//------------------------------// // Episode 20 "Breakthroughs and Beatdowns" (Season Finale Part 1) // Story: Equestrian City // by Malcontent //------------------------------// Breakthrough and Beatdowns By  Malcontent Proofs by Ali Coauthor and Proofreader Ali Editor in Chief Buckmiester Ideas and Brainstorms by the pony think tank *** Moondancer stared at the assortment of books and awards strewn inside of the plain cardboard box set before her.  "Not even enough awards to justify friendship," she sighed to herself. The singular box taunted her with reminders of how little she’d done with her space and her now-ended career. Lemon Hearts… she tenderly reminisced. She’s my friend, right? And the front security guard was nice to me. A gentle small smile tugged on her lips while her eyes watered. Maybe if I had tried harder in school, been more social at work...maybe I could have been someone… the smile slipped and her eyes closed. Like Twilight, Moondancer’s face scrunched as she venomously spat the name inside her own mind. Moondancer opened her eyes and snapped up her own letter from the Eastern Empire Scientific Development Department. The words of the rejection flashed in her mind for a split second before the paper was angrily crumpled. “Bet she’s having a swell time.” Moondancer grumbled, launching the paper at a nearby trash can, only to have the rim reject her again. Leaving me stuck under Tiara. Stupid brat!  Moondancer growled and wiped her eyes again. Collapsing to her chair and death-gripping the arm rests, she managed a few deep breaths before opening her eyes again. If only I had been given more time. She thought as she stared at the ceiling. On autopilot, one hand adjusted her glasses while the other seized up the desk’s last item - her name plate. AS her fingers ran over the gold plating and embossed letters, her anger subsided to a cold numbness. “This last decade,” she blindly launched the plate into her box. “All if it was for nothing.”  A sudden knot in her stomach signaled another flooding wave of emotion as it traveled up her throat and Moondancer locked her eyes shut in an attempt to force it back down. Two singular tears breached her walls and rolled down each cheek. “What the hell do I do now? Maybe I can call Wave Rider. But he’s just a bed buddy who- Huh?” How long had her computer been beeping? She adjusted her glasses and wiped her face with a tissue before turning towards the screen. “I must’ve forgot to cancel the energy scan.” A shocking amount of new notifications crowded Moondancer’s screen. Her brow furrowed as she pulled herself closer, blinked, and wiped her eyes again to be sure. “Oh… my… god…” The weight of anxiety was gone in a second and the path became clear. Her fingers danced frantically across the keyboard and the information was transferring to an external hard drive before she knew it.   “This is my project. I’m going to complete it and Ms. Tiara can’t stop me.”  Command windows, codes, prompts, confirmations and processes flashed across her screen. But came to a grinding halt after a couple minutes when the bottom of a scan result read “URGENT:  MCKRACKEN ENERGY DETECTED”, and Moondancer’s head swam with questions.   “This isn’t possible...or at least it shouldn’t be, based on everything I’ve learned so far.” She only pondered for a moment before taking action, minimizing all other windows and beginning some new commands in her scan. “Let’s see what else you’ve found for me,” she said while readjusting her glasses and turning towards the left screen. “Sensors are picking up an increase in energy activity from No Man’s Land. Interesting.” The earth suddenly shook right as she turned towards her right screen, the scan showing a spike of energy at that same moment. “What’s causing thi- whoa!” the floor shook violently and the lights flickered as an explosion roared nearby. Moondancer frantically flipped the switch to raise her blinds and spun around to the window. The sight of Equestrian City’s burning hellscape dropped her heart and jaw into her stomach. Yet another explosion reared over a distant building, it’s shockwave shaking Moondancer’s floor a moment later. She was dreaming. This couldn’t be real.    The sharp cry of sirens snapped her out of shock. Shaking her head, she twisted back around to the loud beeping of her monitor. Shakily, she clicked on her EBS box and brought up the news feed. “-yor is advising all citizens to stay indoors and off the streets. All emergency services are in place and will deal with the meta problems as quickly and safely as possible.  