//------------------------------// // Taking back Equestria // Story: The Little Pony legend: The Guardians of Harmony // by MaggiesHeartLove //------------------------------// *(~)* Romans 5:3 ~  We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. *(~)* Taking back Equestria Two storm creatures stood in front of Canterlot's main entrance, holding their shields and spears up in defense when they saw someone approaching. Capper, dressed with an apron and a chef's hat, walked up towards them while holding a piece of paper in his paw. Behind him was a tall cake with blue and purple frosting, decorated with images of the Storm King and ponies with shackles. The cake was carried on by a wagon, which was being pulled by Hiro, Mai, Hozu, Gallant Steed and Nori, all wearing shackles around their wrists, necks and hooves. They miserably dragged the cake, which also had a green flamed candle at the top. Once Capper was close enough, the storm creature rose their spears at him. The cat greeted them casually. "Uh, yeah, I got a delivery here for a Mister "The Storm King". I was given explicit instructions to bring this here cake to this here castle's throne room." he said, consulting the paper he had. The creatures looked at one another, then glared at the cat. They weren't told about any special delivery. They aimed their spears threateningly at Capper, but again, the cat-man remained unfazed. "All right, then. Look here. Could one of y'all be a pal and go tell your boss he's not gettin' his "Congratulations on subduing defenseless pastel ponies, elemental humans and other magical creatures" cake? 'Cause I don't wanna be the one responsible for the big guy missin' his special dessert. You know what I'm sayin'?" Capper turned around, casually waving his paw as if it wasn't his problem whether or not these guys got fired. Or worse. Gallant and Nori kept their ears lowered to keep up the facade, but looked up at Capper with concern. Without looking back, Capper counted the seconds with his fingers. Three… two… one… Without turning around, Capper pointed his thumb to behind him. Just as he predicted, the two storm creatures stepped back, giving them full access to enter the city. They may not have liked this cat's smugness, but they hatted getting fired and or obliterated even more. Both ponies smiled inconspicuously to their friend, thanking him for getting them back into Canterlot. Capper gave them a wink. He was more than happy to help. They reminded him that there could still be good people in the world. Besides, after trying to sell them before, he owed them. Capper tipped his chef's hat to the storm creatures as they made their way pass. "Thank you kindly, fellas. I'm a be sure and put in a good word for the both a y'all." The three humans and two ponies put on their best sad expressions. All they had to do was think sad, depressing thoughts, which given how gloomy the sky had become wasn't too difficult. As they walked past the storm creatures, who growled in their direction, Mai noticed Hiro's exaggerative frown. The corners of his mouth stuck out downwards and his eyes were widened in a way that resembled a sad puppy dog and his brows were furrowed to the point of trembling. He even did a whimper for effect. "Hiro, what is with that face?" Mai said quietly. "You look constipated." "What? I'm going for the 'broken-spirit' prisoner look." Hiro said quietly, temporarily breaking character. Mai rolled her eyes, looking exhausted. "Oy." "Oh, that's good! Keep that up!" Hiro proceeded to do his exaggerative sad face, while Mai only proceeded to arc an eyebrow at her older brother. Once inside the city, Capper kept looking back towards the kids, who nodded their heads forward, indicating him to go straight. They walked through the main plaza, where the once beautiful fountain was now dried up and crumbling at the seems. Something felt off the moment the kids enters Canterlot. The place looked even grimmer than before, and not just because of the darkened skies and the destruction of public property. There was something different in the air. The energy of the place fell dull, almost lifeless. The festival decorations were spread across the floor and all around they saw beloved friends and family forced in either cages or wear magic stealing shackles around their necks, hands, ankles, feet, hooves, muzzles and mouths. "Do you feel that?" Gallant Steed asked quietly. "The magic." Nori said breathlessly. "It… it feels…" "Gone." Mai concluded, feeling a chill run up her spine. She and the others caught sight of an even larger airship positioned right near Canterlot castle. Given it's more detailed and larger in scope design, they concluded that it could not have belonged to anyone other than the Storm King himself. And, if he were here, then that could only mean one thing… "Tempest did it." "We have to keep moving." Hozu