Equis, Ponyville
Sitting in the "war room" of Twilight's Castle, everybody (and everypony) felt the sense of déjà vu. After all, they'd all gathered here for the planning stage just yesterday. Now, Lyra Heartstrings had decoded the black tablet, and what it contained was apparently urgent enough that the entire band needed to be present. Celestia and Luna were in attendance, focused on the task at hoof. Cadence and Shining Armor hadn't had the chance to come, but the team could function without them.
Of course, the mood of the room was quite a contrast compared to the day before. The hostilities of the early morning hadn't faded, particularly between Steve and Tony. Steve remained on his feet for the duration of the meeting, his stance guarded and defensive, occasionally shooting a glare at Tony, who sat on the opposite side of the room, between Bruce and Twilight. Steve reflexively used his body to shield Bucky, who leaned against the wall with his arms folded, never speaking. Applejack stood next to Steve, feeling the anger coming off him like heat radiating from a flame. Tony kept clenching his fists, digging fingernail marks into his own palms. His eyes sporadically shot towards Steve, and if one looked closely enough, they'd see rage filling them, along with their attempts to catch a clear shot of Bucky. Twilight and Applejack couldn't think of much to do besides try to keep them distracted with the mission, praying they didn't attack each other.
As if that wasn't enough, nearly all of the Avengers seemed distracted in some way. Wanda had a somber expression filling her features, Natasha kept throwing apologetic faces at Bruce, who seemed more and more depressed as he watched his friends' silent war, Vision looked to be doing everything he could to avoid so much as glimpsing Wanda in his peripheral view, Sam seemed to be silently pleading with Steve, but also joined him sporadically in glaring at Tony, Thor stood rather close to Celestia, his hand gracing her wing, as though trying to comfort her in some way, T'Challa's face was filled with guilt when he looked at Steve, and Scott looked afraid of the rising tension. The ponies could feel anger burning from the Avengers, but of course, no one dared try to address it. All they could think of was to try and observe, and see what would happen. Starlight scooted closer to Wanda, Twilight to Tony, Rarity to Natasha, Fluttershy to Bruce, Applejack to Steve, Spike to T'Challa, and Rainbow to Sam, hoping they could stop their new friends in case something did break out. Pinkie had edged closer to Scott, but she didn't appear capable of stopping a fight, sitting low on the crystal floor, her mane slightly deflated. She didn't even smile. Celestia noticed the rising anger, but she was focused more on Twilight. Luna took notice of Tony's body language, how he directed anger not only towards Steve, but Bucky was well. She quietly filed this information away, for later use.
Fortunately for those present, Lyra failed to pick up on the tensions. Otherwise, she might've been diverted a bit from her intended topic.
"Okay, everypony," she announced to the room. "And every...human?"
"It's everybody. Or everyone," Vision spoke up.
"Thank you. Now, most of you weren't here, but I visited Twilight earlier today, and I discovered that black tablet you guys brought back from the shrine is, in fact, written in the language of the humans that went extinct on Equis. Long story," she indicated, before Scott could interrupt with a question. "Anyway, I have a bit of knowledge of the language, and I was able to translate the tablet. And if I'm reading it correctly," she paused to look at her notes, "King Sombra's plans are worse than anypony could've expected."
"Sombra was after human artifacts?" asked Celestia.
"I can only assume he managed to translate the tablet himself," Twilight spoke up. "Why else would he have it?"
"The tablet talks about an object called 'The Monolith,'" continued Lyra. "It was a device constructed by humans after they began to experiment with dark magic. It wasn't long before they figured out the detrimental effects on their own mental states, not to mention the magic's addictive nature. But by the time they realized exactly how bad it was, they'd gone too far. The magic was pooling, growing into a mass of darkness. The thing about magic is that it's like any kind of energy; it can't be created or destroyed. If the humans couldn't keep that mass of dark magic contained, it could cause a cataclysmic disaster, possibly even rendering the planet barren.
"Finally, they came up with a solution. To avoid risking mental damage among their numbers, they crafted a large stone vessel, the Monolith, to hold the magic, until a better dispersal method could be found. Unfortunately, the tablet doesn't say if they managed to get rid of it before they went extinct."
"So it's more likely than not that this Monolith still exists," Steve summed up.
"Yeah," Lyra agreed. She stepped down, having done her part for the room.
"So, what exactly could edgelord pony want this thing for?" Tony asked, tearing his eyes away from Steve.
"Every unicorn or alicorn has a maximum amount of magic they can manipulate," explained Starlight. "Their body can't draw more than that without serious physical damage. But Sombra's nature, and his ability to transform into a shadow, would negate a lot of the risks to his body. If he could access the Monolith, he'd be able to take control of a massive pool of dark magic that hasn't been available for millions of years. His power would escalate into something truly terrible."
