The outskirts of Canterlot...
It was midnight upon the city, everypony entering the land of sleep as a group of dark figures made their way across the fields outside the city. They were a group of four ponies, three pulling carts as a golden coated unicorn with a purple mane and tail, complete with a cutie that was a bunch of books, lead them. The group soon arrived at the side of the mountain, a large pile of rocks covering a section as the unicorn spoke up, "Here it is."
A green pegasus stallion with a blue mane and tail, his cutie mark being a bunch of math symbols, walked up first to the unicorn. Next was an orange unicorn mare with a black mane and tail, her cutie mark being a needle and thread while the final pony was a bulky dark blue earth pony stallion with a light blue mane and tail along with a piece of bread cutie mark.
"You sure this is it?" the pegasi asked first.
"Yes," The unicorn replied, nodding. "This opening leads into the underground caves beneath the city."
"But how do we get through?" The mare added while putting her hoof to her mouth, "Its buried."
"I could try and dig my way through it," the earth pony suggested.
"No need," the unicorn stallion responded as he reached into his saddlebag. He then pulled out a quartet of tubes with different words and symbols on the labels. The three others watched him place it up to his neck before pushing down on the plunger end. He let out a gasp next, a small sound hissing out of the tube.
"Bomber!"
In that moment, the unicorn's cutie mark began to blur, soon turning from a pile of books to an image of a bomb. The stallion grinned at the sight, his horn flaring before firing a red blast. Magic struck one of the rocks, making it glow before spreading to the nearby rubble as the light began to intensify. And as they glow got stronger, the first rock flared and-
BOOM!
The pile exploded, the four grinning at the sight as a blast of smoke covered the now open mountain hole. Seeing this, the Bomber unicorn took the tube off, putting it back in his bag as the others began to pull their carts inside. Chuckling to himself, the unicorn went in last as he commented, "Canterlot's not gonna know what hit 'em."
The next day...
It was time. One of the most anticipated events in Canterlot was about to happen, an event loved by all who go there. Everypony who attended had something about it that they enjoyed, whether it be the lights, the conversations or the many events that took place. Yes...the Fantasia Festival was something beloved by all. But unfortunately, it wouldn't be until tomorrow, as the Grand Galloping Gala always came first.
"Gah!" Flash yelped as a magic aura twisted his top button, the tug gripping the defender's neck. He was currently wearing the official Royal Knight garb, the same thing Grand had worn the previous year. This one was a blue version of the suit Shining had worn at his wedding. And as soon as the button was done, he stuck his tongue out, gasping for air. "I don't like this."
"Oh, grow up," Twilight growled as her magic pulled his collar, giving him extra breathing room. She was currently wearing a light blue dress with a yellow belt around her waist. Her mane had been pinned up, a hair style that made Flash blush like crazy.
The two were in the same castle room they had been in the previous year, both getting ready for the big event. They weren't the only ones in the room, as the rest of their friends were also trying to look their best for the gala. This year, everypony was going to the party, including the Crusaders. The trio, despite Iron's protests that they would create a disaster, were there as the plus ones for their big sisters. Springer was also there, wearing the suit he had worn to Flash's knighting.
There were also five ponies less associated with their group. First was Fluttershy's new friend Tree Hunger, a very...free-spirited pony she had met during her trip to see the Breezies. Along with her was Pinkie's older sister Maud, who was the party pony's plus one. Finally, there was Solid Script, Gorgenia and Wild Smile. The last three weren't going to the party, mainly due to Solid convincing them it wasn't worth it thanks to the usual Canterlot snobs, but they were there to help a certain somepony.
As for who that was, the door slid open as Iron walked in, followed by Lightning. The knight was wearing a similar garb to Flash, though with different colors, while the unicorn was in a bit more casual wear. However, everypony grimaced as they saw that the unicorn was wearing a very large frown.
"That's not good." Flash commented first, "What happened Lightning?"
Script walked in front of the defender, nothing but worry on his face, "Did your meeting with the princesses not go well?"
Lightning looked away, a low gulp following as he muttered out, "I wouldn't say it went...perfectly. Or uh...even good."
"What happened?" Rarity asked next, crossing her hooves, "Don't hide it from us darling."
"Well..."
A little bit ago...
Lightning was sitting in front of a desk, twiddling his hooves as he stared at thee empty chairs. Sweat was pouring down his face as his eyes stayed glued at the seats, knowing that this meeting would decide his fate. And as he stared, the gaze quickly shifted at the sound of a door opening, his nerves sparking themselves as Celestia, Luna and Cadance began to walk inside.
He quickly stood up, his body shaking like crazy as he squeaked out, "Your highness...es," he quickly bowed, almost hitting his head on the desk.
"At ease Lightning Blitz," Celestia replied as she and the two alicorns sat down, Lightning immediately following the command. A calm smile graced her face as she looked him over, "It's good to see you again."
Lightning nodded, gulping as his mouth went on auto-pilot, "It's uh...nice to see you as well. And may I add you're all looking particularly trim. Have you lost weight?"
"Don't push it Blitz," Luna growled, making Lightning shrink into his seat.
"Sorry."
Cadance then magicked up several files, placing them on the table before opening one. "Well Lightning, we've been reviewing the reports Princess Twilight, Flash and Iron have written for you...and I must admit we're very impressed." Cadance looked back up at him, seeing the smile Lightning was trying to make, "So...enjoying your life in Ponyville?"
"Yes."
Luna lifted up a file as well as she glared at him, "Having any issues reporting to Flash or Iron?"
"No."
"And are you giving back to the community?" Celestia asked next.
"Yes."
Cadance leaned in after this, "Gotten any mares in trouble?"
"No."
Luna grit her teeth as she asked her next question, "Still wanna take over Equestria?"
"Yes..." The three alicorns all glared at him, his brain now catching up, "Wait, no! I meant no! NOOOOOO!"
"LIGHTNING!" Everypony yelled except Tree Hugger and Maud.
"It was an accident!" Lightning replied. "They kept giving me yes and no answer questions and I...I just got into a rhythm. I...I couldn't think."
"Ugh...seriously?!" Twilight let out a long sigh, facehoofing as she shook her head, "I'll see if I can smooth things over with Celestia during the gala."
"Thanks..." Lightning whimpered out as his friends helped him over to a bed. "Sorry about all this."
"Its fine. We knew you would nervous darling. Anypony would." Rarity added as she patted his side, "Though...you should really try to pace yourself in situations like that."
"I know. I'm sorry." Lightning moaned as he held his head, "Aww...what am I gonna do?! If they say no, gramps is gonna be so disappointed in me."
Solid shook his head at this, "Don't think that Lightning, we know you can do this. Besides, Grand-"
"Don't Solid." Lightning interrupted, "I don't wanna hear it."
The rune making unicorn let out a hiss before sitting down beside him, "Fine...but remember this: Whatever happens, we'll be there for you."
"You know it," Wild added as his puppets on his back nodded in agreement. "We're with you through thick and thin."
"Thick and thin, thick and thin."
Gorgenia jumped onto the bed beside him, patting his side as well, "We'll help you make the princesses see just how much you've changed. After all, the three of us are all for the better now. A year ago, I hated Cadance…but now, well...well, I like to think of her as a close friend."
"You've all grown," Rarity assured them. "And I'm sure tomorrow, Celestia, Luna and Cadance will realize that you've made up for the mistakes you've made."
Lightning let out a long sigh, "I hope you're right."
"Well, we better be off," Applejack added as they all made their final preparations. Pinkie and Wild shared a kiss before she left, the crusaders following while yelling the same five words they had been yelling since finding out they were going to the gala.
"I just hope Discord doesn't cause any problems," Rainbow groaned, "I mean, didn't he know he had an invite? He's not gonna cause a scene, is he?"
Fluttershy shook her head, "Oh, I'm sure he'll behave himself."
Tree Hugger nodded in agreement. "Besides, a problem is only something you see as a thing that needs to be attacked. I'm sure that whatever happens, it'll be easier to work with a clear head."
"Right..." Iron said as he stared at the mare, his eyes going between her and his marefriend, "Anyways...if Discord pulls anything, I'm sure I can handle it. I mean, what's he gonna do? Bring some kind of chaos monster with him?" They all laughed at this as they left, leaving Lightning and his friends.
