//------------------------------// // Gift of the Magic // Story: The Little Pony Legend: Legend of Everfree // by MaggiesHeartLove //------------------------------// The Gift of the Magic "Kuvira! Give up! It has to end now!" Kuvira did not respond, she didn't say a word but simply followed the three sirens. Korra took off in pursuit, ducking under a large, arch-like root and pushing through a clump of bushes, she came upon a clearing and, looking up, gasped in horror. Suspended in a cradle of vines was the discarded arm of the mecha suit. Kuvira held to the side of the firing mechanism, holding the manual trigger handle in her left hand. "Now it's over!" Korra extended her hand, desperately shouting, "Don't!" But it was too late, Kuvira slide the trigger home and the devastating purple beam build within the barrel. Korra abandoned her attempt at reasoning and dove away as the barrel discharged, its beam colliding with the ground. As the weapon continued to fire bellow, the vines around it glowed with the same purple light, causing Kuvira stop their singing and look at what was happening around her. The beams fired upwards through the trees, slicing through the buildings and detonating them. "Shut it down! Now!" Korra called out "I can't!" A sudden shudder of the cannon threw Kuvira from its side, and she yelled as she tumbled to the ground. Raising her head, her expression morphed into horror as she saw the barrel of her creation swinging around to aim at her. As it beard down on her, Korra jumped in from the left, throwing herself between the beam and Kuvira. Unlike the last time, Korra did not make it out alive. ……………….. Kuvira gasped as she woke up, beams do sweat dripping down her brows and across her neck. Her raven hair was a tangled mess, sticking from her perspiration. Thankfully, nobody else had awoken by her shock. She was thankful she didn't scream after her nightmare. However, even if her nightmare didn't cause her to scream, what happened next certainly did. Twilight tossed and turned in her sleep, her brows furrowed, her lips quivering as if trying to sound out the words, her fists clenching as if preparing to throw a punch. A sparkling magenta aura surrounded her body, as well as her bed. And the night stand. And the lamp…and Spike's pillow bed. Kuvira let out a terrified shriek, which awoke Twilight, bolting upright, screaming along, her eyes wide open and her long hair a mess. Sunset and Starlight immediately jumped out of their respected beds. Starlight's eyes were wide open, taking on an airbender fighting stance, ready to attack. Sunset's eyes were still closed as she too got into a firebending position, droop dripped on the side of her mouth. "W-What happened?" Sunset muttered, still half asleep and half on alert. "Kuvira!" Twilight exclaimed to the earthbender, "What was that about?!" The green eyed woman was frozen in place, pointing a shaking finger towards her roommate. "Uh….Twilight…." Twilight gave a puzzled look before looking down at her bed…which was levitating several feet in the air, along with her stuff and Spike. Sunset rubbed her eyes, finally able to see clearly, and her jaw dropped. Starlight blinked in surprise. "Has that ever happened?" "What is going on?!" Twilight exclaimed, horrified beyond belief until her bed and belongings finally stopped levitating and fell to the floor. Spike let out a grunt once his bed fell, having been asleep throughout the entire thing. He yawned, his eyes partly open. "Is it time to get up already?" he whined before talking in a circle and laid back on his bed, trying to sleep again. Twilight bounced out of bed, her hands trembling. "What just happened? How did I do that? Did I just…" Twilight's eyes widened in realization, and slowly she started to calm down. "I just levitated my bed." she said, the gears in her brain ticketing away. "I…I just did magic. I haven't done magic in years!" she spun around, facing the others, "I mean, we've all ponied up before, gotten the wings and tails and stuff, but nothing like this!" a smile began to form across her face, "I was right, the magic is still here! In the camp!" "How do you know it's the same magic?" Kuvira asked. "I know it is. I haven't felt this spark since I sang at the musical showcase and ponied up for the first time!" "I can't believe it!" Sunset felt as if they had found a lost treasure. A treasure they had lost many years ago. "You were right. The magic from Canterlot High is back!" Sunset and Twilight celebrated with a tight hug, bouncing and squealing happily. "I hate to break up this little celebration, but now that we're one hundred percent sure this is the magic from your past, then how