//------------------------------// // 2. How the Magic of Friendship Grows, Part Two // Story: My Little Pony: How the Magic of Friendship Grows (Season 1) // by Majestical4729 //------------------------------// Previously on My Little Pony... "How am I supposed to be like Princess Twilight, if I start learning about friendship in a super different environment?" Luster asked. "Relax, Luster, you have friends right here! Us! We'll help you go through the day and night!" Alkali assured. "I don't think I can learn friendship here." Luster sadly told her friends. "Here, I kept getting special treatment because of being the daughter of the Heads, students keep overwhelming me with their attention and care, and I'lll barely get to have some creature who likes me for who I am and not because of my position, just like a friend would!" "Luster," Sunshine approached, "I know it's hard for you, being the one student here with the most attention, but don't forget; you already have tons of friends by your side, us!" "Princess Twilight Sparkle!" Luster greeted. "Luster Dawn! How can you forget to bow before me?!" "Princess Twilight Sparkle just acted a little...mean to me today," Luster told her friends, "I think something's wrong." "If something's weird or causing you to get suspicious, you should trust your feelings," Buffer reminded Luster, before turning to her friends, "So if Luster thinks that there's something odd with Princess Twilight Sparkle, we should at least try to make sure everything's fine!" "This plan is going perfectly!" 'Twilight' sneered to herself, "Tomorrow, when every creature comes to that silly event, after Rainbow performs her rainboom, I'll cast my spell on them all, making them all my loyal subjects, and they will only have me to adore! Making me in complete and total control of all of Equestria and beyond!" Following where the events of the first episode left off, the ten creatures watched in horror as 'Twilight' laughed evilly as the green brew bubbled. Luster started to show despair as her round oval eyes turned into trapeziums, as tears started to form. She could not believe it; her mentor, her idol, the famous heroine and Ruler of Equestria...turned out to be evil?! This could not be! "Please say I'm having a nightmare," Luster told her best friends. "You're having a nightmare?" Yellow Bright asked, doing what Luster just said. "This cannot be happening!" Luster whispered in disbelief. "I can't believe it, neither!" Sunshine Rays added. "How can any creature believe it?!" Falcon Dive asked. "Princess Twilight can't be evil!" Luster claimed. "But you heard her plot!" Volcano argued. "She's going to control all of Equestria and beyond!" Evergreen added. "Tomorrow!" Buffer continued. As the creatures began an argument, 'Princess Twilight Sparkle' overheard the growing noise and soon discovered them, and responded by using her magic to freeze them, levitating them in front of her. "You creatures are nothing but fools! Thinking that you could get away with spying on me, the Ruler of Equestria?! Well, you are all lucky that my cauldron is reserved for tomorrow, but that doesn't mean that you are all really lucky! Because I can't have you ten out and about, now that you've discovered my plans..." The creatures whimpered as 'Twilight' expressed a wicked look and made her horn glow. The next thing they knew, 'Twilight' casted a spell that sent them sinking below the throne room... Opening up her eyes, Luster found herself, and her best friends in a crystal cave, with the four walls and ceiling and floor all around them, trapping them. "Where are we?" Krona asked. Luster gasped, "The catacombs underneath Canterlot!" "You mean, the same place Queen Chrysalis imprisoned Princess Cadance during the royal wedding?" Volcano asked. "Yes, it is, and it's still abandoned even after the Legion of Doom imprisoned Twilight's friends on the day her coronation is supposed to happen," Luster recalled. "Speaking of Princess Twilight Sparkle," Sunshine Rays said, "I can't believe what we saw her do last night!" "How can she be...evil?!" Alkali asked. "And how can she be power-hungry?" Buffer asked. Luster could not help but express sadness whenever she heard her best friends mention her mentor being bad, before Nature Bloom asked, "You alright, Luster?" "NO! I just can't believe that my mentor is...evil..." Luster cried. "We can't believe it, neither," Evergreen admitted, "But we can't let it affect us," "Yeah, we're the only creatures who know about her evil plot, so it's up to us to stop her!" Falcon Dive announced. "But how are we supposed to do that?!" Buffer asked. "Well, I may not want to face my mentor, but I don't want Equestria suffering even more. I'm in with all of you to save every creature," Luster declared, "Krona, try to use your strength to smash the walls," "Krona's BEST when it comes to SMASHING!" Krona proudly claimed, before charging at the wall, destroying it as she stormed through. "Well done, Krona!" Luster praised, before leading the team, "Come on, every creature! Let's go!" While running, Buffer asked Luster, "Um, Luster? I know that I told you that it's best for you to not use teleportation, but in this case, can you please try using it to get us out?" Luster stopped, causing the whole team to do the same, "Oh my gosh, I forgot! Thanks, Buffer!" The ten gathered around as Luster's horn glowed, but unfortunately, Luster discovered something they all forgot; the catacombs were magic-sealing catacombs that prevented all uses of magic. "Oh no, we all forgot! The catacombs can seal off all magic! That means no dragon breath, no changeling transformations, no Kirin turning into a Nirik, no hippogriff turning into a seapony, and no unicorn spells!" Luster sadly announced. Every creature gasped to discover their many disadvantages, before Evergreen calmed them down,"Calm down, every creature, panicking never helps!" "But...but...but..." Falcon Dive started, "We have no idea what