The Past...
"Alright, just one last adjustment and you'll be up and running little buddy." Wild said to himself as he twirled his screwdriver in his hoof. The metal tool inserted itself into a small bolt, slowly turning as Wild closed one of his eyes. "Come on...come on..."
KNOCK KNOCK!
The tapping at his door caused Wild to stop his screwdriver, looking up from the sound now piercing his ears. "Hmm?"
"Yo Wild! You in here?" said a certain voice as one more knock followed the voice. "I need your help pal."
"Hang on Lightning, I'm almost done." Wild replied as he leaned back down, spinning the bolt again. A second later, Wild had finished his project and got back up. He turned to Lightning and shined a big smile. "Hey Lightning! How's it hanging?"
"Eh, its fine right now." Lightning shrugged as he walked inside. Wild's house was what you would call a true puppeteer's house. Puppets and manikins lined the walls and ceiling. Toys and dolls were placed on every shelf, stuffed into every corner. The sight always made Lightning shake his head, reminding him that he was one of the few that didn't mind walking into what others would consider to be a mini-horror house. Of puppets that is. With this, Lightning trotted up to Wild. "I got a job for ya Wild."
"Oh?" Wild arched an eyebrow as he put his newest project on a nearby table. "What am I getting this time Lightning? A new pair of headphones for you? Or maybe a new haircut that you desperately need?"
"No. And my hair is fine Wild, stop asking for that happen." Lightning deadpanned, letting out a snort of air from his nostrils.
Wild just patted Lightning's back with his hoof, a big smile on his face. "Oh come on Lightning, you know I'm just kidding." he then leaned down and whispered into his ear, "Though you gotta admit, you do need a little change pal. That glare of yours is gonna scare away all the ladies."
"Yeah yeah, I know. We can go get some mares later." Lightning shrugged off Wild's hoof and let out another sigh. He then put his hoof into his saddlebag and pulled out a certain piece of paper. "Here, this is what I need you to get."
"Oh? What's this?" Wild scanned the paper over and looked back at Lightning. "This is...you know what this is, right?"
"Yup. And I need you, Gorgenia and Solid to go get it for me."
"Huh." Wild just shined his usual grin before giving back the paper. "And then we'll go have some fun afterward?" Wild's eyebrows hopped up and down a few times. "You know, get some mares?"
"Yeah yeah, we will." Lightning chuckled as he put his hoof around Wild's shoulder. With this, the two began to leave Wild's house. "And remember, we're never doing karaoke again. Got it?"
"Got it." Wild nodded before his grin got even wider. "But you could always try-"
"No." Lightning interrupted, giving him a death-stare. "Never again."
"HA! Okay, okay..." Wild laughed as they left the house, "But remember Lightning, there's always time for fun."
"Oh, I know." Lightning replied as he took one last look at the paper, his eyes staring at a picture of the Alicorn Amulet. "I definitely know."
The Present...
Nine ponies remained in the Battle of Canterlot. Flash Sentry, Twilight Sparkle, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Cadance, Iron Core, Wild Smile, Solid Script and of course, Lightning Blitz. It had just passed the one hour mark, which was all the time Flash and his friends had until Lightning's Thunder Tomb detonated and destroyed Canterlot and anypony in it. As for 'The Battle of Canterlot', one corner of the city found itself lit up in flames as Pinkie found herself battling against Wild Smile and his army of cuddly doom.
"Power Puppet Blast!" Wild yelled as his five minions fired beams of energy out of their eyes, which flew at Pinkie with pinpoint accuracy. Despite this, Pinkie began spinning like a top, causing the beams to miss as she danced around the shots. "What the-do it again!"
"This is fun!" Pinkie exclaimed as she started leaping from spot to spot, dodging another volley of shots.
"Stop doing that!" Wild barked as he motioned his hooves at the puppets. "All of you, keep firing! Don't stop!" As they did, Pinkie just kept bouncing around, her body wiggling as the beams flew past her like they were going in slow motion. "How is....augh! This is getting annoying."
"Ha ha! Nice try meanie pants!" Pinkie laughed as she shook her flank at the puppeteer. "You're not gonna beat me!"
"Why you..." Wild just shook his hoof, growling at the sight.
While this was happening, Spike had managed to drag the unconscious Rarity into one of the buildings, out of the way of the battle. "You'll be safe in here," he told her as he turned back to the door and saw several explosions. "That's not good. I gotta help Pinkie."
Despite the young drake's intentions, Pinkie was doing pretty good on her own. The party pony keep hopping up and down, blowing raspberries as more and more magic kept barely missing the pink pony.
"Grrr...fine! Time for plan B!" Wild yelled as he clapped his hooves. In response, the puppets stood still, ready to hear their new orders. "Okay little buddies, Circle Formation!" The five puppets quickly scrambled, flying around in random directions as they quickly formed a circle around Pinkie. "Power Puppet Blast!" The dolls eyes glowed, pointing at Pinkie, who seemed to have nowhere to go.
That is, till Pinkie just let out a giggle and said, "Boing boing!" As those two words came out of her mouth, her tail suddenly took the shape of a spring. Her tail hit the ground and compacted, quickly shooting her into the air as the puppet's fired their attack. Their target now above them, the dolls hit each other with their beams, destroying them all.
"Oh come on!" Wild yelled as he began scratching his head in frustration. "How does that work?!" He then clapped his hooves, causing five new dolls to float up in front of him. "Alright, I'll beat you this time. You won't beat my buddies as long as this toy store is here!"
Pinkie just landed and began spitting raspberries. "I'm not scared of you! Your forbidden spell monsters aren't gonna stop me from helping my friends!"
"Oh, you think my little friends come from some forbidden spell?!" Wild yelled, surprisingly angry at the statement. He then put his hoof over his chest before pointing to the dolls. "Well you're wrong, pink puff! I don't need one of those forbidden spells, not when I got my buddies."
"Huh? What do you mean?" Pinkie asked in confusion. "If those things aren't one of those mean forbidden stuff that you meanies have been doing, why can you do that?"
"These guys have been with me since the day I got my Cutie Mark," Wild explained as one of the dolls floated up to him, his hoof resting on it like he was petting a dog. "I was alone, and nopony wanted to be my friend. But then one day, I started hearing voices, which I soon learned were my five little friends. After a while, I realised I could transmit whatever they were into anything that's not alive, so now I've got my five little puppets."
"That's so sad..." Pinkie said, her hair slightly drooping at the story. "So they're like imaginary friends come to life. That's really sad."
