New Magic
Chapter 5
New Magic
It was around the middle of the day by the time Timber brought Twilight, Sunset, and Spike back to the team’s encampment at the hemlock outpost. As they arrived, they saw Rainbow Dash and Applejack were in the middle of a sparring match, both armed with a sword and a shield. Not far away, they also saw Rarity talking with a few Forestmen near one of the brick-built trees. Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie were nowhere to be found, but they were sure that those two couldn’t be too far away.
Now that they were back at camp, Timber turned to the group he had guided through the woods and said, “I’d better go find Gloriosa and see if she needs anything. See ya later.” He then waved goodbye as he walked off around the edge of the encampment.
Twilight couldn’t help but smile as she watched Timber walking away.
Meanwhile, Applejack and Rainbow Dash continued to clash their swords together as they sparred. They soon swung forward at the same time, resulting in them using their sword to hold back the opponent’s sword in a brief stalemate.
Sunset and Spike decided to approach the duo and watch their sparring match, with Twilight following not far behind. “So what are you guys up to?” asked Spike.
“What does it look like we’re doing?” asked Rainbow Dash rhetorically. She swung her sword around in a circle to free it from the mutual lock with her opponent’s sword and then took a step back. “We’re practicing our combat skills!”
Applejack also took a step back as she added, “Seein’ as we’re sure to find ourselves goin’ up against Trixie’s skeleton army, we figured we might as well train ourselves to be ready for anythin’ they might throw at us.” She then raised her sword and charged at Rainbow, who raised her shield to block the strike and then smacked the sword away with her own.
Spike turned to Sunset and remarked, “I bet Applejack will win this one. She’s one of the strongest girls I know, so if she can find the right opening and take advantage of it, she can beat Dash in only one hit.”
“I’m not so sure about that,” Sunset playfully retorted. “Rainbow Dash has some incredibly fast reflexes. She can dodge and block anything that comes her way, and if she times her moves just right, she can take down Applejack before she even realizes it.”
Spike grinned as he pulled out a green 1x2 tile with a $1 symbol printed on its smooth top surface. “Wanna bet money on that?” he quipped.
Sunset smirked as she pulled out an identical object and replied, “You’re on!”
With a bet going, they continued to watch the spar between Rainbow Dash and Applejack. Occasionally, Spike would cheer for Applejack, while Sunset would cheer for Rainbow Dash. As all of this was going on, Twilight just silently watched the whole thing. After all the worries she was having lately regarding magic, it was nice to see something that involved practically none of it.
After a few minutes, the dueling pair were once again locked in a brief stalemate with their swords clashed and pushing against each other. This time, Applejack made the next move by kicking Rainbow Dash in the abdomen, sending her stumbling backwards until she regained her footing and stopped in front of one of the brick-built trees. They both took a moment to catch their breath, then Applejack held her shield out ahead and let loose a battle cry as she charged forward.
What happened over the next few seconds would seem to most people like an impossible set of events, and yet it actually happened. First, Rainbow Dash tried to jump out of the way and ended up zooming away so quickly that she took on the appearance of a rainbow motion blur that trailed off deep into the forest and quickly vanished. With Rainbow Dash gone, Applejack ended up charging into the brick-built tree, but rather than slamming into a solid structure, she plowed right through the base of the trunk like it was made of paper, sending pieces from the trunk flying away in all directions and the remaining intact structure above hurtling through the air, right towards where Rarity stood. The group of Forestmen gathered near Rarity saw the incoming tree and pointed towards it as they screamed in terror. Rarity looked back and immediately shrieked and reflexively held up her hands as she saw the falling tree now just a split second away from crashing right on top of her, but right at the last second, a large diamond-like barrier suddenly materialized right in front of her, shielding her from the falling tree which completely shattered to pieces as it slammed into the barrier.
