Beneath the Surface

by Racingwolf

Chapter 11 – Cabin Fever

It wasn’t much of a surprise that few of the castle’s residents had been able to sleep well that cold night. The pale unicorns waiting outside the protective barrier were silent most of the time. Then, without any warning or pattern that anypony in the castle could pick up on, spells would hit the barrier in different places, shaking everypony out of a troubled sleep. The castle’s rooms and hallways would sound with fearful shouts and the cries of foals. Though the ponies would calm down after a time, they were unable to let their guard down enough to drift back into sleep.

Morning came at last, and though their enemies had last attacked the shield hours earlier, the ponies were all visibly shaken, talking in worried whispers and losing focus on their tasks. Even the guards looked worn down by the stress as they made their patrols through the castle floors, taking a few too many glances out the windows.

Twilight found herself too exhausted to be of much help that morning. She had only nodded off for a few minutes at a time during the night, having spent most of it restlessly pacing and glancing out the windows into the whirling flurries of snow. And the deserted city that lay beyond them. Well, the almost deserted city. The cave unicorns were still out there, just beyond the barrier’s reach.

By the time helpful ponies had started passing out breakfast to those waiting in the throne room, Twilight was so tired that even in spite of her worries, she was fighting to keep from drifting off. Halfway through her bowl of oatmeal, her eyes fluttered closed and she leaned forward. Rainbow Dash was just fast enough to move the bowl away before Twilight’s face plonked into it, watching as she hit the blanket instead.

Twilight jolted upright, shaking her head. “Ugh- what? Sorry, everypony,” she sighed, rubbing her eyes with a foreleg.

“I think maybe you should sit today out,” Rarity said worriedly. “Everypony else can manage, and you certainly did more than enough yesterday.”

“I…I told Shining I’d help watch Flurry and the other foals today,” Twilight said, her words somewhat slurred.

“I think we can let him know that ya need a break today,” Applejack said. “And don’t worry, nopony’ll think less of you for it.”

“I think that would be wise,” Fluttershy said before Twilight could protest. The pegasus’s own eyes looked tired, and her feathers were ruffled, but she looked more worried for her friend.

“Celestia and Luna still haven’t found a way to send any letters,” Spike sighed, turning the attention to him. “Twilight told me that Luna didn’t visit her dream, either. Luna could have her hooves full, but…” He paused. “I just hope the cave unicorns haven’t found a way to stop her from visiting dreams.”

“It’s unlikely they even know about that,” Applejack said reassuringly. “I’m sure if Luna had somethin’ important to tell us, she would make the time.”

“Yeah,” Rainbow Dash said with a shrug. “Besides, I heard Twilight walking around all night. She probably wasn’t asleep long enough for Luna to enter her dreams.”

Twilight was about to retort before realizing that Rainbow was right. “Well…as far as we know, she hasn’t entered anypony else’s dream either.”

“I mean, did anypony get any real sleep last night?” Rainbow replied.

“Spike’s probably right about Luna being busy,” Starlight said, yawning as she approached the others with her own bowl of oatmeal. “And the silence…could be a good thing. If there was something terrible happening in Canterlot, she’d find a way to let us know, right?” She looked to Applejack, who nodded.

“I…guess you have a point,” Spike said.

“Twilight, I heard the others talking, and I agree. You should get some sleep,” Starlight said. “If anything, it’ll give Luna a chance to talk to you if she needs to,” she added, seeing that Twilight was about to protest. “So, have a good nap.” She gave a mischievous grin, lifting a blanket and draping it further over Twilight with her magic. As the flustered Twilight sleepily fought to get her head free, Starlight glanced over toward Thorax, who she could see had finally fallen asleep again.

Twilight, remembering a bit too late to use her magic, lifted the edge of the blanket off her head and looked around at the others. “All right,” she sighed, lying back down. “You win. Wake me if you need anything…” Her voice trailed off as her eyes closed.

“So…are any of you up for helping out in the kitchen again?” Rainbow asked the others.

Applejack sighed. “Well, it’s gotta get done.”

“Pinkie’s in there now,” Rainbow replied. “Let’s go see what they need help with.”

“I really should check on the petting zoo animals,” Fluttershy said, taking a few determined steps toward the door in spite of her own weariness. “They seemed so anxious last night…”

“All right, but be careful,” Rarity warned. “Those animals need you to be in tip top condition.”

Fluttershy nodded and made her way toward the door alongside Applejack and Rainbow Dash, leaving the rest of the group huddled around the now fast asleep Twilight.

Starlight turned her head toward the nearest window as a particularly strong gust of wind battered the castle walls. “You think this is part of the cave unicorns’ tactic?” she whispered to Rarity, who was absentmindedly swirling her spoon in her oatmeal. “Make us too exhausted to do much to fight back?”