The three all looked back at him, all speaking in unison, "We know."
"Gorgenia and I barely get to see you," Script added.
Gorgenia patted his side, "And we'd much rather do that than go to a boring old gala."
Lightning shared a hug with his friends, a smile starting to reform on his face. Despite having made new friends in Ponyville, he was glad his first friends were still that...his friends. He could feel how much he missed them, even if Wild practically lived in Ponyville alongside him. And as their embrace ended as he thought about his possibly last night as a free stallion, getting off the bed as he asked, "So...how about we go out and see the town? It's been a while since I was last here. Love to see what's changed."
The three all shared a glance, Solid biting his lip, "Is that a uh...good idea?"
"Why not? Nopony said I had to stay in the castle. As long as I'm back before my final judgement, I don't see what the problem is."
Gorgenia began to twiddle her hooves, "Well...we're just not sure it would be...good if anypony saw you."
"It'll be fine. Now come on, let's go enjoy ourselves." Lightning added as he hopped off the bed, his friends all sharing a glance and gulp at the idea. Sighing, they walked behind him as they moved through the castle hallways. It wa here that they saw First Aid and Heather Bloom, both wearing the same suits Flash and Iron had worn, followed by Cherry Jubilee and several more well-known ponies.
Lightning said hi to his old employer before they got to the main gate, only to for a puff of smoke to appear in front of them. They all backpedaled at the sight, only to tense up as it revealed to show a certain suited draconequus. "Oh, hello there. Coming to enjoy the gala like the rest of us?"
Lightning darted his eyes away before replying, "No...we're not. We're just going out on the town."
Discord just shrugged, "Well, I guess not everypony can have such a great relationship with the princesses." The four all rolled their eyes, Wild tilting his head at the chaos monster.
"Hey...where's your plus one? Did you not find a friend to bring?"
"I have a plus one. I'm just waiting to get inside before warping him here. Now, if you'll excuse me." With that, Discord flipped upside-down before walking over them. The sight made the unicorns shrug before heading into town.
The entire city was almost completely transformed, ponies from far and wide all ready to make booths for the festival. As such, Lightning commented, "Practically nothing's changed..." The unicorn then saw several ponies staring at them, seeing nothing but frowns, "Though I don't remember this many glares back then."
"Give them time," Script assured him. "They'll realize how much you've changed."
"Yeah...sure." Lightning muttered out as they continued down the street. But as they did this, a blast of dust suddenly shot down the street, making everypony cover their eyes. "What the-" Lightning blurted before glaring at the storm, his form quickly rushing into the smoke.
"Lightning, wait!" Script yelled before they began to follow him. The four were all soon consumed by the dust, only for it fade as it revealed several collapsed booths, complete with ponies covered in wreckage. Lightning directed them to start helping, Solid asking one of the ponies, "What happened here?"
The reply was shrug, "I don't know. The whole thing just collapsed."
"I saw what happened!" a pegasus announced as she flew down. "A unicorn rushed passed here and used her magic to undo all the ropes holding the booths up, then ran off with them."
"But why?" another pony replied, only to turn and see Lightning. "Wait...it must have been them!" He pointed at the four, more eyes soon staring at them. "Trying to ruin another festival, huh?"
"What?!" Lightning yelped, quickly shaking his head. "No...we didn't do anything. We just got here."
"And that pegasus said it was a mare who ran by," Script added.
"Which you have!" another pony pointed at Gorgenia, the three quickly shielding the mare as the pegasi hovered over them.
"No...she doesn't look like the mare I saw." the mare responded, "This one was...orange."
"See?! We didn't do anything!" Lightning yelled as he pointed at his friends, "In fact, to prove it, we're gonna bring the real culprit to justice!"
"You are?" The ponies all gasped in unison.
"We are?" His friends repeated.
Lightning firmly nodded, "Yes. Now, which way did she go?"
"That way. I saw her turning left." They quickly followed the direction, the rest all staring at the fleeing group. As they left, they took the turn like she said, only to find it was alleyway with a dead end.
"That was a quick wrong turn." Wild commented, his puppets repeating his dialogue.
Gorgenia tilted her head at this, "Did she see the wrong thing?" But as these words left her mouth, her eyes saw a small pink crystal, which she picked up, "Oh? What's this?"
Script's eyes narrowed at the object, only to yell, "PUT THAT DOWN! NOW!" A blast of magic shot out of his horn, knocking the crystal away as it then hit a wall. And as it made contact, the gem broke, a green gas coming out before-
BOOM!
The four were pushed back from the explosion's force, all shielding their eyes as a puff of smoke filled the area. And as it faded, Lightning turned to Solid, "What the heck was that?!"
"It doesn't have a name. It's a very rare crystal that forms around highly explosive gases. The crystals themselves are really strong, but a small break tends to cause a spark that will ignite the gas."
"Sounds dangerous," Gorgenia quivered, patting her hoof. "And it was kinda pretty..."
"They're all dangerous. We're lucky that was just a small one. But the real question is, where did it come from?"
"You think that unicorn mare might have dropped it?" Wild asked next.
"But then where'd she go?" Lightning responded before looking around, soon spotting a piece of paper in the dirt. Picking it up, he scanned it over before giving it to Solid, "Any idea what this is?"
Script rubbed his chin as he looked it over, only to go wide-eyed, "This is...a teleportation rune. It must have been hidden and the explosion knocked it over here."
"So the mare did come down here...but she just warped away after that. Does that mean she could be anywhere?"
Solid shook his head, "No, this rune is...crude. Amateur hour at its finest. It's likely just a two-way gate connected to another marker just like this one."
Lightning raised an eyebrow at that, "So if we use it, we'll be sent wherever that mare went?"
The all shared a glance, Wild speaking up, "Maybe we should go find the guard."
"Find the guard, find the guard."
Lightning shook his head, "No, I get the feeling this is more than just a rope thief...and time might be of the essence." He looked down at the marker, "I'm going. You all can stay here if you want to." But when he glanced back up at his friends, he saw nothing but smiles.
A few minutes later...
Lightning felt like his entire body was being squeezed through a hole the size of a pinhead, unable to do so much as breath as he felt his everything being compressed. His vision was also filled with nothing but green light, making him squint as he felt pressure hit his back, knocking him into a nearby wall. As he crashed into it, he let out a moan before turning around, now seeing a green floating bubble. "Huh? What the-"
"Whoa!" yelled one Wild Smile as he flew out of the bubble, Lightning quickly dodging the stallion. Next was Gorgenia and Script, both flying out of the bubble as well as they crashed into the entertainer, "Augh!" He cried as the wind was knocked out of him, "Get off!"
"Sorry," they both said in unison as they got up, Lightning helping Wild. It was here they noticed that they were in a chamber made almost entirely out of crystal. "What the heck?! Where are we?!"
"I think we're in the crystal caves below Canterlot," Gorgenia replied. "Cadance told me all about them."
"So why did that the mare come down here?"
"Only one way to find out." Lightning responded as he pointed at the marker, the green bubble now gone, "Take that with us." Script nodded and picked the paper up, the four beginning their trek through the caves. It was here they started to pick up some voices with their ears, Lightning gesturing them to slow down as they got closer to the noise.
"No! Not there, you moron!" a stallion's voice yelled, "I told you to tie it there!"
"Hey, get off my back!" a gruffer voice replied, "I think I know how to tie a knot. Besides, we wouldn't have this issue if a certain somepony had managed to get more rope."
This was followed by a female voice, "You told me I needed to be quick and make sure I wasn't followed. If I had tried to get anymore, I would have been caught."
Lightning's group slowly peeked their heads out of a nearby wall, all staring at the four ponies now arguing. They were three stallions and a mare, all standing next to a large collection of pink crystals. Lightning and his friends went wide-eyed at this, Gorgenia whispering, "Are they insane?"
Script did a small gulp. "If you're thinking that they're going to make those crystals ignite...yes. Not only that, the explosion could cause this whole place to collapse."
"And Canterlot would come crashing down with it," Wild added.