"Hmm...I guess they are." Wild shrugged before letting out a mighty, insanity sounding laugh. "And these imaginary friends are gonna take you down!" The five dolls few into a line and unleashed another volley of beams. Pinkie then began to do cartwheels, easily dodging the blasts. As she did, Wild kept clapping his hooves, causing the dolls to repeatedly attack. "Thanks to Lightning, my little buddies are now super powered! You can't stop them no matter what you do!"
"Can't I?" Pinkie said as she continued to cartwheel around. Unknown to her, one of the dolls had snuck up behind her and was charging a magic attack.
"Got ya!" Wild whispered as the doll fired a beam at Pinkie. That is, till the pink earth pony turned her head a few degrees, and the blast soared past her and into another one of his dolls. "OH COME ON! How did you just do that?!"
"Simple. I got Pinkie Sense." Pinkie replied, bouncing up and down again.
"Pinkie...what?"
"Pinkie Sense," she repeated. "You can't hit me."
"Tch, this'll be tougher than I thought." Wild remarked before cricking his neck. He then clapped his hooves again, causing a new doll to pop out of the toy store. "Alright, let's kick it up a notch, shall we?"
"No way buster! Its my turn now!" Pinkie yelled with a salute. Then, as if she had pulled it out of thin air, she summoned her famous party cannon. She quickly grabbed the main cannon firing thread and fired, hitting three of the puppets with confetti.
"What the?!" Wild gasped, watching the bizarre scene of Pinkie blasting the dolls away with party supplies.
"Boom...boom...BOOM!" Pinkie cheered as she continued firing her cannon. Confetti flew everywhere, sometimes hitting a puppet and sometimes missing.
"Are you even aiming?" Wild asked, showing an unamused expression as his buddies possessed another round of dolls.
"Nope!" she giggled as she fired some more, hitting another puppet.
"Grrr....That's it!" Wild screamed as he summoned another doll. "Okay buddies, Dome Formation! We're beating this mare now!" The puppets flew down and four of them surrounded Pinkie while one flew above her. "Can't pull that bouncing trick this time. FIRE!"
The puppets fired on command, causing an explosion to instantly around the party pony. As it did, Spike entered the street, only to gasp at the sight of Pinkie being attacked. He quickly yelled out her name, screaming as he ran up to the new pillar of smoke that had just formed.
"PINKIE!" Spike yelled. "Pinkie! Are you okay?!" His fears though, were unfounded as the smoke cleared, showing nopony in sight.
"What the?!" Wild asked in confusion. "Did I vaporise her? It shouldn't have done too-"
"Surprise!" A voice behind him called out.
Spinning around, Wild found Pinkie's Party Cannon aiming directly into his face. Before he could do anything, a blast on concentrated confetti flew into his face, knocking him down to the street. After hitting the pavement a few times, he flipped over and steadied himself. "Grrr...how'd you do that?!" he yelled after he shook his head to stabilise himself.
"Wouldn't you like to know?" Pinkie cheekily grinned.
"Tch, you are one wild mare, you know that?" Wild said with a slight smirk. "Granted, you ain't half bad looking though."
"Awww thanks." she replied with a wave of a hoof. "You'd probably be a pretty fun pony to hang with, you know, if not for the whole psychopathic stallion hunter thing."
"I'll take that as a complement."
"You're welcome!"
"Can you two stop flirting?!" Spike yelled from the down the street.
"Alright, sounds good to me lizard." Wild clapped his hooves again. "Line Formation, now!" The puppets formed a straight line, firing a barrage of lasers at Pinkie. Quickly reacting, she hopped onto her spring-like tail again and bounced away from the shot, hopping onto a nearby rooftop. Growling at this, Wild ordered a puppet to give him a ride to a nearby rooftop. Seeing that he was following, an idea popped into Pinkie's head, and she began to bounce up the building's with her tail. As she did, Wild just yelled, "Hey! Get back here! We're not done!"
Hopping onto another rooftop, Pinkie then shook her flank at the stallion. "Oh yeah? Come on then!" she said before sticking out her tongue, spitting raspberries as she did. "Give me your best shot."
Wild narrowed his eyes, before his puppets spiralled around him. "You want my best shot? I'll give you my best shot!" The puppets linked arms and created a spinning circle, their eyes glowing brighter then before. "Ultimate Power Puppet Blast!" They fired their attacks, which spun into a tornado-like blast that headed straight towards Pinkie.
"PINKIE!" Spike yelled, "Get out of there!"
Pinkie just smiled as the attack drew closer. The second it was inches away, the pink earth pony simply ducked down as the shot flew overhead. It was here that Wild's eyes went wide, as he released what's Pinkie's plan was. The blast had hit a Thunder Tomb orb. "Oh boy, that's not good." he said with a gulp. Barely a second later, a lightning bolt came down and struck Wild, making him let out a mighty scream. "AAAUUUUGGGHHHHH!"
A few seconds later, the lightning stopped. All that was left was a burnt Wild along with his puppets, who were also burnt. Pinkie leapt off the rooftop and onto the one he stood on before trotting over to him. Once she was next to him, she blew a gentle breath of air, which made him fall backwards instantly.
"Way to go!" Spike cheered. "That was so cool Pinkie!"
"I know!" Pinkie said with a big smile.
Meanwhile...
"ALRIGHT!" the CMC cheered, seeing Pinkie's victory being posted on the wall. As they continued, Fluttershy let out a small 'yay' while Luna began clapping her hooves.
"Excellent!" Luna remarked as she glanced at her sister. "I don't know how she did it, but thank goodness she won."
"Miss Pie is an incredibly unpredictable pony, at least according to my student's reports." Celestia added with a chuckle. "I guess Wild Smile just couldn't keep up." Her expression then turned to a serious one. "Though it does make me worry. All that's left is Solid Script. If he is eliminated as well..."
Luna nodded in understanding. "Once he's taken care of, Lightning will be all on his own. And while wearing the amulet."
"Let's hope Flash and the others can find him soon. The amulet must not be worn any longer." Celestia finished. "Because if it isn't...Canterlot will still be in grave danger."
Meanwhile...
Lightning and Script watched as their board also changed, showing Wild's defeat.
"Wild Smile declined using a forbidden spell, and this is what happens when you don't follow my orders." Lightning told Script with a glare. "You're the last thing standing in their way of fighting me. Don't you dare fail me."