said determinedly. If the Storm King now had the magic of the city, and no doubt the alicorns, then they didn't have much time left. As they went on, Grubber was once again pigging it out on sweets. Several pies that remained from the festival were still laying around. Just as he was about to take a massive bite out of two at a time, he spotted the large pastry rolling by. "Oh, hello, cake!" Grubber said, wiggling his brows as if he were flirting with some girl. He jumped onto the wagon and licked his lips. "Ooh! Don't mind if I do!" Just as he was about to dip his dirty little fingers into the frosting, the side of the cake knocked him down. Grubber rolled onto the floor, the dust rising up and he coughed once he sat upright. "Huh? Cake packs a punch." He said. Only to realize a few seconds later that cakes don't punch. He looked at the cake's wagon and noticed a small peep hole, where he spotted an eyeball blinking. The hedgehog gasped and cried out, "Guards!" At the sound of his cry, the storm creatures nearby all turned their heads around and surrounded Capper and the others. "Uh-oh. Plan B?" The top layer of the cake, the one with the green and yellow candle, glowed a familiar green, revealing to have been Chrysalis the entire time. "The jig is up!" Chrysalid cried out. The lower half of the cake glowed blue, revealing to have been Chi and she kicked the top of the wooden wagon, which then bursted. Planks of wood went flying all around, some even landing in the storm creature's faces. Captain Celaeno and her crew, along with Princess Sky Star came bursting out. "Come on!" Celaeno and her pirate crew jumped into action! Celaeno blocked one of the guard's incoming blow with her sword, while Buckle managed to swipe three of the guard's spears and tossed them into the air. Sky Star dodged the spears and grabbed one of the creatures with her front claws, tossing him towards his other fellow creatures, knocking them all down like bowling pins. Squabble used his life preserver he always wore around his neck to capture one of the storm creatures while Lix Spittle used her fork tail to stab one of them in his rear. She laughed as he whimpered like a baby. Sky Star and Celaeno knocked a couple more goons down, and motioned to the Guardians to follow them. They ran off, with the pirates and hippogriff assisting in fighting off any storm creature that came at them. The Guardians halted when they arrived at the spot of the cages that kept their friends and family captive. Eclipse gasped happily at seeing his beloved aunty Chi. Nori and Kombu nuzzled their noses together, and Gallant Steed hurried to his mother and father, who were still chained, but were content to see their son well and alive. Hiro and Mai hurried to the cage that kept their parents hostage. "Hiro! Mai!" Asami exclaimed happily to see her children, despite the exhausted look on her face. The children held their parents's hands. They didn't realize just how much they had missed them until now. Mai was practically on the verge of tears. "Careful, kids" Bolin warned. "The cages, they…" he stopped once he realized that the cages didn't do anything to either Hiro or Mai. "Aren't sucking up magic?" Seeing the chance, Hiro found a random rock on the floor and got ready to throw it. "Stand back!" Both parents did as he told them, and when he threw the rock it glowed green and once it struck the cage it bursted into bits. Asami and Bolin looked bewildered at the remains. The cage should have sucked up Hiro's magical explosion, but it didn't. Then, Asami remembered those bits of magical energy that exited out of the bottom of the cage when the Storm King took everyone's magic. The two kids ran up and hugged their parents, happy to be reunited again. The moment was cut short when Bolin saw one of the storm creatures behind them, pulling out one of the orbs. "No!" Bolin jumped in front of his family, holding his arms out in front of him while Asami shielded the kids. However, as the orb came at Bolin, something unexpected happened. The orb stopped in mid air, right above Bolin. Some kind of sucking sound was heard, as if it was trying to capture anything Bolin still had, but came out empty. The orbs were meant to suck on the nearest form of magic, but Bolin was blocking it with his lack of it. The orb's programing somehow couldn't comprehend this, and it started to vibrate and grow intensely hot. Bolin shielded his family, while the pirates, Sky Star, Capper and Guardians ducked in cover as the orb spontaneously combusted, sending electrical currents which seemed to have effected the rest of the orbs that each storm creature carried. Like a row of dominos. Knock down one, the others will quickly follow. The intense blast also caused all of the shackles and cages nearby to crumbled like withered old rocks that couldn't hold anymore. "What just