"But why? Why do something so pointless?" Lightning finished as he glared at the group, "Are they gonna hold the city ransom? If they are, why haven't they announced it?"
It was in that moment that the gold unicorn started to stumble, almost falling over as if he had lost all strength. Lightning then saw the pony's bomb cutie mark start to blur before changing into a bunch of books. "What in the...wait..." Lightning gasped, his friends speechless at the sight.
"You okay?" The mare asked the unicorn, getting a nod in response.
"Just need to take my medicine," he replied before pulling out a tube and putting it to his neck. "Gimme a sec."
Pressing the plunger down, he let out a moan as the device yelled, "Bomber!" He began to gasp as the mark on his flank blurred again, returning to the bomb symbol.
"No way..." Lightning whispered before backpedaling, his friends mirroring his movements. "How is that possible?!"
"You know what's going on Lightning?" Script asked, only to get a nod in response.
"Yeah, I know what's wrong with them. They're using Cutie Markers."
"Cutie...Markers?" Gorgenia asked with raised eyebrows, the others mimicking her.
"What the heck are they?"
"What the heck, what the heck."
"Gramps told me about 'em. They're a device that started circulating around the time he first became a knight. They let the user actually change their special talent for a short time." Script, Wild and Gorgenia all went wide-eyed at this. "There were supposed to be hundreds of them, each one having a specific talent they gave the user. But...there was a catch. There were a ton of side effects, especially if you keep using 'em. It makes your mind go unhinged, and...I'm guessing that's what happened to them. Not only that, gramps told me it was super addictive, like...they become really violent if you try to take it from them."
"That explains why they're doing all this. They probably don't understand the consequences." Script commented with crossed hooves. "But I've never heard of Cutie Markers before. Was it something considered confidential?"
"No...its more because they're not around anymore. Gramps said he spent the first few years of his knight career tracking down all the dealers."
"Looks like he missed one," Script said as he looked back at the four, "So those four are suffering from mental backlash, and they're about to do something really idiotic. What do we do?"
Lightning didn't even need to think as he responded, "Simple. We take 'em down before they can finish their little scheme." the others nodded as they stood up and walked into the chamber, "HEY!"
The four criminals spun around, all shocked faces before the Bomber unicorn smirked at the sight, "Looks like we have a few uninvited guests."
A gasp happened next as the pegasi pointed at Lightning, "Hey! That's the guy that made everypony fight last year!"
"And all his little cronies!" the earth pony added.
The unicorn let out a laugh next, "So what are you all doing here?! Come to see how real villains destroy a city?!"
The eight ponies all got into a fighting stance, Lightning growling as his horn began to spark, "We're here too put an end to your insane plan."
"Is that so..." Bomber hissed as the other three pulled out their own Cutie Markers. Before their opponents could do anything, the trio slammed them into their necks.
"Shift!"
"Gemini!"
"Kinetic!"
Slowly, the three's cutie marks all blurred. The pegasi's changed into two overlapping squares, the unicorn's turning into a pair of ponies side by side while the earth pony's was now two circles crashing into each other. The four Cutie Markers all grinned at their opponents, the two teams staring each other down as Bomber spoke up, "Last chance. Leave or be beaten."
Lightning continued to glare at him, "You should take your own warning."
Bomber tutted before turning to the pegasus who used the Shift tube, "Do it!" The pegasi nodded as it went into a sprint, zipping past everypony before they could react. It was here Shift grabbed Script, pushing both into a wall…only to phase right through it.
"SCRIPT!" They all yelled before spinning back to the remaining three. "What did you just do to him?!"
"You'll find out." Before they could say anything else, Shift flew back through the wall and tackled Gorgenia.
"NO!" Lightning and Wild roared, both trying to rush at him. However, she faded with the pegasi into another wall. The duo quickly came to a stop after seeing this, only for Wild to let out a yelp as he felt something grab his hooves, "Whoa!" he cried as he pulled down into the ground, his puppets grabbing his side and falling in with him.
"Wild!" Lightning screamed before glaring back at the criminals, "Bring them back!"
"I don't think so." Bomber replied as Shift reappeared, soon grabbing the mare and earth pony before disappearing into the ground again. A huge smirk shined on Bomber's face as he pointed at Lightning, "Now...ready to begin?"
"Heck yeah, I am!" Lightning barked back as his horn began to spark, Bomber's doing the same. A beam quickly shot out of the criminal's horn, Lightning greeting it with a bolt of electricity. And as the two collided, an explosion filled the chamber with smoke. As it did this, Lightning pulled out the knives in his cloak, flinging the daggers at the walls around them.
Bomber just laughed at the sight, "Ha! You can't hit the broadside of a barn!"
"Don't be so sure!" Lightning responded as his form lit up, vanishing before reappearing to Bomber's side, "Gatling Spark!" a barrage of electric bullets flew out of his horn, only for Bomber's horn to flare as it fired a beam at the ground. An explosion followed this, knocking up rocks that blocked the bolts with ease.
"Grrr...alright, try this!" Lightning growled as he warped to another knife, "Lightning Spear!" A straight bolt of lightning flew out of his horn, Bomber spinning around and firing another beam as well. The two collided, making another blast of smoke that consumed the area. And as it did this, Lightning warped away, hiding behind a rock pillar as he tried to catch his breath.
"So pathetic." Bomber commented as he began to walking into the smoke cloud, "Marco..." The sound of light hoofsteps graced Lightning's ears, making him see a shadow slowly walk around the chamber as he stayed hidden. "Polo..." Lightning slumped over, panting as he tried to get his concentration back, feeling slight fatigue from doing so many moves so quickly. "Marco..." Bomber said again, only for his horn to glow red, "Polo!"
Another explosion shot out of his horn, destroying a nearby pillar while making the whole chamber shake. Lightning's head leaned out of another pillar, watching Bomber's face shine a huge twisted grin, "Come out little pony...come out and face your doom."
Lightning leaned back, sighing, "Gotta concentrate on this guy first...oh, I hope the others are okay."
Script let out a long moan as he shook his head, now seeing he was in a different room, "This isn't good." His ears then picked up the sound of a rock skipping across the ground. Spinning around, his horn started to spark as he saw Shift step into the light, "You!"
"Oh, this should be fun." Shift replied as he Script fired a beam of magic...only for it fly right through Shift's head.
"What?!" Script yelled as he saw his beam hit the wall behind the pony. Firing another beam, the same result happened before backpedaling. Solid blinked at the sight, putting his hoof to his mouth, "How did you...wait...you said your mark was shift. That means-"
Shift flared his wings, slowly walking up to the unicorn as his grin started to get bigger, "Ready for some fun?"
"Stay back!" Solid barked back as he fired another beam, the same thing happening again. "No...don't tell me that the 'shift' was you shifting your density?!"
The pegasi flexed his hoof as he turned into a sprint, "Ba bye!" he cheered as he slammed his hoof into Solid's face, knocking him back.
"Augh!" Script yelped as he rubbed his face in pain, only to now see Shift happing back with taking several large breaths. "You coward!"
"Who cares. We're gonna win and that's what matters." His eyes began to shift, darting around everywhere as he yelled, "Now...let me see you bleed!"
Solid quickly tried to brace himself, only to see the pegasi take a deep breath...and fall right through the floor. The sight made him go wide-eyed, only to feel a hoof uppercut his chin, "Blaugh!"
"Surprise!" Shift laughed as he reached up and gripped Script's neck, only to pull him into the floor. Solid soon found his face slamming into the ground, pain covering his face as he felt his whole body fall over. The unicorn moaned as he closed his eyes, whimpering in pain as he clenched up into a feeble position.
"Oh...that really hurts..."
"AHAHAHA!!!" the pegasi laughed as he reappeared, only to let out a long breath, the pony now rubbing his chest while panting, "Oh...oh yes..."
"Ungh…" Solid groaned as he looked up from the floor, now seeing the pegasi's face morph into a vile grin. "Oh no."
"Oh yes. This is gonna be fun."
In another chamber, Gorgenia shook her head as she tried to regain her focus. She then stared at the crystals on the walls, this area being filled with them. "Hmmm...this place isn't as pretty as Cadance made it out to be."
