“To the castle!” Prince Valiant called as he swung his sword at a passing Reptilian.
Gypsy's prediction had held true: at noon aid had come.
A few years prior, the ponies helped rescue Prince Valiant's fiancee, Princess Rosabelle, when Tirek’s trolls imprisoned her in the Castle of Darkness. From then on, the alliance between their kingdoms became a beacon of hope to the world that Tirek’s influence was not unbeatable.
The prince and his men rode into the valley with another wave of pony reinforcements. The Rainbow Ponies were very unique, and their rainbow colored manes were not the only reason for their names. Their ancestors belonged to a herd who were more directly exposed to the Rainbows and their power through a waterfall. Even generations later, pure rainbow magic still ran through their veins.
In the face of Tirek’s invading army, the Rainbow Ponies allowed Valiant’s men the honor of being the first humans ever to ride them. To ancient ponies, being ridden was a sign of either great humiliation if done unwillingly or a show of great trust between pony and rider. The Rainbow Ponies showed their trust that day, as they and the prince’s army swept through the Reptilian ranks like a knife through butter.
They had been chosen from all of the ponies of Dream Valley because of this unique rainbow magic. While certain ponies such as Firefly were incredibly fast, all Rainbow Ponies were capable of high speeds, and all Rainbow Ponies, regardless of race, could fly by summoning a rainbow to carry them through the skies, and many could produce rainbow light shows from their bodies. Starshine could even use her magic to warp herself, even as far as other worlds. As such, these abilities made them the perfect choice to carry Valiant and his forces quickly to the battle.
"Wait…" Applejack muttered, her eyes going wide. "Rainbow manes, rainbow light show, superspeed...Princess, that sounds like…"
I let out a small chuckle. "Indeed, Applejack. Rainbow Dash is indeed of their bloodline, and can be considered a Rainbow Pony herself."
"...Does that mean she's gonna warp herself into space someday?" she asked.
"I do not know. She's descended far from them, but she also bonded to a piece of the Rainbow of Light, the very thing that gave her bloodline that power, so it's hard to say."
"...Until that ego of hers is a little better under control, Ah ain't tellin' her she's descended from some crazy, rare ancient kinda pony."
I gave a laugh. "A wise decision. The original Rainbow Ponies themselves were not immune to conceit. Megan was not the only human to come to our world; and at least one had far greedier intents, luring the Rainbow Ponies to him, shaving their manes, and returning to his world and home city of New York with his prizes in tow, selling their manes off and living comfortably afterwards, even though their close friend Ember The Pony had been given a dream warning her of what was to come. This proved however to be a humbling experience for them, and Ember's encounter with Angel Pony, another of my sibling's-"
"Yer Highness, the battle?"
"Oh right right! Sorry!"
Stratadons continued to snatch up ponies, but they were shot down before they could get far. Tirek's simple task for Scorpan was proving infuriatingly difficult.
“No, no, no!” Scorpan raged. “Bring me that cursed elf’s head!”
“With pleasure.” The witch grinned and charged the old elf.
“Oh, dear me, I wish Bonnie were here!” The Moochick mumbled as he waved his walking stick and turned Reptilians into little birds. “She was so much better at combat!”
“Joraglidad!” A bast of magic knocked the Moochick to the ground. He looked up and saw the witch standing over him, her spell book glowing with evil green light.
“Oh my, my, my, I should have known Tirek would enlist one of you witches.”
“I am more than a mere witch, elf! I am the sum knowledge of hate, and you and I have a score to settle!” A blast of green lightning flew from the book.
“Oh, have we met?” The Moochick ran behind a tree, dodging the lightning bolts.
“No, but you helped a group of worthless creatures escape Lord Tirek’s wrath.”
“Ah, well, you’ll have to forgive me for not apologizing!” The Moochick caused the grass to grow and tie up the witch.
“I’ve dreamed of a world where the weak feelings those creatures peddled were stamped out forever! It’s why I came to serve Lord Tirek! And you had the gall to deny me the pleasure of seeing them erased from the world!” The witch created a fireball that burned the grass away and set the tree the Moochick was hiding behind ablaze."I was looking forward to making these insolent horses' foals bite and claws at each other like rabid dogs."
“Not if I have anything to say about it!” The elf created a gust of wind that blew the witch clear off her feet.
