples...made out," Rumble blushed at the last part. "Then one day...we got blessed with a little guy." "Rumble was pretty forward with the last part," Apple Bloom said, earning a blush from her husband. "I didn't intend to get her pregnant, I just...you know..." Rumble said. "I wanted to be with her physically. That's what love is, you feel that attracted to someone that you just want to be close." "Of course that's just one way of being close," Apple Bloom said. "Remember our emotional baggage? Well Rumble and ah were orphaned really young, that's an unfortunate common ground fer us but we were there when either of us felt too sad." "I totally get the orphaned part, partially at least," Laura said. "Obviously my father's alive. My mother...still not easy for me to talk about." "Which we get," Rumble said. "When my parents died, I was in denial for a bit. I didn't want to be sad or cry because I wanted to be strong like Thunderlane was. But because he held so much bitterness inside, he began to lash out, and it's why he used to trash talk Peter and just be a jerk to others for no reason. When he hooked up with Felicia, he told me that he spilled his heart out to her and it helped him feel better." "Um...hate to be that girl but, didn't Felicia end up dumping him?" Scootaloo asked. "Yeah, she 'came out' or some crap," Rumble said. "My brother was heartbroken, the only reason he hadn't become bitter again is because of his daughter. Much as he wished he had a mare to call his own, just being a father made him feel happy again. My brother loves his daughter more than anything, she's his whole world and is the main reason he wants to be a better stallion." "That's such a touching story," Silverstream said. "It all worked out, he's with Lightning Dust and they're happy together," Rumble said. "Where is Felicia?" Laura asked. "I have no idea," Rumble said. "Not that it matters, she's always been way too troubled for our liking." "She walks around with a skintight suit and acts like a cat," Laura said. "Of course she's troubling. Honestly I wouldn't be surprised if she started screwing around with other stallions, especially if they paid her." "That sounds a little mean to say," Scootaloo said. "Can you blame me for thinking that? She already acts like a whore, might as well live up to it," Laura said. "Dang, that's brutal," Scootaloo said. "Whatever," Laura turned to Sandbar and Ocellus. "What about you two?" "Well like Rumble, I had the eye of a few girls," Sandbar said, nervously glancing at Smolder. "I ended up with Ocellus obviously." "It was surprising too, I didn't think we'd get that close," Ocellus said. "Our mutual friendship helped us get close." "Mutual friendship?" Silverstream asked. "Wait...do you mean Cozy Glow?" Sandbar nodded his head, "Yeah...spending time with her let us spend time with each other." "It helped us realize that we were in love with each other," Ocellus said. "But, I get the feeling that Cozy Glow was another love rival for me." "That incident at the Gala probably confirmed it, she saw me with Ocellus and it probably broke her heart," Sandbar said. "I can imagine how bad that must have been for her," Rumble said. "I do feel kind of bad for Cozy Glow. I know she was a villain, but she was pretty young. Not hard to believe she was manipulated." "I think so too," Sandbar said. "I just know Cozy Glow has good in her, I never understood why the Princesses seemingly gave up on her. Just because she was with Martin Li? Wasn't Counselor Starlight working with that Loki guy?" "Peter's brought this up, as have I," Rumble said. "There's some weird crap going on with the Princesses it looks like, that's one thing we're going to figure out though." "I'll be there too," Sandbar said. "I still care a lot about her. No matter what I do, I can't just let her go." "Same here, I loved Cozy Glow, even now I still do," Ocellus said. "I just want to give her a nice hug." "Same, she needs somepony to love her and remind her that she is loved," Sandbar said. "That could help her a lot." "Just be careful, she might twist that love into a desire she can't have," Scootaloo said. "It could make her even more unhinged." "Even so, I gotta try something," Sandbar said. "Gonna be her hero?" Rumble asked. "Yeah, I'll try to," Sandbar said. "Good on you," Rumble said. "We'll be there to help." "I appreciate that," Sandbar said. In the Everfree Forest, Zecora was brewing up some potions as per normal, carefully picking out her ingredients, unaware of what was happening outside. Vines began growing at an alarming pace, slowly and surely overtaking the area. As Zecora was stirring, she spotted the anomaly from her window, curiosity raising in the zebra mare. "What could be rising? This looks quite surprising." She stepped outside, seeing the vines spreading everywhere, some even noticing her presence and started going for her. "If Ponyville doesn't want to meet its untimely end, I must warn Spider-Mane and his amazing friends!" She dashed through the forest doing her best to avoid all the vines that were lashing out at her. She got in close to the edge and leapt out of the forest, just narrowly dodging the vines. "I made it outside, I just barely saved my own hide," Zecora said as she ran into town. Slowly following behind her were the vines as they started emerging from the ground near some of the buildings. In one, Lyra was busy trying to cook something for her and Bon Bon, the latter sitting on a couch and reading the paper. She started to smell something burning, and turned her attention to her wife, "Lyra, is the stove too high again?" "I can't help it!" Lyra said, Bon Bon hearing sounds of struggling. "What do you mean you can't control it?" Bon Bon asked, then saw Lyra's horn acting up. "Hey, what's going on?" "I don't know!" Laura said, trying to control her magic, but to no avail. "Uh, Bonnie, something weird is happening!" Lyra's