the heck did it stay here?" Starlight asked, getting to the meat of things. Sunset and Twilight stopped their little celebration, realizing their friend made a good point. "She's right." Sunset said, "Not to mention, this is the second time one of us had something magical happen since we got here. First Kuvira, and now you." Hearing this, Kuvira reeled back, rubbing her arm shamefully. The three girls gave her sympathetic looks. Starlight placed a hand on her shoulder. "Kuvira, we really have to talk about this." "No! We don't!" Kuvira turned away, hugging herself, unwilling to look at any of them. They didn't want to push her, but if there really was something causing the magic to act up again, especially for someone who, technically speaking, already have magic. Her bending. While not Equestrian in origin, it was still her world's form of magic in a sense. The girls knew that they had to look more into this. One thing was certain, this was indeed the magic that had brought the Sunset and the Five Human versions of the ponies together in the first place, and it with it, it gave Twilight a new power. Maybe, the same was happening to Kuvira. She may not have her roots originally from Equestria, but she had been exposed to it along with every bender and non bender ever since the Great Convergence. Could it be possible the magic was effecting her bending as well. And if it was, would Kuvira be able to control herself this time, or will the power be just as seductive as it was before? (~) The sun shined brightly overhead, and Petunia, Gaby and Tender Taps were hoisting the sail of their boat, ready to sail across the lake. Unfortunately, there wasn't enough wind for them to do just that. Kuvira sat near the lake, her feet submerged in water, while Starlight, Sunset and Twilight observed from afar. "I feel really bad for Kuvira." Sunset said, looking over at the depressed woman. "I don't what else to do." Starlight said, "I thought she was getting better after our talks, but now she seems more distant than ever." Twilight placed her hand over her heart, her eyes locked on the depressed girl, gazing at her reflection in the cool waters. "I'm going to go talk with her." Twilight said, making her way towards Kuvira. She sat down beside her, her green eyes not looking her way. Twilight gently kicked the water with her foot, creating ripples in the surface. "Hey." she said with a kind smile, but gained no response from the woman. "I know you don't want to, but I really think we need to figure out what's going on with your magic. If you could learn to control it— "But that's just it!" Kuvira snapped, finally looking at Twilight, "I'll never be able to control it!" The moment the words left her mouth, they heard the sound of terrified screams and saw the boat speeding directly towards them. Thinking fast, Twilight pulled on Kuvira's arm, dragging her away from the sight right before the boat crashed into the dock, destroying their early progress os restoring it. The ship was in shambles, Gaby and Tender Taps managed to surface, spitting water out from their mouths. Sunset, Starlight and Rainbow Dash rushed to investigate. "What happened?" Rainbow asked. "Wait! Where's Petunia?!" Gaby exclaimed, her eyes wide with terror. "I didn't see her surface!" Tender Taps said. "Petunia!" Kuvira saw the bubbling waters beside her, followed by the shadow of a figure sinking deeper and deeper bellow the surface. She didn't think twice, her instincts took over and she dove right into the lake. The others watched, while Rainbow and Sunset assisted the two campers back to what was left of the docks. "Kuvira!" Twilight called out, cupping her hands near both side of her mouth, "Kuvira!" No response. The bubbles ceased and there appeared to be no sign of anyone swimming back up. Tender Taps was just sabot ready to dive in after them, only for Kuvira to surface. Her raven hair fell damply behind her back, assisting Petunia from the water. Her arms were wrapped around Kuvira's neck, chocking and spiting the water out of her lungs. With one arm, Kuvira swam towards shore, with the counselors assisting them back. Gaby and Tender Taps rushed to Petunia's side. "What happened?" Gaby asked, "Why didn't you swim up?" "Ow! I hurt my ankle when we crashed." Petunia said, rubbing her injury. "I couldn't swim." Kuvira panted, placing her hands on her knees, water dripped from her nose and hair, her cloths soaked to the bone. She had to dive in pretty deep to save the child. "Are you okay?" Starlight asked, helping Kuvira to stand back up. "I'm fine. That lake is surprisingly deeper than I thought." "Thank you." Petunia said, smiling in gratitude, which caught Kuvira off guard. "You saved my life." Kuvira blinked in surprise. She had heard many say their thanks to her before, but that was during her Great Uniter days, where only few people thanks her if her tyranny benefited them, while others were either spiteful or terrified of her. This…this was different. She saved the child because…it just felt like a natural reaction. She saw someone in need of help so she reacted. "Uh…no problem, kid." she replied with visible uncertainty. Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash helped Petunia up, placing one of her arms around their shoulders. "Come on, let's take a look at that ankle, sweetie." Flutteshy said as she and Rainbow helped the child to the infirmary. "What could have caused the boat to crash like that?" Twilight asked. "What happened?" Sunset asked Gaby. "We don't know what happened. It was so weird. We were stuck in a middle of the lake with no wind, then all of a sudden, bam! The wind picked up, and we were pushed right into the dock." Tender Taps then shrieked in fear, "W-What's that?!" he pointed his trembling hand towards the lake, where a strange brown colored vine suddenly wiggled in the surface before being sucked back into the deeps. It was only for a brief moment, but there was no mistaking what it was. "You don't think it was the spirit, do you?!" Tender asked asked, shaking in fear. Kuvira turned away, looking down to the ground in regret as she stepped away. "No…it was me." "Oh, man! All our hard work! Ruined!" Scootaloo said, down beaten by all the damage the crash had caused to their dock. "What's that?!" Sweetie Belle exclaimed, pointing at the lake where s strange sparkling substance began to rise up to the surface, coming from the ruins of the boat. Rarity quickly led Sweetie Belle and the other concerned students away from the scene. "All right, everyone, move along. Savage all you can out of the water. Maybe we can still fix this." she instructed. The students followed her orders while Twilight, Sunset and Starlight inspected the substance. Twilight pulled out a bottle of water, emptied it and collected the sparkling substance with it. "Looks like we've got ourselves a lead." Twilight said as she stood up, "Hey, Kuvira, do you….where did she go?" "Kuvira?" Sunset called out, but the metalbender was nowhere in sight. (~) Kuvira panted as she ran deeper into the forest, not once looking back. She knew what she saw. It was a vine, the same ones from which had original covered the cabin on their first day here. Those children got hurt because of her. Even after she saved Petunia's life, it never would have happened if she hadn't caused the trouble to begin with. Just like with the bandits before. She coaxed, more like threatened, them to follow her, and had them steal the supplies of a village in order for her to give them her own supplies, which where in reality their stolen ones. She had used trickery and lies to get what she wanted, because she believed when things didn't go the way you wanted them for the better, sometimes you need to move the hands of fate yourself. Just like before, she influenced the fates, and lives were nearly lost because of it. She slowly came to stop by a forest clearing, where the sun's rays beamed down gently through the trees. She sat on a log before a small pond, complete with a waterfall. The tress had red mushrooms growing onto the trunks, and plants of all colors decorated the area, looking more like a radiant garden. It really was beautiful, but her sadness prevented her from truly experiencing it. It used to be so simple It was a world I understood I didn't know what I didn't know And life seemed pretty good Kuvira asked at her reflection in the pond, the lilly pads floating on the surface created subtle ripples as they loved slowly. Every time she looked at her reflection, Kuvira could see that monster, right down to the webbed wings on her back. She looked behind her, just to be sure they weren't there. But I let the darkness rise up From somewhere deep inside of me My sins overtake me Couldn't keep this siren from getting free Kuvira stepped into the rays of the sun, trying desperately to feel their warmth. If I stay with the light I know I'll be free And I can start to be whole I can start to be me But instead I am struggling With all that I see And these friends…. Mustn't see the demon in me The demon in me Gazing at her reflection, she saw the creature once more. She closed her eyes tightly, but no matter what she tried, the image would forever be implanted into her mind forever more. She swiped the waters with her hand, completely erasing the image and she revered back to her old human self