“You can’t stop me, old fool! You can’t HELP ME!” The witch winced at the sudden outburst. The light from the book's pages dimmed slightly during the shout.
“Help you?”
“Ignore that! It means nothing PLEASE, MAKE HER STOP!”
“...What’s going on?”
“Nix fix styx!” The witch growled, and she set a tornado at the Moochick.
“Why did you ask for help?!” The Moochick called as he tried to dodge the twister.
“I didn’t I DID! Shut up!” The witch winced and clutched her spell book tighter.
“You’re kind of sending mixed messages, you know!” The Moochick shouted as he waved his cane as if it was a wand and the tornado vanished.
“Be silent and GET THE BOOK! SILENCE, WORM!” The witch screamed as the spellbook itself seemed to tremble in her hands.
“It sounds like you have a problem with that book! How about I take that and give you a better one?” The Moochick appeared behind the witch and grabbed for the book.
“NO!”
The Moochick gasped as he tried to pull the book from the witch’s clutches. He stared at the book and it was staring back at him. The witch’s face was in the book’s pages, like some demonic pop up book.
“What on earth?!” The Moochick gulped.
“Naraknew!” The book blasted the Moochick away. “You will not touch me, elf!”
“A spirit in a spell book? Well, there’s one I’ve never seen before!” The Moochick raised his cane.
“I will be the last thing you see!” The witch raised the book and a green flame surged at the old elf. The witch and the book said the same thing at the same time. Or were the witch's lips simply moving like a dummy's to her ventriloquist's words? I can't say for sure.
The Moochick’s cane morphed into a large umbrella that fended off the fire. He tried to conjure water or wind to counter the flames, but it was too strong. The witch, or rather the book, had him pinned down.
“Hold on, Moochick, I’m coming!” Prince Valiant called over the din of battle.
The prince gasped as he saw two Stratadons fly past, each snatching a Rainbow Pony right from under his soldiers.
"Oh no you don't!"
The Prince was given a spare crossbow by one of his guards nearby, aimed, and fired its only arrow... striking the first beast through the eye, just as the same guard finished loading another crossbow and handed it over to the prince, who quickly shot down the next mindless creature.
"But your majesty! The fall!" His loyal guard said shocked as the ponies fell from the dying monsters’ claws.
"Don't worry, they have something the Stratadons don't: friends!"
"ThankyoufortakingWhizzerairlines,keepyourhoovesinsidethechariotatalltimes!" said the first pegasus to catch one.
"SURPRISE!" Shouted the second.
Firefly may have gotten all the fame dear Applejack, but she was not the only fast pegasus in Ponyland. In fact, some wondered if Whizzer, this fast talking beanie wearing mare always so eager to help was in fact faster, but the history books only remember Firefly and the risks she took. And, of course, Surprise The First, Pinkie Pie's ancestor. Yes, she’s a pegasus! Do you think modern Equestria invented mixed marriages? They let their friends go the moment that they had regained their wits enough to summon a new rainbow to ride, something rather hard under the sudden fright.
Prince Valiant charged past the fleeing ponies towards the “witch” and the Moochick.
"The book! Aim for the book!"
He raised his crossbow and fired a bolt at the spell book. The book shrieked in rage and pain as the arrow knocked it from the witch’s hands, not a mark on it.
“WRETCHED HUMAN!” The spirit of the book howled. The witch fell to the ground like a puppet whose strings were just cut.
The barrage of fire that had pinned the Moochick down fizzled as the book was cut from its host.
“Quick, close the book!” the Moochick yelled as he stood up.
“NO!” The spirit yelled as Prince Valiant grabbed the cover of the book and tried to push it shut against the ground. “I WILL NOT BE SILENCED AGAIN!”
A round of green lightning ran up the prince’s arms as he tried to close the book. The Moochick jumped and landed with a resounding stomp on the edge of the cover, closing the book. Still, the cover bulged as the spirit tried to force it open again.
“Moochick, what do we do?!” Valiant shouted as he tried to keep the book from opening.
The Moochick began searching through his hat until finally finding what he sought. “We need a key!”
He plunged the key into the lock on the book’s binding, and with one last cry of anger, the book fell silent as the spirit was contained.
The Prince swore, "What in Hades was that thing?"
