AC130 flying in the skies… Nighttime…
The AC130 transport aircraft was steady as it flew above the clouds…
Sunset – Before I left Sweet Apple Acres, Applejack’s home, of course I had to meet the family. Applebloom, Big Macintosh, and Granny Smith. They showed me around too, and I really saw their big agricultural space really got the nearby Canterlot City to enjoy their products, since they produce from apples.
When Applejack broke the news that she’s needed with me to handle something important someplace else, of course they were surprised. But what I really admire about her is that she’d never hide her sincerity towards helping others. I felt really sad to see Applejack go. It’s something I didn’t like either, but this had to happen. I chose her to accompany me but I was hesitant after that. She convinced me I shouldn’t change my mind, so I followed her suggestion.
Then there was Spike who, after the whole ordeal with Twilight and the rest of us, wasn’t able to come with Twilight. He’s staying with Fluttershy right now but he feels very lonely. I talked to him before I went on my way to travel in the military plane with Applejack and he said he’s okay without Twilight.
While in that plane, I was listing possible things we’d expect from that Agency team who retrieved… well… whatever’s left of Mayor Warren’s Private Investigator. It doesn’t feel weird when you think about the magic that did it, and I think it was brutal. Friendship magic is one thing, but something else completely disregarded life… If I’m really that strong enough… I wanna find a way to end the problems that type of magic causes.
The AC130 was shaking a little when Applejack was lying on the makeshift bed on the plane while her hat was off and beside her. There were metallic crates around her that makes her feel a little surrounded, but the opening path out of the crates at least assured her there’s a way off her area.
There were things in Applejack’s mind in regards to the matter at hand, finding that private investigator’s killer. She’s not one to brainstorm alone, so she sighed knowing she needs another perspective. Speaking of perspective, Sunset was already there. “Hey there,” she called.
Applejack sits up on her makeshift bed. “Hey there, Sunset. Everyone’s either just getting used to the plane shaking, or it’s just making them nervous.”
Sunset raised an eyebrow. “Naturally. There are scientists here too. Flying’s not for everyone.”
I could tell she agrees highly. This was her first time leaving the Equestria-version state of this world. Oh… Forgot to raise the matter of Equestria being one of the United States that makes up about 15 percent of a large continent it’s in. Hm… Maybe now’s not the time to get into the details of the world.
Point is… Applejack’s first time flying? At least it wasn’t laughable. She might have been nervous and startled during the takeoff, but at least she’s able to get past her fears.
Applejack chuckled before taking a look at her small crystal geode shaped like an apple worn as a necklace around her neck. She even held it to inspect it. “Sunset… How’d you and Twilight ever get your geodes in your bodies in the first place? Wasn’t it forced?”
Sunset nodded. “It felt like it. But what I don’t understand back then is why that was the case.”
“I hear ya there.” Applejack looked at her geode and closed her eyes. It then started to glow as she predicted it would before she eyed the geode. “Sunset… I think I wanna go through it if it happens. Not that I’d want to, but I’m concerned about somethin’.”
“And that’s what, exactly?”
“Twilight’s fusion of her geode was so fast, and so was yours. I don’t know. Maybe her feelings of envy really rushed the process. You heard her say she envied you, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Then what’s the thing you were thinking about the whole time before she left you there at the school?”
“I…” Sunset thought of things to herself just before answering. “Well… I thought of the welfare we all had and how Twilight leaving us would affect our friendship. I was the one who was most affected when Twilight was willing to leave, even after all the hardships we’ve faced… the games… at Camp Everfree… I was the one who felt our friendship needs to be so much more than it was… Wait… Are you-?”
Applejack smiled just before her geode began to stick to her chest. “One thing I knew I was doing was keepin’ our friendship intact with what we’re focused on. Whenever I know we’re all having conflictin’ ideas, I try to snap us out of it. Whatever made us all fight, I make sure to be the first to give us all a wake-up call. Ya even saved me from getting too deep into my anger… once. I felt as if I needed to carry on that burden if you weren’t around, I’d step up to make our bond last.” Eventually, her whole body glowed with the same color as the geodes, making her close her eyes and groan just before the geode was starting to insert itself slowly. She chuckled at this. “Finally…”
Sunset was seeing it with her own eyes. “Applejack-?!”
“What the heck’s going on?!!” Charlie came in running to see what was happening and saw Applejack was glowing and starting to weaken. “Applejack?! What’s wrong?!”
“It’s happening. Her own geode… It’s responding.”
“You mean-? Same thing that happened to you and Sparkle? How?”
