//------------------------------//
// 12 - Case 06: Twilight Sparkle 
// Story: Soul Reclamation Society 
// by David Silver 
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"I'm afraid you are not permitted here." Gudrun frowned at the alicorn and her earth pony cohort.

Applejack took a step forward. "Sez who? We're here on official business. You can't jus' toss us out."

"I am quite qualified to do just that." Gudrun rose up to her paws, talons moving into a ready position. "You are on the doctor's black list."

Twilight held up a hoof quickly. "Everypony calm down. Now, ma'am, you may not recognize m--"

"I do."

Twilight cleared her throat. "Besides being on your doctor's blacklist. I am Princess Twilight Sparkle, and while I don't like title-dropping, this is an important matter. We must speak to that pony."

Gudrun raised a brow. "Princess of what? Manehattan only recognizes one princess that I am aware of, and you are small and... purple, rather than large and white."

Applejack thrust a hoof at Twilight. "You never heard of her?!"

"No," stated Gudrun flatly. "Are you leaving now or must I escort you from the building?"

"Ah'd like ta see ya try!"





Fetlock trembled softly. She could hear the spirited argument between Twilight, her first client, and Gudrun. She had thought she had more time! She had hoped she would have more warning.

She looked towards her equipment through her fallen mane that she was in no state to blow away properly. All her work, her progress... She'd gotten better! She'd made lives happier...

She flinched as she heard something thump. She wouldn't add that to her crimes. She frantically opened the door with her magic and rushed towards the front. "Wait!" The door slammed shut in her face in a flash of pain as her snout collided with it.

"What's the matter, doc?" asked a mocking but familiar tone.

"The other yous reacted the same way when their shit came home t' roost," came the same voice, but from across the room.

"One Shot, One Chance," spoke the voice from directly behind the doctor.

She squealed and spun to find Vinyl Scratch leering at her with unwholesome intent. "Boo."

The new Vinyl didn't have the warm musical nature that had practically suffused the pony that went home with Robert. This one felt much less kind. "Funny thing. The chance one of me could overpower you? Maybe one in a billion. But you morons got us all crashing in a pile." She took a slow step forward. "Eventually, I won the lotto."

"I-impossible! Finding your way back..."

"Another lotto won. Enough of me, enough tries, we found you." Vinyl sudden kicked out a fore-hoof, knocking the terrified doctor over like a rag doll. "I promised you'd watch your world burn."

"Why do you keep saying we?" Fetlock scrambled up to her hooves and backed away from the Vinyl, even as she was pursued. "Stop following me! You're still a new unicorn, I'll send you away again!"

"Try it," invited the Vinyl as she prowled after the doctor leisurely. "Go on, hit me with your best."

Fetlock did just that, the magic shaking on her horn in her building terror. Vinyl popped away with a cruel laughter, just for another of her to appear a few feet to the left, and another  equally distant to the right. 

Both smiled confidently. "You don't get it. Tha's alright. All you need to do right now, is be hurt."





Gudrun's head cocked to the side a little. She was dangling Applejack in the air at that moment. "I have to go." She dropped Applejack to the ground and rushed towards the simple door the led into the back.

Twilight blinked a moment before she rushed after the griffon, even if she did sport a new bruise right over her eye that would likely turn black later. "Wait!"

Gudrun paid neither of the mares any mind as she wrenched open the door and her eyes went wide.

Applejack rushed up right between her legs and peered inside. "What the hay is... goin' on?" Her words slowed as she beheld a half dozen DJ Pon3's all trashing the room. One was busily smashing a chair against the floor, battering what might have once been an arcane drawing with powerful strokes of her magically wielded furniture.

Another had a cheery bonfire going and was tossing in books and papers with wild abandon.

Two were beside Fetlock, pummeling her. They all seemed rather happy every time the doctor let out a bleat of pain.

The last two were facing the front and began stepping forward to meet the new members of the party. "Glad you could make it," said one of them. "The doctor's no fun."

Gudrun glanced left and right as she advanced. There was some hesitation in her movements, but none in her eyes. She was ready to battle.

A can of bug spray came speeding at her head, only to be caught and sent back at the Vinyl that had thrown it. It exploded mid-air in a cloud of dangerous chemicals. The battle was on.

Applejack glanced at Twilight before she scurried in to join the fray. Fetlock looked like she was being beaten senseless. Bad pony or not, she didn't deserve that.

Twilight was in silent agreement, vanishing just to appear beside Fetlock. The two Vinyls on the doctor looked up at her. "Sheet," one of them announced just before Twilight exploded with magic, propelling the two away just long enough to grab Fetlock and vanish again, appearing just outside the room.

Fetlock was sobbing piteously. "None of this was what I wanted. I just... Ponies are happier now."

Twilight patted her once on the head. "Stay here, we have a problem to handle first."

Applejack and Gudrun were proving capable warriors, punching and kicking at the Vinyls. However, each time a truly telling blow was landed, that Vinyl faded away, only for a fresh one to appear. It was a war of attrition, and one side seemed to be immune to it.