"Without examining the Monolith, we don't know just how much magic is contained in it," said Luna, "but obviously, Sombra believes it's enough to elevate him high enough to rule Equestria. We can't risk letting him get it."
"Please tell me that tablet actually says where it is," Scott implored.
Lyra hesitated. "Unfortunately...no," she finally admitted.
"Oh, that's perfect," Rainbow groaned. "He might have it already and there's nothing we can do about it!"
"Rainbow, calm yourself!" Rarity insisted, telekinetically shoving Rainbow down in her seat. "We cannot simply give in to frustrations!"
"The tablet does say that the Monolith requires a key to actually access the magic," Lyra said. "But there's nothing that suggests what it looks like, or even where it is."
"Actually..." Twilight chimed in, "I think we may have a solution."
For the first time during the conversation, Tony actually smiled.
"That we do."
"Following our arrival on this planet, I got curious about the specific properties of magic," Tony said, "and following our battle at the shrine, Twily, Bruce, and I think we might've actually figured out a way to track it."
The assembled audience had moved from the living room to the throne room, where Twilight activated the Cutie Map once more. They had to squish in a little so that everyone could see the map, considering the thrones got in the way. The crowding problem was slightly relieved by Rainbow and Fluttershy, who floated in the air above the map to make room.
"Yes," Twilight continued, shooting a glare at Tony. "Tony's suit was able to make note of the exact frequencies of Sombra's dark magic. The only problem is that his scanner only has a range of a few miles, and we don't have any satellites on Equis to link it up to."
"They're basically metal flying things we shoot into space that orbit the planet and we can connect with them," Tony explained to the confused ponies.
Bruce took over. "So, we found an alternative. This," he indicated the Cutie Map, "is basically a map of Equestria from space. If we can have Tony's suit interface with it, we can pinpoint Sombra's current location."
"Uh, not to be doubtful here," Scott chimed in, "but how can you link up an electro-mechanical suit to a magical table formed by a magic tree of crystal?"
"That took us a while," admitted Twilight, "but, I think if I connect my mind to the suit and then to the Cutie Map, we might be able to transfer the suit's knowledge to the map, making it show us where Sombra is. We don't know if the Tree of Harmony is even sentient, but my mind can understand the computer of Tony's suit, so I can act as a sort of translator."
"Uh..." Starlight hesitantly started, "you've tested this, right? Your mind won't accidentally get transferred into the armor or anything?"
"Don't worry," said Twilight. "That could only happen if the armor tried to pull me in or something, and it's not sentient. There's no risk."
"And now onto the main event," Tony announced. He waved his arm, summoning his armor from its resting place in the corner. The metallic exo-suit disassembled into it's component sections, propelling itself across the room, reforming itself on Tony's body. Steve had to duck under one of the flying gauntlets to avoid receiving a rocket punch to the head, something that didn't escape his notice. This resulted in more glaring at Tony, who smugly ignored it.
Fully costumed, Tony opened a panel in his right arm. He reached in and pulled out a black, coiled cable, tipped with a metal alligator clip with no teeth. Twilight stuck out her horn, and Tony wound the chord around the appendage, finally affixing the tip to the point of her horn. Giving an affirmative smile, Twilight turned back to the map, ready to begin.
The purple alicorn ignited her horn, the familiar magenta aura materializing. A thin beam of light extended from the very tip, connecting the horn with the center of the Cutie Map. Twilight closed her eyes, focusing, as the magical ray formed a pool of white energy on the table. A barely visible pulse of energy traced through the chord into Tony's armor, gathering the necessary information, before emerging once more. The bead of light retraced it's previous steps, making it's way into Twilight's horn, before traveling down into the Cutie Map, vanishing into the void.
Twilight's eyebrows tensed as she focused, her mind interacting with the Cutie Map on some unknowable level. Her horn pulsed, and a few stray black sparks appeared in the constantly streaming magic beam. Her mouth opened, mouthing some unintelligible words, but with no sound emerging from them. After about one minute, Twilight gave a nod, and shut off the magic beam.
The white pool on the Cutie Map glowed for a few more seconds, before shrinking down to a pea-sized dot. Out of the white space emerged a transparent symbol, resembling Sombra's blood-red horn, before it floated across the Cutie Map, settling just to the east of Neighagra Falls, and continued to move east.
"Where is he going?" asked Thor, staring down at the seemingly ordinary location. "There are no ruins or archeological sites of any kind near there. If he is seeking these human relics—"
"Wait a minute," Celestia interrupted. She leaned into the map, holding up her hoof, tracing Sombra's current location across the map. "If he continues on the path he's on...he'll end up in Manehatten."
Sitting in the back of the crowd, Lyra paled. "Uh oh..."
"Please tell me that's somehow a good uh oh," said Natasha, although she knew it wasn't.