“I understand it now.” Sunset looked at her palm before she saw her cutie mark briefly appear and let it fade at her will. “My element is Empathy, and Twilight’s was Magic. It was those two things that activated or sped up the process. Both of us felt what reminded us of our elements in our current lives. Applejack was reminded of how true her heart was towards our friendship and- I can’t believe it. This is how it would happen. I don’t know what’s causing this all to happen.”
“Not- Important,” Applejack said before she gently laid herself down on her makeshift bed. She saw Sunset get close to her side just before she held out her hand. “Please.”
Sunset nods and holds Applejack’s hand. She then felt surprised as she was feeling Applejack’s temperature. “You’re cold. Wait… No! Hang on, Applejack!”
“Please… don’t leave me…” Applejack’s eyes were feeling heavy to her and she was closing them slowly. “Mmm…” And eventually, she saw the image of her own geode inside her body, slowly splitting into shards as the magic that worked between each shard started to move them all over her body. Applejack groaned in pain and gritted her teeth. “Aagh… Ahh…!” She tightened her grip on Sunset’s hand. She couldn’t hear Sunset or Charlie’s voices calling out her name, and she needed to focus on what was happening to her. Her body was feeling the same thing as she was slowly starting to lose consciousness. The stings she felt all over the body were starting to deepen and were leaving the surface. Soon, she started to relax and breathe until she was sleep.
Sunset even felt Applejack’s grip give in. With her other free hand, she tested for Applejack’s pulse. Applejack was okay, and it was more evident with her temperature warming back to normal. “She’s… stabilizing? And she’s asleep.”
Charlie sighed. “For how long? We’ll be wheels down in an hour.”
“I know. This is why I need to make sure. If she stays asleep, I can manage-”
“Absolutely not, Sunset! She’s gonna slow us down if she’s still asleep!” Charlie said this just before he started to emit a glow of red, possibly coming from Sunset’s magic before he was levitated off the ground. “H-Hey!! Put me down!!”
Sunset was using her eyes and other senses to work her magic before smiling. “Charlie, she’ll be safe with me. You got my word on that. And if anybody asks, we’ll just say Applejack’s had a long night.” She then slowly puts Charlie back down before letting go of her magic. “You’ve got someone more capable to be with her.”
“If you say so.” Charlie rolled his eyes after replying just before he walked away from Applejack’s makeshift bed.
And Sunset looked at Applejack’s sleeping form, her knees tucked in to her chest lying on her side while surprisingly relaxed. She even heard Applejack relaxingly breathe, just before Applejack herself was feeling something else in her head change her experience.
She would enter a dream linked to her own…
__________________
The only thing Applejack experienced for the past five minutes or so was that the stars were around her, and gravity was ruling her fears as she fell. She fell and fell, making her shout her heart out. She held her hat at her chest, wondering if it would fly off in the wind. She saw the Earth below her as she fell, but she felt a gentle force slow down her fall. Eventually, her head was facing up again, sensing this force made her position upright. It was even weird when she sensed she was stepping on something… a floor piece of about 3 feet long, and across. And she was still seeing through the transparent floor piece the Earth she would crash into if she wouldn’t stop falling.
“But what stopped my fall?” Applejack wondered in her thoughts.
Then a woman’s voice spoke to her, older in its 30’s. “You’re wondering what brought you here. Celestia and I were waiting for this day, if ever it was true. It seems it was.”
“What’s true?!”
A puddle of royal blue magic travelled like a trail of sprinkles around her just before the magic made a shape, resembling a royal-blue colored mare wearing a black sash around her neck with a white crescent moon symbol on it. This particular mare seemed majestic with the unicorn’s horn on its head and the wings on its side. As it appeared, its wings were spread out, and it folded them when it was in front of Applejack.
Applejack wondered what the mare was doing there and she winced at that realization. “Are you… that voice?”
The winged unicorn nodded before speaking up. “We have different languages, but I can understand you-”
“WAAAH!!” Applejack shrieked, making her step back, then realized she only has much room that she tried to stabilize herself. She felt her legs shake for a while before it faded, looking at the winged unicorn who was clearly in surprise, because of her surprise. “Are you… talking?”
The winged unicorn rolled her eyes. “Surely you’ve heard Princess Twilight’s story of her coming from Equestria, Applejack. I’m sure you also heard of what you might think is a tall tale of talking ponies, in which in your realm they do not speak at all.”
Applejack wasn’t sure about what to think and even blinked in disbelief before scratching her head. “I kinda understand when it comes to believing magic coming from your world is real, but I didn’t see anythin’ from Equestria at all! Honest!” Then she winced again. “Wait… You know my name?”