time it is! Plus, Princess Twilight's going to control all of our friends and fellow creatures if we don't stop her!" "We need to hurry!" Volcano added. As every creature dashed through the tunnels, Evergreen told them, "Alright, we have to hurry, but stay calm at the same time," "And how are we supposed to do that?" Buffer asked, before bumping into Yellow Bright, Nature Bloom and Alkali. "The tunnel's getting narrower!" Luster exclaimed. "Well, look on the bright side, we can still go through, just...not all together at once!" Yellow Bright pointed out, before racing through the tunnel, followed by Alkali, who raced after him. "Every creature, STOP!" Krona suddenly shouted, freezing Yellow Bright and Alkali. "What is it, Krona?" Buffer asked in a concerned tone. "Krona don't think that she can follow her creature friends," Krona told the group, speaking in third-creature as usual, "Tunnel's so narrow, Krona can't fit! Friends should go off without Krona, for the sake of Equestria." "But, Krona! Friends will never leave friends behind!" Nature Bloom pointed out. "Yeah, for all the time in the School of Friendship, we always learn what true friendship is like, and what true friends do," Volcano added. "But Equestria need saving! You should save every creature and not choose trying to help Krona over them," Krona sadly told her friends. "Krona, are you sure you want to be left behind?" Luster asked, approaching the yak. "Krona does not want to be left behind," Krona admitted, "But Equestria's really a lot more important than Krona, friends should choose it over her. Go, Krona doesn't want every creature hurt because of her!" Krona urged. "No way, Krona!" Falcon Dive protested, "The School of Friendship has taught us students to be loyal to our friends, and we're not leaving any one of them behind! We're taking you with us!" "But how? Without any magic or super power, all we can do is try to squeeze her through the tunnel's," Sunshine Rays pointed out. "Or maybe we can try it a different way," Volcano suggested, "Krona, can you lie down, flat on your back?" "Of course Krona can!" Krona proudly replied, before doing as told. "Good, now, please don't react until I say you can," Volcano instructed, as he and the rest of their best friends flipped Krona side way, with her right side in contact with the floor, in order to drag her through the tunnel without the problem of her getting stuck. Once they were at the end of the tunnel and in an open cavern, Volcano allowed Krona to flip herself back up, as the group resumed their journey, with Luster telling Krona, "Krona, I can't believe that you were willing to say that you think that we should leave you behind. I mean, it's against everything the School of Friendship taught you!" "Krona does not like going against what she learnt at friendship school," Krona admitted, "But Krona knew that it was for the better in that situation!" "So, you're not scared of us possibly telling our teachers what happened?!" Sunshine Rays asked. "Especially since we got Honesty Class?" Buffer added. "You could get sent back a grade or worse!" Volcano added. "Or worst of all, get all of us into trouble, if we left you behind!" Falcon Dive concluded. "Krona was just telling the truth," Krona told every creature, "If she didn't, she'd probably get stuck in that tunnel and made things worse for every creature!" "Even if it's showing something that can...ruin your studies and reputation?!" Nature Bloom asked. "Even if it's crazy, Krona knew that telling the truth is the right thing to do!" Krona proudly declared. "That's pretty great, but...we still got all of Equestria and beyond to save!" Yellow Bright reminded, causing the whole group to race through the caverns and caves. Not long after their conversation about Krona's willingness to tell truths that could ruin things for her, the group encountered a second obstacle; multiple tunnels to choose from. "If we go down the right one, we'll get out." Luster stated, "But go down the wrong one...there's no telling what horrible things can happen." Nature Bloom whimpered, "How are we going to find the right tunnel?" "Step aside, every creature, I know Physics can get us out of this," Volcano declared, "All we need is a really loud sound, send it through the tunnels, and listen for the echo. If we hear a loud echo, it means that it's a dead end, but if we don't hear it, it means that there's a long tunnel down." "Or maybe we should just smash the dead end with Krona's brute strength," Falcon Dive suggested, "I mean, shouldn't we worry that a tunnel that doesn't lead to a dead end can actually lead us to more tunnel trouble?" "Or, maybe we should try to fly Krona up the ceiling and have her smash it?" Alkali asked. "But I figured that..." Volcano began, only to be cut off by Falcon. "Your way is the best? Come on, Volcano! We can't risk getting even more lost!" "And a really loud sound can be a little dangerous," Luster added, "We might risk making the whole catacombs shake or collapse as particles vibrate, plus, even deafen ourselves." "So we should just smash the ceilings!" Falcon exclaimed, before he was stopped by Sunshine. "Falcon, are you crazy?! We might risk causing the catacombs to collapse by doing that as well!" "Oh, so know you're telling me that there's no way out?!" Falcon asked. The creatures then started a huge argument about how they were supposed to proceed, before Buffer broke it up by shouting, "QUIET!" Everycreature was silent as they turned their attention to Buffer. "Every creature, I know we all want to get out of here as fast as possible, and not get lost, but arguing is not helping. We should be listening," he told his friends. "But, we all have different opinions!" Alkali reminded. "And we can only make one choice out of all the choices," Sunshine Rays added. "How do we know who to listen to?!" Falcon Dive asked. "By letting every creature clearly state their opinion, and point of view, and most