"I will not." Script said as he bowed before turning to leave. His blank eyes slightly shifted as a light shined around his body, instantly teleporting him out of the building. Once he was gone, Lighting turned back to the timer.
0:45:23
"You're running out of time princess." he chuckled to himself, his eyes shining with power from the amulet. "Are you planning to wait until the last possible second? Or shall I destroy this pathetic little city?"
Meanwhile...
Spike had now ran up to Pinkie, his cheering done as the party pony was now sitting down, resting from the fight. He then praised her again, causing Pinkie to shine a little smile. That is, till her body seeming;y deflated like a balloon, collapsing to the ground.
"Pinkie! Are you okay?!" Spike exclaimed as he went up to her.
"I'm fine....just exhausted." Pinkie moaned, letting out a breath of long fresh air. That is, till another moan could suddenly be heard. The pony and dragon turned their heads, only to see Wild getting up.
"What happened?" he groaned as he started shaking his head from the pain. "Why do I feel like I got struck by a lightning bolt?" He then blinked as he looked at his burned hooves. "Or maybe I did?"
"Stay back!" Spike yelled, jumping in front of Pinkie with an angry glare. Despite his bravery, his legs were shaking as he did this. "If y-y-you didn't like getting zapped, then you'll hate getting roasted! Stay back or I'll burn you!"
"Whoa! Whoa whoa whoa!" Wild replied back, scooting slightly away. "Chill little guy, I don't even know you."
"You...don't?" Spike asked, confused at the statement.
"No..." Wild tilted his head slightly, blinking. That is, till he looked past the dragon and started looking around him, unfamiliar at the street he was now sitting on. He then slightly hopped in place as his mind started to turn. "Wait a minute, where am I? Last thing I remember is meeting my buddy Lightning in an alley....huh. What happened after that? I can't remember."
Spike and Pinkie looked at each other in confusion. "So...you don't remember helping Lightning take the city hostage?" Spike asked.
"Take the city hostage?!" He exclaimed back. "What the heck are you talking about?!"
Before Spike could reply, Pinkie hopped in front of him and presented her hoof. "Eh, don't worry about that. Instead, you wanna be friends?"
Wild just blinked at the hoof and then back at Pinkie. "Err...sure?"
"YAY!" Pinkie cheered, making Spike face palm.
Meanwhile...
Solid Script stood above the city of Canterlot. He was standing on one of its highest buildings, his eyes scanning the city. Despite his eyes being blank, he saw the other players of the game. A small distance away was Flash Sentry, an orange pegasus flying down the south end of the city. He then turned to the left, noticing a certain pink alicorn flying over the west end of the city. Finally, Solid looked down the building he was standing on and saw a purple unicorn rushing by. Blinking at this, the unicorn mumbled to himself, "Hmm...Twilight Sparkle."
Twilight herself was sprinting down another street, asking the companion on her back every other street. Still looking for her brother, Twilight took another turn as the street she was on met a threeway street. "Find anything?" Twilight asked the jakhowl on her back as she went down another street, only to get a shake of his head. "That's okay, I know you're trying."
As they kept going, Solid just stared at the sight. His blank eyes began to show color, causing him to put his hoof over his face, groaning. "Twilight...Lightning...king..." His breathing became heavy as his eyes started to get their color back, a memory appearing in his head as he did.
Years ago...
In a certain classroom in Celestia's school for Gifted Unicorns, there was a single unicorn colt sitting alone in the middle of a random classroom. It was Solid Script, wearing an expression of pure depression as he glared at a large chalkboard, his eyes scanning the whole thing over. The board was filled with theorems, equations and other mathematical symbols. As he did this, he let out a small, depressing sigh. He then used his hoof to rub his eyes as he grumbled to himself. "Its no use. No matter what I do, the runic equation doesn't work." Solid hit the board with a clenched hoof, growling. "Why can't I get this right? Why can't I....why can't I figure this out?"
As he continued to sit there, stooling in his own frustrations, the door to the classroom slowly creaked open. When it did, a set of purple hooves quietly walked in, stealthy trotting up to the colt. It wasn't until she was just about to tap his shoulder when his ears stood straight up, hearing the new pony walk in. Solid turned and asked, "Yes? Who is-Twilight?"
"Hello Script." Twilight replied as she walked past him and stared at the chalkboard. "Doing another runic theory?"
"Uh....yeah." Script said with a slight sigh. Seeing that Twilight was invested in the numbers he had put up there, the colt hopped off his chair and pointed to a certain part. "I can't seem to figure out how these runes work. The numbers just don't add up for this new barrier spell I'm trying to do."
"I see...I see." Twilight barely said, her focus now completely on the board. Script quickly noticed this and just stared at the filly. Script had been in Celestia's school for some time, about as long as Twilight. As he stayed there, he and Twilight had made several breakthroughs with runic spells, spells that unicorns had not used in centuries. However, only Solid would really use the runic spells, as Twilight found the spells only fun to experiment with due to their mathematical side. That and her love of learning everything. For instance, her eyes lit up as she looked the equation over one more time, speaking up soon after. "Say Script, what if you did this?" she suggested as she walked up and wrote a small equation just outside of everything Solid had written. "How about this?"
"That's..." Script walked over to the board and compared notes. He rested his chin on his hoof as he did, "Hmm...."
"What do you think?"
"I....huh. I'm not sure Twilight." Script remarked as he took her equation and put some of it into his own. "This could work, though it would make the barrier smaller..."
"But it would be more stable, right?" Twilight finished, crossing her hooves. "Am I right?"
"Yeah, I think you are." Script nodded, turning to the purple filly.
"Heh heh. I had feeling I was!" Twilight admitted as she shined a big goofy grin before turning back to the board. As she did, Solid just stared at her, feeling a slight heat on his face as he did.
It was here that he started to realise he was still staring at the filly, blushing while doing so. He then noticed she was about turn and look at him, causing him to look away. He quickly tried to look like he was staring at the chalkboard. Doing a slight gulp, he mumbled as he said, "Yeah, you really are amazing Twilight. Though its not exactly what I wanted."
Twilight just gave her usual grin and said, "Well, why don't we-"
"SCRIPT! Are you in here?!" yelled out a certain voice, causing the duo to jump in place. Twilight recognised the voice and turned to it's owner.
"Grand? What are you doing here?"
"Ah, hey there kiddo." Grand replied as he walked past the already opened door. Behind him was a certain orange pegasus with an also goofy grin on his face. That and several bruises all over his body, and his wings were covered in soot.
