Terror in Equestria 10: The Return of Tirek

by StormLuna


Rounding up the Leaders

When the following morning arrived, Colgate was rejuvenated and was ready for what was going to be a day of intense, very long distance flying. Like she did every other morning, the first thing she did was tap into the eye and noticed that the two centaurs were again headed west, towards Vanhoover. Despite them walking at a leisurely pace, she knew that she would have to get going as soon as possible.

After noticing no other problems across the world, she headed downstairs to find Ruby waiting in the dining hall with a fatigued looked on her face. She asked, "Ruby, are you ok? You look awfully tired."

Ruby yawned, "Actually yes, I am. I didn't sleep much."

Colgate asked, "Are you going to be able to help carry the time bubble today? If not, you can stay here because you know how I am."

Ruby again yawned, "I'm sorry Colgate but I don't think I'm going to be able to join you. I'm simply too tired."

In most instances, a pony being unable to aid her in moving a time bubble would infuriate Colgate but with Ruby having just returned and the fact that she was an ally of hers, she understood entirely. She suggested, "Well I think perhaps you should just stay here and rest."

Ruby knew how Colgate was and how she liked to get things done in a hurry. Ruby agreed, "Thank you for being so understanding because I honestly don't think I would be much help."

Colgate nodded and before they knew it, their meal arrived. While Ruby was eating hers at a rather leisurely pace, Colgate was scarfing hers down as were her generals. Unless it was during times of war, they never scarfed their meals down and this caused Colgate to become curious. She turned to them and asked, "Dark Night, Lightning Storm, why are you eating your meals so quickly?"

The two looked at one another before Dark Night replied, "I know neither one of us have ever aided in moving a time bubble but we're wondering if you'd want us to join you."

Colgate said, "While I appreciate your desire to help me, I'm thinking that it would be best if I did this alone."

Dark Night replied, "Very well, you do what you have to do."

Once Colgate was completely finished with her breakfast, she got up and turned back to Ruby, "Now you get some rest, once I get everypony back here we will make plans on how to deal with our enemies."

Ruby had a feeling that with her going to be bringing everypony back, that she would likely return with some ponies she would not exactly want to see. She asked, "So are you going to be returning with those two?"

Colgate replied, "Yes but I can perhaps have some of the other leaders keep them occupied if you do not wish to see them."

Ruby suggested, "At first I think that would be good but once I'm feeling well enough, I want to talk to White Magick. Maybe my presence alone will shatter that life bond he developed with Twilight."

More time had passed than what Colgate had initially wanted and she was running behind. She replied, "Alright, that sounds like a plan but for now, I must get going. I want to get back in a reasonable amount of time."

After finishing their discussion, Colgate headed outside, took to the sky and readied herself to cast her time spells. Once she got a decent distance up in the air, she turned north and recited,

"A bubble is what we need,
so from frozen time we can be freed,
in this bubble we can move fast while everything else is stuck in the past,
it is frozen time which through we must pass so we will never be late to class."

Once she was in the time bubble, Colgate poked the edge of her horn through it and recited,

"Tick tock, tick tock, look at the racing clock,
what is short is time and being late is a crime,
we must finish on top so it is time I must stop,
with time froze, it is my enemies I shall bulldoze."

Once she had froze time outside of the bubble, she took off quickly and given that she had nopony to carry with her, breaking the sound barrier was effortless. As she sped northwards, she couldn't help but think about how nice it was to be doing this on her own and not have to be carrying slow ponies along with her.

It would not be long until she saw the Crystal Empire so she ground to a halt and first cast the spell to unfreeze time,

"Look at the clock, it is stuck in place,
with this there can be no pace,
everything is still but that does not fit the bill,
for now the clock shall again run so everypony can have fun."

Once she unfroze time she cast the spell to undo the time bubble so she could go about her business,

"In the bubble time continues to run,
but now the time outside runs and allows fun,
the bubble must burst so we can quench our thirst,
from the bubble we are now free and everything we can clearly see."