horn started zapping everywhere, Bon Bon immediately taking cover, "Lyra! Control yourself!" "Don't you think I'm trying!?" Lyra shouted as weird crystals started forming on her horn, blocking her magic. A terrified Lyra turned to her wife, "I think there's a problem here." "Come with me, we'll tell Peter and Twilight," Bon Bon said, leading Lyra out of the house. The moment they stepped outside, they saw a terrible sight. The vines were growing all over Ponyville, terrorizing the residents. Lily Valley was being dangled upside down while her friends were freaking out below, Filthy Rich was trying to pull his nagging wife away from the vines, Octavia was running for her life, Amethyst was having similar problems with her horn that Lyra did. It was nothing but pure chaos. "This looks troubling," Bon Bon said, then spoke into a watch. "Steve! Come in!" In Canterlot, while Steve was overlooking the city, his watch came off, hearing Bon Bon's voice. He was quick to answer, "That you Sweetie Drops?" "Yeah, big problem in Ponyville," Bon Bon said. "Some weird vines started showing up and is causing trouble. It's capturing ponies and somehow disrupting their magic." "Vines?" Steve asked. "And they're disrupting magic?" Bon Bon looked up in the sky, "Uh, looks like that's not the only thing being messed with." From above, some black clouds were shooting lightning at the ground, terrifying ponies even more. "It's chaos down here! Send some assistance!" "You got it," Steve said, then called down below. "Taskmaster! Get some soldiers ready! We're going to Ponyville!" "Sure thing Cap!" Taskmaster said, then turned to some soliders he was training. "You heard the man! Get moving!" As Steve was about to leave, Celestia called out to him, "I'll join you Steve." "You're not too busy?" Steve asked. "I just got a letter from Twilight, it seems like another interesting development is happening in Ponyville," Celestia said. "Another? Seems like those villains might be on the move," Steve said. "Let's hurry!" Back in Ponyville, all the heroes emerged from the Golden Oaks Library, seeing all the damage that was taking place in town. "What the hell is all this?" Wade asked. "Not sure," Peter said. "That's a lot of black vines though." "Those clouds look pretty bad too," Applejack said, gesturing to a storm cloud. "Rainbow Dash, can you get rid of that thing?" Peter asked. "No problem!" Rainbow Dash said, flying up to kick the clouds. Unfortunately it was very stubborn and zapped her, knocking her to the ground. "Dash!" Johnny said, rushing to check on his wife. He looked up at the cloud, generating some fire. "Wanna go bro!? Eat fire!" Johnny blasted the cloud into nothing, the hero satisfied with the result. "Peter Parker!" Zecora called, running over. "I am relieved to see you and your friends well, something strange is happening that we must all quell!" "You wouldn't happen know what these are, would you Zecora?" Peter asked. "I am afraid I do not know, but these vines have got to go!" Zecora said. "That's an understatement," Twilight said. "We gotta figure out how to destroy these things!" "First, let's try to evacuate as many ponies as we can!" Peter said, then turned to his Earth friends. "Can you three help Aunt May watch over the kids?" "Of course," Mary Jane said, holding Mayday close to her. "I'll keep your kids safe." "We'll all do it," Flash said, Harry simply nodding. "Speaking of kids, I must head to my parents' house, and quicky!" Rarity said. "They might be in danger, same with my precious little filly!" "Ah should head to mah farm," Applejack said. "Alright, all the mothers head home to make sure your kids are safe, all the fathers get ready to save ponies!" Peter said. "Bring them to the bottom of the Ghastly Gorge!" "Oh right! We can bring them to where Maud lives, she totally won't mind!" Pinkie said. "I'll go let her know," Trixie said, making a run for it. "I'll cover you!" Starlight said, following Trixie. "Should we go too, Peter?" Mary Jane asked. "Yeah, get my aunt as well," Peter said. "I'll get her," Susan said, heading inside. "Franklin! Stay with MJ!" "Okay mom!" Franklin said. "Um...I'm not a mother, and I'm a girl so I'm clearly not a father either," Gwen said. "What should I do?" "You come with me," Peter said, placing his mask on, Gwen doing the same. "Twilight! Let Celestia know what's happening!" "Wait up!" Twilight said, but Peter had already swung away with Gwen. "And he's on the move..." "Twilight, I still have a quill and paper," Spike said. "Right...write a letter to Celestia and let her know what's happening here," Twilight said, taking off. "I'm going to take action myself." "Uh, sure," Spike said, writing a letter. Logan was seen cutting a bunch of vines, freeing the flower ponies from their crisis. "Quick! Get to the bottom of the Ghastly Gorge! Run and don't stop!" "Don't have to tell us twice, thanks Timber-Wolverine!" Daisy said, making a run with her friends. "Just call me 'Logan'!" the mutant called. "Sorry Pinkie Pie, but that name just ain't clever." As he continued cutting the vines, he saw that they were quick to grow back, making this much more difficult. "What the hell are these things made out of?" "Logan!" Lighting Dust called as she flew by. "What's happening to this town!?" "Not sure, but these things just won't die!" Logan said, cutting more. "Where's Thunderlane? And yer kid?" "Thunderlane flew Felicity away from the house the moment things got bad, I came to find you, Laura or Fluttershy," Lightning Dust said. "We're fine, just try to get them to the Ghastly Gorge, where Maud Pie lives,” Logan said. "I'll let Thunderlane know, then come back to help," Lightning Dust said, flying off. Logan sliced through more vines as they continued to grow, "This is starting to piss me off a bit." At Sweet Apple Acres, Applejack is seen evacuating her family away, "This way everypony!" "Mama, what's wrong?" Oliver