"Flash?! What happened to you?!" Twilight exclaimed as she rushed up to him, looking him over in worry.
"Eh, nothing much. Just an extra intense day of training." Flash shrugged, scratching his neck as he replied.
"Extra intense...are you kidding me?!" Twilight growled as her horn lit up, a magic aura grabbing Flash's ear. "Look at you! You look like you went through a war-zone!"
"Ow ow ow! Stop it Twilight, that hurts!" Flash whined as Twilight kept pulling his ear.
"Stop whining Flash. You're getting a bath. Now!" Twilight barked back before glaring at Grand. "He is done today, right?"
"Er....yeah." Grand shrugged, slightly looking away as he responded. "Go ahead and get him bathed lass. The kiddo's done for the day."
"Good." With that, Twilight dragged Flash out of the classroom. The orange pegasus tried to escape, but it was no use. He was done for, and Grand knew it. The old stallion let out a series of hearty laughs while Script just stood there, watching Twilight leave. As she did, Script just let out a long sigh before turning back to the chalkboard.
"Hold it right there Script." Grand remarked as he saw Solid turn away from him. "What do you think you're doing?"
"I..." Script stammered before barely glancing at Grand, his body shaking as he did. "I'm going to memorise this formula and leave the school for the day."
"Is that so? You sure seem depressed about it." Grand replied as he looked the chalkboard over. He let out a small chuckle. "I gotta say, you and Twilight are quite the team. This looks amazing."
"You...can read it?" Script asked, his tone was that of a whisper.
Grand shook his head. "Nope. Can't read a word of it." Grand then turned to Solid, a small smile on his face. "Doesn't mean I can't appreciate young developing minds."
"Yeah sure." Script whispered as he grabbed the nearby eraser, turning away from the old stallion. As he did, he could feel Grand's cold stare down his spine.
"Script." Grand said in a stiff, almost icy tone. "Where is Lightning?"
The question made Solid turn stiff. He tried to move, but couldn't. He couldn't even reply to the question.
Seeing this, Grand let out a small sigh before placing his hoof on Script's shoulder. "Listen Script, I'm not trying to intimidate you. I just want to where my grandson is."
"Why?" Script quickly asked, still not looking at Grand. "Why do you think I would know where he is?"
Grand just shook his head before walking around Solid, leaning down afterword to put himself at eye view. "Because you're his friend. And I just want to help him. The boy is..."
"Is what?!" Script interrupted, irk obvious in his tone. "Your grandson that you keep ignoring, yet he saves me from bullies like a true knight? You know, unlike your little apprentice?!"
"Script, don't-"
"Shut up!" Script barked as Grand tried to put his hoof on the colt's shoulder, only for Script to swat it away. "You don't care about him, so don't ask me to help you!"
"I do care about him, he's-"
"Go away." Script hissed as he turned around, staring at the way out. "Go help your stupid apprentice so you can keep ignoring Lightning. After all, isn't that what you always do? You ignore him so he can help save me from bullies and be a true friend to me, isn't that what you wanted?!" Script spat as his expression turned completely sour as he thought about the previous scene with Flash and Twilight. "Yeah...you and that apprentice who keeps taking everything away from us. That's all you do..."
"I..." Grand wanted to bark back, but stopped himself. Instead, he shook his head and said, "Listen Script. I mean you no harm, just like I mean Lightning no harm. I just want to help the boy, he's been....falling off the good path lately."
"Yeah sure." Script grumbled, giving Grand a quick glare as he did. "Yet he's saved me from those bullies in this infernal school three times already. And that's not counting the times he's helped me in Canterlot." Script then turned back around. "Yet you think he's some delinquent that you need to control."
"I don't-"
"Leave me alone Grand. I've got nothing to say to you." Script finished as he began to walk out of the room. "I know I'm a pacifist and I'm not strong like you. I know I'm a coward....but Lightning? Lightning's ten times the pony you are." Script gave him one last glare before leaving. "I just wish I had his courage. You know, the one that allows him to stand up to the true bullies, like you."
Grand let out a small sigh before saying, "If that's what you think of me, can I just ask you one question?"
His ears twitching at this, Script turned his head and glared at the old stallion. "What?!"
"Could you keep an eye on the boy for me?"
Script turned back to the door, hanging his head as he did. As he took another step forward, the colt let out a groaning hiss. "Didn't you hear me? He's looks after me, not the other way around."
With that, Script left the classroom, leaving a lone Grand. As the old stallion stood there, he could only sigh at the sight. "Blast it, I just wanted to help Lightning. Why does it feel like I can never get things right with my family?"
The Present...
"Lightning...Lightning is the future king." Script panted, his eyes turning blank again. He looked back up, glaring at the orange pegasus flying around in the distance, only for his eyes completely turn white again. There, he looked back down at the passing by purple unicorn and mumbled. "I must...destroy Twilight."
As he said this, the jakhowl on Twilight's back aura suddenly flexed, causing him to go completely still as the appendages flew up. Feeling this on her back, Twilight stopped and turned. "Springer? Are you alright?"
Her response was Flash's partner hopping off her back, quickly racing down the street they were on. "Hey! Come back!" Twilight yelled, quickly trying to catch up. "Blast it, if only I could understand you like Flash does..."
The young jakhowl flew through the town, zipping from street to street. Sometimes he'd close his eyes and his aura would flare up, only for his eyes top open yet again. Finally, he stopped at a particular street, with Twilight managing to reach him seconds later. "What was with the marathon?" Twilight asked as she panted for breath. Springer just barked and pointed to a spot up the street, where a familiar unicorn laid on the ground. "SHINING!" Twilight screamed as she rushed over to her older brother. "Shining!" she tried to shake him awake, "Shining! Please wake up!"
Feeling his whole body shake like a leaf, Shining Armor's eyes slowly began to rise, moaning himself awake. Once he was, he looked up and saw Twilight standing above him, smiling with tears in her eyes.
"You're awake!" she said happily, "thank Celestia."
"Twilight," Shining said weakly as he got up. "You're okay...how? I thought-"
"Cadance," Twilight interrupted as she hugged him. "She managed to free herself from the petrification and defeat Gorgenia."
"I see...I'm glad to hear that." Shining slightly groaned as he shook his head before looking down. "I'm so useless."
"No you're not!" Twilight told him. "Why would you say that?!"
"I'm captain of the guard and I couldn't even protect my baby sister. What else would you call that?"
"A big brother who cares enough to fight," Twilight replied with a big cheeky grin. "I don't care that you lost. I don't look up to you because of how strong you are, I look up to you for the strength and courage you taught me."
