It was difficult to say for sure, but they were somewhere under Cantelot, likely deep within the mountain. The eight mares entered the room. It was a large room, to understate it. The cross-vaulted ceiling towered overhead, at least 300 ft high. Giant cylindrical columns were evenly dispersed, alternating between marble and granite. The floor was a sea of dark stone, occasionally broken by geometric patterns of lighter stone. From where they stood, the mares couldn’t see the other end and either side was at least 250 yards away. The formidable onyx doors shut loudly behind the princesses.
“This is quite impressive,” Rarity yawned, “but did we have to wake so early to see it?”
“Agreed,” yawned Fleur.
“Sleep is only necessary when your chakra is unwell,” offered Tree Hugger as she gently swayed in a non-existent breeze.
Cheerilee and Cup Cake stood alert and ready. Neither of them seemed phased by the early wake up call. Granny, however, slept where she stood.
“We have much to go through if you are all to be combat ready by this weekend,” stated Celestia.
“So soon?” asked Cheerilee. “I’ve been wondering: Is it really possible for us to become acquainted with our new powers and form bonds with each other so quickly? Won’t that have some sort of adverse effect? I know you said it wouldn’t, but still…”
“Indeed, it is possible to form bonds so quickly,” said Luna, “as we stated yesterday. We have a way of aiding the process. However, it will go much quicker if we are divided by teams. The proximity to ponies of the other sister is hampering the process. So…be gone, wench!” Luna stomped at the teacher.
Cheerilee jumped back and looked as somepony had just snapped her favorite piece of chalk in two. The other ponies split up, gathering near their respective princess.
Celestia spoke: “Until the battle, it is best if you do not contact any pony from the other team. Not only does this hinder the bonding process, but we also must make certain that no information is being exchanged. When we meet in battle we will know the full extent of each other’s power. Not until then.”
“Quite,” Luna agreed.
“Now, for the most important part. We will accelerate the bond and give to you the powers you will use. Our powers.”
The sisters stepped next to each other. Their horns lit up and a ball of light appeared above them. It shimmered for a moment before busting into an equally brilliant cloud. Tendrils of cloud wisped down, wrapping around each mare, coating them with a frosted glow. More quickly than it was produced, the glow disappeared and all looked normal again.
“Was that it?” asked Cup Cake.
“Yes,” nodded Celestia. “You have our powers and the bonding has been accelerated exponentially.”
“I don’t feel any differently,” added Rarity.
“You shouldn’t,” Luna said flatly. “You should feel as you normally do. You should feel as though you’ve had these power all along. Your capabilities, however, have vastly expanded. Perhaps a small demonstration. Rarity, would you be so kind as to destroy one of those columns?”
The fashion pony looked at the massive pillars. “Um, princess, I believe that is a rather…tall order.”
“Not anymore. If you would.”
Rarity turned to a column and got in a bracing stance. She lowered her head and aimed her horn. She grimaced and she charged up her horn. Then a mighty blast erupted from the posh unicorn, sending her hurtling backwards. She flew for nearly twenty yards before she slammed into another pillar, embedding herself in the marble.
As the dust settled Rarity levitated herself out of the hole and shook off her daze. “My goodness,” she muttered. She looked at her work and saw the pillar she had targeted had a gaping hole blown in it, essentially severing the top and bottom.
While the other mares voiced their awe and impression Rarity heard a groan from behind her. Turning to the impact crater she made in the column she saw Cheerilee crawl out of the hole. She rolled out and landed on her hooves. Rarity gasped and looked back to the collected mares, noticing that the spot Cheerilee had been standing in was directly in Rarity’s launch path.
“Wow,” Cheerilee breathed, shaking off the rubble. “Thought I was a goner for sure.” She looked at Rarity and arched her eyebrows. “You okay?”
“I’m fine. Sorry, dear, I was unprepared for that.”
“Rarity!” called Luna. “Please refrain from pleasantries.”
“Oops! Oh, uh…you had it coming, darling!” she spat at Cheerilee.