Gudrun staggered forward under the unexpected weight of a newly-appeared Vinyl on her back. The break of stance was good enough to let another slip in and drive a hoof into her gut, forcing a pained wheeze from the griffon.

Twilight stayed back, muttering to herself as she tried to figure out what was going on. "That's it!" she cried, drawing looks from all the Vinyls that stared at her with equal intensity. Twilight took half a step back. Together, they stepped towards her.

Applejack tackled one to the ground, but the other five came in a thunder of clopping hooves.

Twilight's mouth widened in fear, but she tried to keep herself calm enough. Intense magic began gathering in her horn, but she wasn't sure she could cast it fast enough. One Vinyl jumped at her, but Gudrun was there, recovered. The griffon's fist slammed into the false Vinyls cheek and sent the simulacrum crashing to the ground.

"None pass me," she challenged, glaring at the others.

It was enough time. Even as Gudrun began to crumple under the combined efforts of the mob, Twilight felt the spell click into place and a wave of purple magic washed free of her in all directions.

Each Vinyl spat out a very unkind word unfit for reproduction before the wave hit them, and they vanished much like they had done when struck well enough. The trick was that they did not return. Peace had been returned.

Applejack let out a loud huff, sore and bruised. "Now that's a tussle t' remember. Shoot, didn't think there was no end of 'em."

Gudrun pointed out. "Thank you for your timely assistance. As you can see, we are now closed for repairs. Thank you."

Fetlock let out a pained little laugh as she slowly forced herself up to her haunches. "T-thank you, Gudrun, thank you... It's alright..."

Twilight turned to face Fetlock. "Are you okay?"

Fetlock winced faintly. "Aren't you going to jail me, or maybe banish me?" She blew her mane free of her eyes. "Maybe both?"

Applejack slowly emerged from the devastated room. "Ah'd be happy with some answers."

Twilight quickly nodded. "Let's start there. I didn't come here to banish or arrest you, but this has to stop. Who were they? I mean, besides DJ-Pon3."

Fetlock sank a little, then began to tell her tale. There were many cases, but many of her notes were consumed in flames. Of those that were left, she was able to accurately explain six of them. "This is case number six." She sighed softly. "My last case, I imagine."

Applejack poked Fetlock gently. "Ya know, ya kinda brought this las' one on yerself."

Fetlock flinched. "You don't think I know that?" Her eyes moved to Twilight. "You can see it, the notes. I made happiness here, I really did. It's my purpose." She weakly gestured back at her cutie mark, even if it had been defiled with markers by the malicious clones.

Twilight raised a brow high. "While you did manage some good, you also caused incalculable damage to other worlds. Those ponies aren't coming out of nothing. Even if we disregard the morality of each particular case, there's the simple matter of mass conservation that is being entirely ignored. You're unbalancing our universes!"

Fetlock blinked softly. "The mass of a pony can't amount to much compared to the entire universe."

Twilight began droning on about how things worked. It was long, technical, dry, and wickedly complex. The important part was that the minute changes made minute charges and the two universes would pull at each other a little. "It won't do anything today, this year, or even this century, but given enough time..."

Applejack rubbed behind her head. "Ya got the short version ah that?"

Twilight applied a hoof to her face. "Imagine two universes crashing into one another, eventually."

Fetlock sank to the ground on her belly. "I can't put them back."

Twilight nodded. "I realize that, but you can stop this, right now."

Gudrun huffed softly. "Am I being terminated?"

Fetlock shuddered and began to cry quietly, defeated.

Applejack gave the downed doctor a gentle pat. "There there, ah'm sure we can find somethin' else fer ya."

Twilight tapped at her chin thoughtfully. "Why don't you do what you've been doing, just without the dimensional magic?"

Fetlock looked up at Twilight. "What?"

Twilight held two hooves up and brought them together slowly. "Help ponies find other ponies."

Fetlock slowly sat up. "But... How?"

Gudrun shrugged softly. "Pardon me, doctor, but I've heard of similar services."

Applejack nodded in agreement. "Yeah, ya could be a private eye, or a match maker."

Twilight smiled gently. "I think the latter is closer to what you were already trying to do. Let ponies submit their profiles to you, then find two ponies that can fulfill one another." She pointed at the cutie mark on Fetlock's flank. "You can--"

"Fill those holes," whispered out Fetlock as she sat up. "Y-yes, of course."

Twilight held up one hoof. "No more using that spell though, you have to promise."

"I promise," swore Fetlock, her ears off to either side. "Sorry for leading you on a merry chase."

Twilight huffed. "You're good at running. We couldn't find you anywhere until we came back to Manehattan and saw an advertisement right there in the paper."

Applejack tipped her head. "Big Mac n' the rest are gonna be plenty sore at me for takin' so long. Ya got this in hoof, Twi?" Twilight nodded, so Applejack got to trotting off towards the train station to get herself home.