"Oh, is somepony scared?" She spun around, only to see a mare step into a crystal's light, making Gorgenia get into a fighting stance.
"Don't worry," Gorgenia's ears spiked up, making her spin around again, only to blink as she saw an exact duplicate of the mare appear.
"I'm here to keep you safe," yet another copy of the mare said as it appeared to Gorgenia's side.
"What is this?" She asked before turning back to the first mare, only to see the fake cutie mark shine on her flank, "Gemini...does that mean-"
The Gemini mare shined a huge grin as her horn began to glow, only for her body to seemingly split in half, two perfect replicas soon standing where one was before. Gorgenia gasped at the sight, only for one of them to rush at the mare, quickly spinning and bucked Gorgenia in the face.
"Augh!" The unicorn yelped as she was pushed back, only to see two more running at her. She quickly retaliated with a magical blast, hitting one that made it fade back into nothingness. But as this happened, the other one swung a hoof into her face. "Oof!"
As that blow happened, Gemini split into two again before one of the duplicates split again. Two then rushed at her, both now showing twisted smiles as the third continued to multiply. "Soon you'll be crushed under my hoof!" The duo yelled as Gorgenia fired another beam, destroying another before the other hit her side. "HA!"
"Ugh!" Gorgenia winced as another Gemini appeared, grabbing her neck with her tail before swinging her across the chamber. "Aaah!" she cried out as she was flung around, another bucking her back before the mare went flying into a wall. "Augh!"
Gorgenia let out a moan as she slumped over, her eyes barely opening up as she turned to see an entire army of Gemini army walk up to her. The Gemini all let out a sinister laugh, the sound echoing throughout the chamber. "Did I say you would be crushed under my hoof?" They all asked at the exact same time, Gorgenia gulping at the sight. "No, you'll be crushed under our hooves."
Wild was rubbing his head as his puppets rested on his back, "Oh...that hurt. Where are we little buddies?" he asked as he looked around, "Anypony here?"
"Anypony here, here, here?"
There was no response, making Wild shiver on the spot. That is, till the sound of heavy hoofsteps could be heard shaking the ground. Wild quickly spun around, only to feel a hoof slam into him, knocking him into a wall, "Augh!" he slumped over next, his flank instantly scratching the ground, "Oh...anypony get the number of that carriage?"
"Number, number, carriage, carriage."
His vision started to return as he looked up and went wide-eyed. It was the earth pony, scarping his hoof along the ground like an angry bull. "Uh-oh. Uh...nice to meet ya!" A loud snort of air blasted out of the pony's nostrils, making Wild gulp, "Ooookay. Not the talkative type. I guess I can dig that...maybe."
"Dig that, dig that!"
"Take this!" Wild ran up to the pony and threw a punch at the pony's cheek, a loud slapping sound filling the chamber. But as this blow happened, Wild just pulled away, not feeling pain in his hoof while the earth pony just stood there, motionless. Wild blinked at the sight, only to see the earth pony's face now glowing light blue, "Huh?"
The light then started to move down to the earth pony's hoof, the pony lifting it up as he pointed it at Wild. Seeing this, Wild started to backpedal, only to see the earth pony punch the air. Doing so caused a pulse of blue energy to fly out, the force slamming into Wild, knocking back into the wall again.
"Blaugh!" he yelped as his back scratched the wall, moaning he slid down the rocks, "Oww...what the heck?!" He then looked back up and saw the pony's cutie mark, Wild gulping as he whispered, "What did he say again? Kinetic? But what does that-"
His puppets then floated in front of him, Wild gasping as he saw them charge at the earth pony, "No, wait!" But they didn't, each one slamming into the earth pony. As they did, spots of light blue light appeared around Kinetic before travelling to his hooves. There, he smirked as he punched the air, three quick punches shaking the very air around them. And as each punch struck the area, each pulse destroyed one of Wild's puppets, soon destroying every single one.
Wild's ears flopped down, almost tearing up at the sight as the earth pony turned around and walked over to a nearby wall. There, he started to punch the wall, knocking several rocks loose from the ceiling. And as the rubble pelted his back, more and more blue lights began to cover his body.
"That's not good...that's not good at all."
Back to Lightning, he was still hiding as Bomber continued to turn the place into a minefield. "Come out unicorn!" He yelled into the cave, "Do you truly fear me that much?"
"Not on your life!" Bomber turned around, now seeing a revealed Lightning as his horn charged before vanishing into a bolt of light. "Plasma Anchor!" A string of lightning suddenly latched onto the criminal's neck before Lightning reappeared, swinging the pony into a wall.
"Augh!" the criminal yelped as he tried to pick himself up, only to look up and see Lightning with now electrically charged hooves.
"Smashing Volt!" He slammed his hooves directly into Bomber, electricity flowing through them as Lightning followed up with a barrage of punches. Sparks could be seen as Bomber felt every blow, his horn flaring as he made a small explosion around him. However, Lightning just teleported away, only to reappear and hit him again.
"Gah!" Bomber growled as he tried to counter, Lightning zipping away before delivering another teleporting punch to the face, "Bluagh!" the criminal spat as he tried to retaliate with a left hook, Lightning dodging again. "Grrr...how are you doing that?!"
POW!
Another blow shook his head, the unicorn's eyes now going bloodshot as he yelled, "ENOUGH!!!" With that roar, his horn fired a volley of blasts, covering the areas as explosions went off everywhere. Lightning tried to warp away, but as he got to one of knifes, Bomber's spell hit the dagger. His eyes went wide as an explosion hit him full-on, knocking him flying across the room. Bomber watched as Lightning landed, only for the unicorn to warp away to one of his knives. The criminal blinked at the move, now seeing Lightning hop to another, "So that's it..."
Bomber shined a small smirk as his horn sparked, a series of beams firing out to hit every dagger. Lighting quickly grimaced at the sight, grabbing one of his knives before it could be struck before the rest exploded. Seeing this, he jumped away as smoke covered the area, soon hiding behind another pillar. Bomber just laughed at the sight, "HA! Face it little unicorn, you signed your own death certificate by coming down here."
Lightning slumped over, catching his breath as he whispered to himself, "Gotta buy some time..." He took a deep breath before echoing out, "Why are you doing this?!" His voice bounced around the cave, Bomber unable to pick up where the noise was coming from. "What could you possibly gain from destroying Canterlot?!"
He heard Bomber growl, "You wouldn't understand."
"Try me."
There was no response for several moments, only for a low grumble to start speaking up, "Do you know what my real special talent is? It was being a librarian."
"So?"
"SO?! My whole life, I wanted to be something great! Somepony who you'd recognise just by looking at him. How many famous librarians do you know of?!"
"Well...there is the Princess of Friendship." He heard a spark of magic spurt out of Bomber's horn, a hiss following this, "But I get your point. You wanted more."
"Of course I wanted more! Who doesn't want to be known by all?! Our lives are nothing but dust in the wind! Unless you do something big, you'll eventually be forgotten once you're gone. That's why I wanted my cutie mark to be something that would allow me to become a pony nopony would ever forget. But then...I got stuck with this stupid mark."
"And I'm guessing your friends felt the same way?"
"Of course!" Bomber yelled, "Again I ask, how many famous bakers, seamstresses or accountants can you name?!"
"So that's why you got yourselves those Cutie Markers?"
He then heard Bomber laugh. "Exactly. For the first time in our lives, we had power that made us feel like we could do anything. Like the world was ours for the taking....we spent months figuring them out, using them to live the lives we always wanted. But...we still weren't gonna be remembered. That's when it hit us-"
"Destroy Canterlot?"
"You can't deny that has some staying power to it. Nopony will ever forget about the ponies that destroyed Equestria's capital. Our names will live on for all eternity!"
Lightning just sighed, peeking his head out as he stared at the unicorn. Reason was gone, that sentence being plastered all over the stallion's face as Bomber started manically laughing. The defender went back to hiding, taking a deep breath as he felt pity for the unicorn, knowing that the Cutie Marker must have affected the guy's brain. "Don't got a choice. I gotta beat him." he whispered to himself before walking out of his hiding place, speaking up, "I won't let you destroy Canterlot."
