//------------------------------// // IV - Treasure in the Wind // Story: Stranger Magics // by GMBlackjack //------------------------------// The Doctor was a master of getting into places he really shouldn't be getting into. Usually, he was forced to use the sonic screwdriver to enter any given location, but in this instance that wasn't necessary. Clearings couldn't really be locked and what passed as 'security' was either busy cleaning up the rest of the mess or was the Everfree Forest itself. Secluded bases always got overconfident. They probably didn't even realize those red crystals of theirs were creating a trail of magic sparks right to them. Or maybe they did know and were just paranoid about something worse. The idea sent chills down the Doctor's spine and brought a smile to his lips - how exciting! He made his way past the red crystals simply by walking. Nopony paid him any mind - they were watching for something other than him. Those few who noticed him looked confused for a moment, but when they saw his official looking tie and confident stride, they determined that he must belong there. The Doctor carefully positioned himself behind a building before anypony who was supposed to question newcomers noticed him. The structure he found himself behind had a single door and window. Looking inside he saw several desks covered in beakers and gem powder. Many of the concoctions sparkled with vibrant energies. The lab wasn't up to snuff in the safety department, but given the state of the base itself, he supposed he couldn't blame them. The Doctor knew he needed information - but he didn't know which of the buildings would house the files. He knew he couldn't just peek into the windows of every building - that would be far too conspicuous. He needed a faster method... He looked carefully at the ponies walking around - scientists, guards, mages, construction workers... But those weren't what he was looking for. He found what he needed in a small earth pony with huge glasses rushing out of a building with a pile of files in his saddlebags. The stallion's expression and demeanor told the Doctor he was haggard, overworked, and inexperienced; an errand-boy intern type. Perfect "Excuse me!" the Doctor said, walking up to him in such a way that his form was kept out of the sight of most other ponies. "Where are the files?" "Th- the what?" "The files! I gave you them a few hours ago, where are they?" "Uh... I'm sorry who are-?" The Doctor reached into his collar with an exaggerated huff and pulled out a blank piece of paper. The intern didn't see the paper for what it was though - he saw an I.D. "...T-terribly sorry sir, I... I don't remember being given them. I... I would have put the files in there, sir," he said, pointing. Luckily the file building was only two structures away. The Doctor wouldn't have to be in the open for long to get there. He put his piece of 'blank' paper away, gave the intern a wink, and trotted briskly towards it, careful to keep up his confident authoritative stride. It was locked - but it was no match for his screwdriver. The door popped open with ease, revealing an inside that was a single large room filled with rows and rows of files. He shut the door behind him, locked it, and double checked to make sure he was alone. After his secrecy was assured, he began to open files. He found financial records first - no help there. Curiously, some of them had been burnt and one page was stretched in an odd, distorted way, missing several chunks as if they had been torn out by some force. Like the leaves he had seen at Rarity's house. The Doctor shook his head; they were involved in the disappearance of Aloe all right, or at least they had encountered what had taken her. He needed to find out what they knew. He moved to another section, combing through dozens upon dozens of lab results. Most were relating to distilling magic itself down to a pure essence. There were many successful attempts at distilling the magical essence of a unicorn, alongside marginally less successful attempts on pegasi and earth pony essences. The Doctor was surprised to find that any of the latter had been successful at all. None of this told him what the tests were for - or how they could have played a hand in Aloe's disappearance. Pony magic wasn't that strong. He found their files on the unusual magics of the Everfree Forest - the Lights, manticores, poison joke - they even had a file on the Tree of Harmony itself and a few other phenomena the Doctor hadn't even heard of. But none of it was what he was looking for - just a dead end. He found another set of experiment logs - this time ones that used the distilled magics on various test subjects to see what would