//------------------------------// // VI: Of Friendship // Story: Sunken Horizons // by Goldenwing //------------------------------// “Twilight, look out!” Feeling the magic holding her slipping, Rainbow made to jump forwards, but Flint tackled her to the ground. She strained against him in vain. “Let me go, Flint!” “No can do, lass,” Flint growled at her. “It’s best t’ follow Sabre’s orders.” “Consarnit, Sabre, show some damned courtesy!” Applejack bellowed. She made to dash towards Twilight, but Sabre darted in her path and tripped her with a leg. “I’m sorry, but I can’t risk my ponies. This is the best chance we have.” Sabre spread her stance wide, bracing herself to intercept any further attempts from Applejack. “Trails, fire.” “Yes, ma’am.” Trails voice shook only slightly as she lined her javelin up with Twilight’s back. Rainbow twisted against Flint with a grunt of exertion, leveraging her wings and the past days training to break free from his grip, but she was too slow. Even free from his hold, she couldn’t fly in her armor. Time seemed to slow. Rainbow let out a strangled cry, but the javelin was already flying, cutting through the air with a barely audible whistle as Twilight’s eyes widened in alarm. Spike’s furious roar struck Rainbow with enough force to make her stagger backwards as small chunks of stone pinged off her armor. When the dust cleared, Twilight was nowhere to be seen, and the entire street was blocked off by a snarling Spike, the javelin freshly embedded in his foreleg still shaking from the impact. His head reared up, plumes of acrid smoke billowing from his jaw as green fire flickered in his nostrils. “Oh, buck!” Star Trails twisted in place, sprinting for the nearest collapsed building. “Incoming!” “Aw, hay, Sabre!” Applejack cursed. “Y’all gone and pissed ‘em off now!” Rainbow scrambled to the side, diving into a crater behind a pile of loose bricks just as the inferno of dragonfire stormed across the street. The crackle of the fire was nearly deafening even through the metal of her helmet, and she curled up into a ball and screamed as her suit began to grow painfully hot against her sides. The air in her helmet grew baking hot, her radio bursting with the pop of static, and the sweat on her forehead sizzled and popped as it dripped off her muzzle. Still the heat grew more and more intense. “Spike, stop!” Twilight’s magically amplified voice cut through the air like a thunderclap, and the fire stopped an instant later. Rainbow’s hooves scrabbled against her neck and released the seal around her helmet, and she threw it to the ground before sucking in a deep, gasping breath. The air was still hot outside of her armor, but it felt like a cool spring breeze compared to the suffocating heat she had endured inside it. After taking several heaping gulps of air, Rainbow’s mind jumped to her friends. She struggled to her hooves and climbed out of the crater, surveying the scorched street with a frantic eye. Applejack was hunched over a prone Flintlock in the recess of an empty fountain, smoke trailing from both of their discarded helmets. Star Trails poked her head out from a heap of bricks before clawing her way free and tossing her own headgear aside. Sea Sabre was nowhere to be seen. At the end of the street Spike loomed over it all like a reptilian roadblock, his wide eyes focused on the lavender unicorn standing in front of him with a hoof raised. Rainbow looked from one friend to another, torn between her loyalties, but it only took a moment for her to decide where she was needed most. With a nervous gulp, she pushed her sweat-soaked mane back with a hoof and shoved herself into motion. Twilight was still focused on Spike, her back to the other ponies, and Spike snorted a warning as Rainbow approached. Twilight calmed him with a hoof against one massive scale and some quiet words. Rainbow drew up short a half dozen steps away, opened her mouth to say something, and suddenly realized that she wasn’t sure what to say. Rainbow flinched back a step as Twilight turned to meet her gaze. Her eyes were dark purple slits, and if not for the faint red trails stained into her cheeks Rainbow might have assumed that her friend had been possessed by Nightmare Moon. Her wings flared reflexively at the thought, the metal of her wingblades sliding across each other with a distinctive rasp before she realized what she was doing. She kept her