“I know just the person to deal with this awful thing!” The Moochick threw the book into his hat and turned back to the fallen witch. “Poor dear must have been possessed by that book for who knows how long. Habbit!"
The rabbit familiar was at his 'master's' side in seconds. If there was one thing he knew (and he knew much more than that) it was to stay out of the crossfire until called.
"I’m teleporting you and this woman back to the Mushromp. Tend to her until I get back.”
No, Applejack, you need not worry about that entity turning back up, it is no longer in this world.
-
Across time and space.
Vice Principal Luna asked, "Sister, what are you doing?"
"I'm writing a letter to magical horses to please stop dumping their cursed artifacts in other people's universes."
-
Moochick's rabbit helper saluted as the elf waved his walking stick and the rabbit and the girl vanished.
“You sure that was wise?” Prince Valiant asked. “Sending her to your home?”
“Habbit is the most determined rabbit this side of the equator, he can handle himself. And even if the lady wasn’t overcome with soul sickness, she has no power without the book." Trust us Applejack, the Moochick could tell these things.
"WHOA!”
An arrow flew past his head.
“Perhaps we should chat later!” The prince said as he pulled the elf through the melee.
Far off behind the lines, Scorpan watched in growing rage. The spirit of the book had fallen, the enemy reinforcements had broken their ranks, and the ponies were still fending off their efforts to capture the four Lord Tirek demanded.
-
"Luna, what da heck was that thing?"
"Mortals have always sought ways to cheat death, some get more creative than others."
-
“All right. The human prince, the elf, and that blasted unicorn need to be taken out of play, just like Lord Tirek ordered, then the rest will fall in the next assault.” Scorpan jumped on a Stratadon and flew towards the castle.
Prince Valiant and the Moochick arrived at the castle gates, fending off Tirek’s lizard men as they went.
“Any chance you can get them to lower the drawbridge?!” The prince yelled as he blocked a Reptilian’s sword. The prince said this in jest, he had no desire for the ponies to open their front door to the enemy.
“No, but I have another way in!” The Moochick stuck his walking stick into the ground and grabbed the prince’s wrist. “Going up!”
The cane grew to the height of the castle wall, with the Moochick and the Prince rising with it until they were able to jump over the wall.
“Please warn me the next time you do that!” Valiant gasped as he landed on the floor.
“What, and spoil the surprise?” The Moochick chuckled.
“Prince Valiant! Mr. Moochick!” Spike called as he, Majesty, Twilight, Wind Whistler, and Applejack ran to meet them. “Boy are we glad to see you!”
“I wish we were meeting under better circumstances,” Majesty grimly stated as she offhandedly sent a blast of wind toward another charging horde of Reptilians.
“Even with our combined strength and resources, I calculate the odds of this battle ending with our defeat at 75%,” Wind Whistler assessed.
“How is that possible?” Applejack asked. “We’ve beaten so many bad guys before! Giants, witches, dragons, natural disasters, all of it! What’s different now?”
"Overwhelming numerical advantage, and since their numbers can be replaced in a day, their commanding officer has no concern for their long term survival. We have dealt with powerful wicked individuals and invading groups, but not simultaneously. They'll be able to scale the walls with piles of their dead eventually. And Majesty has never had to deal with several powerful monsters in a row."
“And they didn’t have the kind of power Tirek has,” The Moochick sighed.
“Ooh, why do the bad guys always pick on us?!” Spike shook at the sight of the battle. “And, sorry to ask, Mom, but how come you haven’t been able to just zap them all away?"
“He has a point, Moochick. She’s turned many villains to stone, or trees or even bubbles with hardly a fraction of her powers.”
“Yes, but every last one of these Reptilians was created with Tirek’s powers. They’re practically radiating dark magic, and it’s interfering with the very magic in the air.”
A Stratadon grabbed Twilight, she teleported out of its grasp and the Moochick struck the creature between the eyes before the prince sent it over the side with another arrow.
"Not all magic," Twilight said.
"And I've never had to transmute so many at once before, let alone after transmuting so many giants," Majesty said.
“Isn’t there any magical way to destroy them?” Prince Valiant asked.
The Moochick shook his head. “Not without destroying Dream Valley in the process.”
“Well, can we neutralize the magic?” Wind Whistler asked. “If the enemy is powered by magic that is negatively charged, can we cancel it out with an equally large positive charge?”