importantly, listen." Buffer explained, "So, Falcon thinks that we should just get Krona to smash our way out, but Sunshine says that it would risk making the whole catacombs collapse on us. Volcano suggests listening for echoes, which can be a lot safer." "But if the sound's too loud, it will still risk making the catacombs...collapse." Nature Bloom whimpered. "So we need a sound that is just right." Buffer declared, before asking, "Would Krona's shouting be enough?" "As long as it's not too loud," Volcano replied, before stepping aside to let Krona send her voice down the tunnels, and listening for the echoes. After finding a tunnel that barely had an echo, the group rushed through it, while thanking Buffer for his good listening knowledge and skills. "If it weren't for you, we'd probably still be arguing!" Yellow Bright commented. "Or do something foolish with one of our ideas," Alkali added. "Or worst of all, lose our friendship," Nature Bloom whimpered. "Don't worry every creature, I know listening at the back of my head," Buffer claimed. At the end of the tunnel, the creatures' eyes widened as they looked around in disbelief. They had found a huge cavern filled with all the treasures a rich creature would have; shores of gold, piles of gems, seas of jewels, chests of pearls and more. Overwhelmed by the great opportunity together rich immediately, most of the creatures could not help but charge at the treasures, with the intentions of taking it with them. "STOP!" Sunshine Rays shouted, causing her friends to halt."We should not take any of these treasures, if we did, we're doing something wrong!" "But, we're not just going to help ourselves," Falcon Dive protested, "We'll help others by donating all these treasures!" "But the treasures don't belong to us!" Sunshine Rays pointed out, "If something does not belong to us, we should not do whatever we want with it, like we were its owners! We should leave it the way it is, and that means leaving each and every bit of these treasures alone." "Thanks Sunshine," Luster approached the pegasus, "For...preventing us from doing what's wrong." "That's what true friends do!" Sunshine Rays replied, "Remind each other the right thing, and ensure they do what is right." The ten creatures left the treasures alone and resumed their journey, before stopping in front of a huge boulder that was equal to their sizes combined. "Can Krona smash it?" Alkali asked. "Krona may be strong, but even she knows that she can't smash a boulder like that." Krona replied. "Or maybe we don't have to smash it," Volcano suggested, "Since gems are usually harder than rocks, and dragons can eat and chew on gems, I suppose..." "That you can...eat it?!" Yellow Bright asked in a shocked tone. "Not exactly eat it, but chew, bite and spit it out, until I create an opening for all of us to go through." Volcano explained, "But it's going to take a while." "It will take ages!" impatient Falcon Dive complained. "Now, now, Falcon. Remember, complaining never helps," Evergreen reminded. "But all of Equestria is in danger!" Falcon Dive argued. "Keep up your work, Volcano, I'll keep every creature in check," Luster told her dragon fiend. While waiting for Volcano to clear the boulder, the rest of the creatures started playing small games such as tic-tac-toe or 'guess what I am describing', or even the well-known scissors, paper, stone. After what felt like forever, Volcano announced that he had finished creating an opening big enough for every creature. After helping the flightless creatures up the opening that halved the boulder, the group complemented Volcano's hardworking spirit. "That was really impressive, Volcano!" Luster praised, "I mean, none of us, nor any creature else would have the heart to do what you just did!" "Yeah, we'd probably give up on the first minute, or decide that we don't want to do so," Falcon Dive sarcastically added. "If we had your ability, that is." Buffer added. "Volcano's very hardworking!" Evergreen told the others. "In both studies and non-studies," Volcano proudly added, before they heard a loud, terrified scream. "What's wrong?" Luster asked. "THAT!" Krona pointed a hoof at a huge spider that was the size of a bed, and had the colour of the crystals in the surroundings. "A Crystal Cave Spider!" Nature Bloom exclaimed, "I usually read a lot about animals and plants outside of regular Biology education, and of course, read about spiders." "Who cares?! Let's just get it to leave us alone!" Falcon Dive declared, charging at the spider. The spider responded by shooting sticky substance at the griffon, causing him to retreat. Seeing the spider attempting to hurt their friend caused Luster to instruct her friends, "Alright, every creature! Let's give it a little motivation to back off!" The creatures charged at the spider, but was stopped by Nature Bloom who prevented them from hurting the beast by placing herself in front of them, "WAIT!" After the others halted, Nature Bloom told them, "Don't hurt the spider!" she then turned to the Crystal Cave Spider that her friends tried to attack, "It's alright, calm down. I'm really sorry about my schoolmates and what they did to you." Feeling ashamed of themselves, Nature Bloom's best friends backed off and watched her communicate with the spider, ending the talk with, "Thanks you for the understanding, and hopefully no creature will ever bother you again." "What did it say?" Luster asked her changeling friend. "She said that she forgives you all, as long as what you did to her does not happen again," Nature Bloom answered. The creatures expressed guilt for their actions as Sunshine Rays apologised, "We're really sorry...for what we did." "It's alright," Nature Bloom assured, "All is forgiven, plus, the spider told me the way out to thank me for saving her from... all of you." "About that..." Falcon Dive scratched his head, "Really sorry for starting the whole attack thing." "Don't worry, it's over now," Nature Bloom told every