asked as Cheerilee placed him on his mother's back. "Just a little problem, sweetheart, nothing your mama can't handle," Applejack said. “Don’t like the look of them vines, brings back some very unpleasant memories,” Granny Smith said, keeping a close eye out for her family. "You and me both, Granny. Now let’s hurry, we gotta get a move on to Ghastly Gorge," Applejack said as Cheerilee got her son on her back. The mare was feeling very worried, these vines reminding her of the day her parents died. “Get a grip AJ, you got this. It ain’t gonna happen again.” One vine got too close to Sugar Belle as she was carrying Becca. Fortunately he was quick to try and stomp it, though it immediately retreated into the ground, then came back up and knocked him over. "Ow..." "You alright Big Macintosh?" Sugar Belle asked. "It's nothing," Big Mac said, standing up. "Just making sure you and mah niece are alright." One tried coming from the other side, but Sugar Belle was quick to blast it. It began growing back fast however. "Guess we should get moving." "This way!" Applejack said, keeping the family close as they trotted to the edge of town. "Applejack, where's Apple Bloom?" Cheerilee asked. "And where's Remy?" Sugar Belle asked. "Apple Bloom's with Rumble, ah imagine he's keeping her safe," Applejack said. "Remy's in town protecting pony folk, I'll be joining him once this is all over." "Is papa gonna save ponies?" Oliver asked. "You know it little fella," Applejack said. "You got a strong papa, he ain't afraid of nothin'." True to Applejack's word, Remy was fending off some vines in town, using his cards to destroy a bunch while keeping some ponies safe, "Quick! Run for it!" "Thank you Gambit!" Golden Harvest said as she ran off with some ponies while Remy continued whacking the vines away. "Dem vines are tough," Remy said, keeping his distance. "Hoping Twilight can figure something out soon. Eh, she got dis. She ain't princess for nothing." "Help!" Came the voice of Octavia, Remy seeing that the vines finally caught her, as she was being dragged away. "Hang tight, mon ami! Gambit gon' get you to safety!" Remy called as he charged in to save Octavia. Not too far away, Doctor Hooves was blasting away some vines with a little laser while protecting Derpy and their son. "These blasted things won't stay gone!" Doc said. "I'm getting worried, there's too many of them," Derpy said. "We'll be fine, my dear, just stay close to me," Doc said, zapping some away. Suddenly a bunch were frozen, and then destroyed. "Ice? Oh, is Icemane nearby?" Bobby slid in, "Just Iceman dude, or Bobby." "Ah, good to see you my friend, I take it Peter and the rest of your Amazing Friends are handling this mess too," Doc said. "Yeah, totally," Bobby said, a bit annoyed at the Amazing Friends part. "Nice gizmo you got." "Thanks, one of my many inventions," Doc said, then took note of Janet blasting some vines. "Greetings Miss Van Dyne!" "Sup Doc!" Janet said, blasting the vines. "Hey, try to get to the Ghastly Gorge! Everyone's meeting there." "Sounds like a plan!" Doc said. "Need me to escort you?" Bobby asked. "That would be great," Derpy said. "I can handle that," Janet said. "Bobby ,you should find Rarity and your daughter." "I'll do that then," Bobby said. "Also, how's Sweetie Belle doing?" Janet asked. "She's fine, I managed to calm the situation," Bobby said. "I hope this doesn't stress her out though. I told her to head to the Boutique too." "I'll try to find her, just get Doc and his family to Maud Pie's place," Janet said. "Sure, you got it," Bobby said as Janet flew off. He turned to the couple. "Alright, let’s move." Meanwhile Pinkie was escorting the Cakes and their kids away, the girl trying to keep them away from the vines. Pinkie had her twins on her back while Pound and Pumpkin were with their mother and father respectively on each back. "These things are tricky, keep an extra eye out," Pinkie said. "Why is this happening?" Cup Cake asked. "Wish I knew," Pinkie said. "But Twilight will figure something out, she usually does. Just try to avoid these vines, they do not look friendly." Unfortunately a couple of vines did take the family by surprise, grabbing both Pound and Pumpkin, as their mother and father were each quick to try and pull their kids back. "Oh no!" Pinkie said, she went to help but found herself trapped by a vine grabbing her hind leg. "Hey, get off!" Fortunately Wade had shown up nearby, "Get the hell away from my family!" Using his swords he cut the vines, freeing his wife and the Cake Twins. "That was close," Pinkie said. "Nice work Wadey!" "Papa! Papa!" Elanor said while Lil' Cheese did some motion slices mimicking a sword. "Anything for you and the Cakes," Wade said, focusing on the twins. "You kids alright?" "We are," Pound Cake said. "Thanks for saving us, Uncle Wade," Pumpkin said. "It's nothing," Wade said, then saw some weird development on Pumpkin's horn. "Hurry and get these kids to Maud's place!" "On it! Lets go!" Pinkie said, escorting the Cakes away as some vines came after Deadpool. "Come and get me, bitches!" Wade said, fighting off the vines. Johnny flew above, keeping an eye out for anyone who needed help. He also kept an eye out just in case Rainbow Dash needed protection too. "Hope The Wonderbolts take notice of what's happening." "Johnny!" Came the voice of Angel Wings. "Well how about that," Johnny said, then focused on his fellow Wonderbolt. "Hey Angel, did this reach Wonderbolt HQ?" "Yeah. I think they're sending some down," Angel Wings said. "I just came to check on you and Rainbow Dash." "Rainbow Dash is saving her parents and our daughter, I'm keeping the civilians safe," Johnny said. "That's good, backup is coming at least," Johnny said, then heard some yelling nearby. He turned to see Cherry Berry on her hot air balloon as it was grabbed by vines. "I'll go save her, go meet with the others." "You got it," Angel