Shining smiled hearing this. "Thanks sis," he said, pulling her into a hug. "I love you."
"Love you to BBBFF. Now..." she replied before pulling out of the hug. "Let's get you back to the castle. Princess Celestia said you could help with a...shield spell?"
"Shield spell? Oh! You mean the-"
"That's far enough!" A familiar voice spoke from on high, interrupting the two. Seconds later, a barrier appeared around them, trapping them within its confines.
"What the-what's going on?!" Twilight yelped, surprised at the sudden runic walls.
"Another enchantment..." Shining moaned as he shook his head, still trying to stabilize himself. "That's not good."
"B-b-but who triggered it?" Twilight asked, looking around. She then looked up, only to see a familiar red unicorn with green hair. "No...Script!"
"Greetings Twilight," Solid Script spoke, standing on the roof of a building looking down at the three. As her glared at the trio, his horn flared a message into the runes. "It seems fate has decided for us to fight."
Twilight Sparkle V Springer V Solid Script
"It looks like Twilight managed to get herself in a battle," Luna told her sister as they read the message at the castle. "This does not bode well."
"She can do it," Celestia shot back. "Twilight's just as skilled at magic as Script, if not better. Though I will admit that Script has obviously been enhanced in some way due to Lightning, Twilight's skill is no joke either."
"But he defeated Trixie. Clearly his abilities are something to be feared."
"Not to bad mouth your student sister," Celestia replied with a smirk. "But Twilight is far more experienced than her. She'll be fine. Trust me."
"Princess!" The two looked around and saw Velvet and Night rush into the room followed by a doctor. "We managed to locate a doctor. Are the patients still in the other room?"
"Excellent, and yes they are." Celestia said as she walked up to the stallion of medicine, "Please follow me, I'll show you to the room." With this, the doctor and princess of the sun rushed into the next room, leaving the rest to watch the board.
"I should be out there," Night grumbled as he saw the board and read his daughter's name. "My children are fighting for their lives and I'm just standing here."
"I know how you feel, but we have to believe in our children." Velvet replied as she hugged her husband.
"And Flash," Night corrected.
"Like I said," Velvet nodded with a smile. "We have to believe in our children, all three of them." The two smiled before looking back up at the board.
"Don't worry," Fluttershy finally spoke up, "Twilight will be fine, she has Springer with her."
Meanwhile, back to Twilight...
Twilight, Shining and Springer looked up at Solid Script, anger in their eyes. As they did, Twilight spoke up first, "Script! You know what Lightning is doing is wrong! Why would you do something so heartless?"
"My loyalties belong to Lightning," Script replied plainly, a full deadpan stare as he did. "What he does is of no concern to me. All I care about is following his orders."
Hearing this, Twilight looked at her brother with a face of both pain and confusion. "This isn't right, I've know Script for years. I mean, I haven't seen him since I left Celestia's school, but...he was never violent or mean. He was always studious and shy and he always wanted to help other ponies." She glanced back at Script. "The Script I knew back then would never do something like this."
"Ponies change," Shining told her with a slight frown. "I'm sorry Twilight, but-"
"No." Twilight interrupted. "Not this much. Script isn't like this."
Script simply watched from the roof, eager to see how long it would take until Twilight agreed to battle. "Do you really think you should be wasting time?" he asked, his blank stare unchanging. "There's only forty minutes until the Thunder Tomb detonates."
"I won't fight you!" Twilight yelled back before showing a small smirk. A certain thought just popped into her head, causing her to add, "After all, if you're trapped in here with us, then nothing's stopping the others from finding Lightning."
"Is that so?" Script said as he rubbed his chin. "Hmmm...that is true, I will admit that. But, if you won't fight simply to fight," he leaped off the roof and free fell to the ground as his horn glowed. "Then maybe you'll fight in self defense!" His horn fired off a powerful blast of magic energy, which flew at the three.
"Look out!" Shining yelled as they tried to move away. But, before he could, a blue ball of energy flew out the magic, negating it in an instance.
"Springer!" Twilight cheered, glad that the jakhowl had unleashed an Aura Blast that had destroyed the attack. "Good job!" Springer then barked back at Twilight, waving his paws before pointing to Solid and growling. "You want to fight him?" a nod followed. "I understand, good luck."
Script however, didn't seem too happy with this. "My opponent is Twilight Sparkle, not some mangy mutt."
"Springer's just as strong as I am," Twilight shot back. "He's been trained by Flash after all." Following this, Springer went into a battle stance, creating his bone shaped weapon as he did.
"Very well," Script scoffed as he charged his horn again. "I will humour the animal. Maybe seeing her friend's pet get beat with encourage you to fight."
On the other side of the city...
Flash zoomed down another street, the air chipping his wings as he fluttered back and forth, scanning each street with his eyes. "Come on Lightning! Where are you?!" As that last yell rolled off his tongue, the pegasus felt a sudden chill down his spine. He instantly stopped, landing on the nearby street as he rubbed his neck. "What is..."
Then he recognised the feeling. It was the same feeling when he was coming home from Appleloosa. The time when Springer fought the thief to protect Ponyville. On that train, Flash felt the same feeling back then as he did now.
"Springer..." Flash slowly whispered to himself. A second later, he shook his head, flaring his wings as he took to the sky again. "Stop worrying Flash, he'll be fine. He's Springer, the best partner I could ask for. Besides, I gotta find Lightning."
Meanwhile...
Springer was the first to attack, rushing towards Script with aura bone in paw. However, despite his charge, Script stood unfazed, ready to strike. His horn quickly charged and fired, a volley of beams flying at the jakhowl. Springer quick switched stances, defending himself as he spun the bone, deflecting the barrage of magic. As the last attack was knocked away, Script clapped his hooves at the sight.
"Impressive," Scripts voice spoke out, a slight hiss in his tone. "No wonder that street rat Flash keeps you around. Your reflexes are sharp."
Springer looked up to see the unicorn back on the rooftops, making the jakhowl look around before nodding. With all his might, he squeezed his legs, readying himself. Then, like a spring, his legs shot him upward as it threw his body into the air, jumping onto a sign above a bakery door before leaping onto a flag pole. Without skipping a beat, the jakhowl hopped onto a clothes line, and then a window sill with a second step. Higher and higher he jumped, until he was almost to Script.