happened?" Hozu asked, kicking one of the bits of broken cage with his bare feet. Asami picked up the pieces and smiled once everything came together. "Chrysalis said these rocks suck up magic. But, the Storm King already took everyone's magic, so these orbs had nothing left to steal. And the cages already absorbed our magic, so it sucked them up dry as well." Mai chuckled. "Guess Tempest didn't account for magic stealing orbs to fight against already stolen magic." "Which means, what now?" Capper asked. Chrysalis gave her friends a mischievous grin. "It means… it's an even fight." The Sato family shared the same knowing smirks and the rest of the Guardians broke the rest of their friends and family from the cages, which were easier now that they were powerless. It would appear the Storm King and Tempest didn't account for anyone to fight back once the magic was physically gone. Cockiness really can become one's downfall. Using her supper strength, Mai broke Double Diamond, Sweet Gala and Half Pipe free, while Hiro used his explosions to free Cheese Sandwich and Cookie Cream. The little filly jumped into his arms. Gallant Steed freed his parents, P'Li and Zaheer, and proceeded to free Thorax, his kids and his brother. Nori used her pearls to break the cage containing her father, and Chi turned into her wolf form to free her family. But the storm creatures refused to give up without a fight. They may not have cages to trap them anymore, but they still had their spears and their strength, they still had many others locked in cages, and they were greater in numbers. But, as it was shown before, cockiness can and will become one's downfall. When the storm creatures swung their spears at Bolin, Asami did a tuck and roll and kicked the spear right out of his hand, allowing Bolin to grab it and knock the creature down. Another came at him, and despite not being able to earthbend anymore, still had his physical strength and pushed him back. Sky Star swooped in and took the creature up into the air, where he dropped his spear and Bolin grabbed it before tossing it to Asami. The two proceeded to fight the rest of the storm creatures using their new weapons. Double Diamond picked up a rope and tossed the other end to his son. Using is skateboard, Half Pipe surrounded the storm creature, trying his lower half with the rope and using it to knock him off balance. When another creature came from behind, Sweet Gala leaped into the air, with a frying pan in her mouth, and struck him right in the face, knocking him down. Double Diamond hugged his children, beaming with pride. Three storm creatures came running, but Nori used her pearls to knock them down one by one, while her father charged after another. Kombu leaped into the air and sent a flying kick attack to the face, knocking him back where he released his spear. Kombu grabbed it with his tail and used it to fight off against the rest of the creatures alongside his daughter. Cheese Sandwich came up to one of the creatures, handing him a wrapped up present. "Surprise!" he said before zipping away. The storm creature, not too bright, took the gift and opened it, excited to see what was inside. Cookie Cream popped out, holding a cupcake in her hoof. "Double surprise!!" Cookie threw the cupcake at his face and, side by side, father and daughter started doing what Pinkie Pie would have done: Assault the bad guy with cake! Only, rather than use just a few cakes, the storm creature whimpered for his mommy to see Cookie Cream's easy bake confetti cannon now up and loaded. On top, Cheese and Cookie wore helmets and goggles, while smiling sinisterly. They lit the fuse and-- BAM! The storm creature, and twelve to fourteen more were down for the count, drowning in a sea of icing. Cheese and Cookie hoof pumped. "Your mother would be so proud of you!" Cheese said, wiping away a tear. Thorax and Pharynx fought side by side. Despite not being able to change or fly, the two still used their natural strength, and their own antlers to fight off the creatures. Ivy and Leo, being fast and nimble, managed to outsmart the goons. Leo leaped into the air, jumping on his head. The storm creature tried to hit the little changeling, only to wind up hitting himself. Leo gave a haughty laugh. "Ha! Why you hitting yourself?" Ivy narrowly missed the punches of another and knocked down buckets of pain, causing them to slip and fall, all the while splashing into each other against a wall, creating an accidentally masterpiece. River was blocked by Grubber, who pounded his fists together while laughing maniacally. "You seem tense. Do you wanna talk about it?" River asked, much to Grubber's surprise. Soarin and Fire Fly kicked at the creatures while Starlight and Sunburst, alongside Zaheer and P'Li managed to pry even more spears and shields from the storm creatures. Nova NightShade and Sunset Shimmer also