“One lack of explanation later,” declared Pinkie Pie with her hoof out stretched and the other in a sling.
“Explanation of what?” asked Twilight looking at the green lit screen.
“How we got the Eva inside, silly.”
“You were there when we got it inside.”
“Yup.”
“Do you remember how we got it inside?”
“Yuppers,” Pinkie assured.
“Good cause I don’t want to relive it. But we have a bigger problem. Look.”
Twilight pointed at the internal entry plug camera in Unit-01. All that remained of Fluttershy was a floating entry plug suit.
“Gasp! She’s naked somewhere,” shouted Pinkie.
“No, her body has merged with the shadow pony,”Twilight groaned.
“How can that happen?”
“Well in that last battle Fluttershy must have wanted the Eva to move so much that the Eva made her a part of itself.”
“Where is she?” hollered Rainbow Dash as she burst into the room. “She said she was quitting. What made her come back?”
“Umm, hi Dashie,” started Pinkie, looking everywhere but at her. ”How are you feeling?”
“What’s going on?” asked Rainbow suspiciously. “You don’t normally take that tone unless you have a surprise or something you’re trying to hide.”
“Well you see...we kind of ...lost Fluttershy.”
“What?! Lost her! Lost her where?! Is she ok?”
“She’s kind of part of the Eva now.”
“This is not happening,” Rainbow muttered, placing her hoof on her face. “Every time we have a fight something like this happens and I have to wait around feeling guilty until she’s back. It sucks. I hate this feeling. When are you going to be able to get her out?”
“We don’t even know if we can,” exclaimed Twilight. She began checking this screen and that. She wrote down some figures and calculations with a pen nearby. “Something like this is unprecedented. We didn’t plan for this. No pony planned for this. I don’t know what we’re going to do.”
A light blue hoof wrapped around Twilight’s neck in a hug.
“Twilight, you and I talked about this,” reassured Trixie. “Let Trixie, the great and powerful girlfriend, distract you from your anxiety. Here.”
Trixie used her telekinesis to float Twilight a brown bag. The shimmering bag switched colors as Twilight grabbed it with her own magic. She placed it over her mouth and began rebreathing her own breath to increase the CO2 and slow her breathing down.
“But ...but what about my girlfriend?” whined Rainbow. “She is still trapped there. We have to save her. Is there anything I can do? Can you send me in to get her out?”
“I’m sorry, Rainbow Dash, but we don’t know what to do right now. I’ll study and get her out somehow,” assured Twilight, feeling herself calm.
****
Fluttershy found herself lost in a large sea. She floated just under the surface of the water.
“What am I doing here? How did I get here?”she thought.
The water around her shimmered with images of Evas, angels and friends.
“That’s right. I was in the Eva. I got so angry and scared. I don’t understand what’s happening to me. I thought I understood who I was. I thought I knew what I was meant to do. I felt it once.”
A image of pink butterflies swam by in the deep blue water.
“That’s right. I was supposed to take care of creatures. I was supposed to help ponies that needed me. I was supposed to be kind. What happened? Why am I so angry?”she pondered.
The waters revealed a large looming image of Discord. It smiled at Fluttershy in an innocent way.
“Discord. It has to be something he did. Things are so confusing anymore. I think we used to be good friends. Why can’t I remember?”
***
“It’s been three days,” moaned Pinkie. “Are we closer to getting Fluttershy back?”
“I’m researching as fast I can,” explained Twilight with a desk covered in books. She flipped through a large tome. Then moved to a different one. “There is no precedent for this. Anything I try will have to be completely guess work.”
“Sounds like baking a new experimental cake,” suggested Pinkie. “Just don’t use peanut butter and squid. I heard it was awful.”
“It’s not the same, Pinkie. We have to calibrate the magic to match Fluttershy’s body then to her mind. We also have to adjust for the variable energy that the Eva produces which can shift and change.”
“When can we try?” Pinkie asked.
“Well, I need more ponies well versed in magic. I can’t do it alone. I’ve actually contacted the princesses. I don’t know if they would answer a plea from a commoner like myself but it’s the best chance Fluttershy has.”
Spike ran into the room at that moment. In his claws he bore a long print out scroll.
“Twilight!” the dragon shouted as he entered. “They answered right away.”