Bomber turned to him, his smile twisting as he chuckled, "Oh? Why not? You were gonna do it, weren't ya?!"
"Yeah, I was...and it was the biggest mistake I ever made." Lightning's horn replied as his horn began to glow, "You know, a year ago I probably would have been down for your little plan. As far as I was concerned, I didn't have anything to lose. My mom was dead, my dad got arrested and I hated almost everypony around me. I even saw my friends as nothing more than pawns."
Bomber let out a laugh, "HA! They're obviously not very good pawns! They're gonna die down here, just like you!" Bomber's horn began to light up as well, "They don't have the power to stop my friends. Their special talents are nothing compared to us."
Lightning just glared at him, "Don't underestimate them. They're stronger than you think."
"Is that so?" Bomber then fired a blast, Lightning quickly hopping away as the pillar behind him exploded. "Then why did you have to power them up last year?!" Another beam shot out of horn, Lightning barely dodging the it, "Everypony knows about it. You used the Alicorn Amulet to give them the power to beat all the guards with those forbidden spells. Heck, I heard you brainwashed them!"
He then fired another blast, only for Lightning to spin on the spot and unleash a string of electricity at the beam. Both collided, an explosion instantly happening as it pushed both back. Lightning let out a cough as he swung himself behind another pillar, panting as he spoke up, "Yeah...I did do that. We all wanted power, and we really didn't care what we were gonna do to get it, just like you." Lightning slumped down, taking a deep breath, "But...its different now. I'm...we're stronger now. We don't need the amulet." He stared at his last knife, then spotting a chunk of explosive crystal on the floor right by him. "I don't need a quick and easy way out anymore, and neither do they. They won't lose...and neither will I!"
"Augh!" Script cried as he was thrown against another wall, slumping over as he felt pain surge throughout his body. He had been trying multiple barrier runes, but Shift easily got through every one. Unfortunately, he could feel the pain fully taking him over as Shift phased into the floor again, only for his hooves to reappear inside the wall behind Solid. The pegasi then grabbed Solid's neck, trying to choke him. Gasping to get some air, Solid's horn flared as he started firing random shots around, one beam hitting Shift's hoof. The blow made Shift phase back into the wall, Solid gasping as he got up from the hold. He put his hoof to his chest next, moaning as he tried to get away from the wall.
"You can't escape me," he heard Shift's voice. "No matter where you try and hide, I'll be there, and you'll have no idea where I'm coming from."
"Don't be so sure." Solid replied as he spun around and fired a magical blast at the ground, Shift going wide-eyed as he had to go back into the floor. Script's eyes narrowed next as he started to shoot beam of magic at parts of the wall, slight blur appearing in each blow before Shift came out, panting heavily.
"How?" Shift gasped, his hooves shaking as he saw Solid lift his hoof. Mimicking his action, Shift looked at his hoof and gasped, now seeing some markings on his leg. "This is...a rune?"
"A tracking rune specifically," Script clarified. "Now I can follow you wherever you come from. You can't surprise me anymore."
Shift let out a low growl, "Oh yeah?! And what, you think you're so smart to beat me now?!" The pegasi pointed at the unicorn as he continued to pant, "You think...you're so smart....but I'm not beaten. You've barely been trying."
Solid just shrugged, "That's true. I'm a pacifist by nature, but...due to recent events over this past year, I've put more investment into self-defense for myself. I also know that I'm smart enough to catch onto your tricks. I know all your limits."
"And what are those so called limits?!"
"Simple. For instance, I know you obviously can't fly when you're completely shifted." Script almost smirked as he saw the look of surprise on his opponent's face. "It's obvious when you know how both your powers and how flying works. Even if you beat your wings, the air would just go right through them instead of being pushed down. It's also obvious to note you can't breathe in that state, given how much you've been panting during this fight. It's likely that even if you took a breath, you wouldn't be able to get any oxygen into them. That also leads me to believe you can't see or hear anything either, as your actions are direct, yet I noticed you only keep track of me based on where I was before you phased. Nothing can hurt you, but you can't feel anything at the same time. That's the flaw that'll defeat you."
"You little...and how is that gonna beat me?!"
"Look around and you'll see." Shift's eyes began to dart around, only to go wide-eyed as he started to see several runes litter the chamber, both on floors and walls, "I started placing these around when I realized you weren't, or couldn't, pay attention. With these, you're done for."
"How?! What can a bunch of scribbles do?!"
"These runes are all designed to attract energy, specifically...electrical energy." With that, his horn sparked as a sphere of electricity appeared over his horn, the ball now blasting out lightning.
"What?!" Shift yelled as he saw the runes all react to the sphere, the orb now floating to the center of the chamber. Bolts began to fly everywhere, Shift now backpedaling at the sight, "How? Your cutie mark means you can only use rune magic."
"That might be what I'm best at, but it doesn't mean I can't learn other kinds of magic. My special talent doesn't define me. Besides, my best friend is one of the best electric type users in Equestria. You really think he couldn't teach me?"
Shift watched the lightning began to consume the whole room, only to smirk at the sight, "So what?! All you've done is trap yourself! As long as you're in here, I don't have to worry about you. I can just escape and your...electric thing won't hurt me! I'll just leave and Bomber will destroy this whole place!"
Solid's face just formed a giant smile, "Oh really? And what about this?" he asked as he held up a familiar piece of paper.
Shift's eyes went wide at the sight, "That's-"
"Your only way out of here. Without it, I'm guessing you can't pull off your insane plan to blow Canterlot up without burying yourself. I also doubt you could hold your breath long enough to get out of here with all your friends before the crystal goes off."
Shift growled as he rushed into the lightning field, going mostly intangible as the bolt flew through him. Seeing this, Script started to pull the orb back, making the lightning strikes fly closer to himself. Shift came to a halt at this, taking in a huge breath before sinking into the ground. Solid just blinked at the sight, quickly running back to the center of the room with the orb.
"Alright, let's direct the lightning there." Solid whispered to himself as he repositioned the orb, the bolts now aiming at his tracking rune. Shift then popped out where Solid was previously standing, only to jerk back into the ground as a barrage of lightning zapped the spot. Solid's eyes stared at the position Shift vanished into, quickly moving back to it as Shift reappeared in another part of the area. His face was red from holding his breath, but he couldn't get any air as another bolt instantly struck where he was trying to phase out of.
Shift went back into the ground, Solid rubbing his chin at the sight. "Looks like he's out of air. Here's hoping he runs out of energy soon." He stared back at the orb, "I can't do this forever either."
Shift then popped out of another wall, gasping despite no longer having a red face. Solid guessed he got some air by phasing into another chamber. As for the orb, more bolts shot at Shift, going through him as he charged at Solid. But as he did this, he suddenly felt himself slow down. "Huh?" Shift gasped as he accidentally opened his mouth. He started to feel something on his back, making him glance at his flank.
His mark...was changing. It was slowly morphing back to normal. The sight made him go wide-eyed, only to turn back as he saw he was just about to get his on Solid. But as he did this, a single bolt slammed into him, his hooves just inches away from Solid as he could feel the electricity now surge through his body.
"AAAAHHHHH!!!" he screamed as the bolt shot him across the room, Solid gasping as he saw the electrified hooves that were about to touch him be sent flying back. And as a second bolt hit the pegasi, Solid cancelled the spell, the orb fading as the criminal slumped over in defeat.
Solid almost did the same, his hooves shaking as he gripped his head in pain, "No way...I did it. That...was too close."
"Augh!" Gorgenia yelped as she was punched again, staggering back as she tried to blast another away, only for three more to take its place. The stonemason had lost count of how many she had destroyed, the Gemini mare seemingly multiplying more and more.
"Awww...what's the matter? Can't keep up?" the mares laughed as another socked Gorgenia in the stomach.
And as another hit knocked her back, Gorgenia's eyes squinted as she felt the pain. Again and again the mares kept hitting her, Gorgenia trying to fight back as she looked around the room. But as she did this, she went wide-eyed at a certain sight. It was a mare way in the back, heavily panting as exhaustion covered her face. "The original..." Gorgenia whispered as she looked back at the others. "That's it!"