Rarity mumbled something under her breath, then said, “If they want our barrier down, I suppose that exhausting all of us, including the royal family, does make some sort of sense.”

“Don’t say that!” Spike cried, pulling his blanket tighter around himself. “As if there aren’t enough things to worry about.”

“Oh, sorry, Spikey,” Rarity said, letting the spoon clink down in the bowl.

Starlight turned her head away from them. “I didn’t mean to worry you,” she said. “I just wish there was more we could do, instead of just waiting here. Maybe if somepony could have an actual conversation with one of the unicorns outside, talk to them face to face, then…”

She was interrupted as Thorax stirred, making a small groan. He lifted his head and looked around, his eyes looking bleary and unfocused.

“Darling, are you alright?” Rarity asked him.

Thorax gave a sniff and wiped a hoof over his eyes before turning to face them. “Y-yeah, I’m okay.” He didn’t sound very certain, and they could clearly tell.

“Need anything?” Starlight asked.

Thorax hesitated, but instead of answering the question, he quietly said, “It’s worse than it was yesterday.”

“Well, that’s probably to be expected, unfortunately,” Starlight said. “I mean, the worst days of an illness or injury are usually a few days after it starts. It probably won’t be so bad in a couple more days.”

Thorax nodded and slowly lay back down, his eyes half closed.

“Do you…think anything’s wrong?” Spike asked him.

“Maybe I should get one of the nurse ponies?” Rarity added.

“No, it’s okay,” Thorax told them. “One of them came by not long ago. They said they couldn’t see signs of anything getting worse, so Starlight’s probably right.”

“I’ll get you some water,” Rarity said, levitating the cup he’d been using and trotting toward the doorway.

“You sure you’ll be okay?” Starlight asked him.

He gave a small nod in response. Starlight knew as well as he did that there wasn’t really anything the nurses could do for him that they weren’t already doing. They would just have to wait and hope his condition improved.

They sat in silence for a bit, shivering in the cold. Then they heard hoofsteps, and were surprised to see that Fluttershy had suddenly returned, looking anxious and a bit defeated. “The crystal ponies sent me back here,” the pegasus quietly said when she reached the group. “They said I needed to get some rest before I helped them with the animals today.”

“Well, they have a pretty good point,” Starlight said. “I’m sure they’ll be okay. The crystal ponies know their animals better than anypony.”

At that moment, Rarity returned with the water. “Sorry about the delay,” she said. “There were a lot of castle ponies about.” After taking the cup to Thorax and holding it up in her magic for him to drink, she noticed Fluttershy looking dejected. The pegasus pulled her blankets around her, too worried to sleep. A small tear trickled from her eye. When Thorax finished and Rarity set the cup down, she trotted over to Fluttershy’s spot, levitating one of her bags over with her.

“Seems like you could use some cheering up,” the unicorn said. Smiling at Fluttershy, Rarity lifted a brush from the bag. “Starlight is right. The animals will be just fine while you recover some strength. You aren’t letting them down.”

Fluttershy sniffed and looked up. “You sure?”

Rarity nodded. “Of course. For now, you just relax. And you know, just because we're all cooped up in this castle doesn't mean you can't look stylish.” At Fluttershy’s somewhat confused look, she added, “Trust me, it’ll help you feel better.”

Fluttershy relaxed as Rarity’s magic ran the brush through her mane, combing out the tangled strands. For the first time since emerging from the cave, her hair began to look soft and silky again. She let out a sigh, feeling some of her stress fade away. “Thanks Rarity, I suppose you and Starlight are right.”

“I assure you they’ll have everything under control,” Rarity said. “And I’m afraid there’s not much I can do right now aside from fixing up your mane, but trust me, looking better will help you to feel better.”

When Rarity finished, Fluttershy’s mane looked smooth and shiny. Though they hadn’t had much water to clean it with, it looked far brighter than it had earlier, when it was tangled and caked with cave dust. Fluttershy did feel calmer, running a hoof through her mane before smiling at Rarity. “Thanks. I think I do feel better.”

Rarity looked at the water bottle by Fluttershy’s hooves, which she had used to wash some of the dust from her mane. There was still a bit left that she could use before having to return to the kitchen to get more. She looked toward Thorax and got an idea. “I believe you could use some cheering up as well?” she asked.