creature, "Just remember to not judge others by species, you should at least try to be nice to them before doing something like...what you did." "And we got to get out of here ASAP!" Luster reminded, leading her friends through the caves. As they ran, Nature Bloom was starting to get overwhelmed by her friends complements for her amazing animal taming skills. "You were just like the School of Friendship's former Kindness Teacher, Professor Fluttershy!" Alkali commented. "We really are lucky to have you in our group!" Yellow Bright added. "That taming was really awesome!" Falcon Dive exclaimed. "Maybe you all should stop talking and save your breath," Nature Bloom suggested, trying to avoid unwanted attention. The group screeched to a halt as they noticed a dead end in front of them. A deep canyon with a bottom that was a hundred metres below them stared at them, to Nature Bloom and Krona's horror. "What now, Nature Bloom?" Luster asked. "The way out is at the bottom of this canyon!" Nature Bloom whimpered. Falcon Dive claimed, "No big deal, we can easily fly all of our friends down and out." "Um, not all of our friends." Buffer pointed out, turning every creature's attention to himself and Krona. "Krona can barely fit through the canyon's walls, unless she slides down the slope." Luster explained. "Slide?!" Krona asked, while shivering. "Are you scared?" Evergreen asked in a concerned tone. "Krona admits it; she's scared of heights!" Krona announced for the whole group to hear. "Come on, Krona!" Alkali cheered, "Think of it this way; it's just a while, and it's a super fun slide!" To further encourage her friend to slide, Alkali slid down the slope with her wings closed tight, so she could not use flight. "You'll so regret not doing this, guys! It's fun!" Alkali shouted to her friends, who were watching her from above. Encouraged, every creature decided to slide down the slope after Alkali, with Krona being the only creature who had yet to slide down. Realising that her Best Friend needed more encouragement, Alkali flew back up and told Krona, "To really give you enough encouragement, I'll slide down with you, and all of our friends will help by being there to ensure that you reach the bottom safely." Assured and encouraged, Krona closed he eyes and slid down, with Alkali right beside and squealing. Slowly opening her eyes and finding things fun, Krona happily exclaimed, "SLIDING DOWN IS BEST!" Once the girls reached the bottom, Buffer approached his best friends, "You made it!" "And sliding is great!" Krona exclaimed. "And fun!" Alkali added, approaching Krona. "Thanks, Alkali, for showing Krona that sliding is fun!" Krona thanked her hippogriff friend. "You're welcome, Krona. I knew that all you needed is a little encouragement." Alkali replied. "That's sweet, guys, but we really need to move on!" Volcano reminded, "Equestria's in danger!" "And we got to save it!" Luster added, before leading the group on another run. As the creatures stampeded through the caverns, they suddenly heard crystals colliding, looking up, they watched in horror as the crystals on the ceiling were loose, threatening to fall on them. Fortunately, Evergreen managed to respond quickly, telling her friends, "Every creature, freeze!" As their attention faced the Kirin, the creatures were not moving, causing the crystals to stop. "The crystals are fragile," Evergreen explained, "The vibrations caused by our movement and noise caused them to move, so we must be very careful, quiet and gentle while walking through here." "But Equestria..." Falcon Dive begun, before Evergreen cut him off. "As long as we gently step on the floor, and do not hurry, we'll be fine. Calm down, and think of soothing thoughts." The creatures followed Evergreen's instructions as they travelled through the cavern, while she looked up at the ceiling, when there were no more crystals above them, Evergreen announced that they could resume their run. "Thanks for helping us get pass the crystals, Evergreen." Nature Bloom thanked her Kirin friend. "Yeah, we might have been goners if it weren't for you!" Yellow Bright added. "She totally learnt about crystals from me!" Volcano pointed out. "Yes, I did." Evergreen confirmed, "But it wasn't just me; all of you cooperating with me and being calm helped. Sometimes, you have to be patient, calm down, and accept the facts." Suddenly, a loud snap could be heard. The creatures looked down and gasped, they were stepping on a skeleton body! Looking around, more skeleton bodies were seen, making the group huddle together in fear. "Skeletons are the remaining of dead beings," Nature Bloom said her thought out loud, "And if there are many skeletons here..." "Many creatures died here!" Volcano added. "But why?!" Sunshine Rays asked. "Come on, every creature!" Yellow Bright announced, "Let's just look around and be careful of things and just carry on our journey!" "Yellow Bright! Are you crazy?!" Krona asked. "We have no idea what caused so many deaths here, and if we don't take it seriously, we might suffer the same fate as all of these dead creatures!" Luster added. "We should take it seriously, without letting fear overwhelm us," Yellow Bright pointed out, "Come on, guys, maybe these skeletons are fakes, or, the remaining of creatures that passed away elsewhere, but moved here." "But there's still a chance that these skeletons are real!" Alkali whimpered. "We should be really, very careful!" Evergreen pointed out, "Even when we're positive." "Don't worry, every creature! I know that we have to be positive, but not too positive that we don't take any cautions or precautions. I'm only saying that we should try to fill our minds with positive thoughts to calm down, not negative thoughts that make us scared." Yellow Bright explained. "That is most likely the right level of positivity." Sunshine Rays commented, before Yellow Bright went on with a list of positive things to tell his best friends. Listening to Yellow