Once that unbelievable chain of events was over, everyone who had witnessed everything just stared silently with wide eyes and gaping jaws. Eventually, as the diamond barrier quickly vanished, Applejack stood up from where she had fallen and slowly glanced around in absolute confusion. She slowly asked, “What… the brick… just happened?”
“I’m… I’m not sure…” responded a completely baffled Rarity.
Spike kept staring at the pile of Lego parts that used to be a tree and asked, “Uh… did everyone see what I think we just saw?”
“Rainbow Dash zooming away, Applejack smashing right through a tree, and Rarity summoning some kind of diamond shield?” stated Sunset flatly. “Yeah, I’m sure we all saw that.”
“So I guess the real question now is how all of that just happened,” said Spike.
Twilight shamefully turned away and quietly mumbled under her breath, “Maybe it’s because of me…” She then began to walk away.
Sunset noticed Twilight leaving and quickly caught up to her, soon followed by Spike. “Where are you going, Twilight?” asked Sunset. “Do you have any idea what this means?”
Twilight stopped and stared down at the ground. Fearing the worst, she couldn’t bear to look Sunset in the eye.
“It means you’re not the only one with a new kind of magic!” continued Sunset with an excited smile on her face. “This is great!”
“No, it’s not!” snapped Twilight, hardly believing that Sunset could have such a positive reaction. “They could’ve really hurt each other out there! Why is this happening?! I don’t—”
Boom!
“Argh! My eyes!”
Twilight, Sunset, and Spike glanced at each other in confusion. “What was that?” asked Spike.
“It sounded like it came from over there,” noted Sunset as she pointed ahead deeper into the forest. Without another word, she ran off in that direction, with Twilight and Spike following close behind. It wasn’t long until they found a hooded Forestman down on the ground with his face covered in frosting, while a very worried Pinkie Pie was kneeling beside him.
“I’m really really really sorry!” Pinkie apologized profusely. “I had no idea that was even possible!”
“What just happened?” asked Sunset.
“I don’t know!” exclaimed Pinkie, almost on the verge of panic. “All I did was toss a cupcake to this guy, thinking he might like it, but then all of a sudden, BOOM! It exploded right in his face!”
“An exploding cupcake?” asked Spike as he scratched the back of his head. “Was it some new ingredient?”
Pinkie suddenly showed a very serious expression as she immediately shoved her face right in front of Spike’s and firmly stated, “I’ve been making cupcakes the same way ever since I was old enough to use the oven! There should’ve been nothing to make that cupcake different from all the others I’ve made over the years!”
“Well, if it wasn’t the cupcake itself, then maybe it might have more to do with the way you handled it,” Sunset speculated.
Pinkie raised an eyebrow and asked, “What do you mean by that?”
“I can’t say for sure,” replied Sunset, “but just to be on the safe side, I’d suggest you try to be more careful about handling things from now on.”
“Um, girls?” Twilight spoke up while looking over the fallen Forestman. “Shouldn’t we be helping this guy?”
As a red songbird chirped and flew right over everyone’s heads, Sunset nodded and replied, “Right. We should take him back to camp.” As she and Twilight helped the unfortunate Forestman up to his feet, she turned to Pinkie and asked, “Do you know where Fluttershy is? I think she would know how to treat this guy.”
“She said she wanted to go on a nature walk before she left,” replied Pinkie.
Sunset sighed and grumbled, “There’s no way we’ll be able to find her soon enough. I guess we’ll just have to try our best.”
The group slowly made their way through the woods and soon returned to the encampment. As Twilight and Sunset helped the Forestman gently down to sit at the base of one of the brick-built trees, Rarity and Applejack arrived.
Rarity lightly gasped and said, “Oh my! What in Ole’s name happened to him?”
“A cupcake exploded in his face,” Sunset replied flatly.
“A cupcake?” asked Applejack, raising an eyebrow. “How does a cupcake explode?”
“I really don’t know,” replied Pinkie with a shrug. “All I did was toss it to him, and then all of a sudden, it glowed pink and went BOOM!”