"Not bad, but let's see how you fair against the power of my Life Print." Script's horn glowed once again as a red light shot out and took the form of the word fire. "Life Print Fire!" Suddenly, the word ignited and transformed into a fireball that flew toward a midair jakhowl. Seeing the fireball, Springer quickly made a Bone Breaker and cut through the fire. Unfortunately, he did in mid-jump, so gravity soon came into the picture as Springer found himself falling off the building he was trying to climb.
"Springer!" Twilight screamed, seeing him fall.
A second later, Springer managed to grab hold of the clothes line from before, which, almost like a cartoon, stretched out and then sprung back, catapulting the jakhowl up and over the top of the building. "Aura Blast!" Springer yelled, though nopony understood him, as he fired off the sphere of energy.
"Life Print, Guard!" Script commanded, unleashing a new word. This one was green, which exploded in a blast of green light and morphed into a force field that the Aura Blast bounced off of. Letting out a growl, Springer landed on the nearby rooftop and summoned another Bone Breaker. As he did, Solid rubbed his chin in delight. "You're summoning that again? I must say, its quite the interesting weapon you have there little mutt. Can it do anything else?"
His question was quickly answered as Springer broke the bone in half, causing him to now have two weapons in paw. Springer let out a might roar before charging forward, swinging both weapons into the shield. However, no matter how many times he hit the barrier, it didn't take a hint of damage. Seeing this, Script just shook his head. "Tch, it seems you're already out of tricks."
Hearing this taunt, Springer quickly flipped backwards, gaining some distance between him and Solid. Solid on the other hoof, just stood there before speaking once more. "Life Print, Water!" The barrier dissolved as the blue word shot out of Scripts horn, which transformed into a sudden burst of high pressure water. The burst quickly went flying at Springer at high speed. Seeing the attack, Springer back flipped again, barely dodging the attack.
"Hmm...not fast enough. Very well, Life Print, Ice!" The light blue word flew out of his horn and exploded into several beams of ice cold light. The light struck the soaked rooftop, turning it into a mini ice rink. As Springer landed onto the rooftop from the back flip, his feet quickly slipped on the freezing surface. Seeing the jakhowl fall onto his face, Script just let out a chuckle. "What will you do now?"
As Springer tried to get back up, Solid's horn shined one more time. "Life Script, Explosion!" The word shot out of his horn and flew at Springer, who tried to dodge. Unfortunately, his legs slipped again, making him a sitting duck.
BOOM!
Twilight looked up and saw the explosion, letting out a scream as she saw Springer go flying off the roof and towards the nearby street. "Springer!" She yelled, her horn quickly flaring as she tried to cover Springer in her magic aura. Thankfully, she got him in time, causing a sigh of relief appear out of his mouth. With that, she levitated him over to her, quickly checking the jakhowl over for injuries. "Springer! Speak to me! Are you okay?"
The jakhowl opened his eyes and looked up at her, letting out a small whimper.
"Oh thank Celestia," she said, pulling him into a hug. Springer let out a low whine, which Twilight felt she knew what it meant. "Don't worry," she shook her head before showing a small smile. "You did great. Flash would be proud."
Springer let out a soft bark before closing his eyes, losing consciousness soon afterword.
"So Twilight," Script said as he teleported behind her. "Will you fight? Or will you end up like that mutt in your hooves?"
Twilight put Springer on the ground and turned towards him, glaring. "I don't know why you're like this, but I'm putting a stop to it."
"Be careful Twilly," Shining called out from where he sat, his body still struggling from the injuries he had sustained earlier.
"I'll be fine Shining," Twilight replied as a snort flew out of her nostrils. "I'll stop Script no matter what."
Twilight Sparkle V Springer V Solid Script, Springer KO'd
"Springer..." Scootaloo muttered, her eyes tearing up. "Oh no..."
"It ain't right!" Apple Bloom yelled next, "This shouldn't be happening to our friends!"
"Yeah..." Sweetie admitted as her ears flopped down at the news. "But we can't do anything about it here."
Fluttershy then went up and gave the girls a big hug. "It'll be okay girls. Everything will be alright."
"She's right you know." Celestia added as she walked up to them before changing her view to the barrier. "Though it seems my student is all alone now." Celestia commented as she glared at the writing. "Twilight...you must perverse and prevail. It all centres on you now."
Explosions filled the streets and Twilight and Script fired blast after blast at each other.
Both seemed evenly matched in terms of skill and power, both being able to fire a highly powerful magic while also teleporting away from the others. One such teleport had Twilight land on a nearby rooftop, followed by Script who tried to hit her with another volley of magic beams, only for her to teleport away once more.
"Stop running and fight me!" Script yelled out, looking around as he tried to find his target. A second later, a light caught the edge of his vision, making him turn to see another magic attack coming his way. "Life Print, Guard!" The barrier quickly appeared, shielding him at the last second. That, and his blank eyes widened as he saw the shield dissolve from the blast. "Impossible...she's that powerful?!" He turned his vision to Twilight, who was now standing atop another roof, staring him down.
"You strength is impressive," Script called out from the neighboring rooftop. "But I can't afford to lose this game to you."
"Why do we even have to play this game?" Twilight asked him, waved her hooves as she did. "What's the point in all of this?!"
"The point is to prove Lightning is the one truly worthy of ruling Equestria." Script told her as his horn began to flare again. "And I am one of few that shall stand by his side during his rule."
"That's ridiculous. Even if the princesses did hand rule over to him, do you honestly think the ponies of Equestria will really accept him?!"
"They will accept his rule and bow to him." Script hissed, his blank eyes narrowing as a few sparks flew out of his horn. "For he...for he is the strongest!"
"Then why are you..." Twilight started before she noticed something in his voice. There was slight hesitation. "Script?" Twilight said quietly, scanning him over. She'd known Script longer then she'd known Flash, and had done a few projects with him back at Celestia's school. Despite this, she did know that others would look down on him, saying that she had overcome him in terms of intellectual might. However, she had formally apologised to him over it those years ago, and she'd never known him to hold it against her In fact, he seemed content with his lot in life back then.
"All my life, all I ever wanted to do was help Equestria grow! But nothing I did would make a big enough contribution. But now....now Lightning has given me the power to do it!" His horn and eyes glowed, making Twilight realise why he was doing this.
"Hypnosis," she whispered.
"Life Print, Demolition!" The word shot out his horn and transformed into several balls of light, which flew at Twilight before exploding.