sight focused on Twilight as Spike mirrored the motion with a growl of warning. Rainbow had just carved a path of violence through the changelings of Canterlot with barely a flinch, but now the tips of her wings were trembling inside her armor. She could only stare, her whole body aching from the hell it had just been through, and pray to Celestia that she wouldn’t have to decide what loyalty meant. Please don’t make me fight you. Twilight’s lips parted into an uneasy smile, revealing the fangs nestled among her teeth. “Rainbow, it’s me.” Rainbow let out a shaky breath she hadn’t realized she was holding, her own nervous grin breaking through. “Sorry, Twi, you just look kinda… y’know.” Like a villain from an old mare’s tale. Twilight’s ears drooped as her smile died. She looked to Rainbow’s side, focusing on something unseen. “I-I know how it looks.” A silence fell between the two friends. After several seconds, Twilight met Rainbow’s gaze once more, her eyes brimming with murky red tears. “But it’s s-still me.” Rainbow gave a little nod. After a moment it occurred to her that Twilight might not have seen the subtle movement. She glanced up to Spike, who was glowering at her with undisguised suspicion. “And that’s still Spike?” Twilight sighed, looking away as the first tear fell down her cheek. “What’s left of him.” Rainbow nodded a few more times as she processed the words. She folded her wings by her sides. “Y-you wanna come back to the ship?” She stretched her lips into what she hoped was an encouraging grin. “We could talk about it.” Twilight glanced up at Spike. The dragon snorted at her, releasing twin plumes of smoke, and she turned back to Rainbow with a weary smile. “I would love to talk, but I don’t think I’m ready to leave Canterlot yet. A lot has happened while—” she grimaced, looking down at her hooves “—while we’ve been apart.” “Right.” Rainbow’s grin became a bit more earnest. It had been a long time since Twilight had expressed any interest in opening up to her, and she would accept any chance she was given, even if it had to be in a ruined city at the bottom of the ocean. “You can pick a spot, Twi. Anywhere you want, and we’re there.” Twilight smiled at her, and Rainbow could feel the weight of the past week lifting from her shoulders. They were back together again, and this time there wouldn’t be any bounty hunters or sudden invasions to break them apart. The clunk of an armored hoof sounded to the side, and both mares turned towards it with ears up. Sea Sabre staggered out of a gaping doorway just a few steps away, her flared wings hanging low with exhaustion and her hard red eyes visible through the cracked visor of her helmet. She took a step forwards, drawing a hiss from Spike. Rainbow stepped into her path, straightening her stance. “Stand down, Sabre.” Sabre cocked her head. Her voice was dulled by the armor, but it was as firm as ever. “Is that an order?” “They’re not any threat,” Rainbow said, meeting the other pegasus’ glare with her own. “It’s handled, ma’am.” An uneasy silence passed between the two mares. Sabre looked behind Rainbow, narrowing her eyes just as she always did at the beginning of a practice fight. Rainbow let her own wings open just enough for the blades set into the armor to be visible. After a few seconds, Sabre gave a curt nod. “Acknowledged.” She turned away and started towards the rest of the dive team with a stiff gait. Rainbow watched her go, ears twitching at the barely audible sound of Sabre calling for a status report over the radio. Twilight’s quiet voice behind her caught her attention. “Rainbow… what did you think you were coming here to do?” Save you, whatever that might mean. Rainbow couldn’t bring herself to turn and meet Twilight’s eyes. “You should pick a spot where we can settle down and catch up, Twi,” she said, following in Sabre’s wake. “I’m gonna go check on AJ and the others.” She walked away without looking back, and tried not to think about how close she had come to making an impossible choice. I told you I didn’t want you making anymore changes, Twilight said. And I agreed, for then, but it was not I who made this change. Midnight’s toothy smile was clear in the back of Twilight’s mind. We moved as one, and our body embraced it along with our minds. Please stop talking like that. It is only truth, as I always speak. We are not enemies unless you force it to be so. Twilight grimaced as she crested the long, winding steps that surrounded her old tower for the second time in as many hours. After so long spent jumping at every imagined sound and shadow in the dead city, she was still getting used to the sound of hearing hoofsteps behind her and not immediately bolting for the closest hiding spot. Spike had flown ahead once they got near the tower, and she could hear his great weight shuffling around inside even through the closed doors. She turned to the side, putting a hoof up on the stone railing and taking in the city that stretched beneath her. She cocked her head to one side. “Do the ruins look brighter to you, girls?”  “Still about as dark as the outhouse on a snowy winter night,” Applejack said, grunting as she helped Flint up the last part of the steps. “Why?” Twilight frowned. “I can see all the way to the edge of the dome.” She lifted a hoof, tracing an imaginary path up the gradually curving stone wall to the mantle of rock that hung far above the tallest remaining towers of the city. “And all the towers.” She blinked at a sudden burst of movement. “A-and changelings watching us.” “Maybe it’s your, uh, eyes?” Rainbow’s voice cracked, and when Twilight turned to face her she looked away with obvious unease. “They look kinda like Nightmare Moon’s did now, so, y’know, maybe.” “Right.” Twilight looked back to the shadowed horizon, her eyes coming to rest on a smirking Midnight standing in the air in front of her as if it were solid rock. She shot it a glare. “That makes sense.” Did you prefer the darkness, little flower? Twilight pursed her lips as she picked out more and more changelings among the ruins, several of them pausing to stare up at her with their eerily blank eyes. Have they been watching us the whole time? I was just as pitifully blind as you, until recently. Though there is one thing I can feel which you clearly cannot. Midnight guided their gaze upwards, and Twilight stiffened as she saw the massive changeling queen hanging from the rock above them, her green eyes almost glowing with a dim light. Chrysalis! How long has she been watching us? It is the same entity I felt when we scavenged the changeling that we cooked, I’m certain of it. Twilight could feel Midnight bristling inside her, causing their hooves to twitch in agitation. It feels similar to the dragon’s darkness, almost, though his seemed far less clever. Maybe she remembers me too. Twilight was certain that Chrysalis had lost herself to the corruption just as Spike had, but what parts of her still remained? Spike’s protective instincts towards her and the Elements had survived his corruption. Had the changeling queen somehow held on to her disdain of Twilight all this time? Twilight shivered as Chrysalis crawled across the domed roof of Canterlot, her eyes unmoving. She tore her gaze away, looking instead to the armored ponies gathering on what was once her front balcony. “I think it’s best if everyone but Rainbow and AJ stay out here for now. I don’t know how Spike will react if I bring ponies he doesn’t recognize into his lair, but you should be safe here. It looks like the changelings give him a wide berth.” Flintlock gave a loud snort as Applejack eased him down against the wall. He’d been leaning against her for support during the walk, having taken the most severe damage from Spike’s fire. Between Twilight’s magical assistance and his own natural hardiness as a Gifted earth pony, he had avoided any truly lasting injuries, but it was clear that he would need time to completely recover. “Ye don’t want us sittin’ in on yer wee reunion, ‘Light? I’d bet th’ month’s pay yer pet dragon’s got all th’ good salvage in Canterlot in that room.” His strained grin cut off with a groan as he settled onto his rump. “We’ll stay out here,” Sabre said. She paused to give a meaningful look towards Rainbow before turning to Star Trails. “Trails, see if you can’t map out the city from here.” “Sure thing, boss.” Star Trails flicked Flint with her tail as she stepped up to the railing, horn glowing, drawing a dramatic moan from him. “No manners whatsoever, you big goof.” Twilight was the first to enter. Spike lifted his angular head from where it rested on his hoard, his wings shuffling against his sides, and she offered him a reassuring smile as Rainbow Dash and Applejack followed behind her. “It’s okay, Spike. You remember them, right?” Spike eyed them warily, the