We also advise those with sensitive souls not to tune into channel six at the moment. Again, this is a city wide alert. Meta human activity of a dangerous nature has been reported in-” Moondancer turned off the volume and lowered the shades. "Just another evening in the big city." She said with some melancholy before refocusing. “I need this data.” She mumbled, adjusting her glasses again. "And another spike from… those coordinates?" she squinted. "But that's Purgatory. Why would there be energy readings coming from there?" she crossed her arms, leaning back in the chair as it gave a small squeak. The earth quaked again. She poured over the data, having all but forgotten her termination and the warzone outside.  She shook her head. "These levels can’t be right.  But if they are…" a devilish grin came over her face. "...then the Starswirl Award of Science has a new winner." She quirked a bushy eyebrow and resumed the frenzied dance on her keyboard. "Betcha wish HR locked my accounts before daybreak, eh Tiara?" *** “Ugh! Dang it!” Spitfire loudly growled, slammed the communicator onto the metal desk and immediately bolted from the office. Why won’t you fracking answer, Soarin?! This is supposed to be your job! she thought, frustrated as alerts pounded her ears with the news reports. Arriving shortly at the suit up bay, Spitfire ran up to one of the Wonderbolt containment tubes. “Foxtrot!” Spitfire shouted with her hand on the scanner. “Error. Unknown user. Please identify again.” The monotone feminine voice echoed. “I don’t have time for this.” Spitfire grumbled, prying the panel off and adjusting a couple wires. “Alpha-Foxtrot!” “Error. Unknown use-” “712-Alpha-Foxtrot!” “Error. Command unclear.” The wires sparked and the door to a suit slid open with a hiss. Dashing inside, Spitfire swiftly changed. “System, refit suit for current wearer.” “Error. Please identify.” “We have to get a new system.” Spitfire whispered. “Spitfire-712-Alpha-Foxtrot!” “User authorized. Welcome. How may I assist you today?” “Refit all parameters of suit 518 for the current occupant, Spitfire-712-Alpha-Foxtrot.” “Access denied. Spitfire is not registered for suit 518. Please state the administrator granting user change.” He’ll just need to forgive me later for this. “Hurricane Junior-397-Commander-Thunderstorm.” Spitfire announced. "Authorization confirmed. Warning. Refit without proper preparation data will result in an average optimization of sixty-one percent. Do you wish to continue?" a pop-up flashed with each word on the helmet’s HUD.   "Yes!" Spitfire snapped, her voice lowered in frustration. Immediately the entire kevlar coated latex suit hissed. The armor broke apart, being realigned and locked down by thin arms as controlled air adjusted the latex material to fit her smaller frame. Another set of arms adjusted the angle of the set of jets on her back. Seconds later the arms retracted out of sight.  “Refit complete. Wonderbolt armor is online. Please proceed with the orientation training so the sensors can readjust for ground movement and flight.” “Yeah, no time for that. Gotta move!” Spitfire tenuously stepped into the hallway, feeling out the ease of motion in the lighter armor, but tentatively inspecting all of its chinks and ratings. “It’s no Matterhorn. But it’ll do.” Spitfire commented while she stretched and jogged in place. “Calculating. Adjusting system augmentations.”  “Negative. Bypass safety requirements.” “Override code required to bypass safety protocol.” “Tornado-77A92V-Dawn.” Spitfire bit her cheek with a deep inhale. "Authorization confirmed. Safety sequence bypassed and confirmation code logged."  Proceeding out, Spirefire stumbled and caught herself on an open locker door. The metal crumbled without protest within her grasp as she stood. "Oh...oh that's not good." She recoiled and turned to the far end of the room. “Should probably find another way out...besides the main way.” Spitfire looked around and her eyes landed on a cylinder device marked with yellow tape - the prototype Wonderbolt catapult. “Well let’s put those eggheads’ number-crunching to the test,” she ignored the stomach pit those words created and soldiered onward. “Error. Command unknown. Please repeat the command.” Spitfire heaved a sigh. “Cancel.” Gently pulling on the catapult’s open lever only bent it slightly out of place. The door opened with an airy hiss. “Previous command canceled. Awaiting commands.” “Begin launch sequence. Prioritize fuel saving.” Spitfire ordered while she stepped inside and got into position within the close confines. Now I know what a bullet feels like. She thought as she activated the hatch marked ‘ejection’. “Confirmed. Beginning launch preparation. Please stand by.” The system answered alongside the hiss from the overhead door. “Processing. Calculating. Scanning. Recalculating.” Spitfire shifted in place anxiously. “Processing. Calculating. Course confirmed ready. Launching in ten seconds.” Immediately a steady countdown appeared on Spitfire’s HUD. Maybe this wasn’t my best idea. She thought as the number five flashed across the screen. Too late now! she gulped at the sound and feel of gears twisting, clicking, and turning into place, pulling the platform she stood on roughly down with small jerks. Looking up from her feet, the hatch had disappeared and showed an open barrel. “Preparing thrusters.”   