Thorax looked up in surprise, a grateful look appearing in his eyes before it vanished, and he looked away awkwardly. He wasn’t sure what to reply. He didn’t have hair like the ponies did, and he was suddenly reminded of how much he stood out from them. “Oh, you don’t have worry about-”

“Nonsense! It’s no trouble at all. I thought if I could give your wings a quick clean, they’d shine brighter again,” she said. “And don’t feel worried, that humid, filthy cave did a number on all of us.” She rummaged through her bag. “It’s like I told Fluttershy. When you don’t feel good, being able to look a bit better can make a surprising amount of difference. Ah! Here…”

“Oh, all right,” Thorax said, trying to push back the feeling that told him he was still out of place. “If you’re sure.”

“I’ll be very careful with your right wing,” Rarity promised. She lifted a small cloth in her magical energy and dabbed some of the water on it, along with a small bit of something that smelled sweet. She told Thorax to lie down, keeping his wings lying flat along his back. Then she gently ran the cloth over his each wing, which Thorax realized had collected quite a bit of grime from the caverns. Rarity carefully removed the cave dirt from their surface, taking extra caution with his right wing. When she finished, his wings shimmered brightly, almost like they had before he’d entered the caves. Rarity was almost entranced as she looked closely at them.

“It’s like a cluster of hundreds of tiny gems,” she said, beaming. “A bit like…sapphires. Or perhaps diamond or peridot. Maybe all three.” She glanced down at one of his holed forelegs, the one not covered by bandages. “And in fact, a changeling’s chitin is quite lovely too, a bit like obsidian. I admit it did take some getting used to at first, but it really does have a lovely shine to it. Different, but in a good way.”

“Really?” Thorax asked.

“Absolutely. There’s no one right way to look marvelous. I mean, if you want an example, just think of all the different fashions that are out there.”

Thorax didn’t know much about fashion, but he could certainly tell that Rarity did, and her words made him feel much better, even if nothing she did could help the physical pain.

Gradually, both he and Fluttershy drifted off, and Spike and Rarity were quick to join them. Starlight stayed awake, giving a worried sigh as she looked toward the windows. She figured that, until some of the others came back, someone should watch over them.

Mist Morning had never been so far into Scarlet’s chambers. In fact, before that day, he hadn’t even entered the living space of his leader at all. And at the moment, he was wishing it had stayed that way. The sheer power that radiated from the stronger unicorn made him nervous, and he constantly went over in his head what he would do if she turned her obvious anger and frustration on him.

Scarlet Rose’s chambers had few pony-built walls; most of it was natural rock, stabilized by many thousands of years of slow formation in the dark. It was a far cry from the old mineshafts that Mist Morning had spent so much of his time in. Many of the cave formations had been preserved, pristine columns and draperies reaching down from the ceiling. Stone tapestries far, far older even than Celestia and Luna.

He would have spent some time admiring the intricate formations, had he not feared what he and Scarlet were about to do.

Scarlet led him down a side path that was just as well-maintained and spotless as her personal rooms. She stopped in front of what appeared to be a dead end.

Mist Morning gave a nervous shuffle of his hooves; the magical energy coming from that wall made him uneasy.

Scarlet lit her twisted horn, and the slab of rock making up the wall shifted, revealing an open passageway leading into a surprisingly small room. The room was barely wider than the typical mineshaft, and about twice as long. A series of shelves had been carved into the rock, and on these shelves were a variety of strange objects. “Come in,” Scarlet said, her tone unreadable.

Mist Morning followed his leader through the opening, and as he did so, he felt a strange sensation, like he was moving through thick water. The feeling vanished when he stepped fully into the room. Mist Morning glanced back, seeing the faint flicker of what he realized was Scarlet’s protection spell shimmering in the doorway.

Now that he was through, he realized that the artifacts in the room seemed strangely tame, not like that…tunnel…that led to their source. He only felt a bit uncomfortable looking at them. With a silent sigh of relief, he realized that these must be the more harmless ones Scarlet had come across on her excursions to the…source, otherwise she wouldn’t have stored them in her own quarters. A niggling worry still lurked at the back of his head, but he decided to ignore it.

He looked from the powerful unicorn toward some of the nearest objects. One was a set of connected bowls with a drop of water that leaped from one to another in a repetitive cycle. Another was a small statue that looked like a primitive carving of a minotaur. Next to that was a group of rocks stacked in a precarious way; every few seconds they would collapse and then rearrange themselves into another formation. On the shelf right below that was an unassuming-looking smooth gem in roughly the shape of a pony.

Mist Morning didn’t have the first clue what any of these artifacts did, and he didn’t feel it would be wise to ask.

He looked to Scarlet again, who was giving the objects next to him no mind. Instead, she was at the further end of the room, whispering to herself as she scanned the shelves. He caught the look in her eye, and realized that she looked nervous. Worried. He said nothing.

Eventually, Scarlet stopped her muttering, fixating her gaze on something in the furthermost corner. Mist Morning leaned closer, realizing that whatever Scarlet was looking at was fairly tucked away. He realized something felt off about that area, like Scarlet’s spell over the place was weaker there.