spines running down his neck rising. Applejack let out a nervous chuckle. “Maybe we should just stick to this side of the room, y’all. I know better than to approach a rooster atop his hen.” Rainbow cocked her head with a frown. “Y’know you don’t have to relate every situation to farm animals, right?” “I don’t have to, but I like to,” Applejack said. “Point is, he ain’t lookin’ like he quite recognizes us as much as he’s just toleratin’ us for Twilight’s sake.” Twilight sighed as she led the way to the old flat pillows that adorned a small reading nook opposite the room from the pile of treasure. “I think you’re probably right, Applejack. After what he’s been through, I’m glad that he at least still seems to recognize me.” The three mares arrayed themselves in a rough triangle around a dusty table that had once had hundreds of books read upon it. Twilight stretched the soreness out of her body as she slid Shining Armor’s saddlebags off her back, but she kept Princess Celestia’s tiara tucked close against her chest with one hoof. Midnight made a big show of sitting in between Twilight’s friends, turning to sneer at each one in turn, and Twilight couldn’t help but flick her tail as she met its disdainful frown with a glare of her own. They sat there for a long moment in awkward silence. Twilight’s eyes roamed the room as she realized that this was the first time any of her friends had seen her old home. A small smile tugged at the corner of her mouth as she imagined frantically cleaning the place in preparation for their arrival, clearing away centuries of dust and decay so that they could sit at this very table. She would give anything to prowl the shelves and pull out a new Daring Do book, to roll her eyes at Rainbow’s far-too-vocal reactions to every paragraph or arch a curious eyebrow at whatever apple-based publication Applejack brought with her, all over cups of tea and snack rolls that Spike might have prepared for the occasion. Such foalish fantasy. Twilight’s smile vanished in an instant. What is tea and stories when we hold the greatest power in Equestria within ourselves? I don’t want power. I just want my friends. Your friends aren’t the ones who saved Spike. Rainbow cleared her throat, breaking the silence. “So… what’s up?” Such casual words, but the answer was so complicated. Twilight turned to her friends, her gaze lingering on the brightly colored lightning bolt stitched into Rainbow’s otherwise black eyepatch. Rarity’s work, she wondered? She decided that the time for evasiveness was long past. “I’ve been possessed by a malignant entity,” she said. “I believe it might be the same thing, or at least similar, to the corruption that spread across Equestria in our absence.” Applejack blinked, her eyebrows rising as she gave a slight shake of her head. Rainbow’s lips tightened. Midnight snorted petulantly between them. “And it’s the same thing y’all told me about before?” Applejack asked. She exchanged a brief glance with Rainbow. “Is that the thing that was sayin’ those wild things, back on Altalusia?” Twilight nodded hesitantly. “Its name is Midnight. It’s been—” she paused, considering the best word “—haunting me constantly since then.” “Whoa, hold up.” Rainbow raised a hoof, her brow furrowing. “Is it here right now?” You know, I would never talk about you as if you weren’t here. Twilight frowned. You have nobody else to talk to anyways. “It’s sitting between you two, yes.” Both mares looked to the space between them with wide eyes. Rainbow reached out a hoof and prodded at the air experimentally. “I don’t feel anything.” She truly does resemble the idiot from our memories, Midnight said. Tell her that. Twilight ignored the comment, but found herself unable to open her mouth. She blinked, turning to glare at Midnight. Let me talk! You cannot ignore me, little flower. Midnight smirked. Or are you still learning that lesson? Applejack glanced back and forth between Twilight and Midnight, clearly unable to see the latter. “Twi, y’all good?” Twilight sighed, and Midnight let her speak freely as it sensed her compromise. “It wants me to convey an insult towards your intelligence, Rainbow.” “What?!” Rainbow shot up out of her seat, glaring in Midnight’s direction. “Why don’t you say that to my face, chump?” “Please don’t ask for that,” Twilight said as Midnight’s grin grew unnaturally wide. “I’ve been trying to keep it away from my body ever