Applejack folded her arms and remarked, “Huh… an’ Ah thought what Ah just experienced was weird. Ya see, Rainbow an’ Ah were havin’ a lil’ mock battle, then when Ah charged right at one of these here Lego trees, Ah smashed right through the whole thing like it was nothin’! It was like Ah had way more strength then Ah usually do.”
“And not only that,” added Rarity, “but I made a diamondy thing appear out of nowhere, which normally I’d be excited about. I mean, the facets were just perfect, and the—”
“Rarity!” Applejack sharply interrupted.
“Oh, sorry,” apologized Rarity before she finished explaining. “Anyway, it shielded myself and some other Forestmen from being crushed by that tree that Applejack knocked over, and then it just disappeared.”
Applejack rubbed her chin and muttered, “Speakin’ of disappearin’, did anyone see where Rainbow Dash ran off to? She just zoomed away in a flash, right in the middle of our fight!”
Before anyone could react, a rainbow motion blur suddenly slammed right into Sunset Shimmer, smashing her to pieces and sending those parts flying all over the place. That impact also caused the rainbow motion blur to vanish and among the scattered minifig parts were not only those of Sunset Shimmer but also those of Rainbow Dash.
“Ow!” groaned Rainbow Dash as her head rolled to a stop. She glanced over at Sunset’s head not far away and mumbled, “Sorry.”
“It’s okay,” assured Sunset. She glanced over at the rest of her friends and asked, “Uh, you girls mind helping us out here?”
Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Twilight Sparkle quickly picked up all of the scattered parts and put Sunset and Rainbow back together. As she placed Rainbow’s head back on her torso, Applejack asked, “How’d ya do that?”
After taking a moment to regain her balance from being quickly reassembled, Rainbow Dash replied, “I don’t know. I only meant to take a few steps to the side to avoid your charge, and the next thing I knew, I was out in the middle of nowhere!”
“But if you had some sort of super speed, why were you gone for so long?” asked Rarity.
“Duh! We’re in the middle of a huge forest!” replied Rainbow Dash. “If it wasn’t for my super speed, I’d probably be lost out there for days!”
As she checked to make sure all of her parts were properly reattached, Sunset asked, “So you just ran around all over the place until you eventually stumbled back into camp?”
“Yeah, that’s pretty much it,” replied Rainbow with a shrug.
“I wonder what could be causing these strange occurrences…” muttered Rarity.
“Do you think we can worry about all of that later?” asked Spike, standing beside the Forestman who still had frosting splattered all over his face. “We still need to find Fluttershy so she can help this guy.”
Before anyone could respond, Fluttershy suddenly rushed out of the woods and ran over to the fallen Forestman. “I came over as quickly as I could!” exclaimed Fluttershy. “Spike! Go get my first aid kit!”
“I’m on it!” acknowledged Spike as he immediately ran over to the tent that he and Fluttershy had occupied.
Fluttershy looked closely at the mess on the Forestman’s face and mumbled, “I still can’t believe an exploding cupcake of all things could do this…”
“Wait… how did ya know all of this was goin’ on?” asked Applejack.
Fluttershy turned back to look at the others with a look of uncertainty. She glanced up at a chirping songbird in the branches above, then turned her gaze back to her friends and uneasily replied, “Um… you’re going to think it sounds crazy…”
“You’re treatin’ a guy who just had a cupcake explode in his face,” Applejack pointed out. “Ah’d say we’re already in crazy town.”
Fluttershy hesitated for a moment before she finally explained, “Well… I was out on my nature walk when that bird up there flew right up to me and… well, actually talked to me. He told about someone getting hurt by an exploding cupcake and that you needed my help right away, so I ran back to camp as quickly as I could.”
Everyone glanced up at the red songbird up in the branch above. After listening to it chirp a few more times, Rainbow Dash stated, “All I’m hearing is a bunch of chirps.”