Wings said, flying off. Below, Peter and Gwen were rescuing ponies by the loads, pulling them out of tight spots and getting them somewhere safe for them to run. "Get as far away from here as possible!" Peter said to the Rich Family. "Of course, thank you for your help," Filthy Rich said as he trotted off. "Come family!" "I better not find out this is somehow your fault!" Spoiled Rich warned. "Mom! Stop being ungrateful to Spider-Mane!" Diamond Tiara scolded as she escorted her mother away. "Thanks Peter!" "You got it Diamond!" Peter said. "So...Spider-Mane?" Gwen asked. "Pinkie Pie came up with it, just like she came up with Peter Pony Parker," the hero explained. "Wow, that's...clever," Gwen said. "You have some interesting friends, especially that zebra girl. Does she always rhyme when she speaks?" "Yeah, I'm convinced she eats Green Eggs and Ham every morning," Peter joked, getting a chuckle out of Gwen. "Quite the jester, aren't you?" Gwen said. "Still, that lady from a second ago. Why was she blaming you?" "Lots of ponies do, some even blame me for the villains that showed up at the Marvel vs Capcom tournament," Peter said. "Ouch," Gwen said. "That's harsh." "Yeah well, some villains did come here because of me, I don't blame ponies for getting upset," Peter said. "Still, you're the one saving them, and it's not like you invited them over," Gwen said. "They chose to endanger others to get to you." "Even so, I can see where they're coming from, which is why I have to be diligent so they have less reason to be afraid," Peter said. "You're doing good so far," Gwen said. "Oh, there you are Peter!" Came a voice. Peter looked up as saw Autumn Blaze dangling nearby. "Autumn?" Peter asked. "That's me, Autumn Blaze," The Kirin said, then noticed Gwen. "Oh, I see that you have a new friend." "Hi, I'm Ghost Spider," Gwen introduced. "Oooh, sounds spooky, I like it!" Autumn Blaze said. "Autumn, you know I'm always happy to see you but...what exactly are you doing here?" Peter asked. "Well I know you went through some drama the other day so I figured I'd come by to see you," Autumn Blaze said. "I was gonna come yesterday but Rain Shine insisted I waited a bit and give you space to breath. I wanted to wait longer but I really missed you and I wanted to see for my own eyes that you were okay. So I came by and well...I got into this mess." Peter leapt up and broke the vine to see Autmn, gently setting her down, "There you go." "Thanks for that, all the blood was rushing to my head," Autumn Blaze said, shaking it off. "I'm sorry this happened because of me," Peter said. "What? No, it's not your fault, it's these dumb vines that are at fault," Autumn Blaze said, waving one off. "Shoo! Go away!" "Still, I didn't mean to make you worry," Peter said. "You're my friend, if I worry it's because I care," Autumn Blaze said. "I know if the situation was reversed, you'd be on the first train to Kirin Grove." "Sounds like you really value Peter," Gwen said. "Totally, when I came to Ponyville for the first time last year, he was so quick to be my tour guide," Autumn Blaze said. "Then I befriended him, Trixie and Starlight and it made me super happy! I'm proud to be friends with Peter Parker." "Geez, this is kind of embarrassing," Peter awkwardly said. "But it's sweet, she really cares about you," Gwen said. "I fought in a war for Peter," Autumn Blaze said. "...You did what now?" Gwen asked. "Tell you later," Peter said. "Autumn, come with me, I'll personally take you to Ghastly Gorge, you'll be safe there." "Aw, see, you're looking out for me too, such a sweetheart," Autumn Blaze said, lifting Peter's mask up slightly and kissing his cheek. "H-hey! Come on!" Peter said as he recoiled, the sound of Gwen's chuckling not helping. "Sorry, couldn't resist," Autumn Blaze said. "Just...follow me," Peter said, escorting Autumn Blaze away. "Gwen, keep up the pace." "You got it," Gwen said, swinging away. At the edge of town, Gallus was seen leading his team into town, "Alright everyone, we got some ponies to save! Let's show those heroes how it's done!" "Yeah, sounds great..." Wallflower Blush said. "How do we do that though?" "Can't be too hard, just find a pony, get that pony out of town and boom, saved," Gallus said. "Leave it to us," Indigo Zapp said, flying up with her team. "We in The Wonderbolts specialize in rescuing." "Sweet," Gallus turned to Garble. "You and your friends, start burning stuff." "Sounds fun," Garble said. "Come on guys, let's cause some mayhem!" "Um, you mean be heroes, that's our whole thing," Gallus said. "Yeah sure," Garble said, then burnt some vines. "What I should do?" Yona asked. "Carry ponies," Gallus said. "And beat up these vines if you can. Now, let's head into it!" "Charge!" Wallflower Blush said, leading some ponies to battle. Elsewhere, Rumble and his friends were also out and facing the vines. Ocellus transformed into various animals while keeping Sandbar safe, especially since he was carrying Cumulon. "This feels weird, I should be protecting Ocellus, not the other way around," Sandbar said. "Think of it like this," Dinky said, zapping a few. "It just means she cares enough to protect you." "Still..." Sandbar lamented. "Also, you got a baby with you," Scootaloo said. "So she's also protecting him, and you can do the same." "Yeah, it's the right thing to do," Sandbar said. Dinky kept zapping, but felt strange, "Ugh, these vines are starting to block my magic." "Keep trying," Apple Bloom said, kicking some vines away. Rumble was in the air, taking a look around, "Geez, these vines are taking over the whole town." "I see the heroes fighting them off though," Silverstream said, taking note of them. "Some are even saving civilian ponies." "That's what we should be doing," Rumble said. "If we focus on keeping ponies safe, the heroes can figure out what's going on." "Or, we can figure it out while they're saving ponies," Silverstream