since Altalusia.” Applejack leaned back, one hoof rubbing at her chin. “And as much as I hate to say it, sugar cube, it looks like you ain’t been doin’ all too hot at that on y’all’s own.” Twilight flinched away at the words. Midnight let out an affectionate coo, draping its phantom form over Applejack’s shoulders. Oh, this one isn’t so bad. “Y-you’re right.” Twilight shook her head as she rubbed her hoof over the smooth metal of the tiara hanging under her neck. “I’ve developed some… mutations.” Is that all you’re going to tell them? I’m sure they’d love to hear about the changeling we butchered for food. Twilight squeezed her eyes shut, shaking her head harder. Would you just shut up for once? Midnight’s irritation pulsed in the back of her head. And here I was thinking that you’d finally show some gratitude, but perhaps your recalcitrance truly knows no bounds. “Twilight?” Twilight looked up. Applejack and Rainbow were both leaning forwards with clear concern in their eyes, the former stretching a hoof across the table towards her. “We know y’all ain’t no monster, filly. Just tell us how we can help.” Rainbow glanced sideways towards Applejack before giving Twilight an emphatic, grinning nod. “We won’t leave you hanging, Twi.” A warm hope bloomed in Twilight’s breast like the embers of a dying fire stirring in the wake of a morning breeze. She met their comforting expressions with a small smile of her own, her hoof still plucking at the tiara in its grip. Hadn’t she already decided to talk to them about what was happening to her? These were her best friends, after all, and they had already stopped two apocalypses together by the power of their friendship. She opened her mouth to speak, but Midnight held her words back. If you intend to tell them our tale, it will be the truth. Our truth, and not just your own. Twilight looked up, meeting Midnight’s eyes. She gave it a hesitant nod. Fine. The hardest part was deciding where to begin. Should she start at the moment she suspected to be Midnight’s genesis, the malediction she had broken over Fluttershy? Perhaps the first time that Midnight had spoken to her? She bit her lip while her friends waited before her. No, Altalusia was the logical place to start. That’s where everything had truly fallen apart. The story came haltingly at first, and she found herself repeating the same things and going back to make small corrections as she told Rainbow Dash and Applejack about how Gava and Ana had exploited her momentary desire for isolation to capture her. She spoke of her fears for their well being, and Midnight’s promise to help her protect them, and the rush of power that had come with its help. She shivered as she described the sensation of being trapped in her own body, forced to watch as the island was broken under the weight of her magic, and how she was only able to retake control with the surge of emotion she’d felt when she thought she might have killed Pinkie Pie. “Y’all didn’t kill her, thank Celestia,” Applejack interjected. “Though the poor filly ain’t been able to move her hind legs ever since.” “She seemed to be taking it pretty well, at least.” Rainbow shrugged. “Kinda felt like everybody else cared about it more than her, but I dunno. We didn’t spend much time on Altalusia after you left.” Twilight felt a small weight lift from her shoulders at the news, but now that she had started her story it was impossible to hold it in any longer. She told them of the three days she had spent at the bottom of the ocean without food or water, harried all the while by the voice in her head and unable to rest for more than a few minutes at a time lest her magic give out. She cried as she told them about how close she had come to just giving in and letting it all end, and they held her when she explained how desperately hungry she had been when she allowed her teeth to be warped into carnivorous fangs, how she had eaten the dead changeling she’d stumbled across in the darkness. The words came faster still. Endless hours spent shuffling through the pitch-black ruins as unseen hooves scraped over the stone around her, the ashen taste of the dozens of mushrooms she had eaten, the fear that she was becoming a monster. She cringed at their shocked expressions when she told them about the changeling she had butchered and cooked for sustenance. “You don’t think I’m a monster, do you?” Her whole body stiffened