“But I’m hearing him say that he’s proud of me for telling all of you the truth,” Fluttershy pointed out. “Even if you don’t believe me…”
Applejack smiled and said, “If you’re sayin’ that you can understand what that critter is tellin’ ya, then Ah believe ya.”
“As do I, darling,” agreed Rarity.
Fluttershy smiled at the assurances from her friends. Then as Spike returned with the first aid kit, she quietly thanked him and quickly got to work treating the unfortunate Forestman.
Meanwhile, Rainbow Dash glanced over at the large pile of brown and green bricks that used to be a tree and asked, “So, uh… could someone tell me what’s been going on here?”
“Simple. We’ve all got new magical abilities!” exclaimed Pinkie Pie excitedly.
“Not all of us,” Sunset pointed out. “I don’t have any, but Twilight—”
As Sunset glanced over at her, Twilight immediately shook her head with a frown and furrowed brow.
Sunset reluctantly finished, “…doesn’t either.”
Applejack sighed and grumbled, “So much for mah wishful thinkin’ that we wouldn’t have to worry ‘bout any new magic business for once.”
“All of this started after we got here,” noted Sunset, “so there must be something about this place that’s making this happen.”
Pinkie gasped and asked, “Could it be that Gaia Everfree spirit?”
Twilight looked away and sadly mumbled under her breath, “Or maybe it’s because of me…”
“Whatever is responsible for this,” stated Rarity, “as least solving this mystery gives us something to do while we await word on Trixie’s whereabouts.”
“Not only that,” remarked Rainbow Dash with a grin, “but maybe we could even use our new magic powers to help us beat Trixie!”
“Let’s not get too ahead of ourselves,” said Applejack. “We just nearly hurt each other with our new powers, so maybe we oughtta come up with a strategy that doesn’t involve this new magic. At least, for now.”
By this point, Fluttershy had finished cleaning and treating the affected Forestman and allowed him to leave on his own. As she packed up her first aid kit, she stated, “It’s probably for the best. Until we know for sure what we’re really capable of, we should try to be very careful about what we do.”
“So I guess that means for me, no more throwing stuff,” remarked Pinkie Pie.
“Definitely a good idea,” agreed Applejack.
“What about Gloriosa and Timber?” asked Rarity. “Would it be wise to inform them of this latest development?”
“I’m not sure, to be quite honest,” admitted Sunset. “I mean, some of the Forestmen already saw some of it for themselves, so it’s likely only a matter of time before Rob finds out.”
“I say we should just tell them,” said Rainbow Dash. “If they’re gonna find out eventually, then we might as well make sure it doesn’t happen at a bad time, like when we’re in the middle of kicking Trixie’s butt.”
“But there’s no tellin’ what they might think of us,” argued Applejack.
“Have you forgotten that they are already aware of how we had previously saved the Lego World on three occasions?” Rarity pointed out. “With that kind of awareness, I am sure they will understand our… abnormalities.”
“What do you think, Twilight?” asked Pinkie Pie.
“W-what?! Me?!” asked Twilight, startled to suddenly have the attention of her friends and teammates on her.
“You sure have been awful quite this whole time,” noted Spike. “Are you okay?”
“O-of course I’m fine!” Twilight hastily replied. “Just great, actually! Never better!” She nervously giggled.
Once again, Twilight’s unconvincing excuse caused her friends giving her questioning looks.
Twilight glanced around nervously, then suddenly pointed behind the group and said, “Oh, look! Timber and Gloriosa are back! And so is Rob!”
Everyone turned around and saw Gloriosa, Timber, and Rob were all approaching the group of friends. “Good day to thee, fair team of friends,” greeted Rob. “I have come to share with thee the findings my fellow Forestmen have made this past day.”
“Any luck findin’ Trixie?” asked Applejack.
“Not as yet,” replied Rob. “However, some patrols have yet to return when they should have done so hours ago. ‘Tis only a hunch of mine, but perhaps they might have been captured by Trixie’s forces to ensure that we not find them.”
“What part of the forest were they searching?” asked Sunset. “That might give us a clue as to where Trixie might be.”