Once she had popped the bubble, she crossed over into the Empire and headed straight towards the palace where it would not take Colgate long to find Scootaloo outside running a training exercise with her troops and this gave her an idea. Despite things beginning to go downhill across the world again, she still wanted to have a bit of fun so when Scootaloo was giving her soldiers orders, she landed behind her and yelled, "Attention!"

This caused Scootaloo to jump a bit but when she heard the voice of her long time mentor, she rushed to her and said, "Colgate, it's so good to see you!"

Colgate replied, "It's good to see you too but I wish the reason I came up here wasn't for the reason it is."

While Scootaloo didn't know exactly what was going on, she figured it was likely something bad. She asked, "Did Twilight turn evil again? Is she a dark goddess again or is it something else?"

Colgate couldn't help but chuckle, "Oh how I wish it was just Twily going bad again." She became more serious as she continued, "We have had not just one, but two villains escape from Tartarus."

Despite being one of the toughest ponies around, this really unnerved Scootaloo. She asked, "Who? Who escaped?"

Colgate replied, "Look, we can discuss this further once we get everypony rounded up and are back at my tower." She got a huge smile on her face and continued, "And besides, I have a couple of things to show you, things that will aid us tremendously."

She took flight and continued, "But for now, we need to get to Maredrid and pick up Luna."

Scootaloo took flight and got right next to Colgate as she cast the proper spells. Before they got moving Colgate asked, "Think you can keep up?"

Scootaloo replied, "Of course I can! You should know that out of all the world leaders, that outside of you, I'm the only other one that keeps her wings in shape!"

Colgate gave her a smile before they took off and with Scootaloo aiding in moving the time bubble, they broke the sound barrier quicker. For both of them, it seemed too easy moving it on their own, it felt so good that they didn't have a slow pony with them that they would have to carry but knew that it wouldn't stay that way as most of the other leaders don't stay in as good of shape as them.

Eventually the two would see Maredrid approaching on the horizon so they slowed down so Colgate could cast the proper spells so they could go and tell Luna what was going on. Once they arrived at the palace they were greeted by guards and like always, they were questioned, "Halt, who goes there?"

Another guard continued, "State your business."

This was something that had really grown old on Colgate despite most guards having never seen her. She rolled her eyes and sighed, "I am Supreme Commander Colgate of Coastal Equestria" she pointed her hoof at Scootaloo and continued, "and this is Supreme Commander Scootaloo of the Crystal Empire and we need to speak to Queen Luna."

Once she stated who she was, the guard allowed them entry and led them to the throne room. He said, "Your Majesty, you have company."

Luna was not expecting any company so when she saw them she developed a bit of concern given that they weren't the type that would just show up for a friendly chit chat, "Colgate, Scootaloo, what is going on?"

Colgate replied, "Well as you know, both Tirac and Tirek have escaped from Tartarus. I have been monitoring them and unfortunately, Tirac's Rainbow of Darkness has regained enough strength that it can now turn small animals into beasts."

Luna asked, "And what about the magic thief?"

Colgate replied, "I have yet to see him steal any magic but the two are headed towards Vanhoover as we speak and I have my concerns that once they get there, Tirac will create an army of beasts to unleash upon ponykind and Tirek will drain them of their magic and grow huge."

Luna asked, "I take it you want me to help you two in saving Equestria?"

Colgate replied, "Yes, it would be much appreciated."

Luna stood up, approached them and asked, "So who else will we be gathering?"

Colgate replied, "Your parents, King Blue Star, LaurFa and your sister."

Luna asked, "What about White Magick and Twilight. Won't we need their help too?"

Colgate developed a scowl at the very mention of the two. She snapped, "Look, things have happened involving those two that would take a great amount of time to discuss and right now, we don't have the time." She headed towards the exit and continued, "Let's get going, I want to get everypony rounded up in a reasonable amount of time."

Once they got outside, the three took to the sky and gathered together so that Colgate could cast the proper spells. Before they took off Colgate asked, "Luna, are you going to be able to keep up and help us move this thing?"