Bright, the group calmed down, walking out with barely any fear. Soon, they were out of the cavern filled with skeletons, all in one piece. "Hey, there aren't any skeletons around!" Alkali exclaimed, noticing that the surroundings were clear of bones. "We're finally out of those awful, terrifying caves!" Nature Bloom heaved a sigh of relief. "Thanks, Yellow Bright, you really helped us stay calm." Evergreen complemented. "You would say calm, while I would say positive!" Yellow Bright proudly declared. "That's great," Falcon Dive commented, "But what is even more great is...the entrance is just over there!" Every creature turned to look at the opening that Falcon Dive was pointing at. "Finally!" Sunshine Rays exclaimed. Overjoyed to see that they were finally getting out of the caves, the ten creatures raced towards their destination, unintentionally causing a rock slide as the rocks nearby were set loose due to the vibrations caused by the creatures' running. "ROCKSLIDE!" Krona screamed, causing the whole group to scatter in different directions, trying to avoid getting hit by the falling rocks. Falcon Dive, being the fastest member of the group, dashed around the scene, scooping up his friends and bringing them to the entrance for safety, one by one. After saving Nature Bloom, Falcon rushed back into the cavern to help one last creature; Krona. Unable to lift Krona out, Falcon Dive bravely kicked the falling boulders that threatened to fall on his friend away. Once every creature was out, Luster thanked Falcon Dive, "Falcon, thanks for saving all of us. That was really brave of you." "Especially when you could have just save yourself," Yellow Bright added. "No need to thank me, every creature, I'm just caring about others more than I would care about myself." Falcon Dive proudly declared. "For some creature impatient, you are surprisingly heroic." Evergreen commented. "For once, I finally worship your selflessness, Falcon." Sunshine Rays added. "Thanks, Sunshine Rays. At least there's something I'm good at, and good for: Being selfless, and I know that its definition is concerned more with the needs and wishes of others than with one's own, but I can tell that it's more than that, it's about being able to sacrifice your own good for every creature else's." Falcon Dive replied, a second before the sky turned dark. "Oh no," Luster Dawn whimpered, gazing at the dark sky. "Is this supposed to happen?" Nature Bloom asked. "No, it's afternoon, so the sky should not be dark right now." Volcano stated. "Maybe some dark clouds got loose from the Weather Factory?" Yellow Bright asked. "No, it's dark magic." Luster explained, "We got to stop Princess Twilight!" With her unicorn magic back, Luster teleported herself and her best friends to the opened field near Ponyville, where they scream in shock to see the crowd silently watching 'Princess Twilight Sparkle' casting a spell that changed the sky's colour. Worst of all, their screams were easily heard, turning every creature's attention towards them. 'Princess Twilight Sparkle' ordered the brainwashed crowd to capture the ten not brainwashed creatures, starting a battle. "Princess Twilight's forcing us to battle every creature we know, love and care about?!" Nature Bloom asked in a horrified tone. "And fight in a super unfair war of ten versus ten thousand?!" Sunshine Rays added. "Are you sure there are exactly ten thousand of them?" Krona asked. "It's an estimation," Sunshine Rays clarified. "Uh, guys? Maybe we should talk less for now, because they're coming!" Buffer pointed out, as the army of brainwashed creatures charged at the not brainwashed. Luster quickly used her magic to create a force field to protect her and her friends, but the brainwashed yaks attacked the field with their Brute Strength, forcing Luster to teleport the group to safety in her dorm at the School of Friendship. "That was close," Evergreen commented. "I'm glad that we didn't hurt our friends," Nature Bloom heaved a sigh of relief. "But they were attacking us!" Krona pointed out. "Only because they're being brainwashed!" Sunshine Rays explained. "Um, Luster?" Falcon Dive asked, approaching to the friend he mentioned. "Are you alright?" Alkali asked in a concerned tone. "No. We were too late to save Equestria!" Luster cried, "Worst of all, it was not just Equestria we failed to save: all of Equestria's allies from beyond were there, brainwashed as well. We doomed the world!" "I would not say so, it's not our fault that Princess Twilight brainwashed every creature," Buffer stated. "But we could have stopped her! But we didn't." Luster sadly explained, "And now, all of our friends...our families...our neighbours...every creature we ever knew...all brainwashed and controlled to serve a tyrant." "Maybe we can still survive somehow?" Yellow Bright asked. "No, Yellow Bright. We have to save every creature!" Falcon Dive pointed out. "Yeah, we came so far, we can't just give up now!" Alkali added. "But what can we do? We're no match for all of those creatures. And there's no doubt that Princess Twilight's looking for us to brainwash us!" Luster asked. "We find a way as we keep on thinking hard!" Volcano answered. "Like, think of how to deal with them?" Buffer asked. "Most likely." Sunshine Rays told him. "Well, I know a trick or two in areal combat, and that trick actually requires at least two creatures capable of flight, as they lead their opponents into crashing into each other while the trick performers just move out of the way in time." Falcon Dive stated. "And I have been doing smoke tricks and improvising them for quite some time now," Volcano added, "I bet that can help." "And I can turn into a Nirik, and use walls of fire to trap non-kirins." Evergreen contributed. "Krona can only smash, but that won't be good against yaks," Krona stated. "But it will be good against another one of our opponents," Luster pointed out, having been encouraged by her friends' conversation, "Your suggestions and every creature else's have encourage me to make a plan and save every creature!" "That's wonderful!" Nature Bloom commented. "So, Luster Dawn, what's the plan?" Alkali asked. "Well, we all know that we are heavily outnumbered," Luster began, before Nature Bloom added, "And none of us have the intentions of attacking or hurting the brainwashed army." "Right." Luster responded, before explaining, "But there's something we all have that the brainwashed army does not..." Some time later...'Princess Twilight Sparkle' was standing on top of a hill, explaining her plan to conquer every inch of the world to all her brainwashed minions. A second later, the ten creatures returned for a second battle, with Luster catching their attention, ""Hey, every creature! Do you want to know something better than power? It's friendship!" 