• Published 11th Nov 2011
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Magical Pony Lyrical Twilight - PurpleProse



Magical Girls With Wave-Motion Cannons Meets My Little Pony! What if Twilight became Nanoha?

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Chapter 9: Still Waters Run Deep

Every light in the library was lit, and every door and window shut. The night outside was still and quiet, or as quiet as Ponyville could get at least. However, there was a good deal of activity going on inside the library.

“Impressive, isn’t it?”

Twilight, Yuuno and Chrono clustered around the table, peering down at the captured Device. Bardiche glittered in the light, a great black and white poleaxe with a large, deep yellow core.

“It certainly is, Chrono.” Twilight inspected the Device, the core glinting softly as it caught the light. Now that the thing wasn’t being swung at her head, she could at least admire its craftsmanship. Even knowing next to nothing about Devices as a whole, Twilight had to admit that the axe was well-made, its angular head sharp and polished to a glossy shine.

“So what exactly do we do with it?” Twilight glanced up at Chrono.

“Right now, we keep it in holding.” Chrono rapped a knuckle against the Device’s shaft. “We don’t have a Device Meister on hand to dismantle it or probe its core, so we should hold onto it for security reasons.”

Twilight stared at Chrono. “Hold on. First off, a Device what?”

“Meister.” Yuuno answered. “It’s a technician that specializes in the creation of Devices. Though it’d be a shame to dismantle something like this.”

“Alright. Second, we’re not going to dismantle it.”

“Miss Sparkle, I don’t think…”

“No offense Chrono, but the last thing we want to do is give Fate another reason to be angry at us. Taking apart something that’s probably quite precious to her is not the way to go about it.”

Chrono frowned, but nodded. “Fair enough. I concede your point. However, we should keep it someplace safe so that Fate doesn’t find it easily.”

“I can keep an eye on it for now. Somehow, I don’t think Fate will be coming after it right now.”

Chrono’s eyebrow arched. “What makes you think that?”

“Experience and logic. Fate fled from capture; since I haven’t seen her teleport, she likely enhanced her speed in order to make a quick getaway. Now, from what I’ve seen, Fate can move incredibly fast, but she limits it to short range movement.” Twilight turned and began to pace. “That suggests her ability to move at such high speeds takes a toll on her body. If she flew a great distance, then it’s likely she’s exhausted herself.”

“A fair point.” Chrono nodded.

“I’m just worried. If she’s exhausted herself, she could wind up in a great deal of trouble.”

“I wouldn’t worry too much. I’ve contacted the Arthra, and I’m having them scan the area. If she shows up, they’ll locate her and let us know.”

“Thanks.” Twilight glanced back at Chrono. “You’re a big help.”

“No problem. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to clean up before I turn in for the night. Where‘s your bathroom?”

“Right over there.“ Twilight pointed.

“Thank you.“ Chrono nodded to Yuuno and Twilight, then removed his coat as he walked over to the bathroom, shutting the door behind him. Twilight paid the nod little mind, her attention still on the window as she looked outside.

“Are you alright, Twilight?” Yuuno approached carefully, standing beside the unicorn. “You seem…I don’t know, pensive.”

“Just thinking about Fate.”

“Ah… want to share?”

Twilight sighed. “It’s just… when me and her had our Devices locked together, I got a good look at her. She was so… desperate. I’m not good at reading emotions, but even I recognize it when a pony’s out-of-sorts. She was furious Yuuno. Furious and… heartbroken, I think. I just wish she’d let us reach out to her.”

“I don’t think it was just anger.” Yuuno sighed, crossing his arms and resting his chin on his chest. “She seemed desperate. And from what Applejack told us, I can’t say I’m surprised.”

“Yeah…” Twilight leaned in against the windowsill. Applejack had looked rather upset when they had spoken after the fight. Fate’s words had struck something deep inside the farm pony. Fate’s situation was particularly troubling, given how important family was to Applejack.

That sorta misery… that ain’t something somepony should face all on their lonesome. That’s what Applejack had said. And yet, Fate seemed more than willing to go it alone.

“I just wish there was somepony out there that could help her. I’m kind of at a loss,” Twilight hung her head.

“I’m sure there is. Come on Twilight,” Yuuno patted her withers, “let’s try to keep a positive light on things.”

“I guess you’re right Yuuno.” Twilight glanced up at the bright moon, then pulled away from the window.

---

Fate felt her eyes open slowly. She was floating in a warm, dark abyss, a gentle blackness that lapped against her bare body like waves of a hot bath. Her Barrier Jacket was gone, her mane unbound and flowing about underneath her like the trail of a golden wedding dress. Despite the darkness around her, she could see herself clearly. Everything else was a shadowy void.

She should have started panicking, but the emotion was distant and muted. She moved her limbs slowly, stirring the black void with each slow motion. A sense of peace settled on her like a comforter, clearing her head.

“Where am I?” The words echoed oddly and unnaturally. “What is this place?”

“An excellent query, “ a voice replied from every direction, “and one that can be easily answered. You’re in a state of deepest dreaming, well below the surface of thine waking mind.”

“Who said that?”

A figure emerged, walking silently on the surface of the blackness, sending ripples of starlight where its hooves met the shadows. It was a winged unicorn, tall and proud, her coat a deep shade of grayish blue with a flowing mane and tail of darker hues. A black splotch colored her flanks, bringing the pointed-tipped crescent moon into sharp relief. Her regalia was black as night, made of metal that reminded Fate of Bardiche’s axe head.

“We did.” The alicorn’s eyes were bright turquoise, burning bright in comparison to her coloration. “Do not be alarmed, child of lightning. In this place, no harm shall come to you.”

“Who are you?” Fate blinked, staring at the alicorn.

“We’ve many names and titles, many quite fanciful and no longer used: Diarch of the Moon, Shepherdess of the Night, Conductor of the Sidereal March, Matriarch of Darkness… but you may refer to us as Princess Luna, or simply Luna should you feel familiar.”

Luna flicked her head, her horn lighting up. Fate felt the darkness solidify underneath her, allowing her to get to her feet. “Come. Rise Fate Testarossa, child of lightning, for we have much to speak of.”

“And what exactly do you want to talk about?” Fate pushed herself up, her hair flowing down about her body in a Rapunzel-esque curtain of gold.

“Many a thing, child of lightning. But it would be best if you turned not such a defiant and baleful gaze upon us. We are not the source of your misfortune.”

“But you’re here in my head. For all I know, I could-”

“True, but rest assured that you have come to no mischief. You are safe within the confines of the royal citadel, well away from any who would do you wrong or try to face you in combat.” Luna smiled faintly. “You have our word that no harm shall be visited upon you. We only wish to speak with you, nothing more.”

“I’m not used to trusting someone who waltzes into my mind and puts me under. I want to wake up, now.”

“Very well.” Luna stomped on the darkness. The black depths washed upwards, glittering in the color of moonlight as it swept over Fate.

---

Fate’s eyes opened for a second time. The room she was in was dimly lit with an odd, bluish-white radiance. The walls were painted in dark colors, the windows hidden by violet-black curtains, and the ceiling above her glittered with gems aligned in the shapes of the starry night sky, thin lines of silver linking the patterns together.

She shifted and sat up in the bed she was laying in; a great round feather mattress covered in soft black cloth. The sheets seemed to shimmer as she pushed them off. Her Barrier Jacket had been removed, the spells maintaining it having dissolved when she was asleep.

“We apologize for our intrusion.”

Fate turned. Luna was seated a few feet away, quietly stirring a cup of tea. “We would offer you some tea, but we doubt you would be willing to take up our offer,” she said quietly, setting the spoon aside.

“Where am I?” Fate whispered as the Princess sipped from her cup.

“In our private chambers. Do not fret,” Luna set her teacup down, “nopony seeking you knows your whereabouts, nor do the people at the Bureau suspect your location. The palace is warded against prying eyes as well. Be at ease.”