“What?” recoiled the teacher. “What?!” she barked and grimaced incredulously at the unicorn who strutted haughtily away. Cheerilee growled as she followed Rarity, both coming back to their respective teams.
“So,” said Celestia as the damaged pillar began to repair itself, “as you have seen, you are all now capable of such feats. As Rarity has demonstrated, you all have power only dreamed of by normal ponies. And as Cheerilee demonstrated, albeit accidentally, you also have been shielded from damage. You can endure violence that would typically be the end of anypony else.”
“Though,” interjected Luna, “it is only fair to state that your shield will not last. The more it is tested, the weaker it will become.”
“The same for your powers,” added Celestia. “Don’t worry too much,” she smiled. “It will take quite a bit of effort to deplete them.”
“Y’all saying we have them fancy princess powers y’all have?” Granny inquired skeptically, having been woken by the blast.
“Yes,” Celestia said shortly.
“Ah see…” Granny narrowed her eyes at white alicorn and was still for a moment. She then walked over to Celestia and with her front hoof promptly kicked the princess in the leg.
“Ow! Ow ow ow ow ow.” Celestia hopped in place, cringing from the assault by the geriatric pony. Luna had taken to the floor, overcome with laughter.
“Don’t take that tone with me. Y’all need t’be respecting yer elders,” Granny huffed.
“I thought you said we had shields,” inquired Cheerilee.
“You do. They’re more useful for protecting you against things that can kill you than a kick to the shin,” Celestia replied, breathing through her teeth.
“Seems flawed,” Cheerilee mumbled.
“Yes, well, I think this is a good time to continue to the next order of business, which will be to supply you all with appropriate armor,” Celestia said, rubbing her leg and wiping away a tear.
“If we have the shield, do we really need the armor?” asked Fleur.
“Armor is armor, my dear,” Celestia replied. “Why stop at one layer of protection when you can have two?”
“Additionally, it looks wicked bitchin’,” chimed Luna, garnering a sigh from her sister.
The princesses led their teams over to two tables, each set with four sets of armor, all with a tag indicating to whom it belonged. Some tried some of it on while others simply held on to it. After they collected and inspected their respective armor Luna spoke.
“If that is all then I suggest this be the end of cordiality. Shall we enter our camps?”
“Agreed,” Celestia replied. “Sister,” she bowed, “and her team, I wish you the best of luck. We shall see you in a few days.”
Luna gave Celestia and her team a similar goodbye, though it seemed less sincere. The other mares all said their goodbyes to each other. It was mostly good natured – or at least courteous – save for Cheerilee, who already seemed sour at Rarity.
The next three days saw the mares exploring their new powers. From either side of the training room the sounds of explosions and lasers and battle cries could be heard. However, Luna and Celestia had put up a barrier that made each team invisible to the other. Of course, even if the barrier hadn’t been set up they would have been little to see because of the size of the room and the forest of columns in between. Both sisters were adamant about remaining ignorant of the other team’s abilities until the battle. Celestia informed her team that the potential of being surprised by an opponent’s abilities is a sure way to keep alert in battle. Luna said that not knowing made you feel more alive because your opponent could surprise you with death.
Not only were the mares growing comfortable with their powers but also with each other. In Celestia’s camp the four mares were rapidly growing out of their initial confusion, uncomfortableness, and even disdain for another’s lifestyle. Celestia had set aside a few hours each day just so they could talk with each other. Cheerilee and Celestia quickly bonded over more erudite topics while Tree Hugger and Fleur found common ground in their distaste for black apparel. Tree Hugger and Celestia found common ground on the topic of the unappreciated movement of the sun in relation to shadows. Cheerilee and Fleur confided in each other that even though their professions put them in front of audiences on a daily basis, they still got stage fright. They all enjoyed a good tea. And most importantly they all were in agreement that the Wonderbolts’ swimsuit calendar was needlessly racy – and they were all fine with it.