around Celestia’s tiara as she waited for the answer. Rainbow gave a nonchalant shrug, but it wasn’t enough to hide the unease in her eye. “You’re not the first, uh, meat-eater I’ve been friends with, Twi. It’s weird, for sure, but it’s hardly a dealbreaker for an awesome mare like you.” Applejack’s lips were set into a firm line. “Y’all did what ya had to do. Ain’t no shame in that.” Twilight gave her friends a grateful smile. At the same time, Midnight shook her head with a disappointed frown. They judge us. They’re trying their best, Twilight countered. It’s a lot to take in. They cannot hope to understand us, no matter how hard they try. Twilight paused, considering whether to mention the books she had taken from the Royal Archives. She hadn’t come to any especially noteworthy conclusions from the reading, and she could already imagine Rainbow yawning and poking fun at her for going to the ruins of Canterlot just to visit the library, and so she moved on with a sheepish smile, recounting her discovery of Celestia’s lost tiara and her experience in the Hall of Relics. It felt like she had been talking for hours by the time she described her arrival in her old tower. Her throat was dry and her lips tingling, but she was eager to finish. The tears came back to her as she told her friends about what she had found in her bedroom. She pulled Spike’s journal and Shining Armor’s log out and placed them on the table, sharing what she had learned of Spike’s life after their disappearance in a hoarse throat. Applejack and Rainbow Dash both moved to comfort her, sometimes glancing towards Spike with shock or concern. Midnight remained seated alone on the far side of the table, leering down at Twilight with her forelegs crossed. When Twilight finally reached the end of Spike’s story, Applejack was watching her with wide eyes. “I never woulda thought the little fella had it in ’im.” “Of course he did,” Rainbow said with a teary grin. “He had us to look up to.” “There’s more,” Twilight said, pushing herself off of Applejack’s shoulder. “He hid the Elements of Harmony in my bedroom.” “Whoa, what?!” Rainbow’s grin grew even wider. “Did you find them?” Twilight answered with a slow nod, her voice quiet. “Yes, Rainbow, they were all there.” “Hay, that’s the best thing I’ve heard this century, Twi,” Applejack said. “So why do y’all sound so glum about it?” “Because they rejected me,” Twilight breathed. “Speak up, Twi.” Rainbow Dash leaned in, cocking her head. “Sounded like you said they rejected you or something.” “That’s what I said!” Twilight’s frown hardened as she looked up to meet Rainbow’s gaze, making the pegasus flinch back. “The Elements won’t even let me touch them, because they can tell that I’m a monster!” Her shout seemed to hang in the air. Spike raised his head at the disturbance, and Midnight watched in silence with an amused smirk. Rainbow and Applejack exchanged a glance before the latter spoke. “Now y’all don’t know that for sure.” “Yes I do!” Twilight snapped. “They burn me if I try to touch them, with my magic or my hooves! Why else would they do that other than them knowing what I really am?” Applejack rested a comforting hoof on her shoulder. “I ain’t no mage, sugar cube, but I’m pretty sure magic ain’t that simple.” “Yeah, don’t you want to run some experiments or something?” Rainbow asked. “Anything could have happened to them while we were gone, right?” Twilight grimaced. She looked up, catching Midnight’s eye, and it stared back impassively. We know the truth of it, don’t we, little flower? We don’t need the sweet honey lies. “The Elements won’t work without harmony, girls,” Twilight said quietly. “And harmony isn’t something I’ve felt in weeks.” “Well…” Rainbow trailed off, looking to Applejack for support. “Maybe we should look at ’em?” Applejack suggested. “Where are they right now?” Twilight nodded towards where Spike was watching sharp-eyed from atop his treasure pile. “Spike took them. I think he remembers that they’re important.” “Oh.” Applejack let out a nervous chuckle. “Well, shucks, could y’all get the big guy to give ’em up?” “Maybe. I don’t really feel like trying it right now. Sorry.” Twilight sighed, leaning back and scooping Spike’s journal back into her bags. Reliving everything since Altalusia with her friends had been almost as emotionally draining as it had been the first time, and right then she wanted nothing more than