said. "That too, but I don't know where to start," Rumble said. Gabby flew up as well, keeping an eye on the vines and following their path, "You think they're coming out of that forest?" "Wouldn't surprise me, the Everfree Forest has always had some weird stuff," Rumble said. "I'll go check it out. Maybe figure out the problem." "What will you do then?" Gabby asked. "I'll try to stop it," Rumble said. "Are you sure about that?" Silverstream asked. "You might be out of your league." "If I can't stop it, I'll find Peter and Twilight," Rumble said. "But I gotta see what I can do from my end." "Well if you're going, I'm going with you," Silverstream said. "Alright, you're with me," Rumble said, then turned to the griffon beside him. "Gabby, work with the others to save ponies, and try to rendezvous with Peter or any of the other heroes." "You got it," Gabby said, flying back down. "Let's go Silver!" Rumble said, flying toward the forest with Silverstream. Down below, Laura had gone on her own to cut down some of the vines, then heard some familiar cries for help, "I'm stuck! Help! Somepony!" "Sounds like Tender Taps," Laura said. Sniffing him out, she found him and pulled him out of the vines, "Got ya." "Laura!" Tender Taps immediately hugged her. "Thank you so much! I owe you big time!" "He owes me huh?" Laura had some thoughts but shook them away. "Eh...don't worry about it, it's a hero thing to do, I guess." "Still, I appreciate it," Tender Taps said. "Just...let me get you to safety so you don't get caught again," Laura said. "Stick close to me." "Sure thing," Tender Taps said, following the mare out of the town. Twilight blasted a bunch of the vines, keeping them away from her house while Spike blasted them with fire. Twilight however started to feel pain in her horn, "Geez, this feels like some of the Crystal Empire's dark magic." "You feeling alright?" Spike asked. "I'm fine, don't worry about me," Twilight said, blasting the other vines. "I'm more worried about the other ponies." "I wouldn't worry too much, Peter's good at saving others," Spike said. "He's got Gwen too, so-" Twilight let out an angry blast, startling Spike, and giving herself a headache in the process, "Ow..." "Uh, are you alright Twilight?" Spike asked. "Yeah...I'm fine," Twilight said, blasting the vines. "Never mind me, just keep going!" "Uh, alright," Spike said, burning the vines. From the distance, they could spot Scott Lang emerging in size with a bunch of ponies on his back as he lead them out of town, doing his best to break away from the vines, but not without the help of some visiting Wonderbolts, and a few other Pegasus ponies. "Hey I see Soarin, guess he stepped out of retirement for the moment," Spike said. "Good on him." "Yeah, really great," Twilight said. "Too bad Spitfire can't help, but she is pregnant, no one's foolish enough to do work like this while pregnant," Spike said, catching a glare from Twilight. "Uh, no offense." Twilight shook it off, "Sorry, I don't know why I got mad just now. Guess I still feel kind of stupid for what I did years ago when fighting Goku. Sometimes I wonder if Peter thinks I'm crazy for doing that, if that makes me a bad wife." "You just got worried for Peter, and your baby was protected," Spike said. "I know you made a mistake but you learned from it and didn't try it again at least." "I know but still..." Twilight said. "You gotta stop worrying, forgive yourself and move on, it's what you tell Peter, and he's done a lot of things he regrets," Spike said. "That's for sure," Twilight said, still feeling bitter. "Geez, I really gotta move past this. I gotta focus!" Suddenly a portal opened nearby, Sunset Shimmer stepping through with Julia. "Alright, so we talk to Peter and..." Sunset saw the commotion. "What in the world!?" "Oh, Sunset," Twilight said. "Weird timing." "What's going on?" Julia asked. "These vines weren't here when I left." "Yeah, a lot can happen in five minutes, can't they?" Twilight asked. "Pretty sure it's been more than five minutes," Spike said, earning a slight glare from Twilight. "What is all this?" Sunset asked. "I don't know, but it's very dangerous," Twilight said, blasting the vines. "Right now we're trying to evacuate ponies." "I don't suppose a few of your friends can help with that?" Spike asked. " "That won't be a problem," Sunset said, then called inside. "Ponyville needs help! I need about ten of you to come!" One by one, Ryu, Chris, Dante, Chun-Li, Leon, Cloud, Morrigan, Sonic, Kratos and Mega Man emerged from the portal. "That should be plenty," Twilight said. Dante scratched his head in confusion, "What the hell is this? Did the Qliphoth reach Equestria or something?" "I was about to say this reminds me of Plant 42, just on a larger scale," Chris said. "Regardless, ponies need help," Chun-Li called inside the portal. "Amy! Please ask Viper and Sally to keep an eye on things here!" "You got it!" Amy called. "If there's trouble, contact Doctor Strange! Use that portal device to come to Equestria too if need be!" Chun-Li said. "You can count on me!" Amy called. "Jill's there too if you need any assistance, same with Tifa!" Chun-Li said. "Also, do not let Atreus use any dangerous facilities while I am away!" Kratos said. "Even under Mimir's guidance!" "I'll make sure, sir!" Amy called. "I'll keep everything else under control!" "We'll be back soon!" Chun-Li said, closing the portal. "Alright, let's save ponies." "I'm on it," Sonic said, speeding into town. "Hey don't start without us," Dante said, following Sonic alongside Cloud. "Ha, eager for justice! Admirable," All Might said. "Let us go, Invincible!" "Yes sir!" Mark said, joining All Might. "Tell ponies you save to go to the Ghastly Gorge!" Twilight called. "Eager bunch," Ryu said, then turned to Twilight. "So, any idea what happened here?" "No, it's a mystery," Twilight said. "But I would guess that our enemies