'Princess Twilight' laughed, "Oh, please! You ten have made a big mistake catching my attention like that!" she then pointed her hoof at Luster's group, ordering her minions, "GET THEM!" The ten heroes bravely split up, dividing the army in the process, as the brainwashed creatures chased each one of Luster's friends. Nature Bloom used her shapeshifting magic to transform into a younger Rainbow Dash, and used the famous pegasus' speed to outfly the real Rainbow Dash and the Pegasi. Falcon Dive was just as fast as Nature while she was transformed, flying in all sorts of directions to confuse the minions. On the ground, Volcano used his smoke to prevent some of the brainwashed creatures from seeing everything, while Evergreen, having transformed into a Nirik, used her fire to trap a portion of the army. Luster used her magic to turn the ground that an army of brainwashed creatures were standing on into sticky sap. Krona used her smashing to prevent some brainwashed unicorns from performing spells. Buffer and Yellow Bright led two separated groups of brainwashed minions towards the area perpendicular to where Falcon Dive, Nature Bloom, Alkali and Sunshine Rays made the brainwashed fliers crash into each other, so the falling creatures would land on the brainwashed non-fliers. "We're so sorry and we are actually trying our best not to hurt you!" Nature Bloom called to the brainwashed creatures, after changing back her regular form. Luster then used her magic to subdue the brainwashed unicorns temporarily, while teleporting Krona to the group, as they regrouped around their leader. Luster then teleported her and her friends right underneath 'Princess Twilight Sparkle' surprising the said pony, while knocking her off the ground. "Princess Twilight! What's gotten into you?! You have always been satisfied and grateful for the Magic of Friendship, all these years! How can you turn on everything you've learnt about it now and be so...power-hungry?!" Luster asked, trying to reason with her 'mentor'. "The 'Magic of Friendship' is a little filly's tale! Why would you want it when you can have all the power in the world?!" 'Princess Twilight' protested, "I've always been so powerful inside with my magic, there's no need for ridiculous friends to share everything with!" "Seriously, after everything you've been through with them, that's what you call them now?" asked Falcon Dive. "Oh, come on! Would Princess Celestia and Princess Luna want their successor to be like this?!" Krona asked. "Evil and power-hungry?" Sunshine Rays added. "And nasty?" Nature Bloom ended. Enraged by being called 'nasty', 'Princess Twilight' made her horn glow as she glared at the creatures, "You creatures are troublesome enough! I shouldn't brainwash you...I should destroy you ALL!" 'Twilight' released a huge magic beam at the ten creatures, attempting to finish them. Luster quickly responded by creating a force field, but her force field was starting to weaken as she started to get exhausted, while her 'mentor' continued the attack. A second after Luster's force field shattered, 'Twilight' sent a huge beam at the ten creatures, who quickly responded by gathering around Luster, embracing what was presumed to be their final group hug... Thinking that her enemies were gone, 'Twilight' laughed evilly before gasping in shock as she realised that the creatures were unharmed: Luster had conjured up a new force field that protected them. Realising something, Luster gasped, "I get it now!" "Get what now?!" 'Princess Twilight' asked. "The magic that protected me and my friends did not come from me, it came from my friendship with them," Luster Dawn explained, "The Magic of Friendship did not come from the Elements of Harmony, the elements were just symbols. The real magic has always been in those who possess true friendship. Each of my friends has a unique good value that they showed to the rest, helping the whole group out of the caves, and maintain their friendship. Being able to get pass all those obstacles together have proven their friendship strong. And the more they show and understand friendship, the stronger they are, both individually and together." During Luster's explanation, she and her friends glowed and floated up before 'Twilight', to her shock. The moment Luster finished explaining, the Magic of Friendship empowered her and her friends, changing their appearances: Krona's lighter stripes on her fur and mane turned bright strong red, with the same going for the spots on her clothes. Volcano gained lighter orange lines on his body while his wings grew larger with the same pattern on it. Buffer received peach streaks on his fur. Yellow Bright's mane had thin yellow stripes and changed shape as it flowed. Sunshine Rays' mane flowed and her wings grew to match those of Celestia's, with streaks that were strong, bright green. Evergreen's mane developed bright cyan stripes. Falcon Dive's wings expanded and received strong blue stripes. Alkali's mane received indigo stripes. Nature Bloom's wings grew to look like those of a butterfly, while her hooves gained a violet flower pattern. Luster Dawn grew taller to