Chapter 5: The Spark is Found
Nymphadora, 1678 C.E.
A gust of wind blew into the Doctor's face as he, Derpy, and Twilight burst through the doors. A dark shadow loomed over the base. The Doctor looked up to see that the shadow was being cast by that of a massive alien military aircraft. The robotic voice continued to speak. "THE SPARK HAS BEEN FOUND. REPEAT. THE SPARK HAS BEEN FOUND. RETRIEVE IT AT ALL COSTS," it stated. A door in the bottom of the aircraft opened up and a series of Nymphadorian soldiers with jet packs began to descent towards them.
"Allons-y!" ordered the Doctor as he grabbed onto one of Twilight's hooves and pulled her along. Derpy flapped her wings and took the air, making sure to fly extremely close to them.
"Can you teleport us out of here?!" Derpy asked Twilight.
"I've tried! There's something here that prevents teleportation!" Twilight replied.
"GET THE UNICORN!" ordered a gruff voice over one of the base's speakers. "THE UNICORN IS THE SPARK!" The flying Nymphadorian soldiers flew towards the three ponies. The Doctor pulled out his sonic screwdriver and aimed it at one of the jet packs. A shower of sparks shot out of the jet pack and the soldier screamed as an electrical blast erupted from behind him, sending him and a few of his fellow soldiers falling to the ground below. He felt extremely happy that Colonel Ash had given his screwdriver back to him on their way to visit Twilight or else this would have been a bit harder.
"Come on!" the Doctor ordered. As the Doctor and his companions continued to run, a loud siren rang out from the aircraft. A bright, red light suddenly cloaked the base.
"What's happening?!" asked Derpy.
"Just keep running!" The Doctor had an idea of what was happening and this made him run even faster.
"No!" screamed one of the remaining Nymphadorian soldiers flying around. "We're supposed to keep the spark alive!"
The Doctor glanced back to see a barrage of attack missiles get shot from the aircraft. "Missiles! Look out!" The Doctor cried as he pulled Twilight to the right. The ground began to shake violently as several missiles smashed into the earth. The multicolored dirt of Nymphadora flew up into the air and cloaked the base in a hazy mist of dust and ash. Soldiers and other people who had been working at the base fled in terror as missiles slammed into the buildings. Two missiles flew into Colonel Ash's house while five flew into the prison building. War prisoners began to climb out of the holes in the destroyed prison and began to make a run for it.
"Hold your fire! HOLD YOUR FIRE!" screamed one of the flying soldiers into a communicator.
"DOCTOR! TWILIGHT! LOOK OUT!" Derpy cried. The Doctor looked to see a missile flying straight at him and Twilight.
"I've got it!" said Twilight. A purple aura appeared around her horn and the missile came to a quick stop a few feet from them. Using her magic, Twilight spun the missile around and aimed it at the aircraft. "Let's see how you like it!" She then flung the missile at the aircraft. Fire and metal spread throughout the air as the rogue missile collided with the aircraft.
Some of the flying soldiers aimed their guns at the Doctor and Derpy. As the shots were fired, Twilight quickly created a shield which flung the shots back at the attackers. More soldiers fell to the ground as their reflected shots smashed into their bodies. "Which Element of Harmony did you say you represented, again?" the Doctor asked as wisps of magical smoke emanated from Twilight's horn.
"Magic," she replied.
"Element of Magic, huh? Fitting title."
"Thanks, but don't we have some running to do?"
"Yes! Right! Allons-y!" The three ponies continued to make their way towards the edge of the base. The only thing standing between them and freedom was the massive wall that stood around the base.
"Now what?" Derpy asked.
"I'm sure you could fly over that wall," said the Doctor.
"But...I can't leave you two behind!"
"It's safer on the other side. Don't worry. Twilight and I will be with you shortly."
Derpy hesitated for a moment. After staring at the Doctor and Twilight, she took off and flew over the top of the wall. "So what's the plan?" Twilight asked.
"Our best bet of getting out of here is unlocking those doors," said the Doctor as he looked at the pair of large doors before them. He aimed his screwdriver at the doors but nothing happened. "Aw! There must be something inside the wall that's blocking my screwdriver's signal." He then turned towards Twilight. "You don't happen to know an unlocking spell, do you?"
Twilight nodded and faced the door. A bright, purple aura appeared around her horn and she grunted a bit as she tried to pry the doors open. "I...can't...open...them!" she grunted. It was at this moment that the Doctor got an idea. He took a few steps back and aimed the screwdriver at Twilight's horn. "What...are...you...doing?!"