“Oh good! Let me see.” Twilight removed the scroll from his claw with a lavender flash. “Princess Celestia and Princess Cadence can both come to help. Wow! I didn’t expect them to be so interested. With them onboard we have a good chance at getting her out.”
“Oh good, I can’t take Rainbow Dash whining and moping around the house much longer,” sighed Pinkie.
“Are you sure it’s just because of Fluttershy?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well that last fight didn’t go so well for her. So she might be still upset from that,” Twilight suggested.
“No pony is mad at her. Angels are tough to beat. Fluttershy’s Eva had to eat her in order to beat that last one.”
“Did you tell her that? She might be blaming herself.”
“I know I’ll throw a..”
“Pinkie!”chided Twilight. “Not everything can be solved with parties.”
“But.. but parties are the happiest most bestest thing in the world, Twilight. If that doesn’t work I don’t know what will.”
“You could try just talking to her,” suggested Twilight. ”Most ponies like parties but if they are feeling angry or sad sometimes a party just makes them feel worse. It can remind them of how sad and angry they feel. Perhaps you should just talk to her.”
Pinkie placed her injured hoof to her chin. “I guess I could do that. Ow. But what if she doesn’t want to talk or she does and just gets sadder?”
“Sometimes it looks like you’re making them sad. But after they cry or get upset they feel better.”
“Alright I’ll try it but it’s hard to get excited about a plan that doesn’t involve a party cannon.”
***
Fluttershy floated through the sea of memories. She noticed that before Discord called her to be an Eva pilot there was nothing. Some strange scattered feelings and images but mostly darkness.
“That’s strange,”she thought. “Why can’t I remember things? My parents' names. Where I grew up. It’s all gone. I don’t understand.”
“It’s all part of a larger scheme,” said a voice.
What? Who?
“This is a dream that is part of a larger dream,” said a large black pony as she emerged from the sea’s depths. She had a long flowing blue mane, wings and a horn. Her head bore a black crown and she wore armor but no clothes underneath.
“Oh my,”gasped Fluttershy. “A Princess? I’m sorry I only know of the two princesses. Who are you? And why are you so...naked?”
“I was banned from this world,”the Princess said. ”The owner knew I could interfere. His magic holds little sway on the Princess of dreams. I am Princess Luna.”
***
Princess Celestia and Cadence both arrived at headquarters with their royal escorts on the tenth day. Shining Armor appeared leading the group.
“Twily,” he said entering the command center. The two siblings embraced. “How have you been? I noticed you’ve been busy.”
“Oh. Just a little angel battle here and there. Losing a pilot inside her Eva. Eva body parts all over the place. You know surely nothing to freak out about,” Twilight chuckled in an unnerving manner. Her left eye twitched suddenly.
“Right,” replied Shining, drawing out the word. “Well before you go Twilynanas I have the Princesses here to help. Let me introduce you to Princess Celestia!”
Twilight bowed to the towering, opal alicorn in front of her. Her mane was tricolored with green, purple and neon blue. It flowed in the air unnaturally as if she was floating in water. She acknowledged the bow with a slight nod.
“Arise, Twilight Sparkle,”Princess Celestia commanded regally. “It is good to finally meet you. Your brother has told me so much about you.”
Twilight simply stared.
“Um Ms. Sparkle are you alright?”
“I’m sorry,” answered Twilight finally. “It just feels like we met many times before.”
“Yes, I do get that sense. How very odd.”
“Ahem,” coughed Shining. “Let me also introduce Princess Cadence, my fiancée.”
“You’re fiancée’s a Princess?” gasped Twilight. “Are you blackmailing her?” Twilight’s eyes narrowed in suspicion but the smile never left her lips. “It is a pleasure to meet you Princess.” she said and bowed. “And while we’re on that topic. Shining Armor, I would like you to meet Trixie, my girlfriend.”
“You found a girlfriend? While doing all this?” gaped Shining. “You truly are amazing.”
“Hi, Trixie’s a pleasure to meet you. I mean, it’s a pleasure to meet Trixie. I ,uh, am Trixie. It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Trixie managed to finally string the words together while turning a deep red.
“I am Shining Armor,” Shining mimicked with equal grace. Twilight bumped him. “Sorry, just a little levity. I’m sure any pony that my sister picks as her special some pony must be equally as smart and talented.”