“My thoughts exactly,” remarked Timber as he pulled out a map and unrolled it. He set the large map on the ground while Rarity and Fluttershy set down some rocks on the corners to keep it open.
“This is where we are,” stated Gloriosa as she pointed at a marked location near the center of the map. “The patrols that went missing were supposed to be searching in this area.” She waved her hand over the western edge of the map, on the other side of a large river from their current location.
“So it seems that if we wish to confront Trixie,” noted Rarity, “we will need to find a way across that river.”
“The only safe way across we know of is over that troll-toll bridge,” said Timber as he pointed at the only bridge across that river on the map.
“The what bridge?” asked Rainbow Dash in confusion.
“It’s one of a system of bridges throughout the Castle Region,” explained Gloriosa. “At each of these bridges, a big troll will refuse to let anyone across unless they pay the toll, which is typically one gold coin per minifig per crossing.”
“I remember Princess Cadance considered such a system years ago,” remarked Twilight. “I guess she finally managed to arrange it at some time in the last few years, after I had left.”
“So y’all are sayin’ that if Trixie’s on the other side of that there river, we’ll have to pay a troll to let us across?” asked Applejack.
“It’s much better than letting him pillage a village,” quipped Timber.
Gloriosa just shook her head with a smile as she remarked, “As cheesy as that statement was, he’s right. The troll-toll system was put in place to ensure these trolls would not be tempted to satisfy their greed through destructive means.”
“If Trixie’s on the other side, can’t we just wait for her to come across and let her pay the troll?” asked Spike.
“Yeah, like that’s gonna happen,” replied Rainbow Dash as she rolled her eyes. “This is Trixie we’re talking about here! I bet she would just zap that troll out of her way if she wanted to cross that bridge.”
“And besides,” added Sunset, “if whatever Trixie’s after happens to be on this side of the river, then we should try to take her out before she crosses the river.”
“Agreed,” stated Rarity with a nod. “However, we should keep in mind that, at this time, this is all just speculation based little more than some missing patrols. I suggest that we wait for some true confirmation that Trixie is just across that river before we take action.”
“Ah’m with ya on that one,” agreed Applejack. “Ah’d hate to see us end up on a wild goose chase that lets Trixie slip away and reach whatever the heck she’s after.”
“Very well then,” said Rob. “I shall ask some of my fellow Forestmen to search that area across the river and proceed with caution. If any are to return with word that Trixie and her army are in fact in that area, then we shall make arrangements tomorrow morning to prepare thee for the journey there.”
“And once we’re there, we’ll handle the rest,” Rainbow confidently stated.
“Looks like it’s settled then,” said Gloriosa and she removed the rocks from the map and rolled it back up. “If all goes as we hope, then the threat of Trixie could be dealt with as soon as tomorrow.”
“Don’t get your hopes up,” cautioned Sunset. “Believe me, I know from experience that things don’t always go according to plan.”
“Regardless, I have complete confidence that you girls have what it takes to stop that evil sorceress,” responded Gloriosa. “After all, Celestia would not have sent you here if she didn’t think you were up to the task.”
“Anyway, you girls just relax for the rest of the day,” said Timber. “Right now, we need to tell the Forestmen to start looking for Trixie across the river. See ya later.” Rob, Gloriosa, and Timber all turned away and began walking over to the edge of the encampment where some of the Forestmen had already gathered.
After those three had left, Pinkie turned to Sunset and asked, “So when are we gonna tell them about our new magic?”
“I don’t wanna wait too long, but I also don’t think we should tell them right away,” answered Sunset. “At the very least, we should try to get a better understanding of this new magic before we tell just anyone about it.”
“Fair enough,” said Applejack. “Personally, Ah’d rather not spend the rest of mah life tryin’ to handle stuff as if it was made of glass or paper, so if there’s any way Ah could learn to control mah super strength, Ah’d be more than happy to.”