Scarlet stood still, as if going over something in her mind. Mist Morning wanted to ask what was causing her hesitation, but he knew better. Finally, the taller unicorn straightened up, and lifted the tucked away object in her magical grip. She presented it to Mist Morning.

It looked no more sinister than any of the other odd objects in the room. It looked, to him, like improperly blown glass, as if an inexperienced glassmaker had tried to create some sort of vase and it turned out all wrong. There was also no opening in it, but a few small orbs of light moved slowly inside it, sending ripples through the…liquid?...that filled the object when they reached a side and bounced off.

Mist Morning looked up at Scarlet. This time, he couldn’t resist asking a question. “What…is this?”

“A powerful destruction spell,” Scarlet answered matter-of-factly. “And from what I can tell, it destroys magic. Other spells. Like what the alicorns have around their crystal castle.”

“From…what you can tell?” Mist Morning asked, despite knowing how quick to anger Scarlet could be. “Will it…will it harm those who use it?”

“No,” said Scarlet, a bit too quickly for Mist Morning’s liking. “It has only weakened the spell I put on this room. Not my own magic. When it’s unleashed, it should release a much greater force on their own spell.”

Mist Morning desperately wanted to ask why she had hesitated if this was so foolproof, but he again forced his question back. “How…how is it used?” he asked instead.

“Break the glass, unleash the spell inside,” Scarlet instructed. “I’ve tested other objects with a similar function. If it brings down their shield, the rest should be easy.”

Scarlet waited expectantly, and, forcing back his reluctance, Mist Morning took hold of the artifact in his own magic. He stared at it nervously, afraid that he’d somehow drop it right then and there.

“If it doesn’t bring the shield down,” Scarlet continued, “I want you, or whoever Comet sends, to report back to me. Make it very clear to Comet. This isn’t over, regardless of what happens. I’ve waited nearly twenty-one years for this. An alicorn’s spell won’t stop me.”

Mist Morning would have felt relief as he was led out of Scarlet’s chambers, but the object he held out in front of him in his magical grip prevented him from relaxing. Break the glass, unleash the spell. It sounded so easy. Too easy, in fact, and he felt like the slightest misstep or distraction would send it crashing to the floor.

Once they left Scarlet’s quarters, Mist Morning felt the remnants of her spells leave him, and his horn grew brighter in preparation for a teleport. He glanced once again at Scarlet, who wasn’t looking at him. Instead, she stared straight ahead, a look of what was almost fear on her face.

It vanished the moment she noticed him looking. “And about the reinforcements,” she said. “Tell Comet they’ll arrive shortly.”

Mist Morning gave a relieved nod before he teleported away.

Most of the day was uneventful, but by that afternoon, tension in the castle seemed about to reach breaking point. Every time Twilight felt she could almost relax, the barrier around the castle would be hit by another set of spells, or ponies would break into panic over a fearful theory or rumor. Even the usually calm ponies were unraveling. Yet Cadance and Shining Armor, though both tired, were still holding up the spell well.

However, Starlight had discovered something that Twilight had suspected, but was still deeply unsettled to hear.

It was impossible for Starlight, a unicorn, to teleport outside the castle. It was clear that this was a part of the enemies’ spell that kept messages from being sent out. Starlight immediately forbade Twilight from trying to teleport out herself, saying that the unicorns from the caves would want an alicorn to suddenly appear outside the protected area.

Despite her nap earlier, Twilight was still tired. It was more a mental exhaustion than anything else, and the constant anxiety that gnawed at her mind was worsening it bit by bit. She was starting to let down her defenses, her nervousness threatening to overwhelm her as she thought about the shield failing, or something happening to Cadance or her brother, or-

Twilight paused. She had just stepped into the hallway leading to throne room, on her way back from a quick trip to check on Fluttershy and the petting zoo animals. She heard angry shouts that she realized belonged to a couple of her friends, who were standing outside the throne room’s doorway.

“Rarity, what were ya thinking?” Applejack cried, sounding angrier than Twilight would have expected. “We don’t know what sorta trick those unicorns are gonna pull next, and the least we can do is try an’ conserve water!”

“And what makes you think we’re going to run out?” Rarity replied, her body and mane wrapped in towels as she shivered against the cold. “Nopony told me there was a shortage!”

“It’s just plain common sense,” Applejack shouted in frustration, running a hoof through her mane. “I told a few ponies to fill the bathtubs with water as a reserve in case we needed it.”

“I…thought somepony had just left it after their bath,” Rarity responded. “And besides, Princess Cadance did tell us we were free to use the facilities as desired.”