"I'm afraid 'positive' magic as you put it Wind Whistler isn't my cup of tea," Majesty sighed.
“And I’m afraid we’d need more magic than even Majesty generates to distort time to do that. We’d need more power than any one pony could ever hope to have,” the Moochick said.
“Wait…” Applejack mumbled. “If we need more power than any one pony can have, what if we use all the power that everypony has?”
“What?” The group asked.
“Well, we’ve got loads and loads of unicorns, earth ponies, and pegasi here. And Twilight, you’ve always said that all ponies have their own spark of magic inside them. Can we win if we combine all our sparks of magic together?”
Twilight gave the matter some thought, and the gears in her head began to turn. “I… I suppose that might be possible. I could make a wish that could connect every pony in the valley together and combine our magic. That much power could be enough to win this…”
“But such a build up of magical energy is nearly impossible to control,” Majesty countered. “We could combine our powers, but we couldn’t use it without a medium. I could direct that power through me, but it would shatter my horn before I could use it.”
“If that is the case, could we use something else as a medium? Some conductor that could focus the magic safely? Like the Moochick’s magic cane, for example.”
“Oh, my, my, my no! My cane isn’t made to handle that kind of power. It would shatter into splinters the moment it tried to absorb that much magic. We’d need something much stronger.”
“Well, how about Magic Star’s wand?” Applejack threw out.
“Magic Star’s wand... ” The Moochick’s eyes widened, as did the ponies’. “Magic Star’s wand!”
“That’s it!” Twilight grinned excitedly. “Magic Star’s wand has a greater conductivity for mana since it was made for earth pony use. Their magic is more, well, Earth-bound than a unicorn’s, so the wand needs to be able to pull in and focus a much greater amount of power!”
“So we can use it to do this spell without the magic overloading or putting a pony at risk as the medium! Applejack, you’re a genius!” Majesty pulled the apple farmer into a tight hug.
Yes, Applejack, wands capable of giving Earth Ponies more overt magic did exist. Sadly the means to do so was lost to time... but what was lost need not remain so forever, you've seen what an Earth Pony can do with your own eyes in the Truth, have you not?
“If this is to remain a feasible strategy, we must act quickly.” Wind Whistler interjected.
“All right, Twilight, get Magic Star and all the other the unicorns into the tower and set up the ritual.”
“Yes, Majesty!” Twilight nodded.
“Prince Valiant, we need to hold off the Reptilians until we can perform the spell, can you buy us that time?”
“I’ll buy you all the time you need!” The prince grinned.
“I hope this works, or LOOK OUT!” Spike screamed.
Before the prince could even turn, he felt himself being hit by something huge and then lifted into the air.
The ponies watched in horror as a Stratadon ridden by Scorpan zoomed away with Prince Valiant in its talons. Before anypony could stop him, Spike ran and grabbed onto the prince’s leg and held on as they were both pulled into the air.
“VALIANT! SPIKE!” The ponies cried.
“SCORPAN, LET THEM GO!” The Moochick shouted.
“Unicorn! Moochick! If you want the prince and your pet dragon to live, come and face me! And you better hurry before I reach the reinforcements!”
Majesty fired a spell, but Scorpan used a nearby Stratadon as a shield, turning it into a dirt statue.
The gargoyle laughed evilly as he flew off towards the borders of Dream Valley.
Valiant's loyal subjects fired arrow after arrow, but Scorpan had his minions shield him with their bodies. Only one arrow made it through, and only succeeded in wounding its leg.
Knights on the Rainbow Ponies came close to Scorpan's Stratadon... but again, Scorpan's minions used themselves as a mobile barricade.
+++
"NOW HOLD ON THERE, PRINCESS! Ah'll admit, Ah let myself be bedazzled with all the fancy smancy magic goin' on, all the nasty stuff happin' every five minutes, and from ya goin' on about yer family tree every chance ya get... But how in blue blazes did Majesty get caught off guard 'bout ANYTHIN' big with her friend bein' a fortune teller showin' her stuff that can happen, and a magic horse shoe that always showed her sure things?! And another horse shoe that lets her read minds?! From what ya said, she'd had those things for years, plenty of time to get used to'em! Ah get if she kept listenin' to everypony's thoughts all the time she'd go crazy and nopony would get near her! Ah know yer gonna say that she couldn't sit on her plot lookin' into tomorrow when today needed doin', but ya'd think her son and the prince gettin' snagged she'd have seen comin'! Or listen in on what the bad guys were thinkin'! Or is this one of those 'dark magic that can't be foreseen' messes? Like how every time Twili' uses 'er magic to fix somethin' it just gets worse, but whenever some jerk uses magic to cause trouble it all goes off without a hitch?"