again. But it didn't change anything. That beast…that creature, she was still a part of Kuvira. And she always would be. They mustn't see the demon in Me….. (~) "Where is she?" Sunset asked, still looking for Kuvira. She, Starlight and Twilight had decided to split up in hopes of getting better luck to find her. She headed back to their room, only to find Spike still asleep, muttering about a dream, his tail wagging. "So many squirrels…" "Spike?" "Ah!" the dog screamed in reaction to Sunset waking him up. "Oh. Aw, man! I was having the best dream. Wait. That dream could be a reality!" he said as he leaped from his bed, ready to go out and find some big fat squirrels to chase. "Before you run off to chase squirrels, I need your help. Kuvira ran off and we can't find her." "What happened? Did she do that plants growing from the ground thing again?" "That's just it. I don't know if it was her. But if it was, we need to deal with it head on. But we can't do that if we have no idea where she ran off to. Starlight and Twilight are searching the woods so I came here in hopes she came by. Clearly she didn't." "Don't worry. I can track her down." (~) Kuvira was still in the forest, chanting repetitively to herself. "Keep it together. Deep breaths. Control it. Control it. Control i--AH!" "AH! Oh, Kuvira. Thank goodness. I've been looking for you." Twilight Sparkle had emerged from a tree and, by pure luck, managed to bump into Kuvira. "Well, you've found me." Kuvira said as she walked along, trying to leave Twilight behind. She really wanted to be alone right now. But Twilight walked beside her, refusing to leave her to wander the woods alone. "Why did you run off like that?" "You saw what I did back there. Those kids could have gotten hurt because of me." "What are you talking about? You saved a camper from drowning." "I'm sure any one of her friends would have done the same." Kuvira picked up the paste, and so did Twilight. "Maybe, but you acted first. Your instincts were telling you to save her, and you did." "Right after I made the boat crash into the docks to begin with!" "That wasn't you." "How do you know?" Kuvira stopped, his fists clenched to her side and she towered over Twilight. "Don't you see? I never should have come here! I'm dangerous!" "You are not dangerous!" Twilight said in defense. "You don't know me at all!" Kuvira spatted and hurried away, hugging herself, tears streaming from her eyes. Determination etched in Twilight's face as he caught up with her. "You're right, I don't know you. So, if we're going to be stuck with each other, I suggest we started now." Kuvira's eyes darted to Twilight and back to the path ahead of them. "You don't want to know the real me." "Why? Because you were a monster? Join the club." "What are you talking about?" "I bet Sunset's already told you that she turned into a monster once when she got magic, right?" "Not really." "Well, she's not the only one." Twilight said, knowing she now had Kuvira's attention, "When I was fifteen, I used to attend Crystal Prep Academy. I was the most academically gifted student there…" her face dropped at the memory, "But, I never had any friends. At all." "You were lonely." Kuvira concluded, surprised to realize she could relate to this. First, Starlight Glimmer and her found stuff in common, and now her and Twilight? "Yep. It wasn't until the Friendship Games against Canterlot High where I met all of my friends. They showed me what true friendship is. But, unfortunately, I still had a lot to learn. I was curious about the magic around the school, that once I had it all…I kind of lost it." Kuvira stopped, eyes blinking in bewilderment. "I became so consumed by power I turned into a monster. Literally, with the creepy wings and horn and everything. I couldn't think, I couldn't see anything. All I saw were my own desires, being twisted and distorted. It was so horrifying I had nightmares for months after that. But, even though someone else pressured me into releasing all of that magic, I realized I made the choice so I faced the consequences. I was pretty freaked out when I realized I still had some magic left inside of me. I was scared of becoming a monster again, but my friends helped me realize that, while I can't change who I was in the past, I can choose who I become in the future. So, for the first time, I embraced the magic, the good kind of magic, and I was free. They gave me a home, they gave me friendship, and I never once looked back. Don't you see? I understand. Your feeling a new kind of magic and you're scared of becoming that creature again. But you won't because you have new friends to help you." "That's just it. You were alone before