“Same here with my super speed,” agreed Rainbow Dash excitedly. “If I can figure out how to go anywhere in a flash without having to worry about running into anything, it would be the most awesome thing ever!”
“I suppose I could find some ways to utilize my diamond shields,” noted Rarity. “If there truly is a way for me to fully understand how to properly work my new magic, then it would be quite a versatile ability.”
“I have always wondered what it would be like to talk to animals,” admitted Fluttershy with a smile. “For me, this is almost like a dream come true.”
“And if we ever need to blow something up, I’d be more than happy to do so!” Pinkie Pie cheerfully added.
Sunset chuckled and remarked, “Okay, I guess you girls are happy with your new magic. I don’t know if I can properly teach you how to control them, but I’ll do my best.”
While the rest of the team was excited to get started on practicing their new magical abilities, Twilight quietly turned away and walked back to the brick-built tent that she was sharing with Sunset. Spike noticed her leaving, so he ran over to her and quietly asked, “Where are you going?”
“I don’t think I should be near the rest of the team right now,” Twilight quietly replied.
“Why not?” asked Spike.
Twilight stopped walking and turned back to Spike as she quietly replied, “You heard what Sunset said earlier. There’s something about this place that’s causing all of us to get new magic.” She leaned close to Spike and whispered, “I think it’s Midnight Sparkle. She’s still part of me. I can feel it. And I think her magic is infecting my friends.”
Spike glanced back at the rest of the team, then returned his attention to Twilight and asked, “So what are you gonna do about it?”
Twilight turned away and resumed walking to her tent as she dejectedly replied, “I don’t know what I can do…”
Spike was at a loss for words as he watched Twilight enter her tent and close the hinged wall section behind her. With everything that had been troubling her recently, the addition of new magic was clearly being even harder on her already troubled mind. He eventually decided to give Twilight some space for now and watch the rest of the team try to practice their new abilities.
Meanwhile, Twilight sighed as she sat down in her bed. Why is this happening to me? she thought miserably. First I get new magic, then my friends do, and it’s probably only a matter of time before Sunset is next, and maybe even everyone else! How can this be possible?
Twilight let out another sigh as she continued moping. I knew it was a bad idea for me to return to the Castle Region… As that thought lingered in her mind for a while, she began to form connections that gradually led her to believe there was only one thing she really could do. It’s not safe for me to be here… I need to leave the Castle Region right away, not just for my sake, but also for the sake of my friends.
With her mind made up, she decided to start packing up her supplies. She wouldn’t leave right away, as it was still the middle of the day and everyone would easily see her trying to leave. She didn’t want anyone to know she was planning to leave because, as far as she was concerned, her presence in the Castle Region was causing this magic, and she did not want the team try to tell her otherwise. No, she would have to make her escape in the middle of the night. I really didn’t want things to have to come to this, she thought with resignation, but it’s for the best…
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You know, since Trixie is a magical sorceress here, I'm surprised it hasn't crossed Twilight's mind that perhaps something Trixie did is responsible for her friends powers. There could be some leftover magic from something Trixie attempted to do before the LEGO Team arrived. Obviously that's not the case, but considering Twilight doesn't know that yet the Trixie theory is something she should be thinking of as an alternative explanation.
I like this. I like this a lot.
I would think that skeletons and most other opponants would have far more trouble with trees than Applejack, and its difficult to fight when invisibly fast Dash can rush by and steal your sword, shield, helmet and belt holding your pants up before you even blink.
And then Dash goes back round and delivers everyone a complimentary highly unstable cupcake.
8071402 To be honest, that thought had never really occurred to me. I suppose we could say that Twilight is still so traumatized from what happened to her that she finds it hard to believe that anyone besides Midnight Sparkle could unleash so much magical power.
8072067 I have to say, that one about stealing someone's belt gave me a good laugh.
While I'm afraid I can't see how I can include that particular one, you can be sure to expect plenty of gags and other funny moments, once the team finally gets to confront Trixie.