//------------------------------// // 19 It All Goes To Tartarus // Story: Twilight's 1000th Birthday Blowout // by Cyndaquil //------------------------------// Twilight was in many places at once. Her physical body was standing in the park, frozen with her eyes aglow. At the same time she was in the Crystal empire on the day she drank the Alicorn vision potion. As she swallowed the strange concoction, and the visions started. Were these the same visions she had back then? She saw the creatures, biting, clawing, scratching, gnawing. She would see them one moment, then she would see them a century later. It was always the same, they were always trying to escape. The decayed skin was receding around their jaws, causing their fangs to be bared at all times. Their eyes had an odd glow to them, and their manes waved back and forth as though trying to escape their horrid bodies. When one of them did manage to reach from its world to Twilights, the creatures hoof immediately burned. The light that burned him, Twilight saw it, it was the Crystal heart of the Crystal Empire. The warmth of ponies hearts fed the Crystal heart. Ponies frolicked and played, hugged their friends, and nuzzled close to their lovers. Again, Twilight would see scenes from different times, and it was always the same until it was different. Ponies were scared, and the Crystal Heart grew week. The creatures could feel it. Then the crystal heart cracked and exploded. The explosion seemed to knock Twilight out of her visions and back into reality. Concerned ponies gathered around her, thinking she had had some sort of seizure. When she opened her eyes, Twilight realized she had collapsed into one of the flower beds in the amusement-parks boulevard. The first thing she saw, when she wasn’t quite certain whether the visions were over or not, was a patch of blue roses. She took two breaths, relieved to think it was over, when another wave of visions overtook her. This time she saw a pony. This pony, this unicorn, was in a mad dash, murder was on her mind as she trampled through a field of blue roses. Shaking off the second wave of visions, which might not have even been over, Twilight leapt into the air and chased after the mad unicorn. It mattered not that she only saw her in a vision, she chased the vision just the same. As twilight maneuvered through the streets, silver streak gave chase. “Princess Twilight,” said the automaton with the analog electronic brain, “Starlight Glimmer sent me to inform you that she detected an unusual weather pattern in the Southeast region of the park.” “Let me guess, it’s consistent with unscheduled time travel.” “How do you know that?” “Silver Streak, we have an intruder in the park! Tell Starlight to ready the elements.” “Which elements?”
 “Ready all of them!” “Well lookie what we’ve got here, brother of mine.” “I’m looking, brother Flam but what am I seeing?” “That there, brother Flim, is the secondary control unit of the Time Spire.” Flim took a moment to look. It was some sort of saucer shaped building which sat atop massive 1000 hoof tall tower, or spire as it will. The tower seemed to hold no purpose other then keeping the saucer section inaccessible, yet well within sight. “Secondary you say?” “Yes Flim, if anything goes wrong with the primary controller this wondrous machine is supposed to send everypony back to their own time safely.” “Right, so explain to me again how this plan works brother.” “Oh come on Flim, we’ve been over this. The machine isn’t intelligent, it only knows what ponies to send to what time by following a list. What we do is get the list, add the princesses names, and send them away, without anypony knowing it was us.” “Right we get rid of all the princesses.” “We get rid of all the princesses.” Flam reached for the door to the spire, he stopped, a thought occurring to him. “You have you’re magic ward, right?” Flim reached under his bowtie and pulled out a piece of stone on a hemp necklace. “Never leave home without it brother.” “Good,” Flam pulled out his own half. Remember that these are the only things that keep the flowers from spotting us.” “Spike-Spike!” The dragon turned, to see a begonia calling out to him. “Yeah, what’s up Glimmer.” Ridiculous as talking flowers were, voice sounded urgent. “You know how I’ve had certain blindspots in my field of vision.” “You told me.” “Right now there is a blindspot at the bottom of the time spire, and it’s moving upwards towards the top of the time spire.” Spike had been going to meet Twilight. Making a judgement call, he took his massive broad sword and changed direction. From up high, Twilight spotted a cloaked pony she recognized from her vision. “Stop!” she called. The pony immediately started to run. “Stop!” Twilight called again. The cloaked pony turned into a corner, running faster. The bridge was narrow. Frustrated, she shoved one innocent bystander aside, causing her to drop an ice cream cone, then the cloaked pony jumped over the side of the bridge, and ran under. Twilight thought she was just trying to hide. When she swooped under the bridge, she saw the pony gathering magic for an energy blast. In a manoeuvre she had only ever known one pony to use, the cloaked pony bucked the ball of energy towards Twilight. There was no room to dodge. Twilight put up a field, yet still took some of the blast. The blast was so great it pushed back the pony who had fired it. She landed on her bent hind legs and immediately pounced forward. While Twilight was momentarily stunned, the other pony rushed in an effort to attack her. Regaining her bearings faster then the cloaked pony could have predicted, Twilight dodged, grabbing the cloak as the other pony rushed forward. With her cloak torn off, her