“That was before we had everypony in the empire in here!”

Before Twilight could intervene, Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie, leaving the throne room, happened upon the argument and stopped, giving Rarity and Applejack strange looks.

“Look, ya can go without a shower for quite a while,” Applejack continued, taking no heed of the others. “We can’t go long without water, so we need to save as much of it as we can.”

“Wait a minute,” Rainbow said, hovering in midair just behind the two arguing mares, “were you the one who was using the corridor’s southeast bathroom for an hour?”

“That’s none of your business!” Rarity shouted.

“Don’t ya think we all have more important things to do right about now?” Applejack cried, pointing a hoof at Rarity.

“Hey, knock it off, Applejack,” Pinkie said, coming to stand beside Rarity and putting a hoof around the unicorn’s shoulders. “How was she supposed to know?”

“Guys, please calm down,” Twilight said, flying over to the group and landing in between Rarity and Applejack. “Applejack, you do have a point, but Rarity didn’t know until just now. Look, this isn’t anything we can’t fix. They haven’t found a way to cut off our water supply yet, so there’s no harm done. We can just…fill the bathtub up again and it’ll be fine. Fine.”

The four other mares froze, more at the sight of Twilight’s suddenly frantic face than anything else. Applejack shuffled her hooves. “Look, I’m sorry, Twi, but-”

“Ahem,” Rarity interrupted. “I think I’m the one who’s owed an apology.”

“You were the one bein’ wasteful,” Applejack muttered under her breath. “And settin’ a bad example for-”

“Applejack, why don’t you and Rainbow go see how Fluttershy’s doing with the petting zoo animals,” Twilight suggested, saying the first thing that came to mind. She didn’t bother mentioning that she had just been there herself. “Rarity, how about you…go check on Flurry Heart. Make sure she’s okay after that rough night we all had.”

“Well, I suppose…” Rarity began.

“Ooh, what about me?” Pinkie cried with an excited bounce, as if forgetting the conflict that had just happened.

“Well, okay, why don’t you-”

“Actually, I have a great idea!” Pinkie interrupted. “I’ll be back!” With a giddy grin, she galloped off down the hall.

Applejack glanced at Rainbow Dash, then at Twilight. “Alright,” Applejack said with a sigh. “I suppose you’re right. C’mon, Dash.” She, somewhat grudgingly, walked off down the hall, Rainbow shrugging and flying behind her.

Twilight wearily trudged back into the throne room with Rarity, who was grumbling something under her breath about Applejack’s complaints. They hadn’t gotten far when Rarity was nearly bowled over by Pinkie Pie, who had dashed back into the room carrying a large bag.

Rarity opened her mouth to speak when she felt a tug on her tail and realized that, somehow, Pinkie had managed to tie a balloon to it in the seconds it had taken her to get her bearings and turn.

“Balloon surprise!” the pink pony cried, reaching into the bag and tossing a clump of confetti in the air.

Rarity sighed. “Thanks, Pinkie, but I think it’s going to take more than a balloon to make this whole situation less terrible.”

Pinkie frowned at the comment, then tapped a hoof to her head in thought. “Don’t worry, I’ll keep working on it!” She cheerfully bounced toward a group of scared-looking crystal ponies.

“You know,” Twilight said with a small smile, “she is right that we need a lot more smiles and a lot less…arguing.” She hoped the contention that had just occurred wouldn’t carry on into the night. Their stress levels were high enough without it.

“You’re right, Twilight, I know that,” Rarity said as the two made their way toward the end of the room. “But I just can’t imagine how anypony will hold up if this goes on much longer. Apparently nopony’s even allowed to take a bath, and there’s only so much I can do with my supplies and a bit of water.” She made a sad frown.

“You helped Fluttershy and Thorax plenty earlier today,” Twilight reassured her. “We’ll…we’ll get through this.”

As they neared the throne, Twilight could see Flurry Heart asleep next to Cadance in a huddle of blankets. She sighed. Well, they’d have to wait if they wanted to cheer up her niece. Instead, she and Rarity stopped by their own makeshift beds, seeing that Spike, Starlight, and Thorax were the only ones currently there.

“Twilight?” Spike asked shakily, lifting his blanket from his head. She was dismayed to see that he looked rather frightened.

“Is something wrong?” Twilight asked.

“You mean, besides the small army of unicorns attacking the castle?” Spike said.

“No, I meant-”

“I know,” Spike sighed. “I was just thinking about what happened back in the caves, and I don’t know how we-”

“SURPRISE!” shouted a voice, and Twilight and Spike both nearly jumped out of their skins. Pinkie leaped in front of them, handing Spike a small cookie adorned with a red gem. “Come on, I want to see some smiles!” the pink pony urged. Reaching into her bag again, she turned to Thorax and scattered small candies in front of his blanket.