the transformation, I wasn't. I had friends, I had a teacher, but when I didn't get what I wanted I turned my back on them. It wasn't just my loneliness that influenced my monstrous side, it was also my pride and selfish desire for love and admiration." Kuvira turned away, "You and Starlight say you understand, and I believe you. But, there's no denying that what I did can't come close to what any of you did." "Whatever you did in the past, it doesn't defy who you become now. Maybe if you just talked about it--" "Please, I really don't want to." Twilight sighed in defeat. This girl was seriously stubborn, no doubt about it. In a way, her stubbornness reminded her a bit of Sunset Shimmer. "Okay. But, there is one thing I want to make very clear." "What?" Kuvira asked, only to be surprised when Twilight offered her hand, waiting for her to take it. "Whenever you do want to talk…I'll be here to listen." Twilight said with a sincere smile, which reminded Kuvira of Starlight's kindness previously. Already, two folks were offering her friendship and kindness. Regardless of how she was feeling about what happened, a part of her was still touched by these actions. Hesitantly, Kuvira shook Twilight's hand, showing her gratitude. (~) Back with the camp, Rarity and Applejack were instructing the campers in rock climbing. Sweetie Belle had the harness and helmet on, while Apple Bloom hoisted her up. "Rock climbing is all about perseverance and trust." Rarity said, "Sweetie Belle, you can trust that Apple Bloom will spot you." "Yeah, so you can totally go faster than you're going." Scootallo said, crossing her arms while pouting bitterly. Rainbow narrowed her eyes sternly, "Scootaloo!" "Sorry. I've been waiting to do this since we got here." "Well, you have to wait a little longer, darling." Rarity said, while helping her sister adjust her helmet. "Don't worry, Scootaloo, you'll get your turn." Rainbow said, "I'll go get another harness for when you do." she said and walked off to retrieve it. Kuvira and Twilight emerged from the woods, only for Kuvira to be nearly tumbled over by Spike, who started licking her face. "Hey! Spike, what gives?" Sunset and Starlight approached the two, "Where were you two?" Starlight asked, "We looked all over camp." "I…got a little lost in the woods." Kuvira said, "Twilight found me." "Oh, good." Sunset said, placing her hand over her heart in relief, "We've been meaning to talk to you about--" Before Sunset could continue, the earth began to shake and rumble. Campers struggled to keep their balance, while several others had already lost their balance and fell to the groin. "Is than an earthquake?" Spike asked, still being held in Kuvira's arms. "We aren't near any fault lines." Twilight said, adjusting her glasses. The totem pole, one of the camp gifts, became loose due to the incredibly powerful shake, and began to tumble over. Silver Spoon was in its path and Flash quickly rushed on over to push her out of the way, only to trip and fall himself. The totem poll came crashing down, only for it to suddenly stop in its tracks. A purple aura surrounded the thing, giving Flash the chance to get up and run. He spotted Twilight, her hand glowing with the same aura, and rushed to her side. Her hand sopped glowing as did the totem pole, which fell harmlessly onto the ground. Twilight immediately wrapped her arms around Flash, hooding him tightly. "Are you okay?" "I'm alright. How did you do that?" One of the camper called out, "Hey! Who left this crystaly dusty stuff here?!" he exclaimed, pointing to another patch of mysterious crystal-like dust on the grass. It bared a striking resemblance to the substance they found earlier in the lake. Sweetie Belle became distracted by the commotion that she lost her footing, quickly grabbing onto the rope. "I-I think I want to come down now!" Apple Bloom struggled to pull on the harness, "Sorry, it's a little bit stuck." "Let me help." Applejack tugged onto the harness, when suddenly her hands glowed a bright orange and she was able to pull the robe with unbelievable force. So much so that Sweetie Belle was literally pulled rapidly upwards, causing her to scream in terror. Applejack released the harness, alarmed by what she had just done and Sweetie Belle fell downwards. The harness was released from Apple Bloom's felt and Applejack quickly grabbed hold before Sweetie Belle would fall and hurt herself. Rarity rushed to her little sister, angrily snapping at her country friend. "Applejack! What are you doing?!" "Is everything okay over there?" Principal Celestia asked, having heard the commotion. "What did you do, sis?!" Apple Bloom asked in alarm. "Uh, I don't know what