face was revealed for all to see. She knew this pony, at least she thought she knew her. Her face was so angry. If she’d ever been this angry looking before, Twilight didn’t remember. Twilight gasped. “Fizzlepop Berrytwist!” Flizzlepop looked at her, even more angry. Fizzlepop was supposed to have broken her horn in a filly-hood accident. It was then Twilight noticed her horn was intact. It was intact, yet somehow it was wrong. It glowed with a sickly black magic, that was not her colour, nor that of any pony. “How do you even know that name?” She demanded. Charging again, she made another demand. “Call me Tempest Shadow.” As Spike approached the time spire he saw a strange, yet familiar figure standing guard at the entrance. Spike gripped the hilt of his broadsword and smiled. He’d been waiting almost a thousand years of this fight. “How’s it going Storm King?” Twilight dodged another strike. “Flizzlepop, why are we fighting. Please, I’m your friend.” “You’re no friend of mine. I haven’t met you before, I have no friends, and what sort of idiot mercenary blurts out their objective just because somepony asked.” “Storm King, how did you get here? What are you up to?” Spike demanded. “Oh goodie! I get a chance to gloat. Pity this isn’t some big take over Equestria scheme, today I’m just a common mercenary.” “A mercenary!” The two circled one another, looking for weaknesses in each others sword form, as they spoke. “What were you sent here to do?” “Me, I’m just guarding the Time Spire. I’m sort of a backup plan if Tempest fails at her job.” “Tempest Storm is here too. What’s her job?” The storm king struck overhand with his blade. Spike easily countered. There blades clashed a few more times before both stepped back. “Tempest was sent to kill the one and only pony that can alter history.” Spike hadn’t asked more. He was ready to go all out fighting now. Still the Storm King wouldn’t shut up. “Right now two idiot ponies are planning to use the Time Spire to make all princesses disappear.” Storm King lunged, but Spike jumped out of the way. “Why would any pony do that?” “Search me, especially considering what happens afterward.” The Storm king dropped down and tried to kick out Spikes footing. Bad move! Spike just flew upward and breathed fire down on his enemy. “With no princesses, all Tartarus breaks loose. First the Crystal heart breaks and the Umbrum are set free.” “The Umbrum?” Spike inhaled, readying to breathe more fire. “They’re this unspeakable evil that’s sealed near the Crystal Empire. I think they have something to do with that Sombra dude. And they’re not all that gets unleashed, there’s Winter Windigoes, those black vines from the Everfree Forrest, and these weirdoes from space even start hunting ponies; I think they’re called Yautja, or something. Anyway, it was the Umbrum that hired me and Tempest. They realized their timeline relied on this unstable and honestly confusing predestination paradox thing, and one pony was somehow putting their timeline in flux. Don’t ask me how they know this stuff!” “Why would even you work for the Umbrum?” Spike spoke after finishing another dragon breath. “They gave me a wicked @$$ new magic sword. - Oh, and they fixed Tempest’s horn. Wonder how I’m going to keep her loyal without dangling that carrot under her nose.” Applejack, Rarity, Minty, and Fluttershy were all enjoying a meal together at the Tasty Treat. It was Fluttershy’s first time out with friends since the marriage. Minty told them it was one of her favourite restaurants back in her time. Applejack wondered out loud it Saffron Masala would approve of what became of her franchise. The voice of Silver Streak came alive on all the parks speakers. The cute little robot that did whatever it could to please the ponies of the park was now speaking in a more commanding tone to its guests. “Attention all Ponies, there is a park wide emergency. All Elements of Harmony, please report to the main boulevard, and await further instructions. All other ponies, for your own safety you are advised to return to your hotel rooms. I repeat all Elements of Harmony, please report to the main boulevard, and await further instructions.” “Did that robot just say what I think it said?” Asked Applejack. “I’m afraid it did darling.” Rarity agreed. “Are you sure they meant us?” Asked Fluttershy. “Fluttershy, now what sort of question is that! The robot said elements of harmony. Who else can that be?” As she spoke, several ponies got up, most apologizing for abandoning their meals, yet all in a hurry to get to the boulevard. “Where are all these other ponies heading? Are they a bunch of lookie-loo’s raring to see a fight?” Applejack complained because the crowd was so big, it would slow them down in getting to the boulevard. “See you later Minty,” said Fluttershy. “Oh I better come, I’m actually an element of kindness in my time.” “Really - me too!” Out in the street, ponies flocked to the boulevard. It was the biggest crowd since the parks opening ceremony. “Are you sure I’m an element of harmony?” Derpy asked. “You will be the element of loyalty in three years relative your time.” A robot told her. “Miss Trixie, I assure you that you have never been an element of harmony.” Said aanother robot. “That can’t be right. You better check again.” Daisy and Roseluck dragged Lily by the hind hooves, and she clawed at the ground trying to escape. “ I don’t want to be an element of kindness. You know I hate danger. Daisy, this isn’t very generous of you. Roseluck, you honestly believe what that robot told you?” Flurry Heart and Screwball had been shopping together when the alarm went off. “Oh why didn’t Aunty Twilight ever invite me to be an Element of Harmony?” “What would youse be the