As the Gemini charged at her, Gorgenia's horn flared, a barrage of blasts flying out. A stream of Gemini were vanquished by the attack, only to see more Gemini appear. As she did this, she whispered, "That it...keep making them." She continued to fire beams, more and more beginning to fade. And as she did this, a smile graced her face as the mare in the back suddenly fall over.
"YES!" Gorgenia cheered as the clones looked back at the original mare, all gasping at the sight. As for Gorgenia, she started to catch her breath as she commented, "I had a feeling that would work. All those clones have to take a lot of magic...and you just hit your limit!"
Gemini growled as she slowly lifted her head up, "Even so. It's still enough to beat you." Just as she said that Gorgenia felt something grab her neck from behind. Another clone then grabbed her legs, more clones restraining her till she was pinned to the ground, her horn touching the dirt. The clones all laughed at the sight as another pointed its horn at her. "Its over stonemason!"
The clone began to charge at her, ready to impale her with it's horn. But as Gorgenia looked up at the incoming attack, an idea dinged in her head, "You're right!" Her horn began to flare, firing a spell into the ground. A crystal suddenly shot out of the floor, instantly destroying the charging clone. The others gasped at the sight, their grip loosening as Gorgenia kept firing spells in the ground. More crystals then shot out, blasting each clone into nothingness.
Soon, all that was left was the original, who had got back onto her hooves. The mare was shaking in pure fear as she whimpered out, "B-b-but...but...your talent is making statues! H-h-how did you do that?!"
Gorgenia just showed a small smile, "You're right, making statues is my talent. However, its not my only skill. I started off making stone statues, but then Cadance invited me to learn to make crystal statues in the empire." She began to walk up to Gemini, the criminal slowly backpedaling. "Then I decided I wanted to learn to make crystals just like Ruby Scarlet could. But I couldn't just wait for a great big crystal to form, so..." Gemini now hit a wall behind her, her cutie mark shifting back to normal. "It was hard, and took months of practice, but I eventually learned how to do it."
Gemini's eyes continued to grow wide, gulping as Gorgenia's horn began to shine again.
"Gyah!" Wild yelped as he was slammed into a pillar, slumping over as the earth pony stared the unicorn down. The towering pony began to pant as Wild's horn sparked, his buddies' spirits going into some nearby rocks. Seconds later, the rubble flew through the air, bum-rushing into the earth pony and colliding into his chest.
However, the earth pony didn't move, the rocks smashing into him. And as they collided, a blue light appeared on each blow, the lights soon streaming to his chest as the criminal spoke up, "Did you really think you could beat me? You're no warrior. You're just some dumb entertainer."
Wild groaned as he picked himself up, "So what? I...can still fight." Wild looked down, now spotting a large flat rock that had been knocked out of the pillar. He quickly jumped onto the rock as he transferred one of his buddies into it, just as the earth pony fired a kinetic blast from his hoof. As the burst of force happened, his puppet's soul flung Wild up into the air, letting him ride the rock like a surfboard.
Kinetic watched him float around, the blue swirling around his hooves as he swung another punch, a blast of air flying out as Wild dodged in on the board, "Grrr...get down here and fight!"
"No thanks pal. I might be an entertainer, but that doesn't mean I don't know how to kick flank when I need too!" Wild barked back as he flew around Kinetic, now looking down at the earth pony before going wide-eyed. It was here he saw that the criminal's body was covered in bruises, showing that his power didn't cancel the damage being done. "That's it!"
Wild glanced up and saw a cracked section of the roof above the earth pony. Smiling at the sight, Wild pointed to the rocks around the criminal and yelled, "Get in those buddies! Give him everything you got!"
The souls slithered inside, soon firing in all directions at the earth pony. As the rocks charged into the earth pony, he didn't move, more and more energy building up as the rocks pelted him. And as the barrage finished, every piece of soul-possessed rubble had turned to dust, Kinetic now brushing off the rocks as his whole body glowed blue. Seeing him distracted, Wild flew just above the earth pony and yelled, "That all you got?! I bet I can take ten times more than you!"
Kinetic growled before opening his mouth, the blue light flying up his neck. With that, he let out a mighty roar that shot a sonic laser, making Wild gasp. Reflexes kicked in as Wild leapt from his surfboard, the beam annihilating the rock before hitting the roof. But as it hit this, Kinetic's eyes went wide as he saw the cracked roof fall apart, a shower of rocks following this.
But as he tried to escape the rain of rubble, Wild slung an extra rock at the criminal, distracting him long enough to get him buried by the rubble. And as it covered him, Wild let out a long sigh of relief, his buddies hovering around, "Thank goodness that's-"
THOOM!
"Blaugh!" Wild screamed as a blue shockwave shot out of the rock pile, knocking the unicorn back into another pillar. Wild could feel pain surge through his whole body as he slumped over from the blow, his eyes squinting as he looked back up and saw Kinetic pull himself out of the rubble.
And as the criminal walked over to him, Kinetic began to heavily pant, his hooves swaying back and forth. But as he did his, his eyes began to falter as his hooves loss their strength. "Ugh..." he moaned as pain rushed through his body, making him fall over as his cutie mark began to turn back to normal.
Wild shook his head at this, slowly getting up as he commented, "Told ya I'm more than just an entertainer. It's what I love and its what I'm best at, but it's not all I am."
Kinetic growled as he looked back up at him, trying to get up, only to slump over again.
"Over the last year, my friends all worked hard to become the best ponies they could be. Unlike you criminals, they didn't let their cutie marks trap them."
"Tch. What would you know?!" Bomber barked back. "You don't know what kind of lives we've been stuck with all because we were forced to have those marks!"
"I know that cutie marks are just a representation of who we are. If they decide how our lives turn out, we'd be born with them. But we aren't, because a cutie mark is only born by how we live our lives." Lightning stopped talking as Bomber got closer, waiting for him to pass by. And as he walked to another pillar, Lighting continued, "If you wanted your cutie mark to be something great, then you should have gone out and tried something great. Let me guess...you liked reading books all day, and that's what you got." He heard Bomber growl, making Lightning chuckle, "That's why my friends will beat yours. They're more than their cutie marks."
In that moment, the three beaten ponies all pulled out their Cutie Markers. But as that happened, Lightning's friends all sparked their horns, beams of magic striking each. The lasers blasted the criminals, rocketing through the walls, shattering the rubble as they all landed into the chamber with Bomber and Lightning. "AAAAHHHHH!" They all cried out as they flew through the walls, all flopping over as the blasts destroyed their Cutie Marker as well.
"What?!" Bomber yelped as he now saw his compatriots all laying on the floor, completely unconscious with the remains of their Cutie Markers scattered around them. Script, Gorgenia and Wild all stepped through the holes, smiling as they sa each other while Bomber yelled, "How?! How is this possible?!"
"Because they're stronger than you could ever dream of being!" He spun back around and saw Lightning jump out before tossing his last knife. The unicorn reflexively firing a beam at the dagger, only for Lightning to spark his horn and direct the knife to dodge the beam. As this happened, Lightning held out the piece of explosive crystal as the dagger sailed past Bomber's head, slicing off a few strands of hair while his spell then struck the crystal in Lightning's hoof. Lightning vanished after this, warping to the dagger as spun around and thrust the crystal at Bomber.
"Now, COUNT UP YOUR SINS!" Lightning yelled as the crystal hit Bomber's horn, Lightning vanishing again. He then reappeared on the far side of the chamber, gripping his mouth as his ears heard a certain explosion.
BOOM!
The crystal exploded in the unicorn's face, making him scream out in pain as he was sent flying into a wall. His Cutie Marker fell out of his clutches next, shattering as it hit the floor. Lightning sighed in relief as he fell on his flank, only to hear a certain three voices call out, "LIGHTNING!"
He looked up and saw Script above him first, "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," Lightning replied as he took Solid's hoof and got up, "Just a little tired." He then saw the bruises covering his friends, "How about you?"
"Nothing we can't handle," Wild added with a large grin as the rocks containing his buddies spirits repeated him.
Gorgenia giggled at this, "Honestly Lightning, we can look after ourselves."
"I know. Come on, let's finish this." He groaned in pain before walking up to where the explosive crystals were tied up. "Now...what do we do with these things?"