joined the fight. Even without their magic, they still had their martial arts training. They kicked and punched at the creatures, while using everyday objects to their advantage. Starlight grabbed the ends of a large ribbon at the same time Sunset caught the other end. Together, they galloped around three more troops and tied them up with the ribbon like Half Pipe did with the rope. P'Li used her incredible strength to knock more of them down, while Nova grabbed onto the tarp of one of the destroyed tents to blind another of the storm creatures, while using his tail to wield the spear, as did the other ponies. Capper's hairs stood on end when another creature came at him, but Chrysalis came to his rescue, transforming into an Ursa Minor, which roared and frightened the goon. He literally peed his trousers and ran away in fear, tossing his shield into the air. Chrysalis changed back into herself and caught the handle of the shield with her tail. When more charged at her, with such casual grace and confidence, she spun the shield with the tip of her tail and tossed it at them, knocking them down with the shield that kept on spinning and then back like a boomerang. Capper ducked just in time, and right when the shield knocked five more troopers at once. Capper's eyes widened and he felt his heart do a back flip. "Meow! What a woman!" P'Li fought one of the creatures with her spear and turned to the Guardians. "Head to the castle! We'll hold them off!" The children turned to their respected families, where Nova kicked another storm creature in the face. "Go! We've got this!" And it was true. These goons may be many, but they could never match with the fighting spirit that these heroes had. Besides, without those magic stealing orbs, they had no real power over them anymore. And, there were still many others that needed to be freed. The numbers were about to increase. With Captain Celaeno, Capper and Sky Star right behind them, the Guardians ran further into the city to reach the castle, no doubt where Iris and Akari would be. They ran right past River, who was still consoling a sobbing Grubber. "So, all I want is for Tempest to know what a good sidekick I am." he sobbed, "But she never notices me! Maybe that's why I try to fill the void with food!" Grubber brawled and blew into his tissue, making a trumpet-like sound as kind-hearted River patted him on the back. "There, there. Let it all out." (~) Canterlot was a massive city, but thankfully the kids knew each pathway, every street corner and every shop to know which was the fastest way to the castle. Unfortunately, the Storm King's army was still very large. But, thankfully, so was their own army. Or, at least it would be. Seeing more of their caged friends and family, the Guardians all got to work in freeing them. Chrysalis turned into a bear to break the cages, Mai used her supper strength while Hiro used his explosion powers. Nori broke them apart by hurling pearls like a torpedo, and Chi picked up one of the creature's spears she managed to grab and used her supper speed to accelerate the process by breaking more and more cages in her wake. Sky Star used her hippogriff strength to break the cages and chains, while also knocking down more of the goons down. Tenzin and the rest of his family were freed by Chrysalis and Capper, and Trixie was freed by Gallant Steed, whom she hugged affectionately. More and more people, spirits and ponies were freed, including Spike and the spirit trio. Wan Shi Tong and Goldie as well, spreading their wings. Despite having lost their size, they could still fly and they had their talons. The two didn't waste time in flying towards their captors and scratching at their faces and arms. Spike broke apart the cages containing Ember and her fellow dragons, who then in turn freed the Griffins. One by one, more and more were released. Mai broke another cage, where Bumi, Kya, Lin and Suyin had been kept in. "Come on! We have to get to the castle! We need everyone's help!" "What can we do?" Varrick asked, "The ponies have no magic, you guys have no bending, the dragons can't breath fire, changelings can't change! We're all powerless!" Bumi gave him a knowing smile. "When has that ever stopped us?" Varrick's eyes widened in realization. When had having no magic ever stopped them? They've faced giant siren mecha suits, giant centaurs, shadow demons, anti-bending lunatics, changelings queens, the list goes on. And every time they had something that should have stopped them, they defied the odds. It sometimes took a while, but they always managed. Even now, when so many had lost their powers, rather than be a weakness, it was an advantage. Having heard this, the former Equalist protestor grabbed a nearby megaphone and stood on a half broken wooden stand. Raising his fist into the air and shouting into the megaphone. "Humans, ponies, spirits