happen. The file was ripped out of his hoof before he could get any further into it. He found himself face to face with a fiery unicorn, none other than Sunset Shimmer. She was livid. "What's all this?" The Doctor smiled, producing the 'blank' paper once more. "I was under the impression you were told I was here, Miss Shimmer." Sunset raised an eyebrow. "Doctor Turner, S.M.I.L.E.? how interesting. If I didn't have a file on you already I probably would have fallen for this." The Doctor blinked. "...Excuse me?" She lifted the 'blank' paper into the air with her magic, scrutinizing it. "Not a trace of magic on it... Quite the device..." "Are you-" Sunset took a file out of a nearby top shelf. "Time Turner. Otherwise known as the Doctor. Male. Earth pony. Brown. Lives at 232 Blue Street in a small blue house. Occupation is assumed to be a sort of inventor, but no income has ever been successfully traced. Has been living in town for as long as anypony can remember, even the ancient residents. Has an uncanny understanding of science and magics, and is rumored to have a spacial distortion in place within his house. In a possible intimate relationship with one Miss Roseluck..." The Doctor flushed despite himself. "...I could go on. We know a lot about you - and what we don't know makes you very, very interesting." She glared deep into his eyes. "I don't know what you are, but I'm extremely excited to find out." The Doctor blinked. "I am afraid that's not going to happen." Sunset raised an eyebrow. "Why not?" "Because I'm about to do something really stupid." He grabbed a nearby shelf of files and threw it overtop of her. Overcome with surprise, Sunset was unable to stop it from toppling her over. The Doctor ran out the now-unlocked door and galloped towards the treeline. "Stop him!" he heard Sunset roar. He stole a look behind him - already magic bolts were flying in his direction alongside more than a few sharp spears and arrows. They were certainly serious about stopping him. But luck was on his side - he had a head start and everypony was a terrible shot. He leaped into the Everfree forest, jumping over a patch of poison joke. "Ha!" he shouted. "You should consider upgrading your security!" "Oh, trust me," Sunset said, hitting him with a fire-bolt from the side. "We will." The Doctor groaned. "Teleporting is overpowered." "So's mysterious paper," Sunset retorted, letting a smirk come to her face. "Now, we're going to go back to base and I am going to personally get some answers." "It was the aliens all along," the Doctor offered. "Playing games won't get you far." The Doctor stood up and shrugged. "You'd be surprised." A dart shot out of the darkness, hitting Sunset in the neck. Her pupils shrunk to pinpricks. "You little..." She passed out, hitting her head on a nearby rock. "Ooooh..." the Doctor hissed. "That's going to hurt in the morning..." Roseluck came out of her vantage point, putting the blowgun away. "...What were you thinking!?" "Infiltrate a base and get information. We need to go, now." He grabbed her and bolted into the foliage. "...She was somepony important wasn't she?" "Sunset Shimmer." "I just tranqued the Princess's Protege!?" "Yes. Don't worry about it, she'll be fine later." "She might have a concussion!" "That base has a doctor." "Not anymore!" The Doctor rolled his eyes. "You know what I mean. Let's move - back to town." Roseluck sighed. "Did you find anything?" "They've encountered whatever it is that took Aloe - I'm fairly sure it did a number on them. But she found me before I could dig deeper. They were experimenting on pony magic essence. That's all I really found out." "So all we know is that there is something else going on? Great." "One step closer to finding her." Roseluck chuckled despite herself. The two raced through the forest in the dead of night. ~~~ Big Mac, Granny Smith, and Surprise all sat at the front of Applejack's bed, watching the sick filly. She wasn't coughing as much anymore, but she still felt terrible. Applejack opened one of her eyes. "...Ah can't get to sleep with y'all watchin' me like hawks." Big Mac blinked. "But..." "Out!" She tried to yell - but instead ended up breathing harshly and coughing. Still, the three ponies did as asked, shuffling out into the hallway. Big Mac shot Surprise a look. "Can you do anything?" "Big Macintosh!" Granny chided. "If she could have she would have!" Surprise nodded in affirmation. Big Mac bristled. "Fine. She could at least be helpful, maybe. Tell us more about this Sound Ghost. Tell us how to get Aloe back." "Big Mac!" Surprise drooped. "...Sorry." Granny shook her head. "You don't need to be sorry, sweetie, you've been through a lot. We shouldn't ask you for