look like Princess Celestia, with her mane gaining additional shiny golden streaks while flowing. The very next second after their instant transformations, the ten creatures used the Magic of Friendship to create a magical rainbow with the colours of red, orange, peach, yellow, green, cyan, blue, indigo, purple and shiny gold, that rose into the sky, before it charged down at 'Twilight', hitting her and releasing a magical rainboom of the same colours. The rainboom undid all the spells 'Twilight' had casted as it passed by the surroundings, releasing every creature from her control. The crowd watched as Luster and her friends changed back into their original forms and approached a fallen pony who was not Twilight at all. "Princess Twilight Sparkle?" Luster asked, a moment before she heard some creature behind her saying, "I am here, Luster Dawn, my faithful student." "Princess Twilight Sparkle?" the ten creatures asked in shock, turning to look at where the rainbow hit 'Twilight' and left a unicorn weakened, before turning to see where Twilight was that moment. "What is going on?!" Luster asked, confused. "Eclipse Instant, my former star student at the School for Gifted Unicorns, had casted a spell to switch my body with hers." Twilight explained, "She fooled the guards into locking me up in the dungeon and subduing my magic by impersonating me. I was horrified and worried about Equestria ever since, until I heard a loud explosion and suddenly turned back to normal." "So...the pony we faced...wasn't you?" Luster asked. "It really wasn't." Twilight confirmed, causing Luster's eyes to widen as a smile grew on her face. "Thank goodness you're always the good, great pony I know you are!" Luster exclaimed, happily hugging her real mentor. "Of course I always am, and will be, Luster." Twiliight assured, embracing the hug, before she turned to her fallen former student, "Eclipse Instant, it's been three long years since I tried to reason with you; power makes you hungry for even more, you should make some friends and learn true friendship instead. More importantly, power ultimately isn't as satisfying as it seems, it does not give you what friendship can. You can seek friendship out, or forever be on your own, against all of us." With tears in her eyes, Eclipse Instant cried, "I'm so sorry! I really am! I didn't know and never thought of it this way!" "The Magic of Friendship does not belong to just me and my friends," Twilight pointed out, "Any creature can have and share it, and that 'any creature', meant every creature." "But, now that I've done something horrible to every creature, how am I supposed to even make a friend?" Eclipse Instant sadly asked. "I believe that my friends and I are more than willing enough to give you a chance," Luster Dawn declared. "Totally! The more friends, the merrier!" Alkali cheered. "And the past does not matter anymore," Krona added. "For most cases," Sunshine Rays corrected. "And this, is definitely one of the most cases," Volcano confirmed. "Because who you are now is what matters," Nature Bloom explained. "We must be willing to accept the fact that we made mistakes, and not wish that they can be deleted," Evergreen added. "So, will you accept friendship, this time?" Luster asked Eclipse, reaching a hoof out to the remorseful villainess. With a tear flowing out of her eyes, Eclipse Instant placed her hoof on Luster Dawn's, accepting the offer. "Luster!" Starlight called, as she and Sunburst, approached their daughter. "What happened back there?" Sunburst asked. "It's a really long story..." Luster told her parents, "With some interesting elements and values that I would like to share with every creature." "Take it away, my faithful student." Princess Twilight Sparkle warmly instructed. "Every creature in this crowd, I've been learning friendship at the School of Friendship for a while, learning the values of Honesty, Kindness, Laughter, Generosity and Loyalty, taught by the teachers. But today, during my adventure with my best friends, each of them showed a new value that they have." Luster announced, before explaining each of her friends' values, making them feel proud. "Krona showed her integrity, when she told the truth about what she was thinking, despite it being against what she learnt about friendship, in order to prevent an unfortunate outcome that would happen if she did not." "Buffer showed his listening skills when he stopped an argument between his friends by listening to what each of them had to say, and identifying who should be listened to." "Sunshine Rays showed her morality when she prevented us from taking the treasures that we found, which is something wrong as the treasures did not belong to us." "Volcano showed his diligence, when he was hardworking enough to clear a boulder that could take days to clear." " Nature Bloom showed her niceness, when she warmly approached a Crystal Cave Spider and respected it, despite its earlier attack." "Alkali showed her encouraging spirit by giving Krona the hope and motivation she needed to slide down a slope." "Evergreen showed her patience throughout the journey, staying calm and not complaining much, and most importantly, helped all of her friends be patient enough to walk through a cavern filled with fragile crystals slowly and carefully." "Yellow Bright showed his positivity, by helping his friends think positively, when they were overwhelmed by few and negative thoughts." "Last but not least, Falcon Dive showed his selflessness, when he bravely saved every creature at the risk of his own life." "And Luster Dawn, who led us through the adventure, and the battle against Eclipse Instants's brainwashed army and Eclipse Instant herself, showed that she, Luster Dawn, is a great leader." Luster's best friends announced, "Therefore, Luster showed us her leadership!" "And they are all wonderful good values to show and know," Princess Twilight commented, "Such a shame that they had to be named individually