Trixie blushed brighter then hid behind Twilight.
“Well it’s nice to finally get every pony together,” said Princess Cadence clapping her hooves together.
“I admit it is nice to meet you all but I believe we were brought here for a different purpose, Princess Cadence,” reminded Princess Celestia.
“Yes,” agreed Twilight. “One of our pilots, Fluttershy, has been brought into her Evanstallion. We need your magical might to help free her.”
“What is your plan, Ms Sparkle?” Celestia queried.
“Well Princess, we know that we need at least three unicorns. One to get Fluttershy’s physical form. One for her mind and the last to fight back the Eva and release her.”
“How do we lock on to those energies?” asked Princess Cadence, now highly curious.
“That is the current problem. We have an energy scan of her body and mind but they would be moving in the shadow pony constantly. We can’t see it like we can regular objects. Wait! We might be able to.”
Twilight rushed off to her mountain of books that surmounted her desk. She glanced through the pile quickly then selected a blue bound volume. The pages rifled themselves under a lavender glow until they came to a dead stop.
“Here it is. Silverhood’s Clairvoyance spell. With this we will be able to see the different energies in the Eva,” explained Twilight triumphantly. “Woah!”
“What is it Twilly?” asked Shining Armor.
“This is a really complicated spell. It will take us some time to cast. Umm I don’t suppose you have a few days?” Twilight smiled widely at them with a disarming look.
“Well your brother did want me to get to know you better,” nodded Cadence.
“I can delegate,” assured Princess Celestia.
“Good, we’ll get started right away,”Twilight said and plopped down to study.
***
Pinkie watched Rainbow Dash pace around the apartment restlessly. She had been this way since school had been canceled due to angel destruction. The general consensus was that it would not reopen. Pinkie hated potential conflict. Dash could get quite harsh and critical when she was stressed. The pink mare knew she wasn’t trying to be mean but it wasn’t something Pinkie was keen to subject herself to.
Still the party pony felt like she had to try. Twilight had made her wonder if she could be more helpful to Rainbow through talking but being that serious with another pony was difficult. She took a deep breath and let it out slow.
“Hey Dashie,” Pinkie blurted with too much enthusiasm.
“Don’t call me that!” Rainbow Dash snapped. “Only Fluttershy can call me that. It was her nickname for me.”
Pinkie winced. She just started and was already failing at this. She cleared her throat and began again, a little more hesitant. “Rainbow, I was just hoping that we could talk if you wouldn’t mind.”
The pink mare found herself cringing like Fluttershy. Heck she even sounded like Fluttershy. She tapped her cheeks with her hooves and winced at the all too familiar pain in her hoof. Rainbow slumped down at the table in front of her. A look of fitful disinterest plastered on the speedster’s face.
“I know you’re upset about Fluttershy. It’s the worstest thing in the world that you guys had to fight right before,” Pinkie sympathized.
“Well that’s part of it but.. I’m mad at myself too,” admitted Rainbow. “We’ve been fighting these things for a while now and I’ve only taken down one of them on my own. Fluttershy took down the rest. I think I got mad at her when she said quit because I was nervous. If she left, it was all on me. Maud is out there and giving it her all but she’s not the MVP or anything. She’s the back up and she’s cool with that. So when Fluttershy left some part of me hated it. Another part of me was actually glad she was going. If she was gone I could shine. But as soon as she disappeared I felt awful for thinking that.”
“Oh Rainbow, you’re not a bad pony,”said Pinkie Pie. “Every pony wants to feel special for what they do. But remember just because others can do things a bit better doesn’t mean you're not as special as they are. We all have our own talents. Some of us have to work really hard to get where we are. Others look like they are barely trying. But if you hold that anger and jealousy in you, it’ll only drag you down. You’re a special pony Rainbow Dash. Fluttershy sees it too and that’s why you’re her special some pony.”
Pinkie looked up after her talk and noticed Rainbow’s head had dipped forward so that her prismatic hair covered her face. Her shoulders shook slightly and little tears dropped on the table.
Pinkie Pie wordlessly rushed over and squeezed Rainbow. “Ow,” Pinkie giggled. She continued to squeeze even through her hoof pain. “You’re going to be ok Rainbow.”