But as he said this, Bomber's eyes started to open, his cutie mark beginning to return to normal. And as he felt his flank shiver, Bomber grit his teeth, "No...no..." he whispered as his horn began to flare, "I WON'T LET YOU STEAL MY GLORY!" The four spun around to see the beam coming right for them. Reflexes kicked in as they all jumped away, only for the magic to strike the crystals.
"NO!" Lightning screamed as Wild had one of his buddies slam into Bomber, knocking him out for good. They then saw the crystal start to glow red, all of them gulping at the sight, "This is bad. This is really really bad!"
"It's gonna blow!" Gorgenia cried out, "If there's that many, it'll destroy this whole cave!"
"And Canterlot will collapse with it," Wild added before turning to Script. "Can't you do something? Maybe a rune barrier to contain the explosion?"
Script shook his head, "That could take me a whole hour if its that kind of explosion. I don't know how long we have before it explodes."
"At least a few minutes. When I fought that guy, the larger the object, the longer it took to blow." Lightning replied as he looked down at his last dagger before glancing at Script, "You still have that transport rune?"
Script nodded before pulling out the paper, "Right here."
"Good. I got a plan." he handed the dagger to him, "First, open that and get out of here."
"WHAT!?" The three yelped in unison, "We're not leaving you here!"
"Yes, you are. It's the only way." Lightning replied with a glare, "Get back to the surface and find a way to get that dagger as far from Canterlot as you can, then come back and tell me so I can warp this bunch of crystals to the dagger."
"Wait...can you warp something that's not you to one of those daggers?"
"It takes a lot more energy, but I can do it." Lightning put his hoof on Solid's shoulder, "I believe in all of you. Now go, and one of you get to the castle and tell the princesses what's going on. If this fails, they're the only ones who could possibly stop this."
The others nodded as Script took the dagger and opened the portal, each jumping through. Each groaned in discomfort until they shot out of the bubble, now finding themselves back in the alley. They quickly got up and ran back to the streets, now seeing even more floats and balloons before Gorgenia turned to the boys, "I'll go tell the princesses! Good luck you two!"
"Got it!" Solid replied as Gorgenia ran off, the unicorn turning to the puppeteer, "Any ideas on getting this dagger out of here?"
Wild glanced around, soon spotting a beach themed float. "Yeah. Gimme the knife." Solid gave it to him as he ran up to the stand by the float, grabbing a surfboard that was on the stand before starting to climb onto the float.
"Hey!" the owner yelled as Wild put one of the puppet souls into the surfboard.
Hopping on the board, he began to hover upward, glancing down and yelling at Solid, "Give me thirty seconds before telling Lightning to do it!"
Script nodded and jumped back into the portal as Wild continued to fly higher and higher. As for Solid, he reappeared in the chamber, now seeing Lightning in a meditative stance. The unicorn glanced at Solid, asking, "We ready?"
"Not yet," Script added as he mentally counted in his head. As he did this, Wild kept going, his body, swaying as he felt the fatigue catching up to him. And as he felt this surge throughout his body, he leaned his hoof back before flinging the dagger into the sky.
"Twenty nine, thirty!" Script mentally counted before yelling, "NOW!"
Lightning nodded before placing a hoof on the crystal, the crystals almost completely red. But as his horn began to glow, he turned to Script, "Hey bud...thanks for everything. Thanks for being my friend, even with how our families are..." He saw Solid just blink at him, making Lightning show a small smile, "Tell Flash and the rest of our friends I'm glad I came to Ponyville. And tell my gramps...thanks for never giving up on me."
"Lightning...what are you-" Script's eyes went wide as his brain caught up, only to see Lightning and the crystal vanish. "NO! LIGHTNING!!"
The unicorn quickly pulled out the paper, warping back to the street. And as he did this, Wild fell back to the street, his puppets slowly descending the board. The puppeteer saw the rune maker, soon asking, "We good? Where's Lightning?" Script didn't reply, instead looking up as Wild quickly caught on and did the same, "Oh no...NO!" But as he tried to spark his horn, he saw Lightning reappear in the sky, way too far out of his reach, "LIGHTNING!"
Both Lightning and the crystal appeared in midair, the city far below them. Gravity swiftly kicked in, Lightning now seeing that it wouldn't be long till the crystals reached the streets. Knowing he couldn't let the explosive get any closer, Lightning sparked his horn, firing an electrical blast directly into crystal. A crack quickly appeared, gas blasting out of the hole before the whole thing ignited.
KABOOM!!!
Lightning watched as the flames of the explosion stuck him, the shockwave of fire now embracing the defender, "AAAAAUUUGGGGHHHHH!" He cried out as he was propelled back, his whole body surging in pain as he started to blackout.
But as he closed his eyes, he felt something soft grip his back, his ears now hearing the words, "Gotcha!"
Then, the world went dark.
The unicorn didn't dream. Instead, his ears kept fidgeting as a barrage of voices began to flood through the darkness around him. He could feel himself float in an empty void, not able to tell if he had been there for a few hours or a few days. But as he remained there, a speck of light appeared in the darkness, only for it consume him, light blasting his eyes.
And when the light faded, Lightning found he was laying on a soft bed, staring straight up at a ceiling. Slowly blinking at the sight, he tried to get up, only for his body flinch. He couldn't move, the unicorn unable to do anything except moan in pain. But as he did this, his eyes tried to move around, soon noticing a familiar orange pegasus looking down at him.
"Hey there sleeping beauty."
"Flash? What are you-"
"Lightning!" He heard hoofsteps rush into the room, his eyes moving to the door as he now saw a bunch of ponies come into his blurry vision, Rarity's voice speaking up first, "Thank goodness you're alright."
"Everypony? What is..." Lightning moaned as Flash leaned over and helped him sit up. Pain kept surging in his body as Lightning looked down, now seeing his body wrapped in bandages. Not only that, he looked back at his friends and saw his three friends also in wrappings, "I don't...I'm...alive?"
"Yes." Grand spoke up as he, the Defenders, Mane Seven and even most of the Royal Knights walked to the side of the bed, "Despite that stupid stunt you pulled, you survived thanks to Flash. When the explosion occurred, Flash flew up to investigate and found you. Thankfully, he was able to get you out of that fiery mess before it was too late." Grand then pointed to a certain knight, "First here managed to heal you up before your injuries got real bad."
Lightning nodded as he turned to Flash, "Thanks..."
Flash just shrugged, "No problem. Heck, we should be thanking you for saving our flanks. Gorgenia showed up after I landed with you and told us everything."
"And we couldn't be more thankful." His ears spiked up as he then saw Celestia, Luna and Cadance step into the room. The three surrounded his bed as the others stepped back. "Lightning Blitz, you did a very selfless thing last night. Not only did you stop four unstable criminals from destroying Canterlot, but you were willing to give up your own life to do so."
Lightning tried to smile, his face aching as he asked, "So...what's gonna happen to those four?"
"Several guards arrested them after Script and Wild arrived at the castle with the teleport rune. They'll be receiving treatment for their mental damage, but they won't be seeing the light of day for a long time."
"That's good." Lightning muttered out as he slumped back into the bed.
Grand sighed at this, "I'm sorry Lightning, I can't believe I let those Cutie Markers slip past me. I thought I'd gotten them all back in the day."
"Eh, it's not really your fault." Solid suddenly said, "There were thousands of them from what I've been able to gather, so it makes sense one of them would slip under you." Over half of the room was now staring at him in shock, making him raise an eyebrow. "What?"
Celestia shook her head at the sight before glancing back at Lightning. "So...how are you feeling?"
"Numb...but other than that, I'm okay."
"Do you think you could handle leaving the bed? There's something I'd like you to see."
"Uh...I think I can? I don't know if I can walk though."
"We'll get a wheelchair for you." Celestia replied as one of the knights called for a nurse. A few minutes later, Lightning was slowly lifted onto a wheelchair, Solid pushing him out. As they made their way to the main hall, Lightning soon noticed the many ponies standing inside, most he recognized from last year. However, there were no glares or frowns, just neutral stares as Lightning was wheeled into a circle in front of a stage.