and creatures of Equestria! Let's take back our home!" The entire city bursted into a rousing roar of applauds and powerful battle cries. Using the every day items at their disposal, the humans, ponies spirits and everyone came together to fight back the army. Without their magic sucking weapons, they didn't stand a chance. Kya, Bumi, Lin, Tenzin and Suyin, along with Iroh stood their ground against an army of the storm creatures. Using his cane, Tenzin fought off the creatures by flipping and twirling the cane as if it were an airbending staff to evade their attacks. Using a ribbon like a water whip, Kya wrapped it around the wrists of one storm creature and yanked him back, using his weight to knock more down. Bumi even took some old records and started tossing them like frisbees to strike the creatures. Iroh grabbed a fire extinguisher and used it to blast several of them away away. He may not have fire right now, but this worked too. Suyin grabbed a few decorate fans from an activity stand and tossed a few to Lin. "Remember our summer at Kyoshi Island?" Su asked her eldest sister. Lin only smirked and, much to the surprise of many, the two elder Beifong sisters used the fans to block the creatures's incoming punches before bringing down their own, knocking them down and throwing the fans at their faces at such speed it broke bits of their masks. Lin smiled in satisfaction and inspected her nails. "Oh, yeah! Mamma still got it!" (~) Despite their small size, Ali, Mika and San made the most of it. Spike scratched at the creatures with his claws, and the spirit trio worked together to lift up a spear to fight back. Even Ember managed to do just fine without her fire breath, as did the rest of the dragons. Even Madam Alpha, of all ponies, got into the fight, as well as her fateful Diamond Dog companion, Mekarm who used his mechanical arm to grab the monster and toss him over his head, while Madam Alpha slammed his face into a wall. Naga, Timber an Akhlut were freed and charged at the creatures, bitting at their tails and clawing their faces. Payback for imprisoning them. Apple Bloom freed her older brother and sister-in-law and joining with Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, Jinora, Kai, Meelo and Ikki, they held their own against the beasts. Kuvira even got creative and tossed a few pies and forks their way, while Adagio, Sonata and Aria found some trumpets from the orchestra and blew into them so powerfully it send loud vibrations that knocked the creatures down. Tahno and his nephew Akio got creative by getting some old Wolf Bat costumes and used them to frighten the creatures, complete with howls and snarling effects. Rohan fought off one creature, accompanied by his nieces and nephews, who definitely inherited their mother and father's fighting skills. Meelo managed to lure several of the storm creatures into the bouncy house, where he deflated it and the creatures were now desperately trying to find a way out of the heap of fabric. Meelo couldn't help but laugh to himself. "Talk about your winds of war!" (~) Sky Star flew through, only to get knocked down by one the storm creatures. The princess landed hard on the ground and looked on in terror as the creature was about to send the spear right through her. A massive shadow loomed over them and the storm creature was tossed aside by the strength of another hippogriff. For a second, Sky Star thought she was dreaming. It had been so long since she had seen her like this, and a part of her feared she never would again. "Mom?" Queen Novo helped her daughter back up, looking at her with eyes of regret. "I am so sorry, honey. You were right. I allowed the Storm King break my spirit." Novo hung her head, but then smiled, cupping her daughter's cheek. "But good thing he never broke yours." "My friends reminded me I still had it." "Then what'ya say we return them the favor?" Queen Novo winked and mother and daughter joined forces to fight the Storm King's massive army. (~) While everyone else was fighting the creatures, Varrick, Zhu Li, VJ and Juniper peeked from behind a wall. Trixie emerged beside them, all sharing the same mischievous grins. The storm creatures came charging, only to stop when they saw Varrick, accompanied by his family and Trixie, and a wagon filled with deadly looking fireworks. "Family… do the thing!" At Varrick's command, they all lit the rockets, which went ricocheting directly at the goons, sending them flying up into the air. Trixie galloped her front hooves victoriously, while Varrick and his family cheered victoriously. "Yeah! Burn baby! Burn!" (~) Aiwei's spider spirit friend used her small size to her advantage, crawling up onto the storm creatures and stinging them with her non-venomous tail, while Aiwei, with the assistance of Opal, got them to trip on their backs. Mako and Bolin's entire earth kingdom