“No ..I’m ..not..too tight,” the second filly gasped.
“Oops, sorry.”
***
“So, um , you say that this is kind of a dream world,” clarified Fluttershy as she and Princess Luna floated in the deep ocean.
“Yes, it is most certainly somepony’s dream,” nodded the Princess. “Because of his magic he has brought you and your friends into it. I believe it has been constructed for you.”
“For me? Why would anypony go to all this trouble for me?”
“Can you not surmise the reason? All of us do strange, impossible things for love.”
“Love?” gasped Fluttershy. “This pony makes me destroy other creatures and hurts my friends because they love me!? I think I have a different idea of love.”
“That may be true but I will not come between you two. That is a matter you must take up with them. I am here to ...watch. I suppose this would be the most accurate term. The avenue in which you are floating will take you further into the dream world that I would suggest you venture.”
“Can’t you at least tell me which pony’s dream I’m in?” Fluttershy desperately asked.
“Again it is not my business to meddle here,” Princess Luna sighed. “It’s a bit uncomfortable. Know this. The pony whose dream you are currently residing would never place you in harm's way knowingly. Now I am also supposed to be assisting you in understanding your decisions.”
“Why?”
“Because we both share a love of the source material. If you wish to do it justice then we must analyze your recent motivations.”
“Ok,” Fluttershy hesitantly agreed.
“Now what concerns have you?”
“I’m not sure all this hurting others is really helping ponies.”
“Do you not understand your significance?” demanded Princess Luna.
“Maybe.”
“If you did not fight these creatures how would this world’s ponies fair?”
“I don’t think they would do well at all. I tried to leave just now and Unit-02’s head got cut off.”
“So then your fighting is very significant to the lives of those around you,” Princess Luna proclaimed.
“But ponies still are getting hurt because of me. Applejack, Apple Bloom, even Maud was injured because of me.”
“But how many other ponies were saved?”
“I don’t know,” Fluttershy exhaled in frustration.
“I would assume given your memories of this world that it would be countless. I admire your adherence to kindness. You place all others' needs above your own. You give the benefit of the doubt where others would not. However there are times when being kind to all beings may not be possible. There will also be times when you or your friends are in danger and reasoning may not save you. Thus far you have counted on your friends to take those duties on themselves. But that will not always be the case.
“Violence is never the best solution but at times it might be the only solution. If an animal is rabid and can no longer reason, allowing it to bite you to be kind will end in your own death. Kindness would dictate to relieve it of its suffering.”
“That sounds like you’re saying it’s ok to kill an animal,”gasped Fluttershy. “I don’t know if I could ever do that.”
“Even if this animal would hurt others and infect others with this awful disease?”
“I...I don’t know. A situation like that is too scary to think about,” said Fluttershy. She felt herself backing away from this Princess and her dark logic.
“Tell me Fluttershy. Is your adherence to kindness from a genuine sense of love for all beings or is it a mere mask to hide your own cowardice from yourself?”
“I am afraid a lot. But I try really hard not to give into it. I may not be that brave but a coward never even tries.”
“Yet the kindness you are striving for takes more strength and bravery than even your friend Rainbow Dash has shown. It is easy to move to battle with hooves before brain. But it takes true bravery to see if the fight is worth it all. For that I commend you,”praised Princess Luna.
Fluttershy could feel something like pride filling her chest. The princes continued,”But there are times when the fight is inevitable. If you don’t recognize those times it could easily destroy you.”
“Oh my,” Fluttershy placed her hoof over her mouth. She had never considered how dangerous being kind could be. But the resolve within her did not waiver.
***
“Aargh!” whined Trixie. “You have been at this for five days since the princesses arrived! Trixie is bored! When will the spell be ready?”
“What? Spell?” the dozing studious Twilight suddenly sat up with papers stuck over her eyes. She quickly rubbed the papers off and looked around. No pony else seemed to notice she had been sleeping. “Sorry Trix, what was that?”
“Now you're even too busy to listen to Trixie?!” Trixie huffed.
“Look, I know watching me study for the past few days wasn’t exactly great and powerful but it did help immensely. Thanks to you I was able to focus better and not have to run to the vending machine as often. You are a wonderful girlfriend.”
“Of course, Trixie is great and powerful. No girlfriends can hold a candle to Trixie’s support.”