The changeling stirred, moving stiffly as he sat up.

Pinkie Pie nudged him carefully. "You gotta love candy! Come on, it's made with looooove. Well, actually it's not. It was made in a factory. But maybe its ponies just loved working there!"

Starlight stepped toward the pink pony. “Uh, Pinkie-”

“Don’t worry, I didn’t forget you!” Pinkie cried, showering Starlight with another small bunch of candies. She turned around before Starlight could reply. “And Twilight. I actually was going to give this to you later, buuuuut, I think you could use it now.” She handed her friend a thin book.

Twilight took it, realizing right away that it was simple silly joke book, but Pinkie’s thoughtful nature made her smile. Before she had a chance to thank her, however, Pinkie had already raced off.

“Well, at least somepony’s still in good spirits,” said Spike around a mouthful of cookie.

Further conversation was cut off as the castle rumbled again. Thorax let out a small whimper, retreating under the covers. Spike clung to Twilight’s legs as a few ponies cried out in fear. The shaking stopped after a few seconds, and the ponies around them looked about nervously before retreating back under their blankets or huddling together and talking in worried tones.

“Well, that…didn’t seem as bad as the last one,” Starlight said nervously.

“The castle’s going to come down around us!” a frightened pony shouted, inciting several others to panic, some racing toward the doors and shouting various claims of what the safest place in the castle was. Several foals started to cry and scream, and within a few seconds most everypony in the throne room was in a state of turmoil.

“Everypony, wait!” Twilight cried, but her voice was lost among the din. She could see Cadance nearby, having been abruptly woken and now trying to calm a hysterical Flurry Heart. “Cadance-”

The other princess lifted her head, a spell shooting outwards from her horn and throughout the room, temporarily quieting the noise. She did not silence anypony completely, but left the noise muffled enough for her to be heard. As most of the ponies paused and turned towards her, the spell faded and Cadance stood upright. “Please, everypony. We cannot give in to panic at a time like this. Our castle remains structurally sound. The guards would alert us immediately if there were any significant damage anywhere.” She turned to the small bundle at her hooves, seeing her daughter curled fearfully behind her foreleg.

“And what’s your plan?” somepony called. “What if we can’t wait them out?”

Worried shouts filled the air again, not as loud as before, but with a frantic underlying frenzy that threatened to boil over. Twilight couldn’t help but think back to the caverns, the way the unicorns down there had stopped at nothing to try and capture her, heedless of anypony who got in their way. Like her Ponyville friends, Thorax…

“Guys,” Pinkie said, trotting up to Twilight with a worried look, “I wanted to bring some cheer, but…this is gonna be a lot harder than I thought. It’s gonna take more than some balloons and candy, that’s for sure.”

“If only we could make proper use of the castle’s facilities,” Rarity lamented. “We could even get a proper spa going, and then maybe everypony could relax.”

“Shouldn’t we be saving water?” Starlight asked.

“Oh, who asked you?” Rarity grumbled.

Taken aback, Starlight said, “I…didn’t mean anything by it. I mean, you’re right about one thing. Everypony here definitely needs some help calming down.” She patted the lump of blankets where Thorax was currently shaking.

Pinkie Pie tapped a hoof to her chin. “What we need is something that can cheer up everypony. Something that’ll last a while so each pony here can get a chance to join in when they’re not doing their chores.” A smile spread across her face. “You know what we need?”

“What?” Spike asked.

“A party!”

Golden Comet stared up at the magical barrier surrounding the crystal castle, thinking back to the object Mist Morning had presented him with earlier that day. It sat, for the moment, on a table inside one of the crystal buildings near the castle, and a few of his guards had kept their eye on it from the moment it was delivered. Comet himself was content to stay away from it.

A series of flashes announced the arrival of another group of unicorns. Comet smiled; these were the reinforcements he had sent for. Two dozen unicorns stood in the snowy street, their heavy black manes thrashed by the wind. A few of them looked around in surprise, marveling at the scenery around them. One, a mare he recognized immediately, scooped up a wad of snow in her hoof and brought it up to her face, marveling at how she didn’t feel the chill.

“Jade River,” said Comet, and the mare dropped the snow and stood at attention. The large stallion walked over to the new group and passed each unicorn, giving them a stern look. He stopped at Jade, who, like a few of the others, seemed out of place compared to the stoic unicorns that made up most of the reinforcements. “Your work on the amulets has been…disappointing,” Comet told her. “Don’t disappoint me here.”

“Of course not,” Jade said, standing up a bit straighter. Anything, she thought, anything to leave that sweaty workshop, even for a day or two, was worth it. “I can do more than work with magic gems.”

