//------------------------------// // Bringing Twilight Back Up to Speed // Story: Madison: An Archaeologist's HIE Tale // by The Atlantean //------------------------------// The Princess of Friendship awoke in her bed in the Golden Oaks Library. Spike saw her get up and ran over to help her up. “Twilight, are you okay?” “I'll be fine. What's new?” “Well, in the three weeks since you fainted, everything’s gone downhill,” the dragon replied. “Three weeks? What happened? Am I needed? What do you mean by ‘downhill?’” Twilight started shooting questions at her assistant in rapid-fire mode, something he almost never saw. Spike’s reply never came out of his mouth. Instead, he ran downstairs to answer the door as the bell rang. He looked through the window first, then admitted the guest in. His apparent caution did not escape Twilight’s notice as she leaned over the rail by the stairs. “Madison, how are you?” the dragon asked. “Not good. They want an answer, and they want it now.” Twilight walked down the wooden flight of stairs, still fairly groggy. “Who's they?” Madison closed the door, locking it behind her. When she did, Twilight noticed the cuts through her leather jacket down into her back. They looked like the archaeologist was whipped. Her once-neatly-tied hair was wild, and she had slight discolorations that labeled bruises all over her face. Madison clearly wasn't in a very good condition, even considering her being a completely different species. “Let me take a look at that.” The princess pulled a book out the shelves. Spike saw it was titled ‘Healing Spells For Major and Minor Injuries.’ Twilight flipped through the pages for a minute, then asked Madison to sit on the center table. The woman complied, and Twilight cast a simple spell that surrounded Madison. The cuts on Madison’s back closed, leaving the smallest of scars. Twilight’s horn ceased to glow, and the bright aura of the spell dissipated. The princess seemed extremely weary from even the small spell, but clung to consciousness with her undying quest for knowledge. “Now,” Twilight ordered in the calmest voice she could muster, “tell me what the hay is going on around here. All I know is that I’ve been out for three weeks.” Madison and Spike replied at the same time. “Well, it isn't exactly what,” the dragon said. “It's more of a ‘how’ thing.” “One at a time! Spike?” “You fainted and Madison carried you in. However, news travels fast. The Changelings attacked, seeing that three princesses were missing and the last one was incapacitated. But Chrysalis went through the rift. So the dragons tried. But the Dragonlord went through the rift. Since then, Equestria has become a battleground for a fight between Changelings, Dragons, and ponies. Madison’s really the only one we can trust because Changelings can't morph into humans. As long as we stay here, we're safe.” “And you, Madison?” “Everything he said is true. And since these Changelings can't morph into dragons, as far as I know, you can most likely trust him. Plus, he’s been in here the whole time, looking over you with the front door locked, while I was out there.” “Alright then. But I still want to know who ‘they’ are.” Spike sighed. The green spikes on his back drooped to the side, and he looked as if he were about to die of depression. His tail suddenly looked two inches shorter to Twilight, and she realized that it actually was. It abruptly stopped at a purple cauterized stub instead of ending in a green arrow-tip point. “Oh, Spike, what happened to you? Your tail-” “The makeshift government has something against dragons, probably because of the current crisis. If Madison hadn't stuck up for me, they would've killed me.” “What did you do?” Twilight turned to look at the human. “I whacked everyone away with a baseball bat. They responded by tying me to a post and whipping me in the town square. That was last week.” “A baseball bat? What in Equestria is a baseball bat?” “This.” Madison pulled the wooden bat out from behind several books on plants. It was sleek, shiny, and it was labeled for some team. Twilight raised an eyebrow. The carefully crafted stick of wood was obviously not from Equestria. “‘Boston Red Sox’,” she read. “Who are they?” “A baseball team from my home. Somehow this came through the rift.” “From Kansas? Hmm.” The purple alicorn now stared unwaveringly at the two. “Now, tell me who ‘they’ are.” “Not Kansas,” Spike said. “Madison said they’re based in the city Boston in a state called Massachusetts." “‘They’ is the makeshift government, based in Town Hall.” Madison answered. “They want you to do something.” “What does the makeshift Equestrian government want me to do? I'm no good to anyone if they can't be absolutely sure I'm not a Changeling!” Twilight Sparkle was more confused and stressed now than she ever had been in her entire life. Knowing that it wasn't hard for a Changeling to morph into her form and that Dragons could easily turn her into a roast pony sandwich didn't help. Possibly all of ponykind depended on her not screwing anything up. The three walked out of the library and towards Sweet Apple Acres. There, they were met by a familiar orangish Earth pony with apples on her flank. “Twilight, thank Celestia you're alive!” “Hold on, missy!” Madison had her Colt pointed at the pony. “How do I know you’re not a Changeling?” “Come on, Maddie. You know it’s me.” “Say something only Applejack would know!” The human was still staring down her sights. The orange Earth pony sighed a long sigh. “Twilight has read every Daring Do book exactly thirty-seven times, in chronological order.” Twilight placed her hoof on Madison’s shoulder. The alicorn could just barely make it. “She’s right.” Madison let the pistol fall to her side and stuck it back in its place. “Alright. But if the Princess isn’t here and I run into you, you’ll need to come up with something new.” Applejack acknowledged, then turned around and walked alongside them, headed back in the direction she came. “The Apple family’s really come through with speedy talking to