“And because of that I think I’m ready to try this spell.”
“Shall I call the Princesses?” inquired Spike appearing from nowhere.
“Yes, have them meet me by Unit-01,” Twilight commanded. “Now I know you're excited Trixie but I’m going to have to ask you to stay here. This a tricky spell and I ,umm, don’t want to see you get hurt.”
“The great Trixie laughs at danger,” Trixie declared as she reached for a cloak that wasn’t there.”But if you couldn’t bear to see your favorite mare in harm’s way then I guess I can stay. But you must be careful. For Trixie’s sake.”
“I will,” Twilight said and levitated her bags on to her back. She started putting her books and supplies in them. A quick kiss was shared between them and then Twilight headed out.
***
The Eva stared blankly at the far wall. All ferocity and rage was gone. Twilight still felt a little apprehensive approaching it after what she saw in the battle. She started to place the materials she needed around the catwalk in front of the killer robot. She placed various mirrors and optical lenses on stands. She used her telekinesis to arrange the items into a large heptagonal form. When finished she drew a large breath and went through her mental checklist.
The princesses found their way to the room and admired the strange array.
“My goodness,” exclaimed Princess Celestia looking at the various lenses. “All this equipment takes me back to my early days with Starswirl the bearded.”
“He was a hero of mine as a foal,” excitedly rambled Twilight, as she remeasured the distance between mirrors. “It’s because of the stories of him that I became interested in magic and then magical devices.”
“He was a wonderful teacher, though he was known to be kind of a grump,” snickered Celestia.
“Really? I hadn’t read that and I’ve read all I could about him.”
“Well most authors focus on his earlier years,” explained the Princess. “That was when he was discovering the very nature of magic as we know it today. In his later years he had a harder time not being on the cutting age of magic anymore. It’s not as though I made his job any easier.”
“Well I understand that. I know if I was benched from magical mechanics I would go stir crazy. I think that should be it.” Twilight slightly twisted the last optical lens.
“There, now Princess Celestia could you stand on that spot right there,” said Twilight and pointed to a small dot on the floor in front of an angled lens. “Princess Cadence, I need you over here.”
The two Princesses stood where indicated.
“Now this is going to feel a bit weird and a little disorienting,”Twilight announced. “Once this is done we should be able to see the different parts of Fluttershy in the Eva.”
The studious unicorn took a large breath in and exhaled slowly. Then her horn began to glow a light lavender. She gritted her teeth as she directed the ambient energy of the area through her body and concentrated it on her horn. The glow increased in intensity. Soon all surrounding light seemed to dim as the violent to white light radiated from Twilight’s horn. Twilight’s eyes began emitting white light and her pupils vanished in its radiance. Then a large intense pulse was directed through the various mirrors and lenses. It struck Twilight and the two princesses in the eyes. Both Princesses found their eyes filled with energy. Soon the three of them stood with glowing white eyes.
They looked around in awe. The walls and floors were covered in tendrils of pulsing light rivers. The rivers constantly shifted and reformed in different patterns. Twilight’s eyes went wide as she beheld the two princesses before her. The energy looked like two clouds with different colors.
Princess Celestia’s energy was like watching a rainbow funnel cloud that sparked multicolored lighting from its center.
Cadence’s energy was simply a sphere of pink with near blinding radiance.
“Oh my,” Celestia said looking around. Then she concentrated on Twilight. “Ms. Sparkle, you have such potential. I didn’t know you were so talented. Had you grown up in Canterlot I would have taken you in as a student in a heartbeat.”
“My parents did grow up in Canterlot but my father was a stargazer and the light of the city kept him from his stars,” explained Twilight. “We moved to Ponyville when I was small. But Shining Armor couldn’t be kept from the guard academy so he moved back as soon as he could.”
“And look at this stunning machine Twilight helped build,” Cadence beamed, staring at the Eva.
The Eva’s energy was a dark bluish black color. They could see streaks of Twilight’s lavender energy wrapped around its various components. The cold gray power emanated from the beast like steam rising from in. It created a menacing shiver through the collective ponies.
“My word,” said Princess Celestia, placing her hoof over her mouth. “It is quite a feat of magical engineering. But the basis of it is so horrendous it is no wonder that control is so difficult. It’s hard to imagine the fate of Equestria hanging so much of its hope on creatures as violent as these.”