The four princesses flew onto the stage, Celesita speaking up first, "Lightning Blitz. A year ago, you committed many heinous acts. You kidnapped several mares, one of which is a princess, and threatened the entire city with an illegal weapon."
Luna spoke up after this, "Due to the influence of the Alicorn Amulet, we couldn't know for certain how much of that was your own doing. That is why we chose to postpone your punishment until now."
Cadance chimed in next. "In that time, you've travelled Equestria and even helped save it from your own father. After that, you began to work as a defender of the peace in Ponyville."
The attention went back to Celestia as she finished the lecture. "Princess Twilight and both Sir Flash and Sir Iron have told us how hard you've worked to keep the town safe. And now...you've saved the very city you once tried to destroy." The crowd all began to murmur at this as Celestia continued, "Tell me, what drove you to willingly sacrifice your own life in exchange for the lives of the ponies you were willing to disregard only one year ago?"
Lightning took a small breath as he tried to speak up, his eyes slowly looking down, "I can never truly make up for the things I did. I don't even think I deserve to be forgiven. I didn't do it in some vain attempt to make up for everything, I just...I just did it because...well, it was the only thing I could think of to save everypony." He looked back up at Celestia. "For the longest time, I felt like I was alone. My mom was dead and my dad was....lost. I didn't feel like I had anything to live for, that's why I...tried to gain power. I just...I just wanted to fill the void they had left in me. But then...you sent me out to see Equestria and I learned just how much I didn't understand about this great land. I saw everypony work harder than me, and..." His head slowly moved over to where Flash and the others stood, "And when I went to Ponyville, I...I made friends and connections that filled that void. I...I knew I had to save them cuz...I don't think I could live without them now."
The alicorns all smiled at his reply, Celestia speaking up again, "Lightning Blitz, due to your selfless deeds last night and over the previous year, we have come to a decision about how you will repay for what you did last year. You shall do community service until such a time is determined that you have made up for what you've done."
Luna spoke up next, "You will put your fighting skills to work protecting Equestria. You shall also be called in on command to fight for certain situations we deem necessary. In short, you will have all the responsibilities and duties of a Royal Knight, without any of the added bonuses. Do you accept?"
Lightning tried to nod, "I do."
The princesses all nodded back as Celestia announced, "Then you may now remain in Canterlot if you so wish."
"Actually, I think I'll stay in Ponyville. I've...grown really fond of the place. Besides, the defenders would be lost without me." Most of the Ponyville ponies all laughed, Flash, Iron and Springer growling in response. "But if Canterlot or any other city in Equestria needs me, I'll be there."
"Very good. I hereby call this meeting over, as everypony here has a parade to prepare for." With that, the ponies of the room headed out, Solid helping Lightning back to his room.
Hours later...
As the sun and moon swapped places, Lightning sat at the window of his room. He looked down at the city, the parade about to begin in an hour. He had had several visitors over the last few hours, most of them being his friends checking up or thanking him. The majority of the Royal Knights also came in, all saying they were looking forward to wokring with him despite him now being basically an apprentice with zero chance of promotion for now.
A knock on his door made him turn away from the window, "Come in." The door opened to show Rarity with a box.
"Hello darling, I'm sorry I haven't been to see you. Been busy with my sister and getting ready for the parade." She then placed the box in front of him, "And making this."
Lightning raised an eyebrow before his horn started to glow, opening the box with his magic as he then saw a familiar-looking cloak inside. "This is-"
"Your old one was destroyed in the blast, so I made you a new one to say thank you for saving me and everypony I care about. Granted, I don't much care for seeing my work burned to bits, but..." She shined a big grin before walking over and kissing him on the cheek, "You've really come a long way. When you first came to Ponyville, I wasn't sure what would happen. But I now know for sure that you've truly changed."
Lightning's face began to glow red as he put the cloak back in the box, "Thanks Rarity. This...this really means a lot to me. I'll make sure to cherish it."
"Think nothing of it, darling. You've earned this, and I'm glad you like my new work. I tried to make it even better than the original, though it is hard to beat perfection."
"Eh, I know the feeling. Don't worry, I know you can beat perfection." Lightning replied, the two chuckling as Rarity put the box on a nearby desk. She looked back at Lightning, both smiling at each other as she opened her mouth, only to hear the door being knocked on again.
"Lightning, I need to speak with you." spoke out a voice as the door creaked open, revealing Grand. He quickly noticed Rarity, blinking at her as he asked, "Sorry, but do you mind if we have a moment alone?"
"Not at all." Rarity responded as she gave Lightning on final glance, "See you later darling."
"Later." Lightning added as Rarity left the room, his eyes now looking at Grand as he pulled out a box as well, "What's that gramps?"
"This is..." Grand paused as he put the box down in front of Lightning before looking up with a huge smile, "You see...your mother, and your grandmother...they would have been so proud of you for what you did today. Granted, they probably would've chewed you out after seeing those injuries, but...you know. Families are always filled with worrywarts." Both Lightning and Grand laughed at this, Grand then saying, "And I'm proud of you too kiddo. You've grown a lot...and I'm glad you managed to find your way. I just...I'm sorry I couldn't help you find that path."
"Its fine gramps, don't worry about it."
"No, its not. Solid...is right in a way. I should have set you on that path. I realized it when I talked to Cold back at Flash's test. I...I failed you." Grand admitted as he let out a sigh, "I should have been there for you more. Instead, I focused on the wrong things."
"Gramps...don't." Lightning muttered out, shaking his head, "Just...don't."
"Sorry kiddo."
"Its fine." Lightning moaned as he gestured to the box, "What's that?"
"Something else that's my fault. Something I really wish I had given you yesterday. It definitely would have prevented you from almost killing yourself." Grand opened the box, Lightning now seeing it was a neck guard, similar to the one he had saw Cold Steel wearing. On its front was a yellow gemstone. "This crystal is specially designed to store electrical magic. Once synchronized with your system, it'll start pulling magic out of you until its full. When fully charged, it'll be able to store enough electrical magic to power Canterlot for a week."
Lightning just stared at it, "Whoa...why are you giving me this?"
"Because your challenges are only just beginning. With how much power your lightning magic needs, what happened last night could happen again." He placed a hoof on Lightning's shoulders. "I don't want to lose you. Hopefully, this'll help prevent that."
Lightning smiled as he placed the necklace around his neck, his horn already channeling magic into the gem. He could feel the energy being drawn out, though it was just a bit of magic at a time. "Nice...thanks gramps." he hummed as he slumped back into his bed. "Here's hoping this thing will be charged after I'm out of this bed."
"No problem kiddo. I love ya." Grand replied as they then both shared a hug. But as it ended, Grand leaned back with a smirk, "But why are you saying something that depressing as staying in this bed?"
"Huh?"
Grand edged closer to his grandson, his smirk increasing, "If I remember correctly, my grandson loves a good party, and that includes the Fantasia Festival."
Lightning just blinked in response, "Gramps, I would love to go to the festival...but I can't walk right now, remember?"
"I know." Grand added as he pointed to the door, "That's why I brought that wheelchair from earlier to help you get out and see the whole thing. Now come on, let's go have some fun, like a family should."
Lightning shined a huge smile at this, "Okay, I'll say you convinced me...but on one condition."
"What's that?"
"Get one of my friends to put me in the chair and push me."
Grand raised an eyebrow at this, "Oh? What, you don't trust this old stallion with helping you around?"
Lightning's reply was to stick out his tongue, "No, I trust you to make one wrong move and crush the wheelchair with your super knight strength."
"You little...fine! I won't let you see the festival then!" Grand grumbled as he looked away with a big fake frown.
Lightning just rolled his eyes, "Gramps...I'm joking. Listen, let's go see the festival, alright? You can come along with my friends. I just...I wanna go with them as well, because...they're my family too."
The statement made Grand glance back with a smile on his face, "I understand. I'll go get one of 'em. Just stay put, okay kiddo?"
"I ain't going anywhere." Lightning replied as Grand left the room. The defender let out a long sigh of relief after that, laying back into his bed as he thought about the past two days. He now knew he wasn't alone anymore. He had his friends...and they were his true family.