Luna knew how Colgate was and wasn't overly thrilled with the tone of voice she always used but knew that it had to be done, "I try to keep my wings in decent shape so I hope so."

Colgate rolled her eyes and they took flight towards Ridead. Much to Colgate's surprise, Luna had been keeping her wings in much better shape than she expected and they broke the sound barrier quicker than before and in what seemed to be almost no time at all, the city of Ridead was visible on the horizon so Colgate ordered them to grind to a halt so she could cast the proper spells.

As they flew towards the city, Colgate said, "Wow Luna, you must be keeping in better shape than you're letting on."

Luna replied, "Dear Colgate, I have had a feeling that this would be necessary so I have been working on my wing strength for quite some time."

Colgate nodded and they headed towards the palace. When they arrived, like it was everywhere else, they were questioned by the guards, "Halt, who goes there?"

Being questioned at her parents' palace did not sit well with Luna. She got in the guard's face and said, "I am here to see my parents over important matters."

The guards had seen Luna before so they quickly apologized before leading the three to the throne room. When they arrived, Luna immediately rushed to them, "Mom, dad, it is so good to see you!"

Queen Galaxia, her mother, said, "It is so good to see you too!"

Luna replied, "I am happy to see you but I wish it wasn't under the circumstances it is."

Cosmos asked, "Oh, and what are the circumstances?"

Luna pointed her hoof at Colgate and replied, "Let Colgate tell you, she is the one who saw it."

Colgate took that as the signal to tell the king and queen. She explained, "As you know, two of the worse villains in the history of ponykind have escaped from Tartarus. I have been monitoring them and Tirac has been using his Rainbow of Darkness to turn creatures in the Everfree Forest into beasts."

This brought out a great amount of concern from the two, especially knowing that countering that would be next to impossible. Galaxia asked, "So what are we going to do? In the history books regarding that thing, only the Rainbow of Light could stop it and that artifact was lost with the fall of Ponyland."

Despite not only having revived Ruby, but her also having it, Colgate was not about to tell them about everything right then and there. She replied, "Well your Majesty, we shall go more in depth over this once we return to my tower." She looked towards the exit and continued, "We need all the help we can get to wipe this threat out so we would appreciate it if you would help us."

The two looked at one another, nodded and Cosmos said, "We shall help you since this could affect the whole world."

Colgate replied, "Good." She pointed her hoof towards the exit and continued, "You know the drill, follow me."

Everypony headed outside, took to the sky and all gathered around Colgate so she could cast the proper spells. Before they took off she asked, "Galaxia, Cosmos, think you'll be able to help us move this?"

Neither of the two had been the types to keep their wings in top shape so all they could do was give her nervous looks. Colgate continued, "Well just don't slow us down too much. It is a fair distance to Neigh Zealand."

They all began to head to the southeast and while most of them were able to get the bubble moving fast, Galaxia and Cosmos were slowing them down enough that they simply couldn't break the sound barrier and this was infuriating Colgate. She snapped, "Come on you two, you're slowing us down. Fly faster damn it, fly faster."

Luna was angered that Colgate would treat her parents that way. She was so angered that she reverted to the long abandoned way of speaking, "Colgate, how dare thee speak to our parents that way! They are flying as fast as they can."

Colgate snapped, "Well they need to try harder, we need to get moving."

Finally the two were flying fast enough that they were able to break the sound barrier. Once they did that, it would not take them too long to reach Neigh Zealand. Once they arrived over the capitol, they slowed down and Colgate cast the proper spells so they could get Blue Star and then get going again.

When they approached the palace, they saw him out leading exercises with his military and this pleased Colgate. To her, it was him still being as alert as she and Scootaloo were. Like she did with Scootaloo, Colgate landed behind him and ordered, "Attention!"

This caused Blue Star to jump and turn around to see who had issued the order. When he saw who it was he said, "Colgate, it is so good to see you."

Colgate replied, "Likewise...."

Blue Star saw that she did not come alone, that she had several world leaders with her. He asked, "Colgate, why do you have so many leaders with you?"