“I can see her,” pointed Cadence at the head of the Eva. A small yellow patch of energy drifted amongst the dark miasma of violence.
“And there is the rest,” motioned Celestia with her hoof. The twinkling gold shine near the right hand alerted them that Fluttershy’s mind resided there.
“Ok ladies,”Twilight instructed, then remembered her allies,”umm, I mean, your graces, we have to pull Fluttershy’s energy into the entry plug. Princess Cadence could you please grab Fluttershy’s mind. Princess Celestia could you please grab that blob of energy that’s her body. I will push back the shadow energy of the Eva. As you can see I have done so many times before. Ok here we go.”
Three lasers of multicolored energy erupted from the unicorn horns towards the Eva. A thin pink rope of shifting brilliance entangled the twinkling energy in the right arm. A thick lance of burning white lightning sheared through the dark sea and surrounded the darker yellow light in a radiant orb.
Suddenly the surrounding waves of blackness twisted and began engulfing Fluttershy’s essence once again. Twin whips of purple tendrils lashed out from Twilight’s horn. They smacked the large black globules. Despite the whip's thin appearance each strike showered the dark ocean in burning violent sparks. The sea receded as the sparks touched them.
“Quite impressive,” complimented Celestia. “Let is show Ms Sparkle our might, young Princess.”
The two cages of energy began to move quickly through the sea’s mire. An occasional whip was needed as they became bogged down. Soon both energy spheres were placed in the entry plug.
“Let us charge the structure around her so that the darkness remains outside,” suggested Celestia.
“On it,” called Cadence. Her pink rope became a pulse that struck the entry plug. A magical tone rippled across the darkened surface. The darkness fell back from the pink sphere.
“Ohh,” squealed Princess Celestia. “This is fun. Actually using magic to combat forces of darkness. What next Ms. Sparkle?”
“Please call me Twilight. Ms makes me feel old. But umm sadly the merger of the two energy forms into a material body is going to require a different spell.”
“Aww,” whined Princess Cadence. “That was fun. I was hoping to help this poor pony. I can feel her struggle. She seems conflicted. We should encourage her to turn to her old form for now.”
Twilight frantically began looking through her books. She pulled book after book from her bag. Her hair began to get frizzled and her eyes desperately sought the next step.
“Ms. Er um Twilight,”began Princess Cadence. “Try taking a deep breath while pointing at yourself then breath out and point away. This helps direct the calm within and sends the tension away.”
Twilight emulated the Princess’s movements and felt a general ease and focus return to her. Suddenly a large plume of smoke erupted next to her.
“I’ve never seen that exercise cause that,” gasped Cadence waving the smoke away.
A small fit of coughs and gasps could be heard inside the smoke cloud. As it dissipated the smoke ring contained a small blue unicorn waving around and gagging.
“Trixie!” berated Twilight through clenched teeth. “I told you not to do that. Especially in such a poorly ventilated area. And in front of the princesses.”
“Sorry,” Trixie sputtered. “It was too perfect an entrance to pass up. And ,um, here.”
The blue unicorn levitated a leather bound book full of yellowed pages to Twilight. “You left this one that you were sleeping on. Sorry to interrupt.”
“Trixie!” gasped Twilight. “You’re the greatest. This is exactly the book I was looking for.”
“You’re welcome. And you forgot most powerful.” Trixie ran out of the room.
“I can tell you care about each other a lot,” observed Princess Cadence. “I am the princess of love you know. It’s reassuring that my fiancée’s sister was able to find it in all this madness. Cherish it. For things disappear all too quickly.”
Twilight rifled through the book and found the proper page. She placed it on a prepared podium.
“Now there was a magician years ago named Auburn Einsteed. He said that magic is made of energy. He also said that energy is simply mass moving extremely fast. So we have to effectively slow Fluttershy’s energy down in such a way it reforms into her body. This spell is Einsteed’s creation that he used to prove his theory. It slows down the energy to a much denser state. But we have to use it in stages so that all her parts are formed together instead of all over the entry plug.”
“This will certainly be most arduous,” shouted Celestia in excitement. “It sounds like we should build the body first then place the mind within it.”
“So let’s do it,” shouted Cadence.