"Giving your magic a little sonic boost." The Doctor activated the screwdriver and a blast of purple and blue magic exploded from Twilight's horn. The doors flung open so fast that they nearly tore off their massive hinges. Once the doors were open, the aura around Twilight's horn faded away and Twilight bent over. "Come on! We can rest later!" The Doctor grabbed onto Twilight's hoof and pulled her towards the doorway. Derpy flew down and waited for them on the other side.
"Come on!" cried the pegasus. They were a couple seconds of running away from the exit when a familiar bang erupted from behind them. A searing pain shot through the Doctor's side and the world became fuzzy and blurred as the Doctor lost his footing and hit the ground. "DOCTOR!"
The Doctor looked up to see a Nymphadorian soldier with a jet pack and futuristic gun standing over him. A weak, purple aura appeared around the gun in the soldier's hand but the soldier brought the hilt of the gun down on Twilight's head, knocking her unconscious. Through his fading vision, the Doctor saw Derpy tackle the soldier but she was quickly detained by two others. "The spark has been retrieved," stated one of the soldiers as they picked up the unconscious Twilight. "What do you want us to do with the pegasus?"
"Bring her along. I've heard that King Dusk had a soft spot for things that could fly," chuckled another one of the soldiers.
"No...come back," the Doctor said weakly.
"What about the stallion?" asked another soldier.
"Let him rot," replied the soldier holding Twilight. "He should bleed out in a few minutes." Derpy continued to struggle against the soldiers as they dragged her and Twilight away.
"NO! DOCTOR! DOCTOR!" Derpy cried. The Doctor watched as Derpy and Twilight were flown into the aircraft, which then proceeded to fly away.
"Derpy...Twilight...come back," the Doctor croaked as he felt the blood rushing out of him. "Come...back."
Just then, a shadowy figure appeared above the Doctor. It was a Nymphadorian and he looked very familiar. The Nymphadorian knelt down until his face was almost touching the Doctor's. "Hang in there, Doctor," said Marcus the deserter as he smirked down at him. "You've got places to be and people to meet. It's not time to die." The Doctor's eyes closed as he felt Marcus pick him up and begin to carry him towards an unknown location.
Twilight awoke with her head throbbing something fierce. She was sitting in the middle of a metal room with no windows and one door that was locked tight. The floor was ice cold, the air smelled of fur and iron, and there was a slight vibration in the metal. Derpy was sitting a few feet from her and was leaning against one of the walls of the room. "Derpy?" she asked as she clutched her head. Derpy turned around to face her. Her eyes were red and puffy.
She's been crying, Twilight thought. Why?
"Where are we?" Twilight asked.
"We're in the aircraft," Derpy replied. "They got us."
"Where's the Doctor?" Twilight looked around for any sign of the stallion in the formal black suit. But it was just her and Derpy in the metal room.
"They shot him." Derpy's voice was shaky and fearful.
"They what?! Is he alright?!"
Derpy shook her head. "I don't know. They took us and left him for dead. Celestia knows how he is right now!" Silence fell amongst the two mares. Twilight couldn't help but feel a horrible, sinking feeling in her gut. The Doctor was hurt. He was possibly dead...and it was because of her. They had shot him to get to her. Up till now, Twilight had merely felt an annoyed sense of respect for the odd stallion with the title for a name. But now she was feeling sorry for him and actually found herself missing his excited and brave attitude in the face of danger and the unknown. She still barely knew him, but he had gone and gotten himself injured just to keep her, somepony he himself barely knew, out of harm's way. Now he had failed...and Twilight, in turn, felt that she had failed him.
"I'm...sorry," Twilight said as she lowered her head. "This...this is all my fault."
For another moment, neither of the mares spoke. Suddenly, Derpy crawled over and grabbed Twilight's front hooves. Twilight looked up to find herself staring into Derpy's teary and slightly inverted eyes. "Don't say that!" she croaked. "It's not your fault! You can't blame yourself just because you're the target of some stupid alien wolves!" Twilight could sense a bit of guilt within Derpy's words and was curious as to where this stemmed from. Derpy then gave a confident smile and wiped her own tears away. "Besides, I wouldn't give up of the Doctor just yet. I may have only been on a few adventures with him but he's proven to be more than capable to handle a challenge! And, until he comes, we're a couple a strong mares, right? We can handle ourselves!" Derpy stood up and extended a hoof towards Twilight. Twilight smiled up at Derpy as she took her hoof and stood up.
"Thanks, Derpy." Just then, as Twilight looked straight into Derpy's teary but optimistic face, an old memory flooded back into Twilight's mind like a rushing river. "Wait a minute! I remember!"
"Remember what?"
"Where I saw you last. I can't believe I didn't recognize you when I first saw you! Then again, that was a pretty bad accident."
"What are you talking about?"