anything." "She's sure asking us for a lot Granny..." "You have no right to talk about her like that Big Mac! Ah'd watch my tongue if Ah was you!" Big Mac decided it was a good time to shut up. He still shot Surprise an accusing look whenever Granny wasn't looking at him. Then there was a knock at the door - a panicked, rapid, relentless knock. "Hide," Granny told Surprise. Surprise didn't even need to be told - she ran into Big Mac's room, hiding in the dresser. Granny grabbed a fire poker from a nearby closet, ready to defend her home if need be. She and Big Mac walked to the front door and cautiously opened it. Berry Punch and Derpy fell through. "You gotta help, Granny!" Berry shouted. "Something took Golden!" Granny dropped the poker. "What was it?" "It..." Berry shook her head. "Only Rarity actually saw it..." Granny looked behind the two fillies to the small, white form sitting a fair distance back. Rarity was staring through Granny Smith at seemingly nothing, a haunted look in her eyes. "Geist..." she muttered. Granny walked out to her. "...Rarity, what did this Geist look like?" "Orange. Bright. Swirly." She gulped. "I... Only saw the claw that... It was right behind me! I could see it in her eyes! It wasn't..." She started crying. "The noise..." "There there... We're going to go look for her. Big Mac, get the cart and put on as many metal pots and pan as you can." "Yes Granny," Big Mac said, rushing into the barn. Derpy blinked. "What are you doing?" "Ah'm gonna wake the entire town up for this. We need to act fast if we wanna catch this Geist. Not waitin' a day..." Rarity was shocked out of her stupor at the loud crescendo of clanging noises coming from the barn. Big Mac rushed out, towing a cart adorned with dozens of metallic pots, pans, and spoons. Four lamps dangled from the cart, one along each edge, lighting up the nearby area. "Hurry up and get on!" he shouted. Berry and Derpy wasted no time following his orders. Granny had to nudge Rarity into the cart herself. "Hit it big Mac!" Big Mac took off at a gallop through the night, purposefully running unsteadily so the noise would be louder. Granny started yelling. "GET YOUR REARS UP EVERYPONY! WE'VE GOT A MISSING FILLY! REMOVE YOUR POSTERIORS FROM YOUR COMFY BEDS AND GET OUT HERE! PONYVILLE, GET UP! WE AREN'T GOING TO LET THIS GO! WAKE UP! MOVE YOUR TOOTERS!" She went on like this for several minutes - the entire journey. Rarity only heard parts of it - she was busy reeling in her own mind, her thoughts of the thing. The Geist. The vibrant orange hue was burned into her eyes - such a harsh contrast to the darkness surrounding. The circles and swirls tied together in patterns she could not forget - or had she? Was she remembering the patterns incorrectly? What if she was - why did it matter? Why did the thought of not remembering bother her? What was that shape in Golden's eyes - a tear through the wind... A claw reaching for her... No, wait, it was Golden who was stolen, not her. why had she thought that? It probably had something to do with those circles. Those spiraling circles... Or were they just spirals? Rarity put her hooves over her head, unsure of what to think - unsure of what happened to her. The cart lurched to a stop, snapping her out of her daze momentarily. Rarity looked at the gathered crowd - they looked worried, and a few were angry. This was not surprising. "What is the meaning of this?" the Mayor yelled. "There's a missing kid - Golden Harvest!" Granny answered. "We need to move fast, while there's still time!" The Mayor tried to hide his annoyed grimace. "Why do we need to do this now?" Granny hefted Berry up. "Something took her, Feckless! These fillies saw it!" Berry gulped at Granny's sudden prompt. "Uh... I didn't get a good look, but it was orange and bright. Rarity was closer to it..." Granny nodded. "And poor Rarity has been traumatized by what she saw. So here's the deal - Big Mac, take Carrot, Cherry, and Bulk back to the road, search there right now." "Yes, Granny! You heard her - Carrot, Cherry, Bulk, let's go!" He galloped off, the three ponies racing after him without hesitation. "As for the rest o' you, Ah know you're tired, grumpy, and sick of this. Shut that part of you up. We need to work fast if we want to find this kid. We'll split up into groups, each going to a different area - the Town, the farms, the Everfree, the hills, the ridge, the Whitetail, everypony can do their part!" "I'll lead the Everfree team!" Granny looked down at the yellow earth pony below her. "Thank you... Er..." "Bon Bon. Recently arrived from Canterlot. I'm the Mayor's new secretary." "Good, you know what you're doing then." She looked out into the crowd. "Ah'll take the farms. Anypony