"It's not very big, but there is an exhibit of artifacts that might be of human origin," Lyra admitted. "I haven't had the chance to take a trip and look at them yet. Nothing that could be the Monolith, but if we don't know what the key is..."
"Then we found him just in time," Steve declared. "Okay, everyone, we're got our objective. Time to do our jobs."
"Hold on," Twilight cut him off. She trotted over to a cabinet, locked with some kind of circular mechanism, a round hole in the center. Twilight bent her neck, inserting her horn into the hole, and causing the device to give off a magenta glow. A lock clicked, and the cabinet swung open, revealing a small, crystal chest, shaped like a hexagon, with six keys embedded in it.
"We can't take any chances," Twilight declared, levitating the chest out. "If Sombra does manage to activate the Monolith, or even if he doesn't, this is our best bet for taking him down."
"Oh, glorious!" exclaimed Rarity. "I've been dying to use that gorgeous Rainbow form again for so long!" Then, as she noticed the crowd's expressions as they stared at her, she continued, "What? A lady can't want to save the world and appreciate beauty at the same time?"
"Um, I guess that means you need me to come this time?" asked Fluttershy. "The power won't work without all six of us." Twilight, apologetic, opened her mouth to respond, but Fluttershy shook her head. "No, I understand. I don't like fighting, but I'll fight to save Equestria."
"I'll send word to the Royal Guards stationed there," Luna declared. "We'll get as many ponies out of the city as possible."
Steve picked up his shield. "Rainbow, you'll know the terrain better, so you'll be our advance scout." Rainbow gave a salute with her foreleg. "This time, we'll all be tuned into radio contact. We brought enough earpieces from Earth for all of you. Thor, I'm gonna need you to drop me on top of a tall building so I can get a vantage point, see if I can direct our initial strategy."
"Make sure not to leave out any vital information this time, Rogers," Tony snarked, his face shield closing on his helmet.
Steve briefly turned his head towards the billionaire, venom in his gaze, but pulled back once Applejack laid a hoof on his arm. Twilight looked worriedly at Tony, who was ignoring all his comrades in favor of tinkering with the keyboard on his arm, and resolved to try and keep him away from Steve in the coming battle.
"So, Tony," she started, hoping to diffuse the hostility, "do you think we should bring—"
"No," Tony replied, not even facing her. "It's not finished right now. We'll do it later." Unlike their usual conversations, the inventor's voice held no compassion, no enthusiasm for the science they both loved. It was monotone and cold, and Twilight would be lying if she said she didn't feel hurt a little.
"I really hope they don't completely wreck the exhibit," said Spike, jumping down from his chair. "I want to get a really close look at—"
"No, Spike," Twilight answered, moving her attention to the small dragon. "I know you want to help, but you need to stay here where it's safe. I won't drag you into a war zone."
"But—but—!" Spike tried to complain. He looked to T'Challa for support, and the king silently responded, catching Twilight's eye. His gaze sent unspoken questions to the alicorn, his eyes flickering to Spike, attempting to sway her. Twilight's face was sympathetic, but she closed her eyes and shook her head. T'Challa acquiesced without a word, seeing he wasn't going to get through to the Princess of Friendship. Spike's disappointment was fully visible.
"Okay..." he sighed. "Just...please come back safe."
Twilight nodded, bringing the dragon into a close embrace. "I'm sorry..." she whispered.
"Bruce, you up this time?" asked Natasha. "We could use any backup."
If the physicist was startled by the former assassin speaking to him for the first time on Equis, he did a great job of not showing it. "No," he replied. "It's probably better if I don't. I'd just destroy the city."
Fluttershy glanced at Bruce, sympathy in her eyes. She opened her mouth to speak to him, but Rainbow pushed her out the front door as the other Elements followed. None of the ponies wanted the tension to get any worse. Lyra moved to join them, but Rarity magically pushed her back, shaking her head. Lyra groaned, putting her head down on the Cutie Map.
With the cross-species team heading down the halls of the crystal castle, Celestia moved herself beside Twilight.
"Luna and I will use our magic in a combined, long-distance teleportation to bring all of us there at once," she said. "We'll arrive at Manehatten before they do, and we'll speed up the evacuation process."
"Princess Celestia, you don't have to come—" Twilight started.
"Celestia, Twilight," responded the solar alicorn. "And yes, I do. For my little ponies."
Twilight was taken aback. Celestia's tone was harsh, but not in an angered way. Her voice sounded more sad and frustrated, maybe even ashamed. Looking around at their team, a group of humans who were furious at each other for some reason, seven mares, and two alicorns, one of whom was apparently dealing with an extreme source of stress, Twilight muttered a silent prayer, begging for nothing else to go wrong.
Earth, Avengers Compound
"I really need to get a key to this place," said Spider-Man, settling down into a crouched position on the wall in the corner of the room. "Seriously, those alarms are crazy." Rhodey had shut off the alert before letting him in, thankful that Friday hadn't automatically contacted any authorities. He reminded her to delete the occurrence from the records. No need for Ross to find out about this.