Colgate replied, "Well not just one, but two evils have escaped Tartarus and since it could be a threat to the entire planet so I am rounding everypony up and we shall take them down before they can leave Equestria."

Blue Star asked, "Who is it? Who is it that escaped from Tartarus?"

Colgate replied, "Tirac along with his Equestrian counterpart, Tirek."

While Blue Star did not know much about the latter, he knew plenty about the former. He asked, "So does he have the Rainbow of Darkness with him?"

Colgate replied, "Yes he does and he has already used it on some creatures in the Everfree Forest."

Blue Star knew that things would quickly go downhill if he began to use it on ponies. He took to the sky and said, "Well we better get going. If he starts using that on ponies and has an army of beasts, defeating him will be next to impossible."

Colgate too took to the sky, looked down at the others and ordered, "Come on everypony, you know the drill."

They took skywards and gathered around Colgate where she cast the proper spells. Before they took off towards the north Colgate asked, "Blue Star, how good of shape are your wings in?"

Unlike Luna's parents, he flew around regularly. He replied, "Don't worry Colgate, I keep them in good shape so we shouldn't have any problems."

Colgate said, "Good, now let's get going."

With Blue Star aiding in moving the bubble, they were quickly able to break the sound barrier. Despite time being stopped outside the bubble, even with them having broke the sound barrier, it took for them what amounted to hours to finally reach Alicorn Island. Once they arrived they stopped and Colgate cast the proper spells, they flew to the palace and were greeted by guards.

One asked, "Halt, who goes there?"

The other added, "State your business."

Given that she was the one in charge of rounding everypony up Colgate replied, "My name is Supreme Commander of Coastal Equestria and with me are several other world leaders and we need to speak to LaurFa."

One of the two had been a guard for ages and remembered Colgate from a prior visit back when Brevity was in charge. He replied, "Supreme Commander, how could I have forgot that was you!" He turned towards the entrance and continued, "Follow me, I shall lead you to her throne room."

As they followed the guard to the throne room, Galaxia and Cosmos couldn't help but remember how long ago they were the ones who resided in the goddess's palace. When they arrived, the guard said, "Goddess LaurFa your Majesty, you have guests."

Given that she knew her better than the others, Galaxia was the first to approach her, "LaurFa your Majesty, it is so good to see you!"

LaurFa replied, "Galaxia, we have been friends for what seems to be an eon, there is no need to be so formal with me!" She then noticed that she was not alone, that she had many ponies with her and continued, "What is going on? Why are there so many other ponies with you?"

Galaxia looked back and said, "I will let Colgate tell you since she seems to know the most."

Colgate stepped forward and began, "As you know, the Equestrian continent has been relatively calm for the past 5,000 years but recently two of the most evil villains of all time have escaped....."

LaurFa interrupted, "Oh?"

Colgate continued, "Yes. Tirac has returned with his Rainbow of Darkness and his Equestrian counterpart Tirek has also returned."

LaurFa asked, "And I take it that you are here to ask for my help in casting them back into Tartar...."

Colgate corrected, "You mean slay them, correct?"

LaurFa never was a big fan of slaying the enemies of ponykind given the negative energies that could potentially be released yet she knew that Colgate would have it no other way. She replied, "Yes, I mean slay them."

Colgate gave her a quick nod before turning to the exit and suggesting, "Well shall we? We still have to see if Celestia will help before heading back to my tower."

LaurFa noticed that Colgate had left two ponies out, Twilight and White Magick. She asked, "What about Twilight and White Magick? Won't we need their help too?"

Colgate cringed at the very mention of their names but knew that LaurFa was likely right. She replied, "Yes, we will have to get them as well." While she was pretty sure that everything she had said indicated that she would help, she just wanted to make sure. She continued, "So I take it you are going to help us?"

LaurFa replied, "Yes, I will."

Colgate nodded and headed towards the exit with the others following her. Once they got outside Colgate took flight and said, "Alright everypony, you know the drill."