“At ease? You kidnapped me…”

“We did indeed. The alternative would have been to leave you unconscious in the depths of the Everfree Forest, which is no kind fate. Had we not intervened, it would be very likely you would not have seen the morning sunrise.” Luna crossed her forelimbs and frowned firmly at the small filly. “And if these accommodations are not to your liking, we could find you a nice gaol to lock you away in. You have, after all, assaulted certain ponies in your single-minded quest for the Jewel Seeds. Such acts tend to be frowned upon in polite society.”

Fate frowned, but said nothing else, gingerly pushing the sheets off of her so that she could sit properly upon the bed. “What do you want with me, Princess?” Fate couldn’t help but sound a little sullen as she watched the alicorn cautiously.

“To talk. Of course,” Luna smirked, “you’re not exactly open to that idea, oh child of lightning.”

“Why do you keep calling me that?”

“It is an apropos descriptor, is it not? You are a human child with a gift for lightning. And yes, we know you are not originally from Equestria. However, we will refer to you by name if you prefer, Fate.”

“Thank you.” Fate slowly stood on the bed, narrowing her eyes. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to be leaving.”

“Are you now?”

Fate’s eyes narrowed slowly, turning into thin slits. “Are you going to get in my way?”

“Yes, we think so. Think carefully, child; do you really wish to make an enemy of us?” Luna stared back, her voice carrying only a hint of warning. “Though it’s hardly surprising; you seem quite intent on making foes out of everyone that seeks to aid you. Please, sit.”

“No. I don’t have to-”

Fate felt a very real shiver of terror shoot through her body as Luna rose up, her wings spreading with a loud rustle. The air inside the room went frigid, and the shadows seemed to lengthen and twist along the walls and floor. Luna’s mane flickered about her head, rising upwards in an invisible wind and curling like an approaching storm front.

“Sit down, Fate Testarossa.” The words hit Fate with the force of a hammer blow, the princess’s voice echoing ominously as she half-spoke, half-roared the sentence. Fate’s rump sank firmly onto the bed, her eyes wide.

“Much better.” Luna exhaled as the room returned to normal.

Fate swallowed. “I…I…what are you?!”

“We are Princess Luna of Equestria,” the dark alicorn said matter-of-factly. “We are the night and the moon and the stars, and you would be wise to heed our commands. Unlike our sister, we do not suffer fools quietly.”

“…Alright.” Fate lowered herself down, trying to hide her wobbling legs. “I’ll stay. For now.”

“A wise decision.” Luna smirked. “Now, would you accept a cup of tea?”

Fate nodded, watching the alicorn pour from the glittering silver teapot.

“We would offer you sugar and milk, but we lack such condiments at the moment. We prefer our tea bitter and strong.” Luna floated the cup over to the smaller unicorn. “Worry not, you’ll find it untainted.”

Fate didn’t respond, holding the teacup with her hooves.

“T’would be wiser to use your magic to lift it.” Luna noted, watching curiously as Fate tried to lift the cup to her lips.

“I don’t feel like it.” Fate replied softly, wincing at the bitterness of the drink. The princess wasn’t exaggerating when she said she liked her tea bitter and strong. Regardless, she drank it down, thankful for something to wet her throat.

“Were you the one that whispered to me when I was unconscious?” Fate set the cup down on the bed.

“Nay. That was our sister, Princess Celestia.” Luna settled back down onto her sear. “She has been watching you for the longest time, but has taken little action.”

“Watching me?” Fate paused.

“There is nary a thing under the sun that she cannot spy on, so long as daylight shines.” Luna flipped her mane. “Our sister much prefers subtle actions; a ray of sunlight across the threshold, a whispered word to day-dreaming heart. Tell us, what did she whisper to you in the darkness of your pain?”

“Nothing.”

Luna snorted. “’Tis a lie most dreadful,” the dark princess’s voice was cool and icy. “Speak the truth. we know as well as you that she spoke to you. What did she say?”

Fate shivered, the memory coming up unbidden; the gentle, almost motherly voice whispering…

“You’re not alone,” Fate said quietly. “You’re not alone. Nopony deserves to be alone.”

“’Tis a great truth, that.” Luna’s demeanor softened. “Nopony in Equestria is truly ever alone, though it may not appear so to you, Fate.”

“I’d be better off-”

“Alone?” Luna interrupted. “Sans friends? Sans companions? Sans allies? So driven are you by your quest you turn away from and dismiss every extended hoof, every open heart, every act of kindness. And for what?”

“What do you know?” Fate growled.

“We know. We know the taste of solitude, of being so consumed by a goal that we became blind to everything good and kind. We know what it’s like to walk down that lonely road, burning and tearing asunder every bridge we cross. We know what drives you, when you dream at night under our moon.” Luna tilted her head. “Why does she call you ‘Alicia’ in those dreams?”

Fate froze. Luna rose from her seat and approached, kneeling down to eye level with the filly.

“We know how much it hurts, to not know love, to feel alone and unappreciated. Twilight and her friends might not fully understand that pain, but we do.” Luna inhaled deeply. “I do. It gnaws at you in the back of your mind, drives you to do anything in hopes of changing it, improving it. You push others away, thinking they’d never understand.”

“Would you like for me to walk with you down that darkness Fate?” Luna leaned in, nuzzling Fate’s cheek.

Part of Fate wanted to scream, to beat her hooves against the mare that was nuzzling her cheek, to bite, kick, do something in defiance. How dare she look into her dreams? How dare she act like she knew anything about her situation?

And yet… she didn’t. She couldn’t. She had nothing left. What little energy she had had drained away like water spilling through a sieve. Her earlier rage at Twilight Sparkle had been replaced with a cool numbness. It was almost peaceful in a way, that sense of apathy. She had no defenses against those sincere words. She could feel, deep down in the pit of her stomach, that what the alicorn was saying was true. She believed every word. She couldn’t even summon the desire to fight it anymore. She simply accepted it.

Fate leaned in and closed her eyes, feeling the princess’s mane drift against her cheek. It was oddly cool to the touch, like an autumn breeze on her skin. She pulled closer, letting Luna climb up beside her on the bed as she just…let go.

“Okay…” Fate whispered.

There was a soft rustle as Fate felt feathers slide over her back, a long and graceful wing folding over her like a blanket. She pulled closer to Luna’s side, cuddling as close as she dared.

“Rest your weary head, child of lightning.” Luna whispered to her. “We will keep you safe this night.”

Fate let herself go limp. Oblivion soon swallowed her up into a dreamless haze.

---

Dawn came like a thief over the horizon. However, it wasn’t the beams of sunlight shining through Twilight’s window that woke her. Rather, it was a soft, repetitive grunting noise coming from downstairs that made her sit up. She blinked and yawned, pulling herself out from her covers as she searched for the source of the noise.

The noise was coming from downstairs. Chrono was without a shirt as he did push-ups on the library floor, his movements practiced as he worked out. Twilight blinked, rubbing her eyes for a moment before yawning. “Good morning, Chrono.”

“Oh, Miss Sparkle.” Chrono pushed himself up and climbed to his feet. “Good morning as well. I hope I didn’t wake you up. I already made the bed you offered me.”

Twilight glanced over at the bed, which was made-up with a military-level attention to detail. She could probably bounce a bit off it. “Um, thanks. But why’re you working out down there?”

“Part of my morning routine.” Chrono stretched his arms above his head. Twilight had to admit that despite her lack of knowledge about human anatomy, he certainly looked athletic for someone his age. “Physical fitness is always important, especially to mages.”

“Oh.”

“I took the liberty of sending Yuuno out for some breakfast. I hope you don’t mind me taking liberties with your funds.”

“Oh no. I don’t mind.” Twilight trotted down the stairs, passing the still asleep Spike. “I was planning on getting something from the bakery anyway.” Twilight tilted her head as Chrono picked up a towel, fluffing the sweat out of his hair. “Chrono, you‘re good at magical combat, right?”