Comet looked down at the pale greenish unicorn, and the amulet, identical to his, that hung around her neck. He shook his head in exasperation and carried on down the line.

“So what’s this about one of Scarlet’s artifacts?” whispered a stallion behind her. “An ancient spell, supposedly?”

“That’s what Mist Morning said,” a mare responded.

Jade tried to ignore them, instead focusing on the strange new world around her. She hadn’t been to the surface since she was a small filly, and even the wrathful storm above filled her with wonder. She was standing in a city of crystal. Until a few days ago, she would have never even guessed such a thing existed. And somewhere up in that enormous castle lay their ticket to freedom from the curse that had plagued them for almost as long as she could remember.

After Comet had finished inspecting the newcomers, he found himself pleased with the unicorns Scarlet had picked out. Powerful magic wielders, all of them. And a weapon that, as much as it unnerved him, showed promise. All he had to do now was put his plan into place, and wait for the right time to strike.

Pinkie Pie took a deep breath before bringing the mic to her face. “AAAAAAAAAAAAAAALLLL RIGHT, EVERYPONY? WHO’S READY FOR THE BIGGEST CASTLE SLEEPOVER CELEBRATION BLAST EVER?”

Cheers – first weak and halfhearted, then louder as more ponies joined in – and the pounding of hooves met her shout. The foals in the front row went wild with excitement, as did quite a few of the older ponies behind them. Twilight watched from where she sat beside Thorax and Spike. Most of the sleeping areas had been moved to the side of the throne room for Pinkie’s event, but their area was sectioned off by a row of balloon animals, letting everypony know not to disturb Thorax’s spot. At the moment, the changeling was still looking around the room in wonder, which he’d been doing since Pinkie had woken him up with the announcement that the decorations were finished.

Pinkie had wasted no time in hiring help from both her friends and the crystal ponies, and, as she presented them with party supply after party supply, they had turned the throne room into a wonder of light and cheer. Twilight was relieved to see that most of the first group of ponies to attend the party looked excited and even…hopeful, something she hadn’t seen from them in what felt like ages.

At the moment, Starlight was volunteering to help the guards patrol, keeping an eye on the windows in case of any stronger attacks. Both Cadance and Shining Armor were awake at the moment, putting extra power into the protection spell to ease the ponies’ minds.

“Hit it!” Pinkie cried, pointing a hoof toward Vinyl Scratch, who had been visiting the Crystal Faire with Octavia. The unicorn grinned and immediately began playing a record with upbeat music.

As the cheerful music began to play through the room, Pinkie pulled on a string leading up to the ceiling, sending a rain of confetti and balloons down on the waiting ponies.

Ponies began to laugh and dance, cheered on by Pinkie herself. Foals lined up to get a floating balloon from Rainbow Dash, who grinned at Pinkie as she handed a blue one to the first little pony in line. Another group was milling around a blanket spread containing treats and a bowl of crystal berry punch, which Pinkie had assured them were from her own private stash – aside from the punch – and not from any of the castle storerooms.

With all the ponies moving about, the throne room felt warmer than it had the past few days, in spite of the cold darkness outside. While it wasn’t exactly warm enough to move around for long without at least a blanket, some of the ponies were shrugging off the cold long enough to dance and laugh with each other. The bright decorations and music seemed to truly be putting them at ease, even if just for the moment.

Twilight smiled as she watched the ponies enjoying the festivities, seeing more grins on their faces than she would have expected. The music drowned out the howls of the blizzard outside, and the colorful streamers and balloons as well as the party hats Pinkie was giving out were bringing out smiles in even the most scared ponies.

“Heeyyyy, Twilight!” Pinkie cried, appearing behind her and Spike and putting her forelegs around their shoulders. “And Spike! Guess what I brought you guys!” Pinkie then reached down and handed them each a small bag of popcorn. She beamed at them. “You see, I was right to bring popcorn, wasn’t I? Popcorn is the perfect snack because I was able to bring a loooooot of it here!” She looked toward the section of the room where Applejack had helped bring in a popcorn machine from the fair, and was now serving some to a group of waiting fillies.

“That is true,” Twilight said. “And with all the popcorn machines I saw at the faire, I don’t think we’re gonna run out of popcorn anytime soon.”

“I could totally live off popcorn for weeks if I had to,” Pinkie replied. “That’s why I know that there’s no way those unicorns outside are gonna outlast us.”

“I’m glad you seem so certain,” Spike said. “Everyone’s been so on edge until this party.”

Pinkie nodded happily. “A party was the perfect thing to cheer everypony up! And speaking of perfect, you know what else is the perfect snack? Cotton Candy!” She bounced over to Thorax’s spot, presenting him with a paper cone topped with blue cotton candy.