The familiar feeling of lighting engines reignited a vigor within her from her days in fighter jets. A split-second was all it took for Spitfire to suck in some air through her nose and clench her teeth. Any doubt in herself instantly evaporated. She felt her eyes narrow and a smirk curl one side of her lip. Show time. “Launching.” The system announced right as the floor shot upward. The metal sides blurred by in a blink before her eyes were briefly blinded by the city lights. Seamlessly, the thrusters in her boots activated, sharing the suspension of her weight. Spitfire’s sight caught up and she smiled at her reunion with the sky she’d missed. Pressing a button on her helmet’s side opened her polymer visor and allowed her to take a cold, refreshing breath of thin high-altitude air.  Closing the helmet and taking in her respirator, Spitfire refocused on her mission. A distant explosion to her six prompted her to spin quickly, but too far. With a grunt, Spitfire spun back around the other way, but too far again. An additional muttered curse and a small turn got her where she wanted to be. Everything is too sensitive. Spitfire shook her head and huffed. Not a good time for a field test. Now… she looked over the spotty fires, meta fight light shows and the usual sounds of non-meta fights. Where to start? Scrunching her brow, Spitfire sighed after several moments. Okay, let’s see if this works. “Connect to ECPD Dispatch.” “Confirmed. Connecting...” Static assaulted her ears with a jumbled noise line streaking across her visor. Soon voices popped in and out with requests for backup. Inhaling and exhaling, Spitfire half closed her eyes. I need to focus. Seems several of those distress calls were about Mayhem. Cursed meta-humans. The sound of a connection brought Spitfire out of her thoughts. An audibly frightened woman answered, “ECPD dispatch-”   “This is Spitfire,” Spitfire interrupted. “Who’s in need of backup the most?” “I-um-uhh…” Spitfire heard hurried typing for three long seconds. “East 29th Street, the TV station!” she spat out. “Mayhem’s been slaughtering us like-” “Radio them I’m inbound,” Spitfire ordered as she gently turned towards the station. “Three minutes tops.” “U-understood ma’am.” Dispatch said with a sniff. “Be careful out there.” “Over and out.” The system automatically closed the connection. Spitfire’s blood turned hot and she cracked her knuckles. “System, chart a course for East 29th Street.” “Confirmed. Charting now… Displaying course.” “Standby for collision avoidance.” “Confirmed. Standing by.” “Let’s do this.” “Error. Command unclear.” Spitfire silently rolled her eyes at the system before shakily thrusting her legs behind her. Her boots launched herself forward and down. It took Spitfire a second of readjusting her arms and eyes for the system to correct itself and level off. Then she was off.  "It's slower than I expected." She muttered. "System, increase thrust from boots and back." "Error.  Increased thrust incompatible with fuel saving mode. Destination ETA ten minutes." “Override!” “Confirmed. Overriding fuel saving mode. Manual thrust mode activated.” Curling her right arm and left leg into her body to signal the suit, Spitfire heard a boost charge up in each of her thrusters. Quickly scanning her helmet’s HUD showed each thruster blinking with 100%. "Bingo!" she celebrated, launching all of her limbs out straight. The boost fired off, reducing Equestrian City to a blurry memory in her wake. The ensuing rush of adrenaline made her nearly miss the flashing red lights inside her helmet warning of a fast-approaching high rise building. A femanine yelp escaped her when the Wonderbolt’s wings automatically adjusted and veered her body over the obstacle, narrowly missing the masonry and cracking glass as she went.   The Wonderbolt suit slowed to enter hover mode thousands of feet over the city. But was not given the chance before Spitfire curled her limbs for another boost and launched herself back on track, screaming out her adrenaline-fueled delight the whole way. *** “I can see my apartment from here!” Splitsecond shouted through the shattered glass of the window she’d been thrown through. As gravity started its selfish pull on her body, she took a thinker’s pose and pondered, “Maybe I should’ve waited for backup.” The rapidly-approaching gravel rooftop below awaited to embrace the heroine. “Oh well,” she shrugged nonchalantly as she stood straight in mid-air, checking a nonexistent watch. “They should be here just...about…” Impervia met her halfway up and scooped a giggling Splitsecond out of the air. “Hang on, I got’cha!” Gravity took them both back down and they landed hard enough to dent the roof. “Whew. That was a close one.” “Yeah, I was almost a pink smear! Thanks!” Splitsecond remarked casually while dusting off her arms, knocking pebbles from her hair and cleaning off her goggles.  “What in tarnation were you thinking?!” Impervia shouted. “We can’t all go off half-cocked like that! You and Das-” she cleared her throat. “You and Shadowstrike both just ran off!” Impervia snapped with an upward toss of her arms. “Yeah, sorry.” Splitsecond sulked and knocked some gravel out of her ear. “I totally thought I could just end this quick.” She sighed, looked down and rubbed the back of her neck as distant automatic gunfire peppered the air. She looked up and around. “Hey, where is Strike?”  “She and that Dust girl are squaring off, and it seemed like a draw.” Impervia shrugged and tightened the straps of her mask and smirked. “You wanna go tilt the odds in her favor?” *** Shadowstrike’s jaw clenched in concentration. Hearing her target nearby, she swung her staff with both hands at the back. The wide arc stopped suddenly and static electricity tinged the air. The metal-on-metal clang showed Lightning Dust sliding both her tonfas down Shadowstrike’s staff just before Dust shocked her back with a punch. The distance gave Shadowstrike enough space to pull her staff back and block Lightning’s follow up punch. The kick that Shadowstrike already had chambered would’ve caught anyone else hard in the ribs. But Lightning effortlessly batted it back to the ground with a small shock. A whiz in the air over Shadowstrike’s head alerted her just in time to duck and flip out of the way, finally regaining a safe distance from Lightning Dust’s electric tonfas.   Enhanced reflexes. Of course she’d get enhanced reflexes.  Shadowstrike barely had time for thought as Lightning Dust bared down on her again. Shadowstrike ducked, feeling electricity crackle overhead as she instantly swept her staff at Dust’s legs, which were no longer there. Shadowstrike instinctively spun her staff over her head to knock one of Dust’s tonfas aside. Feeling Dust’s momentum shift through the staff, Shadowstrike spun it straight up to stop a kick aimed at her head. Pulling the top of her staff down. Knowing that Lightning would dodge this counter, Shadowstrike used the same motion to shove the staff under Lightning’s armpit. Leveraging the staff sideways, Shadowstrike tossed the electrical villain back across their battlefield.   She’s got enough speed to worry me… Almost. She thought with a smile.  Running steps signaled Shadowstrike back on guard just in time for a blast of electricity to hit her staff and launch her back. Her body locked up in the air and dropped her staff when she hit the ground. Tingling and numb, Shadowstrike clambored to a knee and struggled to stand.   Motivation was easy to find with Dust’s obnoxious laughter polluting the air, giving Shadowstrike a sonar-like visual of their surroundings and an idea of what tools she had. Lightning Dust charged her tonfas with a zap and clapped them together loudly, "Sloppy landing!" she yelled. “Really? It’s falling with style, and is that even your best hit? I barely felt it!” Dash taunted, crawling and feeling for her staff, which shocked her again as she picked it up. “How about a break? Ya seem tired.” “Ha!” Dust pushed off, swiftly diving at Shadow. “Too bad!”  Shadowstrike’s opening came when Lightning Dust jumped into the air. Vaulting on her staff at the right moment, she swung around Dust’s flank to kick her out of the air and send her careening into an air conditioner.   Shadowstrike landed on her feet with a flourish of her staff, striking a pose and facing Lightning’s general direction. “Y’know, if you’re the best money can buy, I’m insulted.” I gotta figure some way out of here. This is almost a draw. She thought tiredly.  Dust growled in frustration, and closed their distance with a leap and a roll. Coming to her feet and figure-eighting her weapons around her created an infinity-shaped shield of electricity.  Shadowstrike didn’t need a sonar sense to tell that Lightning Dust was too angry to pay attention. She gambled that it was enough to get around Lightning’s enhanced reflexes as she shuffled back, flourished her staff again and swung behind her back.   The staff clotheslined Lightning Dust across the chest. But the score came at the cost of the static field shocking Shadowstrike, who found herself launched back into the brick wall of the stairwell and fighting for breath through the electrical burns. Through her haywire sonar, Shadowstrike could barely manage to hear Lightning Dust recover first and stamp towards her, flaring like an enraged tesla coil. "Funny, I was sorta thinking the same thing!" Dust laughed sarcastically as she pulled up Shadowstrike’s hair. Pressing the heroine’s head against the brick, she charged her tonfa and aimed a blow at her enemy’s exposed neck. Lightning shrieked in pain when a rock suddenly hit her chambered arm. A dozen more followed and sent her sprawling to the ground before she could react. Scrambling pathetically, she managed to take cover behind the stairwell and regain her footing. With a tightened grip on her tonfas, the world flashed pink and she screamed again, finding herself on the ground and clutching her cheek.   