“Yes. Enforcers have to be in order to pass the exam.” Chrono pulled the towel around his shoulders. “Why do you ask?”

“I was just wondering if you could give me some pointers, that’s all.”

“Pointers?” Chrono arched an eyebrow. “From what I’ve seen, you do quite well for yourself.”

“Well, yes, but that’s no excuse to not improve.” Twilight smirked. “A good student never turns down the chance to gain new knowledge.”

Chrono smirked. “Well, I don’t know how applicable my training would be-”

“Please Chrono? It’d be nice to practice with someone other than Raising Heart and Yuuno.” Twilight pouted, giving the young Enforcer a puppy-dog stare.

“Alright, alright.” Chrono raised a hand. “I suppose I can give you some lessons. How versed are you in hand…er…hoof-to-hoof combat?” He balled up his hands into fists, gently punching the air to demonstrate.

“Um,” Twilight frowned, “I… might have read a book or two on it at some point?”

Chrono sighed, face-palming. “Well, you have to start somewhere, I suppose.”

“Well, at least we don’t have to worry about getting hurt. We can use Raising Heart’s training system… I think.” Twilight glanced down at the pendant around her neck. “Right, Raising Heart?”

“YES, MY MASTER. TRAINING SYSTEM OKAY.”

“I’m surprised Yuuno had such a high-grade Device. An intelligent weapon-handling Device with onboard training systems and spell memory. Not exactly something an archeologist would be carrying around.”

“Well, he did say that he found it, so he probably didn’t know what it could do.” Twilight shrugged. “But anyway! Should we start practicing?”

“Give me a few minutes to shower and clean up first.”

---

Yuuno was a morning person by nature and habit; the earlier one got up, the quicker they could get to work, after all. However, there was something energizing about waking up in Equestria, something that simply put him in a good mood. He hummed cheerfully to himself as he pushed Sugarcube Corner’s front door open.

“Good morning, Mrs. Cake!”

“Oh, hello Yuuno dear!” Mrs. Cake giggled as she pushed a tray of pastries into the display case. “How’re you doing this morning?”

“Alright. I’m just here to pick up some breakfast for everyone at the library. Are those bagels?” Yuuno crouched slightly.

“Mhmm! Freshly baked, too. Plain, cinnamon and poppy seed. Want some?”

“I think so. Three each should do it.”

“Of course dear. I’ll get them bagged up for you.” The pastel blue mare pulled the tray back out. “Say dear, I did want to ask you something.”

“Sure.”

“Pinkie was excited about humans coming here to meet the Princesses and such.” Mrs. Cake dropped the bagels into the bag one by one as she talked. “Is that really happening today?”

“I’d imagine so. I really don’t know much to be honest.”

“These humans, are they pleasant?”

“From what I’ve seen, yes. Nothing to worry about Mrs. Cake, really.”

“Oh, that’s good!” She set the bag on the counter. “Six bits, please. Do you know if the Princesses are coming here to meet them?”

“Probably.” Yuuno counted out the gold coins and stacked them before the baker. “They’re probably trying to keep it a little low key though. Don’t want everypony to worry.”

“I suppose. But with all the hubbub happening these days, everypony’s a little nervous. You know, lights in the sky, the fountain statue getting all smashed up, so on and so forth.”

“Twilight and her friends are on the case. So far, we’ve got everything pretty much handled.”

“Well, that’s a relief.” Mrs. Cake exhaled. “Thank you for stopping by!”

“You’re welcome.” Yuuno tucked the bag under his arm, nodding to the gray pegasus with a blonde mane that was entering the door before stepping outside.

Such a pleasant little place… Yuuno inhaled deeply as he walked, his cloak fluttering behind him as he walked. He waved to an earth pony tending her carrot garden as he passed, receiving a wave in return. I think I could get to like this. Even with the threat of the Jewel Seeds hanging over everything, every pony here seems to go about their daily lives, generally being nice to each other.

All the more reason to resolve the Jewel Seed problem as quickly as possible. Yuuno dug into the bag, pulling out a cinnamon bagel and biting into it. If nothing else, having regular meals and a warm bed to sleep after being out in the wilderness was a definite plus. I’ll have to think of some way to pay Twilight back for her hospitality.

---

Fate stirred slowly. She was warm and comfortable, and didn’t really feel like getting up.

At least until her eyelids went orange as light fell on her. She opened her eyes, squinting slightly at the sunlight. A middle-aged pale pink unicorn in a white and purple servant’s uniform had opened the dark drapes to allow the sunlight in, then looked back at her.

“Sorry to wake you ma’am, but her majesty requested that I get you.” The servant walked over to her, gingerly pulling the covers off of her.

Fate winced, looking at her surroundings. Everything seemed much less gloomy and ominous in the daylight, but also lacked the strange luster the darkness gave it: the constellations above were faint glittering patterns in the vaulted ceiling, and the dark walls were simply painted rather than pools of midnight color. She climbed out of the bed, the older unicorn standing over her.

“Her majesty wishes for you to join her and her sister for breakfast this morning, at your earliest convenience. If you’d please follow me so we can get you cleaned up?”

“Cleaned up?”

“Yes.” The unicorn gestured to her long mane and tail. ”Her majesty insisted on it. So please, Miss Fate, follow me.”

Fate didn’t reply, electing to follow the unicorn out of the room and down the hall. Without the hair ribbons of her Barrier Jacket, her mane pooled about her hooves, and her tail trailed behind her. She started to call her Barrier Jacket into being, but paused.

It’d be best to play along for now. Fate glanced around as she walked down the well-lit hall, sunlight pouring in from the many windows that decorated the walls. Just for the time being.

“Here we are. Right inside, Miss.” The servent pused open a pair of glittering doors, admitting Fate into a rather large bathroom. The tile under her hooves glittered as a large bathtub released thin trails of steam, hints of moisture clinging to the marble walls and gleaming bronze and gold decorations. A pair of young mares were waiting for her, one mint green with a fluffy white mane and an image of what looked like white foam on her flank, the other pale blue with a white and navy streaked mane and a bright yellow duck on her flank. “Let the attendants take care of you. I’ll return once everything’s taken care of. Be gentle with this one girls.”

“Yes, Mrs. Spring!” The pair said in unison as they approached Fate. “Right this way,” the light blue one chirped, “and we’ll get you all cleaned up and pretty in no time at all!”

Fate followed their instructions mechanically at first, letting the two attendants lead her over to the tub and settling her in. Then the pampering started. The hot water felt incredible; Fate started to relax, barely paying attention as the two mares chattered away, complementing her appearance.

“Such a lovely mane you have, Miss,” the green one noted, her hooves pressing into Fate’s scalp. “Don’t you think so, Duckie?”

“Yeah,” her compatriot replied. “She’s quite a lucky filly. If I grew mine out this long, I’d have so many split ends it‘d be a crime. Pass me the soap, Lather.”

Do they really have to go on like this? Fate sighed, trying to tune out the chattering, her eyes closing. Despite the constant noise, she felt herself drift. It was nice having a hot bath; during her stay in the forest, she’d bathed in a nearby river to keep clean. The shampoo and soap smelled nice too, slightly floral...

What’s the reason, though? If I’m being kept a prisoner, then why treat me like this? She inhaled and shut her eyes when they asked her to duck under the water. Unless the princesses want my guard down.

Fate remained quiet, even as she climbed out of the bath tub and let the two mares towel her off with large, fluffy white towels. The pair continued working her over, combing out her long mane and tail, tugging out a dozen tiny snags and tangles that hid in the long lengths of golden hair.

“Miss?”

“Huh?” Fate blinked, turning to look at the speaker.

“Do you want your hair tied up?” Duckie smiled. “Maybe a nice braid?”