else?" A few hooves shot up and Granny selected the next leaders. She organized the entire able and awake town into the groups in a matter of minutes. "Remember, this thing - which we are calling a 'Geist' for now - is probably dangerous! Be careful! But above all, find that filly! Look for the orange glow! Now go!" The groups spread out. As Grany went to the farms, she turned to the three fillies still in the cart. "Y'all should just stay here and keep your heads down. We'll find her." "Or it will find you..." Rarity said. "Ah'd like it to try somethin'," Granny said, leaping off the cart. "All right! First, check the Harvest fields! Mac should already have the Apple ones. Anypony on this side of my hoof head to Pumpkin's..." Berry looked at Derpy. "We have to do something!" "What? Granny said stay here!" "Crazy mare..." Rarity muttered. "Okay, you need to snap out of it!" Berry said. "it can't have been that bad!" "The spirals Berry! They were circles! Intricate!" Berry took a step back, startled. "S-sorry." "Sorry? What about the swirls?" "Stop talking about round shapes!" Berry blurted in a terrified squeak. Rarity twitched. "I... I... Uh..." She grabbed her head. "This is all wrong..." "Yeah! A thing took Golden!" Derpy said. "It didn't look right... Argh..." Derpy frowned. "The Doctor knows things about circles. I've seen a lot in his house. We should look for him!" "And why should we listen to you!?" Rarity demanded. "Rarity!" Berry chided. "At least it's something! I didn't see him in the crowd. Where would he be, Derpy?" "His house, maybe," Derpy said. "We should go look." "Weren't you saying just a minute ago to stay here?" Rarity asked. "Changed my mind. Come on!" She flew into the night. Berry leaped out behind her, following. With a pained groan, Rarity leaped out of the cart as well, thoughts of orange occupying her mind. To her, the journey to the Doctor's small blue house was almost instant. Derpy knocked on the door - it was locked. She banged on it with her hooves. "Doctor? Rose? You there?" No response. "...They might have gone away..." Derpy said. Rarity blinked. "Hrm?" "They often leave for a while without saying. I dunno where they go." Berry put a hoof to her forehead, groaning. "...Let's try something else." "Do we know anyone good at finding?" Derpy asked. "Granny's got that covered," Derpy said. "I think we need something more magical." Derpy looked at Rarity, then at her horn. She shook her head. "What?" Rarity said. "Not magical enough, sorry. Do we know any other unicorns?" "Vinyl," Berry offered. "Can we go back to the part where I'm not magical enough?" Rarity blurted. "Rarity you can barely lift a tub of ice cream and a spoon," Berry said. "We need more magic than that." Rarity grit her teeth. "You know I can lift more than that - bah. Fine. Think Vinyl has enough?" "Er... No... I think we need something more mystic..." Berry's eyes lit up. "Oh! I know! Wait..." She glanced at Rarity. "...Ooooooh you aren't going to like this." Rarity narrowed her eyes. "...What is it?" "Well, this pony I'm thinking of knows a lot about mystic herbs, spirits, the vibrations of the universe... She likes nature and tree-" "No!" Rarity interjected. "Absolutely not! We do not ask her for help!" "Rarity!" Derpy said. "We've got to try everything to find Golden and that Geist!" "Yeah, we're going," Berry said. "You can stay behind and wallow for a while." Rarity bristled. "Fine! Fine, do it your way! To the Tree Hugger! Betray me! Don't let me stop you!" She sat down on the Doctor's front porch and refused to budge. Berry looked pained. "Rarity... I-" She shook her head and set her face. "You know what? Nevermind. Derpy, let's go!" The two of them ran off into the night. Rarity sat, alone. She scratched her muzzle and squeezed her eyes shut. She shivered. Orange. She slapped herself in the face, trying to drive the orange away. It didn't work. "Fine!" she said, standing up. "I'm coming!" She galloped after them. Her call made Berry pause and turn around. When Berry saw Rarity coming a smile came to her face. "You don't have to like her, you know." Rarity grumbled. "I know. Just get going before I change my mind." Berry took the time to give Rarity a friendly nudge before resuming her gallop to Tree Hugger's house, a small building that was only recently constructed. Berry slammed her hooves on the door. "Hello? Tree Hugger?" The door slid open, revealing an interior dancing with shining laser lights. "Oh! Hi girls. Vinyl and I were just testing some new lights." "No time for that - we've got an emergency!" Berry shouted. "Some... thing took Golden!" Tree Hugger lost the serene attitude instantly. "Why aren't we out looking?" "Rest of the town