family worked together, alongside Tonraq, Eska and Desna to join the fight. The spirits who had shrunken down all rallied together, forming an army of their own… An army led by none other than Gomu, Prince Wu Derpy Hooves, who wore war paint on their faces and led the attack against the storm creatures. "FREEDOM!!!" Derpy hooves shouted powerfully and she, Gomu and the smaller spirits attacked all at once like mad. Prince Wu fought the creatures like a savage, lifting up his spear into the air. "Who's the weakling now, storm punks! Face the wrath of Wu!" (~) "It's mass pandemonium, folks!" Shiro Shinobi narrated, while standing on a wooden table. "The feathers, fur and hairs are flying as ponies, humans and mythical creatures alike band together to reclaim our beloved home! Storm creatures are dropping like bumble flies! I haven't seen anything like this since the time Amon and his Equalists attacked the pro-bending arena!" Shiro turned around to see someone behind him. "Looks like a case of Deja Vu as one of the storm creatures is now wielding one of his spears and is about to hurt me. Thankfully, I have come prepared this time!" Shiro whistled, and right on cue, Queen Novo swooped down and knocked him down with her massive size and raw power. The reporter man thanked her with a high five. "Shiro Shinobi has finally been avenged!" (~) Mai was caught off guard when one of the creatures grabbed her hair, yanking her and throwing her over his head. She landed on the ground, grunting as the beast toward over her. The creature then fell to the ground when something heavy struck the back of his head. Once he fell, his attacker was revealed to be Lu Ten, wielding one of the spears. He extended his hand to help Mai back up. "Perfect timing, babe." she said with a wink, right before kissing him on the lips. Hiro and Gallant flipped onto the scene, fighting off against another creature, while Mai and Lu Ten were still kissing. "Seriously?! Right now?!" Gallant exclaimed in annoyance. Mai stopped the kiss. "You and the others keep these monsters under control. We've got to get Iris and Akari." "Go for it!" Lu Ten gave her a salute and proceeded to fight the creatures again. The Guardians ran faster than ever, they were getting closer to the castle now, but it would appear there was no end to these storm creatures for more came marching behind them. Queen Novo blocked their way, along with Celaeno's crew. "Keep going!" Novo ordered. "We got this, Captain!" Mullet gave Celaeno a salute. The pirates and hippogriff queen proceeded to fight the rest of the army. The team ran towards the plaza, where the concert for Songbird Serenade was to be held, only to have it be blocked by--what else--more storm creatures. Hozu groaned in exasperation. "I am so over these guys!" Capper then turned to the wisp. "Hey, didn't you say you could turn into a wolf?" Chi smiled back, "Depends. Don't cats have claws?" Capper never really thought of that, but the moment he pulled out those razor sharp knives, he had his answer. Chi changed into her wolf form and Capper tapped into his inner wild animal, letting out a hostile cat yell and started scratching at the monsters like there was no tomorrow. Chrysalis changed into an elephant and knocked them back, while Mai unleashed her fire, burning the white hairs of their bodies which sent them running. Gallant Steed blasted them off with airbending, tossing them into the air, while Nori flipped over them, using her powers to creature a string of pearls as a whip to wrap around them and throw them out of her way. SkyStar pulled out her two clam friends, Shelly and Sheldon, and tossed them at one storm creature. The oysters snapped and bit onto his eyes as she lifted another one into the air with her strength. Hiro had collected an assortment of candies back from the destroyed stands and tossed them all to explode and trap the creatures in a sticky webbing of melted candies. Hozu, out of all of them was the least excited to use his powers. He didn't want to unintentionally harm anyone. All of his worries went out the window when one of the creatures swiped Celaeno's sword right out of her hand and knocked her down. "Celaeno!" Hozu cried out, outstretching his hands without question. Shooting from his finger tips came an array of blue lightning which lifted the creature up and threw him back, away from Celaeno. Hozu could feel his anxieties rising, only to suddenly calm down when Caleano patted him on the back. "Thanks for the save, kid." "Uh… no problem." Hozu smiled, for once, feeling happy to have helped someone with his powers. He wasn't entirely sure why they didn't get out of control for once. None the less, he was thankful none the less. Celaeno's gratitude helped as well. (~) From the balcony, Iris and Akari saw the commotion happening down bellow. They couldn't believe it! Their friends