We shall admit to our royal shame, while we would have expected this from ever questioning Twilight Sparkle, eye for detail Rarity, or always thinking in a hundred directions at once Pinkie Pie, we had not expect straightforward and direct Applejack to ask this question.
“As for the horseshoe that allowed her to read minds, the reason it didn’t work is her immediate environment. She stood in the heat of battle, surrounded by her ponies, Valiant’s men, and Tirek’s hordes. There were thousands of minds screaming out at once, to say nothing of their audible screams, the clang of swords and spears, the rumble of footfalls, blasts of magic, and sounds of carnage. Using that horseshoe would have been like trying to catch a single voice in the middle of a massive stadium during a Hoofball game. And even if she had managed to focus it on only one creature, she’d still have to get close enough to one of the few who knew of the plan out of the thousands of soldiers.”
“Oh… yeah, guess that would be a mite difficult.”
"And the range of Majesty's horseshoe is not infinite. And it requires focus. And Majesty was being kept quite busy. As for Majesty and Gypsy's future sight... In truth, Applejack, I’m not sure. Precognitive magic can, ironically, be very unpredictable. My sister, Rota Fortuna is both fate and free will, and zealously guards the path of what must be and the choices of what might be. As you said, Majesty's visions only show her what is certain, while Gypsy's magic can only show what is possible. Majesty knew Tirek's army WOULD come and prepared; she knew Prince Lucky and the other foals WOULD be safely sent away from the castle. While Gypsy's magic requires her to shift through every possible outcome, so she goes with the future that is most likely."
“But what's the difference between the 'sure things' and the 'possible things' then?”
“I’m afraid I must say again, I don’t know. Rota Fortuna keeps her, for lack of a better word, self, very private. The amount of possibilities and choices that make up the grand tapestry are far grander and more complicated than I could ever tell you. In fact, you mortals recently discovered an interesting aspect of one of the potential Draconequi's domains, or Discord's, depending on the universe, known as 'quantum mechanics' that show that indeed seemingly impossible things have a non-zero chance of being possible. There is a non-zero chance you will phase through the floor right now and land in the room below us, for example, and thus somewhere in the multiverse, that is exactly what happened and a possibility."
Applejack reflexively cringed as if expecting that very thing to happen. She gave a sigh of relief when it didn't. "Guess we ain't in THAT universe..."
Meanwhile, in another universe
“In fact, you mortals recently discovered an interesting aspect of one of the potential Draconequi's domains, or Discord's, depending on the universe, known as 'quantum mechanics'-"
"AHHHHH!"
"MY CABBAGES!" yelled one of the cooks downstairs who was preparing some form of cabbage dish for tomorrow. From the sound of it, we may be eating Hayburgers again.
I was about to mention how there was a universe where dear Applejack spontaneously phased through the floor due to there being a non-zero chance of that happening. Apparently we're in one of those...I should go check if she's okay.
"Indeed. But back to the matter at hoof, even when the magic is used for small things, it’s still a monumental change in the grand scheme of things. There is a story by Neigh Bradbury where a pony goes back in time to the age of the dinosaurs and accidentally steps on a butterfly, and as a result, the world as he knew it ceased to exist.
“That is the risk of every use of magic to see or affect the future or the past. And that is why its use can be as fickle and mysterious as Rota Fortuna herself. It could be that Majesty knowing about certain things would negate her choices, or change the outcome for the worse. Perhaps she wasn’t meant to stop it. Or her choices led her to a place where getting a vision of the future would negate her choices. The line that separates divine intervention and mortal choice can be very blurry at times. I honestly couldn’t say how much Majesty not knowing about Scorpan abducting Valiant and Spike was the will of fate, a result of infinite choices and actions, or just dumb luck.”
“Ugh, this is startin’ ta hurt mah head.”
