//------------------------------//
// Be Still 
// Story: Three Dazzling Daughters 
// by BG9 
//------------------------------//

"What in the world could that possibly mean?" Adagio asked

The color was coming back to her cheeks. She looked almost one hundred percent again.

"I'm not sure Adagio." Twilight said, her hand on her chin "I wish I could use a counter spell, but there isn't near enough magic in this world to do it."

"Then what are we going to do?"

"How about this." AJ started "Is there any way fer y'all to gather magic? If we could do that, then Twilight would be able to break down this portal here."

Twilight thinks about this for a moment

"I could do that but it would take a lot of time. In the meantime, I need you girls to figure out the solution to the riddle."

Sonata looked excited by the idea

"Aye!"Adagio said

Sonata just sat in the corner. She felt so useless right now. So helpless. She was too weak to save her sister and too dumb to solve the riddle. Could she be any more useless right now? Adagio sat by her side.

"Hey, Sonata."

Sonata didn't even speak. She was too sad.

"Sonata."

No response

"Sonata."

Nothing.

"Damn it, Sonata."

Adagio hugged Sonata tightly and Sonata's eyes widened

"I love you." Adagio said with passion

Sonata just couldn't keep the tears in anymore. She hugged her sister back and cried.

"I thought... I thought I wasn't going to see you again."

"I know, Sonata. But I'm here now. And I will be forever."

AJ kept running the riddle in her head over and over but she couldn't come up with a solution. But then the answer hit her square in the jaw.

"I got it! Balance. 'A natural state, sought by all, go without me and you shall fall. Ya do me when ya spend and use me when you eat ta no end'. It's gotta be balance!"

Rarity nodded in agreement

"Let's hope that  works."

Twi walks up to the portal and writes 'balance' using magic. After a brief pause, the portal flashes green three times and a new set of writing appeared on the wall. Rarity and AJ high fived.

"Well done Applejack." Rara said

"Ah try."

"Here's the next one" Twilight said "We hurt without moving. We poison without touching. We bear the truth and the lies. We are not to be judged by our size.What are we?"

This wasn't good. They were increasing with difficulty as well. The girls tried for hours to figure it out but came to no conclusion. Finally they decided to take a break and head back. None of this was going to be easy. Anon and Twilight sit beside each other on the bench.

"It's never easy is it?" Anon mused

Twilight shook her head

"No, it never is." she said "But we'll get through this. I know I've certainly been in more dire situations in my life."

"I imagine so."

All of a sudden Twilight shuttered, as if a cold draft hit her out of nowhere.

"You alright, Twi?"

"Y-yeah. I just felt something."

"Felt something?"

"Yeah. It felt dark and cold. It's dark magic. I know because I've had personal experience with it."

"What do you think it means?"

"I'm not sure I-"

Twilight words began to slow and slur, the color draining from her face. Anon looked around to see everything except him was turning black and white. Not only that, it was as if time was crawling to a standstill. What was most striking was that it was frigid. But not just your average bone chilling cold. It had a certain air of angst and foreboding about it. Like something terrible was just waiting around the corner.