are behind this. Dante seemed familiar, he mentioned a name too." "Qliphoth, a tree from the demon realm," Ryu said. "I can't say for sure this is the reason however. But it's a possibility. Especially if Vergil's involved." "Chris mentioned something as well, a Plant 42," Twilight said. "The T-Virus that created those zombies affect other living things, including plants," Ryu said. "One such caused trouble for Chris and his friends back when they first encountered B.O.W.s." "That virus affects plants? That means if Wesker has a version of the virus, it could affect anything," Twilight said. "Exactly, anything is susceptible," Leon said. "I can only imagine what the demon tree or the T-Virus could do to a place like this." "Let us not worry her," Kratos said. "She needs our assistance, we must rescue the ponies that are in danger." "Lets get to it then," Chun-Li said, leading everyone into town, save for Sunset. "Should we get Goku for this? He can sense energy after all," Sunset said. "If it's just rescuing, then sure, you can go find him too," Twilight said. "We also need to find the source of the problem, and that lies in The Everfree Forest." "That might be troubling," Sunset said. "I'll go and find Goku then, be back in a bit." Sunset created a portal and left, while Julia entered town. "I'll make myself useful and save some ponies too," Julia said. "Glad things are working out," Twilight said. "Spike, keep at it!" "Yes ma'am!" Spike said. At the Ghastly Gorge, Peter had just dropped off Autumn Blaze with a bunch of others that were already gathered, "Stay here, I'm gonna head back." "Sure thing," Autumn Blaze said. "Daddy!" Mayday called. "How many more do you have to go?" "I'm not sure, but we're not stopping until everyone's safe," Peter said, then turned to Pinkie's sister. "Sorry for dropping all this on you Maud." "Don't be," Maud said. "I don't mind sharing my personal space for the greater good." "Still, I owe you," Peter said. "I gotta go rescue more." "That's our Spider-Mane, always willing to save the day," Doc said. "We appreciate you very much," Octavia said, with Vinyl verbally agreeing, along with several ponies, a good chunk keeping their opinions to themselves. "It's nothing, just please stay safe here," Peter said, swinging away. Mayday furrowed her brow at some of the ponies, doing her best to stay out of everyone's way, something Franklin noticed. "What's wrong?" Franklin asked. "I hate being here, too many ponies," Mayday said. "I bet some of them are judging daddy too." "Mayday, I know you don't like large crowds, but you shouldn't be so quick to assume things," Franklin said. "Well, ponies are dumb, and annoying too," Mayday said. "They probably don't even like me, so why should I like them?" "Mayday, I'm sorry you feel this way, but if you keep acting like this, you're just giving them more reason to dislike you," Franklin said. "Your dad never lets naysayers get him down, you should follow that example." "It does bother him, he just doesn't show it," Mayday said. "Because he knows it will make things worse," Franklin said. "Please, just try to smile a bit. You look cute when you're mad, but prettier when you smile." Mayday blushed upon hearing that, "Okay Frankie, I'll try." Franklin left a kiss on her cheek, further keeping Mayday calmer in this situation. "Wonder if I can use my powers...no, too risky. I don't want to accidentally ruin anything. I'll just trust Spider-Man." Peter had arrived in town, just in time to see that help had arrived, "Didn't expect Capcom and company to be here. Then again, Julia did go to their world." Chun-Li blasted a vine, then noticed the hero nearby, "Oh, hey Peter! We met your friend, Madame Web. She said you had trouble." "It wasn't this but we appreciate you helping anyway," Peter said. "I gotta head into town and save more ponies. If you see anyone, send them to the Ghastly Gorge!" "Twilight let us know. Don't worry about me though, I got things under control here!" Chun-Li said, destroying more vines as Peter left. One pony she freed was Button Mash, the young stallion looking elated. "Finally! Free! Thanks Capcom lady!" Button said. "By the way, has anyone ever told you that you fight like a character from a video game?" "A few times," Chun-Li said. "Most ponies love the Marvel Heroes, and I respect them, but I always found Capcom to be so much cooler!" Button Mash said. "Tell that to my friends, they'll appreciate that," Chun-Li said. "Now hurry to the Ghastly Gorge." "You got it," Button Mash said, making his leave. In town Peter was looking for Gwen, "Now where is..." "Help!" Came the voice of a familiar mare. "Wallflower?" Peter said, running over to Wallflower Blush and pulling her to safety. "There, you're safe." "Spider-Mane!?" Wallflower said, then immediately shook it off. "I...totally didn't need your help, I would have saved myself." "Uh...sure, whatever you say," Peter said. "Head to the Ghastly Gorge, do you need me to escort you?" "No! Go away!" Wallflower said, the girl feeling mixed emotions as she trotted away. "I can keep myself safe!" "Okay then..." Peter said. "I should check on her later, just to be safe." A vine tried to attack Peter, the hero just about ready to dodge when a familiar friend came to help. Sweetie Belle showed up and destroyed the vine with her magic, then destroyed a few more. A few came at her again, but she was quick to generate some claws on her suit and destroyed them with ease. "Wow, that was fun," Sweetie Belle said. "Whoa..." Peter said. "Sweetie Belle?" "Oh, hey Peter!" Sweetie Belle said. "Sorry I ran off earlier." "It's fine, but wow, you're really kicking butt," Peter said. "Thanks, I feel like the suit's really bonded with me now," Sweetie Belle said. "I feel unstoppable." "Just be careful, you could still get hurt," Peter said. "I'll be fine, nothing's hurt me yet," Sweetie Belle said, unaware of a vine about to