is already doing that. We need to try everything though." Rarity sighed. "Let's just get to the point. You know a lot of mysterious mysticism mumbo jumbo. Can any of that help us?" Tree Hugger frowned. "It depends... What happened to her?" "Some orange thing tore through... something to grab her!" Tree Hugger nodded profusely. "I have no idea what that is." "Just great..." Rarity muttered. "We're calling it the Geist!" Derpy offered. "It has spirals, apparently. "Big help, Derpy," Rarity muttered. Tree Hugger coughed. "I may have an idea on how to help. Though... Vinyl! Cut the light show, time for that seance-like thing I did last Tuesday!" Vinyl cut the light show and raised an eyebrow at Tree Hugger. "Dude, calm down, it's for a good cause. We won't bring the wrath of the spirits on us again." Rarity blinked. "Wait. What did you do last time?" "Ordered a taco," Tree Hugger said as she grabbed some purple glowing herbs off a shelf. "Not important, we're not channeling spirits anyway, making more of a mind-link." Vinyl facehooved. "Vinyl, it's totally okay. Just relax. it may sound more dangerous, but that's very unlikely. Unless, of course, this Geist comes after-" Tree Hugger stopped the thought before it completed. She drew a circle on the floor with blueberry juice. "Uh..." Rarity shook her head. "I have many questions..." "Asking questions leads to a stressed life," Tree Hugger said. "Just don't question it. I can feel your questioning vibes from over here, Rars." She shot Berry a look. "You too. You're worse." Berry smirked. "I... Yeah." "Derpy's got the right idea. Just be eager!" Vinyl pointed at herself. "...You're just used to this by now." Vinyl shrugged. "Not cool vibes, man..." "Tree Hugger, can we focus?" Berry interrupted. "Right, right..." She lit a cylinder of strawberry incense on fire, placing it in the center of the circle. She then drew a star out of mint jelly. "Okay, so... Fate smiles on us, we have the fire we need. Everypony find your center self and sit on one of the star's points." "...What was that first part?" Rarity asked. Tree Hugger sighed. "Just... Sit on a point and try to be okay with yourself." "I am not okay!" "Man, don't I know that." Rarity wrinkled her nose. Tree Hugger doubting her? Oh, she'd show her... Rarity walked up to a point, sat down, and closed her eyes. She saw the patterns of the spirals. She managed to ignore them for the moment. Tree Hugger nodded. "Good. The vibes are aligning. Vinyl, Rarity, light your horns but don't cast any spells. We just need to resonate with the surrounding magical aura to activate the circle..." Rarity and Vinyl did as asked - and the circle lit up. Tree Hugger raised her hooves and changed. "Alla balla challa dalla ehlla falla galla... Pest a skrim Butes Harambe le Ponk!" She clasped her hooves together and the air went still. "Take us to the one who was taken by the beast!" And then Rarity was somewhere else. She opened her eyes. She was standing in a black expanse, the only other thing visible to her being Vinyl. the unicorn's face had no shadows, as if illuminated on all sides perfectly by a light that didn't exist. The ground beneath them was solid, but distant - as if she couldn't fully touch it. Rarity took a step back. "...Was this supposed to happen?" Vinyl shook her head at first - then decided a shrug was a better response. "Great. Just great. This is what I get for dealing with Tree Hugger..." Vinyl sighed. "Oh, taking her side, are you? All of you, the-" Suddenly there was a pink pony standing before them. Her eyes were wide and her jaw was hung open in shock. "...Aloe?" Rarity asked. "Y-yes. Are you here to take me home?" Rarity narrowed her eyes. "Actually... We were looking for Golden. Have you seen her?" "N-no..." "...Do you know where you are?" Aloe shook her head. "It's all so... Bright. I... Can see it all. So close... Yet so far... I... I don't know." Vinyl put a hoof out to comfort her - but it passed right through Aloe's body. She shivered. "C-can you tell Lotus I'm okay for now?" Vinyl nodded. Rarity frowned. "...Did you see the swirls?" Aloe nodded. "They... They are everywhere. I can see them now. I always see them." "Can you see the Geist?" "The... The what?" "The thing that took you." "...I lost it. I think." She glanced behind her at seemingly nothing. "Oh no..." Rarity frowned. "What?" The orange claw swirled into existence with its intense patterns dancing in front of their eyes. It moved for Aloe's tail- -and then Rarity and VInyl were back in Tree Hugger's house. The two of them were awake - the other three were out cold. Rarity shivered. "The... The swirls..." Vinyl lit her horn and drew one of the swirls in the air, glowing with her blue