happened. I didn't even pull the rope that hard. It's like she was light as a feather all of a sudden." Rarity breathed heavily as she helped Sweetie Belle out of her harness, "Are you crazy?! My sister could have gotten hurt!" "It wasn't my fault! Let me help you get the harness out." "No, thank you!" Rarity stood protectively in front of her sister, only for Applejack to suddenly be pushed back by a suddenly sparkling diamond-like shield which appeared out of nowhere. It pushed Applejack back into a small pond behind the bushes. She walked out, now fully wet, and spitting water out of her mouth, her hat absent. "What in the world just happened?!" Celestia asked as she rushed to help Applejack. "Oh, dear!" Rarity looked at her hands in bewilderment, "I am so sorry! I think. Did I just do whatever that was?" "How did you do it?" Sweetie Belle asked. "I'm gonna go get Applejack a towel." Kuvira said, heading off to retrieve one, with Sunset, Starlight and Twilight beside her. Sunset, in particular, was surprisingly happy about this. "You're not the only one with a new kind of magic!" she said to Twilight, "This is great!" "No, it's not!" Kuvira exclaimed, "Rarity and Applejack could have really hurt each other!" "Don't tell me you're blaming yourself for this too." Twilight said, "There aren't any plants that--" "Uh, Twilight…" Starlight tapped on her shoulder, only to point to yet another strange brown colored plant sinking back into the ground as if it were alive. Kuvira clenched her head in despair. "Why is this happening? I don't—" "Hi, girls!" Gloriosa came in, "Anything I can do for you?" "Uh, Applejack just fell into the lake!" Kuvira responded rapidly, hoping she wouldn't ask about the plant thing. "Oh, no!" Gloriosa exclaimed in concern, "She's gonna need warm towels, dry clothes, oh, and a hot cocoa! I've got this!" she sprung away to retrieve the items. Flash Sentry approached the girls, scratching the back of his head. "Okay, I can not be the only one who's finding all of this suspiciously weird." he said. Only for the five of them, and the talking dog, to flinch upon hearing a familiar scream coming from the mess hall. "That sounded like Fluttershy!" Flash exclaimed, having heard the scream and walked up to the girls. The five ran towards the hall, ramming through the doors to find both Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy covered in cookie doe, which was splattered all over the walls, tables and floor. "What happened?!" Sunset asked. Fluttershy wiped the doe from her face, "I don't know. We were just baking some cookies to surprise the campers during lunch and—" "And I was all, "You need more sprinkles! And you need more sprinkles!" Pinkie said, using her hands to reenact the scene. "So, standard Pinkie Pie stuff." Sunset said, smiling in amusement. "I was just tossing sprinkles to Fluttershy, when all of a sudden they glowed pink and exploded!" Pinkie Pie took a handful of sprinkles from one of the two jars beside her, and just as she tossed them into the air, the multicolored sugary candies indeed glowed pink, and once they touched the table, a blast spread more doe all over their cloths, hair and the rest of the mess hall. Even their hairs were standing on end. How was it possible that sprinkles would emit such a powerful blast like a grenade. Only, slightly less lethal. Pinkie shook her head rapidly like a dog, shaking away the doe from her puffy hair. "Just like that, only earlier!" Flash took Pinkie's hand and led them away from the sprinkles and table. "Oookaay. Why don't you lay off touching stuff for a while?" "Oh, dear. We really should clean all of this up." Fluttershy said. She reached up to one of the shelves to pick up a roll of paper, only to find she wasn't tall enough to retrieve it. "Can someone help me out?" All of a sudden, a little bird came flying in through the open window, chirping happily, and took the roll of paper, dropping it into a surprised Fluttershy's awaiting hands. She blinked in confusion when the bird landed on her finger. "Thank you, Mr. Bird." she said, hearing the bird tweeting in her ear. "Why, of course I can get you a little something to—" she gasped, "Did you just... talk?" she asked. The bird tweeted back. "But I don't speak "chirp"." she said, and the bird tweeted again. It as astonishing, she could actually understand the little creature's words. "I don't know if you're the only bird I can understand." she replied, only to quickly regret her words. "Oh, no! Please don't call for your friends." The others ducked when several birds, and a couple of owls, came flying into the room, landing on Fluttershy's arms, much to her surprise. "It's nice to