***
“But how should I...,” began Fluttershy when she felt the ocean around her change. “Wait! Princess where am I going?”
“You are being drawn back in, this looks like my sister’s and Cadence’s work,” informed Princess Luna. “It will be ok, little one. Have faith that all would be made clear. I shall remain out here and monitor the situation. Farewell.”
Fluttershy felt squished and remolded. She felt her thoughts stretch out and then bump into other thoughts. She was nervous and scared. She desperately tried to cling to whatever concepts she could.
Darkness, anger, and hatred all tried to engulf her but a sense of duty and kindness kept them at bay. Suddenly she felt her expansive being shrink. She felt confined, trapped, and miserable. She wanted to leave. She wanted to escape the place of loneliness. She wished to be ever present. But she felt her old self returning. The small fragile being that she was before. The knowledge scared her more than anything else. No pony was there. No pony else comforted her. She was in the small capsule again, locked off from the rest of the world.
***
Pinkie and Rainbow Dash watched from the observation window. The alicorns and Twilight were concentrating their energy towards the center of the Eva. Rainbow still felt edgy from her guilt. She paced, then flew around the room, then paced again.
Pinkie Pie just watched. The others in the control room looked at each other with concern. The idea that Fluttershy was swallowed by her own Eva was unnerving enough but Pinkie not moving was just as mind shattering. They said nothing. Pinkie and Rainbow knew what the other felt without speaking. Both waited in their own way.
***
“We have success,” cheered Princess Celestia.
“Well almost,” corrected Princess Cadence. “Her body is built but her mind keeps trying to leap away from it. It’s almost like she doesn’t want to return.”
“Perhaps if she can feel those that care about her she will feel more at ease,” suggested Celestia. She shifted her voice to the royal Canterlot tone and volume. “Friends of Fluttershy. Please join us in this room. Let her feel your love. Your friend is scared and confused. Please help remind her that we are all here for her.”
“And better make it quick,” added Cadence. “She's really trying to run.”
The doors of the room opened for Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash to rush in. Lyra, Bon Bon and Trixie entered next. Lastly Maud slowly entered. They stood together awkwardly watching the ritual. Pinkie quickly grabbed their hooves. Soon they stood with eyes closed, hoof in hoof, and hoped.
“There she goes,” cooed Cadence. “She’s calming down now.”
Suddenly the entry plug began to open.
“Wait! She’s not quite there!” cried Cadence.
“We’re not doing that!” explained Twilight. “Is it the Eva?”
The small group watched as the entry plug turned, spilling its contents onto the floor. Fluid, and a crumbled entry plug suit landed on the floor with a sickening thunk. Next to them landed the naked, lifeless body of the pilot.
“No!” gasped Pinkie. She rushed to her but was nearly waylaid by Rainbow Dash. Rainbow was holding her head and mane in her lap. Fluttershy’s eyes stared out in a blank stare. Pinkie Pie grasped Fluttershy’s hoof and began to wail. Rainbow held the yellow body but felt numb and dead inside.
“Oh come on, Fluttershy,” chastised Cadence. “They all want you back.” Cadence felt the small give in the energy and quickly glided into the body.
Soon Fluttershy started to gasp and sputter. Her eyes closed and opened again. They darted all over in fear and confusion. She tried to pull her body into a ball but her friends wouldn’t let her.
A clacking sound rang out through the large room as a stretcher was quickly wheeled in. Pinkie and Rainbow helped lift the fear-frozen Fluttershy onto the stretcher and wrap her with blankets. The whole unit rushed off like a large multi hooved brush monster towards the hospital wing.
“Well that was unexpected,” said Cadence to herself.
“We were victorious however,” reminded Celestia.
Twilight watched the strange mass of ponies run off with concern. “This was a lot harder than I expected,” she found herself saying. “The spells were difficult but I thought Fluttershy would have been more eager to return.”
“At this point she is confused and scared, Twilight,” explained Celestia,” we can not expect her to be fully herself for some time. I would recommend not letting her pilot for a month or so. We don’t want the soul to suddenly leave the body in combat.”
“Of course,” bowed Twilight. “I can’t thank you two enough for your help with this.”
“It was great to be so helpful to some pony,” said Cadence. “I’m sure with friends like hers she will recover well.”