or simply called 'Luster Dawn and her friends' values' when we would like to mention them all." "Can you please give us a second, your Majesty?" Luster asked politely, before Twilight nodded, allowing the unicorn and her friends to have a huddled up discussion for a few seconds. After the short discussion was over, Luster Dawn announced, "My best friends and I have decided, that we would like to be known as 'The Heroic Ten', from now onwards. And, the good values that we showed, shall be known as 'The Elements of Purity', inspired by the Elements of Harmony." "And we are all honoured to have them known far and wide, and celebrate the victory of our new heroes, on their Graduation Day!" Princess Twilight added, followed by the loud cheering of the crowd. "Graduation Day?!" the Heroic Ten asked in a confused tone. "You all have proven that you have learnt enough about friendship at the school," Princess Twilight explained, "By introducing new elements that can help strengthen and maintain friendship to all of Equestria and beyond, you have shown that you no longer need the school's lessons: You are all ready to learn friendship, on your own." "Thank you so much, Princess Twilight Sparkle!" Luster thanked, while letting out a tear of joy. "And it's about time! We've waited forever to graduate!" Falcon Dive complained. "Um, Falcon? Remember, patience..." Evergreen reminded. "And niceness," Nature Bloom added. "Sorry, every creature. Looks like I need to learn some more patience and niceness from my best friends," Falcon apologised, causing every creature to share a laugh. Rainbow Dash performed another Sonic Rainboom for every creature to watch that day, this time for the newly named Heroic Ten's celebration. Luster was glad that she got to see a Sonic Rainboom for the first time in her life, and share the moment with her best friends. Rainbow then landed beside her husband Soarin, and their ten-years-old twins, Sonic and Rainboom. Pinkie Pie and Cheese Sandwich, alongside their son Lil'Cheese shot confetti out of their party canyons. Discord summoned his wife Fluttershy's bird choir so she could conduct their music. Spike held up a chest that his wife Rarity opened with her magic, revealing graduation gowns in it, before levitating the gowns and placing them on the Heroic Ten. Applejack and her husband Caramel gave the creatures a scroll each, before Princess Twilight Sparkle used her magic to levitate ten graduation hats, and place them on the ten heroes' heads. After Starlight and Sunburst declared, "The Heroic Ten has graduated from the School of Friendship!" Twilight approached her star student. "Now that you and your friends aren't students at the school anymore, I am allowing you all to move into my former residence, the Castle of Friendship. And please, take Eclipse Instant with you, and ensure that she changes for the better." "Don't worry, Princess Twilight, we will." Luster assured. "And, whenever you learn or discover something about friendship, please kindly send a report to me." Princess Twilight added. "Just like you used to do when you were Princess Celestia's student!" Luster Dawn stated. Twilight chuckled, "Of course, Luster Dawn, my faithful student." Luster smiled, in response. The scene then shifted to the evening in front of the Castle of Friendship, where Luster, who had changed out of her graduation gown, slowly strolled alone as the background turned black, with a spotlight shining on her. For the very first time, the series' theme song was introduced: A flashback begun as Luster Dawn reflected on her time in Canterlot as Princess Twilight Sparkle's student, studying hardly, avoiding every creature around. Luster Dawn lamented, "For my whole life, I've always been only focused on my studies. Never thought of making friends, and avoiding all the parties. Strongly believing that friendships were a waste of time, and ultimately fade." Flashing back to the scenes in the future setting of the 'The Last Problem'. Luster Dawn sang,"But then Princess Twilight Sparkle proved that friendships can be maintained. She then sent me off to Ponyville, to be with the friends I've made!" Luster was shown wandering around Ponyville like a tourist, looking around before she looked at her best friends during the verse. Choir sang, "My little pony." Luster Dawn sang, "I never knew what friendship really is." Choir sang, "My little pony" Luster Dawn sang,"Until my best friends showed me its magic and bliss." Krona sang, "Telling the truth," Buffer sang, "Listen to each other." Sunshine Rays sang, "Do what is right," Volcano sang, "Working hard and together." Nature Bloom sang, "Treat others with respect," Alkali sang, "Give hope, support and motivation!" Evergreen sang,"Able to accept," Yellow Bright sang, "Looking on the bright side of the situation!" Falcon Dive sang,"Put others before you," All sang, "That is all so true." Luster Dawn sang,"Oh, and how I used to never..." Choir sang, "Ah...ah...ah" Luster Dawn sang,"Know what friendship really is!" A montage with footage from the previous episode and this episode showed the Heroic Ten as's greatest moments of showing their friendship, ending with them defeating Eclipse Instant with the Magic of Friendship, and the reformed villainess accepting Luster's offer of friendship, during the verse. All sang, "This is where the magic happens, (where the magic happens.) this is where the magic lives. (where the magic lives) Our friendships weave together, stronger. The bonds grow deeper, lasting longer. And the greatest spell we'll know, (we'll know) Is how the Magic of Friendship grows." The Heroic Ten gathered close for a group photo that Eclipse Instant magically took using her magic to perform one of her highest-level spells, before sending the photo to Princess Twilight Sparkle, who was sitting in her throne with her Royal Advisor Spike beside her. Receiving the photo, Twilight smiled, and sang the final line. "How the Magic of Friendship grows."