meet all of you, too." she said politely, thought still very confused as to what was going on. Sunset blinked, "Were you just talking to the birds?" "Um, yes?" The door slammed open, causing Fluttershy to scream and the birds to fly away. Rarity and Applejack walked inside, the latter still wet to the bone. "Did you tell them what happened?" Applejack asked, :So crazy! I hoisted Sweetie Belle up the rock climbin' wall like it was nothin'! Like I had way more strength than I usually do." "And I made diamondy thing appear out of nowhere, which normally I'd be excited about. I mean, the facets were just perfect, and the—" "Rarity!" Applejack exclaimed in annoyance. "Oh, sorry. It knocked Applejack over and then it disappeared!" Flash tapped his chin in thought, "Speaking of disappearing, has anybody seen Rainbow Dash?" To answer his question, a stream of rainbow colors came speeding into the mess hall, so fast they couldn't make out who or what it was. Once she collided face first into the wall, they could see it was their blue-skinned friend, rubbing her now soar back. "Ow!" "Whoa! How'd you do that?" Flash asked as he and and Applejack rushed to help Rainbow Dash back to her feet "I don't know. I started running to get the harness for Scootaloo, and the next thing I knew, I was practically back in town!" "But if you had some sort of super speed, why you were gone for so long?" Rarity asked. "Because I lost it when I got far away. And then it came back when I got close to camp." Pinkie Pie gasped when the realization struck her. "Being at camp is giving us all new magical abilities!" Rainbow's eyes widened, "Wait, does this mean….?" Sunset and Twilight simultaneous nodded. "Yep. Our old magic is magic." Sunset said. Rarity, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash and Applejack couldn't believe what they were hearing. The magic, their magic, the one they had believed was gone for good, was back at their disposal, and as it would seem, more powerful than ever before! "This is amazing!" Applejack said, "I can't believe it, after all these years. But, how?" "We still don't know." Starlight said, "We suspect something in the camp must be responsible for it." Fluttershy tugged on her long pink air, her knees buckling nervously, "Um, Gaea Everfree?" The doors opened and a shadowy figure walked in. Fluttershy screamed in terror until the figure made itself inside. "Applejack! I was looking for you!" Gloriosa Daisy handed the country girl some towels and her hat, now completely dry. "Here, I brought you some towels and dry clothes." her smile morphed into horrified confusion when she saw the gigantic mess around them. "Uh, what happened in here?" "We're kinda trying to figure that out." Sunset said. "Well, don't worry about it. I got this!" The doors opened once more, and one of the camper barged inside, "Gloriosa, I kicked my beanbag into the lake!" he said. Kuvira noticed the way Gloriosa's irises seemed to have shrunken, her left eye twitching and her teeth slightly bare, trying her best to force a smile. She managed to do so, her eyes reverting back to normal. "I'll get you another one!" she said cheerfully. "And I'm all out of arrows!" said another camper. "Say no more! New arrows coming right up!" Timber Spruce came barging in, rudely shoving the campers aside to see his sister, "There you are!" he rushed over and spoke in a hushed tone, "Gladmane is back. Do you want me to handle it?" "Absolutely not!" Gloriosa replied, in the same hushed tone, only more spiteful compared to her brother's. She smiled at the others and headed out with Timber loyally at her side. "I've got this!" As they walked pass, Timber's eyes briefly darted towards Flash and the blue haired young man heard the sound of an angry dog-like growl as the siblings exited through the door. "Spike, I know you don't like Timber but you don't have to growl every time." Flash said. The little dog blinked in confusion. "What are you talking about? I didn't growl this time." he said. "Huh?" Flash scratched the back of his head. He could have sworn he heard it. The P.A. released a static sound and Principal Celetia's voice was heard. "Attention, campers! Anyone who's interested in making floating paper lanterns, please meet us by the picnic tables." "Well, this mystery sure is getting stranger and stranger by the minute." Applejack said. "At least now we know why my dreams led us here." Twilight said, "We've found our magic, only question is, how do we find who's really behind stealing it in the first place." she pulled out the bottle of water she had earlier, still with the sparkling substance. "And I think we know just where to start looking." (~)