to curl up with a good book and forget where she was. Rainbow scrunched her muzzle up. “So like, what do we do now?” Twilight’s eyes lingered on Shining Armor’s logbook. Captain Shining Armor, 1st Guards Division, was printed across the front in his blocky script. She still hadn’t read it. “I’m going to do some reading,” she said, grabbing the book in her magic. “It’s been a while. Sea Sabre has been very patient.” She vanished with a purple flash and the crack of teleportation, grunting as she landed on the stiff cushioning of her old mattress. The door had been torn off its hinges by Spike, but it was simple enough for her to levitate it back into place and secure it with a small spell. Midnight walked through the door as if it didn’t exist, approaching the bed and settling down at Twilight’s side without a word. The chill of its presence sent a shiver down Twilight’s spine, but she didn’t mind. She was already getting used to the cold. They kept their eyes trained on the logbook as they opened to the first page with their magic. Rainbow Dash flinched back at the sudden flash and crack of Twilight teleporting away, the close-proximity magic causing her feathers to tingle. She met Applejack’s eyes, seeing her own worries reflected inside them. “We done screwed up, Rainbow,” Applejack said. “Shouldn’t have ever let it get this bad.” “It could still be worse,” Rainbow said. “She’s still Twilight, right?” “She is, but for how long?” Applejack ran a hoof through her mane where her hat normally rested. “We gotta bring her back to us before it’s too late.” “But how?” Rainbow asked. She started, glancing around the room with her eye wide. “Do you think, uh, Midnight is still listening?” “Hay if I know, and what’s it matter anyway?” Applejack glared at the shadows in the dimly lit room intently. “An Apple don’t sneak around like some shakin’ varmint hidin’ in a bush. That Midnight’s a pest, and I ain’t gonna let it sit.” She stood up, raising her voice. “Ya hear me, varmint? Y’all got the top spot on this farmpony’s list!” Spike flared his wings, his lips curling back to reveal massive fangs as he growled at Applejack. She paled, plopping back into her seat with a quiet, “Whoa, nelly!” Rainbow offered him a sheepish smile, leaning over to whisper into Applejack’s ear. “Maybe we should get out of his lair until Twilight gets back?” “I reckon ya might be right, Rainbow,” Applejack whispered back. “Slow movements. We don’t want to startle the big fella.” Rainbow stood slowly, creeping towards the front door at a snail’s pace with Applejack close behind her. She kept her eye fixed on Spike, who kept both of his on her, his tail swishing side to side, the treasure underneath jingling and ringing with each movement. She let out an audible sigh of relief when she finally stepped out onto the open balcony outside Twilight’s door. Star Trails and Flintlock were seated opposite each other, each one holding a small metal cup, while Sea Sabre frowned out at the rest of the city from behind the railing. All three turned at the sound of Applejack closing the door behind them. “Ye finally finish hidin’ th’ dragon’s whole hoard?” Flint asked, a hint of pain hidden under the humor in his voice. “I’d have brought lunch if I knew ye’d take so long.” “Oh, relax,” Trails said as she shook the cup in her hooves. The dice inside rattled loudly as she slapped the cup down onto the floor. “C’mon, roll.” Sabre beckoned with a nod of her head, and Rainbow and Applejack both joined her at the railing. She looked between them each in turn. “Tell me what we’re still doing here.” “Twilight just finished telling us how she’s been since Altalusia,” Rainbow said, straightening up to match Sabre’s posture. “So what are we waiting on?” Sabre asked, glancing towards Applejack. “I want to be back aboard the Argo with Twilight Sparkle and return to Heighton as soon as possible.” “She just needs a little bit of alone time, Sabre,” Applejack said. “She’s right stressed, but she’ll be ready soon enough I’m sure.” Sabre’s ear twitched, and her lips grew even tighter. “I’m not sure if you’re aware, but we’re currently in the middle of possibly the most dangerous place in Equestria. We had to fight our way through at least two dozen changelings before we reached Twilight, and the only reason they aren’t attacking us this very moment is because they’re too afraid of the wild dragon whose lair we’re waiting