“Pig tails, please…” Fate murmured, letting the pair resume their work. It didn’t take long for the mares to finish. She nodded again as they presented her with a mirror, looking at each-other nervously at Fate’s continued silence. The pair seemed grateful when Mrs. Spring returned to collect her.

“Something on your mind, Miss?” Spring said to her as she led the her along.

“Just…at a loss for words.”

“Ah. That’s understandable,” Spring chuckled. “A lot of ponies have trouble around here. The princesses can be a bit overwhelming.”

That’s putting it lightly. Fate thought as she replied, “I’m just not sure what they want.”

“No need to worry about what they want dear. You’re their guest; they don’t extend that honor to just anypony you know. Not to mention breakfast with them. You’re a lucky filly.”

“Lucky?” Fate looked at the older mare.

“Of course! You act like you’re in trouble or something, dear. No need to fret. They’re quite impressive, but the royal sisters are quite friendly. No, come along. No dawdling.”

Fate sighed softly as she was led along, soon approaching a large pair of double doors. Mrs. Spring nodded as the doors open, allowing Fate entrance.

The room she walked into was hardly spacious: much of the room was taken up by a circular table that dominated the space, the polished wood gleaming under sunlight from the skylight above. Elaborate bas-reliefs covered the ceiling, depicting pegasi in flight over fields of unicorns and earth ponies The table itself was laden with a small feast of fruits, pastries, and other things that Fate couldn’t recognize at first.

Her attention, however, was drawn to the two ponies seated at the table. The first she recognized as Princess Luna from last night. The other was likely her sister, Princess Celestia. The sun princess was smiling at her playfully, her aurora borealis mane fluttering in an unseen wind about her long, tapered horn and whitish-pink coat. Her rose-colored eyes were gentle, if a little bit curious. She seemed to lack the sheer presence of her sister; either that, or was suppressing it for Fate’s benefit.

“It’s good to finally meet you face to face, Fate.” Celestia spoke, the voice exactly like the one from the darkness before. “Why don’t you have a seat? I’m sure you’re rather hungry.”

Fate approached and plopped down, the three ponies making a rough triangle around the table.

“Go ahead, help yourself. I hope you don’t mind if I started eating already.” Celestia smiled, taking a bite of the partially-eaten banana hovering before her.

“Please, do forgive her.” Luna sniffed as she stirred a spoon in the bowl of oatmeal before her. “My sister, as usual, possesses decidedly lax table manners.”

“Only when we’re alone, dear sister.” Celestia stuck out her tongue. “After all, I have to have some release from protocol. I keep telling you that you need to loosen up some, Luna.”

“This is me ‘loosened up,’ sister. I simply abstain from giving into boundless hedonism like you seem to do.”

Celestia laughed at that. “Boundless hedonism? Really? You’re joking, right?”

“Certainly not!”

Fate made no comment as she pulled a few slices of buttered toast over, her horn glowing with magic. At least the pair of them were focusing on each other and not on her. She nibbled at her food quietly, watching the Princesses with extreme caution.

These two are the rulers of this land? Seriously? She munched on her toast. This has to be a ruse of some sort. Luna I could see, but Celestia? Is she some sort of socialite?

“Did you sleep well, Fate?”

Fate swallowed, feeling her mouth dry a little as Celestia addressed her. “Yes, I did.”

“Good. I’m glad to hear that.” The pale alicorn gave her a warm smile. “I imagine that this is all a bit intense for you right now.”

What do you want from me? Fate set her toast down, staring at Celestia. “It is. Thank you for your hospitality, both of you. But I’m not sure I understand…”

“Why we’re being so nice to you?” Celestia took a sip from her teacup as Fate swallowed in fear. “I’m surprised Fate. Given all you’ve seen, you’re still suspicious of my little ponies.”

“I did tell you, sister.” Luna shook her head.

“I know. So, Fate. Why is it you’re suspicious of us, even though we haven’t given you any cause?”

“It’s not that I’m not grateful, really,” Fate countered. “It’s just that… that…”

“That?”

“…that I,” Fate frowned in concentration, trying to come up with some sort of explanation.

“This is why I suggested we do this slowly, Luna.” Celestia glanced over at her fellow princess. “The poor dear’s confused as it is.”

“Circumstances forced my hoof, dear sister. I doubt your plans will be sorely compromised.”

“Not my plans, my timetable. Let me guess,” Celestia turned back to Fate. “You can’t come up with a particular reason why you should be suspicious?”

Fate nodded slowly. “Not really… a-aside from getting in the way of my mission, everyone here has been….nice.”

“Indeed. Nice. It would have been much less stressful if you’d just asked for help. A lot of pain could have been avoided.” Celestia smiled gently over her tea cup. “Don’t you agree?”

“Maybe.” Fate conceded. “But that’s how I do things; just me. Alone. With… with Arf.” Fate nudged the half-eaten piece of toast with one hoof. “That’s how it’s supposed to be.”

“And who said that’s how it’s supposed to be?”

Fate tensed up. “Mother.”

“I see.”

Fate narrowed her eyes as Celestia plucked another banana from the fruit bowl, calmly peeling it.

“Mother wants me to be strong. Someone like me should be able to stand on her own.” Fate said defensively. “And if that’s what Mother wants, then I’ll do it…”

“Your devotion is admirable, considering what you’ve gone through.” Celestia took a bite out of the banana.

“She’s my mother. If doing what she wants will make her happy, will make her smile, then that‘s what I‘ll do. No matter what happens. Is that so wrong?!”

“I didn’t say anything about it being wrong. You don’t need to justify your actions to me, Fate.” Celestia swallowed the bit of banana. “Unless I’m not the one you’re trying to convince.”

“I’m not… I don’t need to convince anyone!”

“Are you so sure? If that’s so, then why are you so insistent?”

“So that’s your plan!” Fate rose, putting her hooves on the table, her anger rising. “You’re…you’re trying to convince me to abandon my mission, abandon my mother…”

“Lower your tone, child of lightning.” Luna growled threateningly.

“It’s alright Luna.” Celestia rose from her seat and walked around the table. “She’s got every right to be angry. I won’t deny your accusation, Fate.” The sun princess loomed over Fate, her flowing mane fluttering before her as she walked. “But let me ask you something; if it wasn’t your mother ordering you to do everything, would you still be acting as you do?”

Fate opened her mouth to respond, then paused. “I…I don’t think so? What‘re you-”

“If you didn’t feel obligated to do as your mother asks, would you have gone it alone, with only your familiar by your side? Or would you have done things differently?”

“I… I don’t know.” Fate’s head started to hurt.

“Sister…” Luna rose from her seat.

“If anyone other than your mother,” Celestia continued on as her mane drifted over Fate’s withers, touching the grooves of the scars that marked her back, “had hurt you, would you have let them? Or would you have stood up to them?”

“I…I…” Fate wilted, her hooves going to her head. She felt dizzy. The world seemed to wobble as she fell forwards, coming to rest against the soft, furry chest of the sun princess, the scent of her coat filling her nostrils.

“I think that’s enough for today.” There was a rustle of feathers as Celestia’s wings folded around her.

“Really sister? Did you feel it necessary to completely upend her world-view this early in the day?” Luna sounded irritated.

“I had expected to do this much slower.” Celestia snorted. Fate felt her nuzzle her hair. “However, the opportunity presented itself, so I took it. Fate? Are you alright?”

“Hnnngh…” Fate shut her eyes tight. Her head was pounding. “What…what did you do to me?”

“Nothing. And that’s the curious thing. I simply asked the necessary questions. Questions, it seems, that you didn’t want to think about, much less consider.”

“No…has to be some sort of spell…drug…my head hurts…Mother, mother help me…” Fate sobbed, pressing closer to Celestia. “My name’s Fate mother, not Alicia… please, smile for me…Mother…Why won't you...”

“Shhh… shhh, it’s alright dear.” Celestia cradled the filly gently, sitting down as Fate sobbed into her chest. “Just let it out.”