Thorax looked it, a bit surprised. He had glimpsed the fluffy stuff at some of the stalls at the fair a few days ago, but hadn’t been completely sure it was for eating. But Pinkie had just said it was a snack, so that saved him an awkward question. He had to admit, though, it looked too pretty to be a snack, made of different blues blended together into a big fluffy shape. “Did you make this? It looks amazing!”

“It is!” Pinkie promised.

“That’s so sweet,” Thorax said. “I’ve never had candy cotton before.”

Pinkie Pie gasped. “You mean you’ve never had cotton candy? Well, it sure is a good thing I was here, then! Go ahead, try some!”

Thorax took a few more moments to admire Pinkie’s creation before he leaned forward and took a small bite. Almost instantly his eyes went wide, and he looked back at the stick of cotton candy in confusion. “It…just dissolved.”

“It’s supposed to, silly!” Pinkie laughed. “Do you like it?”

Thorax took another small bite, this time without the surprise. “It’s great!” he said.

Pinkie grinned again. “I should show you rock candy! It will blow. Your. Mind!”

Thorax smiled, seeming genuinely happy, which made Twilight happier as well. Even she was beginning to feel like she could relax, and she hadn’t realized just how much she had needed that.

It was later than anypony expected when the festivities finally died down, but by then, all the ponies who had finished their tasks were so exhausted that no howling storm could keep them awake. Most of Twilight’s Ponyville friends had already nodded off, Spike included. Pinkie Pie remained awake, excitable as ever, talking to Thorax to keep his mind off the pain as one of the nurse ponies changed his bandages.

“So…have you tried ice cream?” When Thorax nodded, she eagerly asked, “What flavors?”

Twilight shook her head to keep awake, wanting to make sure everything was okay with Thorax before she fell asleep. Even though the celebration had died down, she found herself less worried about the unicorns outside. Maybe that was the exhaustion talking, but she was willing to take it.

“What about those candies I gave you earlier?” Pinkie asked.

“Oh, they should be around here somewhere,” Thorax said, pawing at the blankets with his good forehoof.

“Oh, oh! I should show you what a pinata is. Too bad I didn’t have any room to bring one with me. There’s always next time, though! I do think I might have packed some of that rock candy I told you about.”

Applejack walked over to her own makeshift bed, yawning. “Probably not a good idea to ask him to try so many sweets right now. He ain’t feelin’ too well.”

“Oh, right,” Pinkie said. “Wouldn’t want your first experience with rock candy to be a bad one.”

“It’s okay,” Thorax said. “You’ll have plenty of time to show me.”

“You should come visit us in Ponyville!” Pinkie said excitedly. “When this is all over, I mean.”

“That’s a great idea, Pinkie,” Twilight mumbled, her eyes flickering closed. “We’d love to show you around…”

“I’d love that,” Thorax said. “Spike has told me all about it.”

“And done,” the nurse pony said, backing away to put the remainder of the bandage roll back in her bag. “You can rest now, it’ll be fine until tomorrow morning.”

Thorax nodded and lay down, looking up at the decorated ceiling and the party decorations that everypony had gladly left up. The crystal pony nurse quietly walked back toward the throne room doors.

As even Pinkie began to get cozy in her blankets, Twilight allowed herself to drift off.

Luna didn’t have a message for her in her dreams, but for the first time in days, Twilight slept soundly. There were no massive crashes of spells hitting the castle that night. Just the blizzards, but the consistent howling was easier to ignore, to shove into the background of her mind.

She woke sometime in the early morning, when most of the ponies around her – including her group of friends – were still asleep. She felt more rested than she had since before the escapade in the cave. She considered getting up to stretch her wings, but figured she could use a bit more sleep. She lay her head back down, hoping not to wake again for a few more hours. The early morning was the coldest part of the day, but her blankets were soft and warm and the castle was nearly quiet.

Twilight took a deep breath and snuggled deeper into her blankets, closing her eyes and waiting for sleep to wash over her again.

Then screams pierced the air.

With a jolt, Twilight opened her eyes, hearing the ponies in the throne room around her all abruptly wake up. Crawling out from under the blankets, Twilight watched as several crystal ponies raced into the room, a terror on their faces that couldn’t have come from just paranoia. Shining Armor and Cadance both stood up, racing toward the newcomers, but the sound of many hoofbeats drowned out their questions. A larger group of ponies poured into the throne room and through the hallways. Before Twilight could get her bearings, she heard doors being flung open, more ponies screaming, Shining Armor charging out the door. Her eyes wandered to the windows, and that’s when she realized.

Cadance’s magic shield was gone.

The cave unicorns were inside the castle.