"TWILIGHT!" Shining screamed, seeing his sister be consumed by several explosions, which annihilated most of the rooftop she was standing on. The purple unicorn was sent flying off the roof, heading straight for the ground as she fought to stay conscious. Seeing the ground coming up fast, she used all the focus she had to teleport herself away. Seconds later, she appeared on another rooftop, collapsing as she did so. In a flash of light Solid Script appeared on the other side of the roof, standing there while waiting for Twilight to stand.
"Impressive wouldn't you say?" He asked with a small chuckle. "In my opinion, the written word is the greatest achievement of ponykind. It represents the dawn of the era of reason and has the power to start and end a war in an instant. And thanks to Lightning Blitz, I've now given it unlimited power!" Seeing Twilight on her hooves, his horn once again glowed. "Life Print-"
Before he could finish, Twilight unleashed a powerful shot of magic from her horn, causing Script to quickly dodge the oncoming blow. "I agree with you Script," she panted as her horn began to flare again. "The written word is possibly the greatest thing in this world. But nothing should have unlimited power. Because when it does, then it will attract those who'll abuse it. The real Script would know that, and I'm gonna set him free."
"I severally doubt that," Script replied as his own horn glowed. "My power is far beyond anything you can throw my way. My runes can attest to that."
"Let's test that then. Shall we?!" Twilight barked back.
The two unleashed their magic, sending power blasts across the rooftop which connected in the center. The two pushed back at each other, trying to overpower the other, only for it become a stalemate. "You'll never defeat me!" Script called out over the force of the spells, as his green magic aura beginning to push Twilight's purple aura back.
Twilight felt her spell losing ground, but refused to give up. "I never wanted to defeat you," she screamed back as her magic began to pulse and push against Script's. "I want to help you! I...I'll save you right here Script!" Her eyes shot open and glowed bright white as her spell exploded, unleashing an explosion of energy. Script opened his mouth, ready to summon a barrier, only to feel the magic cut right through his attack, consuming him in the process.
"AAAAUUUUUGGGHHHHH!" He tried to yell, only for his voice to soon vanish in the sudden explosion of light.
Flash, Cadance and everypony else witnessed the light, seeing the giant pillar of energy appear in the middle of the city. As they watched the light slowly die down after it's sudden appearance, the city began to finally shake from the explosion of magical energy.
"What is that?" Sweetie asked as she and her friends saw the light.
Celestia and Luna entered the room and Celestia shined a cheeky grin. "That's the power of possibly one of the greatest magic users of all time. Even the power given by the Alicorn Amulet can't stand against it."
"Tch. I can see why you chose her as your student." Luna said while shaking her head. "I expect no less from you sister."
"Well, what did you expect from our daughter?" Velvet replied with a smile.
As the light of the explosion faded, Script could be seen standing there against the edge of the rooftop. Slowly, he began to fall backwards, over the edge. "Hold on!" Twilight cried, rushing over and using the last of her magic to grab him and pull him back onto the roof. A second later, he collapsed along with Twilight, who also collapsed out of exhaustion. "Thank...goodness...I won."
The winner is Twilight Sparkle. Solid Script, KO'd
Those words appeared in front of Flash, Cadance, Iron and Lightning. The first three were especially happy to see the news, glad that another one of Lightning's minions was defeated.
"Alright Twilight," Cadance cheered happily as she flew over another building. "I knew you could do it."
"This game's getting interesting," Iron said with a smile as he walked down a nearby street. "Looks like there's not much left to do."
"Now there's just one," Flash said as he flew over the other side of the city. "I'm coming for you Lightning!"
However, the news wasn't cheerful for Lightning. In fact, as he saw the news, his eyes glowed more than they ever had as he let out a roar of frustration. "RRAAAUUGGHHH! Are you kidding me?!" he yelled before slamming his hooves down, electricity filling the room as he did. "How...why?! How did Script lose?! Are the forbidden spells really that useless?!"
As Lightning let out another roar, he sat back down on his makeshift throne, his eye twitching as electricity flowed out of his body with every movement. "How...how is this happening?!" As he asked this, his amulet shined, causing his eyes glow again. "Gorgenia...Wild...Script. Why did they fail?! I gave them true power, didn't I?! Then why..." Lightning's nostrils released a puff of air as a recent memory surfaced inside his mind. "Script..."
The Past...
A small quill scribbled on a sheet of fine, well-designed paper. There, the ink easily squeezed out of the feather's tip, quickly showing a line of jet black ink. The one using the quill was Solid Script, as he was writing the twenty-fifth page of a book he was writing. A long sigh followed as the aura around the quill laid down beside the papers.
"Its no use. I can't figure it out." Script said to himself as he turned away from the paper and took a swig of a cup of coffee. After pouring the black bitter liquid down his gullet, Script glanced back at the paper and rubbed his chin in thought. "Let's see, alpha-five combined with a delta symbol...and then it should sync with a tri-gem signal that....hmmm...no. That won't work either. Perhaps I'm not thinking outside the box here? No, the runes should-"
"Script!" yelled a voice behind him, causing the unicorn to hop in place.
"Yes?" Script turned around to find the voice's owner. "Lightning?"
"Hey Script." Lightning replied as he walked up to the unicorn, "Another late night of making runes?"
"Er...yes. I guess..." Script muttered as he turned back around, his head drooping at the statement. "It doesn't really matter though."
"Oh come on! Don't be like that Script!" Lightning barked as he slapped Solid's back. "You're the best at rune magic! Nopony in Canterlot can do what you do!"
"That's because nopony wants to study rune magic Lightning. Nopony cares about the written word anymore." Script shot back with a slight glare. However, that face soon faded as he looked back at his work, letting out another sigh. "Why are you here Lightning? I told you, I'm not interested in 'going on the town' with you and Wild. You know I'm an introvert."
"I know. That's not why I'm here." Lightning replied before reaching into his saddlebag. A second later, he pulled out a sheet of paper. "I'm here because of this."
Script turned and looked at the paper. His eyes immediately widened as he saw the picture on the sheet. "Lightning...you do know what that is, don't you?"
"You bet. And I want you to get it with Wild and Gorgenia."
Script just sat there, a face of pure despair filling his features. His brain tried to tell him to respond, but nothing happened. It wasn't till his eyes turned a darker shade before Script looked back at Lightning and said, "You're doing it, aren't you? You're going to attack Canterlot."
"Well...yeah." Lightning shrugged, a big grin on his face as he did. "I mean, you knew it was coming Solid. I have to do it."
"I...I just..." Script rubbed his temples as he tried to form words. "Lightning...you do realise what will happen if you lose?"