Fate felt like her head was about to explode. She felt like she wanted to throw up. Her entire body seized up as she shuddered. Her vision swam, but for some reason, her hearing was unaffected.

“Sister, what’s happening to her?” Luna sounded slightly alarmed.

“Something necessary. I felt it when I looked into her heart. Her psyche was on a very precarious edge; a single shock would have likely shattered her utterly. I simply tipped her over early, but gently. It‘s likely she‘s never asked herself those questions until now.”

“So, you thought the most appropriate measure was to go ahead and break her?” Luna snapped.

“It would have happened sooner or later. At least with her here, we can pick up the pieces, metaphorically speaking.”

“I see.”

“And that’s not the only thing, sister. I don’t think she came by this naturally.” Celestia’s tone hardened. “Someone had to set it up. A careful psychological balancing act, establishing loyalty even in the face of abuse. Someone made her like this.”

Luna hissed. “Fiendish. What happens now?”

“We keep an eye on her until she recovers.”

“And the diplomatic meeting with the humans? That‘s only a few hours hence.”

“I’ll attend. Would you mind keeping watch over her while I’m occupied?”

“I’ve little skill in such matters, but I’ll do as well as I can manage, sister.”

Fate whimpered, pressing closer. Celestia cooed softly in her ear, holding her close.

“There there, Fate. It’s okay. I’m here.”

---

“They’re doing something weird.”

Yuuno blinked at Spike as he stood in the open door. The dragon looked slightly peeved, his nostrils flaring slightly.

“Uh…who’s doing something weird?”

“Twilight and Chrono. Come see.”

Yuuno followed after the dragon, who led him into the library-cum-bedroom where Twilight usually slept. Twilight and Chrono were seated across from each, eyes locked as Raising Heart pulsed with light.

“Interesting.”

“See? Weird.” Spike waved a hand between the two of them. “It’s like they’re not even there. Twilight gets like this when she does the whole psychic training thing, but…”

“Maybe Chrono’s in there with her. Maybe we should let them know breakfast is here?” Yuuno crouched down, looking between Twilight and Chrono as he handed the bag to Spike.

“Oooh! Bagels! I‘ll get the butter.”

“You do that. Raising Heart?” He glanced down at the glowing Device. “Permission to enter training program?”

There was a soft chime in reply, and Yuuno settled down, closing his eyes and extending a telepathic channel to the Device.

The world was decidedly different when he opened his eyes again; a glittering white void filled with hovering spell formulas.

And then an explosion went off not ten feet away from him, causing him to cringe and look upwards. Chrono and Twilight, clad in their Barrier Jackets and with Devices active, streaked and swirled through the psychic construct, trading spells as they flew.

DIVINE SHOOTER! Twilight ‘called’ out, bolts of magical force lancing out towards Chrono.

SNIPE SHOT! Chrono flicked his wrist as a thin blue ray of light streaked down, darting in a zig-zag pattern as it did so. The shot leapt from pink bolt to pink bolt, smashing through them on its way towards Twilight. The unicorn managed, barely, to raise a shield in time to block the incoming spell, but the thin ray bounced off the shield, arcing outward to come in for a second pass. Each time Twilight blocked, the shot simply rebounded off the shield like a mongoose, pouncing at Twilight from every angle.

Not this again! Twilight groaned as she warped out, the shot zipping through her previous position before curing upwards, turning into a whirling spiral of energy above the fray.

I trapped you once again, Miss Sparkle. Chrono snapped his fingers, the spiral of blue light dissolving. Spells like Stinger Snipe are designed to harass opponents and pin them down. Remember, you stop moving…

And you stop living. I know. Twilight huffed, crossing her arms. I just can’t figure out how to counter it effectively except for teleporting away. It’s too powerful for Counter Shot to intercept, and too fast for me to escape from with flight.

I’m sure a clever mage like yourself can figure out the solution. Chrono smirked.

Um, excuse me! Yuuno sent his own little thought message out. I hate to interrupt, but I’ve got breakfast.

Oh! Hello Yuuno! Just one second… Twilight winked out of existence, soon followed by Chrono.

Yuuno blinked as the training zone vanished, leaving him back in the real world. Twilight was busily rubbing her eyes. “Ugh, remind me to close my eyes when I do that.”

“Oh, don’t worry.” Spike replied as he popped the last bit of a poppy seed bagel into his mouth. “I will. That looks really creepy Twilight, you just staring into space, drooling.”

“I was not drooling!”

Yuuno grinned. “Well, you were a little slack-jawed…”

Twilight squeaked, a hoof going to her chin. “I was?”

“No, I‘m just teasing.”

“Ugh! If you hadn’t gotten us breakfast Yuuno, I’d so step on your toes.” Twilight snorted.

“You’d try.” Yuuno teased, then recoiled as Spike let out a ferocious belch, a plume of smoke and green flame curling upwards before coalescing into a scroll with a loud popping noise.

“That’d be the Princess.” Twilight pulled the scroll over even as Chrono leaned over, biting into a plain bagel as she unrolled it. “Looks like she’s going to be here around noon, without Princess Luna. I wonder what this ‘other business’ is about.”

“Probably something important. They do have a government to run and everything.” Spike noted.

“I’ll notify the captain, then. Also, there’s something else I should have asked.”

“What?” Twilight rubbed her eyes again.

“I don’t suppose your friend Fluttershy would mind keeping an eye on Arf while we’re here.”

“Are you sure that’s a good idea?” Spike tilted his head, his arms crossing. “I mean, Arf wasn’t exactly friendly last time we saw her.”

“Things are different, Spike. I don’t think she’s against us now. At least, I hope not.” Twilight glanced at Chrono. “I’ll ask Fluttershy when I go to get her for the meeting. If I’m correct on what you’re thinking, Arf would do well with being around Fluttershy. If nothing else, she could do with some tender loving care.”

“Assuming she doesn’t bolt off to go looking for Fate.”

“That’s an issue, Spike. However, I don’t think she would. Fate broke ties with Arf, and she’s still feeling the sting from that. I doubt she’d go hunting for Fate, even though that’d help our cause.” Chrono exhaled. “Right now, Arf is hurting. Trauma doesn’t heal when you’re in a stressful environment. What Arf needs is someone to care for her and give her some love, not be locked up.”

“Just saying, that’s all.” Spike shrugged as Twilight plucked a bagel out of the bag and took a bite.

“Let’s just focus on getting ready for the meeting with the Princess for now.” Twilight swallowed, pointing the bagel at Chrono. “I just hope your mother and the Princess can come to some sort of agreement.”

“I’m sure the captain will be more than happy to deal with her majesty.”

---

“Right this way, Miss Arf.”

Lindy waved the familiar over, frowning at the wolf-girl’s disheveled state. Amy shifted uncomfortably as she waved off the Enforcers flanking the familiar. “Thank you gentlemen, that’ll be all.”

The pair of Enforcers nodded, stepping out of the transit room, leaving Lindy, Amy and Arf alone.

“Feeling any better, Miss Arf?” Lindy approached the wolf girl cautiously.

“Not really. Let me guess,” Arf peeked at Lindy under her untamed mane of orange hair, “this is about an alternative housing for me or something?”

“Yes. You’ll be staying with one of the ponies involved in the incident. I should remind you that we’re doing this on good faith. So please, be on your best behavior, alright?” Lindy smiled, clasping her hands before her.

“I’ll try.”

“Thank you.” Lindy flexed her fingers as she looked up. “Transit room to bridge, three to teleport to surface.”

“Acknowledged,” came the reply. “I have the gate open now. Transit when ready.”

“Alright Amy, Hazard Shields online.”