attack. Peter was quick to web the vine away and kick a few others away as well. "Just try to be careful," Peter said. "Uh, thanks," a somewhat embarrassed Sweetie Belle said. "I'll stay focused." "Mind sticking with me? I can give you some tips," Peter said. "I'd love to!" Sweetie Belle said, getting into a stance. "What's my first lesson, Master?" "First lesson, don't call me 'Master'," Peter said. "Now, let's move." "Yes sir," Sweetie Belle, following Peter. "Don't call me 'sir' either," Peter said. "Sorry sensei," Sweetie Belle said. "I'm not Japanese!" Peter groaned. "Ugh, whatever, just focus." "You got it Peter," Sweetie Belle said, Peter facepalming but continuing on. Above the Everfree Forest, Rumble and Silverstream noticed some trouble brewing below as the vines continued to grow more and more. "I don't think there's a feasible way to end this, not unless we get a really good weeding tool," Rumble said. "There's gotta be something we can do," Silverstream said. "Nothing really to tell Twilight about either," Rumble said, then noticed something in the distance. "Clouds!" "Huh?" Silverstream saw some clouds approaching fast. "Oh boy." "Duck!" Rumble said, the two flying below into a ditch of sorts, still hovering in the air. "That was close," Silverstream said. "But, now we're kind of trapped here. Those clouds aren't going to make it easy to escape." "We'll find another way," Rumble said. Let's hide in that cave for now and think of a plan. "Sure," Silverstream said, following Rumble. As he tried thinking of a plan, Rumble noticed something strange in the distance. "Huh? What's that?" Silverstream noticed it as well, "That looks like a tree, but it's in really bad shape." "It's so different than the other trees," Silverstream said. "The middle part looks familiar." "Yeah...it kind of reminds me of Twilight's Cutie Mark," Rumble said. "Hard to really tell though, all those vines have the tree surrounded." "It's almost like they're taking life from the tree or something," Silverstream said. "Like, really focused on it." Rumble flew in close, carefully examining the tree, "I feel like there's something about this tree that's important. Kind of want to show Twilight." "Might be hard, those vines won't let us through so easily," Silverstream said. "Then we cut through," Rumble said, readying his wings. "Come on, I'm not letting this stop me and neither should you!" "You got it," Silverstream said. Seconds later, the two dashed out of the cavern, up to the forest, which was blocked by vines. "This won't be easy," Silverstream said. "Being a hero never is," Rumble said. "Let's go!" The two blasted through, not letting anything stop them. Rumble got tangled a few times, but Silverstream was quick to free him with her talons. They headed up with Rumble kicking the clouds away, both quick to exit the Everfree Forest, away from the danger. Both looked back, keeping a distance from the vines, and relieved to have gotten away for the moment. "We made it," Silverstream said, wiping some sweat away. "Come on, lets see if Twilight's home," Rumble said. "Hopefully she's okay." Twilight continued blasting vines, this time she was joined by a team from Canterlot consisting of Steve, Sam, Bucky, Double Diamond, Starswirl, Taskmaster and Celestia. "I'm so happy you all made it," Twilight said. "Thanks to you and Agent Sweetie Drops," Steve said. "When your letter described the vines, they seemed so familiar," Celestia said. "That's when I remembered. Discord used these once, they're called Plunderseeds." "So this is Discord's doing," Twilight said. "Should have figured." "Discord's really getting started on his evil plan, isn't he?" Double Diamond said, battling with a makeshift shield, similar to Steve's, along with a spear. "Sure seems like it," Twilight said. "Princess!" Bon Bon said, galloping over. "The heroes got a lot of the ponies out but there's still a few unaccounted for!" "We gotta try harder!" Taskmaster said, using his sword to take out some vines. "I'll head in myself, grab some slaggers!" "Don't worry," Sunset said, showing up with Goku. "I brought help." "Wow, that's a lot of vines," Goku said. "And I thought weeding my farm was a lot of work. But good training when you put your mind to it." "This is no time to think about fighting!" Starswirl said. "Technically we're fighting vines," Bucky pointed out, to Starswirl's annoyance. "We just need you to locate some ponies using your ki sense," Sunset said. "Sure, I can do that," Goku said, taking a moment to focus. "Alright, I think I spotted some. Be right back." Goku used his Instant Transmission to teleport away, leaving the others behind for the moment. "I'll go in too," Sunset said. Just as she was about to do so, Rumble was calling out, "Twilight!" Twilight turned to see him and Silverstream flying over. "I'm so glad you two are safe." "Twilight, both Silver and I saw something strange in the Everfree Forest," Rumble said. "It looked like some weird tree, and it had your Cutie Mark on it," Silverstream said. "My Cutie Mark?" Twilight asked. "This tree," Celestia interjected. "Was it in a cavern?" "Yeah, looked like it," Rumble said. "Do you know what it is Princess?" "I think I do," Celestia said. "Twilight, find and gather your friends, we will meet near this tree." "Um, okay," Twilight said. "I must return to Canterlot for a moment," Celestia said. "Steve, hold your ground until I get back." "Will do," Steve said, keeping the vines away. "We'll help," Sam said. "Alright, I'm off," Twilight said, flying through town. "Wonder what's happening?" Sunset was obviously intrigued but she had a job to do. Within minutes, Twilight had found and rounded up all of her friends, all of them standing near the entrance to the forest alongside Rumble and Silverstream. The group was also joined by Laura, whom Rumble asked to help through the forest. "That's everyone, right?" Rumble