anypony in the country. That was quite the excellent idea, Spike.” “Thanks. It was really nothing. You set it up.” “Ah know, but you told me to. Anywho, we have news pourin’ in from reliable sources the Changelings won’t be able to track since the Apples are good at what they do. My aunt and uncle in Manehattan reported that Queen Chrysalis’ number two has set up HQ near Baltimare. Others have confirmed it. The Dragons’ number two took over the San Palomino Desert, and he’s content with stayin’ there fer now. But he’s blockin’ the railroad tracks to Las Pegasus, where some of my family in Applewood say they’re under siege!” “AJ, we’ll work on it. Have you done what I asked last week?” Madison asked. “Yeah, Ah did.” Applejack lead them to the CMC (Cutie Mark Crusader) clubhouse, which now looked like a literal tree fort on steroids. It had living quarters suspended in nearby trees, with the original clubhouse as a command center. Stockpiles of food, mostly apple products, hung in large bags around the living areas. A tall perimeter fence had sprung up around the area, with Apple Bloom, or so they hoped, guarding the only gate. “Sure is nice weather, ain’t it, Applejack?” the bright yellow filly asked through the gate as the group approached. “Yes, it is. I always bring an umbrella,” the older mare replied. Apple Bloom opened up the gate and let them in. She raised an eyebrow at Twilight, but relaxed when she saw the human standing next to the alicorn. “Don’t worry, AB. She’s the real one,” Madison said. Apple Bloom closed the gate behind them. She threw a goofy mock salute at the archaeologist, whom she referred to as “The General,” which told Madison she wasn’t a Changeling. Madison returned it, just as jokingly. It was important to remain lighthearted as long as possible, especially in these circumstances. After watching Twilight shakily climb the ladder, assisted by Spike and Big Mac above her, the woman leapt up and grabbed the wood. She hoisted herself up, using the rail to clamber up though the air. Big Mac held his big red hoof out to her, and she took it, taking advantage of his abnormal strength to finish her climb. In the original clubhouse, known as “Apple HQ” by the sign nailed next to the door, the old, frail Granny Smith was using her familial authority to direct operations throughout Equestria. The green Earth pony jotted some more notes down as Braeburn in Appleloosa gave his daily report. She nodded and his magical image disappeared. No others materialized nearby, so it was the last for the day. Granny heard the door creak open and didn’t even look up. “Applejack, I thought that was you comin’ up that ladder. And you brought good Maddie and Spike.” “Well, actually, Granny, Twilight’s here,” Applejack replied. “Spike and Maddie were bringin’ her over here when I found ‘em.” “Well, alrighty then,” Granny said. “Princess, we need to get you back up to speed on this, unless Spike already told you.” “He and Madison did give me a run-down of the current situation, yes,” Twilight replied. “What I don’t have are the specific details. And some makeshift government wants me to do something, but I haven’t been told what.” Applejack gestured to the table in the center of the room and sat. The others still standing followed suit. When all were seated, Applejack started. “Twilight, the ponies callin’ themselves the ‘government’ are Filthy Rich and his wife, Prince Blueblood, and some other high-ups that want you to give them the power to rule Equestria in all practicalities. Of course, you probably won’t give it to ‘em, but they’re willin’ to go to extreme, and Ah mean extreme, lengths to get it, especially since they think they knwo what they’re doin’. ” “Could you elaborate on ‘extreme,’ Applejack? I don’t understand.” “Sure thing, sugar cube. They’re usin’ the Mayor like a puppet, and they’ve taken hostages: Rarity, Sweetie Belle, and Dr. Hooves, who we need to help us in our next move, along with every Unicorn in town.” “They’ve taken hostages?” Twilight cried. “Are they insane?” “Anyone will do what it takes to keep their world from falling apart, believing that they’re safe in their little bubble. They do what it takes to survive if they have to, but this band wants more than that, obviously.” Madison said in disgust. “Right now, they’re no different from people who take hostages in my world. I say we bring in the cops and lock ‘em up.” “The cops are controlled by Mayor Mare, remember?” Big Mac pointed out. “Good point, Big Mac,” Madison grumbled. “But I have a Colt. I wanna use it on something besides a Timberwolf.” “Maddie, we can’t always have our way. Your ‘gun’ may just ruin all credibility you have as a neutral third party if you use it against ponies. They’ll think you want to take Equestria!” Granny said. Madison, who’d been inspecting and cleaning the 1911 pistol as the conversation flowed, placed it on the table. “Alright then, so the gun’s not an option. But we need the Doctor for the upgrades to this place he can get us, not to mention cooking up more ammo for me. Twenty rounds in two clips ain’t much.” She sighed. “Also, I need battery power for both my phone and GPS, which he’s most likely to have access to. Does anybody here have a plan?” Twilight glanced at her Earth pony friend. “What happened to Fluttershy, Pinkie, and Rainbow?” “They’re working on a fall-back point in the Castle of the Two Sisters,” Applejack replied. “With?” “Zecora, Steven Magnet, and some of the friendlier Everfree residents.” “Keep me informed. As for a plan to free those hostages, I could just teleport in and get them out that way,” Twilight mused. As she continued, her voice became a quiet mumble. “But they’ve probably put horn locks on everypony who can use magic. Spike and Madison are going to be known to them, but too suspicious. The Apples are spread thin across Equestria to give us an intelligence net.” Her eyes lit up for a second. Then it coalesced into a plan into her mind as she worked out all possibilities. “I’m going to go there, and give them what they want.”