magic. Rarity stared at it - she was sure the design was perfect, but it didn't feel the same. Not as... alive. "Stop," she said. Vinyl obliged. Tree Hugger groaned, opening an eye. "Did it work?" "You got the wrong pony. We found Aloe," Rarity said. "Aloe?" Berry said. "...Oh my Celestia the Geist took her last night!" Derpy woke up suddenly. "AAAAAAH I SAW A GIANT EVIL UNICORN!" "Just a dream," Tree Hugger said. "...Probably." She glanced at the clock. "We've been out three hours." Vinyl tapped her hoof on the ground and fixed Tree Hugger with a look. "Riiiiight, we should tell Lotus. Let's move it." Tree Hugger grabbed several jars of blueberries, mint jelly, and strawberry incense. "I have a feeling we're going to need a lot of this stuff." "And me!" Rarity said. "Only Vinyl and I got to see it - you need me." "Uh, yeah, dude, totally got that already. Come on, let's check her house." ~~~ The Whitetail Woods were a very different sort than that of the Everfree Forest - not only were they smaller and sparser, but they were also much more welcoming. Even under the cover of night they were still serene and filled with the calm life of the night. Owls hooted, a deer woke up and went back to sleep, and a family of badgers prowled around. The serenity was disturbed by the constant movement of ponies - they held torches and lamps, calling out Golden's name and stomping through the forest in a sweeping pattern. They had been at it for hours - almost the entire forest had been covered by this point. They were essentially just sweeping back to where they had started. Cheerilee and Lotus were near the front. They weren't even talking to each other - they were just searching. Cheerilee had tried to convince Lotus to go back home but the earth pony would have none of it. She still thought Aloe had spoken to her through the crystal - and she still thought she was supposed to do something. Cheerilee called for Golden and thought back to Big Mac - he'd mentioned a sound ghost. Now apparently it was actually real and had a name - the Geist. Granny Smith was convinced there really was something out there. Cheerilee shook her head - when she'd wanted excitement, she hadn't wanted friends and children to be stolen away... She couldn't help but feel she asked for this. "Golden!" Lotus yelled. "Golden! ...Aloe!" Cheerliee sighed. This wasn't good for Lotus. She needed to be sleeping, to be thinking clearly; not charging out into the woods again... "That's it!" their leader - Sparkler - yelled. "We've searched the entire woods. Report back to Granny Smith!" Her squad of twenty-some ponies followed her lead out of the woods and towards the more rural parts of Ponyville. There were murmurs, concerned glances, and many guilty and pitying expressions directed towards Lotus. Lotus bristled. "They have no idea..." "Hey, Lotus, calm down," Cheerilee said. "Why wasn't there a search party for Aloe huh? She's been gone a full day - and we're looking for some kid instead of her! what makes Golden better than her?" Cheerilee gulped. "Nothing, Lotus-" "Then what is the deal!?" "...I think this just had Granny behind it-" "Oh, it did..." Lotus scowled, falling silent. The two stayed close behind Sparkler, soon meeting up with the group combing the farms. Sparkler headed straight for Granny while most of the rest of the group formed out to match Granny's formation. "Nothing in the woods," Sparkler said. "Any Geist sighting?" Granny asked. "No. We searched the whole Whitetail Woods, it's not as big as it looks. We called her name the whole time." "Golden, Golden, Golden..." Lotus muttered. Granny looked up at her. "Lotus? You shouldn't be-" "Everypony always telling me I shouldn't be somewhere! Why can't I do what I want!?" "You ain't thinkin' straight!" "I can think just fine!" "Lotus..." Cheerilee put a cautionary hoof on her friend. Lotus shrugged the hoof off. "Tell me, where's Aloe's search?" "Listen here Lotus..." Granny started. "Oh believe me, I am." "You didn't see your sister carted off by some monster. You didn't see anything at all. She was just missing. Ah have a scared filly, two mysterious disappearances, and more than a few things that suggest somethin' strange is goin' down! nopony had that yesterday! so shut your darn yapper and maybe help us find this kid - and who knows, maybe we'll find Aloe too!" Lotus shook in fury. She ran off into the night. "Sorry!" Cheerilee shouted, running after her friend. "Do what you need to do..." Granny sighed as she watched the two mares gallop off into the night, back to Ponyville. She shook her head. This was why she hated these things. Not only did a pony vanish, but it was starting to tear everypony apart. She would not stand for