Amy nodded, tapping a button on the small collar she was wearing, just underneath the collar of her shirt. Lindy followed suit, then swung a hand outwards, initiating the spell. The world faded into a wash of blue-white light before the three reappeared in the town hall once again. Everything had been cleaned up from the party the day before, the open space now decorated with hanging banners depicting what Lindy assumed was the Equestrian seal; a golden sunburst surrounding a blue crescent moon. The floor had a series of cushions set out in a roughly circular pattern, the largest of which was set at the top-most position, just below one of the banners.

“It seems we’re early, yet a-” Lindy paused as the door swung open, admitting Twilight Sparkle and her associates, including Yuuno and Chrono.

“Ah! Miss Sparkle! Good morning!” Lindy smiled cheerfully.

“Good morning to you as well, Captain, Miss Limietta. Hello Arf.”

“Arf, if you wouldn’t mind coming forward? I think someone wants to meet you.”

Lindy stepped aside as the familiar took a few steps forward, only to be met by Fluttershy part-way. The pegasus reached a hoof up, stroking her hair.

“Oh you poor thing,” Fluttershy cooed softly. “It’s alright. Why don’t you come with me for right now?”

Arf let out a soft whine, but complied, letting the fluttering pony lead her out of the building.

“That turned out rather well. I actually expected her to put up a bit of a fight.” Chrono rubbed his chin as the door shut behind the pair. “Do you think she can handle her?”

“I’m sure she’ll be fine. Arf may look like a human, but she’s an animal at heart.” Twilight nodded. “And Fluttershy, for all her shyness, is very, very good at handling animals.”

“That gal could make ah manticore sit an’ roll over. Ah think she can handle ah wolf.” Applejack chuckled.

“If you say so…”

“I’m still a little mad that you wouldn’t let me set up a party for the Princess, Twilight.” Pinkie pouted at her friend. “It just doesn’t feel right, her being here and not having a party ready to go.”

Twilight groaned. “We’ve been over this Pinkie; this occasion is a bit serious. So the less distractions, the better.”

“If it’s any consolation, Pinkie Pie,” Amy giggled, “I did have fun at your party last night.”

“You did?” Pinkie turned to the human, bounding over to her cheerfully.

“Uh-huh.”

“Yay!” Pinkie giggled as she bounced up into Amy’s arms, much to Lindy’s amusement.

At least Amy’s enjoying herself. Can’t say I blame her; they are awfully adorable. Lindy exhaled and looked at Twilight. “So, when did your Princess say she would be arriving?”

“Princess Celestia said she should be arriving around noon.”

“I should tell you, Captain,” Yuuno piped up, “Her Majesty is a bit impressive. I’d brace yourself.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.” Lindy paused, glancing down as she felt the room grow warmer, her shadow lengthening. She turned as a glowing sphere of sunlight entered the room, landing before them before expanding outwards with the sound of fluttering wings. A great white winged unicorn stood in the sphere’s place, flanked by a pair of gold-armored unicorn guards with gray coats. Butterflies fluttered in Lindy’s stomach as the majestic creature stepped forwards, sunlight glinting off her golden regalia as her wings folded to her sides.

Yuuno wasn’t joking, Lindy thought to herself as she felt her knees wobble. Some instinctual part of me wants to kneel down before her, to acknowledge her as my sovereign. How can something have this much power?

“Presenting Her Benevolent Majesty,” the guards at her sides heralded. “Diarch of the Sun, Bringer of Day and Divine Custodian of the Realm of Equestria, Princess Celestia.”

The Princess blushed slightly. “I think that’s enough my dears. Please take your posts.”

The two unicorns saluted and trotted away, circling around the assembled ponies and humans to take up positions flanking the door.

“Do forgive my entrance,” Celestia closed her eyes, her aura of majesty receding, “but decorum does necessitate a bit of drama. Welcome, friends from distant worlds.”

Lindy inhaled and bowed deeply. “It’s an honor to finally meet you, your majesty.”

“The feeling is mutual. Please, have a seat everyone.” Celestia took a seat at the head of the ring, her mane fluttering gently as she did so. “We have a lot to discuss today.”

“Indeed. I’d like introduce my subordinates; my intelligence officer Miss Amy Limietta, and my chief Enforcer Chrono Harlaown.”

Chrono nodded stiffly, still looking rather over-awed. Amy, meanwhile, looked positively star-struck. It took a gentle nudge from Lindy to get her to react.

Celestia smiled quietly. “It seems I've had something of an effect on your subordinates. I sometimes forget that not everyone is used to my presence.” She turned to look at Chrono. “Have you been enjoying your stay here, Chrono?”

“Yes, your majesty.”

“Celestia,” the alicorn replied. “Or Princess, if you prefer. And I’m glad that you’re comfortable. I see my student has been treating you and Yuuno well.”

That elicited a bashful smile from Twilight.

“Now, I think it’d be best if we begin.” Celestia sat down fully, her legs tucked underneath her. “I’m sure that we can come to a temporary agreement, given the current situation.”

“I’m sure we can too, Princess.” Lindy rested her hands on her knees as Amy pulled out a small recording device.

---

Meanwhile, deep in the Everfree Forest, something was stirring.

Several rivers ran through the forest, most of them inhabited only by fish or the occasional snake. One, however, was inhabited by a very distinctive creature.

“Oh, where is that little darling? I do hope nothing terrible happened to her.”

The long-bodied purple river serpent lounged against one bank of his river, gently rolling a pebble back and forth between his fingers, his lower lip tucked between his teeth.

He paused as he heard hoof beats approach, a familiar cloaked figure emerging from the forest near his river. “Oh, thank goodness! I had hoped you’d be here soon.”

Zecora pulled her hood back, shaking out her mane. “I apologize sir, for my delay. Much trouble I’ve had, I’m sad to say.”

“Oh you poor dear. It’s no trouble at all, really.” The serpent leaned down, resting his chin on the ground before Zecora. “Did you bring the…um…special item, I requested?”

“I do indeed, have you no doubt, else I’d have not come this far out.” Zecora reached into her saddlebag, producing a rather large gourd with a heavy wax stopper. “A mixture potent, I should say. This your prospect’d certainly sway.”

“Oh you are a doll, an absolute miracle worker, my marvelous striped friend!” The serpent cooed, plucking the gourd from where Zecora laid it, bringing the cork to his nostrils and sniffing before swooning. “Spec-TAC-ular! With a dab of this on my coif, the ladies will simply fawn over me.”

“I’m glad that my work has you satisfied,” Zecora tapped a hoof on the ground, “now your payment, as it was specified.”

“Gladly darling.” The serpent dipped his hand into the water and produced a dozen gleaming purple scales. “Freshly shed and still flexible. Though I do wonder what you do with these silly things.”

“These bright scales of yours are needed, see, for their hydrophobic property. Useful they are for cloth treatment, on clothes worn when the rain is sent.

“Oh, the things sacrificed for vanity.” The serpent swooned “But should this stuff work, I might finally fulfill me wish, to find a mate as faaaabulous as I am! Wait…”

The serpent turned as the water began to glow. Zecora took a step back as well. “What sort of sorcery could this be now? The water’s glowing, but I know not how!”

“Oh my!” The serpent recoiled as three beams of light sprang upwards from the riverbed, pulling the water upwards with them.

---

“…as it stands, the Bureau has no actual legal standing here in Equestria, and I doubt that after being independent for so long that my government will accept being subordinate to an outside authority.”

Twilight watched silently as Lindy and the Princess talked. Even as the Princess’s personal student, Twilight rarely got to see her mentor at work in the political arena.

If Lindy was nervous, she was doing a good job of hiding it. “What we’re proposing isn’t a direct assumption of authority. While the TSAB does act to monitor cultural growth in certain dimensions, the current status of Equestrian society is well establish and likely doesn’t necessitate intervention. Perhaps an alliance would be preferable? After all, there’s a great deal we can share between our respective societies.”

“Indeed,” Celestia crossed her forelimbs, fixing Lindy with her gaze, “it would also necessitate Equestria becoming involved in the Bureau’s business. Why should we be pulled into problems we don’t need to be involved in?”