asked. "Yeah, we're all here," Rainbow Dash said. "Your families are safe, right?" Twilight asked. "Sure are," Pinkie said. "Maud's watching over them right now." "I can verify that Rina is safe and sound with her grandparents," Laura said. "Now, we just have to wait for Princess Celestia," Twilight said. "There you are," Celestia said, flying over, joined by Steve, Starswirl and Bon Bon. She had a brown sack currently equipped with her as well "Come on, through here." Using her magic, Celestia kept all the vines away, with assistance from Twilight and Rarity as they traveled through the forest. "This place gives me the creeps," Bon Bon said. "It won't take us too long," Steve said. As they trotted through, they got closer to the cavern, Rumble gesturing below, "The tree's down there." "Follow me," Celestia said, using her magic to teleport everyone below, a few of them dizzy. "Hurry." "You heard her," Twilight said, escorting everyone inside the cavern. That's when they spotted the tree, still covered in the Plunderseed vines. "Whoa, what is that?" Rainbow Dash asked. "That is the Tree of Harmony, it's where the Elements of Harmony originated from," Celestia said, using her magic to take the elements out of her sack and levitating it to each holder. "So...this is where the Elements came from?" Rainbow Dash asked. "A thousand years ago, Luna and I needed the power to imprison Discord and end his reign of terror," Celestia said. "This tree protected Equestria, and the Everfree Forest. Without its magic, it's become vulnerable." "That was risky, Celestia," Starswirl said. "The Elements are vitally important to the Tree of Harmony. But perhaps I should have spoken up sooner." "I knew I should have returned them," Celestia said. "However, I've held onto the Elements for years, as they have proven to be useful time and again for our benefit, but now, it is time to return them to where they belong." "You want us to give the Elements back?" Twilight asked. "But, don't we need them?" "Yeah, they came in handy when we had to save Stygian," Rainbow Dash said. "They might come in handy again," Pinkie said. "You don't need the Elements, you have each other," Celestia said. "If you don't return the elements however, the Plunderseeds may spread across Equestria." "...She's right, we have to stop this here and now," Twilight said, placing her element on the tree. Reluctantly, her friends did the same, restoring power to the tree bit by bit. Once it was complete, the magic cultivated and started spreading across the forest, slowly climbing up the vines from the Plunderseed. Within a few seconds, the entire town was hit with a magic that targeted only the vines, destroying them on sight and rescuing any remaining stragglers. "Whoa..." Remy said, amazed by the magic. Zecora, who had went to rescue ponies herself, seemed relieved, "The curse is no more, but my legs are feeling sore." Gallus, who was struggling to escape the vines that captured him, was suddenly on the ground, confused, "Wait, what happened? Did I win?" Sonic and Mega Man saw everything disappear as well, the two looking relieved. "It's finally done," Mega Man said, then held his fist out to Sonic. "Great work saving everyone, Sonic." "Same to you, Rock," Sonic said, fist bumping Mega Man. "And to the other heroes." "Especially to whoever destroyed those vines," Mega Man said. Peter along with Sweetie Belle, Johnny, Gwen, Logan, Chun-Li and Leon all seemed relieved where they were as well. "Sweet, Twilight must have pulled something off," Peter said. "Your wife did this?" Gwen asked. "She's the only one Amazing enough to do so," Peter said. "She and her friends." "That's our Twilight," Johnny said. Back in the Forest, the Tree of Harmony glowed radiantly, everyone relieved to have pulled this all off. "Thank goodness, it's all over," Fluttershy said. "Yes, balance has been restored," Celestia said. Rumble trotted toward the tree, placing his hoof on it, "Wow...it's really pretty." "Who would have guessed something like this was in The Everfree Forest?" Silverstream said. "Even the darkest places sometimes have beauty in them," Celestia said. "Sounds poetic," Rumble said. "So, now what?" "Now, we get everything back to normal," Twilight said, then patted Rumble's head. "Great work, you did very well today." "It's nothing," Rumble bashfully said. "Silverstream helped too." "I just followed your lead," Silverstream said. "Yeah but you helped me out a few times," Rumble said, placing his foreleg around the hippogriff. "So we did it." "Yeah, we did," Silverstream said, returning the gesture. "You two did great, be proud of yourselves," Steve said. "Everyone who helped should be proud." "Yeah, we did great, but the job isn't over," Rainbow Dash said. "We still gotta find Discord, and thrash him!" "If we can find him," Twilight said as she and her friends left. "Who knows where he could be?" Unknown to them, Discord was near the edge of town, the being was powerless and a bit worried. Fortunately he wasn't alone. "I don't know Eris, after everything that happened, especially the Plunderseeds, will they even trust me?" Discord asked. "There isn't much choice," Eris said. "Those villains are going to destroy the multiverse, we have to make sure the heroes are ready!" "Still, it's my fault those villains gathered up," Discord said. "I just don't know if-" "Discord, I know you're worried, but those fears need to be put aside," Eris said. "One of the ponies must be willing to listen." "Perhaps, there is one who specializes in forgiving Kindness," Discord said. "But I am a bit terrified of her husband, and I am pretty vulnerable." "Here," Eris placed a bit of magic in Discord. "It's not much, but it should leave you at least able to fly." Discord floated in the air a bit, feeling relieved, "That's one problem. Alright, I'll do what I can." The Plunderseed threat was done, but a bigger evil lay in wait.