this, but it was looking more and more like a search party wasn't going to help. Whatever this Geist was, it knew how to stay out of sight. "Big Macintosh!" she called out. Big Mac ran to her. "Yes?" "Get yourself back home to Applejack. Ah'll stay here and search but Ah don't think we're gonna find nothin'." "Not even a sighting of this thing..." Big Mac said. "What, does it just take one pony a night?" "Maybe. We'll figure it out. Check in on our Surprise, see if that's got something." Big Mac blinked, processing what Granny was saying. He galloped off. Granny peered into the night and shook her head again. This kind of thing happened to Ponyville every decade or so. Whenever things got this stressed, they'd only get worse before they got better. Her experience was not always a comfort. ~~~ Big Mac walked back home with his head hung low - he didn't know what to do. So much had happened in just a day. He'd had a wonderful party time with Lotus, then Aloe vanished. Then Surprise showed up, then Applejack got sick, and then Golden vanished. Carrot was an absolute mess - he had torn apart the Harvest farm with zeal and tears in his eyes. Big Mac found himself looking or orange glows among the apple trees and the barn, even though they had looked here already. there was still no sign of the Geist or Golden. None at all. At least he could get back to Applejack and make sure she was okay - even though Surprise had turned out to definitely be right, he still wasn't sure he trusted her. She was too much of an unknown - and he didn't like unknowns. He looked at their house, smiling. A light was on in Applejack's bedroom - she probably couldn't sleep with all the excitement. Wait... That was a very orange light. Big Mac's brain switched into panic mode - he shot towards his house as fast as his hooves would carry him. He heard noises that were somehow both metallic and rubbery at the same time coming from the room. He heard a scream - Applejack. It was hoarse and sick, but still very terrified. Then he heard a yell - a voice he didn't recognize at first. The window was blown out, the orange form of the Geist shoved into the open night air. It was bright and had many limbs; all at sharp, impossible angles. But something about it kept Big Mac from seeing much else. It just... wasn't all there, and parts of it vanished and re-appeared like their own existence was indefinite to them. Surprise flew out of the window and yelled again, both her front hooves alit with fire. She hit the Geist - passing right through it, but also moving it into the air with a flap of her wing. Big Mac saw her wing alight with purple-pink energy and create a shockwave that forced the Geist's ever-shifting form even higher into the sky. It directed a single limb at Surprise... ...And it fell into nothingness, gone without a trace. Big Mac shouted. "Applejack!?" "She's fine," Surprise said, her voice losing the conviction she'd been screaming moments before. "Out. In bed." She flew in a loopdeloop, back into the room through the blown out window. Big Mac ran through the house, down the hall, and into his sister's room. She was out cold- the experience had been too much for her. Surprise was cradling her in her wings, looking down with concern. "You... You..." "I needed to protect her. And..." Surprise frowned. "You did! You defeated it!" Surprise shook her head. "What? It's gone! I saw you-" "It left," Surprise said. "It's still out there." Big Mac sat down, guiltily looking at Applejack. "It... It's still out there?" "Yes. Powerful." Big Mac put a hoof to his head. "This... This is all a bit much. She's okay! But two ponies are gone! Did.. Did it go wherever it took them?" "...Probably." "Where is that?" Surprise shook her head sadly. Big Mac opened his mouth to push, but his eyes fell on Applejack sleeping in Surprise's wings. she was sick, cold, and her face was fearful. Big Mac drooped. "Ah... Ah'm sorry Surprise. You did good, you've always been doin' good. That was some fancy flying out there." "It was always my dream. Flying. The breeze... The clouds... The wind... it was my childhood... Nothing..." Big Mac blinked in confusion. "Uh...?" Surprise just smiled and said nothing. "Y'know... If you like flyin', you should do it more. I can watch Applejack for now. Go out and do some flyin'. Nopony's watchin' now." Surprise blinked, then set Applejack down. She gave Big Mac a soft smile - and took off into the sky. He saw her do impressive tricks akin to those he'd see the Wonerbolts do at that show he went to once. He smiled - she was good. But he knew whatever dreams she might have had were no more now. She was just too different for them to pan out. There was too much going on around her.