"Trust me, when you have to manage and BE a Concept of reality, it gets SO much more exhausting. Especially when in your natural state time is as easy to move through as space and you can meet your siblings before you're ever born.”
+++
“Did he say ‘reinforcements?!” Applejack gasped.
The Moochick watched in horror. “We have to save Valiant and stop Scorpan! If another wave of Tirek’s minions attacks before that spell is finished…”
“We’re going after that gargoyle and rescuing our friends! Mr. Moochick, get on my back,” Majesty ordered. She didn't wait for a response and magically pulled him into the air and dropped him on her back.
"Oh my!" The Moochick shouted, barely keeping his hat from falling off.
“But Majesty, what about the plan?” Twilight asked.
“You’ll have to lead the unicorns in the spell, Twilight. You’re the most well versed in magic, and you’re the strongest unicorn we have besides me. You’re the most qualified mare for the job.”
“I won’t let you down, Majesty.” She bowed.
“Applejack, Wind Whistler, hold the line. I need you two to give Twilight the time she needs.”
“Yes, Majesty!” The two ponies bowed.
“Goodbye, my friends. We’ll see each other again after this is all over.” Majesty turned and leaped over the castle wall with the Moochick screaming as he held on for dear life.
The unicorn queen teleported mid leap and reappeared just beyond the borders of Ponyland.
“Come on!” Applejack cried. “We gotta get going and save Ponyland!”
The ponies scrambled into action. Applejack led the defenses, pushing back harder than ever as the enemy pressed towards the castle. Wind Whistler and Firefly lead the pegasi in new formation, leading the Startadons away from the fray.
Meanwhile, Twilight galloped through the castle looking for the pony she needed. After searching most of the east side of the castle, she found Magic Star. A group of Reptilians had made it through a window and were now facing an onslaught of spells from the furious earth pony and her wand.
“Hocus pocus, and alakazam! Send these goons far from where I am!” Magic Star shouted, and the Reptilians vanished in a sparkling cloud.
“Magic Star, come with me!” Twilight ordered. “Majesty’s got a plan and we need your help!”
“What’s the plan?” Magic Star asked, already halfway out the door.
“We need your magic wand to focus the magic of every pony in Ponyland! Do you think you can manage that?”
“I-I think so.” Magic Star looked at her wand in thought. “I mean, it should work.”
“Great! Come on, we need to get to the throne room!” A loud crash shook the castle, Twilight didn't know from what. “...While it’s still standing!”
Buttons, Sparkler, and Gusty began drawing the sigils across the room to coordinate the magical energy. Twilight, Mimic, and Magic Star went over the mechanics of the spell.
“No, no, no, we can’t use nightshade for the potion, it’s too volatile. We should use mandrake root.”
“Magic Star’s right.” Mimic nodded. “Plus, that base will let the spell resonate through the castle walls for more power.”
Fizzy, Ribbon, and Powder ran into the throne room. “Twilight, we’ve hung the crystals in the places in the castle you told us to. Glory, Starflower, and Moondancer are guarding them!”
Gypsy merely filed in to her part in the circle before any could find and ask her to. I do not know how she did so, maybe she saw it, perhaps she only saw her role in it.
“All right, we need to get started!” Mimic said, looking around the room. “Everyone stand here in the circle. Magic Star, you stand in the center and raise your wand.”
“OK!” The earth pony galloped into the center of the symbols painted on the floor as the other unicorns got into position.
“Oh, of all the times I can’t see the future, it has to be this one!” Gypsy focused her magic.
"At least that means whatever happens next is a sure thing," Twilight said.
Twilight levitated the scraps of paper containing the spell they’d written so everyone could read and recite the words. The unicorns concentrated their magic on Magic Star’s wand and they all began to read aloud.
“Honesty’s light always shows us the way
“Laughter can brighten our very darkest day
“Kindness lends a hoof as we stumble and fall
“Generosity gives of itself to all
“Loyalty holds us tight as a truss,
“In face of bullies in each other we trust,
“It is the Magic that flows through our hearts
“We all have the magic, and must all play our parts
“To fight back the darkness that seeks to destroy and twist
“By the might of true magic, our hearts will resist!
“Let evil’s false strength fall by the way
“Unite the light in us all to save the day!”