element of?” Screwball asked her. “Uh…kindness maybe!” “Hah-ha-ha, and they call me an element of laughter.” Flurry Heart grabbed Screwballs muzzle, stretched it almost two feet, then snapped it back like a rubber band. Spike managed to grab the Storm King wrist, as he was about to make another overhand sword swing. He was quite proud of himself, the Storm King hadn’t expected a lumbering dragon to have the speed to perform such a move. To his surprise Storm King pulled a dagger from behind his belt, with his free arm. The Storm Kings ape like arms had better reach than Spike. He wouldn’t have been able to dodge that. When the pressure disappeared from Storm King’s sword arm Spike knew he was about to lunge with the dagger. Spike leapt away, though not quickly enough, leaving him with a small flesh wound. “Soft scales for a dragon. What are you, just a really ugly pony?” Spike sneered at the comment. “Living among these candy coloured equines made you soft, hasn’t it? You’re hardly a dragon at all” “You said the Umbrum gave you your sword, they just gave it to you right? You know, I went on a quest to get my sword. I had to persuade a sword smith to forge it, who had sworn never to forge a weapon again, then I had to defeat all kinds of monsters because its power grows with every victory, then I freed a people from some bone faced tyrant wizard, and became their king for a little while. Stuff like that just happens to me. Know why? It’s because I’m friends with ponies.” “Sounds like a real hassle. Let’s see if your sword is worth it.” The Storm King swung his blade. He was too far away for the attack to reach, yet Spike sensed a destructive force moving toward him. He held up his broadsword and felt a clash. The sword glowed capturing and converting the Storm Kings magic. Spike circled his sword arm in a helicopter motion, and returned the blast to the Storm King. Storm king leapt, as the ground exploded around him. “Not bad! I was skeptical at first, but after I kill you I’m definitely keeping that sword. Say, does it only reflect attacks.” Spike held the sword up in the air. Storm King assumed he was charging for a magic blast. Spike didn’t need his sword to be a gun, he had dragon fire for those attacks. Instead he called out, some strange mantra. Energy seemed to enter Spike’s body. His wound healed. He seemed fresh, like the battle had only begun. With renewed vigour, he leapt charging at the Storm King. Tempest ripped steel girders from the bridge, with her Unicorn magic, and hurled them at Twilight. Twilight dodged two of them, then saw one headed for a flower pot. She grabbed the flower pot and pulled it to herself with Unicorn magic. “Are you seriously risking your life to save the flowers?” Twilight whispered to the hydrangea; “Go find my friend Fizzlepop. Maybe she can talk some sense into this Tempest pony. They look like the could be twins.” Twilight hadn’t quite put together, that this was Fizzlepop from an earlier point in her personal timeline. She’d also happened to forget that her dear friend was a reformed villain. Seriously, the list is a bunch of computer punch cards. Flam referenced a manual, as he took a small hole puncher and tried to write commands in the machine language. What bugged him most was that he was supposed to be the more machine savy of the two. His brother Flim had already programmed cards for Princess Luna, Cadence, and Flurry Heart. Flim was at work with Twilight Sparkles punch card, while Flam was still trying to finish up with Princess Celestia. These cards communicate the machine language that the time spire understand. At the centre of the room was a lever, they called it the big red lever. This was an emergency measure built into the amusement park. Supposedly they could pull the lever, and every pony will be returned instantly to their home timeline. Of course the machine only knew where to send them by reading information in these ridiculous punch cards. “Why is Twilight using such an out of date system?” “I hear she doesn’t do much in digital. Apparently she has trouble understanding the timing circuits.” “She invented AI….Argh!” Flam realized that he’d just punched a hole in the wrong place. He’d have to start over with Celestia’s punch card. “You want me to do that for you brother.” “Mind your own business, and finish with Twilight’s punch card brother.” Flam’s pride may be the greatest obstacle in completing their plan to make the princesses disappear. A building exploded. “No!” Twilight cried. Seeming to come from the epicenter of the explosion, she saw that rumble and debris could easily fall on any number of ponies below them. She caught what she could with her Alicorn magic and Unicorns in the crowd did the same. Tempest used the distraction to slip into the crowd. She certainly did not blend in, however, it was hard to attack her in such a dense crowd; magical blasts were now out of the question. Tempest seemed even more adept at parkour and hoof to hoof then magical combat, and few ponies dared try grabbing her; one stallion tried and took a bucking hoof to the face. Twilight feared she might be trying to go for her assassination target even with a princess in pursuit. The crowd was dense. Tempest ran past Pinkie Pie, not even seeming to notice her. She ran right into Minty, and rudely shoved her aside. She seemed aware of Screwball but only as a threat she’d been warned about. No, her target was one special pony, the only pony who existed completely free of the predestination paradox. Ponies saw what Tempest was doing, and called out to that pony. Flurry Heart turned only to see Tempest Shadow charging at her, more like a bull then a unicorn, with her unnatural looking horn ready to impale her target.