They all took flight and gathered around Colgate so she could cast the proper spells. Once they took off they again had trouble breaking the sound barrier because like Galaxia and Cosmos, LaurFa had not kept her wings in that good of shape. Colgate looked back and snapped, "Come on you three, I want us to get to Canterlot in a decent amount of time."

LaurFa asked, "But Colgate, with time outside the bubble being frozen, it will be the same time whether we go or fast so what does it matter?"

This was the first time that anypony had ever said such a thing to Colgate. Deep down this infuriated her but knew that if she wanted LaurFa's help in defeating her foes, that she would have to remain calm. She replied, "Look, it takes less time for us to get there so just try to fly faster, ok?" She then raised her voice and continued, "That goes for you too Galaxia and Cosmos."

She turned her head back forwards and much to her delight, the three of them were able to pick up the pace enough that they were able to break the sound barrier. After what was a few hours for them, they saw Canterlot approaching in the distance so Colgate again ordered them to stop and cast the proper spells so they could get to the palace and get Celestia.

When they approached the palace, like everywhere else, they were greeted by guards. One asked, "Halt, who goes there?"

The other was not so stern when he saw who was part of the group that stood before them. He said, "Galaxia, Cosmos, Luna, I take it you are here to see Celestia?"

Galaxia replied, "Yes, we are here to see Celestia over important matters."

The guard nodded and led them to the throne room where Celestia was enjoying a slice of cake. When she saw that her family was present she dropped her cake, rushed to them and exclaimed, "Mom, dad, sister, it is so good to see you!"

The first to say anything was Galaxia, "It is good to see you too my daughter!"

Celestia noticed that her family was not alone. She noticed that most of the other world leaders were with them, including the one that she believed was responsible for not only bringing heartache between two ponies, but also causing one to abdicate, Colgate. She pointed towards Colgate and asked, "And what brings you here?" She then pointed towards Scootaloo and continued, "And what brings your top ally as well?"

Colgate was not thrilled with the way Celestia was talking to her but knew that she had to keep her cool in this situation. She replied, "Princess Celestia, as you know both Tirac and Tirek have escaped from Tartarus but the two are now headed towards Vanhoover to begin using their dark magic on the ponies that live there."

Celestia countered, "Yes but right now I think we have more pressing matters, the situation involving White Magick and Twilight."

When he heard his father's name, Blue Star jumped into the conversation. He asked, "What about them, what about my father is it you know?"

Princess Celestia replied, "Well during a trip to Colgate out to Dream......."

Colgate interrupted, "Look, we can discuss this later. For now though, we must finish gathering the world leaders before we go to my tower to make plans on how to handle those two."

Blue Star asked, "Listen, I just want to know what happened with my father."

Colgate replied, "Well you'll be able to find out when we travel to Ponyville to pick him and Celestia's little Twily up."

Celestia shouted, "Do not call her 'little Twily.'"

Blue Star was curious as to what happened and why he would be in Ponyville with Twilight and not in his own realm given everything that was going on. He ordered, "Tell me......"

Colgate snapped, "Look, you'll find out when we get to Ponyville." She then turned towards Celestia and asked, "So will you be joining us in our effort to wipe those two out?"

Celestia got a nervous look on her face given that she had not kept her wings in good enough shape to help move a time bubble and knew how Colgate would react. She asked, "Colgate, you're not going to be mad if I can't help move the time bubble much will you?"

Colgate replied, "Ponyville is close enough that there is no need for us to use a time bubble and besides, I'm sure most everypony's wings are likely very tired."

Scootaloo boasted, "Well mine aren't!"

Colgate gave her a smile, "And that is why you're like the daughter I never had, you're tough like me." She turned towards the exit and continued, "Come on everypony, lets get going."

When they left the palace and took to the sky, everypony felt a sense of relief that they would not have to work themselves to death moving a time bubble. Even Colgate and Scootaloo, two ponies who have tough attitudes and wings stronger than most, felt a sense of relief that they could simply fly and feel the breeze blowing in their faces.