"Maybe you shouldn't," said Clint, facing the wall-crawler alongside Rhodey. "You're, what, twelve?"
"Hey, insulting the guy who can web you to the wall before you can even reach for an arrow may not be the best idea, Robin Hood," Spider-Man shot back. "You're still wanted, you know."
"Okay, okay, calm down," said Rhodey, climbing to his feet. He visibly stumbled a bit, and Spider-Man's eyepieces widened at the sight.
"Oh my God, Colonel Rhodes!" he exclaimed, jumping down from his perch. "I'm sorry, I forgot all about your fall! Mr. Stark said you were okay, but can you still walk? Are those bracers on your legs working? How—"
"I'm fine, kid," said Rhodey, holding up his hands. "We need to focus on the important stuff. First of all, what are you doing here?"
"Oh, uh...I was actually hoping to talk to Mr. Stark," Spider-Man responded. "He hasn't been answering my calls, and...I kind of really need to ask him some things."
"He gave you a direct line to his cell?" exclaimed Clint. "He never does that! Is he trying to adopt you?"
"Look, he—" Spider-Man started, before backing down. "No, that's...see, he didn't give me a lot of details when he brought me to help take you guys down, and it settled in after the fact. I...wasn't super comfortable with what happened. Then I got home, I read about the Sokovia Accords, how Captain America went rogue, and how Barnes didn't actually bomb the U.N....I need clarification. I need answers. The Accords...it sounds like they're blaming the Avengers for the disasters that they averted. I need to know that I didn't fight for a cause that demonizes heroes."
Clint's expression visibly softened. "Oh...Sorry, kid, I didn't mean to pick on you."
"Well..." Rhodey mumbled, turning his words over in his head, "look, if he was willing to make you that suit, Tony obviously trusts you, so I'm gonna trust his judgement. He's not here right now, but I can tell you where he is."
The two Avengers launched into an explanation about the current mission across the universe, filling in the gaps in each other's stories. Spider-Man's lenses grew wider and wider as the tale went on, and he collapsed into a chair as they finished.
"A planet...of sapient, talking horses...including pegasi and unicorns," he deadpanned.
"Believe me," said Clint, "I thought it was exactly as ridiculous as that when they told me. If I hadn't seen them with my own eyes, I swear, I would've thought Steve had taken up acid."
"But...but...you know what, I got nothing," Spider-Man gave in, throwing up his hands. "This is just too weird. And I say that as someone who witnessed the Incident in New York."
"To be fair," Rhodey admitted, "bionic aliens are a bit easier to wrap your head around than magical talking ponies. Either that, or I've been in this job too long."
"And he's helping them? They're working together? And they invented a portal that goes between Earth and their planet?!" Spider-Man exclaimed. "God, what I wouldn't have given to be part of that project."
"Yeah..." Clint replied, awkwardly scratching his back. "Anyway, Rhodey and I have to go help them. They wouldn't let us come, but we can't just stand by and do nothing."
"I get that," said Spider-Man. "Power comes with responsibility, I understand. That's why I do what I do. Now where's the por—"
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Rhodey cut him off. "You're not coming with!"
"Oh, is this about that whole 'just a kid' thing again?" snapped Spider-Man. "Because you're looking at a kid who didn't do half bad against Captain America—"
"Yeah, because you weren't a criminal," interrupted Clint. "Believe me, if Cap had wanted to, he could've taken you out. He held back. And the...things we'll be fighting over on that planet? They won't. They will kill you without batting an eye."
Behind the mask, Peter clenched his jaw as fear started to creep into him. He refused to allow it to show, trying to keep his voice calm.
"I know. This isn't some Saturday morning cartoon. But I have duties, just like you guys. If Mr. Stark, or Captain Rogers, or anybody dies over there, and I didn't act, it'll be my fault they're dead. I need this. Please."
Rhodey and Clint both stared at the teenager, their minds rolling. Yes, he was just a kid. He shouldn't have been at the battle in Germany in the first place. On the other hand, they could feel the desperation in his voice. He felt guilty, perhaps over fighting for Tony's team, or for something he had done previously, and was frantically searching for some kind of validation. Not allowing him would feel like one of the most cruel acts either man had ever committed in their lives, even compared to the deaths they'd both caused. They looked at each other, before turning back to Spider-Man.
"You can come," Clint finally said, "but you have to do exactly as we say. Stay away from the front lines."
"Got it," said Spider-Man with a sigh of relief. He turned back to Rhodey. "Hey, Colonel Rhodes? No offense, but how are you going to pilot the War Machine suit with...your legs?"
Rhodey grinned. "Oh, you're gonna like this one, kid. Friday? Power up the Mark IV."