With the last word spoken, the ground began to shake. The symbols they had drawn around the room began to to glow. The ponies watched in awe and fear as the light started traveling up their hooves. Every pony felt their hairs stand on end as the power built up inside them.
The crystals they had placed around the castle sent the spell’s signal all over the land. All over Dream Valley, every pony felt it. Even in the heat of battle, they still felt the power reach to them as well. The Reptilians tried to grab at them, but the light magic burned them before they could even lay a hand on a single hair on their heads.
Magic Star’s hoof trembled as she felt the build up of power until, suddenly, everypony saw white.
There should have been an explosion, but there was no sound in Dream Valley when the spell went off. Just a light that began in Dream Castle and grew until it enveloped the entire valley. The ponies stood transfixed by the spell as Valiant’s army and the Reptilian hordes turned to run, but none could hope to outrun the spell blast.
It was Applejack who woke up first, curled up on on the cobblestone path in the courtyard. She looked around and saw Sweet Stuff, Lickety Split, and North Star, among others passed out on the ground.
Applejack gasped as memories of the battle returned. “EVERYONE WAKE UP! WE’RE UNDER ATTACK! TIREK’S LIZARD MEN ARE COMING!”
The ponies awoke with a start as Applejack ran up the stairs to the castle wall.
“EVERYONE, GET READY TO FIGHT! WE HAVE...to… Um, what?”
“Applejack, what’s… huh?” Firefly asked as she flew to her friend and caught sight of the battlefield.
Tirek’s army was nowhere in sight. Ponies, Valiant’s human soldiers and countless animals lay asleep on the ground all over the valley. Chipmunks, squirrels, rabbits, lizards, skunks, moles and birds of every description lay everywhere, but there wasn’t a single Reptilian or Stratadon to be seen. All that remained were weapons that lay strewn around the valley. The ponies could only look on in confusion at the display.
“Um… what’s going on?” Sweet Stuff asked as she peeked over the rampart.
“Well, um, I’m not sure, but, I think we won.” Applejack shrugged.
In the throne room, the unicorns and Magic Star were beginning to wake up as well.
“Ugh, that’s the last time I have five root beer floats all at once,” Fizzy groaned as she rubbed her sore head.
“No, this isn’t an ice cream hangover, it’s… THE SPELL!” Buttons gasped as everyone ran to the windows.
They were greeted by the same strange scene as ponies and human knights began to awaken only to find a field filled with animals. The air filled with thousands of bird songs, as they flew around Ponyland in what could only be called celebration.
“That’s very strange,” Galaxy murmured.
“What?” Twilight asked.
“The birds singing,” Galaxy concentrated. “It roughly translates to ‘We’re free.’”
“Free from what, exactly?” Buttons asked.
“I’ll ask.” Galaxy whistled and a bird flew in through the window.
The bird chirped in joy as he landed on Galaxy’s hoof and she asked a few questions in bird talk.
“Oh my!” Galaxy gasped.
“What?” the other ponies gasped.
“It seems we’ve met the enemy, and they are these little critters.” The ponies just looked in confusion. “These poor creatures were transformed into those horrible Reptilians and Stratadons by Tirek, and it appears our spell changed them back!”
“What kind of monster would do such a thing?” Twilight gasped.
“Tirek, apparently,” Buttons glared at the idea.
“Well, I’d call this a definite victory, then!” Powder smiled. “We didn’t just beat Tirek’s army, we set them all free!”
"Not all of them," Buttons whispered, the battlefield still had the dead bodies of Reptilians and Stratadons, it seemed even their magic couldn't bring back the dead. Gypsy patted Buttons’ back. “Gypsy, is… was there any way we could have saved them?”
“Not that I could see. I don’t know why I couldn’t see it, or if it would have saved them. How can you fight a war when your enemy is an innocent victim, but is still trying to kill you?” Gypsy saw a Reptilian on the ground just outside the window. “Sometimes, I’m glad I can’t see everything, because then, I’d know what that one’s name was… what type of creature he was. How long he had been a slave for his master. How much he understood what he had become. And whether he would have prefered life as a slave or the release of death. And how many experiences were taken from him to lead him to this.”
Buttons bowed her head. “We’ll bury all of them as well as our own. They were victims of Tirek too, and deserve the dignity that he took from them back, even if it’s in death.”