“I sure do. I am Princess Luna. I currently reside in Canterlot together with Princess Celestia. And together, along with two other Princesses, we rule and safeguard Equestria.” Luna paused before continuing. “I raise the moon, and my sister Celestia raises the sun, so the two of us have a duty at a specific time of day. And one of the more crucial duties I have for every pony sleeping at night, is to monitor for problems in their dreams, and resolve things from there. But for you and I to meet,” she narrowed her eyes on Applejack, “is very peculiar. Celestia told me she had a vision of one in your circle of friends to be able to contact one of our champions.”
“Wait, you’re serious?!”
“I know I am, Applejack. Ever since Sunset Shimmer had informed us about the magic that seeped from Equestria and brought in to their realm, and the questionable amount it had actually taken in even before she came, Celestia and I both tasked Princess Twilight to leave us occasional updates on what is known on this phenomenon.” Luna clears her throat. “Let’s not talk about it for now. This dream connects you, and our Applejack of Equestria. And because the power inside you is maturing, this was a necessary procedure.”
“Maturing?”
“Princess Twilight SHOULD tell you if she explains in one of the replies she makes to Sunset Shimmer. She’s aware of the dream you’re having right now, and is even connected to me.”
“Y-you mean she’s-?” Applejack then looked around before seeing a magenta-colored pony, also a winged unicorn in nature who smiled at her. “You’re-? Princess Twilight?!”
“APPLEJACK!!” Princess Twilight’s eagerness to meet the human Applejack made her gallop and even pounce on her other-worldly friend. She hugged her friend, and the country girl who was sitting on the floor hugged back. “I’m so glad you’re here!!”
Applejack felt her own hug was making her and Twilight warm. A smile was formed on her face on this feeling before letting go of Twilight. “So this is where you’ve been to when you’re busy.”
“Ehehehe… Not really.” Twilight replies with a grin. “Don’t forget that I’m the Princess of Friendship in Equestria. And I’m just here to guide you through the dream like Princess Luna. And since you’re here… We may as well take you around the place where my circle of friends had formed.”
Applejack then saw the scenery change around her just before she realized she was standing on a soil path that leads to a small town. She noticed there were ponies at that town, at somewhat the same type as Twilight was, with others varying. “W-where are we?”
“That’s Ponyville right there, Applejack.” Twilight said while trotting ahead of Applejack before stopping and looking back. “I arranged things with Princess Luna so we’d give you a tour. Of course, you’ll be meeting our world’s Applejack soon enough! Come on!”
And Applejack smiled before following behind Twilight Sparkle, the first version of Twilight who she was true to first in her world…
__________________
Visions went black for a certain individual. The girl groaned, concentrating her power towards certain parts of the United States of America. She felt spots of darkness and shadow starting to grow all over the country.
Twilight opened her eyes while seated on the floor. That night, she witnessed the candles that were once lit around her have finally gone out. She was in another place, a more subtle house which is yet to be claimed by an owner. The living room was huge, she would sometimes think to herself. And it wasn’t really too dark as the moon’s rays shone in the light her surroundings partially.
“Something’s happening,” Twilight muttered eyeing her glasses just beside her and looked away from it. “What’s this darkness? Shadow?”
“I’m not sure either” Midnight’s voice replied. “You’re strong in sensing power surges from different types of magic that are becoming noticeable. If I’m right of what I felt on that same power, it’s beginning to move… towards Canterlot City.”
“Hmm…” Twilight frowned, not seeing a reason to doubt since that’s what she’s confirming. “But it’s beginning to form in groups. What does this mean?”
“Even I don’t have an idea.”
“This magic is so powerful that even my powers sense it… This is going south… All of it. I… I have to be there to see. Being just here isn’t going to help.”
“It’s always been up to you, Twilight. You now have my powers not just to understand magic, but to exploit it once you learn them. That’s how I’ve succeeded back then as an Empress. I study my enemies and try to outwit them.”
“It’s not as easy now as it looks, Midnight. We don’t even know if it has a mind of its own.” Twilight replied and heard Midnight chuckle. “What?”
“Who said I had it easy as an Empress as well?” Midnight replied this to Twilight, even making Twilight think. “Of course you have to be patient for this matter. Now… what’s your next move?”
Twilight decided to stand up. At that time, she was barefoot while in the house. As she eyed her own eyeglasses, she was making sure her magic was doing her hair, changing its style to look like a beautiful twist that climbs upwards. She smirked, raising her foot and slamming it down to her glasses, breaking its frame and making the glass shatter. She groaned a little, feeling her foot was even bleeding, but even her magic that was so powerful was beginning to mend her wounds healing it so quickly. “You know exactly what I have in mind, Midnight. If these Shadows are going to threaten everyone else who’s around Canterlot City, I’ll be sure to find weaknesses.” She then walks and closes her eyes before she opened them again revealing her eyes that were once white and magenta were now a bright blue-green color and darker magenta. “If they choose to force my hand… I will raise hell on them.”