In Luna’s camp comradery was gained mostly through practice and preparation. However, Luna also understood that emotional connections were important. Her team bonded through sharing stories of pain and hardship and then commiserating. Rarity told of the stress she was under keeping an eye on all her stores and also watching her sister, Sweetie Belle. Also, she felt most of her friends just didn’t understand her. Cup Cake upped the ante with tales of horror about dealing with her business, nightmares of twins, and of course Pinkie Pie. Luna went straight for her time on the moon and then dolloped on a few tales of her inability to fit in to modern society. Granny went on a half hour rant about the other three wasting time feeling sorry for themselves and then proceeded to spend the next two hours regaling them with all the hardships she experienced growing up on the farm.
As the last day of preparation drew to a close, the mares put finishing touches on their powers. They polished their armor and gave pep talks. In Celestia’s camp the four mares held hooves and meditated. In Luna’s camp they exchanged hearty punches and slaps to shoulders and flanks, an action which Rarity was initially opposed to but soon found that her burgeoning comradery allowed her flank to be encouragingly slapped. For Celestia’s team the last few hours before bed were spent snacking and telling stories, some real, some fairy tales. For Luna’s team, the time before bed was spent riling each other up, instilling in each other a sense of pride and the notion that this was the most important thing any of them would ever do in their lives. And then, at last, they all slept.
*
Twilight was preparing lesson plans for next week and having a terrible time of it. She thought it’d be easy teaching foals, but suddenly she found herself wondering how Cheerilee managed to keep it all laid out. The past three days had been a mess and she was desperate to get on Cheerilee’s level. As she pondered her potential lessons a scroll suddenly appeared in front of her. It was instantly recognizable as belonging to Princess Celestia. She was a bit puzzled, though – for Celestia to send a letter bypassing Spike was rare. Twilight opened it quickly and read aloud:
Dearest Twilight,
I apologize for my shortness the other day but it was a matter of utmost secrecy and I could not risk questions or intervention. Thusly to the matter at hoof: Starting tomorrow at sundown I will be participating in an exercise of violence, degradation, fun, and questionable ethics. You are NOT to intervene. There will be seven other mares participating as well. You are NOT to intervene. The other mares are Luna, Fleur di Lis, Cup Cake, Granny Smith, Cheerilee, Rarity, and Tree Hugger. You are NOT to intervene. Whatever you see or hear of myself or these mares doing, you are NOT TO INTERVENE! Injury and destruction are likely to occur. Do NOT intervene! Do not order intervention on your behalf. Cadance will be receiving a similar note. Do NOT order intervention on her behalf. Do NOT intervene on my behalf or the behalf of any of the participants. Do NOT ask for intervention from any pony or creature, especially Discord. You are to teach in Cheerilee’s stead and do nothing else.
Do NOT notify anypony of this exercise before it has begun or while it is happening. I will send you a scroll when the exercise is over.
Twilight, you have long been my most faithful and trusted student. Do not make me reconsider that assessment.
All the best,
Princess Celestia
P.S. – I swear to the Smooze, Twilight, DO NOT INTERVENE!
Twilight sat in stunned silence. She was completely at a loss for words. Princess Celestia was willing putting herself in danger for a reason that was not the protection of Equestria. Not to mention Luna, Rarity, and a hoofful of secondary and tertiary ponies were involved. And she gave Twilight explicit instructions not to intervene. That’s not right. Twilight always intervenes. That’s her thing.
She thought about the letter and made a decision. “Maybe if I just – AH!” Spike, having come from somewhere, slapped her upside the head.
“No! Bad Twilight! You sit!” He pointed to the chair she was already sitting in. She recoiled a bit and whimpered, giving him sad eyes. “Nope! The letter says not to intervene. So don’t.”
“But…”
“Nope!” Twilight’s body language suggested she conceded. “Stay!” Twilight nodded. “Good girl. Now, since you’re being so good, I have something for you.” Spike produced a book from behind his back and handed it to Twilight.
Twilight squealed. “The History of the Excommunication of the Parasprites from the Changeling Swarm! This is one of the long-lost tomes on the history of Equestria!”
“And if you stay out of Celestia’s business I’ll give you the sequel.”
“YAY!”