“Isolationism never helped anyone.” Lindy leaned in, eyes narrowed.

“In this case, I think it’s something of a necessity,” Celestia replied placidly. “This is, after all, a completely new incident, previously unrecorded in the history of Equestria. You’ll forgive me for being a bit cautious.”

A spike of ice shot down Twilight’s back, instantly yanking her attention away from the debate. She snapped to her feet, eyes wide, even as Yuuno shot her a look of panic.

“You felt it too?”

Twilight nodded. “Jewel Seeds. Probably several of them. It’s stronger this time…”

Chrono rose to his feet. “My apologies your majesty, Captain, but it seems-”

“That there’s an emergency,” Celestia interrupted. “Twilight, you and your friends have my leave to capture the Jewel Seeds.”

“Chrono, would you mind accompanying them and assisting if necessary, with your permission of course, Princess?”

“I don’t see why not.”

“Finally!” Rainbow Dash groaned, stretching her wings. “I was starting to get bored… what?” She blinked at the glares she was getting from Applejack and Rarity.

“Come on girls, let’s get a move on!” Twilight turned, rushing towards the door. “Yuuno, do you think you can transport us to the scene?”

“I’m sure, I’d just need…”

“I’ll have the Arthra provide us with coordinates.” Chrono quickly followed. “We’ll have to act fast on this one.”

“Hey, wait up for us!” Pinkie shouted out as they gaggle of ponies and humans disappeared out the door of the town hall.

---

Celestia smiled as the group left, turning her attention back to Lindy. “I was hoping something like that would have happened.”

Lindy arched an eyebrow. “Really?”

“Oh yes. I figured I would have had to move the meeting to someplace more private so we could really talk. Gentlecolts,” Celestia glanced over to her guards, “would you mind stepping outside and making sure nopony disturbs us?”

The guards nodded, then filed out the doors, shutting them behind them.

“I don’t get it.” Amy glanced over to Celestia. “We weren’t talking before?”

“You were putting on a show, weren’t you?” Lindy smiled slightly. “For your student and the others, I mean.”

“Maybe just a little,” Celestia giggled.

“I see.” Lindy shifted, sitting cross-legged instead of resting on her shins. “so, Princess, what’s your real agenda here?”

“I simply want my little ponies to grow and flourish happily and in peace. Let’s be square with each other, Lindy. We both know that, despite making first contact, so to speak, you lack the diplomatic authorization to make proper deals with us on a governmental level.” Celestia smiled playfully, resting her chin on one hoof.

“You’re correct on that regard. However, I’m willing to act as a go-between.” Lindy returned the smile.

“I’m sure you would. So, when you do contact your superiors about our little world, I’d appreciate it if you’d make it rather glowing.”

“Any specific reason?”

Celestia’s smile grew a little wider, her eyelids lowering. “Sie sind nicht mit die ersten Menchen, die wir beschäftigt haben. Wir haben das Belka vor, besonders das Haus von Segbrecht beschäftigt,”** Celestia replied, the words rolling off her tongue easily.

Lindy’s face went pale. “You…you speak Ancient Belkan…”

“I do. My sister and I have lived long enough to see that civilization rise, flourish and die. I’m sure that such knowledge will buy plenty of respect with the Bureau, would it not?”

“I...” Lindy swallowed. “I think it would, yes.”

If nothing else, the Saint Church is going to have a field day with this, she added mentally.

“I’m glad to see we understand each other. Now, why don’t we discuss something more pleasant?”

---

There was a thunderclap as Twilight and her friends arrived in the forest, the green energy of Yuuno’s transporter spell fading rapidly. Twilight shook her head to clear her eyes, then snapped her head up and stared. “There it is!”

The location was familiar; it was the river they had crossed en route to the ancient castle of the sisters. However, the river seemed to have taken a life of its own; the water had flowed upwards, taking on a faintly scaly appearance. The pillar of fluid terminated in a vaguely serpentine head with long, flowing tendrils on either side, its ‘eyes’ glowing a bright blue.

That wasn’t the worst part. The water creature was entwined with a familiar looking purple serpent, and Zecora was held tightly in one of its face tendrils, beating futilely at the bond that held her.

“Oh no! Zecora!”

“How dare those jewels attack such fabulousness!?” Rarity screeched.

“The defense system must have captured them when the Seeds activated.” Yuuno shielded his eyes as he studied the massive, watery creature.

“That’s not a defense system.” Chrono drew out his Device in standby form.

“It’s not?!” Yuuno stared at Chrono. “Then what-”

“Wishes. That’s the purpose of the Seeds. According to the old records, the Jewel Seeds were designed to satisfy the desires of whoever controlled them…”

“And you neglected to tell us this why!?”

“I thought you knew.” Chrono sighed.

“Boys, we can talk about this later!” Twilight drew Raising Heart up from her neck. “Raising Heart, set up!”

“Come on! S2U!”

“STANDBY, READY. SET UP!”

“YES BOSS, SET UP!”

Light bloomed upwards as the Devices assembled themselves, Twilight’s Barrier Jacket forming around her. Twilight turned towards Rainbow Dash as the protective sphere that accompanied the transformation faded.

“Rainbow, I need you to fly up and grab ahold of Zecora! Yuuno! I need you to stay on the defense. Chrono, you and me are going to try to get that thing’s attention so we can rescue the hostages.”

“Finally, some action. You can count on me, Twi!” Rainbow crouched and leapt up into the sky like a seven-colored blur. Twilight and Chrono took to the air soon after, flying up the length of the monster’s body.

“Twilight, can you handle capturing that snake thing? I think I have an appropriate spell to make it loosen up.”

“I think so. Twilight brought Raising Heart forwards as Chrono spun his staff, darting down and landing against the scaly, watery surface, S2U chiming as the hard, sharp tip at its lower end began to glow.

“Break Impulse!” Chrono drove the spike at S2U’s bottom into the surface he was standing on. Blue light blasted into the serpent’s body, causing it to ripple violently and roar, the scales wobbling from solid to liquid.

“Raising Heart, Motion Bind!”

“MOTION BIND!”

Twilight swung the staff towards the river serpent as pink rings snapped around his body. As they closed, small wings flickered into existence much like Twilight’s Flier Fin spell, pulling the serpent outwards and upstream. “Rainbow! Get Zecora!”

“Done and done!” Rainbow grinned as she fluttered past Twilight, the zebra groaning as she was hauled along. Twilight grimaced as the serpent landed with a loud splash further up stream with a loud squalling cry, but her attention wasn’t on him. It was on the very large, very angry water thing glaring down at her. The watery scales snapped back into solidity as Chrono darted away, his staff raised in defense.

“I think we might have made it angry.” Chrono deadpanned.

“What gave you that idea?”

“Look out!”

Raising Heart’s auto-protection system engaged just in time to intercept a stream of water from the serpent’s mouth. The pressure of the blast pressed against Twilight’s defenses, pushing her rapidly backwards until she landed on the ground with a bounce.

“Twilight!” A green spell circle flared before her as Yuuno blocked the remainder of the stream. “Are you alright?”

‘Yeah, I’m fine.” The purple unicorn pushed herself back to her feet, then looked upwards. “Where are the others?”

“They’re back in the forest with Zecora, I-”

“Yuuno! Above us!”

A second circle sprang up as a length of solidified water about the size of a small house slammed down, the hardened liquid pressing against it. The water serpent hissed as it raised its tail up again, slamming it down a second time against Yuuno’s barrier. The young man winced, his arms held high as he defended against the attack.

“Go Twilight… I got this!”

“No, just hold your position…” Twilight brought Raising Heart up. “This is a perfect shot. Point blank! Raising Heart! Shooting Mode!”

“SHOOTING MODE, SET UP!” The Device chimed as the golden ring dissolved, re-forming into its tuning-fork shaped Shooting Mode. Firing loops took shape as its wings unfurled, a ball of magical force forming before it as Twilight aimed at the tail.