"I know. But I have to do this Solid. Its necessary." Lightning replied, his features unchanging.
"And does Wild and Gorgenia know about this?"
"Not a clue. After all, once I have this bad boy," Lightning tapped the picture with his hoof. "It won't matter that they won't know. The magic I'll be able to do-"
"Won't work." Script interrupted, causing Lightning to glare at him with slight surprise. "It won't work Lightning. Even with the amulet, the mind control spell won't be powerful enough."
"Why not?" Lightning asked, tilting his head.
"Because...that forbidden spell was never complete. It can't fully rob their will to think."
"Really? I thought those spells were pretty cut and dry Solid. I mean, take the Life Print spell for instance. It can-"
"I know what it can do Lightning." Script interrupted again. "I know what all of them can do. I researched all of them for you, remember?"
"I know." Lightning shrugged before putting a hoof on Script's shoulder. "I also know that you're the smartest pony Canterlot has ever seen, even more than that prissy, goody-two shoes marefriend of Sen-turd-y's. In fact, if we do this, I could make you even better than her! Heck, I'll let ya take her as your mare after I take the place over."
"Twilight...yeah..." Script whispered, looking down at the floor. "I...I would like that." Letting out one last sigh, Script turned to Lightning with eyes of determination. "Alright Lightning, I'll do it."
"You sure?" Lightning asked, slightly surprised at his sudden determination. "You do know what we're doing, right?"
"Yeah." Script nodded before biting his lip. "But I need you to promise me something."
"Sure thing. What's up?"
"When you use the mind control spell on me, I need you to take away my fears."
"Your fears?"
"Yes." Script nodded again. "In order for that spell to work at its best form, you need to enforce something in the pony you're controlling. They need to believe that they're doing what they would want to do while you're controlling them. For Wild, you'll just need him to tell him during the spell that he longer needs to find friends other than his puppets. And Gorgenia, well..."
"Princess Cadance?"
"Yeah. That'll be more than enough for her." Script hopped off his chair, his facial expression turning more and more darker. "That's why I need you to tell me to be fearless. You know I'm a coward Lightning. I always have been."
"I...yeah." Lightning replied, slowly pulling his hoof over Solid's shoulders. "You don't mind me doing this?"
"No." Script shook his head. "I owe way too much to you anyways Lightning." Script showed a small smile as the two began to walk out of Script's house. "After all, you've been saving my hide time and time again since we were foals."
"I know." Lightning let out a cackling laugh. "It was a lot of work back then, saving your still scrawny hide from every bully in Celestia's school. That and the usual street riff-raff."
"Yup. Just like that infernal orange bird Flash, all the street rats are the same. Nothing but trouble." Solid remarked before slightly grimacing. "Especially for a pacifist wimp like me."
"Eh, don't worry about it." Lightning shrugged before closing the door behind them. "Now come on, I already talked to Wild and Gorgenia about this mission. That, and remember, don't tell them what the plan is."
"I won't." Script replied as he looked at the paper on more time, his eyes scanning over the picture of the Alicorn Amulet. "Besides, we both know those two will keep themselves occupied, specifically arguing with each other, over the entire mission."
"Oh yeah. They never change."
The Present...
"Script..." Lightning mumbled to himself before the amulet shined again. "That's right...I don't need you anymore. Thanks to the spell you showed me, nothing...nothing will stop me!" As he said this, electricity filled the room again, burn marks appearing everywhere as it did. "I am the future king and nothing will stop me from ascending to my throne!"
Meanwhile...
Twilight had now got herself onto the streets below, Script in tow on her back. Finally reaching the ground, Twilight took the stallion off of her back and laid him down on the concrete. "Hey," she said shaking him as she tired to wake him up. "Script. Wake up."
Slowly, Solid Script began to open his eyes, looking up at her. "Twilight?"
Twilight looked in his eyes and saw they were back to normal. He was free. "I'm glad to see you're alright Script."
"I don't understand," he replied, letting out a groan. "What's going on? What is..."
Twilight shook her head. "No time to explain. I need you to tell me where Lightning would likely go to hide."
"Lightning? What is..." Script blinked several times, his brain trying to catch up as the hypnosis wore off. "Why do you need to know?"
"He's in danger and we want to help him." Twilight explained as she shook his hoof. "But we can't unless we find him. Please."
"I see...yeah, I'm starting to remember now..." Script muttered, rubbing his head with his other hoof. "I'm sorry, but I'm not sure where he'd go to hide..." Then, Script's eyes lit up as his brain clicked. "Well, except one place."
"What?"
"There is one place he likes to go when he wants to be alone." He spoke a name and Twilight's eyes went wide.
"Thank you," she said. Turning away and slowly getting to her feet, Twilight pointed her horn at the sky and mustered up all he magic she had in her body. Finally, she managed to fire off two spells, which both flew through the air.
All over Canterlot, the ponies where suddenly bombarded by the sight of two set of fireworks, which exploded while revealing two images. The first was a single lightning bolt that zigzagged six times, which many recognised as a certain individual's cutie mark. The second image was that of a building, which almost everypony recognised.
"Canterlot Cathedral..." Flash said before realising what the message meant. His eyes narrowed as a big grin popped onto his face. "I'm coming for you Lightning."
At the same time...
From within Canterlot Cathedral Lightning saw the image of his cutie mark and the building he was hiding in. A big cocky grin cover his face. "So the cats out of the bag. Looks like I'll be getting some company." he cackled as his amulet glowed again, his eyes shining the same colour. "It doesn't matter. The Thunder Tomb would soon activate. The princess better give up the throne, or I'll just have to fry every intruder that comes for me! AHAHAHAHAHA!!!"
Back at the castle...
Princess Celestia also saw the images in the sky and nodded, before turning to Fluttershy. "Fluttershy my dear, I need you to do something for me."
"What is it princess?" The yellow pegasus asked, releasing her hug over the CMC. The light from Twilight's battle had frightened them, causing her to hug them once more.
"I need you to find Flash and Lightning and bring them back here."
Fluttershy's eyes went wide at the request. "W-w-why?"
"Flash and Lightning both deserve a chance."
"A chance for what?" Night asked.
Celestia remained silent for a moment, closing her eyes as she readied herself for the news she was about to say. Opening them again, she let out a sigh and said. "To say goodbye to Grand Hoof before he's gone."
Everypony who'd heard that made their eyes go wide, knowing what she'd meant by that.
Grand Hoof was soon to die.