“I enjoyed watching you work, Twilight,” complimented Celestia. “I hope we can meet again in the future.”
The Princesses bowed and started to exit.
“One day we shall spend more time together,” called back Cadence. “After all, we will be family soon. Look for our wedding invitation.”
“I will, and thanks.”
***
“Hold her down she’s panicking,” commanded Nurse Redheart.
“I’m just going to give you a mild sedative,” explained the doctor. “I want you to rest but I want you conscious. It will take some time for you to readjust.”
The nurse quickly placed a needle into Fluttershy’s vein and attached a saline bag. She placed a large syringe into the bottom of the bag then squeezed it with her hooves. A few minutes later Fluttershy’s erratic movements stopped and her pupils dilated slightly.
“Fluttershy!” shouted Rainbow Dash, “can you hear me?!”
“You don’t need to shout,” snapped a grumpy Fluttershy,” I’m right here.”
Rainbow quickly wrapped her hooves around the grouchy pegasus.
“I’m sorry,” the second filly mumbled. “I messed up again. I didn’t think, again.”
“Yeah you’ve been doing that a lot lately,” Fluttershy answered sourly.
Rainbow pulled away from her with a pained expression.
“I think the meds might be affecting her,” whispered Pinkie Pie, louder than any whisper Rainbow had ever heard.
“Umm, yeah. Totally the meds,” echoed Rainbow uncertainly.
“So where were you?” asked Pinkie hurriedly. “We watched you fight the angel and then you were all collapsey with no power. Then the Eva turned on and we were all like ‘whaaat’. Then it broke out of its restraints and it was all dark and smokey and ate the angel. Then we looked into the entry plug and only your suit was left and we were like ‘oh no’. Then Rainbow Dash was all like ‘I shouldn’t have yelled and I don’t know why I can’t win’! Then she cried. Twilight called the princesses and they were like ‘let’s use our magic to save her’. They had trouble getting you and Princess Celestia told all Fluttershy’s friends to come . So we walked down there and held hooves and stuff but your entry plug opened and your body fell out. It was all naked and dead. You were all blank stares. Then Princess Cadence said that you were scared and used her magic to bring you back to life. And then they helped you onto the stretcher. We brought you to this room but you were fighting and kicking so the nurse gave you some medicine. Now you’re here making Rainbow Dash feel bad for feeling bad and I asked you where you were?”
“I...I...I don’t remember,” mumbled Fluttershy.
“You were gone for three weeks and you don’t remember?” asked Rainbow Dash in disbelief.
“That’s what I said wasn’t it? Or did you not hear me?” retorted Fluttershy.
The pained expression returned to Rainbow Dash’s face. Pinkie’s head appeared inexplicably next to Rainbow’s ear and she practically scream whispered, “Meeeeds.”
“Well ,um, I’m glad you're safe, Flutts,” Rainbow stammered sheepishly. “I’ll let you get to healing.”
Rainbow uncomfortably strode out of the room.
“I need to go see Cheese Sandwich now, Fluttershy. I’m super dooper glad you’re safe,” Pinkie squeaked and walked out passed Rainbow, who had leaned against the wall right outside the hospital room. “Rainbow’s still hiding by your door!” shouted Pinkie as she passed.
“Shhh Pinkie, don’t tell her that!” hissed Rainbow.
Fluttershy felt itchy and uncomfortable. The room was swimming and she couldn’t close her eyes to rest. She stared at the ceiling and wondered why she had fought returning so hard and what had happened.
****
Pinkie and Cheese huddled together under the sheets of their rented bed.
“That was one of the scariest saddest things I’ve ever seen,” explained Pinkie. “I was like scarad or sadary. It was awful. I thought Fluttershy was gone.”
“I’m sorry you had to see that, Pinkie. I can’t imagine it,” responded Cheese.
“So what is really really going on, Cheese? Everypony is super sad and they are all shifty-eyed and no pony is telling the truth.”
“Well I can’t tell you about it here. But this might answer all your questions.” He handed Boneless 3 to her.
“A rubber chicken,” came the flat response. “You’re giving me another rubber chicken?”
“It’s not any rubber chicken. That’s Boneless 3 and he can tell you all the information we found together. I need you to watch him for a little while.”
“Okie, dokie, lokie.”