outside, the very same dragon that nearly roasted us all alive.” She paused, letting the words sink in. “We're all stressed. She can relax as much as she wants once we’re back on the ship.” “Well, she teleported off to her room with her dead brother’s notebook, Sabre,” Rainbow said with an apologetic shrug. “None of us can get to her without getting past Spike, and I don’t want to antagonize him.” Flint snorted as he rolled the dice in his cup and slapped them down onto the ground. “Ach, we can take th’ drake.” He pulled the cup up and peeked inside. “Five twos.” Rainbow rounded on him. “I don’t want you to take him! He’s our friend!” Flint just shook his head. “I’ve never had a friend try ‘n cook me alive before.” “Probably because nobody wants the taste of gunpowder in their mouths,” Trails quipped as she checked her own dice. “Five threes.” Rainbow opened her mouth to reply, but was interrupted by the tower door opening. Twilight stepped into view, holding Shining Armor’s logbook close to her chest. Her mouth hung slightly open, and the red stains on her cheeks glistened. “Y’alright, sugar cube?” Applejack asked. “Princess Celestia didn’t want Shiny to come here.” Twilight’s voice was soft. “He came anyways, even with all of Equestria falling apart around him, because that’s what big brothers are supposed to do. He’s dead because of me.” Sea Sabre stepped forwards, getting Twilight’s attention. “I’m sorry for your loss, but we need to move. The Argo is waiting for us on the surface.” Twilight frowned, looking to Rainbow and Applejack with obvious confusion. “I’m not going back to the Argo.” Rainbow stiffened. She let out a nervous laugh. “Twi, please tell me we didn’t come all this way just for you to decide you want to stay in Canterlot?” Applejack gave a firm nod. “Y’all need to think this through, Twilight. It wasn’t easy to find ya.” “I know, and I’m sorry, but I don’t want to put any of you in danger,” Twilight said. Her eyes flicked towards an empty space to her side as she squeezed the weathered book in her hooves tighter. “Where is Princess Luna?” “She’s still on the Argo,” Star Trails said, perking up. “Why?” Twilight nodded. “I’m heading for the Frozen North, and I’ll need you to bring her there for me.” Flint snorted. “And how’re ye gonna get there, eh? Ye gonna walk th’ length of Equestria from th’ ocean floor?” “I’ll be teleporting, actually,” Twilight corrected with a small smile. “That’s how I got here from Altalusia.” “But why the Frozen North?” Rainbow asked. She sat down with a heavy sigh. “Why won’t you come back to Heighton with us?” “It’s from Shiny’s logs. Princess Celestia sent Princess Cadance there to search for something, though I’m not sure what.” She paused, levitating the book up to her face and flipping through the pages as her eyes darted side to side. “It seems like she had an idea about stopping the corruption. She must not have found what she needed, or maybe not in time, but there may still be something there. We might be able to wake up Luna, or help Spike!” “Or get rid of Midnight,” Applejack added grimly. Twilight glanced off to one side. “R-right.” Sea Sabre looked to Rainbow. “Who?” “I’ll tell you later,” Rainbow promised. She followed Twilight’s gaze, a slight shiver passing over her as she imagined the vicious creature that Twilight had described to her standing there and watching as they talked about destroying it. “So you want us to follow you there, then?” Twilight nodded. “I’ll be leaving once I get some rest.” She turned for the door before pausing and looking back. “Y-you can spend the night if you want.” “A sleepover in Canterlot, huh?” Applejack asked with a wry smile. “Rarity would be jealous.” “I wouldn’t miss it for the world,” Rainbow said, grinning. She turned to Sea Sabre. “You in?” The other pegasus looked over her team for a moment before replying. “One night, but we leave in the morning.” Rainbow nodded. After the past week she had spent worrying over Twilight and fearing she’d have to fight one of her own best friends, the mounting feeling that her world was falling apart was finally starting to abate. Twilight was still Twilight, and now she had a plan. As Rainbow followed Twilight into the dark interior of her old home, she closed the door behind her and shut out the dead, crumbling ruins of Canterlot. For tonight at least, maybe they could just be three friends spending time together.