came back, and along with Hozu, Capper, Sky Star and Celaeno! They were all here, and looking over the city, they saw so many others fighting and winning against the Storm King's army. Tempest saw the fight and her eyes widened in horror and confusion. "What?! How?!" That was a good question. How did those kids manage to get here so fast? And how did that pirate bird and meddling cat survive? And where did that hippogriff come from? More than that, why weren't the guard's magic stealing orbs working anymore? The prisoners weren't supposed to fight back! They had no powers, how could they be fighting back? Iris gasped, a smile grew on her face. "It's… It's the Magic of…" "Yeah, yeah!" The Storm King interrupted, speaking in a false falsetto as he wrapped Tempest and the two princesses in a hug, "Friendship, and flowers, and ponies, and bleh!" The Storm King released them, done with his sarcastic little joke. "I'm so totally over the cute pony thing. This... ends... now!" The Storm King aimed the scepter into the sky, where a powerful beam of energy bursted out, taking on the form of a lightning strike far stronger and greater than anything any mere firebender could ever hope to replicate. He spun the scepter around and the thick clouds above began to spiral at his command. The Guardians and their friends stopped the fight to look up and the storm creatures ceased their attempts at apprehending them. The winds picked up, kicking up dust and twisting together. Chrysalis and Nori yelped, feeling the intense winds as it pulled on their manes and tails. Instinctively Capper leaped forward, wrapping is arms around Chrysalis and Nori in a protective manner, while Chi held Mai and Hiro in place. Sky Star used her wings to stabilize Hozu and Gallant Steed, while Celaeno held her hat tightly onto her head. Her eyes widening in horror was the winds formed together to create a massive twister, completely at the whim of the Storm King. Iris held Akari close and even Tempest Shadow herself looked on in alarm. This wasn't what she had expected, or hoped for. She knew the Storm King wanted power, but this was insane. Tempest only wanted her horn back, not complete and total destruction of the population. She was fine with a few things that resulted in rule breaking and frightening people if it demanded respect, but this? This type of storm could kill everyone including… Tadashi… he was still out there there somewhere, even if she didn't see him she knew he had to be there. If the Storm King managed to-- No! No. Tadashi didn't care about her anymore, and Tempest wanted revenge, so this was it. But, she never wanted Tadashi to get hurt, she only wanted to hurt Korra, Twilight and their family. But, was this madness really worth it? It had to be, she came too far to turn back now. The Storm King laughed like a maniac as the winds became stronger, too strong that even the storm creatures had to hold onto something or get blasted into the air. "Take cover, ya'll!" Capper cried out. Everyone followed him and managed to hide themselves behind an already crumbling house, seeing the twister become stronger and stronger by the minute. It was a category five hurricane with high speed winds that could destroy an entire city. The twister had only formed in the upper plaza near the castle, but it would grow and expand if they didn't stop that maniac as soon as possible. "You'd have to be flying faster than a speeding Pegasus to break through that wind!" Chrysalis exclaimed, while Capper held her protectively in his arms. Mai's ember eyes brightened. "Or an even stronger wind…" she then turned towards the half-nymph boy, who started at her with widened eyes. "Hozu, can you make a twister big enough to take us to that balcony?" Hozu, for a moment, lost his ability to speak. Nobody had ever asked this of him before. "I-I used to make small twisters with my mom when I was a kid but, I've never… what if I make things worse?!" Mai, to his surprise, grabbed him by the arms, staring fiercely yet compassionately into his eyes. "Hozu! Your powers are what saved us back at the waterfall. You created that cloud that saved us at Kluegtown, and you tried to protect Akari. I was wrong, your powers can be used for good! But you have to let go of that fear and focus everything you have into saving our friends! Iris believed in you, now you have to believe in yourself. You can do this. We're all right behind you." Hozu stared at Mai, and then at the others. Everyone nodded in agreement. They all believed in him, they believed in his powers, but most of all… they trusted him. And Mai, the one who blamed him for everything that went wrong on their journey, was actually encouraging him to take a risk and use his gift to save the ones they loved. As scared as he was, Hozu swallowed it. For Iris, he would do this. For his friends… he would do anything. (~)