"There this was day where I was following my friend Pinkie Pie to learn more about her Pinkie Sense (don't ask) when a bunch of pegasi accidentally dropped a bunch of stuff on me while loading it into a movers' truck! I remember you being one of them!"
Derpy looked confused for a couple seconds but jumped, gasped, and blushed as she too recalled the incident. "Oh...yeah...I remember that. Sorry about that whole thing. I don't normally move a lot of heavy stuff. I normally work as a mailmare in Ponyville but I wanted to help move some of the stuff to help a friend. Unfortunately, that was one of my...clumsy days."
Twilight smiled at Derpy and let out a giddy laugh. "It's alright. I'm just glad that I finally remember where I saw you before. It's been killing me." Twilight let out a sigh and rubbed the throbbing section of her head. "You know, it's funny."
"What is?"
"The two of us have lived in Ponyville for Celestia knows how long and we've never actually met."
"That is odd."
"Who knew that two ponies who lived in the same town but didn't even know each other would someday be brought together by some stallion with a time-traveling box?"
Derpy giggled a bit. "Yeah. Life's sure full of surprises."
Twilight looked around the metal room and sighed again. "And who knew that being captured would lead to us bonding a bit? Ever since I stumbled into the TARDIS, you've seem to have this annoyance about me."
Derpy blushed again. "Yeah...I have felt a bit...annoyed by you."
"If you don't mind me asking, why is that?"
Derpy's ears fell down and her face turned bright red. She took a few steps back and sat down. "It's stupid. I don't even fully know why I was feeling threatened...er...annoyed by you."
"Threatened?" Twilight asked.
"I didn't say that!" Derpy squealed.
"Yeah you did."
Derpy lowered her head in a shameful way. "Do you remember when you first arrived in Ponyville, Twilight? When you defeated Nightmare Moon?"
"Of course. How could I forget that day?"
"And do you remember when you later stopped Discord?"
"Yeah. Where are you going with this, Derpy?"
"You're a very important pony, Twilight Sparkle. You're an apprentice to Princess Celestia, you represent one of the Elements of Harmony, and you've helped save Equestria three times now (including what happened at Princess Cadance and Prince Shining Armor's wedding). You and your friends are so important. You're so well known. You're so...amazing. Meanwhile, what am I, Derpy Hooves, in relation to you? I'm just an ordinary mare, if not something less than that. I'm a silly mare with eyes that invert who works at the post office. I'm not saying my life is terrible or depressing or anything like that because it's not. I have a few good, close friends and I have wonderful memories. But, that still doesn't change the fact that you're much more important than me. When I first met the Doctor and began going on these adventures throughout time and space, I myself began to feel...important. I've been to the past, the future, and places in between. I've faced moon monsters, Atlantean terrorists, and creatures from alternate dimensions. I've begun to amount to something thanks to traveling with the Doctor. But now you, an already important pony, has met the Doctor and has been brought along by him...and I was beginning to feel like...I was being trapped in somepony else's shadow. I was afraid that the Doctor would be more impressed by you than by me and...just-"
"Leave you behind?" Derpy looked at Twilight and nodded. Twilight walked over to Derpy and wrapped a foreleg around her. "Sometimes, I worry that I won't be able to live up to Princess Celestia's expectations. She sees so much in me and puts up with a lot of the stuff I've done in the past. Once, I was worried about being late in writing a letter to the Princess about friendship. I nearly lost my mind over it and even tried to create a problem to solve. In the end, it ended with the whole town fighting over an enchanted doll and Big Macintosh stealing it...for some reason." Twilight chuckled a bit. "I guess what I'm trying to say is that you're not less important than me. We all live in somepony else's shadow. But our own, individual accomplishments make us important in our own, special ways."
Derpy looked at Twilight and gave her a quick hug. "Thanks, Twilight. I needed to hear something like that."
"Maybe after all this is over with and you find some free time away from carrying mail and traveling with the Doctor (in the hopeful chance that he's okay), the two of us could...get to know each other some more."
"I'd like that." Suddenly, the slight vibration in the metal stopped and a short siren rang out. "I think we've stopped."
The door to the room opened and in walked a Nymphadorian wearing an indigo suit and surrounded by a group of soldiers. "I'm guessing you must be this Twilight Sparkle that I've heard so much about," chuckled the suited Nymphadorian.
"Yes," Twilight replied coldly. "And I want some answers. Who are you and what do you want with me?"
A conniving and suave smile appeared on the Nymphadorian's face. "My name is Tyrion Targaryen. I'm the Head President of Nymphadora; and you, Twilight Sparkle, are the spark that will bring about the end of this war and the beginning of a new golden age for this world. You are the one that will bring back our greatest weapon: the Twilight King."