“Divine Buster, FIRE!” Twilight clenched her teeth as Raising Heart fired, the pink blast slamming into the creature’s scales. Sparks sprayed violently and the earth shook. The spell ground against the serpent’s scales, sending out crackling sprays of residual magic energy until finally, the spell broke through. There was a violent hiss as water was flash-evaporated, right before the Bombardment spell blasted through the other end, the beam dissipating as it vanished into the sky.

Only for the serpent’s tail to rapidly reform.

“It didn’t work!?” Twilight squeaked as the beast slammed its tail down again, a loud keening roar coming from the monster. Yuuno winced, his shield still holding despite the pressure.

“Yuuno, hold on! I’m going to try to lure it away!”

“That’d be nice!”

Twilight took to the air, darting upwards as the serpent turned to follow her with its gaze. It hissed again and opened its mouth, firing another hyper-velocity stream of water as Twilight darted upwards, the stream only barely missing her as she swerved and banked.

Chrono, she threw out telepathically, are you alright?! Where are you?

“Above you!” Sure enough, Chrono was high in the sky, huffing softly. Twilight flew up to meet him, hovering beside him as her Flier Fin wings flapped.

“The Divine Buster didn’t take.” Twilight exhaled as the serpent below hissed and snapped at them, the pair well out of range. “It just regenerated…”

“I think I know why. Look.” Chrono pointed downwards. Twilight’s eyes followed Chrono’s finger to the dry riverbed past the serpent’s body. Meanwhile, the area upstream swirled and frothed, fluid flowing into the creature's body.

“Oh… Oh! The serpent’s composed of water. Since this is a sizable river, it has plenty of fluid to draw from in order to heal itself.”

“Exactly. We need to find some way to cut it off from the water. That should weaken it enough that we can start causing damage and get at the Jewel Seeds. Only question is, how are we going to manage that?”

Twilight paused, looking at the water. “I have an idea. But I’m going to need some distractions to keep it off me.”

“Distractions like what?” A tomboyish voice questioned.

“Like Rain- Rainbow!?” Twilight spun around, staring at the cyan pegasus. “How did you get up here?”

“Wings. Duh.” Rainbow rolled her eyes. “You were saying something about distractions?”

“Yes. Chrono, could you and Rainbow keep that thing busy while I put my plan into motion?”

“I’m sure we can come up with something.” Chrono smirked, crossing his arms.

“Flying headlong into certain danger? Do you really need to ask, Twilight?”

“Good. I’ll leave the specifics up too you.” Twilight winked out, reappearing on the ground beside Yuuno. “Hey. Still holding out, Yuuno?”

“Doing just fine,” Yuuno grinned, panting softly even as he held his ready stance, “I can do this all day.”

“Good, because I’m going to need you to keep me safe while I work my magic. Think you can handle that?”

“It’s worked out well so far.”

“Good, because here comes Chrono and Rainbow.” She shielded her eyes as Rainbow Dash streaked downwards, darting around the serpent’s head so fast that only her rainbow-colored contrail was visible. The familiar blue line of Yuuno’s Stinger Snipe spell streaked through the air, contacting in rapid, staccato strikes along the body to further distract the beast. Raising Heart, how many Motion Binds can we handle at once?

Currently, you possess enough reserve mana to maintain thirteen active Motion Binds, my Master. The Device’s AI replied succinctly.

Alright. I want you to draw in all the remaining mana we can spare. We need to launch this thing into the air to get it out of the river. Can you do that?

It can be done, my Master. Trust in me.

“Alright Raising Heart, let’s do this!” Twilight clenched her teeth as her horn began to burn brightly, a Mid-Childan circle springing up around her feet.

“MOTION BIND!” Raising Heart announced as Twilight swept the staff upwards. There was a loud snapping noise as the first ring snapped around the serpent’s body, followed by a second, a third, a fourth, and so on as ten binds snapped into being. The serpent was to busy trying to blast the annoying rainbow tormenting it with its water jet to notice.

“Go…on…up!” Twiligh shouted, wiling power into the binds. Wings sprouted from each ring, flapping sharply as they began to pull. The serpent thrashed as its body began to rise, stretching and warping violently as the rings inexorably pulled the monster from its resting place.

“Come on…come onnnn…” Twilight hissed, craning her neck as she clenched her eyes. “Just…a little…more…”

She was soon rewarded with a deafening, wet snap and the sound of rushing water. Twilight opened one eye as the transparent serpent began to rise up into the air, flailing uselessly against the Motion Binds

“Yesss!” Twilight grinned even as she maintained her concentration.

“Nice work Twilight.” Chrono landed beside the concentrating unicorn. “Think you can handle the final blow?”

“Not… really.” Twilight huffed. “It’s all I can do to maintain the bands holding it. Why don’t you take the shot?”

Chrono blinked, then smirked. “I might as well.”

Twilight watched as Chrono swung S2U out to his side, grasping the staff just below its base as a blue circle formed around him. “Swift blades of magic, I command you to be drawn. Pierce my foe with your lethal bite,” the young mage intoned. At his command, blue sword blades began to manifest in mid-air around the three of them, first a dozen, then two, then three, then four, then five, each one surrounded by a small firing loop.

Impressive. Twilight thought to herself as Chrono grabbed his staff in both hands.

“Stinger Blade, Execution Shift!”

A second swing of the staff launched the blades upwards like a rain of shrapnel, the swords streaking up and burying themselves into the serpent’s scales. Water sprayed in great gouts from the wounds inflicted, but yet the serpent thrashed, its near-translucent body pulsing.

“I don’t think that was enough.” Twilight frowned. “Wait, where’s Rainbow?”

“I’m not sure. After you started pulling that thing out of the water, she flew off, said something about ‘getting enough speed.’”

Realization dawned in Twilight‘s eyes. “Oh no. Everyone, cover your ears. Yuuno, you might want to shield us.”

“What?” Yuuno blinked. “What fr-”

KAAABOOOOOOOOM!

Twilight covered her ears and clenched her eyes shut as a massive, prismatic shockwave exploded right on top of the thrashing serpent, the force of the Sonic Rainboom shattering the thing’s scaled form into a thousand pieces that turned into fluid mid-flight. A solid line with seven colors streaked away, curling upwards and snatching up three small glowing pinpricks of light before darting downwards, banking sharply on its way towards Twilight and her human companions.

“Ohhhhh YEAH!” Rainbow exulted as she skipped across the river and came to a skidding halt in front of Yuuno. “How was THAT for a grand finale?”

“What in the name of everything sacred was that?” Yuuno grimaced, rubbing his ears.

“A Sonic Rainboom.” Rainbow grinned. “I figured I might as well get in a good hit on the thing before Twilight blasted it to pieces.”

“Rainbow, that was…” Twilight began.

“Amazing.” Chrono interrupted, staring at the grinning pony. “I didn’t realize you had a trick like that up your sleeve. Consider me impressed.”

“Ooooh! I impressed the big bad Enforcer dude.” Rainbow smirked. “Want my autograph?”

“Nevermind that, did you get the Jewel Seeds?” Twilight raised her staff up.

“Yup! Got ‘em on my first pass.” Rainbow raised a hoof, revealing three glowing jewels with the numerals XIV, XV and XVI in bright red letters on their surface.

“Thank the sun.” Twilight exhaled, holding her staff over them as they were sealed. “Add three more to the collection. That leaves eight still unaccounted for.”

“Let’s go get the others and check in on how Zecora’s doing.” Yuuno dusted off his hands. “I think this calls for a celebration once we get back to town.”

---

Meanwhile, a good ways upstream, a purple sea serpent shook himself and crossed his arms as he lounged against the riverbed.

“If that’s the sort of lady I’ll attract,” he groused, rubbing his mis-matched mustache, “then forget it. I‘ll just stick to being a fabulous bachelor! Women. Feh!”



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