But everyone else was too overjoyed at being saved from the monster army to notice. Gypsy and Buttons wished they could just forget about it, but they’d make do, as they had always done.
“We couldn’t have done it without you, Magic Star!” Mimic hugged her friend.
“I’m glad the spell worked…” She slowly raised her hoof and showed off the broken, smoldering handle of what used to be her magic wand. Magic Star had put so much effort into making that wand, Applejack. Searching the land for materials, studying so many books, and crafting it as well as she possibly could. She had put part of her own essence into it! It wasn't just any wand, it was hers. “Guess I underestimated how much power my wand could take.”
Mimic gasped. "Oh no, Magic Star, I’m sorry.”
“It’s alright," Magic Star lied. "I guess I’ll just have to try to make another one again someday.”
Magic Star tried to sound brave, but it was still a great personal loss for her, she could never recreate that wand, because the part of her essence she'd placed into it was lost forever. “But we were still lucky the spell worked even if this happened. We’re not gonna get another shot like that without this.”
“Well, hopefully we won’t have to.” Twilight looked out the window. “Majesty and Moochick are going to intercept Scorpan. If anyone can handle themselves against that, it’s those two.”
Hehe...yes, Applejack. The power of Friendship was a mighty force in the world even then. And it has saved this world more times than you will ever know.
000
Majesty galloped as fast as she could, teleporting as often as possible to travel faster. In the distance, she could almost make out Scorpan’s Stratadon carrying the prince.
"Majesty, just wink-out to him!"
"If I could I would, but my magic... it feels tired. That's never happened to me before. And even if I could, I wouldn't have the strength to wink-out to safety and Scorpan and the Stratadon wouldn't politely glide us down."
And either Scorpan's Stratadon was exceptionally swift, or he'd pushed the beast to its absolute limit.
As the unicorn queen galloped through the forest, she and her elf rider noticed the change in their surroundings. As they went, plants began to look more bare and shriveled until they were passing through an entire forest of dead trees. They hadn’t heard a sound in hours; not a bird’s song or an insect’s chirp, or even the breeze rustling tree branches. Just the clop of Majesty’s hooves through the dirt and long dead leaves on the forest floor. Eventually, the dead forest gave way to a small desert that stretched out to the sea. Still, no sound of life could be heard for miles. Tirek’s presence had poisoned the land so nothing would live unless he willed it. Only the lakes and sea stubbornly held onto life.
"..." Moochick looked sadly to their surroundings. "Tirek's poison is tainting the world, the very land itself...I imagine that if we fail, one day this may be the entire world…"
"...All the more reason to stop him now," Majesty replied.
That’s when they saw it on the horizon. Tower after tower, battlement after battlement, tall as a mountain of steel. The seal of trust and hope between divinity and mortal life twisted into a monument to a demon’s vanity. High above, the permanent cloud cover swirled in an endless storm, blocking out its master’s enemy, the sun. The fortress of Tirek: Midnight Castle.
It had been so long, and the land so twisted, the Moochick did not even recognize the place.
They saw Scorpan's Stratadon nested on the edge of the castle's roof, tending to its arrow wound, but no sign of Scorpan himself nor Valiant.
"No sign of those reinforcements, this might have all been a trick to lure us from the battle."
"Not automatically. Tirek can just make reinforcements."
"This has gotten more complicated, Scorpan has reached Tirek, it might be better to get help. He'll keep Valiant as a hostage."
"And when did Tirek last leave a hostage alive?"
"No guards or patrols on the way here, Tirek either sent all he has, or this is a trap. I can't believe even Tirek is so confident as to leave his fortress naked... "
"Tirek's army was going to wear us down anyway, and Prince Valiant showing up wasn't something even we knew about if not for Gypsy. Only a madman would hinge his plan on outside factors. And Tirek from what I've seen and heard isn't that kind of mad."
“Majesty, we need to be very careful. Now, the Sea Ponies have been keeping tabs on this place for me and told me of a secret entrance near…”
“Thank you, Moochick, but I actually have a strategy for getting us inside.”
“Oh, really?”
The gates to Midnight Castle stood fifty feet high and were solid steel… and now they lay as several mangled chunks of scrap metal after Majesty blasted them off their hinges.
"Knock, knock," Queen Majesty said.