After another second, she looked up to see Splitsecond tossing and catching a piece of gravel repeatedly. “There’s no reward for you,” Lightning spat as she got to her feet. “But it’s the bottom of the ninth and the green meanie has two strikes and the bases are loaded!” Splitsecond announced with a swing of her hips and a fake baseball pitch. “Can she get a hit or will the heroes take the world series?” With a groan, Lightning Dust pulled a trigger on her tonfas, releasing steel blades that she instantly charged up. Splitsecond picked up a leg and spun her arm in a circle. “And here comes the pitch!” Splitsecond announced when her arm became a barely visible pink circle on the side of her body. “Swing-a-batta-batta-swing-batta-batta-swing!” Lightning managed to stay one step ahead of Splitsecond’s highly telegraphed throws and deflected each piece of gravel launched at her. In a moment, there were none left at the speedster’s feet, giving Lightning the opening she needed. The initial stab was easy to dodge. But Lightning knew that Splitsecond wasn’t smart enough to anticipate a second, and easily sliced the back of her thigh on the follow-up. Splitsecond yelped in pain and tried to run away, only to fall a few feet away, clutching her new wound. “You won’t be saving her this time!” Lightning Dust shouted as she rushed over and stabbed at Splitsecond, only to have her tonfa snap on a black brick wall that hadn’t been there a second ago. Heart sinking with realization, she slowly craned her head up to meet Impervia’s disappointed glare. "Well, I can't say you're wrong there,” Impervia scolded with arms crossed. Lightning Dust brought back her other tonfa and stabbed again, only to have that blade shatter to pieces as well.   "Really?" Impervia raised a single eyebrow, a deadpan stare at the girl.   Lightning’s desperate haymaker found its mark on Impervia’s cheek and she yelped like a wounded puppy when her wrist twisted and sprained under the recoil, dropping her tonfas and clutching her limp hand. She looked back up to Impervia with regret in her eyes. But before she could beg for mercy, the tall blonde gave Dust a casual shove to the chest - launching her clean across the rooftop and bouncing harshly off the faraway ledge. Attempting to keep her dignity intact, Lightning made an honest effort to stand back up. She only made it to one wobbling leg before she coughed out teeth and she collapsed back into the gravel. "Well you were right," Impervia nodded at Split. "That was quick."  Limping, but no longer bleeding, Splitsecond helped up a groaning Shadowstrike. "Yeah the whole combined forces trope is no joke,” her pink hair still bizarrely fluffy. "You ok?"  Shadowstrike shook her head a bit. "I'll be fine." She replied, picking up her staff with another toe flip. Spinning it back into a compact size, the staff gave a metallic clang as it snapped to the girls belt. "Where's Bat-Shy?"  Two rather roughed up girls dropped to the rooftop as delicately as sacks of potatoes.  "Nevermind, there she is." Shadowstrike said, flipping a thumb towards the sky.  The cracking of the rooftop concrete followed as the taloned feet of Andrea landed behind them. The ravaged rags of what remained of Fluttershy's skirt and blouse fluttered in the wind. Patch works of pink fur covered her crotch and bust, along with several other areas in a pattern akin to primal camouflage. Flexing her body up, a pair of bat-like wings spread wide behind her, cloaking her body in shadow, leaving the glint of her fangs and the crimson glow of red in her eyes.  "You girls missed all the fun," She hissed, kicking the body of one of the downed thugs, a pathetic whimper coming from the body. "Thirty or so weaklings later and I'm barely breaking a sweat." Andrea grinned wide. "Think you could top that?"  "Ha!” Splitsecond scoffed. “In college I was at a party where there were fifty-four-" Impervia’s hand quickly covered her mouth. "Let's put that on hold," Impervia took her hand back and examined the rest of the building for damage. "If my math is right, we got one ornery mustang left to put down."  "...and she ain't one for saddles," Splitsecond added, rubbing the knot on the top of her own head.  "Well, then, what are we waiting for?" Shadowstrike goaded.   Andrea cracked her neck with a maniacal grin and began taking flight. Shadowstrike wasted no time in jumping up and hitching a ride on her talons. Impervia hoisted Splitsecond by the hip and launched herself back towards the hole made by Mayhem, grinning at her friend’s excited 'wheeee!'  *** "I know you can’t feel it," Malcontent said as he took in a long breath, closing his eyes for a moment, extending his arms as if to embrace an invisible aura around him. "But the sheer emotion this city has been giving off is intoxicating. Who knew such simple creatures could be charged with such violent tendencies so easily?"  Opening his eyes, he looked down at Sunset, still held in the icy shackles next to the large device now siphoning energy from afar. Turning towards her, he clasped his hands behind his back and craned his head to gaze on her, almost disappointed that her mood seemed to be less than he had hoped.  "You know, I have always liked you.” Sunset's gaze returned a cold stare, which slowly warmed into a sly grin and she defiantly flipped her hair up. "So what's your story? Been here long?” she asked curiously. “This sorta device isn't made in a day, nor is it easy to move the hardware to make it. All so you could supposedly make a portal to Equestria?"  "The parts were easy to get,” Malcontent rolled his eyes before settling back on Sunset and wryly wagging a finger. “Moving them without someone noticing took finesse, and a bit of sensual tactics my lovely Aria took care of for me." He turned his head towards the unconscious siren suspended to the pylon next to Twilight. "She is quite skilled when her sisters aren't in her way." Sunset glanced at the device again and the multicolored trail leading up to it. "Siphoning magic isn't child’s play. You've impressed me with that." She tilted her head to stare back at him. "What I don't get is why you went to so much trouble to bring me here if you just needed Twilight."  "I like to think you and I have similar goals." The catwalk rattled as he stood and stared down at her. "In fact, we both have a lot in common." He stepped in front of her and knelt, staring her in the eye, his aura growing ever chillier as ice crystals formed on his very words. "We both know we're destined for greatness."  Sunset tried to hide her shiver. "Why is that?" she asked. Keep him talking. She thought. He seems to love to talk. "Because when you're stuck in Tartarus, you have plenty of time to people-watch. Or at least I did." He stood back up and gripped the catwalk’s railing, freezing it instantly. "The sentence your old teacher gave me was quite unique."  "Princess Celestia sent you away to the underworld? You must have been very dangerous…or caught her on a bad day." She smirked. Have to concentrate on getting enough fire back. She thought. "What was your crime? Did you try and off her royal pet?"  "I like to think it was a bit of both to your first point." He gave her a deadpanned look, turning towards the now audible thumps of the magic siphoning. Gathering like a massive storm, he shifted and stared at Twilight. "As for my crime; I did what I always did. I made a deal. A little earth pony who wanted nothing but for people to listen to her ideas." He turned back towards Aria.   "I'm guessing it went sour?" Sunset could feel water and sweat pooling around her hands.  "Like most, she wasn't willing to pay the piper." He continued, taking a step or two towards his captive siren. "And the ensuing commotion caught Celestia’s attention." Malcontent spat off the catwalk, which formed a large ice puddle on the grass. "Beat the tar out of you, I take it?" she gave a smirk.  "Celestia and I were on even footing," Malcontent corrected her, a series of beeps from the console drawing his attention. He turned some of his attention towards it. "She was very upset, having just killed her sister. So she didn't realize she was empowering me by just being there."  ‘Killed her sister’? Luna was banished, not killed. Sunset thought. No time to worry about that now. She felt the ice cracking around her wrists. "Had it not been for the underhanded tactics of a certain earth pony, I would have easily conquered all of Equestria once its ruler was down." Malcontent kept to the console, unlocking it with his fob and turned his focus to the screen. "Ah good. Almost done."  "So you're all bent out of shape because Celestia banished you? How do you expect to come close to beating her now? She's had all the time to learn more." Sunset felt part of the ice give way, falling into her palm silently. "Sounds like you're just setting yourself up for a fall again."  "See, I have considered that." The serious tone on his face gave way to a wide smile. "My solution to that, well," he continued with a sly tilt of his head. "I must give you the credit for that." Reaching into his pocket, he produced a black velvet bag.  "What..?" she raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"  "Pop quiz." Mal smiled as he reached into the sack and brought out a red gem. "What happens when you bring an element of harmony into another dimension?!" She gasped.