Equestria 2...
Tsunami had not been sure what to expect when being transported to different worlds but as the lightning and energy subsided, settling him in a mountain overlooking the war torn land, he felt like he was going to throw up. He wasn’t sure if it was the sudden movements or the paranoia that he was going to end up inside out but he hoped it wouldn’t take him long to adjust given how many trips he knew were ahead.
Below the mountain, Tsunami’s appearance had not even been noticed for the battle raging between the armies of Princess Celestia and King Sombra. In the beginning, Celestia’s subjects felt sympathy for the Crystal ponies being forced to fight for Sombra. However, as time passed and the war grew longer, those feeling were replaced by a desperation to win and then, by hatred.
Tsunami looked around the battlefield to find his target. His master had told him that he would land right where he needed to meet the first recruit and avoid drawing too much attention from other ponies. The last thing he needed was to have a bunch of ponies asking questions and hindering the mission.
In the distance, he spotted the pony he was there for. She was covered in armor with the exception of one blue wing. Her other wing was metallic, no doubt lost during the war. She was battling a rival pegasus in the air as she tried to get to the Crystal Commander in hopes of ending the battle.
Suddenly, out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a firework shooting towards her. She pulled back and was able to avoid getting hit, but the light blinded her, allowing her opponent to send her flying right towards the mountain. She landed not far from Tsunami and was almost immediately back to her hooves. Before she could charge back into the battle, he jumped in front of her.
“Rainbow Dash, I need to speak with you now.” He insisted.
She ignored him and started to fly back up but he used his magic to freeze her in place.
“I’m sorry.” Tsunami started. “But I must insist.”
Rainbow struggled to break free. “I don’t have time for this! They need me!”
“Every last pony down there and every pony in the world is going to die. If you want to prevent that, you need to listen to me.”
“What are you talking about?” She asked, still struggling.
“Something is out there, destroying worlds and yours is on the list. If you stay here, nothing survives. If you come with me, there’s a chance we can save your world and many others.”
Rainbow stopped struggling and looked at him, clearly believing he was insane. This made her nervous since she couldn’t do anything while he had her held. Her best bet was to agree with him until a chance came to take him out and get back to the fight. She just hoped it wouldn’t keep her out of the battle too long.
Tsunami arched an eyebrow. “You don’t believe a word I’m saying, do you?”
“No, I do.” She lied, wishing she were a better actress. “I’m completely prepared to abandon Princess Celestia to fight some unknown evil and save the universe.”
Tsunami just looked at her dryly and pulled out the trigger for the transporter. A few moments later, the energy and lightning appeared again, engulfing the two ponies before disappearing, leaving no trace of either of them.
- - -
They reappeared in the hall of globes and Tsunami stumbled a bit. The move wasn’t as bad the second time but it still made him a little nauseous. Rainbow, meanwhile was on the ground, her eyes spinning. Once she regained her composure, she looked around in amazement.
“What is all this?” She asked.
“These globes show all the different worlds. The black ones are Equestrias that have already been destroyed.”
Rainbow looked at the globes in awe before she spotted her own. She couldn’t believe it. Clear as day, she could see the battle she’d just been a part of. It was almost too much for her to take. All these worlds so different from her own, yet so similar.
She turned back to Tsunami. “How is this possible?”
“I believe I can answer that best.”
The answer had come, not from Tsunami, but from the old unicorn, now standing at the doorway.
“Who are you?” She asked.
“My name is Starswirl. I’m from the first world that was destroyed. I was a master wizard, convinced of my own greatness. That is, until the day I met her.
“She wouldn’t give me her name and she kept her face covered but I could tell quickly how intelligent she was. While experimenting with a spell, she had discovered another world. It didn’t take her long to realize how many alternate versions of Equestria were out there. But it was too much for her to take and she vowed to destroy them all and create a new one that fit her view of what Equestria should be.
“She wanted me to help her with my magic. Naturally, I said no and tried to stop her. Unfortunately, she was too powerful for me. When she left me alive, I began researching how I could defeat her, but I could find no way on my own so I went to seek help from Princess Celestia. I was too late. The unicorn had drained not only her magic but her life as well, making herself even more powerful.
“I realized that to stop her, I would need help so I began studying how to travel between the worlds so I could recruit other ponies. That’s when I found this place. It’s a pocket world hidden in between two other worlds. I managed to get here just before she destroyed our world.”
Rainbow was in shock. How could any pony be so evil and so powerful? Even Sombra, with his desires for power, didn’t want to destroy everything. But for one pony to have the power and willingness to just end the world. For the first time in her life, this was a fight that scared her. But she’d been chosen for a reason and she was going to do whatever it took to save all the Equestrias.
“So what do we do now?” She inquired.
Tsunami stepped forward. “You and I are going to recruit the rest of our team. As different as you are from the Rainbow Dash’s of these other worlds, it should be easier to convince them to join us. We’ll start in Equestria 1 with Twilight Sparkle.”
Rainbow arched an eyebrow. “Who?”